Frank Iero's Paranormal Investigation Agency ( #48 in MCR, #1 in Vampiregerard )

Chapter Fifteen

.Frank's POV.

I blinked in disbelief. He was really gone.

I took a shaky breath, and when the reality of what just happened hit full force, I couldn't help but to crumple where I stood, shoulders shaking.

What am I going to do? He just... Left. My chest tightened. What if he gets himself killed? I thought, feeling my hands ball into fists. No. He can't. Not if I can help it. I sat there for a few more minutes, knees drawn up to my chest, half trying to calm down, half devising a plan.

Finally, my breathing slowed down to an almost normal rate, and I felt the shaking subside. I sighed heavily and stood up. A soft crinkling sound at my foot caught my attention, and I recognized the napkin Gerard had written on. I picked it up, feeling a flash of anger. I crumpled it up and tossed it in the waste bin, not bothering to read it. Screw his Ive-gotta-protect-you-bullshit. I was going to do this my way.
--
After grabbing what little I had in the room and checking out, I began walking towards my house. It was still late morning, so my mom would be at work, for which I was both grateful and sad.

It wasn't too far a walk, and I was there within the hour. I reasoned that it probably wasn't wise to go through the front door, in case the Ways were watching for me. Or someone else, I thought grimly, as I slipped through the back door. I carefully closed it, and looked around the house. I'm not sure what I expected, really. Nothing had changed-- I'd only been gone about 2 days. Yet, everything seemed so different. It was like I was looking at it through the eyes of a stranger, or like I had been gone for years. I shook my head, remembering why I'd come. I dutifully walked up to my room, and searched around for my backpack. When I found it, I turned it upside down, emptying the contents onto the floor, and then kicked them all under my bed. I then started rummaging around my room, packing what necessities I could think of.

Once I had grabbed everything that would fit in my bag, I figured there wasn't really anything left to do there. The quicker I left the better. I stopped in my doorway, and took it in the best I could. Recalling all the memories in this room. I looked at my halfheartedly made bed-- mom must've made it when I didn't come home last night-- and remembered Gerard and I sitting right there. My chest tightened again when I thought about it, but it strengthened my resolve. Taking a deep breath, I grabbed one more vial of holy water from my shelf, and slowly made my way to the back door again. I paused at each room, trying to memorize every detail.

I stopped at the kitchen counter, pulled out a pad of paper and a pen, and started writing.

Mom-- I'm staying with a friend for a few nights. Big school project to work on. I've got everything I need, sorry I couldn't tell you in person. I love you.

Frankie

I sighed, hoping the note would buy me some time, and spare my mom some worrying. I laid it where I knew she'd spot it, and made sure to delete the voicemail from school, no doubt calling to say I'd not shown up. After taking care of that, I slipped out the door again, making sure to not look back.

--

By now it was almost noon. Everyone was still in school, and the town was pretty empty. I was still careful to not expose myself too much, as I couldn't afford a complication right now. It was time to put my plan into action.

The next place on my list was the Way residence. I hoped to all my lucky stars they were still on their "trip." I knew Mikey would be at school, so at least I didn't have to worry about him.

I arrived at  their street after a few more minutes of walking, pulled out some binoculars I'd grabbed from my  room, and peered down the road from behind the fence of the first house on the street. I didn't see any cars in their driveway, and I released a breath I didn't realized I'd been holding. Feeling slightly nauseated, I started toward the house.