Pyre (Frerard, Rikey, Ryden, Petekey)

33: Isn't Pain Supposed To Make You Stronger?

Frank wasn't sure how long he stayed outside of the door after it closed behind Gerard, but it felt like eons to him. His head was spinning so violently he was slightly worried that he was going to be sick, but he couldn't convince his feet to move just yet, so he continued to stand there with his hands dangling loosely at his sides, small tremors shaking his frame as watched his boyfriend - his vampire boyfriend disappear from his line of vision.

It was almost as if Frank was having an out of body experience, he could vaguely see himself in the entryway, he watched as his chest rose and fell, as his palms brushed against his thighs, but he wasn't a part of himself. Maybe it was a coping mechanism to escape the panic that was hovering all around him, or maybe he had really gone crazy, but whatever it was, Frank knew he couldn't maintain this distance from what had happened forever.

A hysterical chuckle clawed its way out of his throat a few minutes later, the sound startling him since Frank wasn't really aware of himself right now, but the humorous noise quickly morphed into a sob as the weight of everything he had learned tonight crashed down around him, the situation no longer appearing either funny or manageable at all now despite what Frank had told Gerard.

Frank regained control of himself quickly, wiping at his face angrily before leaning back against the wall, taking a few unsteady breaths in an effort to calm down, and it worked, temporarily at least, but that would have to be good enough for now.

He still didn't want to believe this, how could he honestly? Vampires weren't real, but apparently they were, and fuck - forcing his mind to accept that was a much more difficult task than Frank had thought it would be. He had never claimed to be all that stubborn, and he'd been given very solid proof of the fact that vampires did indeed exist, that wasn't the problem here, but still - this was too much, too crazy, too unexpected, too painful.

Frank didn't want Gerard to be a vampire, and not because he couldn't move past his species eventually, because he probably could if he was given a bit more time, but he wasn't sure how to handle the news that he was no longer allowed to see Gerard thanks to a bitch named Lindsey that hated humans for some reason that Frank had either forgotten or never been told.

It was ridiculous when Frank laid it out that way, although he didn't understand how the vampire hierarchy worked, but Gerard was an adult, probably - vampire aging was another subject that Frank hadn't thought to ask about, but he didn't see how one person could have so much authority over him and sequentially Frank. That wasn't how things were supposed to work, but Gerard had seemed terrified of her, so she must hold quite a bit of power over him.

Frank's knees buckled slightly as his brain continued to work itself into a frenzy, and while he still could, Frank convinced his stiff body to make its way upstairs before he collapsed in the middle of the hallway, and although he did stumble on the stairs and almost fall, he managed to make it without sustaining any serious injury.

Frank threw himself onto his bed with a soft groan when he entered his room without switching on the light, not bothering to change out of his clothes or even to get under the blankets since he no longer had any energy left in his trembling limbs.

Frank glanced over at the nightstand where he'd placed his bottle of lube and a condom earlier in the hopes that he and Gerard would be using them right about now. He didn't think this was how his night would end, he'd envisioned Gerard here beside him, he'd wanted to fall asleep with him, to hold him after going a week without, but now he had no idea when he would be able to see his boyfriend again, and it was that fact that had a few tears spilling down Frank's cheeks, his chest tightening painfully as he curled in around his knees in a paltry attempt at providing himself with some of the comfort that he was in desperate need of, but if he was being truthful with himself, he needed Gerard here with him if he had any hopes of feeling better, even with all of the complications his presence would bring.