Frank tapped in the code to his room. It was February 7th and Jamia was over the moon about Valentines Day coming up on the 14th. Frank, however, was positive that he couldn't care less. He pushed the door open, and headed straight for his bed, but stopped in his tracks when he saw a small red heart on his pillow, folded neatly from red paper with a short note on the top.
He picked up the small piece of paper, turning it over in his hands before unfolding it, flattening it against his thighs and holding it up again.
"Good Afternoon,
Look after me carefully, and I might just tell you who I am.
14/2/01"
Frank frowned, Reading over the note again. The soft, smooth cursive writing wasn't a hand he was familiar with, and he wracked his brain for who could have possibly gotten into his dorm to place the note on his bed.
"Hi Frankie." Gerard said, reaching out and touching Frank's shoulder lightly as he walked past, dropping his satchel onto his bed.
Frank jumped, looking up at Gerard with wide eyes and attempting to re-fold the red paper to hide away in his pocket.
"Whaddya got there?" Gerard asked, catching sight of the red thing in Frank's hands, no longer resembling a heart anymore.
"I- it's- I- nothing!" Frank said defensively, holding the paper close to him.
"Okay! Okay, I'm not gonna steal it off you." Gerard said, holding his hands up in mock surrender.
"It's a note," Frank sighed, caving as he sat down on the edge of his bed, "but I don't know how it got there, it was just on my pillow when I came in..."
"A note?" Gerard hummed, unpacking his bag onto his desk and turning back to face Frank.
"Yeah..." Frank mumbled unsurely, "you didn't put it there... did you?"
"Depends what it says-" Gerard smirked, before seeing Frank's worried and confused expression, "No I'm just kidding, it wasn't me, you know I've been out all day today like you."
Frank let out a short sigh, he had had a small hope that it had been Gerard who put the note there, but that hope was quickly crushed at Gerard's denial.
"What does it say though?" Gerard asked, sitting down next to Frank, his arm resting on the opposite side of Frank's body.
"Oh, it's this, kinda cryptic huh?" Frank gave a sharp laugh, unfolding the paper again and holding it out for Gerard to read.
"Seems like someone's working up to be your valentine, Frankie." Gerard chuckled, delicately taking the paper and lifting it up to read.
"Pfft, no, for me? Who would want me as a valentine?" Frank laughed, although Gerard heard the dark tone behind the light humour.
"Frank-"
"I'm just kidding! Just kidding." Frank quickly said, noticing Gerard's disapproval.
"Is this the only one you've got? Do you think you'll get any more?"
"Yes it's the only one I've got, and honestly? No I don't think I'll get any more but I don't know at the same time, because why would they put a date in the future on it if they weren't planning on giving me more?"
"I don't know, Frankie, I don't know." Gerard sighed, tilting his head so it was resting on the top of Frank's own.
"This is stressing me out now!" Frank exclaimed, holding the sheet out in front of the both of them.
"Shh, Shh, it's okay-" Gerard attempted to sooth Frank, taking the sheet from Frank's hands and folding it up, following the creases that had already been made so it was back in the shape of a heart again.
"How did you- I couldn't-"
"Frank. I literally take Art. What do you think I spent doing for the first eighteen years of my life?"
"I-"
"Messing around with art, and origami was one of the things I took a liking to... I could teach you how to make some if you want?"
"Oh, really?" Frank gasped, his eyes lighting up as he gazed at Gerard, who nodded with a soft smile.
"Of course."
———
"What's this?"
"Huh?" Frank asked, looking over to where Jamia was sat on his bed, now holding the folded heart in her hands and Frank's mouth formed an 'o' shape.
He snatched the paper from her, tucking it away in his jeans pocket,
"Nothing."
"I already read it anyways Frank."
"Jamia!" Frank whined, falling back so he was sat on his bed again instead of at his desk where he was before.
"What? This is so cute!"
"You don't even know what it means-"
"Doesn't mean it isn't cute! Mystery man is sending you love notes in the lead up to Valentine's Day, awh." Jamia sighed, clutching her hands to her chest and falling back against his bed.
"It might not be a guy, I don't exactly flaunt that I'm gay or anything-"
"Frank-"
"What? You thought I had a crush on Lindsey for like... two months before I told you about Gerard!"
"Okay, Okay, you got me there, so mystery person - doesn't quite have the same ring to it though, does it?"
Frank shook his head, pulling the heart from his pocket and looking at it again, turning it carefully in his hands as he did so.
"Ugh, I just really wanna know who it is now!" Jamia groaned loudly.
"Yeah, me too." Frank let out a soft chuckle, tucking the heart away again, although there was no doubt he'd be getting it out soon anyway.
"I was trying to think, y'know, who's handwriting looks like this? I know it's not Gerard's, 'cause his is really messy - it's legible, but just messy - and it's not yours, 'cause yours is like a print style of handwriting, and it isn't Lindsey's, 'cause hers is all bubbly-" Jamia let out a snort at the way Frank described Lindsey's handwriting, "What? It is!" He exclaimed defensively.
"Whatever you say, whatever you say."
"But then, I don't know who else it would be, 'cause I don't talk to anyone else really." Frank sighed, ignoring Jamia when she scoffed, 'antisocial.'.
"And how on Earth did they get into my room? Only you, Lindsey and Gerard know the code-"
Jamia shrugged, sitting up again.
———
Frank had another lesson that day, as part of the music course he was taking, he had to do a theory section, which didn't really require much thought for him as he had learnt most of it off his guitar teacher when he had still been learning.
But that didn't stop how hard he usually worked in those lessons, he had a nice teacher, and the small group of people he was in a class with were all decent too.
He was heading back to his dorm when someone ran into him, someone a lot taller than him.
"Shit- sorry-" Frank said, turning to look at them.
"Frank?"
"Bert?" Frank scowled lightly, before remembering that Bert really hadn't been that nasty to him, he just didn't have a great reputation.
"Dude I haven't seen you in like... weeks!"
"Yeah, I guess." Frank mumbled.
"How've you been?"
"Good..."
"Hmm, Okay. Had any luck with Gerard?"
"What do you mean?" Frank asked defensively and frowning again, something he had been doing a lot recently.
"Nothing bad, nothing bad, I'm just asking that's all. I just meant that, cause you really like him, right?"
"No."
"Oh, please! You aren't telling me that you looked so upset when he didn't pay any attention to you because he's just your friend." Bert said, touching Frank's arm lightly, nudging him in the direction he was originally headed.
"I was gonna go this way anyway-" Bert clarified once they were walking again.
"Oh..."
"Obviously I get if you don't wanna tell me anything, I mean, we hardly know each other... but that can change if you want it too." Bert winked at Frank.
"For fucks sake Bert, not everyone wants to be fucked by you, okay? And besides, I don't wanna hurt Gerard any more than he already is..." Frank burst out, his voice softening as he mentioned Gerard.
"Hey, hey that's okay, I don't mind I'll just find someone else who does wanna have sex.. I was meaning to have a one on one, bro on bro y'know with you anyway."
"What?"
"A one on one chat, you know, together, alone," Frank raised an eyebrow, he was still skeptical about Bert, but he didn't seem like such a bad guy, "no! Not like that, I don't wanna get in your pants, don't worry, you're not my type anyway... I was thinking more about one on one, and dealing with your crush."
Frank's other eyebrow raised, a mild shock about his face as he listened to Bert.
"Now, I'm sure you've heard the rumours about me, yes I'm a fuckboy, yes I do live in a frat house, but I am also a nice guy who can take no for an answer, and I'll respect your wishes."
"Yeah, Jamia said you could be nice." Frank mumbled.
"But that's beside the point, I think you and Gerard would make a great couple, we just need to get you together..."
"And how exactly do you plan on doing that? I mean, look at him, he obviously doesn't like me like that..."
"I think I know him in a slightly different way than you do, but I also know more about him in that way, maybe we could meet up again and have another chat soon?" Bert proposed, before suddenly grabbing Frank's arm and scrawling down his number in a blue biro.
"Call me cutie." Bert smirked, holding his hand up to his ear as if he were on the phone and winking before he turned around again, strutting off in the direction they had just come from.
Frank stood in shock. He was now outside of the building where his dorm was, which was where he was supposed to be, but Bert...
The conversation had been over so quickly that Frank had barely processed what Bert had said to him.
The long-haired male hadn't answered any of his questions, but had done it so subtly that Frank hadn't noticed until he had gone, and by that point he had already disappeared from Frank's line of sight, making him doubt that the whole situation had ever happened, however when he looked down at his arm, the 9 digit number was still there against his pale skin.
What had Bert meant that 'he knew Gerard in a different way, that he knew Gerard better' than Frank? Gerard had even accidentally let slip that out of all his friends, the longer running ones and the new, Frank probably knew him best.
Oh well Frank shrugged to himself as he trudged back up the stairs to his dorm.
"What were you doing with Bert? What did he write on your arm? Why was he talking to you? What did he say?" Gerard demanded as soon as Frank pushed the door open.
"We were just talking, that's all, and he wrote his number, see?" Frank said, holding his arm out to Gerard, who pulled him forwards, inspecting the scruffy scrawl on his arm.
"What did he say to you?" Gerard asked again, looking up at Frank and not letting go of his wrist. Frank shifted uncomfortably under Gerard's harsh gaze, trying to pull his wrist back but Gerard wasn't having any of it, keeping his fingers locked around Frank.
"I think that's none of your business, Gerard." Frank finally said, making a point to use Gerard's full name - as opposed to 'Gee'.
Gerard's grip on Frank's arm loosened and the smaller boy pulled his hand up to his chest, wrapping his own hand around his wrist and massaging it gently.
"Look, I just don't want you to get hurt, okay? Bert is bad news, and he will find a way to twist you around his little finger." Gerard sighed.
"But I'm not like you. I told him that not everyone wants to fuck him, and he told me that I wasn't his type anyway and would find someone else to fuck, so again, I don't think this-" Frank said, gesturing between the number on his arm and himself, "is any of your business."
Gerard stayed silent for a few seconds as Frank walked away from him, dropping his bag onto his bed.
"I know you aren't that guy, but please don't say I didn't warn you if Bert tries anything, okay? I don't want you to get hurt." Gerard said quietly. Frank didn't reply, he knew what Bert was capable of and didn't need telling twice, but it was nice to know that Gerard was there for him.
I've been using song titles as chapter titles quite a bit recently... thoughts on it? yes? No? idk i quite like them ngl