Honey

"So," Eliza said as Frank entered the store that Wednesday.

Frank avoided her gaze, instead choosing to enter the store with his head hung low. He had been expecting this interrogation, but wasn't quite ready for it.

"What happened to you at the party?" She asked.

Frank looked up with innocent eyes. "What do you mean? I was there."

Eliza shook her head. "No, Frank. After the party. After the countdown. I saw you leave with Gerard."

"Gerard took me to the party, Eliza. I had to leave with him."

Knowing she was getting nowhere the nice way, Eliza climbed over the counter and stood in front of Frank with her hands on her hips. "I saw you kiss him at midnight, Frank. I saw you leave the hotel holding hands and I know for a fact you didn't go straight home."

"How would you know that?" Frank asked, shocked. He thought he'd been pretty secretive when it came to what happened after the party. Nothing major had happened, but he still wanted to keep his relationship with Gerard private for a while.

"Mikey told me Gerard didn't get home until three that morning."

Frank sighed. "Nothing major happened, Liz. We grabbed a coffee from 7-11 and hung out at the park for a few hours."

Eliza moved back so she could lean against the counter. "Okay... so tell me everything. Starting with, lets say, ten minutes before midnight."


"They're gonna start counting soon," Gerard said, glancing toward the clock.

Frank nodded, sipping at his champagne. He was nervous and hopefully not letting it on. He looked toward Gerard and smiled politely. "Yeah. They are, I think."

Gerard chuckled. "Wanna join the crowd? It'll be more fun that way, you know, since we aren't' standing off to the side by ourselves."

"Okay. Sure." Frank discarded his champagne at the bar and accepted Gerard's hand as the older of the pair led the way to the center of the banquet hall. His insides felt knotted up and he wasn't sure if it was the alcohol or more nerves. New Years used to be easy with Josh. The clock would strike, he'd kiss his boyfriend, and then they'd go home.

Gerard was new. Frank had never even kissed Gerard before that night.

First came ten.

Gerard looked down at Frank grinning as the numbers slipped off his tongue. Frank wasn't even sure if he was counting. He was looking at Gerard's lips the whole time wondering if he'd be doing more a couple of seconds later.

Then came one, and Gerard was leaning in. And after that Frank was lost. Kissing Gerard wasn't awkward and Frank wasn't unsure of what he was doing. It didn't feel like the first time at all. In fact, Frank felt as if he should have been doing it a long time ago.

When he pulled away, Gerard's hands fell to Frank's hips. Frank's cheeks flushed a deep shade of pink, but in the way that let Gerard know everything was fine. Seconds later, one of Gerard's hands slipped from Frank's hips and found his hand.

"Wanna go?" He asked, nodding toward the door.

Frank's eyes wandered the room, in search of Eliza. When he didn't find her he assumed she'd left with Mikey. "Sure," he said, meeting Gerard's gaze. "Lead the way."

A stop at 7-11 and a fifteen minute drive later, Frank and Gerard were lying in the grass at a park a mile or so away from the store Frank worked at.

"So," Gerard said. "What to you think my brother and your best friend are up to right now?"

Frank turned to face Gerard, laughing. "I don't think I want to know."

"Why?"

"They looked pretty cozy at the party a few hours before midnight," Frank mentioned, scrunching up his nose.

"Really now?" Gerard replied, curious. "I didn't notice."

Frank grinned. "You wouldn't have, they were hanging out near the bathroom."

Gerard chuckled at the thought of his brother with a girl near the bathrooms. No matter how hard he tried, he had a hard time believing his brother got any action at all.

"Well, that's more than I needed to know," he said. "Besides, my brother and your best friend shouldn't be the topic of conversation."

"You're the one who brought it up," Frank pointed out.

Gerard reached over, taking Frank's hand. "And now, I'm bringing it down. I'd rather just lie here with you and count stars or something."

Frank sighed, deciding that he liked Gerard even more than he'd previously thought. "Okay then," he said. "Lets count stars."