Honey

Gerard entered the small convenient store, the present Frank had bought for him tucked safely inside the bag he had received it in. Eliza saw him come inside and held up a finger signaling for him to wait, before going to grab Frank.

"Hey," she called, her voice low. "Someone is here to see you."

Frank turned around, a roll of unopened toilet paper in his right hand. He tilted his head to the side and offered Eliza a funny look. "What? A person?"

Eliza nodded. "Yeah. Are you expecting an animal of some sort?"

Frank shook his head, laughing lightly to himself. "No. I'm just not expecting anyone. Gerard is supposed to be at his parents house until Friday."

"Well, Gerard is here, not at his parents house."

Frank's brow furrowed. "Huh?"

Eliza smacked her forehead with an open palm. "Just go to the front, Frank. Please, the boy is waiting for you."

Frank sighed, moving past Eliza and toward the front counter. He stopped halfway when he saw Gerard standing halfway between the counter and the doorway, the plastic bag dangling from his left hand.

"Hey..." He said, smiling softly. "You're supposed to be at your parent's house. It's only Friday."

Gerard shrugged. "I can only handle my mother's nagging for so long, you know?"

Frank chuckled, stepping around the counter. He walked the short distance that separated him and Gerard, stopping about a foot before the older of the pair. He leaned forward, enveloping his friend in a hug. When he pulled away, his eyes wandered down and noticed the plastic bag.

"Is that the gift I got you?" He asked. Gerard nodded. "Are you giving it back? Did you not like it or something?"

Gerard shook his head. "No, no, no. I just had it with me and I wanted to thank you. I really liked it. I mean... I forgot I told you about my art and what not."

Frank blushed a deep shade of red. "Oh, well... I thought you'd appreciate that. I didn't know what else to get you."

"I love it. Really. Thanks."

Frank's eyes wandered to the floor, and then he remembered the gift Gerard had gotten him. "Oh! I wanted to tell you how much I loved your gift. No one ever bothered with getting me a snow globe before."

Gerard chuckled. "Yeah, well... you told me about how you've always wanted to go to Paris, but I knew I wouldn't be able to fly you down there any time soon, so I figured a snow globe would be the next best thing."

Frank smiled softly, the blush creeping steadily back over his features. Gerard probably hadn't bothered to realize his choice of words, primarily the anytime soon part, but Frank had. It kind of made him nervous knowing that Gerard planned on staying around for a while.

"Thanks," Frank mumbled, looking back up at Gerard.

The pair fell into a slightly uncomfortable silence. Gerard clasped his hands tightly together and allowed his eyes to wander the store. He hadn't stopped by just to thank Frank for the gift, he'd had ulterior motives. The problem was, he was afraid of the answer he'd receive in response to his question.

It was strange for Gerard, feeling all these different things towards Frank. Usually, he met guys and hung around for a while until he grew bored. But with Frank, things were different. He wanted Frank to like him. He wanted to say and do all the right things the right way.

"There's this thing on New Years," he started. "I think you should go with me."

Frank cocked his head to the side. "A thing? What kind of thing?"

Gerard shrugged. "Just a party. It's at this hotel downtown. My brother knows a guy who knows a guy who is having the party. We got invited through association. I figured, you know, you could be my date. It could be fun."

Frank nodded. "Okay... is it formal?"

"Yeah. Suit and tie kind of thing. Real fancy."

Frank glanced behind him toward Eliza, who was finishing up the toilet paper. "I would go, it's just... Eliza and I always hang out on New Years. I don't want to stand her up or anything... She'll say she doesn't care, but I know she doesn't want to spend New Years all by herself."

Gerard folded his arms. "Oh, well... What if my brother took her? He doesn't have a date yet - he broke up with his girlfriend - and I think he and Eliza would hit it off."

Frank grinned. "You'd do that?"

"If it means you'll go to the party with me, yeah," Gerard answered, smirking. "So, will you go?"

Frank nodded. "Yeah. I'll go with you."

"Good. I'll come get you around three, New Years Eve."

Frank furrowed his brow. "Three? The party starts that early?"

Gerard shook his head, the smirk still present on his face. "No. Dress Casual. I'll be there at three."

"But why?" Frank asked, confusion laced within his words.

Gerard started toward the door, once again feeling confident and himself. "Don't worry about it. It's a surprise."