Frank Iero, You Are My Hero

Later that night, Mercy crawled into her bunk. All day, she had been completely out of it. Why in the world did he kiss her like that, then just leave? He had been avoiding her all day too, not willing to stay in the same room as Merc. The both of them kept getting strange looks from everyone in the band, especially Bob. She couldn’t really blame them. Frank was acting like a schizoid. If she wasn’t so weirded out by what he had done, she certainly would be by the way he was acting.

She pulled the covers up to her chin and turned on her side, her face right next to the dark red velvet curtains that partitioned her from the rest of the bus. The quiet seemed to overwhelm her, causing her to feel restless. Every now and then, a snore emitted from Bob’s bunk, but other than that, no other sound was made. There was no way she was going to get any sleep like this.

Sighing heavily, Mercy pulled the curtains open and eased herself out of the bunk that was in between Gerard’s and Mikey’s. Her bare feet padded lightly on the carpet as she made her way into the living room. She curled up onto the couch, bringing the blue blanket that was situated on the back over her bare legs. Once more, she was wearing nothing but a pair of short boxers and a tank top, and it was officially freezing on the tour bus.

Her blue eyes watched the passing countryside. It looked bleak, to be honest. There were no lights for miles around them. A few cars passed them, but then there was nothing. She lost herself in her own thoughts, in the sound of the engine rumbling, in the random snores from her brother. She couldn’t help but feel that perhaps she was losing her mind. All these years, she had told herself again and again that she wouldn’t like anyone who was Bob’s friend. It just didn’t seem right. Wasn’t there some law against dating your brother’s friends? Not only that, but Mercy had never seen herself liking Frank. To be honest, he wasn’t the type that she usually found herself attracted to. But that kiss…it had made her feel weird. And Merc wasn’t sure if it was good or bad yet.

“What are you thinking about?”

Mercy jumped and turned her head quickly. Frank was standing at the edge of the hallway, clad in nothing but a pair of long blue flannel pants. His hair was a mess, but it didn’t look like he had been sleeping any. He looked restless and confused, but what did Mercy know about reading people?

“Nothing. What are you doing up?” she asked, arching a brow.

Frank shrugged as he moved over to the couch, curling up next to her. He lifted up the blanket and covered is lower half, careful not to touch Mercy’s bare legs with his. He faced her and mirrored her position, wrapping his long arms around his knees. “I couldn’t really sleep,” he mumbled, looking out of the window.

A more than awkward silence seemed to overwhelm them. They both knew what it was they wanted to talk about, but neither wanted to be the one to bring it up. Sighing heavily again, Mercy turned her eyes towards the outside world, watching the desolate plains pass by their views. For some reason, the song ‘Demolition Lovers’ seemed to pass through her mind.

Hand in mine, into your icy blues
And then I'd say to you we could take to the highway
With this trunk of ammunition too
I'd end my days with you in a hail of bullets

“About earlier,” Frank began, his hazel eyes on hers. Mercy turned so that her eyes met his, her face impassive as she waited for him to continue.

I'm trying, I'm trying
To let you know just how much you mean to me
And after all the things we put each other through and

“I don’t know what I was thinking. You’ve made it perfectly clear that you don’t like me. I know that. I just couldn’t help myself. You were sitting there, with tears clinging to your eyelashes. For a minute, I didn’t see the rough Mercy. I saw the innocent Mercy. And I lost myself,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

I would drive on to the end with you
A liquor store or two keeps the gas tank full
And I feel like there's nothing left to do
But prove myself to you and we'll keep it running

She wasn’t even sure what to say to him, if there even was anything that could be said. Her cheeks were a little heated, and she had to avert her eyes once more. This was all moving too fast. She was confused. Her thoughts were whirling around in her mind, making her dizzy. No, this can’t be happening. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t bring herself to return the sentiments, to tell him that she too had lost herself in him several times that day.

But this time, I mean it
I'll let you know just how much you mean to me
As snow falls on desert sky
Until the end of everything
I'm trying, I'm trying
To let you know how much you mean
As days fade, and nights grow
And we grow cold

“You don’t have to say anything, Merc. I understand. I just wanted to tell you that. I didn’t want you to think that I had done it out of malice, or whatever is going through your head,” Frank said, sounding somewhat defeated.

Until the end, until this pool of blood
Until this, I mean this, I mean this
Until the end of...

**Frank’s POV**

He knew that she didn’t like him. He had thought that he didn’t like her either. But from the moment that she had opened her door to her apartment and punched Bob hard on the arm, he had known that something was different. He tried hard to hide the fact that he was not only immensely attracted to her, but that he couldn’t get her out of his mind. She was always there, flitting around deep in the crevices, no matter what he did to try and stop it.

Earlier today, when he had knelt down in front of her, he had seen something so unlike her. He had seen a different side of Mercy, one that he had never seen before, nor did he even think that she had that in her. Her blue eyes had been wide, tears glistening on her dark eyelashes as she peered at him. Her cheeks were flushed from holding in her breath, trying to keep gasps of pain deep within her body. She had looked so innocent, so broken. All because of a bump on her head. Frank had lost himself, looking at her, looking at her innocence. In losing himself, he had lost his mind, and had kissed her, resulting in probably intensifying her hatred for him.

Usually, someone’s disapproval of him would’ve made him just forget about it. Move on. But with Mercy…he couldn’t seem to. He wanted to prove it to her that he meant well, that he just wanted to get to know her, the real Mercy. Not the front that she puts on for everyone else, making her out to be such a tough person. But he doubted that could ever happen.

Sighing, Frank shook his head and made to move the blanket off of him. He already felt defeated enough. But he felt a little better, having gotten those words out of his system. Maybe he could actually get some sleep now.

However, a hand on his stopped him. His hazel eyes shifted downwards and saw Mercy’s slim hand resting there, preventing him from leaving. Startled, he looked into her blue orbs, questioning.

**Mercy’s POV**

As lead rains, and pass on through
Our phantoms, forever, forever
Like scarecrows, that fuel this flame
We're burning, forever, and ever
Know how much I want to show you you're the only one
Like a bed of roses there's a dozen reasons in this gun

Even if she couldn’t say anything in return, even if she couldn’t bring herself to recuperate the emotions that he was laying out on the table for her to take, she didn’t want him to leave her. Not yet. Mercy knew that this would make things even more complicated, which was something that they didn’t need, but the tone of voice he had, the sadness in his eyes. It made her feel like shit. She wouldn’t allow him to go to bed yet, not the way that he was.

“Stay with me,” she said quietly in response to his questioning eyes.

He nodded and tossed the covers back over him, scooting just a bit closer to her, intertwining his legs with hers. His flannel pants rode up a little, revealing a bit of his hairy leg. It touched her own soft leg and it made a fire run up and down her spine. However, she didn’t move. She stayed there, silently staring out of the window with Frank at her side, in a comfortable silence.