What If We Didn't Know

"Mikey, get your butt out of bed!"

I groaned. "Five more minutes, Mom."

"Michael James Iero, if you don't get out of bed before I count to three, there will be serious consequences."

"Shut the fuck up, Gerard, you're not gonna do anything to me," I mumbled, burying my face farther into the pillow it was resting upon.

Suddenly something heavy landed on my back, and I started with a gasp.

Gerard rolled onto the bed beside me, laughing at my surprise. I frowned at him, flicking his nose, and pulled the blankets back over my head.

"Mikey, you gotta get up now, honey," he tried to coax me, but I just shook my head and held the blankets closer.

"I don't wanna," I whined childishly, and he started to poke me in the side.

"I know you don't, baby doll, but if you stay in bed all day then I can't give you the present I got you."

"Present?" I perked up, pulling the blankets off my face and looking at Gerard suspiciously. "What present?"

"You'll see," He sang, hopping off the bed with a grin. He patted my butt, adding, "There's coffee for you in the kitchen if you want it," before practically skipping out of the room.

I pouted for a minute, then reluctantly climbed out of bed. Stupid boyfriend with his stupid presents and his stupid cuteness and his stupid coffee. I made my way to the bathroom, dragging my feet, and got in the shower. The warm water helped wake me, and before long I was singing a song that Frank's band had written and was always stuck in my head as I washed myself. I was singing too loudly to hear the bathroom door open, so when the curtain was suddenly yanked open I shrieked in surprise.

"Relax, baby, it's just me," Gerard chuckled, placing a hand on his hip and cocking it slightly.

"Jesus Christ, Gerard, give me some fucking warning, would ya?" I exclaimed, putting a hand to my heart.

"Aww sweetheart, I'm sorry," He cooed, wrapping his arms around my wet waist and tugging me against his chest. "I didn't mean to scare you; I thought you heard me come in."

"Well I didn't," I frowned, looking up at him with my best puppy eyes.

Gerard chuckled at my expression and planted a kiss between my eyebrows right on my frown line. "Want me to join you in there and help you wash up?" He asked, smirking slightly as he glanced at the shampoo suds in my messy hair.

"No," I answered, pulling away from him. "You'll just scare me again. You're mean." I yanked the shower curtain back in place and resumed my singing, grinning widely, knowing now he would have to come in.

Sure enough, the curtain was pulled back once more, and a now unclothed Gerard climbed in before shutting the curtain again. "How am I mean?" Gerard questioned, grabbing my hands. He pressed our palms together, interlocked our fingers, and let our hands drop back to our sides. "Answer me that, Michael James."

I rolled my eyes in mock annoyance. "Well firstly the way you woke me up was cruel," I paused to pout again. "And then you tried to scare me to death. That's what this is all about, isn't it? You want me dead, don't you? Finally sick of me, I guess, and you're too much of a coward to just throw me out on my face. You'd rather I was out of the picture forever the hard way. No it's okay, I get it. Just do what you will, and at least have the courtesy to be gentle. I don't want to die in pain."

He stared at me for a moment, eyebrow quirked, a disbelieving smile playing about his lips, before he finally answered, "Have you ever thought about seeing a therapist? It's not good to keep all that paranoia to yourself."

I pulled my hands out of his and smacked him lightly across the chest. "Shut up, you asshole," I retorted, turning my back to him and washing the shampoo out of my hair.

"Hey!" He grabbed my wrist and turned me back around hastily. "Is that any way to talk to someone who got you a present?"

I sighed. "Give me the present and we'll see."

"Mikey," He said sternly. "I can't give you the present until I'm sure you're ready for it."

"What; is it a noose? Or a guillotine?" I sniffed. Suddenly I found myself pinned against the shower wall, hands held captive above my head, as Gerard attacked my face and neck and shoulders with firm kisses. I giggled, squirming slightly to pretend I wanted to get away from him.

"Stop it young man," He whispered in my ear, "stop it right now before I have to make you."

"Oh really?" I responded breathlessly, closing my eyes. "And how do you plan to do that?"

"You don't want to know," He murmured, nipping at the skin beneath my ear and pressing his pelvis into mine. I let out a low hum at that, feeling my eyes roll back slightly beneath the lids.

"Fuck you," I breathed, biting my lip and pushing back against him needily. "Fuck you for knowing my weakness."

He laughed quietly, releasing my hands at last so he could let his fingers dance down my sides, one hand going around my waist and the other cupping the back of my thigh. He pulled my leg up to wrap around his hips and finally graced my open mouth with his. I bit his bottom lip and tugged it into my mouth, letting my tongue slip into his. He moaned and reached up to tuck my hair behind my ears, then shoved me more firmly against the wall as one hand trailed slowly down my body toward my throbbing hard-on.

"Mmm, baby, you are excited," He hummed, barely brushing his fingertips over the hot skin. "I really should take better care of you."

"Yeah, maybe you should," I panted, trying not to buck into his hand as he finally wrapped his fingers around my cock. I felt his chest shake beneath my palms with silent laughter, then he began to move his hand up and down my shaft, making me moan at the delicious friction.

"Fuck, Gerard," I hissed, arching my back and thrusting slightly toward him. He laughed again, quickening his velocity as I panted desperately and clutched his arms tightly. The thought that I should probably reciprocate flashed through my mind, so I snaked my fingers down his body and took him in my hands as well. We moved together for a minute or two, the only sounds being the water rushing down over our heads, the quiet smacking of our lips, the sliding of our hands over damp flesh, and the needy moans flying from our throats. Finally we both gasped out in unison and came into the other's hands.

"Mmm, Mikey," Gerard sighed, relinquishing his grip on me and cuddling into my shoulder, "you sure know how to wake a guy up in the morning."

I giggled, feeling a light blush spread across my cheeks. "Am I even better than coffee?"

He grinned, kissing every bit of my skin that he could reach. "Yes. But don't tell the coffee I said that. It'll get jealous."

***

"Mikey, do you ever think about the future?" Gerard questioned idly, tangling his fingers with mine as we rocked back and forth, watching the crisp orange sunset from the swing set at the local park.

"Sometimes," I answered, looking away from the burning sky to his face for a brief moment.

"And what do you see in your future?" He continued, meeting my eyes. He had a streak of red across his face, and I briefly wondered why before I replied.

"I don't know; I'd like to get a promotion at work, I think." I frowned as my wandered off in that direction. "Or maybe I'd like to do something different. Who knows? What do you see?"

Gerard took a deep breath, pulling my swing closer to his and taking my other hand so we were swinging sideways. The sunset overhead was all but forgotten. "I see you. I don't know what else will happen to me or who I'll do it with, but I know you'll always be at my side."

I grinned, now blushing as well. "I love you, Gerard."

"I love you too," he smiled, squeezing my fingers. Then his face got very serious, and he propped his feet up on my swing, pulling me even closer. "Mikey, will you marry me?"

I felt like my heart was bursting out of my chest, but I didn't let it show. "Of course I will," I breathed with a shy smile. "You didn't even have to ask."

He leaned forward to kiss me, and as our lips met I felt him slip something cool onto my finger. I pulled back and looked down to find a gold band sitting snugly on my left hand ring finger. I looked back up to stare wonderingly into Gerard's eyes. "That was the present I promised you earlier," he murmured with a soft smile. "I hope you like it." I captured his lips in a kiss once more, just as the sun sank down behind the horizon.