You Give Love a Bad Name
Pun Intended
"Thank you for inviting me to stay for dinner, Mrs.Way," Frank said for the millionth time today, stuffing a fork full of mashed potatoes into his mouth.
Smiling, Mom put another serving of green beans onto everyone's plates. "You're welcome, Frank. We're always happy to have you here, dear."
Ever since Mikey and I brought Frank home after the first day of middle school, Mom always had a soft spot for him.
Maybe it was the way he walked, maybe it was the way he talked, or maybe it was the fact that he had a smile that should have been featured in those toothpaste commercials; big and beautiful.
If I said that only my Mom was won over by Frank's charm, I would be lying, because that guy is your average womanizer.
Frank never had any problem with making girls swoon. And trust me, when I say never, I'm not exaggerating. Maybe it was the whole rocker/badass vibe he gave off...
I mean, just look at the facts; first girlfriend at the age of ten, first kiss at ten, and you don't even want to know when he lost his virginity. I know I didn't, but I found out anyway, seeing that I'm 'one of the guys' and all.
I really don't have a problem with the way Frank sees me; the girl who he can tell anything, but who won't make a big deal out of nothing. That's how it's always been, and I honestly don't see our relationship being anything beyond best friends.
The only thing I have a problem with is the type of girls he dates; sluts.
And of course, since I'm spending so much time with Frank, I must be screwing him behind their back, right? Well, that's what they thought. Each and every one of them.
But then again, every girl that he ever dated, always thought that she was the one. The girl that Frank would fall madly in love with, and stop his 'player' ways.
That's the part that made me laugh. It just showed how much they knew him.
After a month though, after Frank got what he wanted from his current 'sweetheart', 'babe', or 'honey', he did what he always did; dumped them for someone fresh and new.
"Ow," I made a face as I felt something collide with my leg under the table. Looking up, I met Frank's hazel eyes, complete with his huge grin. "What was that for?"
"You were smirking at your plate for five minutes now. I thought I'd, uh, give you a kick back to reality," my best friend replied, crossing his arms, and looking really proud of himself. "Pun intended."
"Literally," I mumbled, rubbing my throbbing ankle with my other foot.
"So, how was your first day of school?" Mom asked us, beaming.
Mikey and Frank started to describe their classes and teachers with great enthusiasm, while I just nodded here and there, destructed by the way Gerard was acting. His face was set and his lips were in a straight, tight line, as he looked from his nearly full plate to the clock on the kitchen wall.
I bit my lip ring, something that I did whenever I was worried or nervous, and tapped him on the shoulder lightly. "Hey, what's wrong?"
Gerard jumped, and turned to me somewhat startled. His eyes, which were filled with surprise, started to fill up with anger.
"Did you notice," he whispered, leaning in, making sure that only I could hear what he was saying, "how many times Dad missed dinner lately? Especially this month? He's been coming home later that usual as well. It's like he doesn't give a fuck anymore."
I looked away from Gerard's hurt face to see Mom and Frank laughing at something Mikey had said.
How could have I been so stupid? I've been so preoccupied with my teenage problems, with my fight with Frank, that I was totally oblivious to the fact that my parent's marriage was crumbling. Mikey didn't notice either, but Gerard did, which would explain his hostile attitude towards our Dad for the past few months.
"Of corse he cares. He's our Dad, Gerard," I tried to convince him, but failed miserably, seeing that I couldn't even convince myself.
Gerard rolled his eyes and pushed his chair from the table. "Mom? Thanks for the dinner. I'm really tiered, so I'm just gonna go to bed now, okay?"
My Moms smile slightly faltered as she looked from Gerard to me. "Sure, honey. Goodnight."
"Night," he mumbled, briskly walking out of the room.
"What's with him?" Mikey asked me, a trace of worry clearly evident in his tone.
"Anxiety about college," I lied, standing up and excusing myself from dinner as well.
Smiling, Mom put another serving of green beans onto everyone's plates. "You're welcome, Frank. We're always happy to have you here, dear."
Ever since Mikey and I brought Frank home after the first day of middle school, Mom always had a soft spot for him.
Maybe it was the way he walked, maybe it was the way he talked, or maybe it was the fact that he had a smile that should have been featured in those toothpaste commercials; big and beautiful.
If I said that only my Mom was won over by Frank's charm, I would be lying, because that guy is your average womanizer.
Frank never had any problem with making girls swoon. And trust me, when I say never, I'm not exaggerating. Maybe it was the whole rocker/badass vibe he gave off...
I mean, just look at the facts; first girlfriend at the age of ten, first kiss at ten, and you don't even want to know when he lost his virginity. I know I didn't, but I found out anyway, seeing that I'm 'one of the guys' and all.
I really don't have a problem with the way Frank sees me; the girl who he can tell anything, but who won't make a big deal out of nothing. That's how it's always been, and I honestly don't see our relationship being anything beyond best friends.
The only thing I have a problem with is the type of girls he dates; sluts.
And of course, since I'm spending so much time with Frank, I must be screwing him behind their back, right? Well, that's what they thought. Each and every one of them.
But then again, every girl that he ever dated, always thought that she was the one. The girl that Frank would fall madly in love with, and stop his 'player' ways.
That's the part that made me laugh. It just showed how much they knew him.
After a month though, after Frank got what he wanted from his current 'sweetheart', 'babe', or 'honey', he did what he always did; dumped them for someone fresh and new.
"Ow," I made a face as I felt something collide with my leg under the table. Looking up, I met Frank's hazel eyes, complete with his huge grin. "What was that for?"
"You were smirking at your plate for five minutes now. I thought I'd, uh, give you a kick back to reality," my best friend replied, crossing his arms, and looking really proud of himself. "Pun intended."
"Literally," I mumbled, rubbing my throbbing ankle with my other foot.
"So, how was your first day of school?" Mom asked us, beaming.
Mikey and Frank started to describe their classes and teachers with great enthusiasm, while I just nodded here and there, destructed by the way Gerard was acting. His face was set and his lips were in a straight, tight line, as he looked from his nearly full plate to the clock on the kitchen wall.
I bit my lip ring, something that I did whenever I was worried or nervous, and tapped him on the shoulder lightly. "Hey, what's wrong?"
Gerard jumped, and turned to me somewhat startled. His eyes, which were filled with surprise, started to fill up with anger.
"Did you notice," he whispered, leaning in, making sure that only I could hear what he was saying, "how many times Dad missed dinner lately? Especially this month? He's been coming home later that usual as well. It's like he doesn't give a fuck anymore."
I looked away from Gerard's hurt face to see Mom and Frank laughing at something Mikey had said.
How could have I been so stupid? I've been so preoccupied with my teenage problems, with my fight with Frank, that I was totally oblivious to the fact that my parent's marriage was crumbling. Mikey didn't notice either, but Gerard did, which would explain his hostile attitude towards our Dad for the past few months.
"Of corse he cares. He's our Dad, Gerard," I tried to convince him, but failed miserably, seeing that I couldn't even convince myself.
Gerard rolled his eyes and pushed his chair from the table. "Mom? Thanks for the dinner. I'm really tiered, so I'm just gonna go to bed now, okay?"
My Moms smile slightly faltered as she looked from Gerard to me. "Sure, honey. Goodnight."
"Night," he mumbled, briskly walking out of the room.
"What's with him?" Mikey asked me, a trace of worry clearly evident in his tone.
"Anxiety about college," I lied, standing up and excusing myself from dinner as well.