Under Wraps

"Jesus, Frank!" Brian groans, fist pounding on the bathroom door. "Hurry up, I need to get ready too, y'know!"

"H-Hold on," he squeaks, clipping the bandage so it's secure across his chest. "I'm nearly done!"

Brian groans again kicks the door lightly, nearly falling in when Frank finally opens the door. "Y'know, you took less time in the bathroom when you were a girl."

Frank glares playfully at his brother and sighs as he does his shirt up. "I'm scared, Bri. I know it's a new school and nobody's going to know.. y'know, but what if someone somehow finds out and they--"

That's what Frank likes most about Brian. Not just because he's his brother and he accepts him, but the fact that he'll openly joke about it with Frank. He never insults him, he jokes, and Frank sees them as jokes because he knows Brian isn't like that.

"If anyone," Brian turns and holds Frank by his shoulders, leaning down slightly so they're face to face. "Touches you, hurts you, says anything to you, you come to me and I'll fucking kill them, okay? Nobody - and I fucking mean nobody hurts my little brother."

Grinning, Frank lurches forward and wraps his arms around Brian's chest in a hug. He nods against his chest and grins up at him. "Thank you."

~*~

"You two have a good day at school, okay? Brian, remember to sign up for the football team," their mother grins, smirking at the eldest. "And Francesca - I'm sure there's a couple of dance classes for you to si--"

"No, Mom. No, okay? I'm not signing up for any fucking dance classes, or sewing classes or any fucking class like that, okay? I'm not doing it!"

Their mom sighs and taps her fingers against the steering wheel. "Well you're not going to get anywhere in the sports teams, are you?"

Brian clenches his jaw and yanks Frank out of the car after glaring at their mom. "He'll sign up for whatever he wants." Frank smiles lightly up at his brother and bites his lip as he looks back into the car. He takes his bag from the seat and mutters a quiet 'love you' to his mom and sighs when she says nothing and just drives away. "She'll get over her phase soon enough, Frankie. Don't worry about it."

~*~

Frank's in all different classes to Brian. He's in a completely different year, in fact, but it's okay because he's not alone. He has Bob. With it being a completely new school for them both, they're not that nervous.

Walking away from Brian to find his locker, he grins at the sight of his strawberry blonde best friend leaning against some. "Bobert!"

Bob frowns and looks up from his phone and grins when he sees Frank rushing towards him. "Hey, Iero! You ready for this? It's like starting primary school again, ha."

"I-I guess. I'm just nervous, y'know..." he mumbles, arm reaching back to scratch at his neck.

"But nobody knows. They'll think you're a dude - which you are. So stop worrying and let's get our asses to class."

They get into class giggling like primary school children and they stop immediately as the whole class turns to stare at them. Frank pulls nervously at his large plaid shirt and shuffles on the spot, quickly glancing at their teacher. "Uh-uhm, we're--"

"Ah! You must be Francesca and Robert, right?"

Bob and Frank both tense at Frank's name and Bob looks at Frank. "Francesca? No," he scoffs. "This is Frank. Franklin Anthony?"

"Well," the teacher frowns as she picks up the register. "There's no Franklin here. There's a Francesca Anne Iero, which I'm assuming is you," she points at Frank, "and a Robert Corey Bryar, which I'm assuming is you."

Frank whimpers low in his throat and squirms. He leans up towards Bob and whispers, gripping his sleeve. "B-Brian said that the headmaster t-told every teacher about it. Why doesn't she know?"

"It's alright," Bob whispers back, smiling and rubbing the smaller boy's back. "I'll sort it out."

Frank goes and sits in the back of the class while Bob and the teacher talk about the register. She apologises quickly to Frank and continues with the lesson.

Halfway through the lesson is when Frank notices a guy with bright red hair staring at him from across the table. He's not frowning or smiling, just staring with no emotion whatsoever. Bob notices and clenches his jaw, waving his hand infront of the boy's face. "Pictures last longer, asshole!"

The guy flinches away from Bob's hand and bites his lip, immediately looking down to his paper mumbling something they can't understand. Frank licks his lips and rips some paper from his book and writes on it before passing it to the strange guy. He doesn't glance up or anything, but he does take the paper and read it.

'Hey. I'm Frank. Sorry about my friend, he's protective.'

He gives Frank a quick look before scrawling back and folding it neatly, pushing it back to Frank.

'Gerard. It's fine. I'm the same with my brother. Why did the teacher keep calling you Francesca?'

Frank sighs. He should've seen this coming. He shakes his head at the boy and scrunches the paper up before throwing it away. "No reason," he mumbles. "People just get confused with my name."