I'm the Last One That You'll Ever Remember
Chapter 151: Have Your Blessings
A month had passed, and things couldn’t be better in Gerard’s opinion. Raising his light brown eyes from his delicious meal, he skimmed the Iero clan around him. His soon-to-be-in-laws, Frank’s aunt and Uncle, his children and Frank himself had all been requested to congregate at his parents house for a 'special' dinner. These 'special' dinners happened quite often, in fact, every weekend so they weren't that special. Every Saturday or Sunday everyone got trimmed up and headed over to their house for dinner. Food was heaped on plates and passed to the left and right for the picking. Everyone was seated at the grand dining table chattering amongst each other, and at least a few times within the night someone would leak past stories about Frank to him. Some of them were so embarrassing he’d have to fight hard not to laugh out loud. Some were so endearing Gerard felt a new wave of love layer over him for his baby mama.
The Ieros were an incredibly close knit family, and now Gerard was a part of them. He had no idea when that had happened exactly, perhaps sometimes after they permanently moved back to New Jersey and were gifted with the house Frank’s Uncle Peter and Aunt Edith had rented. After helping to settle them in, they took off for their home back in Pennsylvania.
Anyway, by the way the Ieros treated him so generously, no one would ever have guessed they ever had problems before in the past, because now they were so chill around each other. While the Ieros have been embracing Gerard like he was their own, his mind has been on other things...specifically on how he’d go about getting them alone so he could ask them for their blessings on him marrying their son. He also had a backup plan on what to do if they said no. He’d just go to a courthouse and marry their son anyway, but because his relationship with them has been going so well, he wanted to do things correctly by asking them first.
But there was no getting them alone without Frank being present all the time, and now the Aunt and Uncle were here too. Biting his lower lip, Gerard began to reevaluate his plan while leaning over to help mop Lorenzo’s mouth before the sauce of the chicken streamed down his neck and into his shirt. Instead of getting Margo and Frank Sr. alone, perhaps he needed to wait for Frank to leave. He was the one person who Gerard absolutely didn’t want to know about him asking his parents for their blessing, at least not yet. If Aunt Edith and Uncle Peter had to be witnesses too then it was fine. Why not get their blessings too in the meantime, they did help raise his twins after all. But when would he get the shot to ask them without Frank around?
Gerard pondered over this as the serving of dessert entered the room and then lo and behold, he was anointed with an opportunity. Raising a hand next to him, Frank cut off the chit chat around the table. “Alright everybody, I need a pee break before I annihilate this cheesecake. I’m two seconds away from pissing myself.”
“Frankie!” Margo chided him with an amused smile on her face. “None of that talk at the dinner table!”
Spinning himself towards Frank in his seat, Gerard extended his support. “Do you need help getting up, love?”
“No, I can do it myself, Gee.” Frank comforted him, shooing him away with a hand before hoisting himself up onto his feet with a huff. His belly nearly rattled the table as he further pushed his chair back and waddled away towards the bathroom, calling out over his shoulder. “I’ll be back so don't nobody touch MY slice of cake!”
Gerard frowned as he looked to Frank Sr. “Which one is Frank’s slice of cake?”
“He always gets the biggest piece. It’s tradition for that little dumpster.” Frank Sr. chuckled as he signaled to the one slice of cheesecake that was the fattest of them all.
Chuckling to himself, it quickly dawned on Gerard that he was alone with the rest of the family. This was his break to ask them for Frank’s hand in marriage. Clearing his throat, Gerard stemmed the conversations around him by standing up from the table and clinking his fork against his wine glass. Surprisingly fast he had everyone’s undivided attention, their eyes curious as to what he had to say. Flashing them a shaky smile, Gerard cleared his throat again. “Evening everyone, I just...I just wanted to say thank you to each and everyone of you for accepting me so graciously into your family and especially giving me and my family a permanent home for us to grow in.”
Margo hoisted her glass right back at him, her eyes twinkling with emotions. “And we appreciate all you’ve done to look after our pumpkin and grandchildrens back in Washington. What with all the upheavals he’s been through in the past, we’d never thought we’d ever see our delighted little Frankie ever again. And it’s all thanks to you!”
Gerard was so moved by her words and everyone’s supportive nods that he forgot about what he was going to say next. Having no choice but to go with the flow, he raised his glass to them. “I beg to differ. The credit goes to you all for raising an extraordinary being. Frankie means more to me than anyone I’ve ever met before. I’ve truly never experienced a love like this, and I know I won’t ever again. Frankie is the man I love, and he’s made for me.” Wavering for a minute, he then slithered in the word’ marriage’ to see how they’d react to it. “I know it’s still too early to do this in our relationship, but marriage with Frankie is something I can definitely see in the near future for us. I can’t picture myself marrying anyone else. When that time does come...and I do propose to him...I would like to know if I could have your blessings for him to be my husband?”
Margo nearly choked on her wine but recovered quickly, her eyes wide with bewilderment as she whispered loud enough for everyone at the table to hear. “Marriage!? W-When do you plan to propose?”
“Not tonight or tomorrow, I promise you.” Gerard sought to soothe her in case her next move was to faint. “But I can guarantee it’ll be in the near future. I just haven’t figured out when yet.”
“He’s only 17 years old.” Frank Sr. noted, his spirits completely sobered up. “It’s illegal for you two to marry even if Frankie said yes.”
Gerard nodded in understanding. “I understand that sir, that’s why I plan to marry him then...if he says yes, of course.”
“Now, this could be the wine talking, but...I give you my blessing.” Margo stated with a salute of her now empty glass.
“I don’t see a problem with it either.” Uncle Peter furthered with a nod. “Hell, we can all be dead next month. The sooner the better, I'd say. Time’s not waiting for either of us, am I right?”
“Seriously? You don’t think they’re too young?” Aunt Edith challenged her husband with uncertainty.
“We married young!” Uncle Peter reminded her with an arch of his brow. “16 years old, in fact, and look how we turned out.”
Aunt Edith had to give him that. “Alright, you have a point. Perhaps they won’t be marrying TOO young after all.”
“You’ll have my blessings too, but only on one condition.” Frank Sr. announced, giving Gerard a tough stare.
“Anything, sir.” Gerard answered, not succumbing to the man’s harsh stare, but meeting it on.
”Promise me you’ll keep doing what you’re doing right now for my son and grandkids.” Frank Sr. demanded, tapping a finger on the tabletop. “Because whatever it is, it’s making my son happy.”
Comforted that no one else had any sturdy exceptions, and perhaps that’s because of the wine, Gerard gave him an keen nod. “Yes, sir. I plan to invest every single day of our lives making my family happy.” Letting a smile slip, he added. “You can think of it as my life’s mission.”
Walking back into the living room, Frank was taken aback when the present exchange instantly perished, save for the children's babbling. Every adult tensed up at the table and declined their heads down to fixate on their cheesecakes. Even Gerard dived back into his seat as if he hadn’t been standing up and chatting to his family about something. Inquisitive, Frank gradually crossed back to his chair, his hazel eyes scouring every face that refused to meet his at the table. Something had been going on before he entered the room. “Alright, what's going on here? What were you all talking about before I walked in?”
The Ieros were an incredibly close knit family, and now Gerard was a part of them. He had no idea when that had happened exactly, perhaps sometimes after they permanently moved back to New Jersey and were gifted with the house Frank’s Uncle Peter and Aunt Edith had rented. After helping to settle them in, they took off for their home back in Pennsylvania.
Anyway, by the way the Ieros treated him so generously, no one would ever have guessed they ever had problems before in the past, because now they were so chill around each other. While the Ieros have been embracing Gerard like he was their own, his mind has been on other things...specifically on how he’d go about getting them alone so he could ask them for their blessings on him marrying their son. He also had a backup plan on what to do if they said no. He’d just go to a courthouse and marry their son anyway, but because his relationship with them has been going so well, he wanted to do things correctly by asking them first.
But there was no getting them alone without Frank being present all the time, and now the Aunt and Uncle were here too. Biting his lower lip, Gerard began to reevaluate his plan while leaning over to help mop Lorenzo’s mouth before the sauce of the chicken streamed down his neck and into his shirt. Instead of getting Margo and Frank Sr. alone, perhaps he needed to wait for Frank to leave. He was the one person who Gerard absolutely didn’t want to know about him asking his parents for their blessing, at least not yet. If Aunt Edith and Uncle Peter had to be witnesses too then it was fine. Why not get their blessings too in the meantime, they did help raise his twins after all. But when would he get the shot to ask them without Frank around?
Gerard pondered over this as the serving of dessert entered the room and then lo and behold, he was anointed with an opportunity. Raising a hand next to him, Frank cut off the chit chat around the table. “Alright everybody, I need a pee break before I annihilate this cheesecake. I’m two seconds away from pissing myself.”
“Frankie!” Margo chided him with an amused smile on her face. “None of that talk at the dinner table!”
Spinning himself towards Frank in his seat, Gerard extended his support. “Do you need help getting up, love?”
“No, I can do it myself, Gee.” Frank comforted him, shooing him away with a hand before hoisting himself up onto his feet with a huff. His belly nearly rattled the table as he further pushed his chair back and waddled away towards the bathroom, calling out over his shoulder. “I’ll be back so don't nobody touch MY slice of cake!”
Gerard frowned as he looked to Frank Sr. “Which one is Frank’s slice of cake?”
“He always gets the biggest piece. It’s tradition for that little dumpster.” Frank Sr. chuckled as he signaled to the one slice of cheesecake that was the fattest of them all.
Chuckling to himself, it quickly dawned on Gerard that he was alone with the rest of the family. This was his break to ask them for Frank’s hand in marriage. Clearing his throat, Gerard stemmed the conversations around him by standing up from the table and clinking his fork against his wine glass. Surprisingly fast he had everyone’s undivided attention, their eyes curious as to what he had to say. Flashing them a shaky smile, Gerard cleared his throat again. “Evening everyone, I just...I just wanted to say thank you to each and everyone of you for accepting me so graciously into your family and especially giving me and my family a permanent home for us to grow in.”
Margo hoisted her glass right back at him, her eyes twinkling with emotions. “And we appreciate all you’ve done to look after our pumpkin and grandchildrens back in Washington. What with all the upheavals he’s been through in the past, we’d never thought we’d ever see our delighted little Frankie ever again. And it’s all thanks to you!”
Gerard was so moved by her words and everyone’s supportive nods that he forgot about what he was going to say next. Having no choice but to go with the flow, he raised his glass to them. “I beg to differ. The credit goes to you all for raising an extraordinary being. Frankie means more to me than anyone I’ve ever met before. I’ve truly never experienced a love like this, and I know I won’t ever again. Frankie is the man I love, and he’s made for me.” Wavering for a minute, he then slithered in the word’ marriage’ to see how they’d react to it. “I know it’s still too early to do this in our relationship, but marriage with Frankie is something I can definitely see in the near future for us. I can’t picture myself marrying anyone else. When that time does come...and I do propose to him...I would like to know if I could have your blessings for him to be my husband?”
Margo nearly choked on her wine but recovered quickly, her eyes wide with bewilderment as she whispered loud enough for everyone at the table to hear. “Marriage!? W-When do you plan to propose?”
“Not tonight or tomorrow, I promise you.” Gerard sought to soothe her in case her next move was to faint. “But I can guarantee it’ll be in the near future. I just haven’t figured out when yet.”
“He’s only 17 years old.” Frank Sr. noted, his spirits completely sobered up. “It’s illegal for you two to marry even if Frankie said yes.”
Gerard nodded in understanding. “I understand that sir, that’s why I plan to marry him then...if he says yes, of course.”
“Now, this could be the wine talking, but...I give you my blessing.” Margo stated with a salute of her now empty glass.
“I don’t see a problem with it either.” Uncle Peter furthered with a nod. “Hell, we can all be dead next month. The sooner the better, I'd say. Time’s not waiting for either of us, am I right?”
“Seriously? You don’t think they’re too young?” Aunt Edith challenged her husband with uncertainty.
“We married young!” Uncle Peter reminded her with an arch of his brow. “16 years old, in fact, and look how we turned out.”
Aunt Edith had to give him that. “Alright, you have a point. Perhaps they won’t be marrying TOO young after all.”
“You’ll have my blessings too, but only on one condition.” Frank Sr. announced, giving Gerard a tough stare.
“Anything, sir.” Gerard answered, not succumbing to the man’s harsh stare, but meeting it on.
”Promise me you’ll keep doing what you’re doing right now for my son and grandkids.” Frank Sr. demanded, tapping a finger on the tabletop. “Because whatever it is, it’s making my son happy.”
Comforted that no one else had any sturdy exceptions, and perhaps that’s because of the wine, Gerard gave him an keen nod. “Yes, sir. I plan to invest every single day of our lives making my family happy.” Letting a smile slip, he added. “You can think of it as my life’s mission.”
Walking back into the living room, Frank was taken aback when the present exchange instantly perished, save for the children's babbling. Every adult tensed up at the table and declined their heads down to fixate on their cheesecakes. Even Gerard dived back into his seat as if he hadn’t been standing up and chatting to his family about something. Inquisitive, Frank gradually crossed back to his chair, his hazel eyes scouring every face that refused to meet his at the table. Something had been going on before he entered the room. “Alright, what's going on here? What were you all talking about before I walked in?”