Echoes of Eclipsed Fears (Frerard)

18. Tell me Where we Go from Here

"Morning Frankie," Gerard said, sweeping past the boy to plant a kiss on his hair. Frank took a seat at the breakfast bar, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles.

"Morning Gee," he smiled sleepily.

"Still tired?" The vampire asked.

"Mhm." Frank paused, yawning. "Got woken up a few times during the night."

"Aw," Gerard said softly, ruffling Frank's hair. "Want an omelette?"

"Sure," Frank said. He swayed in his chair slightly while Gerard prepared breakfast for him, tapping his foot on the footrest.

"Did you wanna do anything today?" Gerard asked Frank, cracking some eggs into a bowl and whisking them with a fork. Frank cocked his head to the side in thought. He and Gerard had been taking things slow for the past couple of days, only giving each other small kisses and gentle touches. It was enough to satisfy Frank's touch-starved state, without feeling too full-on or weird.

"I dunno, I'm kind of tired," he said slowly. There was a silence, in which Frank wracked his brain for an idea. His eyes lit up. "Actually," he smirked.

"What?" Gerard asked.

"You said you play a bit of guitar, right?"

"Yeah, but I'm not that good," Gerard warned him.

"I wanna hear you play," Frank said. "I don't care how good you are."

Gerard smiled, transferring the eggs into the pan on the stove.

"Alright," he said, smiling to himself. He finished cooking for Frank, sliding the plate across the countertop to him.

"Thank youuu," Frank said with a smile, cutting into his omelette to make it cool down faster. Gerard felt a smile tug at the corners of his lips at Frank's cute voice.

"You're welcome," he said, sliding into the seat beside Frank. He placed a gentle hand on Frank's shoulder, rubbing it slightly. Frank relaxed into the vampire's touch, chewing his omelette thoughtfully. He was quite excited to hear Gerard play the guitar, even if he wasn't good. Frank had a feeling that Gerard was downplaying his ability, though; the vampire seemed to be good at everything.

"Thanks," Frank said, finishing his meal. He stood up to take his plate to the sink.

"I'll get that," Gerard insisted, cutting Frank off to take his plate. "You go to the library and get your guitar tuned for me."

Frank nodded, smiling slightly at Gerard's soft, yet slightly commanding tone. He made his way to the heavy oak doors of the library, pushing one open and slipping inside. Frank flopped down on the couch; he felt better after breakfast, but still half asleep. He had no idea why, but it had been a really rough sleep last night for some reason. He switched on his tuner, lazily plucking the strings one by one to make sure everything was in order. Frank looked up to see Gerard entering the library.

"Hey," he said softly.

"Hi," Frank said. "It's tuned." He awkwardly thrust the guitar into Gerard's hands, scooting over so the vampire could take a seat next to him. Gerard grinned, repositioning the guitar across his knees.

"Got a pick?" He asked. He spied one laying on the coffee table a moment later. "Ah," he said, reaching to grab it. He strummed a few open chords on the guitar, warming up.

"Know what you're gonna play for me yet?" Frank asked eagerly.

"I've only written one song in my life," Gerard said, his voice sounding faraway. "Give me a minute to remember it; it's been a while."