★ not edited!! ★
FRANK WAS HONESTLY on the brink of committing a heinous crime.
"Frank, stop squirming."
"No."
"Frankie," Gerard whined, Frank giving him a blank look as Gerard reached over to grab more sunscreen.
Frank scowled as Gerard took a seat back in his lap and applied more sunscreen to his face, his hands habitually finding themselves on Gerard's waist as he glared.
"There you big baby, you can put your sunglasses back on now." Gerard laughed, and Frank happily complied as he sighed softly.
He felt Gerard's hands move to the hem of his sweatpants, pulling them down as Frank continued to scowl.
"I don't know why you're in such a bad mood," Gerard said, "You finally passed your eval and you're reinstated. This is your reward - we're on the beach!"
"Why couldn't my reward be something that didn't involve sand?" Frank grumbled, making Gerard laugh.
"The best rewards involve sand, c'mon, Frankie. Why don't we go into the water?" Gerard said, already going to take Frank's shirt off when Frank caught his wrist.
"We just got here." Frank muttered, leaning his head back so he was facing the blue sky. "Calm the fuck down."
He could hear Gerard sigh and get off his lap, his enthusiasm clearly having worn itself down, which did honestly make Frank feel just a tad bit bad.
It had been pretty stressful for the two of them lately especially with Frank getting reinstated and Gerard quitting his job to sell commissions. And he knew Gerard had been excited the whole week to finally go to the beach - it even got to the point where Frank didn't trust him to drive the three hours there because he was worried Gerard would speed.
So, maybe Frank was being a bit of a dickhead, but he just didn't understand the appeal that came with being in a crowded area with sand sticking to your crotch and the sun beaming down on you. Why Gerard loved it so much was beyond him.
But Frank knew he needed to start being more receptive to Gerard's interests, especially the ones he himself had trouble understanding.
Frank looked back at surface level and glanced at Gerard who had a frown across his face. His once excited eyes now seemingly disappointed and upset. He was shuffling the sand between his fingers, his umbrella allowing him to sit in the shade whilst Frank sat under the beaming sun.
After a minute of collecting himself and biting his lip, Frank sighed and moved closer to Gerard, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.
Gerard glanced up at him for a second before looking back down. Frank frowned and kissed his cheek like Gerard usually kissed him, something he had always felt awkward doing but had grown to actually quite like. He... liked being affectionate with Gerard, even if it hadn't always been his forte.
"Hey," Frank said quietly, leaning in closer to him. "I'm sorry for acting like an asshole."
Gerard shrugged but Frank could tell from his hard swallow that Frank's words didn't completely clear him of his douchebaggery. Not that he was hoping they would - continuously being an asshole and then apologizing and letting Gerard become accustomed to it wasn't the healthiest thing he'd found out, so he wanted to let his actions speak. Something he'd also found hard in the past, but now understood he supposed.
He mentally prepared himself before detaching himself from Gerard and pulling his shirt off, carefully putting it on their beach towel before taking off his sunglasses and wincing at the brightness around him.
Gerard watched him with a raised eyebrow, making Frank smile weakly.
"Race you to the water?" He asked, and he could tell Gerard was hesitant at first, but he looked amused nonetheless.
"There's kids," Gerard pointed out, and Frank knew he was just acting up his defiance to see if Frank was actually being serious. "We'd body slam them if we just charged into the ocean."
"More reason to." Frank mumbled, and not a second later Gerard's wide, excited smile came over his face.
The same smile he'd worn all week whenever he talked about going to the beach.
"Okay," Gerard grinned, "Ready, set—"
Gerard took off running after stumbling over the ruins of previous sandcastles kids had built. And Frank couldn't even get mad that Gerard cheated as he laughed softly and stood up to run right after him.
Gerard naturally won, and despite being a sore winner he had made it a point to kiss Frank all over his face as if he couldn't be happier that Frank had even set foot in the ocean.
It made Frank feel all jittery, to be honest. Because although he didn't enjoy gratuitous public displays of affection, he didn't always mind when it was Gerard doing it.
"See?" Gerard asked breathlessly when he finished with a small peck on Frank's lips, "It's not so bad you big baby."
Frank rolled his eyes, only grateful that they were underwater so he could finally pick Gerard up without any strain or fear of snapping off his legs in pain.
So, he did just that. He picked Gerard up bridal style, watching as Gerard squeaked and clung onto him in surprise. His arms were wrapped around Frank's usually sore neck, but he honestly didn't mind the slight discomfort this time.
"If you fucking drop me," Gerard threatened quietly after a few quiet moments, making Frank grin. "I will fuck you up so ha—"
Frank chucked him into the water.
Gerard had shrieked at first before he fell underwater, his body springing back up almost immediately.
Frank laughed loudly as Gerard wiped the hair out of his eyes and glared at him.
"You." Gerard growled, going to push Frank but he evidently didn't push hard enough since Frank didn't move an inch.
"Stupid... strong-ass motherfucker." Gerard grumbled, and Frank smiled at him before picking him up again. Only this time he picked Gerard up by the bottom of his thighs, making Gerard shake his head repeatedly and kick his legs like a little toddler throwing a tantrum.
"No," Gerard said, wriggling in Frank's arms. "No, no, no don't you fucking throw me again."
Frank laughed before nuzzling face into Gerard's shoulder. "I won't."
Gerard sighed in relief, resting his head on Frank's shoulder. Which did unintentionally make Frank's heart beat that much faster.
And there was a small moment where Frank couldn't even hear the screaming kids and the arguing couples, all he could really focus on was Gerard's soft heartbeat and the sun shining his face. Now he was somewhat grateful for Gerard showering him in sunscreen.
And right as Frank opened his mouth to say something, probably to take his mind off of his racing heart, Gerard lifted his head up so their foreheads were touching.
"I love you," Gerard mumbled, lifting a wet hand up to run over Frank's cheek, "Even when you bully me."
Frank smiled a little at that, hiking Gerard up higher - making him squeak quietly in fear of being thrown again.