~four~

weeks had passed since the incident. brendon was slowly getting back on track, frank was still damaged, and gerard was finally heading back to school; hell on earth.

he awoke to the sound of his alarm, wanting to smash it with a hammer. he kept a hammer by his bed at all times. just incase someone broke in or he really needed to take his anger out on something, it was there.

he threw on a hoodie and black jeans, letting his black hair lay a mess. tonight was the only night he had slept since he got suspended so his eyebags weren't as intense, yet they were still prominent.

gerard dragged himself out of his room and downstairs, his bag slung over his shoulder. while slipping on his shoes, he heard faint sobbing coming from mikey's room. gerard laughed quietly before walking out, slamming the door behind him.

the environment seemed so different now. after being gone for two weeks, he didn't expect this much of a change. everyone was more social, it was so colorful and bright, and there was nothing to worry about.

he kept his head down while walking through the narrow hallways. people laughing disturbed gerard heavily, making him almost slam his own head into a locker out of annoyance.

he stopped in place when he saw frank at his locker, just staring into it. another boy stood next to him, an arm wrapped around him. gerard stared at the two for a good 20 seconds before walking on to his locker.

gerard flinched ad he felt a hand on his shoulder, gripping tightly. he didn't wanna see who it was, yet he also didn't wanna just stand there not doing anything about it. he then turned around, seeing brendon.

"what do you want." gerard groaned, turning back to get his english books.

"just wondering how you've been." brendon said in a low whisper, inching closer to gerard.

gerard gritted his teeth and pushed brendon off him. he fell back, trying to keep his balance. once gerard noticed the expression on brendon's face, a mixture of shock and anger, he thought back to the incident.

"you wanna go again, motherfucker?!" brendon yelled, causing everyone to look at the two; even frank.

gerard's eyes wandered the room, seeing everyone staring again. some looked excited, some looked scared, and frank only had a blank face. the scar on his face was still visible but it looked as if it was healing. the boy was still holding onto him, whispering something.

"too much of a pussy, huh?" brendon teased, stepping closer to gerard. he only rolled his eyes and let his head fall back.

"come on, buddy. let's go. let's settle this once and for all." brendon leaned against the inside of gerard's locker.

his fingers were right inside of the locker, fully viewed to gerard's sight. he smiled at a thought of his before slamming his locker shut, smashing brendon's fingers. he yelped in pain as gerard walked off swiftly to his first class.

———

gerard sat down at the lunch table he always sat at, resting his feet on the table. he pulled out his notebook, drawing whatever came to mind. the talk of the school was about gerard slamming brendon's fingers in the locker. gerard couldn't ignore the conversations about it.

out of the corner of his eye, he saw brendon, sitting at a table with his hand all bandaged up. gerard chuckled at the sight, watching everyone trying to comfort him. brendon was obviously still pissed, keeping that stern face on.

gerard stood up and put the notebook back in his pocket, walking out of the lunchroom. he paced the halls looking for a restroom nearby. once he finally stumbled upon one, he walked in and let the door slam behind him.

it was empty as usual, due to the side of the school he was on.  gerard walked over to a urinal, staring at the wall while doing his business. he tapped his foot and just kept his head up.

he jumped as he heard the door open slowly, zipping his pants right back up. he stumbled into a stall and peered out of the top.

"i-i don't know about this.." the innocent voice was far too familiar to gerard. as he peered his head up, he almost fell off the toilet and broke his neck.

it was frank. and the boy he was with earlier.

"we can lure him in here. that's all. then he can get taste of his own medicine, doing this to you" the taller boy said, caressing the scar on frank's cheek. gerard bit his lip to not breathe too hard.

"no- awsten. he.." frank paused, looking down at his feet. "you don't know what he's capable of."

"what do you-"

"no. we're not doing this." frank looked angrier than usual, using a glare only gerard would use.

" we might not be doing it, but i'm doing it whether you like it." the taller boy snapped back, storming out of the bathroom. frank turned away, staring at the wall.

he then reached into his pocket, pulling out a thin metal blade. frank stared at it for a while with glossy eyes. gerard knew what his intentions were, staring down. he then hopped down, pulling the door open.

gerard grabbed the blade from his hand, gripping onto it tightly. frank looked up at him with fear and regret, backing away slowly. gerard walked back into the stall he was in, flushing the blade down the toilet.

"what the fuck was that for?" frank yelled, crossing his arms.

"i knew what you were gonna do. now, if i catch you again, you'll never see daylight again." gerard growled, pushing frank up against the wall. he let out a stifled "yes" before gerard let go of him, backing away.

"how long were you in here?" frank asked, scratching the back of his neck.

"long enough. who the fuck was that?" gerard pointed behind him, though nobody was there.

"just some kid." frank nervously said, shifting from left to right.

"who." gerard said through his teeth, leaning closer into frank's face.

"hi-his name's.. aw-awsten." frank kept direct eye contact with him.

"and what the fuck are you guys planning?" gerard cocked his head to the side.

"he's my.. my friend. and he knew about what happened, and he wanted to hurt you.. but i didn't go along with it." frank stuttered, feeling gerard's fingers graze against his own.

"why?" gerard was only a few inches away from his face now, not looking away from his hazel eyes.

"i don't want you getting hurt." frank sighed, looking down. gerard cupped his jaw, lifting his head to meet eyes again.

gerard didn't hesitate before kissing him passionately, keeping him pressed up against the wall. frank felt a rush of eagerness run through him, grabbing onto gerard's neck. gerard smirked into the kiss, wrapping a hand around his throat. before it got too heated, gerard pulled away and took his hand off.

"tell anyone and you're dead, iero." gerard growled, hiding a smirk and walking out of the bathroom.