Current mood:	crappy
Current music:	lacrimosa, mozart

Blackbird, Chapter 5
Title: Blackbird
Author: woebetidesweets and cassie_roulette
Pairing: Frank (Melanie) /Mikey (Emma)
Rating: NC-17 for... many unspeakable things.
POV: Third-person omniscient
Summary:

Author Notes: This started off as an rp. Because we were bored. We tried to get each other off. And you hadn't had the Frank/Mikey in forevers. And no-one can resist a goddamn uniform. And we're both ex-Catholic Catholic fetishists something fierce. So we're aware that it's pretty damn cliche. But it got out of hand really fast and ended up being kind of epicly long. ...It's been two minutes and I can't think of anything else to reply with. END AUTHOR'S NOTE HERE.
Disclaimer: It's an epic gayass INO AU rp. Also, we don't know the My Chemical Romances. Nor do we own them.
x-posted lyk whoa



Frank was pacing. Seething. Ready to pull out of hair or his lipring or fucking something because it had been a week to the day and Mikey had yet to come back to school. His overactive imagination had invented countless horrible scenarios about what could have happened to him, from his parents pulling him out to outright moving their retarded Catholic family to another town, each one infuriated him more than the last. How dare they, how fucking dare they treat him the way he could only assume they did. Warping his sense of love and self and morality, and it was a wonder he was able to feel any kind of happiness at all. Stalking out to the parking lot, Frank had decided that today he'd go back to that house and bang on the door and demand answers, consequences be damned. His family was rich as sin and he'd use that as well as any other weapon in his arsenal to figure out what the hell was going out and if need be, pull Mikey the fuck out of there.

Frank's eyes were glued to the road, jaw clenched, recreating from memory the painful drive he'd taken to Mikey's a week before when they both sat in silence save for the direction to 'turn here'. He remembered Mikey's silent tears, the way he sat rigid in the passenger’s seat, the way he'd gotten out of the car with a fearful smile, not daring to risk showing any more affection when his parents could and probably were watching from the windows.

It was all he could think about that night when he tried to recreate the hours spent in his bed; of Mikey's voice, calm and unafraid. Of the touch of his hand. The feel of his mouth. None of that prevailed over that last look of fear that sank into his bones and chilled him. And nothing could have prepared him for the regret and self-hatred the next day when Mikey hadn't been in school and he knew, he fucking knew he should have protected him somehow. Almost missing the last turn, Frank slammed on the breaks and pulled into the driveway, glad to see no other cars but fearing that his original theory of them moving away might be true after all. With a deep breath, not sparing a second to doubt his intentions, Frank stormed out of the car and up to the front door, knocking briskly as he set his jaw for a fight.

Mikey could hear the microwave beeping. It'd been beeping for a good ten minutes, but he hadn't bothered getting up again. It had been hours since his parents left for retreat, but he still felt like they could come bursting through the door any second in their Sunday best, see him out of his room and do worse than they'd already done. A half hour before, he'd given in to hunger and decided it was safe enough to venture out from under his covers to heat up ramen, though his ears were pricked for any sound of a car pulling into the driveway. His strategy for the week had been to remain as invisible as possible, and it had mostly worked, because they only came in at night or when he made sound, like they were remembering he was there. But even though the microwave was beeping and his stomach was eating itself out, he was hurting too much, and he didn't want to move. They'd taken his books, so he contented himself with thinking about Blackbird, not wanting to bother trying to hum it, but thinking about it nonetheless.

And his worst fears were realized when he heard pounding on the door. His sleep-deprived, hungry brain didn't even stop to think it was anyone but his parents, that they would probably have keys for the door since it was their house, after all- he had been curled up with his pillow over his head for a few minutes before he suddenly realized that they were going to get in somehow, and they would just be more pissed off when he didn't get the door for them. He tripped on his legs running, opening and slamming the microwave so they wouldn't hear he was making food and smoothing his hair down, taking a deep breath, wincing at each hard, insistent knock to the wood and trying to calm himself down before he took the handle and opened the door and winced at the light.

Frank's eyes were wide, hands clenched into fists so tight his knuckles were white and as ridiculous as the idea was, you'd think he was ready to punch out Mikey's dad for as much as he'd gotten himself worked up. But when the door opened as he saw the frail, frightened form of Mikey standing there, it all drained out of him, his face softening, stepping forward without a word to yank him into his arms because Jesus fuck, Mikey was alive. A knot rose in his throat and for a moment he was afraid he might actually cry, but he choked it down, sniffling a little against the other boy's shoulder before stepping back to hold him at arm's length, just looking at him, not even daring to ask questions that he wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer to.

Mikey immediately tensed as soon as he was touched- it was a defensive position he was used to taking to help prevent damage where it'd really hurt, shoulders hunched high and arms stiff at his side, biting his tongue hard to keep from crying out when arms crushed the welts on his back, but suddenly his brain registered the soft smell of nicotine in the black of the person's hair, and his body relaxed without him even consciously realizing who it was. It was only when Frank pulled back to look at him that he squinted; his dad had broken his glasses and he hadn't bothered to tape them yet, narrowing his eyes like it'd help him see better and shaking in his thin shirt, that he slowly realized who it was, "...F-Frank?"

Frank's face fell a little in horror at the initial lack of recognition, only then actually looking at Mikey for the first time since the door had opened. He was somehow skinnier if that was even possible, though it might just be the way he looked in baggy clothes out of the school's uniform. He looked tired and beaten and it was almost like there was something missing from his eyes (other than his glasses), like some kind of faggy, metaphorical spark of life was gone.

"Mikey," he answered finally, loosening the grip of his hands on shoulders, suddenly he was afraid of hurting him but unable to completely let go.

"Mikey what happened? Where have you been? Jesus... are you okay?"

Mikey didn't really stop to think why Frank was there, thinking he was looking for something else, probably here by mistake- he looked past Frank and at the sunshine in the street. It hurt something in his chest to look at Frank.

"I-I've b-b-been. S-sick. C-c-c-couldn't g-go. T-to. S-school. S-s-s-sick."

Frank was silent for a moment, not doubting for a moment that Mikey had been in no shape to go to school, but he wasn't fucking stupid and he could read between the lines. He saw the shame and the pain and more than anything the horrible fear that infected Frank just from being near him. Chewing on his piercing, he waited a moment before asking "Are your parents home?" figuring that the answer to that question would determine what it was he'd be doing with Mikey. He had every intention to get the answers he wanted, all of his earlier determination still in place to somehow make this better.

Mikey blinked sleepily, shivering a little in the doorway though it was a pretty warm spring day, wrapping his arms around himself and still unable to look at Frank. His brain took a bit of time to process what Frank had asked, his voice a little raspy from lack of use when he finally responded, "...N-n-no."

Frank nodded, silent for another moment as options raced through his head.

"Are they gonna be out long? Do you know when they'll be back?" He stepped a little closer, cupping his hands to each side of Mikey's face, not forcing him to look at him but just wanting to touch him in some way, practically shivering from the feel of skin under his fingers that he didn't know when he'd ever get to feel again.

Mikey was just sinking into a kind of emotionless stupor, contented somehow just being near Frank again, but he immediately started at the touch, jumping back out of Frank's reach, his hand flying up to where Frank had laid his hand and pressing down like it'd burned him. He was panting, breath barely audible over the birds chirping in the trees. He seemed like he was about to cry before he gathered himself, embarrassed at his reaction though he couldn't get himself to move and apologize.

"G-g-gone f-for the w-weekend."

Frank's mouth slowly crept up into a smirk for all that he was dying inside from having Mikey jerk away from him. There was a reason, there fucking had to be, and he was going to figure it out.

"Come on," he murmured, taking a step back towards the door and beckoning Mikey to follow. "If they're not coming back for a few days then I think it's fair for you to get out of the house. They'll never know, come on."

Mikey's eyes widened. "No", he said very simply, backing up so he was back on the other side of his house's threshold and clinging to the doorframe.

"Mikey..." Frank's grin faltered, but he tried to remain confident, struggling to think of an argument the other boy would be able to dispute.

"I know... you haven't been feeling well, okay? And I don't want to get you in trouble. But shit, I've- missed you. And... hey, are you hungry? Cause I know this awesome diner on the other side of town, it'll be my treat, come on."

Mikey's fingers curled around the wood of the frame, his chest clenching horribly and the corners of his eyes burning. His stare was fixed on the cement of the doorstep, one arm still tightly hugging his stomach, his breaths slow and labored, voice barely audible as he repeated 'missed you' to himself, though it was hardly intelligible with as much as he was stuttering. His brain was struggling to work at the frantic pace his thoughts were flying at. If Frank missed him, then Frank wanted to take him out. If Frank took him out, Frank might see the stains on the back of his shirt. He'd felt one of the welts crack when he'd been running to the door, could feel it bleeding a little down the small of his back even now, and if there was anything Mikey didn't want, it was for Frank to- know. But just looking at him made Mikey want nothing more than to be with him, if just for a little while, despite how horrible he knew he'd get it when he got home and his parents inevitably found out. They always did.

"I-I- go. I-I'll go. J-just l-l-lemme- lemme c-change." He didn't turn around, backed up until he thought he was far enough in so Frank couldn't see, not even thinking to invite Frank in the house to wait though it would have been the polite thing to do.

Frank arched a slow, elegant eyebrow at the way Mikey backed away from him, thinking that it had to be one of the weirdest things he'd seen in a long time. He waited all the same though, leaning against the door frame, opting not to step inside- not because he hadn't been invited, 'cause really, fuck that, but moreso because there was something about the house that gave him a bad vibe and the sooner he was out of there the better. Just thinking about Mikey having to live here gave him the creeps, and he had a feeling that if he crept much further inside, he'd be assaulted with more Catholic paraphernalia than he'd be able to stomach.

By the time Mikey was back in his room, he was crying all the way, crucifixes staring him down left and right and condemning him for even thinking about going out with Frank again, but he wanted to, he wanted to so badly. He desperately dug through his drawers looking for a clean shirt, but his mom had stopped doing his laundry since that day a week before, a clean one was nowhere in sight- a sight he wasn't having a very clear time seeing. He reached for his glasses, forgot they were broken until he tried to put them on and they just fell dejectedly to the floor, and at that point, he sank to the ground, trying to put them back together like they'd stick with no tape, leaning against the back of his bed and crying so hard he could barely make out the thin black metal. He just wanted to put his glasses on and change his shirt and leave with Frank, but nothing was working out right, his body hurt all over and he wasn't sure why he was even trying.

Frank was content to wait as long as it took- until he heard the faint sounds of sniffling and sobbing that could only be coming from one person since there was no one else in the house. Taking a deep breath and bracing himself for the worst, he stepped inside and shut the door behind him, following the sound of Mikey's voice until he reached the door to his room. All the while he ignored the stares of Christian iconography doing its best to intimidate him and failing, his only concern in the world currently collapsed on the floor next to his bed.

"Oh Mikey," he breathed, padding inside without permission and sinking down next to him, laying a tentative hand on his shoulder. "It's okay Mikey, it's okay." Whatever it is.

Mikey curled in a ball and laughed mirthlessly, shoving the heel of his hand in his eye like the motion would force the tears back in.

"I- I'm- f-fine, j-justah a sec, 'k-k-kay?" He grabbed a shirt off the ground, figured it was clean enough, at least there wouldn't be red on the back, about to pull up his shirt when he remembered Frank was there, and him seeing would really defeat the whole purpose of changing in the first place. He lowered his eyes in a show of modesty.

"D-d-don't. L-look, okay?"

Nodding slowly, figuring it was the least he could do, Frank turned away and even covered his eyes, willing to do anything at this point to try and help. And if Mikey was embarrassed about being seen without his shirt, then he'd indulge him. For now, anyways.

"We don't have to go if you don't want it," he murmured with his back still turned, suddenly feeling a little guilty about charging into this kid’s life and completely fucking up what had been his idea of normal.

"We can stay here, or... I can leave if you'd rather be alone." He sincerely prayed that that wouldn't be the case but figured it should be stated for the record. "I really would like to spend some time with you though. And I mean... I'm hungry, even if you aren't."

Mikey changed his shirt in record time, tossing the other in the hamper and smoothing down the wrinkles in the front of his new one. Finally content with his appearance though it was undoubtedly horrible, he looked around his room at nothing in particular, shyly sliding his hand in Frank's though he didn't squeeze at all.

"L-let's g-go. W-where you w-wanna."

Something was wrong, horribly wrong, and for all that Frank wanted to shake the answers out of him, right now he wanted to get the fuck out of this house. "All right," he breathed, giving Mikey's hand a little tug back towards the direction of the front door. The light was almost blinding when he opened it, not realizing how cave-like Mikey's room seemed to be, glad though for the air and the breeze that was just warm enough to be pleasant, turning to give the other boy an encouraging smile.

"We're gonna have fun, okay?" he grinned, walking slowly in the direction of his car, not even able to remember a time he'd been this eager to make someone happy other than himself.

Mikey let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding when they stepped outside the house- he had to close his eyes, the light felt so bright in his eyes, but he didn't really mind, just let Frank lead him to the car. He nodded blindly at the statement, blinking slowly when Frank stopped and got in, following him and letting his eyes adjust. Frank was just turning the ignition when Mikey reached over and pulled his seatbelt over, clicking it and buckling him in.

"D-don't." Die. "F-forget to-", he meant to finish with 'buckle in' but it seemed fairly self-explanatory, and when the car started moving, he couldn't help leaning on Frank's shoulder, not even moving when he had to shift his arm to change gears.

Frank grinned at him, somehow managing not to roll his eyes as he clicked the belt into place, glancing at his mirrors and speeding off in the direction of what his parents would consider the shitty part of town. The part without gated communities or neighborhood beautification codes on gardening and mailboxes and all the other things he'd grown to loathe about the area his parents deemed "good enough". None of that mattered now though, not when Mikey was in the car with him and he had supposedly the whole weekend to try and sort out whatever mess he knew was going on.

"You haven't missed a lot," he mumbled after a few minutes of silence, tentatively draping an arm around Mikey's shoulders, using the one hand to drive. "In school, I mean. You shouldn't have a problem catching up, smart as you are."

Mikey yawned, not even caring where they were going and too caught up in how nice to felt to have Frank touch him again to bother opening his eyes to look. As soon as his mouth was closed, he turned his face into Frank's sleeve just to smell the cigarettes and his soap. He'd forgotten about school.

"D-did. Mrs. Moreno. G-give b-back the t-test." He could really care less whether he did or not. He just wanted Frank to know he was listening.

"Yeah, she did," Frank murmured, half distracted by the road, his arm tightening a little around Mikey's body. "I didn't really look at mine." Not when I've been worried out of my fucking mind. Frank couldn't help but smile as they neared the diner. It was one of the few places around anymore who'd let you smoke inside, and right now he was dying for one. His father had once made a comment about leaving his car parked in this part of town but they fucking knew him here. He was respected, he made friends with the right people, and his father could just fuck right off and keeping hiding behind his manicured hedges.

"You're gonna love this place," he said with a grin as he threw the car into park, reluctantly pulling away from Mikey to get out. "Doesn't get more fucking Jersey than this."

Mikey smiled, plodding after Frank, sticking his hands in his pockets and trying to keep his stomach from grumbling as they slid into a booth. It'd been forever since he'd gone out to eat, and the whole place felt warm, thick with the sound of clinking plates and laughter. He rested his chin on his arms, looking up at Frank and still smiling without even realizing it, just being out and with him.

Frank couldn't help but smile back, pulling a menu from the little rack near the back of the booth, laying it out in front of him though he already had a vague idea of what he wanted. Besides, he knew their menu like the back of his hand. He grinned at the older woman who came to take their order, recognizing her from previous visits and earning a friendly smirk in return. "Haven't seen you in a while," she murmured, scratching down Frank's for request for a coke and a bacon cheeseburger with everything.

"Hey, get whatever you want, I'm serious," Frank said softly to Mikey, rubbing his foot against the other boy's ankle under the table. He didn't like the way that Mikey's clothes just hung off his body, and if it came to it he wouldn't hesitate to shove food into his mouth.

Mikey propped the menu like a little tent on its side in front of his nose, tilting his head on his arms and only vaguely reading until he heard Frank order and immediately chirped up to say that he wanted the same thing Frank wanted. His eyes were sleepy and content, and there seemed to be nothing in his brain functioning at the moment to tell him that staring at someone for as long as he'd been looking at Frank wasn't really very socially acceptable.

Frank toyed with his lipring for a moment, completely aware of the fact that Mikey was gazing at him well, dreamily, though until the waitress left he pretended not to notice. Only then did he shift out of his side of the booth and over to Mikey's, not caring how gay it looked or what anyone else around them thought. He wasn't about to miss out on any opportunity to be near the other boy, especially when he was being that nakedly open about his affection. It was cute and it touched him and it just felt right to scoot up next to him and wrap his arm around his shoulders, pulling Mikey against his body as if he could make everything better with that simple act alone.

Mikey's eyes followed Frank until he had scooched into his bench and put his arm around him, and at that point, they slid closed as he quietly turned to hug the warmth of Frank's torso, his fingers bunching in Frank's shirt, tucking his head in Frank's neck and breathing out a very quiet sigh of happiness into his hoodie.

"Frank. I am s-so. To be." He seemed to be oblivious to the fact that he was leaving out key sentence parts, his entire body relaxing in the other boy's half-embrace. He didn't even feel hungry anymore.

"I'm glad you're happy," Frank mumbled, absently petting at his hair, running his fingers down to his neck where he rubbed softly as if to ease tension despite the fact that Mikey felt completely relaxed against him. "Everything's gonna be okay, Mikey. I'm gonna take care of you, I promise."

Glad that the other boy was being curled against him, his eyes hardened as he plotted whatever it was he was going to do. Mikey parents were assholes, that much was for certain, and there had to be something, some way to fix it. It might mean talking to his father, but it'd be worth it. Anything to never again have to see the blank, un-recognizing fear he'd seen earlier today when Mikey first opened the door.

Mikey was half-asleep by the time the plates clattered on the table, trying to memorize exactly what Frank smelled like, thinking that maybe, if he was close enough, his hoodie would smell like Frank too, and then when he got home, it wouldn't be as hard to remember. He squinted an eye open when the food slid in front of them, looking at it from the side and deciding he didn't really care as much about the burger as staying tucked in Frank's shoulder.

And as comfortable as Frank was with Mikey curled up against him, the sudden smell of food was enough to snap him back to reality, sitting up with a tiny yawn of his own.

"Oh sweet," he muttered under his breath, reaching immediately for a knife so he could cut the massive burger in half, not quite possessing the skill to handle it as a whole. "God Mikey, you're gonna fucking love this." His attention was then taken over by the food in his hands, not having eaten yet today since he'd been so worked up about going to rescue Mikey.

Straightening up a little to take a better look at his own burger, Mikey tilted his head, carefully peeling off the top bun and picking off the bacon to nibble at the edges of it to pacify Frank. He hadn't eaten much when he reached for his Coke, fingers feeling even colder from the condensation as he sipped at it to avoid eating.

It took Frank a moment before he was able to tear himself away from his food enough to notice that Mikey wasn't eating.

"Hey," he mumbled around a mouthful of burger, swallowing and taking a long drink of soda before going on. "You okay? Feeling all right?" The other boy didn't look nauseous or anything but it was hard to tell. And if he was just shy, Frank was hardly about to just sit back and let him deny himself the act of eating. He tried not to smirk from thinking about it, picturing Mikey putting up a fuss like a little kid, and fuck was that cute.

Mikey was just getting into a groove of chewing on his straw when he heard Frank's voice and pulled off, swallowing and looking back down at his burger, which really, seemed pretty massive. When his parents got in a bad mood, he got used to not eating much, just because he'd always had a weak stomach and he'd throw up sometimes if he got upset. He smiled at Frank, though, picking up a fry and biting at the end of it.

"I-I am. Okay."

"Oh no," Frank grinned, setting his own burger down to lean a little closer. "I'm gonna make sure you eat. At least half of it. And I'm sitting on the outside so you're stuck until you do." His smile was soft though, wanting to let Mikey know that he wasn't trying to be an asshole, yet stern, enough to show that he was serious. "Besides, I bet you're hungry and you don't realize it. That happens to me sometimes. But your body needs it, trust me."

The irony of it didn't miss Mikey, that a normal kid could quip 'What are you, my mom?', but the fact was, Mikey's mom didn't care if he ate, and the guy who came pretty damn close to molesting him in the school bathroom was taking him out for lunch. He inched closer to Frank, touching their thighs and smiling at him. His smile faded a little when he looked back at the food, but he picked it up and bit at the edge.

Frank rested his chin on his hand, propping his elbow on the table’s surface to watch Mikey with his eyes narrowed slightly in content. He was smiling easily, picking at his own fries but mostly bent at this point to observe the other boy.

"So what should we do after this?" he murmured absently, not wanting to seem too overbearing and also pretty curious to see if Mikey had any ideas, anything he'd been thinking about.

"We could go to the mall or see a movie or go hang out at my place."

Mikey's eyes lit up- he'd been assuming all along that Frank was just going to take him home after they ate, and the prospect of being able to spend more time with him made him more excited than he'd been in a long time. He grinned so wide that his eyes scrunched up and reached for one of the pieces of bacon that fell out of Frank's burger, taking it in both hands and eagerly scarfing it down. He'd never really been out to do any of the things other kids did all the time, so he wasn't really sure which one he'd like or which one to choose.

He decided, as usual, to trust Frank with the decision. He was teaching him about more than how to touch other guys.

"W-what, do you w-wanna do?"

"I dunno, I guess we can go to the mall. Check out the music stores and stuff. See if there's any new video games." And really, that was all there seemed to be to fucking do in this part of Jersey. There was the mall in his parents’ end of town and the one closer to the inner city. Two different scenes but the principle was the same. And he'd rather go to the one that didn't have fucking valet parking any day. "And maybe after that, if you wanted to, we could go to the drive-in."

And that prospect had Frank's knee tensing and tapping out a little rhythm under the table, the hypothetical scenario playing through his mind and making his pants tight.

Just the thought of spending the day with Frank had Mikey raring to go, despite the fact that his body felt horribly tired and sore. He nodded, slowing himself down and trying to act like he wasn't as excited as he was, taking bigger bites of the burger so they could leave sooner. "Whad moovis are thar?" He voice wasn't marred by his stutter so much as the food stuffed in his mouth; he wasn't really patient enough to wait to swallow at this point.

Frank shrugged a little, not even really concerned with the content since he doubted he'd be paying much attention.

"Probably some cheesy horror movie. They never get the high-brow shit there. Which is the point I guess." Finishing off his own plate of food, Frank pushed it away as if to declare to the world that he was done, turning to Mikey with a wry smile.

"You ready?" He asked as he fished his wallet out of his pocket and tossed a pair of twenties down onto the surface, far too much for the price of the food but in a good mood and besides, he wanted them to like him here.

Mikey grinned and nodded, swallowing a bit painfully from having way too much food in his mouth but quickly getting over it and subtly turning the plate a bit so Frank could see how much he'd eaten. He was pretty proud of it, though his stomach was aching from eating too much too fast.

"Yah, r-ready."

He watched Frank lay the money down and shifted a little, his voice quieter. That was more money than he'd ever held, ever.

"Thanks. F-for lunch."

"Don't worry about it," Frank mumbled under his breath, ducking in for a soft kiss against Mikey's cheek before shifting out of the both and rising to his feet. He yawned a little as he rose, sated from food and almost prompted to suggest they just go back to his parents’ house and sleep away the afternoon except for when he remembered the look that had crossed Mikey's face at the suggestion of hanging out. Poor guy probably didn't get to go out very often. With a lazy grin gracing his features, he headed for the door, giving their waitress a final wave of thanks before the little bell chimed over his head, on a straight path for the car.

Mikey tagged along after, flashing a remnant smile at the waitress from Frank's kiss on his cheek. His fingers were still disbelievingly pressing where his lips had brushed when they got in the car and he buckled Frank's seatbelt again, pulling away but pausing for a second before quickly pecking the top of Frank's cheek back. The edge of his lips tugged up at the familiar purr of Frank's car, and he leaned on him again, yawning wide and closing his eyes, letting his breath slow as he listened to Frank shift the gears.

Frank couldn't help but smile at the way Mikey was acting, like he trusted him, felt safe with him, and there wasn't anything he would do right now to shatter that. The Drive-In was right next to the mall, so he figured they could just waste away the rest of the afternoon away until the sun set and whatever shitty movie they had this week would start. His own parents definitely didn't give a shit how late he stayed out, and knowing that he had Mikey for the immediate future sent a strange, warm pulse up his spine.

As he reached the parking lot, he was content to just linger for a moment with the other boy pressed against his side, shutting off the car and turning to press a light kiss onto the top of his hair.

Mikey squinted his eyes open before wincing a little at the light and pulling closer to Frank, trying and failing to stifle another yawn and sniffing sleepily at his jacket. Whether it was the food in his stomach or being overtired or the fact that he felt like he might have made his first real friend in his life or a mix of the three, he felt strangely assertive. His mumble was very low and muffled when he buried his face in Frank's chest.

"I w-wanna. Sleep. L-let's go to sleep." He didn't even care that they were in the middle of the parking lot and that the only place to go would be the backseat, fisting his fingers in Frank's jacket and sighing contentedly.

The last thing Frank wanted to do was argue and besides, Mikey was being frickin' adorable.

"All right," he murmured, reaching over to his the automatic lock button, reaching down between their bodies to unfasten his seat belt. He shifted a little closer then to the other boy, pulling slightly on the collar of his shirt to get him to look up.

"Hey," he breathed, brushing the back of his hand down the side of Mikey's face. "You wanna get in the back?"

Mikey didn't respond, mumbling sleepily and crawling over the console, stretching out as far as he could on the seat before backing up, pressing himself as far and flat as he could against the back to make room for Frank before letting himself relax a little more into the cushion, not even bothering to tuck his hair back.

Frank smiled and sighed, just looking at the other boy making him tired. With a little groan of effort, he climbed into the back to follow, kicking off his shoes and curling up next to Mikey, tentatively wrapping his arms around his back and pulling him up against his chest.

"You comfortable?" he whispered, trying to ignore the way his body was reacting from being in such close proximity, nuzzling his hair.

Tensing when Frank's hands touched his back and not remembering to keep his whimper down, Mikey quietly reached behind him to pull Frank's arm back between them, hugging it close and holding Frank's hand in both of his own, half asleep and kissing absentmindedly at his knuckles before nudging his nose in his palm and nodding though he mumbled 'just d-don't touch me there-'.

Tensing himself, Frank's eyes opened wide in stark contrast to the way Mikey seemed to be drifting off. He wanted to just pretend that he hadn't noticed something was wrong, wanted to ignore it and enjoy is company, but he didn't even know if he'd get another chance.

"Mikey..." he started, resting his forehead against the other boy's as a sign that he wanted to be near him.

"Mikey, what's wrong with your back?"

Mikey was already half-dreaming, full of cheeseburger and pleasantly warm pressed up between Frank and the seat, so his quiet reply was unassuming and nonchalant, “J-just, he g-got me with the buckle there, th-that's all.” His sleepy brain told him Frank's concern was due to wanting to hug him and not being able to, so he guided his hand back to a smooth spot that wasn't as sore and smiled, exhaling breathily and pressing his nose to Frank's Adam apple, liking how it vibrated when he talked and slow to speak, “T-there. Fine now.''

Frank's body went rigid as the start of a cold sweat broke out over his body, chilling him to the core. He let his hand be guided all the same though, not wanting Mikey to think he was turned off or something. Far from it really, but his nagging curiosity was still at the front of his mind.

"Who got you with the buckle?" he asked deceptively calmly, though he had a feeling he already knew the answer to the question.

Mikey groaned a little, playing frustrated at the questioning though he'd never deny Frank anything. He quietly began petting at his neck, wanting him to know how nice it was to be with him.

“D-d-dad.”

Frank's eyes fell closed, silently counting to ten in an attempt to ward off the angry outburst that threatened to pass his lips. All of his earlier fears came crashing back down, and the fact that Mikey had either been kept home as punishment or from injuries or both at the hands of his parents was almost more than he could stand.

"Why?" he finally managed to hiss out, his grip tightening around Mikey's body as if by holding him he could prevent it all from ever happening again.

Mikey blinked, looking up with surprised confusion at the change in Frank's tone and panicking inside, his heart almost stopping at the thought that he'd said something wrong.

“J-j-just, I w-was h-h-home la-l-late, a-an-d,” he flushed and turned into the seat, “I- I-I-I wouldn't t-t-tell them. W-where th-the-“ his fingers played at an almost fully-healed hickey on his collarbone, “Where it c-came from. T--they s-said can't g-go to school. 'T-til. I-I do.”

He shifted further back in the seat, swallowing hard, scared to look at Frank and trying to shut out the memories of whooshing leather. Frank's heart convulsed with guilt at the mention of the mark that for him had been something fun and momentary.

"God, Mikey..." he whispered, reaching out to him and trying to pry him out of the seat, wanting him back against his chest.

"Mikey I'm sorry, I'm so fucking sorry." Anger and remorse clashing in his brain, almost in a state of panic that something he'd done had brought this down on the boy in his arms but who they fuck were these people who would do something like that to their son. "Please don't be upset, I'm sorry..."

“S-sorry?: Mikey didn't move to resist at all when Frank pulled him back, almost laughing with relief that Frank wasn't angry at him and hugging himself tight against his body. “W-why would, y-you say that? It-it's okay. It-it's no b-big deal a-at all. I-I-I will just c-call n-next time. T-they are, d-doing it t-to help. M-me.” He caressed the smooth dip of Frank's spine and kissed the bone of his shoulder.

“D-don't w-worry. Go to s-sleep now.”

"Mikey..." Frank's eyes were wide and sad as he looked down at the boy clinging to his body and telling him not to worry, not even realizing that he was living in a fucking nightmare. And suddenly every gripe he'd ever had about the way his own parents treated him felt more selfish than he could comprehend. Taking a deep breath and afraid that he might actually fucking cry, he just buried his face in Mikey's hair, taking the coward's way out and deciding to let the subject drop for now. Mikey was calm and relaxed and with this recent window into what his life was like at home, he probably hadn't been this comfortable in a long time. He was already sleeping when Frank nuzzled closer, his fists bunched up in the fabric on the back of his hoodie and his mouth open a bit, breathing peacefully slow and calm against his shirt.

"I'm gonna fix this, Mikey," Frank whispered, stroking over the safe part of his back that he'd been shown.

"I promise."