CATEGORY: Fluff
FEATURING: shy!Frank and genderfluid!Gerard
TRIGGER WARNINGS: None
PROMPT: Frank Iero works at a music store, and gets distracted by one customer in particular.
WORD COUNT: About 1,630

It was a bright and clear August morning. Though the bitter chill of autumn had begun outside, the music store downtown was nice and warm. It was filled with the sound of CDs clacking together as people flicked through them, the beep of a cash register after each purchase, and then faint sound of a Fall Out Boy song playing quietly over the stereo.

For Frank Iero, it was just another day on the job. He was taking select VHS tapes, mostly unwanted, off of the shelf, and putting discount stickers on them. People rarely did buy VHS tapes at the shop, but when they did, they were usually collectors. These few VHS tapes, however, had been at the shop for ages, so Frank's boss had told him to lower the price.

He liked working at the music shop, for the most part. They sold CDs as well as VHS tapes, DVDs, used video games, and even some old records, and since Frank worked there, he got an employee discount. Sometimes, if he'd had a bad day, Frank would by some cheap horror movie and watch it after work, eating popcorn and drinking a craft beer on the couch.

"Excuse me, do you have any of The Misfits?"

Frank turned around to see a young man about his age, though taller than he was. He had tangled black hair that stopped just above his shoulders, paired with hazel eyes and pale skin. He wore a plain dark gray t-shirt and dark jeans, along with some black converse. 

"I believe we do." Frank put down the VHS tape he'd been holding. "Here, I'll help you find them."

The shorter boy led the way to the punk music section, and started flipping through the stacks of CDs, with the customer standing at his shoulder. "Are you looking for a specific CD?"

"American Psycho, if it's there," the customer said politely. Frank nodded his head slightly as he continued searching; he was a Misfits fan himself.

He was entirely aware of the customer standing at his side, waiting patiently for him to finish looking, and something about that made Frank's cheeks burn.

After going entirely through the 'M' section, Frank found several Misfits CDs, but not American Psycho. He stopped searching and faced the customer again. "I'm sorry, but we don't seem to have it. We're getting another shipment of punk CDs tomorrow, though. Might have it then."

The customer nodded decisively. "I'll come back tomorrow, then. I work at the coffee shop around the corner."

"Can I help you find anything else...?" Frank questioned. He didn't know the man's name.

"It's Gerard." The customer gave him a grin, and for some reason, it made Frank grin too, with a strange feeling in his chest. "And no, that's all. Thank you."

---- ---- ---- ----

The next day, Frank was unloading the shipment of punk CDs from the truck parked out front. It was still chilly out, so he wore his leather jacket, although it didn't help much. His Green Day pins clicked against one another as he moved.

Frank wished he had someone to help him unload all the boxes. His coworker, Lindsey, had called in sick that morning, so he'd been left to take care of it himself. His boss, Brendon, rarely worked, except maybe to run the register. Although, Frank suspected that Brendon only did that just to flirt with attractive customers.

"Excuse me, do you have any of the Misfits?"

Frank turned around and almost dropped his box of CDs. Standing there on the sidewalk, watching him, was a girl with shoulder-length black hair and hazel eyes. She wore a dark blue sweater over a white skirt, with blue and black striped socks going up to her knees, paired with black Mary Janes.

She was absolutely beautiful, and oddly familiar.

Frank was not used to talking to beautiful girls, so he just stood there. He was aware that he was staring, but couldn't seem to stop, his mind going back and forth between how pretty she was and how familiar she seemed.

"Oh, it's you again," she said with a light smile, smoothing her wrinkled skirt. "I came back for the CD."

With shock, Frank realized why the customer was so familiar. She looked just like the young man he'd helped yesterday. Well, if you put him in a skirt, brushed his hair, and gave him some mascara.

"I...I've got to finish unloading these boxes, then I'll look for it," Frank managed.

"Would you like some help?" she offered.

"No, I've got it." Frank carried the box into the store, and was distinctly aware of the customer following him. She leaned against the counter and waited as Frank carried in the last few boxes, setting one labeled 'M' on the counter.

Frank flipped through the CDs in the box, while the customer watched. She was lightly humming a song...maybe the Fall Out Boy one that had been playing on the stereo yesterday.

Frank couldn't help casting quick glances at the customer now and then. She was pretty, that was for sure. But...she was also a guy. Frank wasn't gay, right?

He tried not to think about her hazel eyes, or the fact that she smelled like sweet vanilla.

After about thirty seconds, the girl looked back up at him, and he realized he was staring. Embarrassed, he quickly looked back at the box, a blush creeping over his cheeks.

The customer squinted at his nametag. "Frank, huh?"

Trying not to look back up at her again, Frank nodded.

"Mind if I call you Frankie?"

Flustered, Frank flipped quickly through the few remaining CDs. "N-No, not at all." He found American Psycho, and pulled it out of the box, sliding it across the counter to the customer. "Here it is."

"Oh, thank you." The customer gave him a sweet smile, the same one from yesterday. It made his heart flutter today, too.

Frank scanned the CD, and read aloud the total. "That'll be $15.99."

The customer gave Frank her credit card, and he scanned and swiped it. He pulled out her receipt and pushed it towards her. "Sign here, please."

Delicately, but quickly, she signed her name on the line, and tore off the end of the receipt, sliding it back. Before Frank could thank her or tell her to have a nice day, she winked at him, and left the store with her skirt swishing. Frank tried really, really hard not to stare.

The name on the receipt read 'Gee A. Way."

---- ---- ---- ----

Another day passed. Try as he might, Frank couldn't stop thinking about Gee/Gerard. There was something about them that just intrigued him, whether it was their voice, or their smile, or their handwriting on the end of that receipt.

Finally, Frank gave up on trying not to think about them. So when his lunch break came around, Frank decided to go to the coffee shop around the corner to find them.

He left the music store and walked down the street, stuffing his hands in his jacket pockets. Frank felt nervous, of course. What was he even going to say? Would he say anything at all?

When he got there, would he be greeted with Gee, or Gerard?

Entering the shop, which was called Coffee's For Closers, Frank found that they prided themselves on their tea as well as their coffee. A small display case was filled with some baked goods, including biscuits, cookies, doughnuts, and bagels. Crossing his fingers, Frank approached the counter.

"Hello, Frankie, what can I get for you?" Gee was behind the counter, and she was smiling at him. Today, she wore a violet sweater, with a pale blue skirt, high white socks, and the same black Mary Janes as yesterday.

"I'm here for you, actually," Frank admitted.

Gee raised a brow, her smile widening.

Ten minutes later, they were sitting at one of the rickety metal tables outside. Frank had ordered a black coffee, and Gee had a green tea.

"So, you came here for me?"

Frank swallowed. "Yeah."

There was a brief silence. Frank didn't like silence. He didn't want this to be awkward.

So, he blurted out the first sentence that came into his head. "Weren't you a guy the other day?"

He almost physically winced. That was definitely not the right thing to say. However, Gee just shrugged. "Yeah, I was."

"I'm sorry, that was really rude of me to ask," Frank said guiltily, lowering his eyes.

"Oh no, it's fine," Gee said, and she looked like she really meant it. "You can ask me anything you like."

"Okay...so...are you in drag?"

Gee wrinkled her nose, like she'd been asked that question a hundred times before. "Nah. I'm genderfluid."

"Genderfluid?"

She smirked at him, and it made him blush. "Never heard of it, have you, Frankie?"

He shook his head, interested.

Gee took a long drink of her tea before responding, like she was trying to think of a simple way to explain it. "Some days, I feel like a dude, and some days, I feel like a chick."

"Oh." Frank blinked as he took in the definition. "I guess that makes sense."

"Mhm." Gee sipped her tea. "So, you like the Misfits?"

Frank knew a conversation changer when he heard it. He and Gee went on to talk about their favorite bands for a while, as well as their respective jobs. All too soon, they had finished their tea and coffee.

Gee glanced at the time on her phone. "I have to get back to work," she said apologetically, getting up from her chair and putting her purse over her shoulder.

"Wait." Frank reached out and lightly grasped her wrist before she could turn away. "Can I...see you again?"

Gee smiled broadly at him. "That would be great."

Frank handed her his phone, and she typed in her contact information before sauntering back into the shop. This time, Frank didn't stop himself from watching her go.

Maybe Frank was a little gay.

____________

A/N: I am not genderfluid, so if I got anything wrong in this story, don't hesitate to tell me! I'll happily edit to make it correct ^-^

this was fun to write, because I got to explore the feminine and masculine sides of Gerard