Frank had changed into a loose pair of shorts and a baggy t-shirt. He sat curled up on the sofa beside Gerard, hands clutching a cup of tea. He had his eyes closed and his head lay rested on his Master's shoulder. Gerard had also changed into his usual comfort-clothing; a long pair of pajama pants and an old long-sleeve top. He sat with one leg over the other, a newspaper in his hands and a cup of tea resting between his thighs.

"Prince?"

"Oui?" Frank sighed out tiredly as he blindly took a small swig of tea.

"How-" Gerard began before he folded the newspaper up and set it down on the armrest of the sofa, "Your first party, my boy. You've experienced it. What are your thoughts?"

"My thoughts..." Frank began, prefacing his own monologue with another sip of chamomile, "It's an eye opener for sure. A lot of people."

"And your experience itself? With other Dominants?" Gerard pried curiously, "How was that?"

"Well, the one Dominant I had already been with despite the scene itself being new." Frank smiled as he remembered, "Ty's a good Dom."

"Indeed he is." Gerard took his own sip of tea, "What else?"

"The other Dom..." Frank trailed off, "I mean he was very... intense. And I liked it. But he was also someone I didn't know. Didn't like that. And I liked him being so cold. But I don't think he was a good Dom if he did what he did."

"I would hope not," Gerard commented and then let out a small sigh, "I need to apologize. I'm so disheartened that your first experience at a party had to end so poorly. We try our best to limit who we bring to these parties to avoid those absolutely low-grade infidels sneaking into our world."

Frank flinched at the venom in his Dominant's voice, "It-It's okay, Apollon. I'm okay. I mean, it's not okay. What he did was fucked up. But I'm okay. And I've experienced a shitty Dom so now I know the difference. And I think you and Ty are amazing."

Gerard leaned in to give Frank a kiss on the cheek before stroking his skin gently with a long finger, "I'm still sorry that it happened this way. I hope it didn't put you off entirely."

"No, sir."

"And... of the scenes you tried tonight, any you would like to add to our own?"

"I liked all of them." Frank smiled, "Except I don't think I want to do hook suspension as often."

"But you're not ruling it out?"

"Nope," Frank stated matter-of-factly as he drained the last of his tea before wiping his mouth on the back of his hand, "I did enjoy it. I just know I'd enjoy it more with you."

"And do you think I'd enjoy those things?" Gerard chided, side-eyeing his submissive.

"Hanging me upside down and whipping me until I ugly-cry and bleed?" Frank snorted, "You'd love it."

"You know me too well." Gerard smiled, "I mean this in the most loving way possible but I love seeing you cry."

"I-" Frank stared at the wall ahead of them, "I mean..."

"Not when you're sad, of course. That breaks my heart. But in a scene or because of me; it's the sadist within that enjoys it." Gerard put his arm around Frank, "How are your holes?"

"Which ones?" Frank scoffed, "I have more than I usually do."

"All of them," Gerard chuckled, giving Frank's shoulder a squeeze.

"Well, they hurt," Frank chuckled, "Surprisingly, the holes I was born with have survived but the man-made holes I earned today, they're a tad tender to say the least."

"Your rice krispies should be fine," Gerard reassured and a frown pulled Frank's brows down.

"My what?"

"Oh." Gerard smiled, "It's a term used in suspension. When the pockets of air get trapped under the skin it feels like the aforementioned cereal." 

"Gross." Frank grinned, "What about the scarring?"

"That all depends on the person, my dear boy." Gerard took his arm from around Frank and stood up, taking both of their empty mugs, "And how well you look after your scars. I suggest vitamin E oil."

"Okay." Frank got up, stretching his aching muscles and stifling a yawn, "Well, I should really-"

Frank was cut off by a sudden knock on the door that had him jumping. Both he and Gerard stared at the door before the submissive rushed over and stood on his toes to peer into the peephole.

"Oh, my God," Frank hissed and turned to Gerard grimly, "It's your brother."

"Michael?" Gerard frowned and walked out of the kitchen to stand in the living room, "What the hell does he want at this time of night?"

Frank shrugged to himself and unlocked the door, opening it slowly to reveal the youngest Way brother in all of his pugnacious glory. He strode right past Frank without greeting him, walking into the living room before he looked at his older brother with clear discontent.

"What can I do for you at two in the morning?" Gerard folded his arms.

"I'm a guest," Michael snorted, "I thought you pull out all of the stops when you have guests over."

"I do when they deserve it," Gerard shot back, "I don't waste my money and time on people who wouldn't do the same for myself."

"Martyr much?" Michael rolled his eyes and caught sight of Frank who was standing by the closed door with his hands behind his back and his head cast down somewhat. Michael looked back at his brother, "I just stopped by to ask you if you were planning on visiting Elouise any time soon."

"I already have. For her birthday. Why couldn't you ask me that over the phone, exactly?" Gerard tilted his head to the side.

"I knew you wouldn't answer." Mikey shrugged, "I figured that I should see you in person."

"Yes, well, I don't want to see you, Michael," Gerard stated coldly, "I thought that since I threw you out of my office, you would have caught the hint."

"I didn't do anything wrong." Mikey frowned, "It was unjustified and unnecessary. You-"

"You insulted my submissive, Michael. You belittled him upon first meeting him. You were beyond reproach for the thousandth time. I won't stand for your manners anymore."

"That rat?" Mikey jerked his thumb in Frank's direction, making him flinch, "You're siding with that instead of your own brother?"

"I am when the former is the only one with any semblance of respect. I didn't decide to get stuck with the family I had - I made a new one. I chose my partner, I chose my own brother."

"Brother?" Mikey snorted, "Who would want to be your brother?"

"More people than those who want to be yours, I'm sure. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like you escorted off of my property before I wake up Lindsey."

"You wouldn't dare," Mikey hissed, his eyes closing into narrowed slits.

Gerard looked up at the stairs and then back at his brother, "Try me."

"God, I wish sometimes that I would have been privately adopted and I never knew about you," Mikey snapped as he stormed towards the door that Frank already had open.

"Sometimes I wish you had never been born." Gerard scowled, "She would still be alive if not for you."

"How dare you-" Mikey spat as he turned, rounding on his brother, "How fucking dare you!"

"You took her away from me!" Gerard yelled suddenly, "You're the reason she's gone and I resent you every single fucking day!"

"What the fuck is going on?" Lindsey's voice boomed from the top of the stairs, silencing the brothers and having all eyes turn to look at her. Frank had never been more grateful for Lindsey in his entire life, even if she was dressed in the best pajamas he had ever seen; bright lime green silk pants and a bra.

"Michael was just leaving." Gerard glared at his brother.

"And Gerard was just being a monumental douchebag," Mikey sneered back heatedly.

"Takes one to know one, I'm sure." 

"Alright." Lindsey put her hands on her hips, "That's enough, Gerard."

"Thank you," Michael sighed.

"And you leave. Right now." Lindsey walked down a few of the carpeted stairs, "Right now. Get out of my house."

Mikey looked appalled for a moment, his mouth opening as if to object, but he stuffed his hands in his jacket and stormed out into the chilly night. Frank closed the door with shaking hands, locking it twice for good measure as he let out a trembling breath and lay his forehead on the wooden door.

"My God," Lindsey mumbled as she walked back up the stairs irritably, "The fucking nerve of some people."

Frank looked back to see Gerard sitting down on the edge of the sofa with his head in his hands, his fingertips gripping his bright orange hair. Frank bit his lip and walked around the large coffee table where he sat on the carpet at Gerard's feet. "Sir?" Frank asked curiously, his voice soft and gentle.

"I just... I feel bad about what I said." Gerard's voice cracked as he rubbed his eyes with the soles of his hands before looking up, looking just past Frank, "He is my little brother, after all."

"Sir, if I may..." Frank began, fidgeting nervously, "What happened?"

"Between Michael and myself?" Gerard asked, his face turning a gravelly shade of beige as his lips pursed into a tight line.

"It's okay if you-" Frank interjected worriedly when he saw his Master's face.

Gerard shook his head, "I was born first, of course. And before Michael, it was a perfect family. I loved my parents and they loved me. Especially my mother, Elouise, she was like my best friend, someone I could confide in. Not that a six-year-old confides about much, they tend to not have a filter." Gerard smiled, "And then my mother told me she was pregnant. I was so excited to have a baby brother. I would draw him pictures all the time for when he was going to be born," Gerard explained and Frank smiled at the mental image.

But then Gerard's face fell, "And then it was the sixth of May and my mother went into labor. I was so excited but I wasn't allowed to go with so I had to stay with my grandmother."

"What happened?" Frank whispered.

"My mother died a day later," Gerard whispered, "She had a cesarean because of complications and back then they did not have the same technological advances as today and she had an allergic reaction to something. They couldn't save her."

"Oh." Frank's throat instantly closed up, his brain flashing back to his best friend who died the same way, and he had to fight back the sting in his eyes, "I'm so sorry."

"I blamed him. That tiny baby with jaundice. It was all his fault," Gerard whispered, "And I suppose you may be thinking that I should have gotten over that by now."

"A little," Frank admitted, and Gerard nodded understandingly.

"I would have. But after Elouise passed away, my father couldn't take the strain of looking after us both," Gerard replied, "And we were both put up for adoption."

"Both of you?" Frank frowned, "I mean, at a long shot I can understand giving up one child especially if you think it'll be better for the kid, but why both of you?"

"I asked myself that every day for decades," Gerard stated, "And Michael was adopted first, of course. He was only a baby. Couples prefer babies over children." 

"How long were you in an orphanage?" Frank scooted closer, his eyebrows folding into a concerned frown.

"About a year before I was adopted by a family. Alan and Bernette." Gerard smiled, "Good parents and they were very supportive of the career choice and everything I wanted. I had a good life. I never had to worry about money or anything like that."

"And Mikey?" Frank raised an eyebrow, "His family?"

"He was adopted by a woman and a man named Eve and Shaun and they were together for a few years and then got a divorce," Gerard explained, "Mikey ran away from them and came to stay with me for a week but he was sent back to them."

"And then?" Frank's eyebrows rose, his stomach knotted with anxiety.

"He went to stay with Shaun who was gay and was the reason for the divorce. And I think that's what helped him into the career he chose and how open he is with his sexuality." Gerard scowled, "And I was envious for so long."

"Of course," Frank muttered.

"Despite how nice my parents were, they were not accepting of my sexuality - not that they knew of my sexuality at all. But I still knew how they felt about it."

"So, you were jealous of him on top of him being the reasons for you being where you are and what happened to you," Frank recapped.

"And just him being a gigantic Philistine," Gerard added in bitterly, "He is a liar and a cheat. He promotes the vegan lifestyle for his clothing line like with vegan leather and cruelty free this and that."

"But it's not?" Frank asked, appalled at the idea, his mouth dropping as Gerard nodded heatedly.

"I have nothing against non-vegan brands and I prefer to at least avoid animal-tested brands but it's the lying that I cannot stand," Gerard explained as he narrowed his eyes, "And he feels that because he's gay and a minority with that, that he can use it as a shield for his career faux pas."

"Asshole," Frank muttered, scowling.

"Just a tad," Gerard whispered before he got up, fluffing Frank's hair as he walked into the kitchen, "Which is why I try and avoid him as much as I need to."

"I can see why," Frank muttered just loud enough as Gerard began to make a new cup of tea.

"Boy?" Gerard looked up, "I completely forgot to mention. I don't suppose you have any plans on Friday?"

"Not that I know of, why?" Frank sat up, elbows resting on the table as he sat neatly on his knees.

"I have plans on Friday night with Lindsey," Gerard stated nonchalantly as he popped a tea bag into his mug.

"Want me to babysit the house?" Frank asked with a light laugh and Gerard looked up with the strangest and knowing smile that Frank had ever seen. It made his eyebrows knit together and his head slowly go back with the strangest sense of foreboding in his stomach, "Oh God, what?"

"It's funny that you mention 'babysitting'." He shrugged as he fiddled with his cup, unable to look at his submissive as he tried to hide a smile.

"What did you do? What's happening to me?" Frank asked as he sat up straighter.

"I'm dropping you off with Ty while I'm out," Gerard stated as he poured the boiling hot water from the kettle into his mug.

"You're kidding." Frank deadpanned, "You're not serious. You're getting me a babysitter?"

"Naturally." Gerard stirred his tea pensively, "For my peace of mind and for Lindsey."

"I demand to know the reasons why you're having me nannied." Frank scowled at his Master, watching the distinguished man spoon sweetener into his tea slowly.

"Well, first of all," Gerard began as he took the teabag from his mug and threw it out, "I could never live with myself if anything happened to you. I don't want to leave you alone and to your own devices." 

"I'm not a child." Frank folded his arms, his bottom lip pouting.

"But you are my submissive, and it's my job to protect you and do what I see fit to keep you from harm," Gerard reminded Frank as he went to the refrigerator and pulled out a carton of milk, "Second reason is because Lindsey doesn't want you here alone with her fine China and crystal."

"Does she think I'm going to be sliding around like an oiled-up pig?" Frank asked heatedly, "I'm not that irresponsible."

"And the third reason." Gerard took a sip of his tea before he returned the milk and then turned to look at Frank with a grave expression, "I don't trust you at home alone, unsupervised with an entire room of sex toys."

Frank felt the color shade his cheeks into a ruddy red and he looked down. Gerard had him there and they both knew it.

Gerard walked back into the living room and sat down gracefully on the edge of the sofa with a knowing glint in his eye as Frank refused to look at him. "I- I wouldn't..." Frank mumbled out but it was futile.

"I don't want to chance it. I'm shipping you off on a play date with Joshua," Gerard chuckled as Frank let out a loud groan at the mention of the submissive, his head thrown back on his shoulders.

"God damn it," Frank groaned, "Why do you insist on pushing him into my life?"

"I am doing no such thing." Gerard set his tea down before he took Frank's head in his hands, their eyes locking, "I am having you looked after by the only person with which I would trust your life. I am shuttling you away while I have dinner with my wife and making sure that you will be in the best care while I am away. And the only person I trust with your life is my best friend. It just so happens that Ty's submissive lives with him and will be there by default. That is the only reason." 

Frank stared up at his Master with wide eyes, his heart lurching as Gerard's words played through his skull, reverberating over and over as they bounced.

"Really?" He whispered softly, his voice barely audible over the intense silence between them.

"Oui, Mon garçon." Gerard ran his thumb over Frank's faintly pink cheek, "Vous êtes la chose la plus importante que je possède."

"I-" Frank frowned a little. He still had no idea what it meant but he knew from the way that Gerard had said it that it was something he should regard as beautiful.

"You, my beautiful boy, are the most important thing I own," Gerard repeated with a small smile, his hands dropping from Frank as he took his tea and drank a small sip. Frank stared at the older man with wide eyes as his stomach did flips and his heart physically ached. 

"I am?" Frank whispered, "Are you sure?" Frank looked around the room and behind him before he jabbed a thumb at the television, "More important than that?"

"Of course." Gerard waved him off, "Don't be so infantile."

"Just checking." Frank grinned happily as he sat back down on the thick carpet, his legs out in front of him, feet turning in awkwardly. Gerard eyed him with a smirk over the rim of his tea, "What?"

"I like your knees that color," Gerard remarked simply, swallowing a sip of tea as Frank looked down at his knees; they were a bright and angry red, and embossed with the pattern of the carpet. Frank felt himself blush again and he looked down, avoiding Gerard's scrutiny.

"Then you should make them look like that a lot more," Frank commented simply, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly as he swung his feet back and forth slowly.

"Are you telling me what to do, boy?" Gerard asked curiously. The inflection in his voice had Franks breath shake as it exited his lips, "Answer me."

Frank looked up, his eyes locking on Gerard's with a hard stare that held way too much confidence, "Yes. I am... Sir."