Categories > Celebrities > My Chemical Romance > Five Beautiful Boys
Staring out of the window, Frank leaned on the kitchen counter and lost track of the minutes. All manner of thoughts were racing around in his head – thoughts that simply made no sense to him. He had to put an end to this, he would not, could not let anyone distract him from the job they had planned for the next night. It was dark by the time he snapped out of the daydream.
“Fuck you!” Frank snapped angrily. “No one! Not one person has ever made me feel bad about what I do. But then Mikey fucking Way comes along and just lies there and says the most innocent things, so calmly, so… so…!”
Frank screamed in frustration and slammed his hands down on the counter top.
“So, you think I’m not a bad man?” he growled. “I’ll show you how bad I can be!”
Storming from the kitchen, Frank headed for the door to the basement room. Throwing it open and switching on the light, he almost ran down the stairs.
“So,” he opened with a harsh glare, “you don’t think I’m a bad man?”
“No,” Mikey replied with his eyebrows raised slightly at the unorthodox entrance. “Not deep down, no. Why? Are you?”
Frank’s shoulders sagged and he simply stared at his hostage. What could he say? Mikey seemed to possess a maddening ability to bring everything down to its most simplistic level. It was infuriating but, at the same time, it was endearing. Frank was confused again. He could really do without this.
“Why are you doing this?” Mikey asked the simple question even though he knew what the answer would be.
“Oh, come on!” Frank scoffed. “No one’s that naïve!”
Mikey offered an awkward shrug from his position on the mattress.
“I don’t just mean this particular time, I mean, in general. This isn’t your first time is it?”
Frank pulled up a chair and sat with his legs astride it whilst he leaned over its back.
“No, it’s not my first time,” he took a deep breath as he thought of the many robberies he had performed over the years – some with Ray and Bob and others on his own.
“Well, why?” Mikey pushed. “You’re not short on intelligence; that’s pretty obvious. What made you do this?”
Frank considered the words and thought about his past misdemeanours and felonies. He had never been asked that question before, not even when arrested. He had never even taken the time to ask himself that one simple question.
“It’s a long story,” Frank replied dismissively.
Mikey rattled the chain between the cuffs on his wrists.
“I don’t seem to be in a hurry to go anywhere. Tell me,” he added, “I want to know.”
“You want to know how I got so bad?” Frank asked snorting with derision.
“I don’t believe you are. Remember?”
“Okay. I was in college.” Frank surprised himself by actually answering the question. “I came from a really poor family, I had to put myself through college and money was real tight. So, I got a job stacking shelves in a market. The hours were lousy and the money was worse.”
“You stole from the market?” Mikey asked, in a non-judgmental tone.
Frank gave a short laugh and shook his head sadly.
“You have no idea how ironic that is!”
“I’m sorry, I interrupted. Go on.”
“Yeah well, it was going okay. I studied all day, worked half the night and went back to my room exhausted, but I survived. I was getting through college and I was determined to make it, get a good job. My kids were going to have all the things my parents weren’t able to give me. Don’t get me wrong, they were amazing parents, but I think it hurt them that everyone else’s kids had such nice things. Anyway, I’m stacking shelves one night and three guys burst in demanding the day’s takings from my boss. I ran over just as he was grabbing a shotgun from under the counter. They shouted my name, I guessed they must have been from the college, but they were wearing ski masks, so obviously, I didn’t recognise any of them. My boss assumed I was in on it, and had let them in, but I hadn’t, I was running to help him. I got the butt of the rifle in my face for my trouble. When I woke up, I was in prison charged with assisting an attempted armed robbery. I was there because I worked there but the prosecution used the fact that they knew my name and that I was a couple of months behind on the fees. He convinced the jury that I was a party to the robbery to get myself back on track. The three guys got away and were never caught. The jury were told that I was protecting them; you know, honour amongst thieves. I was furious, I didn’t even know these guys, how could I name them? I was sent down for eighteen months, just for doing my job. I was nineteen, I had no college degree, a prison record and no prospects. Everything I’d worked for went for nothing. Dead before I’d even lived.”
“What was prison like?” Mikey asked quietly.
Frank’s gaze drifted to the furthest corner of the room; he grew silent and reflective.
“Like Hell on Earth. I was young, and well, I was pretty,” Frank paused as he took a deep shuddering breath. “Some of the guys in there, well, they haven’t seen a woman for a long time and sometimes a pretty young boy will do. You can try all you like, but they’ll always find some way to get you alone.”
“I’m sorry,” Mikey replied, with a genuine worried frown.
“No, don’t be, it’s hardly your fault, is it?”
“It doesn’t mean I can’t be sorry it happened.”
Frank stared at Mikey with a puzzled expression firmly fixed on his face.
“Okay,” he began. “I’m confused. I kidnap you, Bob’s beat you up at least twice, I’ve kept you locked up down here, threatened your brother and you’re nice to me?”
“It sounds to me like you’ve had enough people being mean to you.”
“I’ve always had people take issue with me for one reason or another,” Frank admitted, surprising even himself that he said it.
“Because of your height?” Mikey asked without malice.
Frank offered him a crooked smile. “That’s the other reason.”
“Must be tough.”
“I don’t get you,” Frank shook his head. “I really don’t!”
“No, you’re not alone.” Mikey sighed. “You want to know something? As we’re sharing stuff; my girlfriend didn’t get me either.”
“Your girlfriend?” Frank exhaled. He didn’t know why it was a surprise, not really, but it was. “She didn’t get you?”
“No, spent the last eight months cheating on me with some hippy loser. She borrowed so much money from me, supposedly for her sick mother’s medical bills. Turns out her mother died years ago.”
“Probably from disappointment,” Frank commented with a deep scowl.
Mikey smiled knowingly.
“See! I told you you weren’t all bad, didn’t I?”
“You did,” Frank agreed with a faint smile.
“Aren’t you worried you’ll be caught again and sent back?” Mikey asked, once again bringing a grave and serious tone to the discussion.
“Of course I am!” Frank shook his head. “But I’m never going back. Never!”
“But how can you be sure?”
“I’m good at what I do. Like you said, I’m intelligent and this isn’t my first time.”
“It’s your first kidnapping isn’t it?”
“What makes you think that?” Frank snapped, trying to give nothing away.
“I don’t know,” Mikey admitted. “I think, I just kind of hoped.”
“Hoped?”
Mikey turned a pair of soft brown eyes towards Frank.
“I don’t know,” he admitted with a shrug, “I just got the feeling it was new to both of us.”
Frank smiled. There was something charming and refreshingly undemanding about Mikey that he not only liked, but also found irresistible.
“I’m going to make something to eat,” he sighed. “I’ll make you someting too. Okay?”
“Thanks,” Mikey smiled. “Perhaps I’ll know how bad you are by your cooking?”
“How?” Frank was forced to smile in amazement, “How do you do this?”
“You let me use my inhaler, you can’t be all bad.”
“I’m not,” Frank finally admitted. “And I am sorry Bob hit you.”
“That’s okay,” Mikey flashed a smile, no longer afraid for his life. “It’s been good to talk with you. Really good.”
“Are you hitting on me?” Frank half asked, half joked.
Mikey blushed at the suggestion.
“No!”
“Shame,” Frank shrugged good-naturedly as he headed back up the stairs.
“Fuck you!” Frank snapped angrily. “No one! Not one person has ever made me feel bad about what I do. But then Mikey fucking Way comes along and just lies there and says the most innocent things, so calmly, so… so…!”
Frank screamed in frustration and slammed his hands down on the counter top.
“So, you think I’m not a bad man?” he growled. “I’ll show you how bad I can be!”
Storming from the kitchen, Frank headed for the door to the basement room. Throwing it open and switching on the light, he almost ran down the stairs.
“So,” he opened with a harsh glare, “you don’t think I’m a bad man?”
“No,” Mikey replied with his eyebrows raised slightly at the unorthodox entrance. “Not deep down, no. Why? Are you?”
Frank’s shoulders sagged and he simply stared at his hostage. What could he say? Mikey seemed to possess a maddening ability to bring everything down to its most simplistic level. It was infuriating but, at the same time, it was endearing. Frank was confused again. He could really do without this.
“Why are you doing this?” Mikey asked the simple question even though he knew what the answer would be.
“Oh, come on!” Frank scoffed. “No one’s that naïve!”
Mikey offered an awkward shrug from his position on the mattress.
“I don’t just mean this particular time, I mean, in general. This isn’t your first time is it?”
Frank pulled up a chair and sat with his legs astride it whilst he leaned over its back.
“No, it’s not my first time,” he took a deep breath as he thought of the many robberies he had performed over the years – some with Ray and Bob and others on his own.
“Well, why?” Mikey pushed. “You’re not short on intelligence; that’s pretty obvious. What made you do this?”
Frank considered the words and thought about his past misdemeanours and felonies. He had never been asked that question before, not even when arrested. He had never even taken the time to ask himself that one simple question.
“It’s a long story,” Frank replied dismissively.
Mikey rattled the chain between the cuffs on his wrists.
“I don’t seem to be in a hurry to go anywhere. Tell me,” he added, “I want to know.”
“You want to know how I got so bad?” Frank asked snorting with derision.
“I don’t believe you are. Remember?”
“Okay. I was in college.” Frank surprised himself by actually answering the question. “I came from a really poor family, I had to put myself through college and money was real tight. So, I got a job stacking shelves in a market. The hours were lousy and the money was worse.”
“You stole from the market?” Mikey asked, in a non-judgmental tone.
Frank gave a short laugh and shook his head sadly.
“You have no idea how ironic that is!”
“I’m sorry, I interrupted. Go on.”
“Yeah well, it was going okay. I studied all day, worked half the night and went back to my room exhausted, but I survived. I was getting through college and I was determined to make it, get a good job. My kids were going to have all the things my parents weren’t able to give me. Don’t get me wrong, they were amazing parents, but I think it hurt them that everyone else’s kids had such nice things. Anyway, I’m stacking shelves one night and three guys burst in demanding the day’s takings from my boss. I ran over just as he was grabbing a shotgun from under the counter. They shouted my name, I guessed they must have been from the college, but they were wearing ski masks, so obviously, I didn’t recognise any of them. My boss assumed I was in on it, and had let them in, but I hadn’t, I was running to help him. I got the butt of the rifle in my face for my trouble. When I woke up, I was in prison charged with assisting an attempted armed robbery. I was there because I worked there but the prosecution used the fact that they knew my name and that I was a couple of months behind on the fees. He convinced the jury that I was a party to the robbery to get myself back on track. The three guys got away and were never caught. The jury were told that I was protecting them; you know, honour amongst thieves. I was furious, I didn’t even know these guys, how could I name them? I was sent down for eighteen months, just for doing my job. I was nineteen, I had no college degree, a prison record and no prospects. Everything I’d worked for went for nothing. Dead before I’d even lived.”
“What was prison like?” Mikey asked quietly.
Frank’s gaze drifted to the furthest corner of the room; he grew silent and reflective.
“Like Hell on Earth. I was young, and well, I was pretty,” Frank paused as he took a deep shuddering breath. “Some of the guys in there, well, they haven’t seen a woman for a long time and sometimes a pretty young boy will do. You can try all you like, but they’ll always find some way to get you alone.”
“I’m sorry,” Mikey replied, with a genuine worried frown.
“No, don’t be, it’s hardly your fault, is it?”
“It doesn’t mean I can’t be sorry it happened.”
Frank stared at Mikey with a puzzled expression firmly fixed on his face.
“Okay,” he began. “I’m confused. I kidnap you, Bob’s beat you up at least twice, I’ve kept you locked up down here, threatened your brother and you’re nice to me?”
“It sounds to me like you’ve had enough people being mean to you.”
“I’ve always had people take issue with me for one reason or another,” Frank admitted, surprising even himself that he said it.
“Because of your height?” Mikey asked without malice.
Frank offered him a crooked smile. “That’s the other reason.”
“Must be tough.”
“I don’t get you,” Frank shook his head. “I really don’t!”
“No, you’re not alone.” Mikey sighed. “You want to know something? As we’re sharing stuff; my girlfriend didn’t get me either.”
“Your girlfriend?” Frank exhaled. He didn’t know why it was a surprise, not really, but it was. “She didn’t get you?”
“No, spent the last eight months cheating on me with some hippy loser. She borrowed so much money from me, supposedly for her sick mother’s medical bills. Turns out her mother died years ago.”
“Probably from disappointment,” Frank commented with a deep scowl.
Mikey smiled knowingly.
“See! I told you you weren’t all bad, didn’t I?”
“You did,” Frank agreed with a faint smile.
“Aren’t you worried you’ll be caught again and sent back?” Mikey asked, once again bringing a grave and serious tone to the discussion.
“Of course I am!” Frank shook his head. “But I’m never going back. Never!”
“But how can you be sure?”
“I’m good at what I do. Like you said, I’m intelligent and this isn’t my first time.”
“It’s your first kidnapping isn’t it?”
“What makes you think that?” Frank snapped, trying to give nothing away.
“I don’t know,” Mikey admitted. “I think, I just kind of hoped.”
“Hoped?”
Mikey turned a pair of soft brown eyes towards Frank.
“I don’t know,” he admitted with a shrug, “I just got the feeling it was new to both of us.”
Frank smiled. There was something charming and refreshingly undemanding about Mikey that he not only liked, but also found irresistible.
“I’m going to make something to eat,” he sighed. “I’ll make you someting too. Okay?”
“Thanks,” Mikey smiled. “Perhaps I’ll know how bad you are by your cooking?”
“How?” Frank was forced to smile in amazement, “How do you do this?”
“You let me use my inhaler, you can’t be all bad.”
“I’m not,” Frank finally admitted. “And I am sorry Bob hit you.”
“That’s okay,” Mikey flashed a smile, no longer afraid for his life. “It’s been good to talk with you. Really good.”
“Are you hitting on me?” Frank half asked, half joked.
Mikey blushed at the suggestion.
“No!”
“Shame,” Frank shrugged good-naturedly as he headed back up the stairs.
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