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"What are you doing?" she asked standing up from the green room couch.

"I thought... that's what you wanted. I th-thought you wanted me..." he stuttered out.

"I-- I can't do this," she said rushing out of the green room, out of the arena all together.

Gerard walked in with a confused look plastered on his face. If you saw a distraught friend running away for a reason unbeknownst to you, you would probably look confused, too.

"Hey, Frank. What's up with Dawn running out like that?" Gerard asked biting into an apple.

Of course it would be just like Gerard Way to be blind like that. As good of a friend as he tries to be, and admittedly he is a great friend, he could be so oblivious to things a lot. He tries to be observant, really he does, it's just after years of trying to get sober and finally doing it you fall into a pattern of just taking notice to things that have to do with you. It's not chosen, but more of a habit that just sticks with you after working so hard to better yourself.

"I-- I gotta go, Gerard," Frank said robotically while walking past the singer.

Gerard shrugged. "Well, have fun the--"

But Frank was already out of room. He was on a mission and, as always, he was determined.

Frank Iero's determination is not something to be underestimated. If you take a look at any situation he's ever been in you would know why. There has never been anything that Frank was dead set for that he hasn't accomplished in some way.

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"I know we've all always encouraged your music, Frank, but think realistically, son," his father tried to reason with him.

"Well, I'm thinking 'realistically'! And 'realistically' this is what I want to do with the rest of my life and dammit I'm gonna do it!" Frank yelled at the elder Frank Iero.

"Just don't come crying to me when your ass is broke and got no place to go! I'm not gonna be pattin' you on the back tellin' you everything's gonna be ok. Don't expect it, son, it's not gonna happen!" his father shouted back.

Truthfully, he wanted his son to be in the music industry and pursue his dreams, but he knew that telling him that would make him lazy. The only thing that worked with Frank was telling him that he couldn't do something that was all the motivation he's ever needed.
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"Dawn!" Frank shouted to the top of his lungs once out side of the arena and in proper disguise.

Yelling attracts attention which is something he didn't want to do right after a My Chemical Romance concert. Why can't these people every give him a break? He'd be happy to sign autographs any other time but this one. Hell, he'd even take a picture and hold a brief conversation. And sometimes, if you caught him in the right mood, fans yelling they wanted his babies didn't bother Frank either. But right now was the exception to the norm. Right now he needed to find Dawn.

"Dawn!" he yelled again. Then he spotted her sitting on a bench across the street from the venue. He ran to her dodging cars and a bicycle or two.

"Dawn," he panted out of breath. "Please, talk to me. I'm sorry."

She had been crying. "No, Frank. Don't be sorry," she said with a final sniffle.

"Wait. What?" Frank asked obviously confused. "What do mean don't be sorry? I tried to kiss you, Dawn, and you didn't want me to. I have every right to be sorry."

"N-no, I didn't mean that. I never said I didn't want you to," Dawn said, not clearing anything up for Frank.

Frank shook his head sitting on the bench with her. "I don't get it. If you wanted me to kiss you, why did you freak out and run away when I tried?" he asked. "Is it the mustache?" he asked again with a faint smile on his lips.

She laughed a bit. "No, it's not the mustache.... I'm not too big on facial hair, though, but that's beside the point," she said then returned serious. "I wanted you to kiss me, but you didn't."

"Dawn, if I didn't want to kiss you I wouldn't have tried, and I sure as hell wouldn't be out here trying to convince you of that," Frank said.

"You're missing the point, Frank," Dawn said looking at him with pleading eyes. "Listen. You have everything going for you. You're in a successful band with your best friends. You get to travel all over the world. And you have a beautiful wife waiting for you when you get back home." She shook her head. "Don't... don't go trying to fuck that up to make me feel better," she said with as much conviction as she could muster.

"No, you listen Dawn Sanders. I tried to kiss you because I wanted to, not to make you 'feel better'. How could you even think that?" he insisted almost yelling. "And I'm not trying to throw that all away, either."

"Do you hear yourself?!" she snorted in disbelief. "Really, are you listening to what you are saying? I'm not going to be your side project, Frank Iero!" Dawn stood up and dashed away from him.

He chased after her. She knew these streets far better than he did naturally; they were just a few hours away from her home town. Hours Dawn had spent wandering these streets looking for something to entertain her during the eventless summer days. That is when she found the Civic Center where a countless amount of bands that she both liked and didn’t like played. As it happened her former guitar teacher was working security there now so he set her up with a job. She work concessions in exchange for opportunities to hang out with the bands both before and after the show and watch the concerts take place, plus pay of course. It was a win-win deal.

She slowed at a dead end alleyway.

"Stop running away from me," Frank said. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Oh really?" she asked sarcastically. "Then, tell me, how did you mean it?"

"Loose the attitude," he said disapprovingly.

"You can't tell me what to do. You wanted to talk. Well, talk," she said leaning against a graffiti'd wall.

"You make me so angry sometimes!" Frank expounded.

"Then why do you even bother?" she asked apathetically.

Frank didn't know how to take that. Then, realization struck. She was acting so different and snotty so he wouldn't bother. She was trying to stop him from ruining everything he had built. So typical of Dawn to try to protect him.

"I see what you're trying to do. You don't want me to mess up my life. You're trying to protect me," Frank accused.

"You aren't the only one I'm trying to protect," Dawn mumbled.

Frank wasn't sure if he was supposed to hear that, but he did. And he sure as hell wasn't about to just let it go.

"Do you really think I would hurt you?" Frank asked barely above a whisper.

Dawn rolled her eyes. "You already have. A lot. Never mind. Just forget about it, Frank."

"No. I'm not going to forget about it. When did I hurt you? What could I possibly have done to hurt you?" Frank asked pleadingly.

"Let's see," Dawn said nostalgically. "You hurt me the day you said 'I do.' You hurt me every single time you smile when you see her sitting out in the audience or when she calls you. You hurt me when I know it's her you go home to every break. You hurt me every time I can see those fucking tattoos she inspired. Every time I see that wedding band glint in the sun. Every time I hear one of the guys say 'Jamia's here' or 'That your wife callin' again, Iero’. Every time I see a picture of the two of you on the bus. Every time--"

"You made your point." He cut her off. Actually, it was making him sick to hear it. He didn’t know she felt that way. Sure he liked her, more than a friend actually, but he never dreamed she felt the same way. And wait, they didn’t even know each other when he had gotten married. That didn’t even bother him nor did he think twice about it. It was the fact that he caused this person, who was essentially his best friend, so much pain. It was nauseating.

"Please, just forget it, Frank. Don't let my stupid little crush change anything between us," Dawn asked.

" 'S not stupid." His murmur was barely heard.

"Yes, yes it is. There are a thousand girls and guys out there who have a crush on you and it's not changing anything between you and the fans so don't let it change anything between you and me," she practically begged.

There was no way she was about to give up her best friend for something as meaningless, unimportant, and downright stupid as a crush. Who would? We’re talking about the person she tells everything to. The only other person who knows almost all of her secrets. The kid that help her pay for her first tattoo and find a willing homeless person to sign for her, seeing as how she was underage. The person that consoles her every time she’s upset and vice versa. The friend that is willing to ninja fight right off the side of the stage with her. The guy who lets her drink with their friends and never gives her shit about being younger than them because, in truth, it doesn’t matter. The Godfather of her hamster for crying out loud!

" 'S not stupid. Cuz I think... I love you."

On a scale of one to ten, that was about a 9,375 on the unexpected radar.





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