Title: Bright lights (cast a shadow)
Fandom: My Chemical Romance
Characters: Frank Iero, Mikey Way
Rating: Gen
Length: 544 words
Content notes: Contains swearwords
Author notes: Title taken from MCR's Famous Last Words (kind of)
Summary: Frank's an observant guy


“Why do you do it?” Frank asks suddenly, apropos of nothing, and Mikey shrugs.

“Not psychic,” he says. Frank snorts.

“Could have fooled me,” he says. “I’ve seen you and Gee together, remember.”

Which, okay, Mikey has to concede he has a point. But that’s Gee. It’s different. “Not psychic with you,” he amends. “Why do I do what?”

“Hide all the damn time,” Frank says bluntly, and Mikey blinks, nonplussed.

“I don’t,” he says, because he doesn’t. He’s always there with them; interviews and photoshoots, label events and shows. On the bus, in the studio. He’s always there.

Frank laughs. “You really fucking do.”

Mikey just rolls his eyes, because Frank’s full of shit ninety percent of the time, and it seems like this is one of those times. “You’re full of shit,” he says, not an accusation, but just because sometimes these things need to be said.

Frank leans forward, elbows on his knees, and eyes suddenly intent. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“So, you don’t tuck yourself away in the corner near the drum riser every time we’re on stage? You don’t hide in Gee’s shadow every time we try and bring you front and centre?”

“Um,” Mikey says, because he doesn’t deliberately do those things, but now that Frank’s saying it he’s thinking, maybe. “No?”

Frank quirks an eyebrow. “And you don’t curl up behind your phone in every interview and let me and Gee field all the questions? You don’t lurk at Gee’s shoulder every time photographers pull you aside for one of those bro-shots they all love so fucking much?”

“No,” Mikey protests, before conceding. “They don’t let me.”

Frank barks out a laugh, “But you would, right? If they did, I mean. You’d totally let Gee hog the limelight while you slunk off into the shadows?”

Mikey shrugs, because it’s not like it’s any secret that his brother loves the attention in a way that he really, really doesn’t. “Probably?”

“You would,” Frank says, with a certainty Mikey can hear. “So, why?”

“I don’t know,” Mikey says, although he thinks that’s probably not entirely the truth. He just…he gets tired of it. The constant attention. The constant demand. The way they always want more, when he’s not sure how much more he can give to them and still keep some of being Mikey for himself. “I guess. It’s nice not to be noticed, sometimes.”

“Yeah,” Frank says, like he gets it, and it wouldn’t surprise Mikey if he does. Frank’s depths aren’t always so well hidden, and it’s not like Mikey’s experience is unique. “Something you should probably know then, Mikeyway.”

“Oh?” Mikey quirks an eyebrow, curious despite himself, and Frank pushes himself up from his seat to drop onto the couch next to Mikey instead. He’s a not unwelcome line of heat against Mikey’s right side, and when he knocks against Mikey’s shoulder companionably it doesn’t feel like too much. It never does with Frank.

“I always notice you,” he says quietly, like it’s a secret. Mikey quirks his mouth, just the hint of a smile, but he thinks Frank knows enough to see the truth in it.

“I’m okay with that,” he says, and he doesn’t pull away when Frank grins and slings an arm around his shoulders.