Chapter Text
They'll tell you that you'll maybe make it
If you just cut your clothes and change your hair
But I won't fuss and moan about what you wear
Sometimes, well, most times, when Frankie and Nick can't get any time to themselves, Frankie finds himself taking pleasure in the small things. Those moments before a performance might be his favorites. Seeing Nick getting groomed by half a dozen strangers always makes him smile. He doesn't squirm in his seat or talk back like Tommy does, no, he shows his annoyance in more subtle ways. Of course, he keeps up his charming, ladykiller persona with them, but Frankie can tell by the slight edge in his voice, the way the smile doesn't quite reach his eyes, the way his jaw sets when he's not talking that he's displeased. Maybe it's weird to think, but Frankie would almost call that annoyed expression cute.
When Crewe's third tap on the shoulder finally manages to get his attention, he starts to wonder if maybe he's staring a bit too much.
I feel so much better when I read your dirty letters
Just wear your sweaters in the winter
Cause I wouldn't want you to get cold
I hope that we're together when we're old
I would've sold all my possessions
Never took piano lessons
But baby you're a grand
And I will learn to play the good notes
and tune you up the best I can
Yeah, maybe Nick's still a little rough around the edges. Sometimes the quick, risky flings just minutes after a show, and very…descriptive love letters slid underneath his hotel room door are a little too much to handle. But he makes up for it by letting Frankie curl up into his shirts whenever they're in their afterglow. And Nick lets him keep them around, which is perfect, because it's much easier to picture certain things in those letters while he has Nick's scent on him. But more than anything he feels safe in those shirts. They're a good enough substitute for the nights when he can't sleep alone. Plus, no matter how many strange looks he gives, Bob doesn't really question it.
And when the two of them do their vocal lessons together, after all these years, when Frankie feels like he's had enough practice, he sits down next to Nick on the bench and leans on his shoulder while he plays a gentle tune, feeling more safe and relaxed than a shirt could ever make him.
He quietly hopes that Nick will let him do this for the rest of their lives.
And I just might say it tonight
I just might say it tonight
I just might tell you tonight
That I love you
And you should stay all my life
No. Frankie was wrong.
When the stars are out, shimmering and shining for what feels like just the two of them, and they've fallen into a comfortable silence huddled close together, feeling the other's heartbeat…those times are his favorites. And he can tell by the slight, relaxed smile on Nick's face, and the way his eyes shut, but he never drifts off to sleep, that Nick loves these moments too.
But something's becoming more common on these trips that Frankie can't figure out for the life of him. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Nick open his mouth to say something, but after a few seconds, closes it again. When that happens, Frankie burrows into Nick's chest, and he can't help feeling a twinge of guilt. Nick knows he can tell him anything, right?
Whenever Nick does that, he feels so tempted to bring it up.
But he doesn't.