For Granted
Julesmonster


Prologue



Brian Kinney was tired as he climbed behind the wheel of his corvette.  He’d been working twelve hour days, six days a week for the last month in order to get Kinnetik’s largest campaign to date completed and launched before the deadline set in their contract.  If they had missed that deadline, they would have forfeited a huge bonus from Redcap Hospitality, a huge conglomeration of hotel chains.  That money was going to be distributed through the staff as a reward for months of hard work.  Brian had already decided that the largest chunk of that bonus money would be going to his VP for Creative Services.  



Justin Taylor was the best thing that had ever happened to Kinnetik—and to Kinnetik’s snarky and misanthropic CEO Brian Kinney.  Not a single employee had failed to notice the way the blonde could tame Brian’s ferocious temper and make him see other perspectives all while keeping him in a relatively calm disposition.  Brian knew this because his assistant, Cynthia, took great pleasure in taunting him with information.  At one time Brian might have responded to such news by chewing her and everyone else around him out and then alienating the one responsible for making him weak.



In fact, Brian had tried to deny Justin’s affect on him.  He spent weeks after the blonde had taken over Creative Services barking and snarling at him, but the twat had simply ignored his crankiness and killed him with kindness when he could and barked back when he needed to.  It hadn’t hurt that the he had a smile that put the sun to shame and an ass that made Brian hard without fail.



Justin had been arguing with Brian over budget cuts to his art department the first time Brian had given in to temptation and kissed him.  Justin had the art department, the account management department, the new media department, and the marketing and special events department all under his control.  His people made Kinnetik what it was and, after Brian, Justin’s vision was the most important in the company—and he knew it—which was why he was tenacious about defending his departments.



A tenacious Justin Taylor was a beautiful sight.



They had been standing toe to toe in Brian’s office, and Brian lost track of Justin’s argument for keeping the art department’s dozen interns in tact.  His mind was completely consumed by the man’s lips as they moved sensually even in anger.  His cologne, faded after a day at the office, mingled with Justin’s unique scent and was intoxicating to the brunet.  And when Justin had looked up at him and demanded, “Well?”  Brian had taken the blonde by the shoulders and kissed him.



After that, things heated up rather quickly.  Justin had been fighting his own attraction to Brian and had lost his inner battle the minute Brian’s lips had captured his.  In minutes they were naked and fucking on Brian’s office sofa.  At some point, Cynthia poked her head through the door, but backed out quickly when she realized what was going on.  She locked the door on her way out and Brian was reminded why his assistant made almost as much as his VPs.



Once they were dressed and had found some sort of compromise on the budget issue—Justin got to keep his current interns but Kinnetik would only offer one third as many positions in the future—Brian attempted to pretend that nothing had changed.  He said it could never happen again, but he wasn’t very good at convincing Justin.  Justin seemed to take great pleasure in tormenting Brian by wearing the most provocative clothes to work.  He smirked every time he caught Brian staring at his ass or imagining fucking Justin against whatever surface was readily available.  After losing track of the discussion in an important pitch meeting, Brian was fed up.  He called Justin back to his office to rant and ended up fucking the blonde against his office door.



Brian gave up fighting the attraction after that and he couldn’t have been happier that he had lost that battle.  This past month had been hell, but having Justin there with him, ready and willing to fuck—or even just listen to him bitch—when they had a few minutes away from the madness, had saved Brian’s sanity.  Their relationship wasn’t exactly a secret among the staff; Brian had on more than one occasion been treated to a blow job because one of the staff happened to mention Brian’s foul mood to Justin in passing in the hopes that the blonde would use his magical powers to pull Brian out of his tetchiness.  It was hard for Brian to complain about the manipulations when he got some really hot fucking and sucking out of the deal.



Justin was in large part responsible for the successful Redcap launch.  It was his insistence on adding the New Media department when he had signed on that had sold Redcap on the original pitch to begin with, and it was his vision for the campaign and his ability to motivate his staff that had seen them through the hectic weeks of preparation before the launch.



Over the last month, Brian had lost touch with his entire surrogate family, with the exception of Gus.  Every Sunday, the only day he hadn’t been working on the campaign, had been spent with Gus.  He refused to allow his relationship with his son to suffer for his job.



Now that it was all finished, Brian had given in to Debbie’s demands that he attend the weekly family dinner.  It didn’t seem to matter to her or anyone else that Brian had been up for almost thirty-six hours straight by the time he got there.  When he had tried to leave early, he had been castigated and cajoled into staying for just a little longer.



As Brian drove along the familiar roads between Debbie’s house and his loft, he wished that he had asked Justin to go with him.  At least he would have had support when he wanted to leave.  But Justin didn’t like going to Debbie’s.  Brian had taken him to a couple dinners soon after they had gotten together, but Justin had never felt welcome and Brian stopped asking after a while.  Instead, he had driven Justin home and told him to sleep; he’d join him soon.



Sometimes Brian wondered why he still went to the dinners.  For the last year or so, he had been feeling more and more isolated and removed from the family.  Since Vic died, really.  Sometimes Brian thought that Vic was the only one who really saw him for who he was.  Debbie tried.  She had moments of insight, but she could be just as blind as Michael when it really counted.  Lindsey liked to think she knew Brian, but she didn’t.  She was like Michael and Debbie: she had an image of Brian that she refused to allow to change.  Melanie just hated him.



Ted tried to get it.  He was Brian’s VP for Finance and he did wonders with numbers.  He knew some of the changes in Brian’s life and had kept his confidences, but Brian always got the feeling that Ted was waiting for him to fall back into his old ways and habits.



The one who came the closest to understanding, and the only one of the family that Justin actually liked to spend time with, was Emmett.  Despite the fact that the nelly queen often got on Brian’s nerves with his flamboyant and over the top ways, he knew that Emmett was the most welcoming and accepting of change.  He was also the most insightful into human nature.  In that way, he reminded Brian of Vic.  God he missed Vic.



Brian was so tired.  There was nothing he wanted more than to be home in bed, preferably with Justin by his side.



Brian saw the truck swerve across the yellow line up ahead, but there was nowhere on the steep and narrow road to move the corvette out of the way.  It was almost like watching a pinball game in slow motion as the truck bounced off one car, back into another car and then went air born and flipped.  Brian saw it heading straight for him, but there was nothing that he could do.  He tried to stop, to swerve, but there was nowhere to go and it was just too late.  Brian’s last thought as his world exploded into a thousand pieces was that he was glad Justin hadn’t come with him after all. His love was safe at home.

Part One



The phone woke Justin from a sound sleep and it took him a few minutes to really wake enough to know what was going on.  He grabbed the cordless beside the bed and croaked out a sleepy “hello” before glancing at the clock.  2:46 am.  Why would anyone call at that hour?  And where was Brian?  He should have been home hours ago.  He was too tired to have gone anywhere but to Debbie’s and then here.



“Mr. Justin Taylor?”



“Yeah,” Justin said with a frown.



“My name is Charlene Connors,” the woman said calmly, but Justin could hear a note of urgency in her voice.  “I’m a counselor at Allegheny General Hospital.  Mr. Brian Kinney was brought in a few minutes ago.  He was involved with a serious head-on collision and has suffered multiple injuries.  The paramedics found your name and information in his wallet.  Are you Mr. Kinney’s next of kin?”



“And his medical proxy,” Justin said.  He was wide awake now, but his mind was working on automatic while he tried to process everything this woman was telling him.



“We’ll need you to come down to the hospital,” the woman said.  “Mr. Kinney has been taken into emergency surgery.  I’m afraid I can’t give out any more details over the phone.  If you ask for me at the ER reception desk, I’ll meet you and fill you in.  You’ll have to fill out some paperwork, so you might want to bring Brian’s insurance information and a copy of his medical proxy.”



Justin nodded and then realized she couldn’t see him.  “Yes… I’ll… I’ll be there right away.  Um…Brian… Is he…?”



“It’s serious,” Charlene said gently.  “I’ll tell you more when you get here.”



Justin hung up the phone and realized he was shaking.  Shit.  He had to get dressed.  He had to find the papers.  He had to get to the hospital.   He repeated that list in his mind as he crawled from the bed and thought how empty it looked; it should have Brian in it, but Brian was in the hospital, in emergency surgery.  Still shaking, Justin hurriedly pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, socks and sneakers.  He ran to the desk and flipped through the files in the drawer.  He found the folder with all their legal and medical papers.  Justin had never been so glad that Brian was anal about shit like this.  He grabbed his jack, his cell phone and his keys and headed for the front door.  Then he realized that he had no way to get to the hospital.  He’d left his car at Kinnetik and Brian had driven him home before heading to Debbie’s.



Still shaking, Justin headed down to the apartment below the loft and knocked at the door.  It took a minute, but a very sleepy Daphne eventually answered.  They weren’t the closets friends, but they had chatted and hung out a couple times since Justin had moved in with Brian.



“Justin?  What’s wrong?” Daphne asked.  Justin looked pale and completely shaken.



“It’s B-Brian,” Justin stammered out.  “I- I need to get to the hospital.  I- I don’t have a car.  P-please.”



“Yeah, sure,” Daphne said. “Just let me…  Just give me a minute, okay?”



Justin nodded.  “I’ll meet you downstairs.”



Justin continued down the steps and lit a cigarette before he had even made it out the front door of the building.  He needed something to calm his nerves.  He couldn’t deal with the doctors and shit if he was this anxious.



Daphne looked a mess when she emerged, wearing pajama bottoms and a sweatshirt with her hair sticking out everywhere, but Justin didn’t care.  He started to toss his cigarette, but Daphne stopped him.  “You can smoke in the car.  I’ll air it out later.”



Justin nodded his thanks and they were soon on their way.  Justin actually finished three cigarettes between the loft and the ER doors, but when he walked inside, he wasn’t shaking nearly as bad and he thought he might actually be able to form complete sentences.  He asked for the counselor, and while he waited for her, Daphne caught up with him.



“Mr. Taylor?”  Justin nodded to the young woman met them.  “I’m Charlene.  Let’s go up to the surgical waiting room and we can talk on the way.”



Justin and Daphne followed her onto the elevator.  “What happened to Brian?”



“Brian was driving down Liberty when a drunk driver crossed the road into incoming traffic.  He hit two parked car, flipped his truck and landed head-on into Brian’s vehicle.”  Charlene wasn’t sugar-coating anything, and Justin appreciated the brutal honesty.  “It took the rescue squad nearly an hour to get Brian out of his car.  It had collapsed around him and they had to cut him out.”



They stepped off the elevator and Charlene led them through a series of door and turns.  Justin didn’t think he’d ever find his way out of there.



“He was brought in and treated in the ER for multiple broken bones, but the reason he’s in surgery right now is because they found evidence of internal bleeding in his abdominal cavity.  That, along with the concussion, are the two things the doctors are most concerned about.”  Charlene took them to a small waiting room and had them sit while she went to pour coffee at the small kitchenette to one side of the room.  She handed on cup to each of them.  Justin thanked her and drank it, not minding that there was no cream or sugar.



“I got an update on his progress just before you arrived,” Charlene said.  “They found the source of the internal bleeding.  One of the veins leading to the spleen suffered a tear, partially dislodging it from the organ, but they are sewing that up and performing a lavage to reduce the chances of infection.  They should be finishing up within the hour.  They’re also keeping an eye on Brian’s brain.  If the swelling doesn’t start to reduce in the next couple hours, they’re going to have to go in and relieve some of the pressure to prevent brain damage.”



“But he’s going to live?” Justin said.  “He’s… he’s going to be okay, right?”



“The doctors are very optimistic,” Charlene said with a small smile.  “That’s the best I can offer.  There is always a chance that something could change, but as long as he responds to treatment, we should see some improvement over the next 24 hours.”



Justin nodded and Daphne said, “Thank you.”



“I’ll be back as soon as they bring Brian out of surgery,” Charlene told them as she got up to leave.  “If you need anything, you can ask them to page me at the nurse’s station down the hall.”



Justin was numb as he watched the door swing closed behind her.  Daphne was silent beside him for a while before she took his hand and asked, “Is there anything I can do?  Anyone I can call?  His family?”



Justin thought of Brian’s family.  He hated them.  Then he thought of his surrogate family.  He probably should call them, but… But he didn’t think he could handle their shit right then.  Justin pulled out his cell phone and handed it to Daphne.  “Could you call Emmett?  Let him know what happened?  Tell him… tell him not to tell anyone else yet.  Not until we know more.”



“I can do that,” Daphne said.



“And Cynthia, Brian’s Assistant should know what’s going on,” Justin said.  “Tell her the same thing.  Don’t tell anyone else until we know more.  I don’t want this place swarming with people.  I don’t think I can handle that.  Okay?”



“Yeah,” Daphne said and squeezed Justin’s hand.  “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”



Daphne left and Justin stared at the clock on the wall.  Charlene said within the hour.  Justin wiled the hands to move faster.



BJBJBJBJBJ



Emmett arrived soon after Daphne returned from her sojourn.  Cynthia was understanding and would keep the wolves at bay for the time being.  Emmett, on the other hand was a rock for Justin to cling to.  As soon as the southern man saw Justin, he scooped him into his arms and Justin finally broke down and cried out all his fears.  Emmett stroked Justin’s hair and let him cry until he had no more tears left.



Time sort of passed in waves.  It dragged while Justin had been sitting alone, but once Emmett arrived, it seemed to fly by and before he knew it, Charlene was back.



“Brian has been moved to recovery,” she told them.  “Justin, I can take you to see him for a few minutes, but you can’t stay long.  Once we get him into ICU, you can sit with him, but he can only have one visitor at a time.”



“How long will he be in recovery?” Justin asked.



“It’s usually only an hour or two,” Charlene said.  “And he’ll probably only be in ICU for a day.  The doctors said that he did really well with the surgery.  The swelling around his brain seems to be reducing as well, so there really shouldn’t be any reason for him not to have a full recovery.”



Justin let out a small sob of relief and Emmett put a supporting arm around Justin’s shoulder.  “You go see him, Baby.  I’ll be here when you get back.”



Justin nodded and followed Charlene down the hall to an open area that was separated only by curtains.  Justin noticed that most of the curtained areas were empty at this time of the night, but the nurses at the central station were attentive and there were two doctors there as well.  Charlene led Justin to one of the areas and let him step inside.



Brian was laying there, a ventilator whirring and hissing as it pumped oxygen into his lungs.  There were numerous bags hanging from the IV pole and dripping fluids into the tube connected to Brian’s left hand.  There was a catheter bag hanging from the gurney.  Justin wasn’t surprised by any of that.  He was shocked at just how beat up Brian looked.  It was obvious that the truck that hit him came from the left as his left side took the brunt of the impact.  The whole left side of his face was swollen and bruised, like a black eye taken to the extreme.  He had two stitches in his lower lip.  Brian was bare to the waist to allow access to the monitor wires and the bandaged sutures from his surgery.  Across his torso from left shoulder to right hip he had black and purple bruises from the seatbelt.  There were small cuts, presumably from the shattered window glass, all over his face, neck and torso.  Justin couldn’t see his legs, but he wondered just how bad they looked.



He stepped up to the bed and took Brian’s right hand.  “Hey.  You were supposed to come and keep me warm.” He brushed a stray lock of hair from Brian’s forehead and brushed his lips there.  “If you did this to try and avoid me, it won’t work.  I’m going to be here every second until they let you go.  You are going to be so sick of me.  But that should give you incentive to get better.”



Charlene cleared her throat and Justin knew his time was up.  “I can’t stay with you right now, but once they get you cleaned up and presentable, they’ll move you to a room where I can sit with you.”  He kissed Brian’s unbruised cheek.  “I love you, Brian.”



Justin followed Charlene back out to the nurse’s station where she introduced him to one of the doctors who had performed the surgery.  “He’s starting to fight the ventilator, which is a sign that he’s ready to breathe on his own.  So we’ll get him off of that, monitor his vitals and make sure he doesn’t have a bad reaction to the anesthesia.  Then we want to set his broken left arm and leg.  He should be ready to move to ICU in an hour or two.”



Justin thanked him and then they were on their way back to the waiting area.  Emmett was alone when they arrived.  Charlene left and Justin turned to Emmett.  “I… I need to go smoke.  But I have no fucking clue how to get out of here.”



Emmett nodded and took Justin’s hand.  They walked out to the elevators and were soon standing outside one of the side entrances where Justin lit up and Emmett sat on the low wall of a planter box.



“How does he look?”



“Like shit,” Justin muttered.  “He’s going to be pissed when he sees the bruising.  But it’s nothing permanent.  He’s got cuts and bruises all over his body, but the worst are on his face and across his torso from the seatbelt.”



“Thank god he was wearing it,” Emmett said.



Justin nodded and took a drag on his cigarette.  “His left arm and left leg are both broken, so getting around is going to be a bitch.  But the good news is that they fully expect him to wake up within the next couple hours.”



“That’s great news, Baby,” Emmett said.  “That’s what you’ve got to hold onto.”



Justin seemed to just notice Daphne’s absence.  “Where’s Daph?”



“She had to go home so she could get ready for work,” Emmett said.  “She told me she would stop back this evening.”



Justin nodded and realized that the sun was starting to rise.  He checked the time on his phone and sighed.  “I’m going to have to at least call Lindsey.  Gus has a right to know what’s going on.  But once I tell her, the other will all soon follow.”



Emmett laughed.  “That is true Honey.  They may treat Brian like shit sometimes, but they do feel a bit protective of him too.”



“You mean controlling,” Justin said.  “Like he’s their possession.  Like they can dictate who he is and what he does.”



“Sweetie,” Emmett sighed.  “I know you feel a little protective of Brian as well, but you have to know that they love him.”



“No Emmett, they love who they imagine him to be,” Justin said.  “They don’t even know him.”



“Maybe,” Emmett allowed.  “But has he ever bothered to make them see that he’s changed?  Even with you, he’s never told them about you and I know that you mean the world to him.”



Justin sighed and crushed out his cigarette butt before lighting another.  “I know.  For someone who is supposed to be so arrogant, he’s really very insecure.  He’s afraid to lose them if he doesn’t live up to their expectations.  Or down to their expectations as the case may be.”



“Well, we aren’t going to solve this today,” Emmett said.  “Make your call.  Unless you want me to do it?”



Justin shook his head and took a drag of his cigarette and then dialed Lindsey’s phone.

Part Two



The family descended before Brian was moved to ICU and Justin was forced to endure their inquisition.  He had hoped he might be locked away in the ICU before they arrived.  It was cowardly, but he really didn’t care right then.  At least he wouldn’t have had to deal with their shit when he was already tired, anxious and stressed.



“Why did they call you?” Michael demanded.  “They should have called me!  I’m his best friend!”



“And I’m listed as his emergency contact and medical proxy,” Justin said tiredly.  He looked around the waiting room at the people gathered there.  They were split into two camps.  Michael, Lindsey and Debbie were on the attack.  Emmett and Ted were attempting to remain neutral, though Justin saw Emmett give him the thumbs up once or twice.  Justin was glad that Melanie had stayed home with Gus and Jenny Rebecca so the kids weren’t witness to the melee.



“Why did you wait so long to call us?” Debbie demanded.  “We should have been here!”



“To do what?” Justin wondered.  “There was nothing you could do.  There’s still nothing you can do. And I called Lindsey when I knew for sure what was going on. They’ll be moving him to ICU in a little while.  Once he’s there, only I can sit with him.  They won’t let other visitors in to see him until he’s in a regular room.  Probably sometime tomorrow.  I might be able to get Gus in once Brian is awake, but I doubt they would let anyone else in.”



“Why you?” Michael demanded once again.  “Who says you get to be the one to sit with him?”



“Again, I am listed as his medical proxy and emergency contact,” Justin said.  He was getting tired of this circus.  “I’m his next of kin.”



“Just because you have some papers…”  This time it was Lindsey staking her claim on Brian.



“I’m his fucking husband!” Justin shouted.  Shit. He hadn’t meant to tell them that.  Well, the cat was out of the bag now.  He took a deep breath to calm down. “I’m his husband,” Justin repeated in a more normal voice.  “Which is why I’m his next of kin.  It’s why they called me.  It’s why he made me his medical proxy.”



There was complete and utter silence from the group.  And Justin could hear the clock ticking above his head.  He so wished Charlene would come tell him Brian had been moved.



“That’s a lie!”  It figured that as soon as Michael found his voice he would start hurling accusations.  “Brian would never get married.  Especially to someone like…you.”



“You think he’d rather marry you?” Justin snarked. “I don’t think so.”



“I didn’t…”



“Even if Brian would miraculously decide to get married, he would never do it without his family,” Debbie said in a bewildered tone, interrupting her son’s defensive lies.  They all knew that Michael was still hoping that Brian would someday love him back.  Even Ben knew that, which was why the man had eventually left Michael. He got tired of coming second in his partner’s priorities and affections.



“His family?” Justin scoffed. “When was the last time any of you actually came to visit Brian?  Either at the loft or the office?  I can tell you that it’s been longer than the eight months I’ve been living with him.  Emmett is the only person who has been by.   And I’ve never once seen any of you at the office…other than Ted of course…and I’ve been there for more than a year.”



“So we don’t go to the loft or Kinnetik,” Michael said.  “That doesn’t mean we aren’t still his family.”



Justin saw Debbie start to back off as she realized that Justin had a point.  She hadn’t made an effort to seek Brian out other than for family dinners in so long that she couldn’t remember the last time she did.



“And I see Brian all the time,” Linsdey said.



“When he picks up Gus,” Justin said.  “When was the last time you talked to him about something that wasn’t related to when he had to drop Gus off?  For that matter, when was the last time you talked to your son about what he does with his father on their days out?  If you had asked, you might know that I’ve been living with Brian for eight fucking months.  You might know that he calls me Papa.  You might fucking know that the three of us spend most of those Sundays together as a family!



“You say Brian wouldn’t get married without his family?” Justin asked.  “Well he didn’t.  I was there, and so was Gus.  If you want the privilege of being Brian’s family, then pull your heads out of your asses and stop taking him for granted.  Stop pretending he’s someone he isn’t anymore and try to see the man he’s become.  Fuck!  You people have no idea how much you hurt him, do you?”



“You don’t know shit,” Michael denied.  “And I still think you’re lying about being married.”



Justin rolled his eyes and grabbed the folder with copies of their important papers.  He flipped through it and pulled out three pieces of paper.  He handed them to Michael.  “The first is a copy of our marriage certificate.  You’ll notice that it’s dated October 12 of last year and has the seal for the State of Massachusetts.  The next paper is our partnership contract, combining all of our personal and professional holdings—it was the closest thing to marriage Brian could think of that would be legal in this state.  The third paper gives me medical proxy and power of attorney over Brian’s affairs if he is incapacitated.”



“October…” Lindsey murmured.  “That was six months ago. Brian said he was taking Gus to Boston to see the sights over the long weekend.”



Justin rolled his eyes.  “And we did see the sights.  We also got married.”



“Un-fucking-believable,” Michael muttered.  “This has got to be a joke.  These aren’t real.”



“Christ!”  Justin shouted.  “Ted, Emmett, will you stop trying to play Switzerland and confirm this?”



“I’ve handled their joint accounts for a while now,” Ted said.  “Brian asked me not to say anything.”  He shrugged.



“And I’ve seen the wedding photos,” Emmett said wistfully.  “It was quite the beautiful ceremony, even if it was just the three of them.  It was right down by the harbor.”



Justin noticed Debbie had sat down and was now crying into her wad of tissues.  He sat down beside her and patted her back.  “Listen, I didn’t mean to get into all this right now.  I’m not saying Brian doesn’t love you… I’m sure he must to put up with all of you. But I need you to understand that I love him too and I have a right to be with him. My position as Brian’s husband outranks any of your claims to his time or attention.  And right now, that means I’m going to go sit with him in the ICU and pray to god that the doctors are right and that he’s going to wake up from this okay.”



“Justin?”  That was Charlene.  Finally.  “You ready?  They’ve got Brian settled.”



Justin stood and nodded.  “Yeah I’m ready.”  He looked back at Brian’s friends.  “Lindsey, I’ll call when Brian wakes up and you and he can decide if you want to bring Gus.  And I’ll keep in touch with Emmett.  He can let the rest of you know what’s going on.”



With that, Justin followed Charlene out of the room and down the hall. They were both silent for a while, but eventually Charlene stopped Justin.  “Families either fall apart or come together during a crisis.  I’ve seen both happen.  If you need to talk about it, I’m here.”



Justin nodded and they kept walking to the elevators.  As they waited, Justin said, “Brian never told them we got married.  They’ve been taking him for granted for a long time now and…he’s been withdrawing from them slowly but surely.  They never even noticed.  Now, everything is out in the open.  In a way I’m glad.  They’ll have to either face what they’ve done, or walk away.”



“I take it you’re all for the walking away,” Charlene said.  “In-laws will make even the nicest people crazy.”



“I wouldn’t mind if I never had to see some of them again, but… Brian loves them,” Justin said.  “It would hurt him if they walked out of his life.  That’s why he’s let them go on believing their false images of him for so long.”



Charlene laid a hand on Justin’s shoulder as they stepped onto the elevator.  “Just hang in there.  If they love him back, they’ll figure that out.”



BJBJBJBJBJ



Back in the waiting room, there was silence following Justin’s departure.  Emmett and Ted both waited for the pack to turn on them, and it didn’t take long.



“How could you two keep something like this from us?” Lindsey demanded.



Ted frowned.  “We may not be the best of friends but Brian has done a lot for me.  More than you probably know or would understand.  I owe him my loyalty and if that means keeping his secrets from you, then yes, I’ll lie through my teeth and never think twice about it.”



“But we’re your friends too,” Michael whined.



“And if you asked me to keep something to myself, how would you feel if I blabbed it to everyone else in this room?” Ted asked him.  “There are a few things I could share if you would like?”



Michael paled and shook his head vehemently.  “No!”



Ted smirked in a way that he had to have learned from Brian.  “I thought not.”



Then all eyes turned to Emmett who was filing his nails.  He was playing it cool but he was very upset with his friends for attacking Justin that way—especially right now, when he needed support and understanding.  “What?  Like Ted said, it wasn’t my place to tell tales out of school.”



“But why did they tell you?” Lindsey asked.



Emmett shrugged.  “After Brian brought Justin to dinner last year, he and I became friends.  We would go out for drinks or shopping or lunch… You know, girl stuff.  He doesn’t have many friends in town, you know, being new here and all.  Did you know he’s from Philly originally?  Well anyway, he didn’t come back to family dinner because, frankly, the rest of you snubbed him the few times he did come.  But I was with Justin the day Brian asked him to move into the loft.  And I was there when they got back from their wedding trip.  I’m just as much Justin’s friend as Brian’s.  And Brian is pretty grateful that Justin and I have become friends.  I think he rather likes me these days.”



“Brian can’t really be serious about this though,” Michael said, almost to himself.  “It’s not like Brian could ever be monogamous.”



Ted and Emmett exchanged a look, but Ted was the one who spoke. “Um, Michael, when was the last time you actually saw Brian tricking?”



“I see him at Babylon all the time,” Michael said.



“And he dances, most of the time with Justin,” Emmett said.  “When was the last time he took some nameless trick into the back room?  Or took them home?”



Michael got defensive again.  “I don’t know.  I don’t watch his every move.”



Ted chose not to comment on that.  Instead he said, “If you had been watching, you’d know that he hasn’t tricked since he and Justin got together more than a year ago.”



“Well, if you don’t count the times they take a pretty boy home together,” Emmett said with a smirk.  “They do like to keep things spicy.”



Ted rolled his eyes, but Debbie looked floored.  “Brian’s not tricking?  How did I not hear about this?  Something like that would be gossiped about all over Liberty Avenue!”



“It was,” Emmett shrugged; he was not going to sugar-coat the truth.  Justin was right to force them to see what they had been doing. “I think that was about the same time you all were caught up in the drama over JR and Ben.  You know, fathering the baby, custody battles… all that shit.  And then Ben left…  Since then, Michael, you have been a bit self-absorbed.”  In fact, Michael had been drunk, high and tricking almost every night since Ben left him, like he was channeling the spirit of Brian Kinney past.



Ted nodded his agreement.  “I heard about it for weeks.  Everyone wanted to know what the hell was going on.  But it didn’t take people long to figure out that Brian was always with Justin.  These days, they wait for the two of them to go on the hunt together and vie to be the lucky one to go home with them.”



Michael slumped in his seat.  “I knew that Justin was still around, but I thought it was just because they work together.  I never… “



Emmett stared at Michael.  “You didn’t see because you didn’t want to see.  You wanted Brian to be that same boy you fell in love with. But the problem with that is that boy never loved you back.  Not as anything more than a friend.  If you accepted that Justin was a part of Brian’s life, then you had to accept that he was never going to choose you.  But Michael, Justin or no Justin, Brian was never going to fall in love with you.  You threw away two great guys for something that was all in your head.”



Emmett turned to Lindsey next.  “You really don’t have an excuse.  Even if you were caught up in the custody drama, you still should have been paying attention to what was going on with your son.  He’s got two daddies.  That should have been something you caught.  I’ve seen Justin and Gus together.  That boy doesn’t try to hide how he feels for Justin.  And I know that Brian and Justin never asked him to lie about anything.  So if you don’t know, it’s because you never listened.”



Emmett’s face was a bit softer as he turned to Debbie.  “You… Brian looks to you like a mother; you should have been paying attention.  But Brian knows you love him.  Otherwise he wouldn’t still try to please you by coming to the family dinners.  Hell, he’s been trying to live up to all of your expectations for so long that he got lost in his own deceit.”



“What do you mean?” Lindsey asked.  They were all listening intently to Emmett now.



“I mean, Brian has been changing for a long time,” Emmett said.  “He’s been dissatisfied with his life, but he kept up the pretense, he kept up the image of Brian Kinney: Stud of Liberty Ave, because he knew that no matter how much you all like to lecture him about his bad habits, that was what you wanted him to be.  You want him to be the reckless fuck-the-rules man he was at twenty-five.  He knows that because the only time you seem to notice him is when he’s being the bad boy.  And if you don’t believe that, just take a look at this last year.



“Brian’s a dad now.  He’s gone through cancer, has lost everything and then built a business from the ground up.  He fell in love and got married.  His priorities have changed.  He grew up.  Maybe it’s time you did too.”  Emmett stood up and stretched.  “Well, I don’t know about you all, but I’ve been up most of the night. This little girl needs her beauty sleep.  I’m going home to rest for a bit before Justin calls.  They are both going to need support through this and I, for one, want to be there to give it in whatever form is most helpful to them.”



He left the room, leaving some very shocked people behind him.

Part Three



Justin held Brian’s hand from the moment he walked into the room.  The part of his face that wasn’t one massive bruise looked pale, but not as bad as he had when Justin saw him in recovery.  They had put him into a hospital gown that buttoned in the front so that they could access his bandages.  They had also put hard casts on both his left arm and leg.  He noticed that one or two of the cuts on his chest and arm from the glass now had a single stitch each.  But he was off the ventilator and his heart monitor let out a steady beat, telling Justin that he was alive and he would be for some time to come.



Justin dozed in the reclining chair beside Brian’s bed, hand still clasping Brian’s right hand, for several hours that morning.  He woke every time one of the nurses came in to check something or change Brian’s IV.  It wasn’t an ideal way to rest, especially after the long work days and the all-nighter they had just pulled the day before, but it was better than nothing.  And it was better than staring at Brian sleep and worrying.



One of the nurses offered to pick up a sandwich from the cafeteria when she went for her break and Justin gladly accepted.  Once he was eating the prepackaged meal, he realized how hungry he really was.  He hadn’t eaten anything since lunch the day before.  He’d been too tired when he got home to bother fixing anything.



“It figures I wake up in the hospital to find you eating,” Brian croaked out, shocking Justin and nearly making him choke on his food.



“Brian!”  Justin gasped out.  “Oh thank god!”  He dropped his sandwich on the table and grabbed Brian’s hand.  “How do you feel?”



“Like shit,” Brian mumbled, his swollen and stitched lip making speaking difficult.  “Everything hurts.”



Justin chuckled, though his eyes were teary.  “I believe that.”



“What happened?”



Justin frowned.  “What do you remember?”



Brian gave a tiny shake of his head.  “We launched the campaign.  I took you home and went…to Debbie’s.  That’s it.”



Justin swallowed.  “You were on your way home and a drunk driver flipped his truck into you.  They had to cut you out of the ‘vette.”  Brian groaned and Justin knew it wasn’t because of his pain.  He loved that car.  “There was some internal bleeding and they had to do surgery to fix that.  You have a mild concussion.  You’ve got a broke arm and a broken leg and three broken ribs.  The good news is that all of the breaks were clean and they didn’t have to do anything more than set them.  Aside from that, you’ve got quite the collection of cuts and bruises.”



Brian let go of Justin’s hand and used his right hand to feel the swelling on the left side of his face.  “Christ.”



“It looks awful right now, but it will heal,” Justin told him.  “I should call the doctor.  They want to check you out and maybe they can up your pain meds.”



Brian grabbed Justin’s hand again and tugged.  “Not yet.”  Justin nodded and very carefully climbed onto the right side of the bed and curled up beside his husband.  They lay there together for a while, both dozing, until one of the nurses entered and found them.  After that, there was little opportunity to cuddle.



BJBJBJBJBJ



Justin went for a cigarette while they removed Brian’s catheter and did his neurological test.  He called Emmett first, but then he called Lindsey.  “Brian’s awake and I convinced him to let Gus visit, just to let him know that Brian’s going to be okay.  But I should warn you that the bruising is extensive.  His face is a mess.  You should probably help Gus understand before you bring him.”



Lindsey was quiet when she responded.  “I’ll bring him by after I pick him up from school.  Justin…”



“I want to get back to Brian,” Justin interrupted.  He wasn’t in the mood to hear whatever she had to say.  “Come to the ICU and the nurse will get me.  They’ll be expecting you.”



He hung up and crushed out his cigarette.  Emmett was coming by a little later with some food and a change of clothes for Justin, as well as a few things to keep him occupied.  Brian was still loopy with pain and the pain medications, but he was already itching to get out of here.  He started asking the doctor before he’d even made it all the way through the door to introduce himself.



Justin smiled as he got on the elevator to head back up to Brian’s ICU room.  Having Brian awake was a relief, but it was also the start of a very long road.  Brian was going to be a pain in the ass patient.



“Justin,” Brian said as soon as Justin walked through the door.  “Tell this person that I’m capable of holding my own dick.”



“He’s capable of holding his own dick,” Justin said dutifully to the nurse who was attempting to help Brian pee into a container.  He smiled to soften the censure.  “Honestly.  If he needs help, I’ll be right here.”



She left, muttering about the two of them and Justin laughed.  “If you are trying to get them to throw you out, it won’t work.  I tried after I was bashed.  Neither did being nice to them or begging, not that I think there’s a chance in hell you’ll try either of those tactics.”



“Fuck you,” Brian muttered as he tried to maneuver the container with his one hand and hold his dick at the same time.  It wasn’t going well.  He finally looked up at Justin.  Justin didn’t comment at all, he just walked over and helped his husband and soon it was done.  He grabbed a couple of the wipes from the stand and cleaned them both up.



“What was that all about anyway,” Justin said.



“They won’t let me leave until I can eat and pee on my own,” Brian said.  He was already getting tired out and he let his head fall back against the pillow.



“I think they mean getting to an actual toilet,” Justin told him, but Brian was already snoring.  Justin wondered how much of this he was going to remember later.



BJBJBJBJBJ



“Papa!”  Gus ran to Justin as soon as the blonde came into sight.  “Is Daddy gonna be okay?”



The five year old was obviously very worried and Justin was glad he’d arranged for this little visit.  “Daddy’s going to be just fine,” Justin said.  “He’s a little banged up right now.  He’s got some big booboos on his face and chest and his arm and leg.”



“Does he need a kiss to make it better?” Gus asked.



“I’m sure a kiss won’t hurt,” Justin told the boy.  He looked to Lindsey.  “The doctor said that you might want to come too, just in case Gus doesn’t react well.”  Lindsey nodded, grateful to be allowed to see Brian.  She followed as Justin carried Gus towards the room he had just come from.  “Now Gus, do you remember when you fell off your bike a couple months ago?”



“Yeah,” Gus said.  “That hurt a lot.”



“I know,” Justin said.  “Well, you had a few small bruises and a scrape on your leg.  Daddy has lots of bruises and scrapes.  It might look a little scary right now, but he’s going to get better, just like your leg got better.  Okay?”



They went in and Lindsey followed.  She gasped when she saw just how bad Brian looked.  Justin looked back at her and frowned, but neither Gus nor Brian seemed to have heard her.



“Wow, Daddy!” Gus said.  “You got some big booboos.”



“Yeah, Sonny Boy,” Brian said with a half smile.  “Gonna come here and kiss them better?”



Justin let Gus down on the bed to kiss Brian’s cheek.  “Be careful.”



Gus was very careful as he kissed Brian’s swollen cheek and then sat back to smile. “Hey look, Papa!  Daddy’s got a cast.”  He turned back to Brian.  “My friend Jimmy broke his arm. He had a cast too.  His was cooler than yours though.  His was blue.  You should ask if they can give you a better color than plain white.”



“What color should I ask for?” Brian asked his son.



Gus thought about that.  “Well, I like blue and red, but I think you should get black.  You wear a lot of black clothes and you want to match.”



“That’s my boy,” Brian chuckled.  “Concerned with fashion already.  I’ll see what I can do.  They might not let me change colors.”



Gus nodded.  “Well, do your best.  When are you coming home?  Mommy said you might be staying here for a while.  But we’re supposed to go to the zoo this weekend.”



“I don’t think your dad’s going to feel up to a trip to the zoo even if he does get to come home before then,” Justin said.  “But as soon as he’s feeling better, we’ll definitely go.”



“Okay,” Gus said.  He bent forward to give Brian another kiss.  “That’s two, so you should get better twice as fast now.”



“Gus, we should probably go,” Lindsey said.  Brian looked up to see her for the first time and she smiled nervously at him.  “Brian, I’m so glad you’re doing so well.  We’ll come back tomorrow for another visit.”



“Okay,” Brian said and watched as Gus climbed down from the bed and followed his mom to the door.



Gus waved one last time before turning to his mom.  “Daddy’s face looked so cool.  All purple and black and red.  The colors swirl like in some of Papa’s pictures.”



“Justin,” Brian said.



“Yeah.”



“Is my face really that bad?” Brian wondered.



“It’s pretty colorful,” Justin said wryly.  “But I can still tell it’s you underneath.”



“Then why was Lindsey acting so weird?” Brian wondered.  Justin had hoped Brian was too doped up to pick up on that.



Justin sighed and sat down beside his husband.  “I kind of blew up at the lot of them this morning.  I think she was more nervous about seeing me than you.”



“Oh,” Brian said and closed his eyes for a moment or two to rest.  “You told them about us.”



“Yeah,” Justin admitted.



“Okay,” Brian said tiredly and fell asleep.



BJBJBJBJBJ



They moved Brian to a private room late that afternoon, not long after Lindsey and Gus had gone.  Since this new room had a phone, Justin no longer had to leave the hospital to make phone calls.  But that also meant that Brian was allowed to have visitors.  Cynthia and the staff sent over a basket of puzzle books, novels and other things meant to keep Brian from going stir crazy.  Flowers and get well cards began to arrive as well; there were even a few stuffed animals.



Cynthia stopped by, but said that she’d let everyone else know that Brian didn’t want a lot of visitors.  That was true enough.  He could be a vain man and the idea of everyone and their brother seeing his face that way made him cranky.  Though if you waited a few minutes, he’d fall asleep and probably forget his bad mood when he woke up.



The first of the family to arrive was Ted.  He had a short chat with Brian about work and then he got up to go when Brian started to drift off.  He pulled Justin aside before he left.  “Emmett laid into them after you left this morning.  I’m honestly not sure what to expect after all that, but I thought you should be prepared for whatever it is.”



“Thanks Ted,” Justin said.  “I told Brian that they know we’re married and that I blew up at them, but no details.  It’s pretty much a waste right now.  He’s so hopped up on drugs most of the time that I’m not sure how much of anything will stick.”



“Emmett put everyone on a schedule,” Ted said with a smile.  “No one is allowed to stay more than fifteen minutes and everyone has a set time to come.  He’s not mad at me, which is why I got to go first.  I think Debbie’s next.”



“Well, Gus and Lindsey were already here,” Justin said.  “That went well.  As far as Gus is concerned, at least.”



“Justin?”  Brian called.



“I’ll let you go,” Ted said.  “Just… take care of him.”



“I will,” Justin promised and went back into the room.



“What were you talking about?” Brian asked.



“Ted wanted me to know that Emmett put the family on a schedule,” Justin said as he retook his seat.  “Apparently Debbie should be coming next.”



Brian grabbed Justin’s hand and pulled it to his lips.  “Are you mad at me?”



“Why would I be mad at you?” Justin asked.



“Because…” Brian looked like he had lost track of his thoughts for a moment.  “Because I went there last night when I should have been home with you?  Because I didn’t tell them about us, and you had to face them alone?”



Justin huffed a laugh.  “If I can handle running your creative services departments, I can certain handle your family with out you there to defend me.  As for last night… That wasn’t your fault.  You couldn’t have predicted what would happen.  How can I be mad about that?”



“But…”



Justin kissed Brian’s objections away.  “I’m not mad, so stop feeling guilty.”



Brian nodded and was soon dozing again.  It was funny, he could be awake for quite a while and seem perfectly alert and aware, but then just drop off.  Other times, getting him to stay awake for more than a couple minutes at a time was a chore.  Justin knew that the pain meds were part of the problem, but he also thought that Brian’s exhaustion before this accident was playing havoc as well.  He knew that he was fairly exhausted himself.



He laid the recliner back and decided he could just close his eyes for a few minutes.

Part Four



Brian woke up to the sound of a soft knock at the door and looked up to see Debbie standing at his doorway.  Justin was asleep in the chair beside him.  Brian waved Debbie in and she came around to the left side of the bed.



“Hey, kiddo,” Debbie said quietly, not really wanting to wake Justin. “How do you feel?”



“Like shit,” Brian said.



“You look like you got into a fight with a freight train,” Debbie told him.



“Thanks,” Brian sneered and then winced at the way it pulled at the stitches in his lip.  “This really sucks.”



“It does that,” Debbie agreed.  She looked nervous, but eventually she said, “You’re boy laid into us this morning.”



“He told me,” Brian said.



“Told us you two got married,” Debbie continued.



“We did.”



Debbie shook her head.  “Why didn’t’ you tell me asshole?  Christ!”



“No one seemed to care that I was happy,” Brian said quietly.  “I tried to tell you.  I brought him to dinner at the house and no one…” He shook his head.  “You were all busy with your own shit.”



Debbie nodded.  “That’s what Emmett said.  That southern belle has quite the temper on him.  After Justin left us, he told us off too.”



“Emmett is stronger than he looks,” Brian said.



Debbie nodded.  “I’m sor—”



Brian cut her off.  “Sorry is bullshit.”



Debbie nodded again.  “But I am.  I can’t believe you’re married.  And I know shit all about him.  Does he at least make you happy?”



“Yeah, he does,” Brian said.  “And if you want to know about him, ask him sometime.”



“I don’t know if he’ll want to sit down and chat with me after everything,” Debbie said skeptically.



Brian chuckled.  “You think he could last a week with me if he wasn’t the forgiving kind?  Fuck, I doubt we would have lasted a day.”



“Well, that is true,” Debbie said lightly.  “You really can be a shit sometimes.”



“He isn’t a pushover, so don’t expect it to be easy,” Brian warned her.



“I’ll pay my penance,” Debbie said.  “Brian, you know I love you, right?  You know I think of you like you were my own?”



Brian blinked back tears and swore to himself about the fucking meds that made him so emotional.  “Yeah.  It’s nice to be reminded sometimes, though.”



Debbie swiped at her own tears and nodded.  “Well, good.  That’s good.  I… I think my time’s up.  If I stay over Emmett will have my ass.  That man can be a real bitch when he’s got his panties in a knot.”



Brian laughed at that and accepted the kiss Debbie placed carefully on his swollen cheek.



BJBJBJBJBJ



Emmett came with Justin’s clothes not long after Debbie left, waking the blonde from his nap.   Brian sent him off with Emmett to get dinner at the cafeteria and clean up.  Justin protested loudly, but Brian eventually got his way.  He knew that the visit with his next guest would go better without Justin around.



“Brian,” Michael’s voice was little more than a whisper.  “You look like shit.”



Brian smiled wanly at Michael’s lack of tact.  “So I’ve been told.  I’m avoiding a mirror so I don’t have to see for myself.”



“Sorry, I…” Michael shook his head.  “Where’s the… where’s Justin?”



“I sent him to get dinner and to clean up.”  Brian leaned heavily against the pillows and closed his eyes.  He was tired, but he had to stay awake long enough to make Michael understand.   “He’s my husband Michael.  You should probably be nice to him.”



“He’s the one who…!” He stopped and sat heavily in the chair beside Brian’s bed.  “He’s been a jerk, but I haven’t given him any reason to be nice to me, have I?”



Brian opened his eyes and looked at Michael.  “No you haven’t.”



Michael nodded.  “Bad enough I ignored him and talked down to him when he came to Ma’s last year, but I… I took you for granted too.  He has reason to be pissed at me.  So do you.”



“I’m not,” Brian said.  “A little hurt, but not pissed.”



“I’ve been thinking a lot today,” Michael said as he stood up and walked over to where the cards and gifts were lined up along the window.  “Do you remember when we were kids and I got all caught up in that drama with Tim Maloney?”



Brian laughed at the memory.  “You were obsessed with him.”



Michael turned back to face Brian and nodded.  “Yeah, I was.  For weeks he was all I could think about or talk about.  And when I finally pulled my head out of my ass and realized he was a prick who was never going to come out… I had missed a lot.  I missed your birthday that year.  I missed the award ceremony when you got into the honor society.  I missed when your dad caught you smoking and…  I missed all of that.”



Brian was silent, so Michael took a deep breath and went on.  “But you were still there for me.  Every time I needed a shoulder to cry on or an ear to listen to me bitch.  And when it all blew up, you took me out and got me drunk and we picked up those guys from the liquor store… Anyway, there have been a dozen times since then that I’ve gotten caught up in myself and totally ignored what you were going through, good and bad.  I’m a shit friend.”



“Sometimes,” Brian said.  “And sometimes you aren’t.  Sometimes you’re a great friend.”



“But you’ve always been there for me,” Michael said.



Brian snorted.  “I outed you to your coworker at your thirtieth birthday party.”



Michael laughed at the memory now, but it hadn’t been funny at the time.  “You thought you were doing what was best for me.”



“Mikey, this isn’t about who did what for whom,” Brian said.  “That’s bullshit.  Friends don’t keep score like that.”



Michael nodded and took the out Brian was offering him.  “Right.  Well, just so you know, I still don’t like your—husband—but I’ll do my best to get along with him.  And I’ll do my best to be a better friend.”



“Getting your shit together would be a start,” Brian said tiredly.  He closed his eyes again.  “You party too much, Mikey.”



“That’s rich coming from you,” Michael muttered, but Brian was already asleep.  Michael tucked the blanket up around him and kissed his cheek.  When he stepped back, Justin was standing in the doorway.  “Um… how much of that…?”



Justin rolled his eyes.  “Don’t worry your pretty little head about it, Michael.  I don’t like you either, but I’m not going to stop you and Brian from being friends.”



“So…truce?”  Michael held his hand out and Justin looked at it for a minute before taking it.



“Okay, truce.”



BJBJBJBJBJ



Brian was kept in the hospital for two more days before the doctors decided that he was ambulatory enough to go home.  Justin wasn’t sure he would call Brian ambulatory; since he couldn’t use crutches with his broken arm, he was confined to a wheel chair until his leg was healed enough to use a walking cast, which would be three weeks at least.  Other than getting up to use the toilet, he still had been completely bedridden for his entire hospital stay.  As soon as he heard he was being released, however, Brian insisted that meant he could go back to work.



Brian was going on and on about what all he was going to do as soon as they got out of there the entire way down from the fifth floor.  Justin shared a look with the orderly who had been working their floor all week as they rolled his husband out to his SUV.  It took some effort for Brian to maneuver into the vehicle and he was sweating with the pain and effort by the time Justin had the seatbelt buckled and shut the door.



The orderly helped Justin put the chair, the single crutch Brian used for his jaunts to the bathroom, and his box of personal items into the back of the SUV.  Then, with a quick thanks, they were off.  Brian’s monologue about all the things they were going to do had stopped and the drive was a mostly silent affair.  Justin could see that the strain of getting into the SUV had hit Brian harder then he had expected.



Getting out of the SUV was easier, but still tiring and painful and Brian collapsed gratefully into the wheelchair Justin had waiting for him.  Justin left the other things in the back of the SUV.  He’d come back for them once Brian was settled.  Instead, he set about pushing Brian up the small ramp to the front door of their building.  The trip up the elevator was silent and then they were finally walking through the door…



…Only to find that the entire family had decided to welcome Brian home.  Justin swore and Brian groaned.



“Daddy!  You’re all better now?” Gus asked as he ran over to his father.  Justin scooped him up before he could climb on Brian.   “Why are you in that chair?”



Justin carried Gus over to the side and let the others surround Brian. “Daddy’s not all better yet.  The chair is to help him get around until his leg heals.  It’s going to be a while before your Daddy is completely better.”



“Justin,” Brian called.



Justin sat Gus back down and went to Brian.  He was sweating again and pale.  “Alright.  That’s enough for now.  Brian’s a bit tired from the trip, so he needs to be in bed.  Gus, if you want to stick around for a few minutes while I help Daddy get settled, I’m sure he’d love for you to read him a story before he takes a nap.”



Gus crinkled his nose.  “A nap?  Only babies like JR take naps.”



“I don’t need a nap,” Brian argued.  “I just need my fucking pain pills.”



“Which will put you to sleep,” Justin said.  He looked at the others in the room and sighed.  “The rest of you can stay or go.  It’s up to you.”



Justin pushed Brian’s chair up the temporary ramp he’d had installed and shut the frosted dividers.  It took ten minutes to get Brian undressed and under the covers.  By the time Justin handed him the pain meds and a glass of water, he looked gray.  Justin helped him settle in and then called for Gus, who had picked out one of his favorite books to read to Brian.  Brian and Justin had a shelf of books just for him and he knew exactly where to go to get the one he wanted.



Justin watched the father and son for a few minutes.  Gus read out the words he knew and sounded out the words he couldn’t remember.  Brian would help him every once in a while, but Gus was getting better and better at reading on his own.  He was a very bright kid.



When Justin returned to the other room, everyone was getting ready to go.  Debbie was putting food into the fridge, Ted already had his jacket on, and Emmett was just coming back in with the stuff Justin had left in the SUV.  Melanie was getting JR bundled up, and Lindsey came over to Justin.



“If you want, Gus could stay here for a while,” Lindsey said.  “We’d pick him up after dinner.  Or if you think that he’ll be too much trouble, we can wait until he’s done and bring him with us.”



Justin smiled.  “He’s fine.  You can leave him.  I’m sure both he and Brian will appreciate the time together.”



Just then, Gus came down the stairs with a look of disgust on his face.  “He fell asleep right before the good part.”



Justin chuckled.  “Well, you can read the rest to me.”



“Gussy,” Lindsey said.  “You’re going to stay here with Justin and your Daddy.  Is that okay?”



“You mean Papa,” Gus corrected her.  “Yeah.  I can help Papa help Daddy get better.”  He stalked over to the sofa to say goodbye to Melanie.



Lindsey straightened up and looked ruefully at Justin.  “I guess I stand corrected.  I think that’s going to take some time to get used to, but… Well, I’m glad Gus has you in his life.  I can tell that he loves you and that you love him.”



“I do,” Justin agreed.  “He’s a great kid.”



Lindsey and Melanie left with Ted, Michael and Emmett following close behind. Only Debbie lingered.   She was wiping down the worktop for the third time when Justin went and sat at the counter.



“You don’t have to scrub the whole kitchen,” Justin teased.  “We do have a cleaning lady.”



Debbie huffed a laugh, but set the towel aside to dry.  “I just feel like there should be something I can do.  Are you sure you don’t need me to come by and help during the day?”



Justin smiled and shook his head.  “I’m sure.  We’ve got a nurse coming in while I’m at work.  Brian’s pissed about it—says he doesn’t need a baby-sitter—but after today, I doubt he’ll fight too hard.”



“He looked bad before,” Debbie agreed.



“He’s got to build his strength back up slowly,” Justin said.  “You could come visit him.  I’m sure he’s going to start going stir crazy before the day is out and the doctor said it would be at least a week before he was strong enough to start back to work for even half days.”



“Papa!”  Gus called, getting impatient for his audience to come listen to him read.



“I’ll let you go be Papa,” Debbie said.  She grabbed her jacket and pulled it on.  “You should stop into the diner for lunch sometime.  I’ll buy you a lemon bar.”



Justin chuckled.  “I’ll do that.”



BJBJBJBJBJ



Later that night, after Lindsey had picked up Gus, Justin climbed into bed with his dozing husband.  Brian woke up almost as soon as he felt the bed shift.



“Go back to sleep,” Justin told him.



Brian blinked at him several times then shook his head.  “Not tired.”



“Now you sound like Gus,” Justin laughed.



“I talked to Lindsey,” Brian said.  “She said… she’s sorry.”



“And you told her that sorry is bullshit,” Justin guessed.



Brian shook his head.  “No.  Actually, I didn’t.  I told her that she’s got to do better about paying attention.  Especially to Gus.  But I also forgave her.”  Brian blinked slowly.  “It must be the drugs.”



Justin chuckled.  “Probably.  Debbie invited me to the diner for lunch.”



“She loves me,” Brian said.



“Yes she does,” Justin agreed.  “They all do.  They just forgot for a while.”



Brian nodded tiredly, his eyes drifting closed.  Suddenly he jerked awake again.  “I think it will be better.”



“Well, if they forget just how special you are again, I’ll just have to remind them again,” Justin said and kissed Brian tenderly.  “But I’m not going to wait for you to almost die to do it. Now, lay down with me.  You may not be tired, but I’m exhausted.”



“Okay,” Brian said and pulled Justin to him with his good arm.  Soon they were snuggled up together.  “I missed this.”



“Me too,” Justin said.  “I love you.”



“Love you too,” Brian murmured and was asleep again before he took his next breath.  Justin smiled and closed his eyes.  It was good to be home.



The End