CHAPTER 13 - The Easy Life.

Confession time.

I have always been a bit of a drama queen.

I can already hear the choruses of ‘Duh' echoing around me at that admission. But, it's true. I fully acknowledge it. Not that I like angsty, sad, drama, though. It's more that I like to make an impression on people. I guess you could call me a showboat. A grandstander. Or, if you will, an exhibitionist.

Well, you didn't think my penchant for public sex was just an accident, did you?

I admit, though, that I get a real thrill from turning heads. No matter what I'm doing. I guess it goes back to my childhood and my perpetual need to get attention because I didn't get enough as a child. Whatever. The bottom line is that I tend to enjoy making a splash. I like to do things big or why do them at all?

So, if the Stud of Liberty Avenue is going to relinquish his Stud Card for a relationship - a truly momentous change in some people's eyes to start with - I just figured I might as well do it with a Big Bang . . .

.:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:.

"Tale as old as time,
Song as old as rhyme,
Beauty and the Beast"

The kids were still singing that one song lyric from the movie over and over and over again as they all drove home from the cinema and it was driving Brian crazy. Next to him, in the passenger seat, Justin was torn between singing along with the kids and laughing at Brian's annoyance. To resolve matters, though, he opted for a third option, which was to turn on the radio and thereby distract the kids with other music selections. Justin was happy to see the sigh of relief Brian gave as soon as Gus and Molly started to sing along to rock lyrics instead of Disney.

Unfortunately, the trip home from the mall took a lot longer than usual because of an accident on the highway. They were stuck in a horrid traffic pile-up halfway between exits with the whole mass of cars barely inching along. Brian was silently cursing the world under his breath, angry with himself for not taking a surface street instead of the damn highway, but trying not to let his frustration show too much. Justin could empathize with him - he hated driving - and was sure he would have lost it a lot faster than Brian if he had been the one behind the wheel.

Luckily, the kids were oblivious to what was going on around them. They were both in a singing mood after the musical movie and were venting that by happily chirping along with the radio at full volume. The radio station that Justin had selected was playing a mix of older songs today, mostly light rock, all of which were pretty good sing-a-long songs. Justin figured it was good to have them occupied, since whining kids asking if they were there yet certainly wasn't going to help the situation.

Right about the time that Brian was starting to totally lose his temper - due to the advent of emergency vehicles trying to get through the throng of almost immobile cars - Shania Twain's ‘Man! I Feel Like A Woman' came on the radio. Molly squealed, declaring the tune one of her all time favorite songs. She immediately demanded that Justin turn up the volume, loud. Then she started warbling along with the song.

"Let's Go Girls!" Molly sang along with the directive at the start of the song, causing Justin and Gus to chuckle.

Molly proceeded to croon along with the first verse, getting the lyrics word perfect. She was doing her best to sway sexily - or at least in a manner that a ten year old would think was sexy - while holding up an almost empty water bottle in lieu of a microphone. Gus was clapping along and laughing at the performance. Justin simply shook his head and smiled at a sight he'd seen more than once.

When the chorus came along for the first time, Molly demanded that Justin sing along with her. The doting big brother complied, after a sheepish look of semi-apology to Brian. His clear low tenor rang out along with Molly's childish soprano, filling the car with their voices.

"Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy, forget I'm a LADY, men's shirts, short skirts, Oh, oh, oh, oh . . ." Justin belted out, mimicking Molly's attempts at sexy swaying and causing Brian to break out laughing.

After that, it all devolved into just plain silliness. Everyone got into the act, even Brian. Molly had them all singing along with the chorus, occasionally pointing to one or the other of them for a solo on a line or two. Gus loved it, even though he didn't know the words and resorted to making up his own sometimes. And when the iconic chorus line came along, they were all yelling it out at the tops of their lungs.

"Man! I feel like a woman!"

The spectacle was apparently amusing to the drivers in the nearby cars as well, who were all smiling at the men singing along with the car windows open due to the warm day. Molly and her backup singers actually got a round of applause from the other drivers stuck in the jam when the song was finally over. Brian, natural ham that he was, bowed to his audience, eliciting more laughter. And then, almost like a miracle, the traffic started to move and a hole opened up - with all the cars that had just been regaled by their impromptu choir, jovially letting Brian pull ahead.

Which Brian privately thought was a much nicer way to deal with a traffic jam than his standard practice of getting angry, yelling impotently at the cars ahead of him, and looking at the clock every thirty seconds.

.:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:.

They made it back to Justin's condo without further delay. Only thing was, Brian was feeling strangely reluctant to just drop his passengers off and go. Which made no sense at all, because he'd just spent more than twenty-four straight hours with this man who he'd only known for less than a week. Brian couldn't stand to spend that much time with his friends, let alone someone who was only one step up from being a stranger. But, for whatever reason, he just did not want to say goodbye.

Molly was already out of the car waiting for her brother on the sidewalk. Justin seemed like he was moving a bit slowly, his mind obviously elsewhere as he chewed on his bottom lip. He pulled at the door handle, pushing the door open when it unlatched, and then, just as he was about to step out, he paused.

Turning back to look at Brian, he offered up a nervous smile. "I'm sure you're probably sick of me by now, Stud, so I'd understand if you'd rather head home, but . . . well, if you want to come up and hang out awhile longer, I wouldn't mind. And I'm sure that Molly and Gus can find something to do to keep themselves busy."

"Sure," Brian replied, trying to make it sound casual and not like he was internally jumping for joy that he had an excuse to stay. "I didn't really have any other plans and I'm sure the Midget would rather hang around with Molly than with me."

"Great. Why don't you go park and then come upstairs. I'll take the kids and get them started on some lunch - I'm sure the popcorn and sodas from the theater have worn off by now," Justin offered, garnering a cheer from the hungry children.

Brian waited till Justin had Gus out of his car seat and then pulled the Jeep around to the parking lot in the back of Justin's building. Then, with a smile he couldn't tamp down if he'd tried, he jogged up the stairs to the floor where Justin's condo was located and let himself in the door that was waiting for him slightly ajar. He made his way to the kitchen and started to help out with the making of the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches without being asked, helping himself to a beer from the fridge in the process. He already felt so fucking comfortable there at Justin's place, that he didn't even think about it. When Justin stopped to kiss him as he passed by on the way to putting the peanut butter back in the cupboard, it just felt natural for Brian to kiss him back. Everything that morning had felt easy and simple and so right.

As soon as they got the kids settled with their food, Justin pulled out salad fixings for himself & Brian. The two men worked together quickly and efficiently to prepare and plate the meal. The way they functioned in tandem, operating like each knew the other's next step without even thinking about it, it was as if they'd known each other for years. Neither man commented on the phenomenon, for fear of jinxing things. But, at least to Brian, it felt incredibly good and so comfortable, that he secretly hoped this ‘whatever it was' with the blond would continue.

The ringing of Brian's phone a few minutes after they'd seated themselves and started eating, interrupted the blissful moment, calling him back to reality. He looked at the caller ID and groaned aloud. He really didn't want to talk to Debbie right then. He wanted to stay in his little bubble of happiness. But he knew better than to try and avoid a Novotny - it only made them more determined to find you. It was better to just take the call and get it over with.

"Deb," was all he had time to say before the boisterous redhead was taking over the conversation.

"Hey, kiddo! Good news - I traded shifts with Kiki so I've got the rest of the day off. And, since I've got nothing better to do, I thought it was past time to have another family dinner. I know Michael's not back yet, but that doesn't mean I can't catch up with the rest of my boys, right? Besides, I need to make sure you've been taking good care of our Gus so far."

"The Midget is just fine, Deb. And it's been less than a week since the Barbeque - surely you don't need to check in on us this soon," Brian complained.

"Knowing you, Brian - not to mention your utter lack of cooking skills - I think a week is way too long. The boy could have starved to death by now," Debbie teased, guffawing with laughter at her own joke.

"Sorry, Deb, but I kinda already had plans for tonight," Brian apologized, looking across the table at the blond who was trying to pretend that he wasn't listening in on the phone conversation.

"Well you're just going to have to reschedule, then, ‘cause I already talked to Emmett and confirmed that he and Drew are coming tonight. Ted and Blake too. Which means you won't have any babysitters for Gus."

"I don't need a babysitter. Gus is here with me," Brian answered, only realizing after the words were out that he'd just made a huge strategic mistake.

"What? You're not telling me you're off with a trick with that poor child in tow, are you? Brian Kinney, I'm going to kick your ass so hard you won't be able to sit for a fucking month . . ." Debbie started into a Novotny-sized harangue before Brian could stop her.

"Deb . . . Debbie . . . Stop, Deb!" Brian had to yell to finally get her attention. "I'm not with a fucking trick. It's not like that. I wouldn't do shit like that to a kid, Deb, and you know it. Gus is fine. He's playing with Molly . . ."

"Who's ‘Molly'?" Deb blurted out, too surprised to stop herself. "Wait a second . . . You don't mean . . . Emmett said he took care of Gus and some other child for you earlier in the week while you and some guy you'd met went out. I'm pretty sure he said the girl's name was Molly. Is it the same one? But that can't be . . . That would mean you're on a SECOND DATE with someone? That's fucking unheard of!"

"Actually, it's more like a third date, if you're really counting," Brian added, just for the pure shock value.

"Holy fucking hell! A THIRD date? With the same guy? Are you trying to give me a fucking heart attack, Brian?" Debbie sputtered and stuttered, apparently unable to wrap her head around this revelation. "Well, I'll be damned! I thought you going on one bonafide date was practically a miracle, but three? That borders on the impossible."

"He's different Deb. There's just something . . ." Brian started, not sure how to finish the thought or how to meet Justin's surprised look.

"Well that settles it," Deb announced with a determined air. "You're bringing this wonder to dinner tonight." Brian groaned and started to protest, but Debbie cut him off. "NO arguments, you hear me? I'll expect you and . . . what did you say his name is?"

". . . Justin," Brian admitted reluctantly.

"Justin! What a nice name . . . Well, then, you and Justin and the kids will all be coming to dinner together. Right?" Debbie waited for Brian's response and, when it wasn't immediately forthcoming, raised her voice. "I said, ‘Right'."

"Fuuuuuuudge," Brian moaned in defeat. "Fine. We'll be there. But nobody better give him shit, you understand? If I hear one word, we're out of there," he warned.

"We'll all be on our best behavior. I promise," Deb gushed, thrilled that she was going to meet the mystery man who seemed to have finally found a way inside Brian's defenses. "Dinner's at 6:30 - don't be late!" she intoned and then hung up when she got a grumbled assent.

"So, I take it we're going somewhere tonight?" Justin asked with a smile aimed at Brian.

"Yeah, we've been ordered to dinner by my sort-of-mother and I'm afraid we don't have a choice. If we don't show up, she'll track me down and come here with it."

"She doesn't know where you are or where I live," Justin stated.

"Believe me, that won't stop her," Brian explained, then thought of something and looked up at Justin with a worried look. "Sorry for just agreeing like that without your okay. I . . . I hope you're good with all this . . ."

"It's fine," Justin agreed. "But next time, maybe, ask me first?"

"Next time?" Brian questioned with a shy smile that looked too fucking adorable for words. "So there's going to be some ‘next times'?"

"Well, you've definitely started to grow on me, Stud." Justin stated, leaning over the edge of the table to kiss Brian, who just kept on smiling as he kissed back.

Brian found himself scared as shit by the idea of those promised ‘next times' but at the same time he was also sort of pleased to think about the possibilities. Hmmm. This week was certainly turning out to be surprising. And the biggest surprise was his own reaction to all the surprises.

.:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:.

At 6:35 they pulled up in front of Deb's and Gus started bouncing around within the confines of his car seat. "We're at the clown lady's house, Molly," he burbled with enthusiasm. "She cooks real good, and it's fun here."

Brian unbuckled an excited Gus while Molly held Sunshine's leash. Deb opened the door as they started up the stairs. Behind Debbie's shoulder, the rest of the crew could be seen peeking at the spectacle of Brian's new entourage.

"Hi, Lady! This is Molly and this is Sunshine. She's our dog. We gotted her at the park. Innit she pretty? B'ine said I could brings her to dinner too ony she has to eats her own food not mine. Did you makeded lot of good food again, Lady?" Gus asked Deb, walking into the house without further ado as if he expected the crowd to part for him . . . which they all did.

Once inside Gus introduced his charges to Carl and Vic, telling Molly that Carl was the ‘Growly Man', but he was nice. Vic just smiled a lot and watched everything indulgently. After politely greeting the two older gentlemen, Molly spied Aunty Em and Ted standing off to the side and she genially trotted over to say hello to them as well. Gus and Molly were then introduced to Drew and Blake, while everyone in the house was forcibly introduced to a wriggling, happy Sunshine.

Deb just stood there with her mouth open, watching this parade of newcomers and wonders, as Brian nonchalantly walked up the stairs towing Justin along by the hand.

"Deb, this is Justin. Justin, Deb," he announced to the stunned redhead, as they stepped past the beldame into the house.

"Hey, Vic. Carl. This is Justin. Justin this is Deb's brother Vic and her beau, Carl," Brian continued doing the honors.

"Where's Deb?" Vic asked, confused. He'd seen Deb walk out, but she hadn't come back in.

"She's just standing on the porch, kinda looking like a fish out of water," Brian answered with a pleased smirk. He always had loved making a big entrance, and this one seemed to be one of his best ever, if the shocked expressions on his audience were any indication.

Carl, the only one who didn't seem paralyzed by Brian's shocking performance, smiled at the rest of the group and went to the porch to retrieve Deb. The hostess gathered herself together, straightened out her wig, and then strode back into the thick of things in order to take back control of the proceedings. Back inside, she quickly introduced Justin around to the entire family and then hustled everyone to the table. Brian was grateful for that, since it seemed less likely - but only by a small percentage - that he'd be grilled while everyone's attention was focused on their plates.

Brian pulled Justin around to the back corner of the kitchen and took up two seats there. Gus and Molly were being assisted by Emmett. Sunshine was being a good girl and had promptly dropped to her belly under Gus' chair. It didn't take long for the rest of the group to find their own seats either. Then Debbie took over and the usual overabundance of food was handed round the the table while casual conversation began to sprout around them.

Dinner was going well. Everyone was very nice to Justin and Molly. The family truly was on their best behavior and had only asked the bare minimum of slightly invasive questions. Then Brian noticed that Gus was whispering to Molly.

"Gus, it's rude to whisper when we are all sitting here eating," Brian softly corrected him.

"Sowwy, B'ine. I'll stop," Gus answered with a sideways glance at his co-conspirator.

A few minutes later, Justin again noticed Molly and Gus glancing at each other, nodding and softly giggling. "What are you two doing?" Justin asked.

Molly looked at Gus and then answered. "Gus said to watch because when Aunty Em looks at you, Jester, Brian gives him a growly face. And Gus is right, he does. It's funny."

Brian aimed yet another ‘growly face' at Aunty Em, who was now chortling with laughter along with Drew, Ted, and Blake, all of whom seemed to find the situation hilariously funny. Vic, Deb and Carl just smiled. Justin squeezed Brian's hand under the table and rubbed his leg against the older man's. The next time Emmett smiled in Justin's direction, Brian grabbed the blond's face and vigorously kissed him, causing both kids and many of the adults to giggle. When Justin finally pulled away from the kiss, gasping for air, Brian looked back at Emmett and his cohorts with a superior smirk. Which only earned him another round of laughter about how possessive he was acting, catcalls from Vic, and a round of comments about how fun it was to get him all worked up.

"Anyone up for Babylon?" Emmett questioned after dinner was cleaned up and before Brian could get totally annoyed by their fun and games.

"That's a great idea. You boys go have some fun and us old folks will watch the kids," Vic announced, trying to give the guys some time to hang out without the kids, especially Brian who he thought must be struggling with such an abrupt change to his previously wanton lifestyle.

Justin looked at Brian. "We could go for a while if you want to, Brian. I haven't danced in forever."

Brian nodded approvingly and answered, "Okay, as long as we don't stay out too late. I don't want to be late to work in the morning and Gus will need to get to sleep so he can go to the GLC."

Deb's eyes got real wide, while Vic and Carl just shook their heads. No one could believe that sentence had just come out of Brian Kinney's mouth. Brian being the voice of moderation and worrying about staying out too late on a ‘school night'? What the hell was the world coming to? Luckily, none of them were brave enough to voice their astonishment aloud. And Brian, who was too busy making sure Gus and Molly were settled for the evening and then taking Sunshine out for a quick trip to the yard before they left, didn't have time to realize just how revealing his statement had been. So, by the time they were all ready to leave for the club, everyone had recovered from their momentary stupefaction and nobody mentioned to the Stud how uncharacteristically domesticated he was acting. Which was fortuitous, because if not, Brian ruffling Gus' hair and then bending down to leave goodbye kisses on top of both Gus and Molly's heads before he ushered Justin out the door ahead of him, would have had them all floored.

At Babylon, they quickly capitalized on Brian's Stud Status to bypass the long line at the door and the group made their way to the main bar. Everyone got a drink and stood around talking for a while. After the three glasses of wine he'd had with dinner and his first Beam here at the club, Brian was feeling quite relaxed. He grabbed a beer chaser and then leaned up against the bar, pulling Justin into the circle of his arms without even thinking about it. Justin let himself lean back against the strong chest just as naturally. This thing between them seemed so easy and habitual that neither of them even noticed how their couply appearance looked to those around them.

When a song Emmett liked came on a few minutes later, the big nelly dancing queen bounced to attention, clapped his hands and demanded that Justin dance with him. Justin looked over his shoulder at Brian - who shrugged his permission - before he agreed. Justin handed his drink off to Brian to hold for him and started towards the dance floor. As Emmett followed, he heard Brian call out, "hands above his waist at all times, Honeycutt," causing Em, as well as the rest of the group, to break into laughter. EmmyLou was still giggling as he followed the blond to the middle of the dance floor and started to shake his booty.

Back at the bar, Ted, who had his arm slung casually over his boyfriend's shoulders, was sipping at his ginger ale and quietly watching Brian. He'd never seen his old friend acting like this. It was completely out of character for the reserved and often standoffish man. Not that his boss didn't know how to party - Brian was quite good at that kind of thing - but he wasn't a true extrovert no matter how rowdy or crazy he could get. And, while Brian was often to be found in the middle of the crowd, surrounded by scores of men all clamoring for his attention, he always somehow maintained a separateness, an aloofness, that set him apart. Brian had always reminded Ted of that old cliche about feeling the most alone in the middle of a crowd.

But something had changed in the past week. This Brian was no longer indifferent or distant. The Brian standing in front of him, attentively watching the blond gyrating on the dance floor, was finally connected to the present in ways he'd never been before.

Ted glanced at Blake, catching his partner's eye and noting that the younger man must have seen it too. Blake winked at his lover and silently toasted him with his Perrier bottle. Apparently Ted wasn't the only one who'd noticed the beneficial changes in their friend.

"Not interested," Brian responded just then, shrugging off the third twink to walk by and try to get the stud's attention.

"You feeling okay, Kinney?" Drew asked with a snicker. "I've never seen you blow off an ass like that before."

They all four turned to look at the retreating ass, which was rather nice, all things considered.

"Like I said, not interested," Brian intoned, turning back so he could keep an eye on the dance floor.

"Damn! You've got it bad, Kinney! And here I thought you were immune," Drew looked down on the watchful stare with amusement. "I figured you were going to be the eternal bachelor. You know, the guy who just never can seem to settle down. The one who, when we all hit middle age, we wish we were, but who, when we reach old age, we feel sorry for."

"Fuck you, Boyd," Brian rumbled, giving the big man a gimlet stare. "Who put you in charge of psychoanalysis for the night, anyway?"

Drew held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "Whoa. Sorry, dude. I didn't mean anything by it. Just that I was surprised to see that the ‘couple bug' has finally bitten even you. I just never saw it coming, is all I'm saying." The footballer smiled at Ted and Blake, winking to include them in the joke. "It's about time that you joined the rest of us happily partnered couples. Welcome to the team, Kinney."

Drew tapped the neck of his own beer against Brian's and then drank to him. Brian hesitated, looking at first Drew and then his beer bottle for several minutes with confusion. Was that what was happening here? Did they all see him and Justin as a ‘Couple'? Didn't they understand that he'd only met the, admittedly, compelling blond a mere six days before? They couldn't possibly be a fucking couple already. Could they? And, even more problematic, did Brian want that?

Brian found himself looking out to the dance floor one more time. His eyes seemed drawn to the vision of the beautiful blond twirling around under the flashing strobe lights as glitter fell from the ceiling and landed in the gloriously blond tresses. Fuck, that boy was damned gorgeous. Brian had never met another man who was so irresistible. It wasn't just the younger man's looks either. There was just something more about him that Brian couldn't name but he couldn't escape either. It had something to do with how joyfully Justin danced, how sure he was of himself, how unrestrained he was . . . And, yes, how he seemed to look back at Brian every so often with a knowing possessiveness that made that something in Brian's gut do it's flippy thing.

Fuck it all! Brian didn't care what the hell people called it. He still wanted Justin. More now - tonight - than he had even the day before. If that made him a fucking ‘couple' in the eyes of his friends, or even the entirety of Liberty Avenue, so be it. That was HIS blond and he was going to make sure they all knew it.

.:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:. .:G:.

They had been dancing for a couple songs when Emmett heard the distinctive growl from behind him.

"Fuck off, Honeycutt. He's mine."

And before Em knew what was happening, Brian had pulled Justin away from him, wrapped his arms around the smaller man, and then manhandled the sweet little twink off towards the exit.