GUS

Waiting wasn’t something I ever got used to, and this time it wasn’t just for Al, but for Jus to come home. I watched my dad pace every night, trying not to show he was worried about Jus. Cameron didn’t need us both doing it, so I stayed at the loft, while Jenny took over for both of us. Jenny figured out that Jus and Dad both saw her as theirs too, and became the sister I knew she had in her to Cameron and Anna. We were planning on a family trip as soon as Jus got back. Jus was asked to help raise funds, they wanted to use the pictures he agreed to take for the auction at the fundraiser. 

Dad didn’t stand in Jus’s way when Jus told him that even with the government helping it wouldn’t get the houses built as fast as outside funding could. Dad couldn’t fight against Jus wanting to make the world better for people who had nothing to do with assholes not caring that the people in the village had nothing to do with the war they were waging. It wasn’t like he was going there while the fighting happened, the way Al did, so neither Dad or I were worried about it. Just thought it was routine, like all the other times he worked. Jus had started doing small projects that didn’t take him away for longer than a week. None of it was dangerous and Dad went with the kids when they could. Only this time Jus told him the kids didn’t need to see this up close. Al told me after it was over that what happened was nightmare inducing 

The news had been full of what happened, and I knew it was lucky they never managed to figure out the SEALS got in and out without anyone figuring it out, until it was over. I started hating reporters. They didn’t get that what they saw as keeping the public informed could get people killed when they let out information about troop movements. They reported on Jus being there, but only as a human interest piece. Once again proving there were still things no one ever knew about him. Jus had been escorted around by guys Nick recommended, which helped ease my dad’s stress. It would have been nothing, except Jus snapped a few pictures randomly, planning to check them later. Only later, he ended up calling Nick when he recognized one of the soldiers who had gone missing in a window in an abandoned building outside the area the fighting happened in. He convinced the guys watching him that they needed to get enough for the team sent to be able to plan a way to get to the soldiers. Which we didn’t find out until after he did it. Not because he was hiding it, but because he knew Dad didn’t need another reason to be stressed out about this. I knew Al was going when he called and canceled our plans for the weekend.

Dad asked Jus to come home now that he did what they needed. Jus told him he was safe but they weren’t going to fly anyone out yet. While Dad understood, he didn’t like it. I had to believe that they would come home, because without Al and Jus…

Jus came off the plane first, going straight to Dad. I watched my dad and saw the weight come off his shoulders the minute Jus was back in his arms. It was something I understood, they needed just each other for a second. Anna squirmed to be put down, not caring about anything but her Daddy being home. Cameron followed her while I looked for Al. Only the plane emptied, but no Al. Dad and Jus had their heads together talking and when Dad looked at me, I wanted to run. Cameron grabbed my hand. “Gussy, he promised he was coming back.” Cameron told me. He and Al were close.

I couldn’t answer him, I just watched Jus’s face as he came towards me. I wanted to scream at him not to tell me when I saw the look on his face. Dad stood behind him, waiting for what Jus must have told him.

“He's still with us, but they had to airlift him to a hospital. Aunt Daphne is there and told me he made it through the first surgery. The team followed him, and Nick said he asked for you. He’s alive, remember that, and he’s fighting with everything he has to stay with you.” He tells me. 

“How bad?” I managed to ask, even though it was hard to breathe right now.

“It's not good. But he stayed with us, saying he had to be there for your graduation. The building blew, and he wasn’t in it, but too close.” Jus tells me. 

“Anna and Cameron need you home. If it's too much I'll call you, but I need to be able to deal with this on my own.” I tell him, knowing they would come with me. 

“I talked to Hunter and he wants to go with you. At least let Hunter help you.” Jus tells me. 

“Okay.” I agree because I knew it wasn’t a choice, but a compromise.

“Gus, you call if there's a problem.” Dad tells me, knowing he would run over anyone if they gave me problems.

Hunter was waiting for me at the airport, since it was faster than driving to Virginia where they took Al. Al’s mother called to tell me they were on their way. Once we were seated I just didn’t want to talk, and Hunter waited until we took off to say anything.

“Daphne told me he got through everything and to tell you that it’s normal that he isn’t waking up. He was hit in the head, and there was swelling, but it’s not critical. It’s going to be a couple days before they expect him to wake up.” He tells me. Which, as much as it was good news it didn’t make it any easier to know he was hurt.

When we got off the plan his dad, Levi was standing there waiting. He opened his arms to me, and I lost it. “Gus, he’s a fighter.” He tells me.

I nodded and followed him to the car, just needing to be able to touch Al. Nick made sure no one gave me problems when we walked in. Al’s mom, Alice, who looked so much like him, gave me a small smile and let go of Al’s hand and took his sister Amanda with her, leaving me alone in the room full of machines beeping.

“This wasn’t how we were supposed to spend the weekend.” I said, touching the parts that didn’t have bandages. His head was wrapped up, arm bandaged, and leg in traction. It really looked like he was just sleeping. Only, normally he woke up when he knew I was looking at him. I leaned down and kissed the chapped lips, they were warm, just not the lips that kissed me back.

Daphne’s voice made me jump, because my world centered around the guy sleeping in the bed.

“The swelling is still a problem, but we’re seeing signs of normal brain activity, which is good. It’s also good that he was awake and aware when he got here. He asked me to keep this until you got here.” She tells me, handing me the braided bracelet we both wore when we took our first trip together as a couple. 

I took it and put it back on him, to us it signified the commitment we made to each other. Something I was hoping to change when we went away the weekend we had to cancel. Al didn’t want us to rush into anything and I agreed because I needed to finish school. Dad is still saying he couldn’t believe I wanted something in common with Ted. I just wasn’t into coming up with concepts to sell something. I wanted to work with Hunter, who was hired to fix failing businesses. I didn’t want things handed to me because of who my dads were. I wanted to start from the ground up, the way my dad did. It didn’t matter that my dad would give me the starting capital and make it easier on me. It mattered that I accomplished my goals by working for them. Which didn’t matter right now. I lowered the railing and laid my head next to the man who was my whole world.

It didn’t take long for the sound of the machines to disappear, I was crashing from all the stress. I woke up when Alice came in and handed me a drink and a powerbar. I wasn’t hungry, but Alice didn’t care.

“We need you by his side, not in the bed next to him. Honey, I know you didn’t sleep any more than I did when we thought it was just Justin over there.” She tells me.

“Jus could at least call.” I tell her.

“It doesn’t mean much when you want them where you can see them. Brian and I became phone buddies worrying about Justin, then him worrying about how I was doing when the team got called in.” She tells me.

I smiled at her, closing my eyes because I was still tired, laying my head next to his hand, just listen to his breathing while Alice rubbed my back. I smiled thinking about my dad and Alice meeting.

My dad and Alice were probably the strangest thing to come out of all of this. When they met both of them threw barbs at each other and ended up like long lost siblings. Jus joked that it was why he liked Alice, because she could hold her own against anyone. Levi and Jus just did other things when Dad and Alice got near each other. It was so different than either Al or I expected. His parents had that same bubble that my dads sometimes lived in, while both had friends, they’d normally just spend time with each other. Amanda was a Jus fan, she lived for art. Our families meshed, which Al told me just showed him we were meant to be. 

There were a few small issues, but nothing that we didn’t talk to each other about. Al, while laid back, didn’t really like the way guys eyed me when we went out dancing at Babylon. I made sure he understood they could look all they want, but only he touched. Me, it was the way people threw themselves at him, even if I was standing there in his arms. Al’s scowl, which rivaled my dad’s, got my head out of my ass. Luke and Terry kept telling me no one stays with the first person they think they love, but they tended to take up with someone because they looked good, not caring what was underneath it all. I knew Al, because we didn’t rush, we both wanted to know when we went further that it was because we loved each other, not the cloud of hormones.

When we decided to take the next step it wasn’t hurried or rushed, which for me made it even better than I imagined. Al didn’t tell me he was coming for a week, so I didn’t know he was back. I walked into my darkened loft, dinner on the table and Al on the bed saluting me. Dinner waited, because I was more than ready to do more than the few things we did. Al wanted me to top, because he didn’t have a preference. He guided me through how to prep him and then told me he wanted to ride me. It wasn’t easy not to cum like the virgin I was, but Al took me in slowly and kept the pace slow so I didn’t blow it five seconds in. I loved watching the hard body, his head thrown back and the moans that told me what he felt was just as good as what I did. When I came he turned me over and kissed up my legs, nipping and licking me until he got to the amazing part, his tongue running around my rim. He opened me and it just got better when his fingers found the spot that had me hard again, Al didn’t stop until I came again. He got me ready, and it hurt, but felt good because it was him. It took me a couple seconds to open my eyes and I drowned in his, not even realizing he was moving in me at first. Al took hours, making sure not an inch of me remained untouched. When he came it was the most beautiful site I’d ever seen and the one I knew I wanted for the rest of my life.

I woke up looking up to Al’s face, smiling back at him when his eyes hit mine.

“I love you.” Al said.

“Always have and always will love you.” I tell him, because for Al it meant something.