Domestic Bliss

Moving I

Brian pulled the Corvette into the driveway of the house. He cut the engine and just sat there looking at it. Justin sat in the passenger seat and didn't move either.

"It's ours," Brian said finally.

"I can hardly believe it," Justin said. "It all happened so fast."

"Yeah," Brian agreed.

They had discussed the house for a whole day after they had seen it with Jennifer. Both of them knew that they loved it, but they also knew it was a big commitment. It scared them, especially since it was considerably over the amount Brian had initially felt he could manage. However, they both loved the house, and so they had decided to put in an offer somewhat below the asking price.

When they had told Jennifer, she had advised them to hold off until they had the house inspected. It had been sitting empty for a few months and there might be some problems. She recommended an inspector who presented them with a report saying that the house was structurally sound, but he had been unable to get the furnace to work. Upon further inspection it looked like the furnace should be replaced as well as the air conditioning unit. Brian had groaned when he heard that, but Jennifer had said that it actually added to their bargaining position. They should drop their offer even more, but then they needed to be prepared to spend the reduced amount for a new heating/air conditioning unit.

So they had come up with an offer, and lo and behold, the sellers had accepted it without even a counter offer. Obviously they wanted to get rid of the burden of keeping the house up. As a result, here they sat in front of their house, even though they didn't actually get possession of it for another week.

Jennifer had already managed to get them an offer on the loft. It was pretty good but they were holding out for almost the full asking price. Jennifer had assured them that they would get it, so they had to wait a little longer.

"I wish we could go in," Justin said, looking longingly at the front door.

"We could call your mom," Brian suggested.

"Yeah, but she'd have to stay with us. I want to be in there, our home, just the two of us."

"A few days and that will be the case," Brian said feeling all warm inside when Justin called it 'our home'. Jesus, maybe buying a house did turn you lesbianic.

"What are we going to do about furniture?" Justin asked.

"There's not much from the loft to bring … my desk, your desk, the table and chairs, the chaise."

"Definitely the chaise," Justin said with a soft smile. He was remembering ice cream kisses. The look on Brian's face told him that he was too.

"Yeah."

"Are you seriously not going to bring the bed?"

"Jennifer is negotiating it as part of the deal along with the appliances. It's practically built in and is so inherent to the look of the loft. It stays there," Brian said firmly.

"I don't care about the look of the loft," Justin replied. "I just can't believe that you want to give it up."

"Would you be okay with bringing it here?" Brian asked studying Justin's face. There was a flicker of concern, almost too fast to notice, but exactly what Brian had been looking for.

"I … sure," Justin said quickly feeling a wrench in his gut. He wished that he had never brought up the subject of the fucking bed.

"You are such a fucking poor liar," Brian said with a grin. "You want a new bed as much as I do."

Justin blushed. He could feel the color rise in his cheeks. "Yeah, I do," he said sheepishly.

"Then let's go buy one," Brian said starting the car.

"Really?"

"You bet."

Justin could hardly contain the size of his smile. This was going to be so good. Brian backed the Corvette out of the driveway and they headed to a local furniture store. Justin's mind was racing as they drove along. He wondered what kind of a bed Brian had in mind. They were going to find the most divine bed, he just knew it. Or at least they would find a bed that they both liked. They could agree on one, he was sure. Or could they? Maybe they each had diametrically opposed ideas of what the bed should be. What if they hated whatever the other one chose? What if they couldn't agree at all? What if their tastes were totally opposite? Justin's face had lost its smile to be replaced with worry wrinkles. He heaved a sigh and braced himself as they pulled into the parking lot of the furniture store.

Brian cut the engine and threw a look in Justin's direction. He could see the tension written all over the young man's face. He frowned. "We're buying a bed, not going to the fucking electric chair," Brian said with a smirk. He wondered what the hell was the matter with Justin.

"We don't have to get it today, do we?" Justin asked.

"Of course not. We're just looking until we find something that we both like."

"What if … what if we never find anything that we both like?" Justin asked deciding to voice his worries.

"You think we're that incompatible?" Brian asked staring into the worried blue eyes.

"I … I don't know. I hope not, but we've never done anything like this before. It was your loft, your furniture, your taste."

"Are you saying you don't like my fucking taste?" Brian asked getting a little testy about the direction this was heading.

"Your loft was beautiful, Brian. Don't get me wrong. I loved it, but it was definitely you … not me."

"And the house will be us," Brian stated confidently.

Justin relaxed a bit with that statement and even tried a little smile. "I want it to be us," he said softly. "But I'm worried that we may have very different ideas about what 'us' should be."

"Haven't we always?" Brian asked with a smirk.

Justin knew he was talking about their relationship, not about furniture, and he smiled more genuinely. "Yeah, I guess we have."

"And we're still together and we chose a house together, an awesome house, I might add. So what's your problem?" Brian stared at Justin his tongue stuck in the side of his cheek.

Justin chuckled a bit and then smiled one of his best. He said softly, "Suddenly there's no problem at all." He leaned over and kissed Brian on the cheek. "Let's go buy our bed."

Two hours later they returned to the loft. They were both grumpy and tired and all patience with each other had been lost.

"I don't know what was wrong with that last bed," Justin said. "It was quite regal."

"Yeah, if you were fucking Henry the Eighth!"

"Have you been fucking him too?" Justin shot back.

Brian groaned. This was going south in a hurry. "Justin…"

"Don't Justin me! That was a great bed. It was huge and four posters are very fashionable."

"Especially with that fucking canopy on top! We don't live in the fucking Middle Ages. We do have central heat, so why do we need fucking drapery hanging down the sides?"

"You'd never know there was central heat living here," Justin said. The loft was always cold with its high ceilings. "And the drapes were elegant."

Brian snorted. "Dust collectors. Made the fucking thing look like it belonged in a goddam doll house."

"Well, better we should live in a doll house than some sterile museum out of Architectural Digest!"

"Sterile! Are you calling the loft sterile?" Brian couldn't believe his ears.

"If the description fits…"

"Christ, Justin, I thought you at least understood style."

"Well, fuck you, Kinney! I thought you had good taste, but now I know your taste is all in those fucking bare feet of yours."

Brian glared in amazement at his partner. What the fuck were they fighting about? So they couldn't find the right bed today. There were plenty more stores and the internet and catalogues. He grimaced. How did this degenerate into personal attacks?

"Justin, what the fuck are we doing?"

Justin stared blankly at Brian. "We're fighting."

"But what for?"

"Because … because we couldn't find a bed that we both liked."

"So why is that something we need to fight about? There's plenty more places to find the right bed," Brian said reasonably.

"I guess…" Justin said slowly. "But it's also the first big thing that we have bought together, and look at what's happened. We're fighting."

"It's a fucking bed! It shouldn't cause us to fight."

"But it did. Do you think it's an omen of what's to come?"

"Christ, I hope not!"

Justin looked at the floor not knowing what to say. He was kind of scared. He and Brian hardly ever fought, and never like they had just been doing. What were they going to do?

"Do you want something to eat?" Justin asked deciding that maybe it was best if they changed the subject altogether. And, they had missed lunch. Justin heard his stomach rumble ominously at the mention of food.

"Obviously you do," Brian said with a chuckle having heard the rumblings. He moved to the fridge and pulled out a loaf of bread and the jar of peanut butter. "Will this do?" Brian asked.

"Sure," Justin agreed. He would have liked something more but peanut butter would do.

"We can go to the diner or order something in, if you would prefer," Brian said noting the look on Justin's face.

"A sandwich is fine," Justin said pulling out some bread and slathering it with peanut butter. He frowned. "Why couldn't we do that with the bed?" he asked.

"Do what?"

"Make a compromise. I really wanted something more to eat, but it doesn't really matter that much. This will tide me over and I can have a big dinner. Why couldn't we do something like that with the bed?"

"A bed is going to last a lot longer than a sandwich … and it won't go moldy," Brian added.

"But relationships can go moldy," Justin said reliving the fight about the bed.

"Not if you keep them fresh," Brian offered.

Justin snorted. "Mr. Expert-on-Relationships!"

"Well, at least I'm trying," Brian scowled.

"Are you implying that I'm not?" Justin demanded. He slammed the pieces of bread together and almost threw one of them at Brian.

Brian reached in the fridge for a beer wanting something stronger. He relented a little when he asked, "Want one?"

Justin nodded and they took their food to the table. They sat across from each other munching on their sandwich and eyeing each other speculatively.

Brian swallowed the lump of food in his mouth. It was all he could do to get it down, and he had a sneaking suspicion that it could come back up. All this drama was getting to him. The day had started out so well, going to look at their new house. He wasn't sure why everything had turned bad, but it all stemmed from the bed controversy.

Justin chewed on his sandwich. He couldn't remember when peanut butter had become so tasteless. He could see Brian giving him furtive glances, probably wondering what the hell was going on. He wished he could figure out what to do. Then it hit him.

"Brian," he said, "do you think we could just stay here?"

"Stay here?" Brian bellowed his eyes getting very large and angry. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"I … I was just wondering if it was too late to cancel the deal on the house."

"Of course, it fucking is! We get possession in a few days. We've signed all the papers."

"Oh," was all Justin could say.

"Oh! Oh? What do you mean … oh? What's wrong? I thought you loved that fucking house."

"I do."

"Then why the fuck do you want to cancel the deal and stay here?"

Justin took a deep breath and plunged ahead. "It just seems that we've been fighting and worried and not getting along … ever since we found that house."

Brian shook his head looking baffled. "This was supposed to be the next step in our fucking relationship … or do we even have a relationship anymore?" Each time he said relationship he spat it out with as much disdain as he could. Brian stood up abruptly knocking his chair over backwards. "Fuck, I hate that word, and this just proves why!"

He stomped up the steps and left Justin sitting staring after him. Inside of a minute he reappeared, grabbed his keys from the counter and yanked back the loft door.

"Don't," Justin said loud enough to be sure Brian would hear him.

"What did you say?" Brian bellowed. "Are you ordering me around now?"

"I'm not ordering. I'm asking. In fact, I'm begging. Please, Brian, don't walk out on me. We've come too far to go back to this. We have to work this out."

Brian hesitated in the doorway and Justin held his breath. He wouldn't blame Brian if he walked out, but he also knew that it could very well mean that everything was over between them if he did. They had reached a level of trust that couldn't, shouldn't, wouldn't be broken. Justin willed Brian to come back and talk to him.

Suddenly the loft door rumbled along its track and Brian was still standing inside the loft when it slammed closed. Justin let out his breath. That was the first good sign since they had gone looking for a fucking bed. Justin looked up to see Brian standing defiantly in front of him.

"I'm here," Brian said. "I didn't leave. I didn't … run. Are you going to tell me what the fuck this is all about?"

"I wish I knew," Justin said shaking his head. "It started at the new house when you said we could buy a new bed. I began wondering if we could find something that we both would like. I … I began to doubt that we could."

"Does that explain that weird look on your face when I pulled into the lot at the furniture store?"

Justin nodded. "I was having doubts about the bed, about being able to find one that we'd both like, and then you made some comment about our relationship, and I could apply the same worries to that. And it all went downhill from there. And then we couldn't find a bed and we were getting grouchy with each other … and it was like my worst fears were all coming true." Justin took a deep breath feeling the sting of tears behind his eyes.

"So let me get this straight," Brian said. "You think that because we didn't find a bed on our first try that our fucking relationship is doomed?"

"Something like that," Justin whispered.

"Do you have so little faith … in us?"

"I don't know what I think. I'm just worried."

"Justin, after all we've been through, I don't see how this step can be worse than other things that have happened. In fact, it should be so much better. Stop worrying."

"I wish I could," Justin said forlornly. "It's like … like a continuation of what worried me about the rings."

"It is?"

"It means that … that there's no going back, and if we fail…"

"Do you want to go back?" Justin shook his head. "Do you think we're going to fail?"

Justin looked up into Brian's eyes. He wanted to say no, but he knew that wasn't true. Some part of him feared that they would. Their relationship had always been volatile. How many times had Brian kicked him out? And then Justin had walked out with his eyes wide open, stupid fuck that he had been. "I don't want us to fail," Justin said softly.

"Neither do I," Brian replied staring into the blue eyes. "Let's go look on the internet and see if we can find a bed that we both like. If we do, will that prove to you that we at least have a flying fuck of a chance to make this thing work?"

Justin chuckled. "That was so romantic, Brian. How could I refuse an invitation like that?"

Brian took Justin's hand and pulled him up. He dragged his twink over to the computer and pulled him down onto his lap as they waited for the computer to boot up.

"I'm sorry, Brian. I just got scared. I don't like fighting."

"Neither do I. I didn't mean to get testy, but you sounded like you had given up."

"I know. It was a drama queen moment."

Brian snorted. "That's for sure. Okay, let's see what we can find," he said starting to scroll through possible sites. They looked at page after page of beds, eliminating most of them immediately. Justin fidgeted wondering if this was as pointless as the stores they had been to earlier in the day.

All of a sudden they found beds by Roberto Galima. Justin sucked in a breath and said, "Oh!"

"See something you like?" Brian asked studying Justin's face. He could live with any bed on that internet page. He hoped Justin could too.

"I love these," Justin said.

"They even have a four poster," Brian said sardonically.

"I know, but they're all … classic."

"Yes, they are. Which one do you like best?" Brian asked hoping as he held his breath that Justin would choose the one he liked.

Justin studied the screen. "That one … definitely," Justin said pointing to the very one Brian had been studying. He almost knew that would be Justin's favorite.

Brian grinned. "Brushed steel frame with high canopy and latticework headboard and footboard," Brian read from the ad. "I like the clean simple lines. It's sleek and yet comfortable looking."

Justin could picture them having sex and then leaning back against the headboard with lots of pillows, kissing and maybe reading in bed together. "That's definitely the one," Justin said with a dreamy look on his face.

"I agree, Sunshine," Brian said giving Justin a kiss on the cheek. "Um … we don't have to have drapery hanging from the canopy, do we?"

"It's the four poster canopy bed I've always wanted, but it's not fussy like you want. I like it plain without any decoration or drapery." Justin threw his arms around Brian's neck and hugged him tight. He kissed the red lips rubbing his own luxuriously over Brian's. "We found it!" he crowed.

"And you thought it couldn't be done," Brian smirked proud of them both for getting over this hurdle. His eyes scanned the screen looking for how to order the bed or if there was a local outlet. "Shit!" he said.

"What?" Justin asked not aware of what Brian had been doing.

"There's no local outlet for these beds and it takes four to six weeks for delivery."

"Oh, shit. We need a bed for when we move in."

"We could always fuck on the floor, I guess," Brian said.

"I don't think so, although it wouldn't be the first time," Justin chuckled. "We need something to sleep on as well as fuck on."

"Hmm," Brian said.

"What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking that we could get a new mattress. We'll need one for the new bed when it arrives. In the meantime we could sleep on it on the floor."

"That would work," Justin agreed with a smile.

"We might decide we don't need a bed at all," Brian smirked.

"Briaaan," Justin warned him. Then something on the screen caught his attention. "Look," he said pointing, "they have matching pieces to go with the bed."

Brian groaned. "This is going to cost me a fucking fortune. Did you see the price of that bed?"

"No," Justin admitted, "I was too excited that we had found something we both like. Is it too much money?"

"No, Sunshine, we can manage it. I'll just get Ted to free up some money."

"Thanks," Justin said kissing Brian's cheek. "I really love that bed."

"I know, so let's get the matching pieces. We do need furniture … and I like quality."

Justin snorted. "You like the designer name on it."

"We both love the look of it," Brian said ignoring Justin's jibe because he was absolutely right.

"True," Justin admitted. "Does Ted know about the house?"

"Yeah, I had to run it all by him to make sure I could swing it. But he's sworn to secrecy."

"Why?"

"Because I want a few weeks to get the house put together and … for it to be just you and me there alone."

"I like the sound of that," Justin said hugging him.

"Besides, we'll have to christen each room, and that'll take at least a day or two."

Justin giggled and nuzzled Brian's neck. "We should make use of the old bed while we still have it."

"We're not moving for a few days," Brian said his hand reaching for Justin's cock. He squeezed through the jeans causing a little gasp from his partner.

"Wouldn't want to miss an opportunity," Justin cooed.

"Enough shopping for today. Shall we give the old bed a good workout?"

"As long as we don't break it," Justin giggled. "It's practically sold."

"If it's still in one piece at this point, I don't think there's much danger of it collapsing now."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Justin asked standing and pulling Brian up into a kiss.

They made their way to the bedroom where clothes quickly disappeared and the kisses were hot and heavy. Justin pushed Brian onto the bed deciding to be the aggressor.

"I love you, you know," he said softly as he rubbed his length against Brian.

"I know. I wish…" Brian hesitated to say more.

"Wish what?" Justin asked.

Brian sighed. "Justin, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Oh, I want to fuck you! Is there ever any doubt?"

"That's not what I meant."

Justin frowned. "What did you mean?" he asked warily.

"Are you sure you want to stay with me? Do you want to move into the new house? Do you want to … continue?" Brian heaved a huge sigh. He knew he sounded like a fucking lesbian but he couldn't help himself.

"Now it sounds like you're having second thoughts. I want what we have … and, I want more. I want it all."

"But we're going to have to be adults. We'll have a house and you'll get a job and we'll be … shudder … a couple." Brian tried to lighten the mood.

"Fuck you, Kinney! We are a couple!"

"No!" Brian gasped in mock surprise.

"You had me going there for a minute, you asshole."

"I always get you going," Brian whispered against Justin's ear as he flipped them over.

"Always," Justin gasped as he felt Brian's fingers exploring and opening him up.

They wrestled around on the bed for a bit with lots of kissing and nipping and caresses. When they were both panting Brian lifted Justin's legs onto his shoulders and drove home. They both gasped at the sensation.

Justin clasped his legs behind Brian's neck and forced the man's head lower so he could savage the ripe, red lips. When he broke the kiss, he whispered, "Do you think it will be this good in our new bed?"

"Better!" Brian replied as he began thrusting in earnest.

Pants and gasps and an occasional whimper were the only sounds for the next while. Brian rode his young lover hard and Justin loved every minute of it. When they came, close to each other, they rode the waves of pleasure as long as they could. Finally Brian pulled out and flopped down beside Justin.

"That was awesome," Justin said trying to steady his breathing.

"Not bad," Brian grinned, turning to look at Justin.

"I can hardly wait to fuck you in the new house," Justin said curling up against Brian.

"I might let you," Brian said sticking his tongue in his cheek.

"You damn well better," Justin stated. "I'll be paying my own way when I get a decent job."

"Do you mean to tell me that all this time you've only been letting me fuck you because I was paying the way?"

"Yes, what did you think, my sugar daddy?"

"Don't call me that, Brian protested.

"I'm really a top, you know," Justin said trying to contain his giggle.

"You do a pretty damn good imitation of a bottom, if you ask me," Brian replied with a smirk.

"Well all that's about to change, bottom boy!"

"Who are you calling a bottom boy?" Brian demanded.

"Well, the bottom part is correct anyway."

"Take that back, brat!" Brian demanded rolling over and pinning Justin beneath him.

"Never!" Justin said defiantly. "When I contribute half to our finances, I expect to only bottom half the time."

"Jesus Christ, Justin, are you serious?" Brian asked.

"Of course, I am," Justin stated trying to keep a straight face. Brian so deserved this for all the times he had taken Justin for granted.

"I'm … not … sure … I can do that," Brian said. "I really am a top."

Justin saw the look of almost terror on Brian's face. The man had been a top his whole life. It defined who he was. Justin realized that maybe he had gone a bit too far.

"I was only kidding, Brian," Justin said softly. "I love bottoming for you. You know that."

"Asshole!" Brian said harshly but then he leaned in and kissed Justin softly. "I don't mind bottoming for you sometimes."

"In fact you love it … sometimes."

Brian grinned at him. "Yeah."

"I don't expect you to do it all the time, but I can be the top more often, can't I?" Justin asked.

"I think we can work something out. And when you start earning more than me, you can top all the time, if you still want this sorry, wrinkled old ass," Brian said only half joking.

"I'll always want your sorry old ass, like right now."

"Now?" Brian asked.

"Now!"

"You think this old bed is up for one more?"

"I know that I am," Justin said glancing down to where his hard cock was trapped between them.

"We're going to be fine in the new house, aren't we?" Brian asked softly as he held Justin's face between his hands, still stretched out on top of this lovely man.

"We're going to be great in the new house," Justin declared. "We do have one big hurdle to overcome though."

"What's that?" Brian wanted to know his brow knit into a frown.

"We still have to furnish the living room." Brian groaned as Justin continued. "And the dining room … and Gus' room … and the office … and the spare bedroom."

"Fuck!" Brian griped.

"I intend to right now," Justin said with a giggle. "We can worry about furniture later. I know we can do it, now that we've found our bed."

"The only important piece of furniture," Brian said with a smirk.

"So are you ready, my little bottom boy?"

Brian grimaced. "I'm all yours, O Mighty Top!" And he meant that in every sense of the word.