The young blond nurse assisted Brian to the chair and placed a blanket over his legs. She checked his vitals and marked the information in his chart. "I'll be back in an hour. You're improving, and we need to have you out of bed longer today. The physical iherapist will be here to help you walk a little later this morning." She patted Brian on the arm, giving an approving look, and left the room.

"Twat. I see you brought my mail, but I didn't think there'd be that much." Brian waved his hand at the overnight bag. "Bring it over here."

Justin brought the bag, laying it on the bed. "This is your mail. Daphne and I sorted it and I brought you three magazines, your bills, and this pile is all the other mail I thought you might want to read," Justin explained rapidly.

"So Daphne knows my business too. I thought I taught you getter then that," Brian chided him, but the small grin on his face belied his words. "So what else is in there? That thing is too big for just my mail."

Justin reached in the bag. "I brought your shampoo and soap. I'm sure the hospital stuff is rough on your delicate skin," Justin smirked. "And I brought that French anti aging eye cream." He waved the small tube in front of Brian. "You can't be aging in front of the multitude of guests that will be visiting your new court in the hospital." Justin pulled out the shirts. "I thought you'd appreciate some of your own clothing too. I remember the hospital gowns being less then modest," Justin said as a grin appeared on his face. "I'm going to have Daphne take me to the mall later and I can pick you up a robe and some lounge pants. They should be very comfortable. Guess you never got around to buying that robe we talked about," Justin rambled on despite the frown that appeared on Brian's face.

"Stop! You're not my wife and we're not the happy couple here." Brian said emphatically. "Your job is to keep the family at bay and play gatekeeper. Do you understand?"

Justin stepped away from the bed and walked toward the door where Brian couldn't see the moisture in his eyes. "I forgot something in the car. I'll be back." Justin walked out of the room and went to sit in the lounge area.

Daphne found him there twenty minutes later. "What are you doing out here? Are they doing a procedure or something?" Daphne asked as she sat down next to Justin.

"No, they're not doing a procedure; he just said...I feel like I did when I got out of the hospital. One minute I'm all happy and the next I'm almost in tears. How can one person have that much power over me?" Justin answered as he looked at Daphne, peering into the bag she held in her lap.

"Look. I got him a back scratcher. It's shaped like an elephant's head." Daphne pulled the bag out of Justin's hands, showing him her purchase. She looked at Justin, and then placed the elephant back in the bag. "Justin. Give him time. I thought you knew better."

Justin wiped the moisture from his eyes. "I wrote the book on Brian Kinney, but I just forgot the latest chapter- 'How to Deal with the Asshole When He's Hurt' He's not going to win this one, Daphne. We're both going to be winners." He stood up, pulling her from her seat. "Come on. Time for the gatekeeper to do his job."

Daphne hesitantly entered the room. She had not seen Brian, getting all of her updates from Justin. "Hi Brian." She quickly looked at him, but kept her face neutral. "You look good."

Brian looked up from his mail-sorting. "Ahh Daphne. You look beautiful as always. Come to keep Justin company? I'm afraid he'll be busy keeping the vultures away," Brian said, tongue in-cheek.

Daphne laughed. "Oh, I think he could still use my company. I don't see anyone knocking down the hospital doors right now. Besides, he tells me you're going to be busy with physical therapy soon."

"Yeah. They tell me the same thing. I understand the physical therapist is a cute guy. Maybe I can get him to blow me when we're done. What do you think, Sunshine?" Brian kidded.

"If that's what you want," Justin said as he shrugged his shoulders.

The three of them looked at each other, no one volunteering any conversation. The silence grew awkward.

"Look at the time," Daphne said as she looked at her watch. "I promised my mom I would meet her for lunch." Daphne walked over to Brian, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "See you later." Turning to Justin, she said, "What time do you want me to pick you up?"

"I don't need a babysitter, Daphne. He can go now," Brian said.

"I'll be ready at 6:00. I'll meet you at our usual place by the circle," Justin said, ignoring Brian's comment. Justin gave Daphne a quick hug, and watched as she left the room.

"Justin. Where's my checkbook? You brought the bills, but where's the checkbook?"

Justin found his messenger bag and pulled out the checkbook. "Good thing I know where you keep that, otherwise I would have looked all over the loft for it. Don't you pay most of your bills on line?"

"I do pay most of my bills on line, but I need the book to write you a check." Brian flipped through the register, looking at the last entry. He held out his hand.

"Oh, yeah. Kind of hard to write a check without a pen." Justin rifled through his messenger bag for five minutes before finding a pen. "Wait... Why do you need to write me a check? You don't owe me any money." Justin looked at Brian in confusion.

"You mentioned buying me a robe and some lounge pants. I know you can't possibly have the funds to purchase a Prada robe, seeing that you are a starving artist," Brian reminded him. "Here. That should cover it." Brian tore out the check and handed it to Justin. "Oh and go buy some groceries for Daphne. I know how much you eat," Brian said as he raised his eyebrows.

Justin took the check, placing it in his wallet. "Thanks. I'll get Daphne to go tonight."

Just then, a tall, striking man knocked on the door.

Brian called out, "Yes?"

"Hi, I'm Jose and I'm your Physical Therapist. I see you've been sitting in your chair. How do you feel?"

"How do you think? I got a tube up my dick, this thing in my neck and ...."

Jose walked to the edge of the bed, glancing at Brian's chart. "You're supposed to have those removed today. I'll come back later this afternoon and we'll take a short walk. You need to start building your strength up." Jose put the chart back and turned towards the door.

"Jose, how long do you think Brian will be here?"

Jose turned around. "He's been in bed for almost two weeks and those stitches are going to pull. I think he'll be here for at least another week, maybe more. Depends on how hard Mr. Kinney works."

"Thanks," Justin said as he sat on the bed. Jose left with a slight wave to the two men. "So what do you need me to do?"

"I need a blow job, but seeing how I have this tube stuck in my dick, I'll have to wait," Brian answered sarcastically.

"Briannn," Justin said. "You had me gather your mail. Is there anything I need to take care of? I still can't believe you put me on your accounts."

"Ah, so I wasn't dreaming that I shared that little tidbit." Brian motioned for Justin to come toward him.

Justin walked over to him and pulled the other chair toward Brian. "You weren't dreaming, but I don't understand why?"

"We were getting married." Brian averted his eyes from Justin, returning to the mail in his lap.

"But we didn't get married, and last summer you said..."

"I say a lot of things," Brian said so softly Justin had to strain to hear the words.

"So... Um .. last summer... Another cliff?"

Brian looked up at Justin and waved him closer to his bed. He reached his arm out to wrap it around Justin's neck but it wouldn't quite go. "Yeah. Another cliff," Brian admitted.

"But why? I'd been gone over a year and I thought we were doing okay," Justin leaned in to Brian, letting his arm reach around his neck.

"It hurt too much. Every time I saw you, it hurt. I didn't want to do that any more."

Justin stood up, wrapping his entire body around Brian. The pose was awkward since Brian couldn't really stand to reciprocate it. They stayed that way for several minutes and then Justin let go, returning to his chair. He looked at Brian, trying to gage his willingness to continue the conversation and decided to chance it.

"And now?" Justin asked.

Brian cocked his head, not saying a word.

Justin paced the small room. "Damn it, Brian! You almost died! You can't keep the pain away with drugs and alcohol!" he shouted. He slammed his hand on the wall in frustration. "This has to stop."

"I know, Justin. That's why you need to leave. I can't do this."

"Oh no you don't, Brian fucking Kinney. I refuse to watch you kill yourself, and I will not be getting another phone call telling me to come to the hospital because you're in the emergency room. We're going to deal with this!" Justin realized he was shouting so moved to close the door.

"I can't!" Brian yelled as he watched Justin pace the floor. "Leave, Justin," Brian urged.

"You can't or you won't?" Justin parroted his words back at Brian. "This time, I'm not leaving. I love you, you son of a bitch, and yes," he paused. "She's a bitch! It hurts because you love me too! You're just too damn stubborn to say the words. Well, I have news for you, Brian, I wrote the manual on Brian Kinney and I'll lay it out for you," Justin's voice returned to a high pitched timbre. He spread his left hand out, palm up while he used his right index finger to touch his other index finger. "One, you will not tell me to leave again. I'm staying until you get out of the hospital and can return to work. At that time, if you still want me gone, I'll think about it." He touched his right index finger to his second finger of the left hand. "Two, I know that actions speak louder than words, especially in Kinneyland. You can't fuck me into the mattress, but you can kiss me and I can read your kisses very well. Non-verbal communication works for us, so use it!" He touched his right index finger to his third finger of his left hand. "Three, you will talk to me- not let me guess. I know Brian Kinney hates to talk, but you know what? We do talk- sometimes a lot. You aren't going anywhere so you can't walk out. We will talk." He touched his right index finger to his left hand and walked over to Brian and kissed him softly on the lips. "Fourth, I love you, so deal with it."

The nurse knocked on the door, and Brian told her to come in.

"Is everything alright Mr. Kinney? It sounded like there was shouting," she asked as she checked his vitals and urine output. "You're doing well. I think we can take out your catheter now." She turned to Justin. "If you'll step outside, I'll let you know when you can come back in."

"It's about time. Peeing through a tube sucks and not in a positive, life-affirming way," Brian snarked.

She helped him back into bed and Justin smiled as he left the room.

The nurse swiftly removed the catheter and put some salve on his urethra. "You'll need to buzz the nurse's station when you want to use the bathroom. We still need to monitor your output, and you can't walk to the bathroom by yourself. Just press this button." She demonstrated which button. "Someone will be down to help you."

"Whatever. Can I go to sleep now? I'm exhausted."

"Certainly. I'll let your friend know." She left the room, finding Justin in the waiting area, looking at an old Newsweek.

"Sir, your friend is resting now. He wanted me to let you know."

"Thanks. I'll bet he's tired and will sleep for awhile. I'm going to the gas station."

"Okay," the nurse responded.

Justin looked at his watch and was amazed to see he'd only been at the hospital for two hours. It seemed like twice that amount of time.

I can't believe I said those things to Brian. Actually, I can believe I said those things. For once, he cannot kick me out or physically throw me out. I hope he got my message.

Justin put on his coat and walked down to the gas station for more cigarettes. He bought a pack and smoked one on the way back to the hospital. His phone rang in the middle of his walk back.

"Hi mom," Justin said as he looked at the caller id.

..."Shit. I forgot about the show."

..."Yeah, I'm still going. My agent has all the work. I talked to him last week. He understands."

..."You're coming? Wow. I don't know what to say."

..."Of course, I want you there. It's just that I didn't think you'd come, since it's a small show."

..."I know you're proud of me, mom."

..."Brian's better. He's out of ICU and in the Med/Surg ward. He's having his first PT today."

..."Yeah, we talked and we'll be talking a lot more. Look mom, I'm almost at the hospital and I don't want to discuss my relationship with Brian with you. I'll come by day after tomorrow to pick up the ticket. Maybe we can go to dinner."

..."I love you, too. Bye mom."

Shit. How could I forget about the show? Brian would kill me if I didn't go. Hell, Brian's probably ready to kill me now. I feel better getting everything off my chest. I wore him down once, I can do it again. Shut up Taylor, it's not a contest. This is the man you love that you're talking about.

Justin put out the cigarette and made his way back up to 514. He peeked in the room, as he didn't want to wake Brian. Brian was still sleeping, so he very quietly walked in the room and sat in the chair, watching Brian for another half an hour until he slowly opened his eyes.

"You're still here," Brian groaned as he sat up in bed.

"Yep, still here. I'm your stalker," Justin laughed as he repeated the familiar phrase. "Is there anything you need or want me to do?"

"How about a blow job? They took out the catheter," Brian half teased.

Justin walked over to the bed, leaning down to kiss Brian. "Jose will be here any minute. I'm not going to get caught with your pants down. Maybe later."

Jose knocked, and came into the room a few moments later. "Mr. Kinney, are you ready to walk a little? I'm sure you'd love the view of the hallway."

"Justin, find me another gown," Brian demanded as he started to sit up further. "I'm not letting the whole world see my ass."

Justin smiled, but refused to take the bait. He looked in the drawer of the dresser and found another gown. "This should do. I'll buy you some pants tonight."

"You better, Twat. There are only a few people who get that view of Brian Kinney," Brian said tongue in cheek.

Jose moved toward the bed and helped Brian stand up, having him hold on to a walker. Brian took a few deep breaths and stood, stopping to get his balance.

"Ready?" the therapist asked.

"Sure. How hard could walking be? I've been doing it since I was one," Brian answered.

Jose got behind him, monitoring Brian's progress and ready to help if needed. Jose saw Brian's muscles tremble. "I think we'll wait for the hall tour until tomorrow. Why don't you head back to bed for now?"

"Gee. I walked a whole 10 feet, Sunshine. At this rate, I'll be old and gray before they let me out of this lovely hospital."

Justin helped put the covers over his shaking legs when he returned to the bed. Justin took a cloth, wet it and wiped the sweat from Brian's brow.

"I'll be back in the morning. You should be stronger then. We'll probably do this twice tomorrow,"

"Oh goody," Brian said snottily and smiled a fake smile. "I get to walk out of my room."

"Thank you. Don't pay any attention to him," Justin said waving his hand at Brian. "He makes a lousy patient. Doesn't like anyone to take care of him."

"It's okay. I'm used to male patients. They're often the worst." Jose left the room.

Brian let out a loud sigh and collapsed onto the pillow. "That was for shit. I can't even walk out of this room!"

"It'll get better. I remember when I was bashed; therapy was a bitch."

"I remember."

"What do you mean? You remember. You weren't there!" Justin glared at Brian.

Brian looked toward the window.

"Shit! You were there. When? How? Why didn't you ever tell me? It would have made such a difference. I always thought..." Justin raised his voice and crossed his arms even though Brian wasn't looking at him.

"I came at night. I talked to the night nurses and they filled me in on your progress."

"But why didn't you come see me when I was awake?" Justin started to walk towards the window, but stopped at the end of the bed.

"Don't go there. I didn't. Let's just move on."

Justin understood that was Brian-speak for 'I'm not explaining myself and I told you something I really didn't want you to know, so be quiet.'

"Want to watch tv? You look tired." Justin picked up the remote and flipped it in his hand.

"Whatever. I'm still waiting for that blowjob."

Justin turned on the tv, and they watched the AMC channel for a few hours. Brian slept off and on, and stared at the television in silence. Justin didn't pay much attention to the television as he was trying to figure out Brian's latest admission. Brian had seen him when he was in the hospital. If only he'd known that, they could have been spared so much pain. The Ethan fiasco and everything after. Why did Brian have to make things so hard?

Brian had been awake for about half an hour and Justin saw the darkness descend on the room. He looked at the clock, realizing he needed to leave. "Brian, I have to meet Daph. I'll pick up the robe and pants and some groceries. I'll be back tomorrow." Justin leaned in to Brian's body, pressed his forehead with Brian's and said, "Later."

Brian repeated the phrase. "Later." He turned up his mouth, but didn't really smile at the familiar line.