After the Theft

Justin stood at the door of the studio and watched Brian walk away. He would much rather watch him walking towards him while taking his clothes off, but this could do in a pinch. He was so beautiful. Justin just loved the way he moved. His cock agreed. Justin smiled.

He walked back inside and went straight to his cubby. He rolled out his cart and took up his favorite spot in the studio. Lilah was in hers, setting up as well. She looked at him with worry in her eyes. He smiled reassuringly. She smiled back. He went to the prepped canvas storage, and looked at what he had. A couple of 4X4, a 4X6 and a funky 5X5. He sighed. And looked around. Lying on its side was a long, narrow one, a bit dusty. He kneeled and read the inscription. Odd size, Florence. He shook his head. Odd size? That was helpful. He walked back into the studio.

“Lilah? Have you got Florence’s number?”

Justin knew her fairly well, having had a couple of classes with her, including having been paired with her for their portrait exercise. But her number was in his old phone… She was sculpting almost full time now. Maybe he could borrow the ‘Odd Shape’ canvas. Off course, Lilah had the number. She was great that way. He dialed.

“…and I am not kissing someone who just had some tentacle in his mouth. Yuck. Hello?”

“I agree. Tentacles are such a turn off,“ said Justin. “It’s the little suction cup things. They are just gross looking.”

“I know! And Sashimi breath? I’m not a lesbian!”

Justin heard in the background an outraged/amused exclamation. “Florence! You are so…gross!” Justin was cracking up.

“Yo. So dude, who are you and what do you want?”

“Hello Florence. This is Justin.”

“Justiiiiiin! My love! My ‘I know you’re a fag but if you’d let me, I’d fuck you anyway, because your lips are luscious’ portrait partner!” To the girl in the background. “It’s the guy in the kitchen you were salivating over!”

“You hung my portrait in your kitchen?”

“Right across from where I sit to have my breaky in the morning. You are such a sight for sore eyes at the break of dawn…” In the background: “Flo, you wouldn’t know the break of down if it bit you in the ass…”

“Too true, too true. Nevertheless. You are a swell accompaniment to my Cap’n Crunch.”

“What an amazing coincidence. You are hung in our kitchen as well, and I sit across from you to eat my Cheerios.”

“No! Oh my God! There must be some cosmic significance in that. We have breakfast together every morning, like some old married couple! Twilight zone moment!”

Justin laughed. “Florence. Not that I am not enjoying the banter, but I called with a serious request.”

“Yes! I’ll marry you! I’ll be your beard! And you can fuck me in the ass from behind once in the while. From the back, you can’t tell the difference can you? I mean, with all that sculpting I have me some gnarly, manly back muscles!”

“I doubt you could shut up long enough for the illusion to hold, Florence.”

“Point. All right then. What do you really want?”

“In the canvas storage, you have a long narrow one marked ‘Odd size’.”

“Uh… Yeah. I think so. Why?”

“I was wondering if I could borrow it. I will replace it. It’s just, for some reason its shape appeals to me.”

“Take it, hot lips. I’m not painting. I might not ever paint again. I’m done with my requirements, and truthfully, I’m a sculptor, not a painter. Put it to good use. How about a nice long frenchy for a thank you?”

“Afraid not. I only kiss my boyfriend. But I’ll dedicate it to you, how’s that?”

“I’d rather have the kiss, but I’ll take what I can get. Dedicate away. Anyway, how’s life?”

“Real good. You?”

“Aside from the fact that all the beautiful men are either fags or eat sushi, all is well. I love sculpting. I’m in love with my hammer and chisels. Even modeling and bronze casting pales in comparison. You should try it sometime.”

“Maybe some day. But I love painting too much. And speaking of painting, I’m itching to start, so… Thanks for the canvas.”

“You’re welcome. Have all of them if you want them, Justin. I’m serious. I won’t be using them. See you.”

Justin grinned. He had forgotten how she was… The girl had neither barriers nor filters controlling the flow from her brain to her mouth. During the portrait painting he had made sure to give her a huge cup of decaf latte as a prop. To keep her mouth busy. He went back to the storage area and managed to pull out the canvas.

He brought it to the studio, lay it on the table, and got his tape measure out. 6.36 meters by 1.82 meters. Yes. That was definitely an Odd Size. It fit his mood perfectly…

It was not exactly prepared to the level of perfection that he liked. He got some really fine sandpaper out, plugged in and attached the little vacuum head to the side, and sanded the surface until all the imperfections and the brush marks were gone. Then he wiped the surface with a cloth slightly dampened with turpentine, to remove the last of the dust and make it more receptive to paint. Finally he covered the whole surface with an undercoat of zinc oxide white, which gave him the bright white background he liked to start with. He concentrated on the task, finding calm and peace in the motions, applying himself to make the surface perfect.

He was not sure what they were listening to, some otherworldly Irish female singer. He liked it. His mind was as blank as the canvas. And now it had to dry. He restarted the vacuum, and set Lilah’s blowdryer full blast on the opposite side. This should provide a very drying airflow over everything. He stared at the blank canvas while it dried.

Earlier, when Brian and Jason were still there, he had been trying to remember if anyone had acted a little weird around him. He suspected he knew the thief and had a hard time believing a person could act perfectly normal after doing something like that to another. But he was drawing a blank. People had been their ordinary selves.

He would have hated for the paintings to be destroyed. There were several he deeply cared about in there. He wanted Brian to see Summertime because it would show him how much Justin liked to be loved by him, how happy Brian made him. He wanted to show him the blue one, because he thought it was so beautiful, and The Rainforest too.

He was also counting on the money, really. It would be nice to make a more significant contribution towards their expenses, though Brian didn’t seem to care at all and never mentioned it. And he was hoping to finish paying off his student loans. He hated having debts. Then he could start investing towards retirement. And help Molly buy a decent car. And buy Gus those really nice dinosaurs figures he had seen in the toy store for seventeen dollars each… He sighed.

If somehow he managed to borrow $100,000.00 from somewhere, his expo would have to bring in a little over $180,000.00 just to break even, and, despite what Jason said, seemed completely impossible. At $15,000.00 a painting, it meant selling twelve of them. At that kind of price he would be lucky if he sold six…

So chances are, instead of having extra money, he would actually increase his debt by trying to get his paintings back to sell them. He had dreamed of this expo. It would still be OK, showing mostly already privately owned work. Just not as exciting. And if he just sat there staring at the dry canvas in front of him instead of painting, it would not help at all. He grinned.

He extruded four different blues onto his palette, as well as a lot of titanium white, and deliberately painted a winter sky. For some reason, he knew exactly where he was going with this one. It took a while to get a perfect progressive lightening from the left to the right. It was nice and cool looking. He did his noisy trick with the vacuum and the blowdryer again, and Lilah gave him the evil eye, so he turned it off and went to talk to her instead.

“You know, Justin, I’ve been thinking…”

“You are very good at that, Lilah. What have you been thinking now?”

She smiled at him. “I’ve been thinking about Dean, getting so drunk…”

“It happens to everybody at some point, you know, not realizing just how much you’re imbibing…”

“That’s just it. He was out with Andrew and Aidan, to a pizza place, where you get your food at the counter? So Andrew got him a beer, because Dean is only 19. But Dean is like Rory, you know, big guy. 6’3, 6’4 maybe? And like 200 pounds of muscles? He looks 25. Anyway, at the house, he’s had a couple of beers before with no ill effect whatsoever…

“Rory had a cow when they came back, and Aidan and Andrew pretty much had to drag poor Dean in. Andrew swore up and down he only got him the one beer. Even if Aidan got him like three more, which you think Andrew would have noticed, Dean would not have been that wasted. They were eating pizza and breadsticks. That stuff sucks in liquids like crazy.

“And then, just when by some chance the one person who might have questioned the removal of your paintings is at home sick as a dog, the thieves come in that morning?”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying somebody put a roofie in his drink. That’s what I’m thinking. He was sooo sick, Rory actually considered taking him to the hospital. That just doesn’t sound right.”

“I totally trust Andrew, Lilah. I know you do too. And I have not even met his friend. So how would he know anything about me?”

“Well, we do talk about you, you know… Plus, I think I told you, I think the guy is a prick. He totally looks down on all of us and what we do. He is arrogant and rude. But never around Andrew… When Andrew is there, he is kind, sweet and funny, and treats him like his best friend. It’s as if he was cultivating him, you know?”

“So you think this total stranger knew about me, about my art, about my upcoming expo, and decided to befriend one of you to get access to more information, steal your keys, feed a date rape drug to Dean, and come here to rob me?”

“OK. Said like that it sounds a little farfetched. But it’s possible, no?”

“I suppose. Apparently, there has been some noise about the expo in Pittsburgh and my paintings in it… Still. It’s a bit crazy. I’d love to meet this guy. When is Andrew doing something with him again?”

Lilah got her phone out and dialed. “It’s Lilah. When are you doing something with Aidan again?... When did he cancel?... Can you tell me when you decide on a time? If it’s OK, I’d love to go with you… Yes. I always wanted to see those… You have a hot date tonight, don’t you?...” She giggled. “I just bet you don’t want company… Say hi to her for me, OK?”

She was smiling. “Andrew and Elisabeth have a date. They are so cute together, always holding hands. Anyway, Aidan and Andrew were supposed to go to the Museum of Natural History together on Wednesday, but Aidan cancelled that morning, saying something came up, and said they would do it Sunday instead. Andrew has not heard from him or seen him since which is weird because for the past week they were fused at the hip. He’s tried to call him, but his phone goes straight to voicemail… He’ll call me if Aidan calls. I told him I wanted to see the dinosaur skeletons too. Justin, I smell a rat.”

“Tell me what you know about this guy.”

“Not much. He was always evasive. He is in town for a seminar, or a conference, or a class, depending on who you talk to. He’s from the Midwest, or from the West coast, he is living with his grandparents while he is here, or visiting his sick grandmother, and going to lectures … It’s impossible to get a straight answer out of him… If you ask him what he is studying, he gives you this superior smirk and says something like, ‘Believe me. It’s something you have no interest in. I do not want to bore you…’”

“What does he look like?”

“Blond hair almost touching his shoulders, hazel eyes. Short, no body to speak of. He does have a nice smile, and beautiful hands. I wanted to draw them, but he wouldn’t let me. Looked at me as if I was trying to pull one on him or something. I have a strong feeling we will never see him again.”

“Please don’t tell Andrew, at least until we know for sure we are not completely off base, OK? Well I better get cracking. I have eight paintings to do in two weeks.”

Lilah looked dumbstruck.

“Lilah, I’m joking, OK? I’m not going into mass production, don’t worry. I’m going to paint like I always do, when I feel like it, and until I think I’m done… Though interestingly enough, this one just popped into my head as soon as I saw Florence’s canvas.”

He went back to his painting. It was dry. He separated what was left of his blue mix on his palette, and added more white to one, and a touch of charcoal black to the other. He closed his eyes, visualizing what he wanted. Mt. Fuji, Mount St. Helen's, Kilimanjaro, Mt. Rainier… He opened his eyes, and drew an outline, then painted in the eternal snow, and the blue grey rocky sides, shadow and light. It was strange. He had not painted something so realistic since Brownstone almost a year ago. But this was definitely what this canvas called for. Now he had to wait for it to dry again.

He went to the canvas storage and got out the 5X5. It was not easy getting it out on his own, but he managed. He looked at the blank surface and thought of Brian, of Brian’s hand on his waist earlier, letting him know he was there and letting him rest his entire body against his; of the look of hesitation on Brian’s face as he wondered what Justin needed, ready to hold him or stay away, and of his sigh of contentment when Justin had walked into his arms; of Brian’s incredibly sweet smile in the classroom earlier, so full of promise and love, of the wonderful sweet kiss they had shared.

Justin was not alone. No matter what, he had Brian’s love and support, his body to lean on, his presence to count on. He suddenly felt so stupid. He had been wondering where he could find $100,000.00. Brian was probably trying to think of a way to give him the money without ruffling his feathers, knowing how Justin felt. He smiled.

Brian was going to offer him a loan with ridiculously low interest. He just knew it, and loved him for it, for understanding that just taking the money was not something Justin could do, to find a way to cater to his pride… He would probably expect Justin to say no, and Justin ordinarily would, but he just suddenly understood how important it probably was to Brian to be the one to help him, to be allowed to do something for him.

Justin took out his phone and dialed Brian.

“Kinney.”

“Hey. Where are you?”

“Home. Working. You?”

“Pratt, working, thinking about how very much I love you.”

“… Sunshine. I… Thanks.” He could tell Brian had for some reason needed to hear this and was so glad he’d called. Now for the hard part. He swallowed his pride, remembered who he was talking to and said, “Brian, could I ask you a favor?”

“Anything, Justin. You know that.”

“Would you…” Justin took a deep breath and tried again. “Would you consider loaning me the one hundred thousand dollars at five percent interest over three years? To get my paintings back, if the thieves ever call? If you’d rather not have money issues between us, I’ll understand. There are a couple of other people I might be able to ask. I don’t want to put you on the spot, either, you can think about it…”

“Oh, Sunshine. I never thought you’d… I’ll be very happy loaning you the money. At 3 % for 5 years. But I am sure you will be able to repay me after the expo, no problem. “

“Thank you, Brian. It’s not… It’s not going to change things between us, is it?”

“Absolutely not. I promise. You can set up an automatic payment. Neither of us has to ever think about it.”

“OK. I think my paint is dry. I…” He sighed. “It’s a weight off my mind. Now I can concentrate… Later.”

“I am glad you asked, Justin. Now forget about it. Later.”

There had been such warmth in Brian’s voice. Justin thought about it. If there ever was any way he could help Brian, he would want to do it and be frustrated to no end if Brian turned him down. He would be so glad if Brian asked him for help. This kind of thing went both ways.

He checked his painting. Not fully dried, yet. He got his computer out and sent an e-mail to Molly, telling her what had happened. They’d gotten really close, at least e-mail close. She wrote him almost everyday, joking he was like a diary that actually answered. She was a firecracker, his sister… Remembering what he got up to at her age, he tried to remain calm and nonjudgmental, which was not always easy…

Then he sat there and wondered. He kept feeling like he had some kind of previous connection with the thief. If it was this Aidan, who did he know who was blond? Graham, from LA, but he was tall and skinny, and a pretty good friend. Petunia was blond, and he was the only blond in his acquaintance at the moment, and it obviously wasn’t him. There was the intern from Pratt, at work, Gabe Del Veccio, but his hair was short, he was quite chubby, and accounted for last Tuesday. Plus they had not exchanged more than a couple of words since January, so he really did not know him.

It might be easier to think about who had a grudge against him. He did not really think this was about money. $100,000 was such a ridiculous number, pulled out of a hat. Justin thought it was more about taking something from him than about the money. And why did he think that? Probably because his paintings were such personal things. He should not interpret the thieves’ feelings based on his own. Maybe it was the money after all…

Tuscan? Again? He googled the man again. Wow. A lot more articles than last time, about his upcoming trial, his gay sons, his wife leaving, Plexus’ role in destroying him… He found the family photo that had clued him to the twins last time. The youngest son was blond, and quite short compared to his tall brothers. He went to the Columbia yearbook site and got his picture on the screen. He walked over to Lilah.

“Is this Aidan?” he asked.

“Definitely not,” she said. “Aidan is… thinner boned, I guess. More delicate features. This guy may be short, but he looks like a bruiser.”

Yes. The youngest Tuscan shared the muscular build of his brothers. Justin’s new mail icon came up. It was an e-mail from his sister.

Justin,

WTF? Who would do such a thing? I just want to rip out their toenails.

Interestingly, Mark Hobbs has been out of school for a week, supposedly on a college tour with his Dad. He’s blond and much shorter than his evil brother. Would you like a photo? I’m sure Celia has one, though she came to her senses and dumped the loser in December. He worships his big brother, who blames you for ruining his football career (he was unable to play college football because of his conviction), if you can believe that. Plus his girl, Mimsy, dumped him after the whole trial thing. Turns out she was smarter than she looks in her year book…

They might be stupid enough to think of something like that, and smart enough to pull it off, if that make any sense…

Thanks for hooking me up with K.C. Montrose. He is a riot. His school sounds just like here, a bunch of backward ass homophobic jerks. He has an acid pen and writes really well. He manages to make the description of his daily humiliations sound funny, and his portraits of the worst offenders are just… god, I wish I could write like that. He has really opened my eyes on a lot of things I was totally happy to ignore.

His grandparents sound really neat though. Out of curiosity, I went to Macy’s to check out the Montrose Linen collection. They want $108.00 for a (really) pretty box with a bath towel, a hand towel and a washcloth! Holy shit! I guess I’ll be taking the Big Q special store brand to college, and not the Montrose Linen. I do so want that box though… :P**

Let me know about the photo. Love you. Mol.

Hobbs? After all this time? Just hearing that name made his heart beat faster and his palms sweat. Justin was still terrified of the asshole. He wished he could have confronted him and come out on top, but the only time he had seen him, he’d turned around and ran, Hobbs laughing at him. He really hoped it wasn’t them, but asked for a picture anyway…

Did Phil from legal have any resentful relatives? He was in jail now, as far as Justin knew. There hadn’t been a trial, just a bargaining session between his attorney and the prosecutor. He googled him anyway. There was a small article about his mother in a weekly in Minnesota. She was asking for people to send him paperback books, and pray for him while he was incarcerated. She apparently was a well-liked schoolteacher who had raised him alone and blamed herself for not exposing him to more as a child, and as a result creating a bigot. She did mention she was ‘all he had in this world as far as family’. So that was that…

Justin closed his laptop. The paint was dry, and he started on the next stage. Zinc oxide white, titanium white, the darker bluish grey, and charcoal black in the smallest quantity.

He closed his eyes again, picturing what he wanted and trying to think of the best way to get it. He got out a paint knife and went to work. It was good. It took him an hour and a half to get the right look, and then another hour to work on the highlights and the shadows until it matched perfectly the image he had in his mind.

It was so, so different than anything he’d ever done. And gosh. It was finished. He called Lilah over.

“Justin! That’s beautiful. What a shame Rory isn’t here! He wouldn’t have to ask what it is…” She giggled. “You shouldn’t do that, though, you know?”

“Do what?”

“Hide your feelings behind a cold front. That’s what it feels like, this one. It’s beautiful, but so cold. And whatever you are really feeling is somewhere up there, frozen in the eternal snow.” She turned to him. “You’re smiling and joking, and pretending you’re OK. But look at your painting. Let yourself feel, Justin.”

He looked at the painting. He didn’t think it was cold. She was seeing something nefarious where there was nothing. It did feel closed maybe. Like something was hidden back there, in the snow, like she said. But sometimes a painting was just a painting. He thought it was beautiful.

“Sometime a pretty picture is just a pretty picture, Lilah.”

“Justin, I specialize in pretty meaningless pictures. This is not one of them. I love it though.” She smiled. “And so will everyone else. I bet you it sells before New Years Eve… But after the blue one. God. I miss that one. I used to go to your cubby and pull it out, just to get my fix. Rory was right that it looked like a tie-dye sheet, but it felt so restful. Like slipping into fresh sheets after a long day, when you’re tired, and it feels sooo good, you know? Peaceful, soothing.”

She looked at the new painting again. “You must be in your blue period,” she joked. “Boca is very blue too.”

Justin took a picture of the new painting with his phone and stored it with the rest of them.

“I hate these pictures, Justin. They show the painting, but you feel nothing from them. It’s like they’re just… dead replicas, without the extra dimension.”

“Well, they are pretty crappy photos. Maybe with a better camera I’d actually be able to capture a little of what they feel like…”

She shrugged. “Maybe. You’re leaving, aren’t you?”

“Yes. Brian and I are going out to play pool with these two doctors we met a little while back. They’re really nice. They wanted a rematch, because last time we played, we were in a gay bar, and Brian and I were all over each other. They accused us of distracting them.” He laughed. “They were so right… So tonight, we are playing in a straight bar. We’ll still beat them. Hell. We might still be all over each other…”

“Why did you have this one out?” she asked about the 5X5.

“I was just thinking about what I wanted for it. I’m not sure yet. It will have something to do with Brian though. I just feel it.”

Lilah threw her keys at him. “Here. Store your finished one in my cubby, please. It will make me feel better.”

Justin shrugged. “OK. They left my cubby alone though.”

“Maybe they were saving it for a return trip. Do as you’re told, Blondie.”

Justin laughed. “All right, carrot top!”

He put everything else away, and after a look at her painting, and a quick goodbye, caught a cab home, calling Brian to let him know he was on his way.

“Kinney.”

“Hey. I’m on my way home. I need a shower, I used a knife and I got paint all over. Wanna wash my back?”

Brian chuckled. “I’d love to, but I’m running an errand. I’ll be home soon, though. So I’ll see what I can do…”

Justin was really looking forward to seeing him, which was ridiculous. They’d only been apart, what, six hours?

“Later.”

“Later.”

He got home to an empty loft and stripped his painting clothes. Even wearing a smock, he'd managed to get paint on his clothes… He put everything in the hamper. Brian had made the bed. He loved living with him, in this place. It was so big, there was a place for everything. He’d never experienced that before, and really enjoyed the orderliness that came from it. The clean uncluttered surfaces pleased his artistic mind. He tried to keep his impact to a minimum, enjoying living in esthetically pleasing surroundings.

He got hard just looking at the bed and laughed at himself. He could picture Brian‘s gorgeous body as he lay on his belly, legs parted for him, arms under the pillow. He wanted to fuck him right now. He went back to the hamper. Yes! Brian had worked out today, and there was his damp shirt. He pulled it out, and smelled it. Clean laundry, Decleor, and in the pits, that burned wood smell. On the chest, a bit of the earthy forest aroma. His cock started leaking.

He put lube on his hand, stood against the narrow wall between the bathroom door and the closet holding the shirt to his nose. He started jerking off, picturing himself preparing Brian’s rectum for his cock, his fingers disappearing into his tight heat, Brian’s sighs as he lightly caressed his prostate. Fuck, it was hot.

Fantasy Brian was saying, “I’m ready, Justin, fuck me, fuck me…” He loved it when Brian remained in control, even when he bottomed. He tightened his fist around his dick as he pictured himself penetrating Brian, a whole lot faster than he’d ever do it in real life. It was sooo good.

In his mind, Brian was on his knees, now, fucking himself back on Justin’s cock, as Justin stayed still, Brian in charge. His ass was so fine, their balls were touching when he impaled himself all the way. His back muscles defined, beautiful. God, Justin loved his body.

Justin’s hand was moving fast and tight on his cock, precome and lube making the motions easy and slick. “Brian, you are so beautiful… I love you so much, don’t stop, here I come…” and he sprayed his come into Brian’s shirt, picturing himself buried to his balls, condomless, in Brian’s ass, flooding his inside with his seed. Fuck, that was so hot…

Suddenly, the shirt was out of his hands, and he was being kissed passionately while being pressed into the wall by a naked body.

“You look so hot when you wank, Justin. Relax for me, love, let me in…” Brian lifted him off the ground and holding him under his ass, settled him on his hard cock, letting gravity do the rest. Watching his beautiful face, Justin felt Brian’s cock open him, and he loved it. Once Brian was in all the way, he started kissing Justin again, giving him a chance to adjust. Justin felt so full. He wrapped his legs tightly around Brian, and rested his arms on his shoulders as Brian started to move in and out of him, pressing him to the wall.

It was fast and deep and very, very good. They were looking at each other, whispering to one another, as if afraid to disturb non-existent neighbors.

“You’re so tight and soft inside. I love it. I love you, Justin…”

“I love you. I missed you. Oh, fuck Brian, this is so good. Are you ok?”

“You weigh nothing, love. I could do this all night. But it’s too good for that. I’m going to come soon, come deep in your ass. Kiss me…”

Then there was just panting, and a cry, and a long shiver, and the pulsing of Justin’s rectum as he came again, and they managed to collapse on the bed, still connected, Brian on top of Justin, caressing his face, pushing his hair off his forehead.

“Coming home and catching you jerking off is one of my favorite fantasies,” said Brian, smiling. “This was way hotter than what I imagined. You are so fucking sexy.”

“I wasn’t sure you were real at first… Wall sex. One of my favorite fantasies.”

They laughed. “We better get ready. We don’t want to be late to trounce our favorite docs…” said Brian. In the shower he washed Justin from head to toe and got hard again. Justin smiled and got on his knees, giving him a nice long blow job, loving it when Brian could not help but put a hand on the back of his head and move his hips, fucking his mouth for a short while before coming with a growl.

He helped Justin to his feet, and held him tight, saying, “Sorry, sorry, I just…” Justin chuckled. “Brian. I love it when you fuck my mouth. I absolutely love it. When you can’t help it, I feel like I’m doing it right, you know?”

It was Brian’s turn to chuckle. “Oh, Sunshine. Believe me, you are doing it right. Whatever it is we do, you always do it very, very right…”

Justin looked up at him and smiled. Brian smiled back. They got out of the shower, and started to dress for their evening out. Brian looked at Justin’s choice of clothes, which he’d laid out on the bed.

“You’re wearing cargos?” he asked, obviously disappointed, though trying to hide it. He really liked Justin’s new, more sophisticated casual clothes.

“These aren’t just any cargos, Brian.”

Brian’s eyebrows did go up when Justin put on Jock straps instead of underwear. Then he put on the brown cargos, with a black and white belt and his long sleeve silk black t-shirt. The pants were very, very low rise in the front, the belt resting right above his bulge. And in the back…

“Yes. These are all right,” said Brian, grinning.

“I thought you’d like them,” said Justin, pleased. He bent down as if to take a shot at pool. “They’re very comfortable,” he added.

“Strangely, mine now feel a little tight in the front,” said Brian, smacking his ass.

“Hummm…” said Justin, enjoying the sting . Brian looked like he was about to eat him alive, but then said, with a pained look on his face. “We really have to go… Fuck.”

“Hold that thought, big boy,” said Justin, wiggling his ass.

“This is going to be a very long evening,” said Brian, not looking bothered at all by the thought…

They actually got to the pool hall a bit ahead of schedule. It was the typical breeder's mating ground. Girls dolled up and in short skirts, playing poorly on purpose, and guys trying to convince them they wanted more than a quick fuck. Justin felt so grateful he was queer. Two girls decided that he and Brian were way too hot to spend the evening without female company, and came to their tables, making inane conversation and giggling without cause.

Justin, curious, could not help but ask, “Are you really that silly or is it what you have to stoop to to get guys to notice you?” The girls looked at each other.

“We’re just trying to have a good time,” said one.

“And you have to pretend to have the IQ of a carrot for that? And dress in a skirt that screams fuck me while pretending you think it’s as modest as flannel pajamas?”

The girls shrugged. “Whatever works, you know?”

“But what are you after, exactly? Do you just want a fuck, or do you want to start a relationship, or what?”

The girls looked at each other and burst out laughing. “You are pretty direct, you know that?”

“Oh. I’m sorry. I’m not interested, just curious.”

“Why aren’t you interested?” asked one of the girls, frowning.

Brian came to stand very close to Justin, and fake whispered to the girls, “Because I’m his boyfriend…”

“Oh, my God,” said a girl. “You guys are gay? What are you doing in this meat market?”

“We are here to play pool,” explained Justin. “So are you going to answer my question? Are you looking for a one night stand, or a commitment?”

The girls made faces at each other. “I guess we’re looking for boyfriends, you know, not just a fuck.”

“Well unless you want to attract the absolute stupidest of this crowd, shouldn’t you at least pretend to have a brain? And you are doing and behaving exactly like every other girl in this group. Shouldn’t you try to stand out? Like maybe show that you can, actually, play pool? You can’t be as bad as all that if you come here a lot…”

“I bet we can beat the two of you,” said one, taking up the challenge.

Brian gave her his best “You are sweet, but sadly mistaken” look. The girls grabbed some cues.

“Prepare to weep, handsome. I’m Muriel, by the way. I’m a junior at NYU.”

“And I’m Natalie. I’m a certified public accountant.”

Muriel broke, and sank a striped ball. She sank two more, calling out the pockets before missing the third.

Brian took over and sank four before running into a snag. Natalie took a daring shot and got it in. “It’s all math,” she said. Her next one bounced.

Justin smiled at her sweetly. “It’s all math, and hand eye coordination." He sank two.

Muriel got three in and the girls high-fived. Guys had stopped playing, and were watching the match, taking wagers. She called the pocket but missed. Brian sank the last ball, and chalked his tip before taking a shot at the eight ball. Justin could not have made the shot, but he thought Brian probably could. Brian looked at Justin and winked. Ha. He was going to miss, giving the girls a chance to shine, and play the next game at the table. He missed by a hair. Natalie took a while, but called and sank the eight ball. The girls jumped up and down with glee, a few bucks changed hands, and Brian and Justin graciously gave up the table.

Muriel kissed Brian’s cheek. “You missed that on purpose,” she said.

He smiled. “Now you are no longer like every other bimbo in the joint. Make the best of it…”  She grinned, as Natalie was asking, “So, Gentlemen, whose ass are we whipping next?”

The doctors finally arrived, looking in need of a stiff drink. “Sorry guys,” said Scott. “There was an impromptu administrative meeting. New billing procedures. They are obviously trying to get us all to quit so they can turn the hospital building into a warehouse. Apparently, they’d make more money that way…”

“Let’s have a drink to forget our troubles, and then we will proceed to crush both your egos with our superior skills,” said Steven.

“Or not,” said Justin smiling.

“Young man, put your cash where your mouth is,” teased Scott.

“I have twenty bucks that say Brian and I will win the best of five…”

“You’re on, Pup. Lay them out,” Scott said, putting a twenty under a chalk in the ashtray.

“Brian?” asked Steven.

“Twenty that Justin sinks the last eight ball.”

“Why not?” They both added their money to the ashtray.

Steven drank martinis, and Scott Chivas Regal. Brian stuck to his usual bourbon, and Justin had Perrier water.

Though Justin did not drop on his knees to suck Brian before the games, neither did they behave as strictly as one would expect. The cargos were definitely responsible for some squeezing and slapping of one partner’s ass, while youthful exuberance could be blamed for much of the hugging and not so discreet frotting of the other partner.

The four of them got a lot of looks, not all of them friendly, but that was as far as it went. Brian and Justin won Justin’s wager, but Justin lost Brian’s, unable to sink the eight ball in the last game.

After discussing their options, they had a quick bite and headed for Essengy. It had been a long time since their last visit, and Jeremy welcomed them like long lost cousins.

When the thumpa-thumpa hit them Scott said, with a grin, “Man, it’s been at least four years since we’ve been in one of these places, but it never changes." He grabbed Steven’s hand. “Let’s dance!” and away they went. Brian and Justin both got water first, then joined the crowd. They smiled at each other as they started dancing. This was their place, the only place where, for a long time, they had allowed their mutual attraction to build and flourish. They were in their own world when two muscular guys, looking strikingly alike, and a short, beautifully built other man popped their bubble and started dancing with them.

“You never write, you never call, you never come here… We were starting to think you didn’t love us anymore!” said Rob.

“But now you’re here! You’re here! You do love us!”

Justin was laughing. These two were so goofy. “The Docs are here too…”

“Cool!” said Alex, leaving them to climb the stairs to the third floor and try to spot them.

“Oh, guys, this is my boyfriend Curtis. We met at Gillian’s, which we have you to thank for.” Rob put his arm around Curtis, and smiled at him, apparently quite smitten. Justin remembered when Rob had just casually decided to fuck the smaller man, and how, an hour later, he'd had the smaller man’s cock in his ass. Curtis really was amazingly good looking and was flashing the bigger man a radiant smile.

Alex was back, with the doctors, and they all danced for a while, switching partners, and playfully flirting with each other. The twins were hot, but intimidatingly boisterous. Scott and Steven looked too conservative to draw much attention, but as usual, Brian was like a light to moths, and watching Justin dance in these pants made a lot of guys want to at least have that ass in their palms as they gave him head.

Alex joked to Brian and Justin, “I’m the single guy here, but between your spectacular ass and your…I don’t know what, I don’t stand a chance.”

“My ‘I don’t know what’?” asked Brian with a grin.

“Dude, you are not even a great dancer, and look at these guys… Looking your way, giving you the eye, hoping you’ll notice them and take them to the back room to fuck them. I bet you quite a few of them know your reputation of being an asshole once you’re done with their ass, but still they want it… They want you. I mean, you are very good looking, but so is Scott, so are tons of guys here. They, wejust all sense you’re the fuck of a lifetime…” He grinned at Justin. “And he’s all yours, you selfish little prick…”

Justin laughed, and just danced, feeling lucky, loving Brian’s possessive gaze on him as a couple of strangers moved closer to dance with him. After a few minutes, Brian grabbed him by a pant loop and reeled him back in, taking him in his arms.

“My Sunshine,” he told the guys. “Find your own.” Alex cracked up.

“So Alex, what’s your theory about Justin, here. Why is half the club always ready to give him head?” asked Brian.

Alex smiled. “Because he looks so… innocent. Like he doesn’t even know how sexy he is. You just want to make him feel good, and you know his come is going to taste like heaven. You just want to take him home and keep him forever, but short of that, you’ll take whatever little piece you can get.” He grinned at Brian. “And you took him home and now he’s all yours, you lucky bastard… Well if I want to get some tonight, I have to get away from the two of you, and turn it on…” He stripped off his shirt, showing off his impressively sculpted torso, tucked it in the back of his pants, and danced away.

Brian and Justin had moved slightly away from the others, and started dancing with each other again, Brian’s arms on Justin’s shoulders, Justin’s hands under his shirt. Brian rested his forehead on Justin’s, and they just smiled at each other, feeling the tension built, very light yet, but growing.

Justin’s cock was going from semi hard to hard to harder, and his desire to kiss Brian was growing exponentially, his lips parting, his tongue licking his lower lip before he could stop himself. Brian’s hazel eyes looked so dark, his smile more and more predatory.

A second before Justin was going to give in to his need, Brian grabbed the back of his neck and took his mouth as he pulled his body close by pressing Justin’s body into his with his other hand on his lower back. The kiss started hard and possessive, and Justin did not resist the demanding tongue, the commanding lips. Soon, it turned to a loving kiss, soft and tender, and he received the gentleness as he had the demanding passion. He was Brian’s, his mouth surrendering to him, his body soft and yielding against the hard lean muscles of Brian’s body, willing to receive anything he gave.

Justin could feel Brian’s hard erection against his hips, and pressed his own on the thigh between his legs. Brian’s kiss was sending shivers down his spine, making his toes curl. He knew well where this was leading, but could feel Brian’s desire for more. He could tell from the way Brian’s body moved, from the insistent probing of his soft tongue that Brian wanted him, wanted to fuck him, wanted him to surrender his body just like he had his mouth. And he suddenly wanted that so much himself, his skin was burning with it.

He raised himself on his toes, rubbing his torso on Brian’s as he went, and whispered in his hear, “Take what you want, Brian. Whatever you want, It’s yours…”

With a growl, Brian pushed him towards the back room and pulling him by the hand found an empty couch. He took off his shirt and put in on the seat for Justin to rest his head and shoulders, and completely removed Justin’s boots, socks, pants and jock straps. Brian took the rest of his own clothes off, and looked down at Justin in all his aroused naked glory. Justin let his knees fall open, and Brian said, “Fuck, Justin. I want you so much.”

Completely unnoticing of the many eyes on them, he put on a condom and lubed it, then got between Justin’s legs. Justin quickly took off his shirt, wanting to feel Brian’s skin. Brian placed Justin’s ankles on his shoulders, and looked into his eyes as he entered his willing body. “Mine,” he said.

“Yours,” Justin agreed and relaxed his sphincters to allow Brian’s cock to slide easily into his rectum. Brian closed his eyes and hissed with pleasure, going as deep as he could, Justin raising his ass off the couch to take him in all the way, and then tighten around him as much as Brian’s girth would allow. They both stopped, after all this time still both astonished by the perfection of their union.

Brian started moving, and Justin smiled at him, at the amazing feeling of completion, at the rhythm their bodies agreed on easily, at the ideal synchronicity of their desires and motions. They had both forgotten where they were, fully naked and making love in a place where people usually only enjoyed a quick fuck, providing the most erotic and arousing sight to spice up other people’s dalliances.

Steven was watching them, holding Scott’s head as he fucked his throat. Rob, standing with his shoulders against the wall, his small lover's ass in his hands, Curtis feet flat on the wall, was fucking him in the same rhythm as Brian’s motions. Alex had some trick bent over the back of the next couch and was doing the same.

Justin was drowning in Brian’s dark eyes. He didn’t want to touch his cock, enjoying the rise of the pleasure of Brian’s cock against his prostate, the sight of the pleasure he gave the man he loved, Brian’s hands caressing his thighs, his own palms rubbing his nipples. He started craving Brian’s mouth on his, and as if responding to his need, Brian pushed his legs up further and slid one hand behind his neck and the other under his shoulder, kissing him, licking and biting his lips, whispering unconnected words to him, like the secret code of their love.

It felt so good. Brian inside him, Brian on top of him, Brian in his mouth. Brian's scent all around him, his voice in his ear, Brian’s hand behind his neck, strangely making him feel more owned than anything else. Brian’s cock was dragging along his prostate on the way out, and the pleasure was intense.

Brian looked at him. “Do you want to come, Sunshine?”

“Not yet, not yet… This is so, so good, Brian. I wish it could last forever…”

Brian smiled and released his legs, allowing them to slide along his arms until Justin could wrap them around his body and lock his feet together. He took deep breaths, not having noticed how restricted his breathing had been for a while. Now they really moved as one unit, Brian's wavelike motion incredibly sensuous, his mouth near his ear, talking to him.

Justin closed his eyes, concentrating on the many sensations, his erection now tightly caught between their bodies, his prostate deliciously massaged, his nipple ring, teased by their connected chest, the kisses Brian peppered on his jaw and behind his ear, the warmth of his breath when he talked, the protective way Brian was holding him, the sexy smell of him. Suddenly, the perfect balance was over and he started barreling toward his orgasm fast and furious.

“Oh, Brian… Brian… I’m … it’s coming… Oh, fuck… Oh…fuck…”

Brian caressed his hair back, and put his hands on the side of his head, watching him hungrily.

“I want to see you come, Justin, look at me, look at me, and let it take you…”

Lost in Brian’s eyes, surrounded by his love, Justin’s prostate and cock both decided it was time, and his body convulsed in amazing ecstasy, washed away in incredibly intense pleasure, feeling he’d completely lost control and his mind was just overwhelmed, the pleasure lasting far beyond the last delicious jet of ejaculate leaving his body.

“Brian… Brian! Oh! Oh my God… I…” He closed his eyes, and just rode it to the end, each pass off Brian’s cock a blissful delight.

“So beautiful, Sunshine, when you come. That look is mine, your pleasure his mine, your come is mine, and soon, soon… Oh, Justin…my Justin…forever…”

Justin could have sworn he felt the heat of Brian’s come as he filled the condom, even though he knew it was unlikely. He too watched the man he loved in the throws of his release, and marveled at how beautiful he was. His heart felt full, close to bursting with love for him, the words not enough, only this amazing physical connection able to tell how he felt.

He held a spent Brian tight against his body, their sweat mingling with the come on his stomach, Brian breathing fast in his neck, running his hand through his hair. He became aware of his surroundings again. Their friends were there, as were others. He was covered in sweat and come, and fifteen minutes by cab from their showers. He chuckled.

Brian looked at him with a smile. “What?”

“I was wishing for one of those long duster coats, so I could go home without getting dressed again.”

Brian moaned. “Fuck. We’re at Essengy. God, I want a shower…”

They started laughing, and were still chuckling as they wiped sweat and come off each other’s naked bodies. “Could be worse,” said Justin. “We could be at Babylon, stuck with those damn paper towels…” They started laughing again. Brian’s black silk shirt looked like it had been slept in. The tight cargos were not too pleasant to slip on while moist with sweat. But they got themselves back together and it was not as bad as all that. Justin's fingers combed Brian’s hair into a minimum of order, and they walked out, joining the doctors at the second floor bar, getting waters from Carl.

“We’re going to head home,” Brian said.

“So are we,” answered Steven. He laughed. “We want to fuck, but we’re not as bold as the two of you. Plus, I don’t want to wear a condom.” He pulled Scott to him and kissed his temple. Scott was blushing and smiling at the same time. Their couple’s dynamic was interesting…

The twins were still in the back room, and they left them to it. Jeremy called them a cab, and Justin, in his usual position in Brian’s arms, said, “I’m so glad you are not taking me back to Brooklyn. I love sleeping together…”

Brian kissed his hair. “So am I, and so do I. And I love waking up together even more,” he answered and Justin smiled.

It was only 1:30 in the morning, but after a quick shower and their nightly ablutions, Justin was falling over from tiredness… he literally crawled into bed, and did not even remember Brian joining him because he was asleep as soon as he lay down.

He woke up in the night, hugging Brian’s arm to him tightly, his face bathed in tears. He relaxed his hold on Brian, but the tears kept coming, with an incredible sense of sadness and loss. Then it all came back. His paintings. His paintings were gone. He was trying to contain his sobs, but Brian’s hand wiped tears from his cheek, and giving in, Justin turned into his embrace and just wept, heartsick and shattered. Brian held him, caressing his hair and running his other hand up and down his back.

Justin cried for what felt like a very long time, and still, Brian held him lovingly, quietly. Justin was so grateful he didn’t need to explain, or hear platitudes. Once all his tears were spent, he felt Brian reach over, and hand him what felt like Brian’s silk shirt. He blew his nose in it, and dried his face. That poor shirt had really been through the ringer tonight. Brian took it back, and threw it in the general direction of the hamper.

“I want them back,” Justin said. “I thought I could just let them go… but I need them back, even if I’m indebted to you for five years.”

“OK.”

Justin loved him so much at that moment. He turned around again, in their usual sleeping position. Once Brian’s breathing had evened out, he added softly, “Thank you, Brian. I love you so, so much.” He closed his eyes and slept.

To be continued...

Justin's new painting:"Cold"

Justin's ass in his new cargos...