Chapter 7 - Justin Settles In.

Brian had been gone for more than an hour now and Justin was starting to get really bored. He was actually glad at first when the call came in from Kinnetik about some emergency or other that Brian had to be there to handle. The curious young man wanted to spend some time wandering around the loft to see if anything would trigger any memories. He also thought it would be easier to snoop around the loft with Brian gone. So, the intrepid explorer had spent the past hour digging through drawers, cupboards, file cabinets and everywhere else he could think of to try to find some pieces of his missing life. So far, though, he’d found nada, zip, zilch, rien, or in other words, nothing.  

There were no papers in any of the files he looked at with his name on them. He’d even gone onto the computer but didn’t find any files there that looked like they would be his - Brian’s files were all labeled and organized so it was clear that they all belonged to him specifically. He’d gone through the books on the small bookcase in the living room but didn’t see any that sparked any memories, and he thought most of them seemed pretty dry - not something he thought he would read. All the toiletries in the bathroom that Brian had told him were his also looked brand new and unused.

The most confusing things though were the closet and chest of drawers. When he’d finally awoken from his nap earlier, Brian had pulled out some clothes for him while he was in the bathroom, so he hadn’t yet had a chance to go through the closets himself. Now that he had, he had a weird feeling. First of all, Brian had sooooo many clothes - you could easily tell which were his both by the size and the style - but Justin could only find a smattering of clothes that would fit him.  

And the style of the clothes . . . well, did he really wear stuff like this? Almost all the clothes he found were flashy - brightly colored, sparkly, rather skimpy and, well, just not him. At least, not what he felt should be HIM. There was nothing that he felt would just be comfortable. He knew from the moment he’d opened his eyes and seen Brian that he was gay, but, he didn’t think he was THAT gay!  

The only things in the whole loft that sparked any interest from the confused young man were some sketches and graphic drawings he’d found on the desk in a file that looked like it came from Brian’s work. Justin had taken that file with him over to the couch and was still looking through the pictures and reading the notes in the file about the ad campaign they were meant for. He’d been looking through that file for quite a while now and was starting to lose interest, wondering when Brian would get back. 

Then, one matted drawing caught his attention and he had spent more than ten minutes staring at that one image - It was an ad layout for a line of outdoor apparel (hiking boots, wool socks, thermal shirts, etc.). Justin knew that there was something not quite right about the picture but he couldn’t immediately figure it out. Then, it just came to him - the perspective was wrong. The way the objects in the picture were laid out drew the viewer’s eye away from the hiking boot they were trying to sell rather than focusing it on the target object. Without really stopping to think about, Justin found a blank piece of paper at the back of the file and a pencil and started to redraw the ad the way it should be with the perspective corrected.  

When Justin heard the loft door sliding open a half hour later, he looked down at the drawing he’d been working on and something clicked in his brain. He was an artist - he knew it. This was something that felt right and he could tell he wasn’t half bad either.  

He was so exhilarated by the discovery of what felt like his first real memory, he jumped off the couch and ran towards Brian, who was just entering the loft, his hands full with his briefcase, Thai take out and a few rental videos. Justin was too excited to notice. The young blond launched himself at the older brunet from several feet away, giving Brian only a second or two to drop everything he’d been holding and catch the energetic boy in his arms.  

“I’m glad to see you too, Justin, but you could have waited for me to put the food down at least,” Brian said to the squirming, laughing bundle of blond energy in his grasp.

“I’m an artist, Brian! I’m an artist! Look - I can draw. See,” Justin had sprung out of Brian’s arms and was now bouncing on his toes, laughing and shoving his drawing in the other man’s face, demanding that Brian look at it immediately.  

“Stop bouncing so I can actually look at the thing.” Brian put both his hands on the youth’s shoulders, trying to hold him down and tamp his enthusiasm long enough to glimpse the paper Justin was waving in front of him.

Finally giving up on calming the bouncing, over-excited blond, Brian simply snatched the paper out of Justin’s hand and took it off to the desk where he could look at it under the light. He immediately recognized the image - it was part of the Columbus Sportswear campaign he’d been working on for the past three weeks. But this drawing was different somehow from the layout he was used to seeing. Looking around to find the file he knew should be around somewhere, he finally saw the pile of papers and ad boards on the couch and headed over to compare this drawing with the original.  

“You did this, Justin?” Brian questioned the slightly calmer boy.

“Yeah. I did. See, the perspective was off in this one, here. See how it draws the attention off the shoes towards what should just be background. So, I redid it - see over here - now the focus is corrected and you notice the shoes more prominently. I also made a few other little changes,” Justin was beaming with pride over his changes and so eager to explain to Brian what he’d done. When the ad man didn’t say anything though, Justin asked with a worried tone, “do you like it?”

“No. I don’t like it,” Brian teased the boy. “I fucking LOVE it. This is perfect. I’d been staring at that board for days trying to figure out what was wrong with it and you just pick it up and figure it out like that. *snap* You are amazing, Justin.”

Brian then tossed the board and Justin’s revision aside, cinched the delighted youth around his waist and pulled the boy into a congratulatory kiss. The celebratory kiss became deeper and more passionate as the minutes ticked by, but neither man noticed at first. Before too long, though, Brian had to push the overly eager blond off of him, determined to keep some boundaries, at least until the boy’s injuries were fully healed.

“Are you hungry?” he asked the young blond dynamo, who was still visibly full of energy. “I picked up some Thai for us - provided it didn’t all spill out when you attacked me and I dropped the bag. Here, you take these videos and I’ll get the food served.”

The remainder of the evening passed in an enjoyable haze as the two men ate the Thai food while seated on large cushions in the living room and watching one of Brian’s favorite movies, The African Queen. When the movie ended, Justin was sitting snuggled up against Brian’s chest with the older man’s arm wrapped around him. Neither felt like getting up right away so they just let the credits play, sitting quietly and enjoying the moment.

It was Justin who eventually broke the silence. “What do I do, Brian,” he asked earnestly.

“What do you mean,” Brian returned, although he thought he already knew where this was heading and wasn’t sure exactly how to handle it.

“I mean, what work do I do. I must do something. I don’t just sit around here all day, do I? “

“Well . . . until recently you were still in school,” Brian equivocated. It was the truth, just not all of the truth.  

“Okay, so what else do I do other than school? Didn’t I have any plans to do anything beyond school. I know I like art - do I work in an art related field? I have to DO something, Brian. Or am I just your love slave - a kept man,” Justin playfully asked, backing off when he realized that Brian was uncomfortable with his questions.  

“You know, I always did want a love slave. Now that you mention it, that would suit me just fine. You can start immediately.” Justin pretended to slug Brian in the gut, playing along and giggling at the idea, but turned serious almost at once. 

“Really, Brian. Can’t you tell me anything?”

“The doctor said that we shouldn’t try to force your memories, we need to let things come back to you gradually. I . . . I don’t want to push you.” Brian guiltily offered a partial explanation as to why he didn’t want to answer Justin’s questions.

“Fine. Just tell me one thing. I have a right to know this; What about my family? I know that I’m only eighteen and you said I’ve only recently finished school. So, where is my family? I haven’t lived here very long - that’s what you said - so I had to live somewhere before. Please, tell me, Brian.” Justin pleaded.

What could Brian say? “I’ve only ever spoken to your father, Justin. He . . . he didn’t really approve of your being gay. He . . . well, he basically abandoned you because of it. I did try to call him when you were in the hospital, but he refused to come. I’m sorry. And I don’t really know anything about the rest of your family.” Again, the truth, but not the whole truth.

Justin fell quiet after that. Brian had really been enjoying himself earlier and regretted having to tell the youth about his asshole father - it was a real buzz kill. He didn’t want the evening to end on that pissy note, so he went with his standard plan for all awkward situations - distraction.

“Hey, Justin. Look at me,” he whispered as he turned the boy’s chin so they were now eye-to-eye. “Your father might be a total prick, but that doesn’t mean anything. You don’t have to live by his rules or hide who you are. No one should have to suffer that. So, just forget about him. And, as for what you are going to DO - well, what do you want to do? Whatever it is, we can probably figure out a way to make it work. Unless, of course, you want to be a Sumo Wrestler - I just don’t think you have the build for that” 

That off the wall comment managed to elicit a thin laugh from the young man and maybe worked to distract him a little. “I want to be an artist,” Justin finally stated.

“That’s what you told me the first time we met,” Brian chuckled and smiled, looking into those incredible, trusting, bright blue eyes, while his fingers involuntarily traced patterns on Justin’s shoulder. “We were both admiring the same painting and you bumped into me and we just started talking. Then . . .”  Brian was going to say more but stopped himself.  

-That’s enough disclosures for one night. And, enough silly sentimentalism. I’ve gotta stop watching Bogart movies - they always do this to me. 

“Enough. It’s late and you need your rest, young man, at least that’s what it says on my instructions sheet. So, time for bed. Come on.”

Justin became reanimated almost at once upon hearing those words. He jumped up off the cushion, grabbed the plates and dirty dishes and took them to the kitchen, quickly dumping the cartons in the trash and loading the dishes into the dish washer. Brian tidied up in the living room and then waited apprehensively for Justin to join him. 

Brian had been thinking about how to handle their sleeping arrangements pretty much all day. With only one bed, there really weren’t many options - not unless one of them was banished to the couch. He hadn’t come up with any brilliant solutions, though, in spite of all the thought invested in the problem. So, as usual, he had finally come to the conclusion that he would just have to play it by ear and let whatever was going to happen, happen. Typical Kinney M.O.

Leading the way, Brian took the two steps up to the bedroom, and removed his jeans, but left his briefs on. He then went to the bathroom to take care of business. By the time he had returned to the bed, Justin was already on the far side, tucked under the duvet and lying on his side so he faced the bathroom door. For the first time in his life, Brian actually felt butterflies at the thought of getting into bed with another man. He mentally slapped himself for being such a little pussy, and promptly slid under the covers, lying flat on his back.

“Goodnight, Justin,” he tried to say with a careless air (secretly, though, he didn’t think he quite managed it).  

Justin didn’t reply. He just smiled over at Brian, and wiggled his compact frame closer to the long, lean, tanned body next to him. Brian was trying to take deep breaths and ignore Justin while concentrating on something very non-stimulating, like fat, naked, hetero women. It wasn’t working very well so far, though.  

Justin eventually squirmed and wiggled until he was pressed up against the side of Brian’s body from mid-chest down to his knees. The little tease then coyly lifted his left leg slightly, sliding it over Brian’s thigh and wrapping it around until his groin was rubbing against the man’s hip. Brian couldn’t control the groan that that maneuver brought to his lips. He could tell that Justin had definitely NOT left his briefs on and that the hot young blond wasn’t trying in the least to control any of his desires.  

-Non-strenuous. Non-strenuous. Non-strenuous. Fuck, that feels good. He’s so hard. Non-strenuous. Remember, non-strenuous. God, for a small guy he’s pretty well endowed. Oh, his cock is dripping all down the side of my hip. Non-strenuous. Shit, now he’s stroking my cock, the little fucker. Non-stren . . . Fuck it!

Driven far beyond his breaking point by the sensuous and determined young thing who refused to keep his hands to himself, Brian gave up, rolled over to face the threat and quickly determined the least strenuous thing possible under the situation. He pulled the boy’s hips closer so their erections were rubbing against each other, then taking both cocks in his hand, he began to pump steadily, working them together. The sensation of the other man’s cock rubbing against his, added to the firm, repeated stroking sensations, brought both men to an almost immediate climax. Justin shot his load first in a warm, thick stream, running through Brian’s fingers and the older man came with the next stroke. Both men were moaning as their jizz washed over their stomachs. Justin reached over to trail his fingers through the mess, up over Brian’s chest and into the brunet’s mouth, encouraging the other man to reciprocate.  

When they were done tasting each other, Brian pulled up a corner of the sheet and used it to wipe both of them off. He then gently pressured the younger man to roll over and pulled the smaller body into his, spooning the now relaxed and sated young blond.

“Go to sleep, Justin. That’s as much strenuous activity as you’re gonna get tonight,” Brian breathed into his ear, punctuating the sentence with a tiny kiss. As he quickly drifted off to sleep, Brian felt his mind wandering over the events of this amazing, frightening and oddly comforting day.

-Horny little twat. God, I can’t wait to fuck him. If he’s this enthusiastic about a hand job, just think . . . He’s so warm. It’s like cuddling up to a furnace . . . Feels good though . . . Shit, was I just thinking about cuddling . . . Oh yeah, I’m so fucked.