BRIAN

We were able to get Gus and leave town on Thursday night. Justin was excited to go to New York.

“I loved being in New York but I wanted us to live in the house because it was the first time I knew you really wanted a future with me. Do you ever wish we had stayed in New York?” Justin asks me.

“Right now, with all the shit that’s going on, yes, but I wanted the kids to be able to see grass and trees without having to go the park. I also wanted to be closer to Gus. He’s growing up and I wanted to be able to see him. Once we get Linds and Michael totally out of our lives, we can have the life we wanted.” I tell Justin.

“They’re out of our lives for the next three days. I can take the kids to FAO Schwarz tomorrow, you can shop at Armani and Hugo Boss, then I want to meet up at Carnegie Deli for lunch. Gus and I need cheesecake. Peter arranged for the reporter to interview me in a conference room in his office tonight. I told him I wasn’t here to work after the interview. We can arrange to have dinner with Gabriel at the loft tonight if you want.” Justin tells me.

Justin really needed to get away. I listened to him talk about what we are going to do, and can see what the strain of the last couple of days was doing to him. If I thought moving back to New York would help, I would have packed us up immediately and done it, but Michael and Linds would just show up here. Although, if Gabriel and I keep landing accounts the way we have been, Kinnetik International is looking like a possibility. Justin and I could live anywhere we wanted. My only concern would be Gus and moving so far from him. I also don’t want the girls away from their grandmothers. Justin and I are definitely not going to be the ones to explain the girly things.

JUSTIN

The interview was painless. They wanted to know about the bashing and how I overcame having to relearn how to draw. They also wanted to talk about my moving away from New York and why I chose to live in Pittsburgh. We talked about my relationship with Brian, and becoming a father, while still maintaining success as a painter. I don’t like talking about the bashing but Brian told me people see it as me dealing with adversity and overcoming obstacles and it makes my art seem like a miracle. That’s why it’s brought up in every interview. I told him people should be more interested in my art, not my life.

Gabriel joined us for dinner at the loft. Brian ordered in since I couldn’t cook dinner. The kids ate earlier, so we could put them to bed and it left us free to talk. I’ve never met Gabriel. I've talked to him when he’s called the loft, but when we were moving to Britin he was moving to New York. Brian hired Gabriel so he would have someone in Pittsburgh while Brian was with me in New York. Gabriel is built like Brian, but he has sandy blond hair and gray colored eyes. Gabriel doesn’t have the rough edges Brian does, he’s easy going.

I planned to work on a painting after dinner, it was to give them a chance to talk business. I haven’t been working on anything lately. This whole thing with Linds has made it so I couldn’t work. At dinner watching Brian and Gabriel talk and seeing the differences in their personalities gave me the idea to do a series, showing the duality of friendship and life.  

LINDS

I told my mother I needed to go back to Pittsburgh to see Justin. She told me to stay at their house. She and Daddy are staying with their friends for a week. Mother told me to nail down a date for the wedding and let her know as soon as we decide. She wants to rent the place they had Lynette’s fourth wedding.

I got to their house and wanted to check online for any buzz on Justin. I noticed he did an interview and it was going to be on tonight. Justin should have called and told me. I’m tired of having to get the information second hand. It’s starting to upset me that Justin isn’t trying to find a way to see me; it’s like he is avoiding me. I shake off that thought. I know Justin is being held hostage by Brian and Max.

I set my phone alarm, so I can see the interview.

MICHAEL

Carl told me I was staying in jail. I have to appear before a judge because I violated the fucking restraining order twice in one day.

“I didn’t go into Kinnetik, I stood on the sidewalk and asked to have Brian speak to me. I know if we could talk to each other, Brian would realize he didn’t need a restraining order. We’re best friends.” I tell Carl.

“Michael, a friend doesn’t sneak around and violate someone's privacy. A friend would understand when Brian doesn’t answer a phone call, to leave a message, not call twenty more times. A friend doesn’t stand at Brian’s loft and hold down the buzzer while calling continuously to invite himself to spend the night. A friend doesn’t ignore when Brian tells you he wants to spend time with his family and not you. A friend doesn’t ruin his marriage to chase Brian. Do you want to know what you're doing is called?” Carl asks me.

“I didn’t sneak around, I was hanging out in the loft the way I used to. Brian sometimes puts his phone on low, so I have to call a lot to get through. Justin should have let me hang out with them, and he is the reason Brian has to constantly turn down my invitations. Ben is being a drama queen and will get over it. See, everything has an explanation.”  I tell Carl.

“I asked, do you want to know what, as a detective, we call what you're doing?” Carl asks me again.

“Sure Carl, I call it trying to be a friend, what do you call it?” I snark at him.

“We actually have a legal term for it, it’s STALKING,” Carl tells me. “Normally we have to prove the stalking is happening, in your case, I just need to wait for the phone calls when you violate the restraining order.”

“Stalker’s are crazy people who don’t understand the other person wants to be left alone,” I tell Carl.

“You're right Michael, and maybe if you stop and think about it, you’ll realize you're turning into the crazy person who won’t leave the other person alone,” Carl says as he walks out the door.

I don’t do that. I mean I know Brian tells me he wants to spend time with Justin and the kids, but he doesn’t mean all the time. Okay, I do call a lot but Brian won’t answer me, so I keep calling. I know I should have told him I was hanging out at the loft, but he might have said no. Ben was just upset because I kind of drugged him. Oh God, what am I doing?

LINDS

I was sitting in the living room, making a gift registry for Justin and I. I want real gifts this time, not the crap the idiots from Pittsburgh gave me and Mel. My phone went off and I turned on the interview. The first thing I see is Justin smiling at me.

Reporter:

Today, I’m interviewing painter Justin Taylor. Good evening Justin, and thank you for taking the time to talk to us tonight. You’re very accomplished for someone of your age. What do you attribute your success to?

Justin:

I learned never to give up. That I might not impress everyone but my work isn’t about making a splash, it’s my way of expressing my thoughts and feelings. I’m happy to just paint, people liking my work and wanting to see it, well it’s nice.

Reporter:

In your bio, we learn you were attacked by a classmate who didn’t like that you were gay. How did that affect your life and your art?

Justin:

I don’t remember over a week of my life. I only remember bits and pieces of the actual attack. For a while, I had a hard time with having too many people around me and had constant nightmares. I was ready to hide from the world and give up art completely. When I was in occupational therapy after the attack it was a struggle. At first, it was all I could do to hold a paperclip in my hand, but then I realized that I wanted to draw again, so I didn’t give in to anybody telling me I couldn’t achieve my dreams.

Reporter:

What played the biggest part in you achieving your goals?

Justin:

My mother and my husband Brian. They wouldn’t let me give up. My mom had to let me go so I could heal. Brian pushed me to face the things I was afraid of. I was going to quit school because I couldn’t do the work, but Brian found a computer that would put less stress on my hand. I wasn’t going to use it, because I associated it with playing at art. I remember meeting artist Adrienne Bennett and she was paralyzed from the neck down in an accident but she was still painting, it made me realize there was more to art than using a pencil and paper, it was about creation. I went home and started working.

Reporter:

You and your husband have children, and instead of staying in New York, you moved away. Most artists want to move here. What made you decide to move away?

Justin:

I wanted my children to know their grandmothers and I wanted to live somewhere with a yard. Brian and I bought a house before I moved to New York and we always intended to use it. When our daughters were born we decided to go home. I felt I was established enough to have what I wanted, my family, my dream home, and my career.

Reporter:

Obviously, you found the right formula. You're able to be a father and an artist. Is there anything you could point to and say it is the reason for your success?

Justin:

Brian and my children are the biggest reasons. They inspire me. Brian never let me give up. When the decision to leave him and Pittsburgh was made, he found a way to make our relationship work. Brian believes in me and my art and it makes me a better father, artist, and person.

I stopped watching after Justin ignored the fact that I’m the one who pushed him to be an artist. I was the one, not BRIAN FUCKING KINNEY, but ME. Justin better start telling people how important I am to him. Justin made a mistake by telling that reporter Brian was the reason he achieved success.