Melanie and Lindsay strode into the diner during lunch time, carrying Gus in along with them.  They sat in a booth in the corner and Mel quickly spread out some documents she needed to look over before going back into the office.  Lindsay sat Gus down next to her then pulled out a coloring book for him and as she glanced around the diner for familiar faces.

Justin walked out of the kitchen then and they waved over to him.  He smiled at them and quickly walked to their table, pulling out a pad of paper as he did so.

“Jus’in!”  Gus exclaimed, happily reaching up to hug Justin.

“Hey, Little Man.”  He answered, bending over to wrap an arm around him. As he leaned over he also gave Lindsay a peck on the cheek and she patted his shoulder.  He then moved around to kiss Mel as well before straightening and stifling a yawn.  “What can I get you guys?”  Justin asked, shaking his head a little bit.

“Are you ok?”  Lindsay asked immediately, her voice filled with concern.  She reached a hand out to him and gazed up to his drawn face.  “You look pale.”  She added and Gus shot his head up with wide eyes.

“You sick, Jus?”  Gus asked and immediately sat up on the chair.  He wrapped his arms tightly around Justin’s neck, making the young blond smile affectionately.

“I’m not sick, Gus.  Just a little tired is all.”  He assured.  Lindsay and Melanie exchanged a glance and Justin caught it.  “It’s fine.”  He promised and then set Gus back down on the chair.  “Now, how about a chocolate milk for the big man.  Green tea for Lindz and Diet Coke for Mel.”  Justin said, repeating their regular drinks and then turned when he got an affirming nod.

Justin moved onto the next table to check on them before slipping behind the bar and getting their drinks ready.  He made sure he squirt extra chocolate syrup into the milk just the way Gus liked it before getting the girls’ drinks ready as well.  His hand shook a little as he set them down on the table and he noticed them look at it.

Self-consciously he wiped it on his apron and then put it in his pocket.  “Do you know what you want to eat?”  He asked, avoiding their gaze.

After getting their order he swiftly walked away and hid in the kitchen before taking out his hand and trying to massage it.  It had begun acting up more and more often since he had to start working triple shifts again.  Not only that, but his meds were expensive so he decided he’d only use them when it was an absolutely necessary.  He flexed his hand in and out a few times and shook it out by his side before digging out a pen and scribbling down their order.  He put it on the wheel before grabbing a few plates on the window and carrying them out.  He heard Mel and Lindz whispering together and could tell they were talking about him.  He tried to block it out, assuring himself that they were only talking about him because they were worried about him, but he still didn’t like having his life analyzed like that.

He made the decisions he wanted to make and no one was going to stop him from doing that.  How did they think he got Brian to agree to a semi-official, somewhat recognizable relationship?

He tried to shake it off and focus on his work, but the more he tried to focus, the more his hand started to shake.  It was getting to the point where he was having trouble carrying plates and drinks.  Not only did the girls notice, but the rest of his customers were starting too as well.  ‘Please stop.’  He begged his injured hand.  He had to work the closing shift at Peppino’s that night and didn’t want to have to put up with his hand all day long.  Usually it passed in a few minutes, a half hour at the longest, but this was starting to get unbearable.

To make matters worse, Emmett strode into the diner and slid into the booth next to Mel.  Justin knew he should be happy to see his friend, but honestly he wished they would all just leave him alone.  Still, he put on a smile and went to go take Emmett’s order.  He didn’t write it down because he knew his hand would shake and the cook wouldn’t be able to read it anyways.  However, after years of waiting tables, and having an above average IQ, he could memorize the single order simply.

Instead of writing it down and putting on the wheel, he walked back to the kitchen and told Tony in person and he wrote it down himself.  He was kind, and understanding.  He had to work with Justin right after his bashing when his hand was at its worst so was familiar with how to handle it.

Honestly, all Justin wished was he could be back at home getting his hand massaged by Brian.  But since the brunet wasn’t working once again, he had to be here.  He’d already been there for eight hours and dreaded the six he had ahead of him at Peppino’s.  Then, he thought about how much money he would be making and forced himself to be glad he could work at all.

‘Hobbs could have killed you.’  He reminded himself of that whenever he felt he was getting too worked up about his hand.  He could be dead – he was lucky to be alive.

He ran his good hand through his hair and closed his eyes for a moment to collect himself.  He took in a deep breath and then left the kitchen to check up on his tables.  He saw that Mel needed a refill on her soda so poured it with his left hand.  As he went to set it down in front of her, however, all three of them looked at his right hand.

“Brian used to say you always had to be careful when your hand was acting up.  Is everything ok?”  Lindsay asked carefully and Justin flashed her a look.

“Fine.”  He said succinctly.

“I’m just saying…You work another shift tonight, don’t you?  You’ve been working three shifts a day again.  I’m sure that must be trying on your hand.”  Lindsay continued, and Mel and Emmett seemed perfectly happy to let her do so.

“I said I’m fine.”  He repeated and turned away.  Just as he did, however, his hand flared up in pain.  He cringed and gripped it, hunching over.

“Justin!”  The group cried out simultaneously but Emmett was the first one to get to him.  The tall man wrapped an arm around Justin’s shoulder and sat him down in the booth, trying to comfort him even as Justin continued to moan in pain.

It felt as if someone had stabbed his hand and twisted the knife around.  The pain was excruciating.  Justin clenched his eyes shut as if blocking out the world would also block out the pain.

“Not out here…”  He murmured through clenched jaws.  He didn’t want anyone to see him like this.

“Ok, ok.”  Emmett said placatingly and stood him from the booth and walked him back into the kitchen.  He found a small break area and sat Justin down there.  “Can I get you something?  Water?”  Emmett asked, concern etched throughout him.

“Just…give me a few minutes.”  Justin requested, wishing, at that moment, that Hobbs had killed him.

Emmett said nothing, just compassionately patted his shoulder and left him alone as he’d requested.  Just in time was well, as Justin could no longer hold back the tears that were threatening to break loose.  Both from the pain and humiliation, Justin couldn’t stop them from coming.  He didn’t wail or weep, but silently allowed the tears to roll down his cheeks.

The pain remained for another five minutes.  Honestly, he didn’t care much about his tables and if they were angry at him they could go fuck themselves.  Though, he doubted they would be.  Not only did he have minor celebrity status by being Brian Kinney’s live-in-lover, but because of the bashing, most people recognized him and often offered support.

When the pain finally did pass, he stood and wiped the last of the tears from his cheek.  He reached over to a drink dispenser and got a glass of water then finished drinking it before venturing back outside.  There were a few new tables, but Emmett was helping him out and taking care of them for him.  He flashed the man an appreciative smile.

“Hey, Justin.  Can we talk to you for a second?”  Melanie asked, motioning for Justin to sit down.

Justin rolled his lips into his mouth and silently sat down, bracing himself.  He didn’t say anything, just looked between the two of them wondering if they were going to lecture him about Brian.

“You have been working really hard, lately.  In order to help take care of yourself and Brian.”  Mel spoke somewhat brokenly, clearly knowing she was treading on thin ice.  “And Emmett, Lindz and, I were thinking, we’d like to help you along a little.  To make sure that you don’t have to keep working triple shifts.”  She said.

Justin immediately opened his mouth to answer, but Mel cut him off.  “It wouldn’t be a loan – something you have to worry about paying back.  After all you’ve done for us, watching Gus for free all those nights, it’s the least we can do.”  She added, offering a smile that said she really wanted him to accept.

Justin sighed and glanced over at Gus, wishing he didn’t have to be sitting there listening to this.  Not that it was bad, per say, just he didn’t want the kid to worry about him or his father.  But it was too late, as Gus was looking at him with wide, worried eyes.

“Guys…”  Justin said, slowly looking back over to the girls.  “It’s nice that you want to help out. But I’m fine.  Really.”  He knew it sounded pitiful after his hand flaring up just moments before.

They both cast him doubtful looks.  “Justin, are you even taking your medication?”  Lindsay asked and Justin suddenly wished the family didn’t know so much about his life.

“Yes.”  He said defensively.  It was mostly true; he took them when his migraines hit, as those were far worse than his hand.  His migraines incapacitated him for hours at a time, sometimes even a full day.

“Every day?”  Melanie questioned with a raised eyebrow.

“It’s none of your fucking business.”  He snapped at then and stood quickly.  He then looked over at Gus and frowned.  “Sorry, Gus.  That’s a bad word.”  He reminded to make sure the child knew not to say it.  He took a calming breath and looked between the two women.  “I appreciate you’re wanting to help.  But I can do this by myself.”  He insisted before pulling out his pad and walking away.

He was Brian’s partner.  He was the one who was going to help get them through this.

A few hours later, Justin was in his uniform and working his station at Peppino’s.  His hand hadn’t acted up again for which he was grateful, however, he was still exhausted and every time he closed his eyes he felt as if he could fall asleep where he stood. On the plus side, he didn’t have to work the next day at all – he made sure he lined his days off up at both places.

Thankfully, it was a slow night, and he was able to be apathetic without his service suffering too much.  It was a few hours into the shift and the dinner rush had already died down, so he was counting down the minutes until they closed and he could go home.

However, something had been bothering him for some time now.  His only customer was an elderly lady who’d been sitting in his section for three hours already.  She had been nice enough; she ordered with a smile and called him ‘dear’.  However, she also had a somber air around her, as if being there made her sad.

Typically, Justin was too worried about his own problems to think about what she was going through, but his mind was in a muddled place that must have made him more empathetic.  He leaned against the bar, chatting with the bartender, as he watched her nonchalantly push her food around.  By this time, it was no doubt cold and unappetizing.

He sighed, held up a finger to motion his co-worker to hold onto their thought, and walked over to her.  “Hey.  Can I heat that up for you?”  He asked, motioning to the plate.

“Oh, oh Dear.  I guess it is kind of cold, isn’t it?  But don’t worry, Dear.”  She flashed him a smile.  “I wouldn’t want to bother you.”  She insisted and Justin just waved her off.

“You’re no bother.”  He assured sincerely.  “But I am a little worried.  Is everything ok?”  He asked and gave her a soft smile.  “It seems like something is bothering you.”  He added.

“Oh don’t mind me.”  She said, even as her voice quivered.

“Tell me what’s going on.”  Justin urged as he pulled out the chair across from her and sat.  He folded his arms and leaned forward on the table, trying to offer her support while keeping a polite distance.

“It’s just…My husband passed away two weeks ago.  We always would come here on our anniversary…”  She murmured as she began hiccupping through her tears.

“I’m so sorry.”  He said sincerely as he reached a hand out to hold hers.  She turned her hand over and clenched onto his as if it was the only lifeline she had.

“I don’t know why I came.  But we already had the reservation and I just couldn’t stay away.  It would be admitting that he….that he…”

“Was really gone.”  Justin finished for her in a soft whisper.  He suddenly forgot all about his own problems.  So money was tight and he had a gimp hand.  At least Brian was still alive.  He didn’t know what he would do if Brian was gone.  Brian was the only man he’d ever really loved and he didn’t think he would ever be able to figure out how to love anyone else – not with the kind of passion he felt for him.

The woman wiped a few of her tears away but they were only replaced by others.  He stroked her hand for a few minutes, silently offering his support until she was able to collect herself.

“Thank you, Dear.  I think I needed that.”  She said, offering him a small smile.

“It’s no problem.”  He assured, letting go of her hand.  “Can I get you anything else?  A cup of coffee maybe?”  He asked softly.

“That would be nice.  Thank you.”  She said and he stood and turned, and then went to make a fresh pot for her.

He spent the next few hours talking to her, letting her tell him all about her husband.  He learned her name was Beatrice, but she liked to go by Bea, and her husband’s name was Monty.  They lived in West Virginia in a manor and she was worried about the upkeep now that he was gone.  He also learned that she was a concert pianist and had played for the Pittsburgh Philharmonic.

He didn’t tell her much about his own life as it seemed she really needed a chance to talk to someone; he could only imagine how lonely it got in her large home all by herself.  He briefly mentioned he was an artist and that was about it.  But he enjoyed it none the less.  He even let her stay late, past closing time in order to make her feel better.

Brian was bored.  He’d already escorted his trick for the night out of the apartment and was now left on his own.  Not working was really grating on his nerves.  Every agency he had checked refused to hire him because of what he did to Gardner; but he regreted nothing.   Except maybe that Justin now has to go back to working three shifts a day.  He wanted to prevent that – but no matter where he tried getting a job, they wouldn’t hire him.

He made dinner for him and Justin, but when the blond didn’t show up he just ate by himself.  ‘Must be busy.’  He thought to himself, worried because Justin had already worked over twelve hours that day.  He wanted to alleviate some of the stress Justin was under, but no matter what he did he failed.  He felt like a sinking ship and he was dragging Justin down with him.  That was the last thing he wanted.  He didn’t want Justin to be tied down to a failure when he was so young and had so much potential.  Justin could be off pursuing his art.  Instead, he’s so busy waiting tables that he hadn’t even had time to open in a sketch book in weeks; because of him.

He was sitting on the couch, staring up at the ceiling waiting for the familiar sound of Justin’s keys in the lock.  He didn’t want to go to sleep in case Justin didn’t come home.  He always worried for the younger man, and always would.  It was something he had come to accept.  Justin was an increasingly important part of his life, and not just because he depended on him for a roof and food.  No…Justin was…special.

The tender feelings he bore for his young lover only continued to get stronger and more prominent the more time they spent together.  While he wouldn’t classify the feeling as love, he would admit that Justin was the only person who had ever made him feel that way.

Brian smiled a bit just by thinking about him.  And as he did, a thought started niggling in the back of his mind.  Something about Justin.

He furrowed his brow, wondering why he suddenly felt as if he had forgotten something.  He stood and walked over to the calendar.  He gazed at the date, but nothing wrong a bell.  Looking further and further down the days and then comes to a stop.  “Shit.”

Justin’s birthday was just a few days away.  After last year’s fiasco he wasn’t planning on doing anything at all.  Maybe he’d mention it in passing, but he wasn’t even going to attempt at getting Justin a gift.  In hindsight maybe getting him a hustler wasn’t the best of ideas, but he’d honestly thought Justin would get off on it.  So, in order to prevent another Ethan-like debacle, he was just going to ignore it and stick to his credo that birthdays weren’t worth celebrating.

But now…

Now Justin was working himself ragged – literally.  He deserved some kind of recognition for what he’d been doing for the both of them.

Smiling a bit he called Emmett and started making the plans.

Two days later.

Justin only had to work at the diner on his birthday, for which he was eternally grateful.  He figured most people forgot about it and was actually glad for it.  He worked breakfast and lunch and then intended to go home and relax.  He wanted to sleep for days.  As he drove home he was relieved that he knew Brian wasn’t going to do anything for him.  He just wanted to slid into bed, maybe have a quick fuck with the man, and sleep.

Walking up to the apartment he yawned and rubbed his eyes as he walked into the apartment.  Just as he opened the door, however, Brian grabbed his arm.  “Let’s go, Sunshine.”  He said and Justin frowned and immediately shook his head.

“Not today, please.  I just want to go to bed.”  Justin whined, trying to pull his arm free.  However, Brian was stronger than him and refused to let go.

“Nope.  We have things to do.”

“Doesn’t it count that it’s my birthday?  I don’t want to go out tonight Brian.  Just go without me.  Besides, I’m covered in sweat and grease.”  He added, smelling the top of his shirt for emphasis.

“Doesn’t matter.”  Brian pushed them out the door, locking it up behind them.  He then held his hands out.  “Keys.”  He ordered, and – seeing as he was too tired to argue – Justin handed them over.  “Don’t look so glum.”  Brian said as he walked him down back to their car.

Justin sat, yawning as Brian drove them across town.  He didn’t know where they were going at first, but then he started recognizing the streets.  “Why are we going to Debbie’s?”  He asked but Brian didn’t say anything.  That was when Justin started suspecting something.

They parked down the street a ways and walked back to the house.  Brian motioned for Justin to go on in ahead of him so he tentatively opened the door.  As it opened, however, he was still surprised with a loud and boisterous, “Happy Birthday Justin!”

He blinked a few times in shock and realized the living room was full of their family.  They were all smiling at him and the next thing he knew was he was being hugged from all sides.  “Oh wow…Ummm…thanks guys.”   He said, catching Brian’s eye and giving him a confused look.

The brunet just shrugged and rolled his lips into his mouth.  Justin knew that was his biggest sign of vulnerability, so he decided to play it down and focused on the rest of the family.  “This is amazing, everyone.  Thank you.”  He said sincerely.  And truthfully, even though just moments before he’d been wanting to go straight to sleep, he was glad his family had a party for him.  It raised his spirits to know how much they cared about him.

After he had thanked everyone, Brian pulled him into his arms and swayed him a bit as music started playing.  “Come on, Sunshine.  Shake those hips.” Brian urged as he bent and bit his ear playfully.

Justin laughed a little bit and danced, wrapping his arms up and around Brian’s neck.  They placed their foreheads together in an old and intimate gesture and more or less forgot about the rest of the family being there.  As the songs changed their beat, the two lovers continued doing their own thing.  Justin completely forgot about everything else except for dancing with Brian.  He didn’t care that it was the middle of the day, or that they weren’t at Babylon, all that mattered was he and Brian could have this time to enjoy themselves.

When they decided to finish dancing, they all sat down and Justin was served with a large plate of his favorite food, Debbie’s Rigatoni.  Brian sat next to him at the table and before Justin started eating he leaned in to whisper in his ear.  “Happy birthday.”

Justin looked at him, utterly surprised.  Then, unable to hold it back, he leaned over and kissed Brian fully on the mouth, easily sliding his tongue between the man’s lips.  Brian returned the kiss in fervor and unnoticed to them the room got quiet.  When they broke apart there was a slight cheering and Justin blushed a little.

“You two would do it anywhere, wouldn’t you?”  Debbie asked and Brian just shrugged a bit as he wrapped an arm around Justin’s shoulder and casually leaned back in his seat.

“Debbie, please.”  Jennifer said, blushing madly.

“Sorry, Mom.”  Justin apologized on Debbie’s behalf but was still chuckling.  It didn’t seem like it was possible for anything to go wrong.

“I’m surprised people didn’t just give me loads of cash for presents seeing how they go on and on about it all the time.”  Justin murmured as they drove back to their apartment several hours later.  The trunk was full of some new clothes, art supplies, and random knick knacks that he had no idea what to do with.

“I might have made sure they knew that cash was off limits.”  Brian murmured, keeping his eyes focused on the road.

“Well…thanks.”  Justin said, trying not to make a big deal out of it.  It was shocking that Brian put any effort at all in his birthday and he didn’t want to make the man regret his actions.  He went so far as to turning his body so he was tilted towards the window, avoiding Brian’s gaze all together.

Unsurprisingly, Brian didn’t say anything, just continued driving.  Both of their attention's were caught, however, when they could hear sirens approaching.  Brian pulled to the side politely and let the three fire trucks pass by, followed by police vehicles.   “Shit…looks like something serious happened.”  Justin said, his eyes riveted on the convoy speeding by.

“Yeah.”  Brian murmured, pulling back into traffic carefully.

“I hope everyone is ok.”  Justin added distantly but then started getting a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

As they turned towards their apartment building, he could see the convoy ahead of them.  He could see them make a right turn – directly towards their apartment building.  “Brian…”  Justin said carefully.

“I’m sure it’s nothing.”  Brian dismissed but Justin could tell there was worry in his voice as well.  Silently they drove on until they could see a dark red glow and a billow of smoke.  Brian had to park a ways away from the apartment, because there were blockades preventing them from getting closer.

Slowly they both stepped out of the car and watched their building go up in flames.  The entire building was on fire – there was no hope for anything in their apartment to survive.

Justin walked over to Brian and looked up at him.  “Brian…”  He murmured, unsure of what to do, or say.  It didn’t seem like this was real.  Only moments ago they’d been partying – now they’re life, the one they’d spent months trying to put together, was going up in flames.

Brian was simply staring at the building.  Justin reached a hand out and placed it on his arm, then slid it down to hold his hand.  Brian jumped at the sudden contact and turned to look at him, as if he didn't know who it was that could be touching him.  Justin looked up at him, directly into his eyes, and mourned at what he saw there.

After having the Super tell them that the apartment responsible was a level below theirs and that he’d be in contact with them concerning insurance, they got right back into the car and turned around to go to Debbie’s.  Justin called while they were on the way to give her a heads up.

They were silent as they drove, neither knowing what to say to help the other.  Mid-way through the drive Justin reached over and grabbed Brian’s hand and the brunet let him.  He even turned it a bit so he was holding Justin’s back.  It was a silent show of support, but for some reason Justin didn’t find any comfort in it.  In fact, Brian was being distant and secluded.  He decided it was just the shock of what happened and that Brian needed time to come to terms with them losing everything – all over again.

When they got to Debbie’s the red-head fussed over them dramatically.  She hugged and kissed them, leaving red lipstick stains on their cheeks.  Justin had to pull her off.  “We’re really tired, Deb.  We just want to go to bed.”  He explained and she nodded in understanding.

“Well you’re old room is available.  But I got to tell you, it’ll be a tight fit.”  She warned and Justin shrugged.

They walked up to the bedroom and Justin looked at the small twin bed.  “It’s not so bad.”  He said as he started taking off his dirty clothes.  “It’s not like we haven’t slept in this bed before.”  He added with a playful smirk, hoping he could think of a way to bring Brian back to reality.  When the brunet did nothing except sit on the edge of the bed, Justin tried for a bit more.

“I remember the first time we had sex here.  Do you?”  He asked, now stripping far more slowly.  “It was right after we first met.  I was doing anything and everything to get your attention.”  He added and was pleased when he saw a slight smile grace Brian’s lips.  “Michael or Debbie called you, I don’t know which one.  But you showed up and were probably planning on giving me another speech about how you weren’t interested in me or never planned on fucking me again.  But I couldn’t have that.”  Justin stood naked in front of Brian and noticed the aroused scan Brian did of his body.

“So I went down on you.”  Justin murmured in a low, husky voice.  He knelt down in front of Brian and began undoing his pants so he could pull out the man’s cock.  “And after I did, you threw me on the bed and fucked my brains out.”

Brian actually let out a small laugh at that and then nodded.  “Yeah I remember.”  He murmured and then Justin slid his mouth over Brian’s cock.

He was pleased when Brian let out a low moan and reached down to dig his fingers in his hair.  Justin knew Brian, and knew that when he was feeling vulnerable – like he was right now – he needed mindless release.  That meant rough and hard, which he didn’t mind because he liked it that way as well.

He let his throat relax as Brian pushed and pulled his head.  His hands were at the base of Brian’s cock, gently playing with his balls.  Then, he felt something strange on one of them.  He immediately stopped and pulled his head back away from Brian’s cock.  It took a little extra effort because Brian was holding his head so firmly, but once the brunet realized he was trying to back away he let go.

“What?”  Brian asked, his voice torn between confusion and frustrated arousal.

Justin wiped his lips a little bit and then looked down towards Brian’s balls.  “It’s weird.  I thought I felt-.”  As he was reaching down to examine them again, Brian swiftly grabbed his shoulders and pulled him up onto the bed.  Before Justin really knew what was going on Brian had finished stripping and had a condom on his dick.

“There’s no lube.”  Brian said as a warning before spitting on his hand and rubbing it over the condom.  Justin spit on his hand and reached down to rub it on his opening, knowing it wasn’t going to be enough to smooth Brian’s entrance.  However, he didn’t care.  Justin, like Brian, wanted to forget about what had happened.  He wanted to forget that they were homeless.

Afterwards, the lay together on the small twin bed, panting.  Brian, unsurprisingly, had been emotionally unavailable during the entire encounter.  Justin was used to it though, and it didn’t bother him.  He knew that when Brian felt this way sex was a release.  Honestly, Justin was sure Brian would have been just as satisfied with a stranger – it was maybe even preferable so there was as little emotional response as possible.  ‘But I’m all that was available.’  Justin thought to himself as he ran his fingers up and down Brian’s slightly sweaty chest.

 “I hate this fucking room.”  Brian suddenly murmured and Justin furrowed his brow at the seemingly random comment.  “And the wallpaper.  And the shitty bed.”

“Hey.  We had some good times on this shitty bed.”  Justin said defensively.  “Though I will admit I could stand for it to be bigger, it never seemed to be a problem for us when I was seventeen.”

“That’s because seventeen year old you was extremely flexible and let me take up most of the room.”  Brian said and Justin looked up to see a small smile on the man’s lips.  So maybe the crisis had passed already.

“Seventeen year old me also let you do very perverted things to him in this bed.  Remember when you snuck in here and we sucked each other off at the same time?”  Justin paused for a moment as he remembered nostalgically.  “That was the first time I’ve ever done that.”  He finished a moment later.

“Yeah, I know.”  Brian answered, surprisingly.  He then also began running his fingers through Justin’s hair.  “Then when Debbie found me here the next morning she nearly had a heart attack.”  Brian scoffed a bit and shook his head.  “She chewed me out for that, you know.  Said I was a bad influence and going to make you fall behind on your school work.”

“Really?”  Justin asked, unaware that had happened.  He felt Brian nod above him and then shrugged a little.  “I can see you didn’t care much.  You were here the next night again.”

“Had to continue your education.  Someone needed to be responsible for you.”

Justin just laughed a bit and shook his head.  “Oh please.  That was the last thing you wanted.”

“I was there, wasn’t I?”  Brian asked in a somewhat defensive tone that made Justin pause.

“You mean…I was right?”  Justin asked, a slow smirk starting to form on his face.  Brian was in a good mood, and he wanted to increase it before he lost it.

“Right about what?”  Brian asked and raised an eyebrow as Justin straddled him and ran his hands up and down his chest.

“That you love me.  Madly.  Passionately.  Deeply.”  Justin poked at Brian’s sides, tickling him lightly.  The man chucked and squirmed beneath him.  Brian tried to grab his hands but Justin was moving them too quickly.  Brian let out a few laughs before playfully gripping Justin’s shoulders and flipping him over.

“Shut the fuck up.”  Brian said through his laughter before returning Justin’s attack and tickling his sides. 

Justin laughed loudly, but managed to wheeze out, “That wasn’t a no.”  That served to egg Brian on more who began tickling him faster.

“You little shit.”  Brian said, but he was smiling broadly and clearly enjoying himself.  Justin then managed to grab his hands and they wrestled about a little, which ended up with them falling onto the floor with a loud thump.

“Oww…”  Justin said, rubbing the back of his head a little as it had bumped against the wooden dresser.

“What the fuck kind of sex are you two having in there?!”  Debbie yelled at them from downstairs.

Brian just rolled his eyes and then helped Justin sit up.  Justin watched as Brian bent over him and examined the back of his head.  “Are you ok?”  He asked carefully rubbing the bump.

Justin couldn’t help but give a small, tender smile at Brian’s concern.  The man could be accused of being overly paranoid where it came to Justin’s head.  He couldn’t blame him either.  “I’m fine.”  He assured as he grabbed Brian’s hand and pulled it away.  “I barely felt it.”  He promised and Brian eyed him for a moment but then nodded and stood up.  Justin grabbed the hand offered to him and pulled himself up.

Brian sat on the edge of the bed, still naked.  Justin sat next to him and looked at him for a moment.  Brian kept his gaze out the window but wrapped an arm around Justin’s shoulder.  Justin leaned his head against Brian and cherished this rare show of affection.  Honestly, he had been expecting Brian to pull some kind of bullshit; either demand that they had to go out so he could get shit faced, try to push Justin off a cliff, or something.  But instead he got this.

Deciding not to push his luck, Justin tried once more to lighten the mood.  “Hey, do you remember that time you snuck in late one night and Debbie thought you were a trick?”  He asked as he looked up at Brian from the man’s shoulder.  He watched Brian chuckle a bit.

“Yeah.  Right at midnight she started banging on the wall saying it was against the rules.”  Brian said, looking down at Justin so their foreheads were pressed together.

“Then you shouted back that you weren’t done fucking me yet.”  Justin finished and the both let out a soft and tender laugh.  Justin felt Brian’s hand cup his cheek so he turned and kissed his palm, happy to get this kind of attention.  “And Debbie asked if you ever would be.”  Justin whispered realizing that there was an extreme sense of seriousness between them.   “Will you?”  Justin asked in a murmur, knowing full well Brian was aware of the real question.

Brian didn’t say anything, of course.  However, with his forehead pressed against Brian’s, he could feel the man shaking his head.