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Author's Chapter Notes:

YAY! STORY IS NOW COMPLETE! ALL THE LOOSE ENDS ARE TIED. ENJOY! TAG

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Chapter 54 - PC Epilogue.



Sunshine stood in front of the mirror giving himself a final once-over.


He thought the brand new suit that Brian had purchased for him looked silly. It was so elegant and he felt ridiculous wearing something that formal, not to mention expensive. Brian had insisted that he dress to impress for his very first solo show, though, and Sunshine tried never to disappoint his Brian so he had gone along with the suit. Besides, the boy thought Brian secretly enjoyed dressing him up like a Ken Doll, and anything that brought his Brian pleasure was a plus in Sunshine’s book.


He ran his hand over the shoulder of the jacket and brushed off a stray piece of lint. He combed through his freshly trimmed hair with his fingers. He rubbed the toe of his right shoe against his left calf to buff away a tiny scuff. He sighed. He was ready, he thought.


“Stop worrying, Sunshine. You look amazing,” Brian commented, coming up behind him and smiling over the boy’s shoulder into the mirror. “Except for this,” he tapped at the piece of sterile gauze taped over the nape of Justin’s neck. “I think it’s time to take this off, don’t you?


Sunshine shrugged. It had been more than long enough. The doctor had told him to keep the bandage on for three to four days. It had been five now. Brian was right, it WAS time, but he felt incredibly ambivalent about whether or not he WANTED to take the bandage off.


“Come on. You're not going to wear that ugly bandage to your show are you? It totally ruins the look, Sunshine,” Brian teased.


Sunshine stuck his tongue out at Brian in the mirror. Brian laughed heartily. Then his hand drifted up and rubbed at the edge of one corner. Sunshine closed his eyes, scrunching up his nose and taking a deep breath as if bracing himself before nodding a go-ahead to his lover.


Brian carefully peeled away the bandage, rubbing briefly at a spot of adhesive that remained on his skin, and then leaning down to kiss the back of the boy’s bare neck.


“Perfect,” Brian pronounced.


“It’s gone? All of it?” Sunshine asked without opening his eyes.


“Yep. Not a mark left. You are officially tattoo free, Sunshine. Welcome back to the real world.” Brian wrapped his arms around the boy’s chest and hugged him gently, leaving a series of butterfly light kisses along the side of his neck in celebration.


Sunshine finally opened his eyes. Of course, he couldn’t actually see the back of his neck, but it seemed like he could FEEL the absence of the PC tattoo that had been lasered off earlier that week. It felt conspicuously absent. He’d lived with that mark of shame for so long, and it had symbolized so much of the pain from his past, that to have it gone now felt wrong. It felt almost like he, himself, had been erased in part. Not that he wanted it back, of course. But still, it felt so strange.


And, at the same time, liberating. The removal of his PC tattoo was the final step in the long process of liberation that had started the day after Brian had come to get him from Gary Sapperstein’s Training Center. It had taken more than a year to get everything resolved. He still couldn’t completely believe it. But now that the tattoo was gone, he had to admit it was finally all over.


He was free.


“Come on, Sunshine. It’s time to go. Everybody’s waiting,” Brian coaxed him towards the stairs with a gentle tug to his arm.


“I’m coming. Just . . . I need one more minute,” he pleaded.


“Okay. But if you’re not downstairs in five minutes, I’m going to send Cynthia up here. She’s better at ordering people around than me. She’ll get your ass in gear. Of course, she’s not as pretty as me, and she doesn’t kiss as well as me, and she definitely doesn't fuck as good as me, but at least you seem to listen to her,” Brian joked, earning himself a brilliant Sunshine smile.


“I’ll be right there. I promise. Please don’t send Cynthia after me.”


Brian left with a lingering backwards smile. Fuck! Sunshine loved that man so much it hurt. He knew he would never have made it this far if it hadn’t been for Brian. Hell, he’d more than likely be dead long since if he hadn’t had the unbelievably good luck to have crossed paths with Brian Kinney. Some days he was still amazed he’d made it.


Sunshine rubbed at the back of his now naked neck, gathered his courage and prepared to walk down the stairs to meet his family.


He walked out of the main bedroom - Brian had refused to let anyone call it the ‘Master Bedroom’, arguing that nobody would ever use that word around him again - but paused again at the top of the long, elegant staircase. Even after all this time and more than a year of therapy with Dr. Ruby, Sunshine still had to fight against his fear of crowds on a daily basis. It was definitely getting better over time. He no longer needed Brian with him every minute, but sometimes he still felt the almost unbearable urge to run away and hide. He could do this though. He knew he could. All it took was a little bit of mental girding of his loins. A quick calming exercise, and a few seconds later, he was ready.


Sunshine emerged at the bottom of the stairs into a chorus of greetings. THIS is why he needed the time to prepare - for someone still anxious around crowds this type of noisy adulation was more than unnerving. But Brian was right there of course, a steady hand to the small of his back as soon as he stepped off that last stair riser, and the boy instantly felt better. Even if he was swarmed by his friends ten seconds later.


Everyone he knew and loved was waiting there in Britin that night. The beautifully decorated great room was filled with people and light and music. It was unbelievably festive. He couldn't believe all this was for him. Him. The same boy who, just over a year earlier, had been nobody. Merely a PC without a name or a home or a family. And now, looking at his stately home and his wonderful friends and family, he felt like the richest man in the world.


“Dayum! I think he’s going to faint. You better give that boy some preventative mouth-to-mouth, Brian,” Luke - aka ‘Luscious’ - warned with typical sassy attitude.  


 


Sunshine looked over at his outrageous friend and giggled. Luscious was in her full Drag Queen persona tonight. Who would have guessed that the big butch PC would have taken to drag so eagerly? After Em had put him in his first ball gown and set him loose on the stage at Woody’s for Karaoke Night, he’d never looked back. These days, Luscious was the headliner at the local drag review show and was rumored to be under consideration as a potential contestant for one of those television drag queen reality shows for the following fall. Justin had to admit that Luke really did look fabulous as a woman. He was so statuesque and could walk in heels better than most women. It felt like Luke had truly come into his own as a Drag Queen, and Justin couldn’t be more thrilled for him.


“Please! Do NOT encourage them!” Rex complained. “You know once they start with that shit we’ll have to throw a bucket of ice water over them to get them to stop. You don’t have to put up with it all day every day, like I do, either. I say, just let him faint. Then we can load him in the car and truck him off to the damn show without all the fucking drama.”


“Fuck you, Rex,” Brian shot back, continuing the endless cycle of snark that the two engaged in on a daily basis. “Just for that, I should make you all wait while I take Sunshine back upstairs and check his suit again.”


“You’ve checked his damn suit four times already this afternoon, Brian. Trust me, I counted. I think his suit is fine. And if you go check him one more time, Gus and I are heading to bed and writing both of you off for the night,” Rex threatened, hefting one year old Gus higher on his hip as if preparing to walk away, although they all knew it was an empty threat - Brian and Rex loved each other like the best of friends and probably always would.


Everyone in the room already knew that these two were only kidding and nobody ever paid them any mind. How they managed to live in the same house and not actually kill each other sometimes amazed outsiders, but the family all understood how things were. Ever since Brian had been awarded primary custody of Gus and Rex had agreed to stay on as their live-in Manny, these two had been forever bonded. Brian trusted Rex with his son, which was paramount to everything else. And not only had Rex proven to be wonderful with kids, he truly loved Gus, almost like the boy was his own. Dr. Ruby would probably say Rex was sublimating his feelings about the loss of his own young sister and the subsequent trauma of his life as a PC, but Sunshine figured it was just that Rex really loved kids in general. He hoped that his friend’s burgeoning relationship with Teri - the sweet, young barista who worked at the coffee shop on the corner - would pan out. What Rex really needed in his life was a family of his own to replace the one he lost when he became a PC. Sunshine thought he’d get there someday. Rex was definitely a catch.

 

 

 

Even with the snarling and bickering, Sunshine thought it was great to have his two former PC friends with him on this important night. The three of them had been closer than brothers over the past year. Neither of the men had ever gone back to their owners after they were freed from Sapperstein’s House of Horrors. With their shared hardships and common history it was no wonder the three men had become such bosom friends.


Rex’s status had been in limbo from almost day one. It was actually a good thing Rex had been with them because, after Bellweather was arrested and charged with multiple counts of PC cruelty, his PCs hadn’t had anywhere to go. If it hadn’t been for Brian, Rex would likely have been placed in some halfway house. Eventually, the newly appointed Director of the PCRA - the one that took over after the existing one had been forced to resign following allegations that he’d taken bribes and done favors for several rich PC owners as well as a couple of shady politicians - had decided to make a statement and had invoked a little known provision of the PCRA regs to emancipate all the Personal Companions of the PC Owners who, like Bellweather, had been convicted as part of the Sapperstein debacle. Hence, after only a couple months of living on Brian’s floor, Rex had been officially freed. But, since he still had nowhere to go, he just stayed on, taking care of Gus and moving with them when Brian later bought Britin.


Luke, meanwhile, despite continuing to live with Brian and Justin, had remained as the legal chattel of Walter Lapointe for months and months. It wasn’t until Brian finally agreed to a settlement of the civil suit he’d filed demanding the return of Justin’s partially paid purchase price, that Luke’s status had been resolved. Lapointe had tried to play hardball right up till the very end. But, when it looked like he too might be pulled into the scandal with Bellweather and Sapperstein, he finally caved and not only paid Brian his money but agreed to throw in Luke as a bonus in exchange for favorable treatment by the PCRA. After that, Brian had pulled some strings with the PCRA Director and, before you knew it, Luke was a free man too. As soon as he was legally able, he’d officially moved in with Emmett and the two crazy, flamboyant queens were happier than anyone had ever seen them.


“Hush now, both of you,” Debbie ordered, stepping in to play her role as everyone’s mother. “You are not allowed to bicker and ruin Sunshine’s night. And Brian, you leave Justin’s suit - and the rest of him, too - alone. If you check him again, we’ll all be late to the show.”


“Well, shit, Deb. You’re no fun,” Brian whined playfully and left a kiss on Sunshine’s cheek regardless.


“I’m lots of fun, Kiddo. Just ask Carl,” Debbie guffawed, making all her gay sons cringe at the reference to straight sex and causing poor Carl to blush like a schoolgirl.


Sunshine was really happy to be able to include Carl Horvath as part of their strange little family. The hard-working, no-nonsense cop that had saved his and Brian’s asses from the Sapp, had become a good friend. He was also making Debbie happier than she’d been in at least two decades.


Of necessity, Brian and Justin had spent a ton of time with the police detective over the past year and had come to know and sincerely like the man. Carl was the most relentless man Sunshine had ever met. Thankfully, the dogged detective had worked the PC case so hard and so diligently that not one of the perpetrators had escaped without some kind of sanction.


Thinking back over that time, Sunshine was still in awe of the work everyone had put in on his behalf and that of his fellow PCs. If it hadn’t been for Carl, Brian, Cynthia, a horde of lawyers and lots of just plain citizen activists, there would still be a lot of crooked PC owners and dirty politicians on the streets who were now all in jail. But with their help, and a lot of luck, it had all somehow worked out.


Starting with Sapperstein and Bellweather, the rest of the players had fallen like dominoes. First, Lindsey had agreed to turn herself in and offered to testify against Craswell. Craswell had initially tried to play dumb, alleging that he didn’t know what Lindsey was talking about, and then that he hadn’t really known what his friends had planned even after he’d arranged to have Lindsey provide access to the loft. However, once Sidney Bloom had stepped forward and testified about the conversations he heard between Craswell and Lindsey and then later Craswell and Stockwell, Simon had been caught. To save his own skin, he turned on Stockwell and Bellweather, and his testimony went a long way towards proving that the Senator had used his political influence not only to arrange the kidnapping, but also to delay the PCRA tracking of Justin’s chip. Which was the beginning of the end for not only Stockwell, but also the PCRA Director.


Next, Horvath had used the accounting records he obtained - thanks to Ted’s expedient head’s up - to go after all the rest of the players. Those financial records highlighted the clear ties between Taylor, Bellweather, Lapointe, Craswell, Amanda Hobbs, and even Pittsburgh’s then current District Attorney and that sorry-assed PCRA Director, and both Stockwell and his Pro-PC PAC. Horvath’s in-depth investigation eventually turned up evidence that all of these contributors received illegal kickbacks of some sort either in monetary form or by way of political favors. And all of them were currently either in prison or awaiting trial.


The investigation into Senator Stockwell had gone even further. He had been found guilty of repeated and systematic violations of both Congressional ethics regulations as well as several state and federal laws. The revelations that came out of Carl’s investigation were cited as the primary reason why he lost his reelection bid. On top of that, he’d been indicted for various criminal charges ranging from the original kidnapping charge to fraud, witness tampering, subverting a criminal investigation, bribery of a governmental official and even accessory after the fact to attempted murder for his part in Hobbs’ attack on Justin. He had tried desperately to plea bargain down the charges, but the new District Attorney had bowed to the overwhelming public uproar over the case and thrown the book at poor Jimmy. He was currently serving twenty-five to life in the Allenwood Federal Pen and had a cell right down the hall from both Bellweather and Craig Taylor. Stockwell’s Pro-PC PAC had been disbanded and a lot of it’s principals were also enjoying stays at Club Fed.


It had been the revelations coming out of all those proceedings which had, in the end, resulted in the judicial finding that Justin's Personal Companion contract was unenforceable as a matter of law. The case had gone all the way up to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court before it was finally decided. In that landmark decision, the Court ruled that the underlying fraud and duress by Stockwell, Taylor and Hobbs, not only invalidated the contract but that, as a matter of public policy, the courts were constitutionally prohibited from enforcing any contract promoting an illegal act, such as that involved in Justin’s case. As a result, not only was Justin freed from his contract, but the APC movement had received a huge legal boon and new tools with which to challenge other PC contracts.


Between that seminal court decision and the widespread uproar that followed the exposure of Stockwell and his evil buddies, Sapperstein and Bellweather, the entire PC industry was now the subject of intense national scrutiny. Training facilities like those Sapperstein had operated had already been declared illegal and shut down across the country. In addition, the mainstream media had finally grabbed hold of the story and several cutting news documentaries had been aired, showcasing the worst excesses of the PC Industry, including the inherent graft and cruelty prevalent among even the highest echelon of PC Owners. Sentiment against PC trafficking was at an all time high. There had been widespread protests of the practice and discussion abounded on both the state and national levels about severely limiting or even abolishing the practice.


In fact, Brian, Justin and Cynthia were all tapped to testify in front of a Congressional panel on the matter the following month. Brian was hopeful that the ongoing publicity about Justin’s case would eventually make the practice illegal everywhere. With Cynthia and Ted’s help, Brian had even started a non-profit foundation dedicated to advocating for just that, and thanks to Kinnetik’s promotion and Brian’s amazing marketing skills, the cause was thriving.


Which, at least in part, was what had led Sunshine to this night’s events. The final decision on his court case had just come down the prior month. The publicity surrounding the outcome had been mind-boggling. Everyone had been clamoring for Justin Kinney’s attention. And, not only was Justin being celebrated because of his former PC status, but also because the media had got wind of the fact that he was a highly talented artist - or at least that’s what Brian and Sidney kept telling him. As a direct result, the exhibition of Justin’s work that had been planned for more than six months before the Supreme Court’s ruling, had now morphed into an invitation only, black tie affair that would be nationally televised. Sunshine had been horrified when he heard what was happening and had actually wanted to cancel the show. All these people - art critics, collectors, politicians, even a bevy of semi-serious fan girls and boys - had to be insane to put so much time and effort into staning him, right? But Brian and Sidney, in their pragmatic way, had eventually convinced him to just go with it and enjoy the fortune and fame while it lasted. Especially if it sold art. Hence the relocation of the show to the grand ballroom of the Marriott instead of Bloom’s small gallery, the new suit and the push for him to take the last step towards obviating his PC past via the removal of the tattoo.


And here he was. Standing in front of his friends and family, accepting all their congratulations and well wishes and trying to mentally prepare himself for the crazy media onslaught that his show had turned into. Meanwhile all he really wanted to do was go right back upstairs, crawl into bed and hide. Luckily, they still had over an hour before they had to leave for the hotel, so he still had time to figure out a way to pull himself together.


Rex, the most intuitive of the group, must have sensed Sunshine’s barely concealed panic and came running to his rescue. He grabbed Sunshine’s hand and dragged the boy over to the couch. Then he plopped Gus into the boy’s lap and ordered Brian to sit next to his partner and son, claiming that they needed photos and that was the best location for them to pose - although Sunshine suspected that it was merely a well-intentioned excuse for him to sit in a quiet corner and chill out for a while. Either way, he’d take the reprieve. Plus, the time spent holding the baby really did help to calm him. You really couldn't be a total basket case with a happy, chubby, giggling baby in your lap, could you? Rex further ingratiated himself to the boy by offering to go get him a drink to settle his nerves. What a friend!


Sunshine waited where he’d been deposited and held onto Gus as if the child was a lifeline. The sweet little boy seemed more than happy to be Sunshine’s distraction, smiling up at the nervous young artist and babbling in his toddler patois. Brian, the doting daddy, joined in, and the two of them had a long conversation about nothing much at all. It was the best balm imaginable for Sunshine's precarious psyche.


Sunshine was still amazed at what an important part of his life Gus had become. He’d never pictured himself as a father, not even before his downfall as a PC, because he’d always known he was gay and therefore just didn’t see children in his future. He was so glad he’d been wrong about that. Gus was truly a joy to be around each and every day. And, strangely enough, Sunshine owed Lindsey Peterson - a woman who still to this day professed her undying hatred for him - for his chance at parenthood.


Despite having voluntarily turned herself in and cooperating with the police, Lindsey had still ended up in jail. Pennsylvania had a strict three year mandatory minimum sentence for aggravated kidnapping. Her lawyer had explained it didn’t matter that she’d only been an accessory and not one of the prime movers - the crime was looked at the same for sentencing purposes. It didn’t help matters that Lindsey had adamantly refused all prompting that she show remorse by apologizing to the victim of her crime. She had flat out refused to apologize to ‘That Slut’, as she continued to refer to Justin. Accordingly, the Judge had not been overly lenient about her sentencing. She still had more than two years left to serve, although she might be eligible for early parole if she relented on the apology thing, which so far didn’t look likely.


Melanie, who had at first tried to support Lindsey, eventually gave up trying to deal with the unreasonable shrew that Lindsey had become. Six months after Lindsey had been incarcerated, Mel announced that she was moving to California to take a job offer she’d received in San Francisco. By that point, the initial custody settlement they’d come to right after Justin’s kidnapping, providing for three-way joint custody between Lindsey, Brian and Mel with set visitation for Brian every other weekend, had already morphed into Brian and Justin having Gus the majority of the time and Mel only taking the baby on the rare weekends she wasn’t working. So it really wasn’t a surprise to anyone that Mel was willing to sign away her rights to Gus outright in connection with her move. Lindsey’s visitation rights had been indefinitely suspended due to her incarceration and, based on her demonstrated lack of contact with Gus since, it wasn’t likely a court would restore her rights even once she was released. So, by default, Brian was now Gus’ sole legal guardian and Justin had become Papa to a beautiful baby boy who was the light of his life.


Which, right then, was really the best thing he could imagine being. For the next several minutes, Sunshine sat there admiring his little family and forgetting all about his impending public appearance. Next to him he had his gorgeous, successful, loving, considerate and exciting partner, Brian, the man he loved with all his heart. And in his arms he held the child of his heart. At that moment it was hard to remember just why he was upset or nervous. He had everything he’d ever wanted or needed right here. His life was as perfect as anyone could possibly hope.


“You feeling better, Little One?” Luscious asked, handing him a tumbler of beam and then hiking up her dress so she could sit on the coffee table in front of Sunshine in a rather unladylike pose. “Rexie and me will hold all these posers off if you want to make a break for it.”

 

 

“There is no way I’m letting Sunshine back out of this show, Luke,” Brian insisted, using the name ‘Luke’ intentionally just because he knew it would irritate. “I put way too much effort into promoting this shit show for him to just blow it off. So don’t encourage him.”


“Hey, Brian? Standing Order Number Four,” Luscious returned with a middle finger salute aimed in Brian’s direction.


“Okay, first of all, I revoked Standing Order Number Four like three days after I met you, if you remember. Mostly because you, specifically, were far too fond of invoking it,” Brian argued good naturedly. “And secondly, you’re not even a PC anymore, so I don’t think any of the Standing Orders apply.”


“Okay, Sugar, then I’ll just tell you to fuck off to your face from here on out. Does that work for you?” Luscious conceded before turning her attention back to the nervous artist. “Seriously, Little One, if you're not feeling up to this, I don’t care a flying fuck what Stud Muffin here says. Your boys got your back and if you don’t want to go to this thing, you don’t have to.”


“Thanks, L, but I’m good. I just needed a timeout and a little Gus therapy,” Sunshine promised. “I appreciate the offer though. If I ever decide to run away for real, I’ll let you know.”


“Hey! No running away allowed. Standing Order Number Five is still in place for you. I don’t care what the hell your legal status is, you’re not getting away from me that easy, Sunshine,” Brian maintained, only half kidding.


Sunshine leaned in close to his partner’s ear and whispered, “I love you too, Brian. And I promise, I’ll never disobey Standing Order Number Five.” The two lovers sealed the promise with a kiss that was itself a promise of more for later.


“Alright! Let’s do this thing,” Sunshine stated as soon as he was kissed back into his resolve. “Okay, everybody,” he announced loudly enough so that the whole room would hear him as he got to his feet. “Let’s get this show on the road! I need to go convince the world what a brilliant, important, Former PC, artist I am so that my highly successful, Ad Executive partner can raise money and awareness for our foundation and save the rest of the world just like he saved me. Who’s with me?” There was a round of cheering before the whole group started to stir and headed towards the door.


Justin handed Gus off to Rex and then held his hand out for his partner. Brian grabbed hold and laced their fingers together. Then he brought their joined hands up to his lips and kissed the back of his Sunshine’s wrist.


“For the record, Sunshine, I didn’t save you,” Brian said in a hushed voice as they walked together, following the rest of their crew out to the cars. “If anything, you saved me. I didn’t have a clue what the fuck I was doing when I walked into that auction house and saw this absolutely adorable, buck-naked, blond boy with a bad attitude, a perky bubble-butt and the prettiest blue eyes I’d ever seen. I was a fucking mess from that moment on. I’m just thankful I happened to be in the right place at the right time and that I was crazy enough to take a chance on the best thing that has ever happened to me in my life.”  


“Oh, Brian.” Sunshine didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at the uncharacteristically sentimental statement. He only knew he fucking loved this man.


“Damn. Did I use the word ‘adorable’ again out loud? You really have to stop me from doing that, Sunshine. One of these days, someone's going to hear me and realize I’ve turned into a total fucking lesbian. And you wouldn’t want that now, would you . . .”


“Brian.”


“Fine. I’m just saying . . .”


“Brian.”


“Sunshine.”


“Yes, Brian.”


“Wanna go sell some art?”


“Yes, Brian.”


“Fucking adorable . . .”


“Brian . . .”


********


Which is how Brian Kinney managed to get himself into a mess, buy a Personal Companion, and then save the world.

 

The End.

Chapter End Notes:

2/19/17 - And another one is done! Woot! Hope I got all those loose ends for you in the process. As usual, I'm always thrilled to finish a story and at the same time sad to see it end. Thank you so much to all the avid readers and the many wonderful folks who took the time to leave me comments/reviews/tweets about this story. Now that I'm not so busy obsessively writing day and night, I should have time to go back and answer you. I appreciate every single comment though, even if I'm sometimes slow to respond. Now, off to tackle that one remaining WIP I have that still isn't finished . . . TAG

The End.
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