BRIAN 

So Benny wants to steal my life. Maybe he thinks I owe it to him. I don't think he grasps that Justin isn't someone who is going to get me out of his life.

“Why Justin? Ben could have steered himself away from the whole situation?” Emmett asks me. 

“He wants a new life.” Justin tells him.

“Like I said, why you? It would be Michael all over again, except that you aren’t interested in him.” Emmett tells us. 

“Michael doesn't seem to be either.” Justin tells me. 

“What did I miss?” Ted slides into the booth. 

“Michael's future hubby is hitting on Justin.” Emmett tells him. 

“When did that happen?” Ted asks him. 

“It's been happening, it's just he admitted to Justin that he wants him. “ Emmett tells him.

“So he comes out of the blue and starts telling you he wants you?” Ted asks Justin.

“No. Ghost Ben told me. This Ben is just hitting on me.” I tell him.

“Say that again?” Ted asks me.

“Benny is causing the Ben in the here-and-now to think Justin is relationship material.” I tell them.

“Why would he want to get with Justin? Don’t get me wrong, I get it, look at him. Shit Brian, I’m not saying anything you can’t see with your own eyes.” Ted says to a glaring Brian. “Justin’s eye candy, but so are you. Why not you instead of Justin?” Ted asks us.

“I wouldn’t look at him, he was a trick, but not interesting enough to want to put up with his weak will.” I tell them.

“You saw Ben as weak?” Emmett asks him.

“He could be just as bad as Michael. Instead of manning up and dropping Michael, he let Michael get away with shit. When he proposed to Michael, according to Deb, Michael wouldn’t answer him. Then when Michael suddenly was ready to say yes, he just ran them to the nearest church and married him. If it was me I would have wanted to know why he changed his mind.” I tell them.

“Why did he change his mind?” Justin asks me. “I wasn’t there and never really asked.” He reminds me.

“Because I didn’t talk him out of it. Michael wanted to be someone’s husband and I wasn’t interested in the role, and made it clear.” I tell them.

“Yeah, if I was Ben, I’d want to change my life too.” Emmett tells us.

“He isn’t just walking away from Michael but Hunter too. He obviously forgot his son in this quest.” I tell them.

“Shit, Hunter.” Justin looks at me.

“What about him?” Emmett asks him.

“He hasn’t caught HIV yet.” Justin tells me.

“Do you know when he got it?” Emmett asks Justin.

“No but he would just be starting out now.” I tell them.

“Brian.” Justin is pleading with me.

“We need to find Marilyn.” I tell him. Because if we can help Hunter now, he won’t end up being the brat we end up loving anyway.

JUSTIN

I never hated Hunter, he was who I could have been if I hadn’t had Brian. I don’t want him to get HIV if we can help him. We drove to the loft to find Mel and Gus at the loft, ringing the buzzer.

“Hey, I was wondering if you could watch Gus today?” She asks us.

“Yes we can, but I need to talk to you first, we need some legal advice.” I tell her.

“Why are you all spiffied up?” Emmett ask Mel.

“An old friend is in town, I wanted to go out with her tonight.” Mel tells us.

“Just fuck her, don’t waste the time.” Brian tells Mel.

“Not all of us move at lightning speed.” Mel tells him.

“Please, you and Leda use to do it like bunnies, that’s why Lindsay hated her.” Brian tells her.

“You know Leda? Wait what did you need to ask me?” Mel asks while settling Gus on the pillows on the floor.

“Justin wants to save the world and Brian is trying to help him.” Ted tells her.

“Look, Michael and Ben end up helping a street hustler and later adopt him. The thing is, the kid ends up with HIV. Right now he is just starting to turn tricks, if we can save him from that, I want too.” I tell her.

“Where’s his parents?” Mel asks us.

“The mother is a crack whore, who is willing to use the kid to get money.” Brian tells Mel.

“Brian even if we prove the mother unfit, you and Justin wouldn’t be able to get custody. They aren’t willing to put young boys in a house with two gay men.” She tells us.

“What about you?” Justin asks her.

“I’m a single woman, who they would probably rather allow but I have all I can handle taking care of Gus.” She tells us.

“Gus needs to come first.” Brian tells me.

“There has to be someone.” Emmett asks us.

“What about your mother?” Ted asks me.

“My mom? But she doesn’t know about all this.” I tell them.

“She’ll care, she would most likely be the best person to raise Hunter.” Brian tells me.

“And the court would be creaming themselves to place a kid with someone like her.” Mel tells us.

“All we have to do is find him.” I tell them.

“We can split up, Brian and Ted, you and me. There is only so many places a kid that young could go and not get picked up by the police for being out that late.” Emmett tells us.

“Like we know where kid hustlers go.” I tell him.

“Okay, I’m here and the answer is no he doesn’t have HIV, he actually avoided it until just before he meet Ben and Michael. He is going to be outside Babylon tonight hiding by a grate to keep warm, because mommy is trying to make him fuck the landlord.” Marilyn comes in.

“Don’t say it, you weren’t trying to save the kid earlier. So I didn’t look to see if it was possible.” She tells Brian. “If you want to save him you need to convince Jen to do it, because the court will remand him to the state, before they allow him to live with gay men.” She continues on.

“I’ll call her and talk to her.” Brian tells us.

“You think Jen is going to do it?” Emmett asks him.

“Yes, because she isn’t the kind of mother to turn away from saving a kid if she could.” Brian tells them.

“She still hasn’t gotten over the fact that Deb kept sending Brian back home when he was hurt.” I tell them.

“I guess I can keep Gus, it sounds like you guys are going to be busy.” Mel tells us.

“Justin and Emmett can keep him. I want to take Jen with me, it might be easier to get him to trust Jen.” Brian tells us.

“He didn’t trust women much, what makes you think my mom is going to get through to him?” I ask him.

“Because your mother is the kind of mother little boys dream of, Justin. She has kindness radiating out of her pores.” Emmett tells us.

“Well then I’m off, call if you need me, but you won’t.” Marilyn starts to leave.

“Marilyn, turn the fuck around and explain Ben.” Brian tells her.

“If you could get out of a life with Mikey, wouldn’t you?” She asks Brian.

“Why Justin?” Emmett asks her.

“Cosmic Justice, Michael never loved him the way he loved Brian. Imagine if he could get Justin to turn to him and not Brian. He wants a better life, it’s not malicious, just as Justin told him, a stupid idea. You guys can convince Ben to take a chance on Mikey or let Ben leave for greener pastures. Ben was only to save Hunter, but you found the loophole, save the kid earlier.” She tells us.

“Nice of you to tell us.” Brian sneers.

“Brian do you have any idea what it's like to sort through a thousand lives running through my head? No you don’t. Unless I pick one they are like files being stored until I take them out. So excuse this queen for not making it all about you guys.” Marilyn flounced out.

“Don’t piss off the psychic, we need her.” Emmett tells us.

“Why? She either tries to turn everything into some drastic circumstance, or waits until we force it out of her that we aren’t fucking up.” Brian tells him.

“Why are you so upset?” Mel asks Brian.

“Because if we hadn’t thought about this, that kid will end up with a disease that makes his life harder.” Brian tells her.

“Then stop standing here and do what you do, fix it.” Mel tells him.