BRIAN

I decided to buy Babylon again, even with Ted telling me I was crazy to do it. Justin told me it was up to me, but he really didn’t care. I wanted to know why someone blew up the club. No one ever found out the truth. So this time I had cameras installed all around the bar where the bomb originated and made sure there was security there whenever anyone was in the club. I wasn’t going to make this easy for the asshole who thinks killing innocent people was fine as long as it suited his or her cause. It was still months away, but I didn’t want to spook someone with security measures that were suddenly put in place. People don’t worry about something that was always there. I also explained to the guy watching the bar to not let on who he was, so he could watch what was going on without anybody figuring out he was security. I wanted to meet the fucker who tried to kill Justin.

Kinnetik was busy with new accounts and I hired enough people to keep me from living in the building. Gus was staying with Justin and me since Mel was busy with Jenny. She tried to do it all but a toddler and newborn were too much for her at the moment. With Deb showing up all the time and Michael trying to be there all the time she was threatening to move into Britin. I told her to move in and I’d throw out any unwanted guest. Mel stuck to her house because she knew if she didn’t take the reins now, they would just see it as a free-for-all when she was home. 

I warned her that Michael would get pissed when she didn’t allow him to do what he wanted. Without the break-up with Lindsay, he would need another reason but it seemed he followed his timeline. Marilyn was being tight lipped about the whole Michael and Mel issue. I asked her why.

“Mel needs to handle Michael the way she should have the first time. Without Lindsay here to jump into the battle, Michael won’t like what happens with the mediator. Just tell Mel to push for child support and watch him run. She doesn’t need to fight him on custody, just tell her to come in wanting to set how they are going to support Jenny. Michael got off easy because he didn’t have to help out financially with the custody the court decided.” She tells me.

“He is going to say he can’t support Jenny and that Mel doesn’t need the money.” Justin tells her.

“It doesn’t matter what Mel makes, it’s about supporting Jenny. If Mel is the primary parent, Michael should have to help by paying for Jenny’s expenses.” I tell Justin.

“When did you learn that?” Justin ask me.

“I looked into it when Lindsay tried to keep Gus away from me. I payed enough support to take care of both the kids and my lawyer sent Lindsay a letter letting her know that I could gain custody of Gus on that alone. Plus Mel should have had another lawyer handle the paperwork when I gave up my rights. Mel saved us from going to court by telling Lindsay to let me see Gus. We were friends by then and Lindsay didn’t tell Mel she was trying to keep me away from Gus.” I tell him. 

After talking with Marilyn, I went to Mel and told her not to fight the custody but to have her lawyer ask for child support and allow Michael visitation. Michael wasn’t prepared for an agreement where he would have to pay to support his kid. He tried to use the excuse that Mel made enough to support Jenny and he didn’t. The mediator explained that if he wanted to be the father he needed to do what any other father does when the child doesn’t live with them. Mel told him if he didn’t want to support Jenny, he needed to sign over his rights. Michael went home and sulked to Ben, Deb, and Carl about Mel wanting him to pay child support. Which got him a slap on the head from Deb, who had supported Michael all his life. Carl walked out of the room saying that being a father is more than wanting to play house with a kid. Ben told him that it was only fair that Michael helped out financially if he wanted to be a father. Michael signed his rights away, but told Mel when he was making enough he was going to sue for custody. Mel handed him a copy of the paperwork that said he was no longer allowed any rights to Jenny. She told Deb and Michael both that they weren’t being excluded from Jenny’s life but that she didn’t want to play pass the baby around.

Justin was starting to show his work outside of school and getting noticed. One gallery owner wanted him to put five pieces in a show with five other artists. Justin was happy that he was doing it on his own. 

Emmett and Darren started working together and Emmett came over hyperventilating tonight.

“I’m throwing a party for Drew.” He tells us.

“You did the last time.” Justin tells him. 

“You forgot to mention it was an engagement party.” He tells me. 

“Did you not hear us when we told you he got engaged to a woman, before he met you.” I tell him. 

“Why do I pick assholes? Teddy gets sweet Blake, Michael somehow is keeping Ben interested, and Justin, well Justin apparently picked an asshole, but I like you now so Justin is excused from bad relationship ideas. What was I asking?” He asks us. 

“You lost me.” I tell him. 

“Why Drew, I think.” Justin tells me. 

“He's hot in the stud jock way. I would have test drove him if he even looked like he was willing. He never looked at me, but he's a top, it's why I kept Justin away from him.” I tell him. 

“Really, I always thought it was because you didn't want to remind me of Chris.” Justin tells me. 

“No, I just knew he would make a play for you.” I tell him. 

“I doubt it, he wanted Emmett. We aren’t even the same category in men.” Justin tells me.

“Right now he is looking to get laid. So a willing male is all he wants.” I tell Justin.

“He wants Emmett, just like you’re the only one I want.” Justin tells me and gets kissed for that.

“I don’t want to play his game.” Emmett tells us.

“Then tell him you won’t play, unless he wants to be with you.” I tell Emmett.

“If you want to end the dry spell, get him in the sack first. Then tell him.” Justin tells Emmett.

“You have a point.” Emmett tells us.

Emmett throws the party and comes back fuming about Drew being a total shithead. Two days later Emmett decides the sex is worth the wait. I wasn’t going to use Drew in the campaign this time. I wanted to go with him when the news died down, it was a pain in the ass getting Emmett to forgive me for dumping Drew. It was business, not personal. Emmett didn’t let Drew run him in circles this time. He told Drew if he wanted to be a trick than that’s how Emmett was going to treat him. Drew came out faster than he had the first time, when Emmett started dating other men. Unfortunately it was still the same crap for Drew, nobody wanted a gay player, unless he stayed in the closet. They eventually had to admit that Drew won games and let him play instead of lose. Emmett stood by him but wasn’t going to let Drew play around if he wanted Emmett. Emmett told him to do what he wanted and Emmett would do the same. It took Drew a couple weeks to decided Emmett was better than playing the field.

Brandon showed up and took the club by storm. I couldn’t be bothered to care or play a stupid game of one-up. I handed him a VIP pass and walked away with Justin beside me. I wasn’t going to lose Justin just to prove I still had it. Brandon even tried with Justin but got shot down. Justin rolled his eyes at Brandon and told him that he didn’t have time for someone who would spend the next several years denying his feelings, plus, he already had the real ‘Stud’. 

Leo Brown and I worked to make Brown’s Athletics the next Nike. I told him instead of one sport’s star to use a variety to win more than one target market. We were able to get higher sales in all markets which led to a huge bonus for Kinnetik. I was set for the rest of Justin and my life.

It was when Prop 14 came knocking that I started watching my club more closely. Justin didn’t bother with going door to door, it just resulted in a lot of assholes slamming it in their faces. I told Justin not to show up at Craig’s store because he didn’t need trespassing on his record. 

Michael and I never fought over Justin leaving me, it was that I supported Mel when he sued for custody. I told him that he needed to grow up. He told me to fuck off. Of course the minute he needed my club he was all friendly again. I honestly would have told him to fuck himself but I wanted to find out who fucked with my club. 

We monitored all the people coming and going from the bar and so far nothing stood out. One night I was watching the cameras with Justin in my lap, and he looked at the monitor. We both saw Lindsay walking around the club, but nothing in her hand that looked like a bomb. She ordered shots and proceeded to get drunk. We hadn’t seen her since the meltdown at Kinnetik. Justin watched as she stumbled into people and was snorting something. I ordered one of the security guys to watch her and make sure she didn’t cause trouble. They ended up having to escort her out of the bar, but she ran passed them up to my office. The guys caught her as she entered the room.

“Stay outside and be ready to call the police if she starts anything.” I tell them glaring at Lindsay the entire time.

“Please make it stop, I can’t deal with it anymore. Please Peter help me?” Lindsay begs me. 

“What are you talking about?” I ask the crazy woman.

“The fire, I don’t want to see it anymore, and the blood. Everything is coated in blood.” She tells me.

“What did you take?” Justin asks her. He pulls out his phone and calls Blake.

“Hey, can you come to the club… Lindsay is here saying strange shit and bombed out of her mind… I don’t know, we might need to get her to a hospital… Thanks Blake.” Justin hangs up the phone. “He’s on his way with Brad.” He tells me.

“It’s always burning and smoke fills every room, I can’t escape it.” She seems to just be talking to herself.

“Wendy, where is the fire?” I wonder if she was telling us she bombed the club, although I don’t believe it.

“Oh Peter, she keeps showing me where I’m going.” She tells me.

“Who and what are you talking about?” I ask Lindsay.

“Claire, she started getting angry when I wouldn’t help her out of hell. She keeps showing me where I’m going and it’s horrifying. Why can’t I go back to Purgatory?” She ask Justin.

“You defied Heaven and you know what you're doing is wrong. Purgatory is for people who believe they were right.” He tells her.

“NO, no, no… it can’t be too late for me. I want to be forgiven.” She looks to the ceiling.

“No one can help you.” Vic tells her.

“But I thought I could apologize.” she tells Vic.

“You could but you wouldn’t mean it, and that’s what counts in the end. It’s how Deb finally reached Heaven.” Vic tells her.

“What did I do that was so bad? I just wanted Brian.” She tells us.

“You set out to ruin his life and kill the only man he loved. If you could still do it you would, you can’t fool the Big Guy, he’s on to all of us.” Vic tells her.

“I’ll come back and change it, let me do that. It can be different this time.” She tells him.

“No more coming back, they don’t let you out once you reach where your going.” Vic tells her and vanishes.

Blake and Ted come in the room with Brad. Brad picks her up and tells her he wants to take her to a safe place. Lindsay goes quietly with him. I guess Kira was right, she was going to tip into hell.

“Hopefully Brad can help her.” Blake tells us.

“Not unless he can help her find redemption.” Justin comments but is looking at the screen intently. 

“What are you looking at?” I ask Justin.

“Ted, you and Blake were outside protesting together when the people with the bullhorns were screaming we were going to hell right?” Justin asks them.

“Yeah, why?” He asks Justin.

“Isn’t that the woman and her group coming into the club?” He asks Ted.

Ted and Blake watch the group walking into the club. The woman is wearing a jacket into the club, instead of checking it. We watch as she stands by the entrance to get behind the bar. She watches the bartender until he is called to the other side of the bar and pulls something out of her coat. I watch my security guy block her in and call for the other guys to keep her from fleeing. The guys she was with, all try to get out the door but Ted already had a head set and told them to keep them here until the police arrived. We had to clear the bar because there was a bomb sitting in the bar. Mark, the head of security, managed to get the detonator out of her hands. So we weren’t worried we were going to blow up the building. They were all handcuffed with the cuffs some of the guys who were partying here tonight had. The police just loved that. I looked at the people who wanted to kill us for not be straight and didn’t know any of them. I looked around the alley and saw the old guy Ben kicked the shit out of, standing at a van down the alley way, watching his group of crazies being arrested. I walked over to Carl and told him to catch the fucker. I smiled as he was lead by me in handcuffs. 

“You ready to finish the story Justin.” I ask him.

“I’m ready to start the story.” He tells me.

I hold him with the backdrop of police lights and kiss the man who is going to be with me for the next fifty or more years.