Brian came to Justin's room to visit him during the second day of their hospital stay, which was conveniently at the same time Jennifer had gone home to take a nap and a shower. A nurse had removed Brian's IV line that morning and he was now relying on oral pain relievers to help the dull ache in his abdomen caused by his kidney removal. Justin was still attached to his IV but was able to walk to and from the bathroom. He hoped to take a short walk down the hallway later that day.

Justin was sitting up in his hospital bed while Brian was in the chair he had sat in during his brief visit the previous day. The two were engrossed in a game of rummy while they carried on a light conversation.

"Did your dad ever come to see you last night?" Brian asked as he drew a card from the deck.

It had only been Jennifer that accompanied Justin to the hospital the morning of the transplant, as Craig insisted on going into his electronics store early that morning to get some paperwork done before any of his employees arrived to open for business at ten AM. After hearing what Craig had insinuated about him after learning the transplant was a go, Brian wasn't at all disappointed in not yet having the opportunity to meet the Taylor family patriarch.

"He came in about five minutes before visiting hours ended," Justin said in an annoyed voice. "He said he ‘might' come for a longer visit after dinner this evening."

Justin had won his third rummy game in a row when none other than Debbie Novotny came through the door carrying a large vase of multi-colored spring flowers, which were obstructing her view.

"Hey, Sunshine!" Debbie yelled as she walked into the room and sat the flowers down on the dresser across from the bed. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it in to see you yesterday, but Betty called in sick and the diner was a fucking circus."

Debbie turned around to look at Justin and was very surprised to see Brian, who was clad in a hospital-issued gown and pants. "Brian? What the hell are you doing here, and dressed in that getup?"

"Uh..." Brian said as he searched for an excuse. "I came here to see Justin, and I, uh... spilled coffee all over my suit. A very hot orderly took pity on me."

"Bullshit," Debbie said as she put her hands on her hips. "You want to try that again, and the truth this time?"

Brian and Justin locked eyes for a moment before Brian looked back to Debbie and sighed. "Alright... I donated a kidney to Justin."

"You did what?" Debbie said in an astonished tone as she walked closer to him. "Why would you do such a thing? I mean, it was very generous of you, but-"

"I know," Brian interrupted. "That's probably the last thing anyone that knows me would expect for me to do, but..." He paused to look back at Justin. "I wanted to help him."

Debbie took a few moments to stare at Brian, her mouth wide open, before walking over to place a hand on his shoulder. "Well, I'm glad to see that you're okay - both of you." She then leaned over to give Brian a gentle hug before pulling back and slapping his face a little rougher than usual. "Why the fuck didn't you tell me about this sooner?"

"Ow," Brian said as he rubbed his cheek. "I didn't tell anyone, not even the people at work. I didn't want anybody to make a big deal about it, especially you."

"But it is a big deal!" Debbie yelled. "You just had a major surgery and you need to rest. Who's going to take care of you after you go home?"

"I don't need anyone to take care of me," Brian said. "I'm taking two weeks of vacation time to recuperate, and I'll be just fine on my own once I get back to the loft."

"But... but..." Debbie sputtered, desperately searching for a reason to help her quasi-son. "You'll be on pain killers, and you shouldn't drive when-"

"I've driven while under the influence of drugs much stronger than Vicodin," Brian said.

Debbie smirked. "That doesn't make it okay to drive when you're on Vicodin or anything stronger... and you better not drink or do any other drugs when you take them."

"No shit," Brian said. "Do you think I don't know what drugs not to mix? Besides, that's what they make taxis for, when you're not supposed to drive."

"But... what about food? Grocery shopping? Cooking?" Debbie asked, now frantically waving her arms. "The last time I brought food to your place, you had nothing but beer and poppers in the fridge. It's no wonder you're so fucking skinny."

"That's what they make delivery for, Deb" Brian said, now getting annoyed. This was exactly why he wanted to keep his involvement in Justin's transplant a secret.

"You can't have delivered food for every meal!" Debbie yelled, now really working herself into a state.

"Debbie!" Justin finally interjected. "If Brian doesn't want your help, I think you should respect his wishes."

Debbie walked around Brian's chair and leaned in close to Justin. "Well, you obviously don't know me very well, Sunshine. I sure as hell hope that your mother will be there to take care of you, once you go home."

Justin scoffed. "She's been hovering over me since my diabetes diagnosis when I was six, and she's been even worse since my kidneys failed. I had to practically force her to go home for some rest earlier, because she hardly got any sleep on that thing last night," he said, pointing to the bench-like couch in front of the window. "I'm sure she'll be up my ass twenty-four seven after I get out of here."

Debbie held her hand out, palm up, to Justin while looking at Brian. "You see? That's what good mothers do when their kids are sick or injured."

Brian closed his eyes and sighed in defeat. "Alright. You can bring me over some food, but that's it."

"Good," Debbie said with a proud smile on her face. "When will they be releasing you?"

"In two days, hopefully in the morning. I'll take a cab home."

"I'll use my emergency key to stock up your fridge before then," Debbie said. "And I'll come by that evening to cook you a hot meal."

"Thank you, Mother," Brian droned, secretly a little happy that he'd have some real food to eat when he went home.

Debbie spent a few more minutes chatting with the boys before leaving to go grocery shopping.

"She loves you," Justin said after Debbie was out of sight.

"Yeah," Brian said with a slight smile.

"And you know she's going to tell everybody now," Justin added.

"Yeah," Brian said sadly, his smile turning into a frown.

********************

Just as expected, Brian spent that evening and the next day being visited by Emmett, Ted, and Lindsay with baby Gus in tow. Even Melanie stopped by on her lunch hour, although she admitted that Lindsay told her to do so. Although he did not plan on taking any of it home, Brian's hospital room quickly filled with flowers, balloons, andGet Well Soon cards. Kenny the waiter even sent Brian one of those teddy bears they somehow squeeze inside of a see-through balloon full of rainbow-colored confetti. Because his AIDS made it unsafe for him to go into the germ-infested hospital, Vic gave Brian a call to wish him a speedy recovery.

Brian was not at all surprised to receive a call from Michael the evening after Debbie discovered him at the hospital.

"Why the fuck didn't you tell me you were doing this?" Michael screeched on the line, sounding just like his mother.

"It's not like we've talked recently, Mikey," Brian pointed out.

"And whose fucking fault is that, Brian?" Michael griped.

Brian sighed. "Like I told you before, I've been really busy at work, more so lately since I knew that I'd be taking a couple of weeks off to recover from the surgery."

"You could have picked up the fucking phone, asshole," Michael insisted. "It doesn't take but a minute to make a fucking phone call to tell your best friend that you're having surgery."

"It's not like you could have done anything from there, besides worry. Besides, I didn't know if you had found a job or not and when you'd be available to talk," Brian said.

"You could have asked Ma, or Emmett or Ted. And if you would have ever picked up or called, you would have known that I haven't found a job yet."

"With your retail experience, you should have no problem finding a job," Brian said.

"I'm over-qualified for everything," Michael said. "I've put in applications in stores all over town, and no one's hiring for a manager's position. And besides, I really don't want another retail job."

"You're not qualified for anything else, so you can't be too picky."

Michael groaned. "Christ, you sound just like David. ‘When are you going to get a job, Michael? You need to get out of the house, Michael. You're being too picky, Michael.'"

Brian couldn't help but smile. "Trouble in paradise?"

"I sure as hell wouldn't call Portland 'paradise,'" Michael said. "It ain't like we're in Miami or Cancun."

"Well, it sounds to me like you're regretting ever moving out there," Brian said.

"No," Michael said defensively. "I love being out here with David and Hank, but-"

"You'd rather be here where you belong," Brian said in a confident tone. "Portland will never be home to you."

Michael sighed after a few moments of silence. "Look... I'm going to let you go. I'm sure you need to rest."

"Uh-huh," Brian said sarcastically, knowing that he struck a nerve.

"I'll call you at home in a few days to see how you're doing."

"Alright. Bye, Mikey," Brian said before hanging up.

********************

Brian was relieved when Thursday morning arrived and the doctor signed his release papers after giving him long list of aftercare instructions. Brian packed his small rolling suitcase and walked down the hallway to Justin's room to say goodbye.

He was happy to see that Justin was alone and awake, drawing something on a sketch pad.

"Hey," Justin said after looking up at the sound of Brian's footsteps. He then turned the sketch pad over, since did not want Brian to see one of the many sketches of him that he had created.

"So, they're setting me free," Brian said.

"I can see that," Justin said, trying to mask his disappointment as he looked over at Brian's suitcase.

Apparently, Brian could hear and see it. "Hey... you'll be getting out of here in a couple of days."

"I know," Justin said. "It's just... it's been nice being in the same building with you these past few days, even if you were down the hall most of the time."

Brian smiled, as he couldn't help but feel the same way. "Well, you'll have your mom and the nurses to keep you company until you go."

"Whoopie," Justin said dryly.

"And you can call me at home when you get really bored," Brian added. "I'll just be lying around eating the tons of food Deb will be making for me. I'll probably gain twenty pounds over the next couple of weeks."

"Could I call you even if I get just a little bit bored?" Justin asked uneasily. "Or if I just want to say hi?"

Brian nodded, unable to keep from smiling. "Sure."

"Okay, well... I guess I'll see you around sometime," Justin said, hoping it would be sooner rather than later.

"Yep," Brian said. He stood at the side of the bed for a few moments before sitting down next to Justin and leaning in to kiss him.

What was meant to be a short goodbye kiss quickly turned into a passionate make-out with each man holding onto the other's neck for dear life, as if Brian was about to go off to war.

A couple of minutes later, both became unaware of the fact that they were not alone in the room anymore after Craig Taylor walked through the doorway.