Brian stood looking up at the sky and feeling a bit shaky inside. The young man he loved more than anything on Earth stood next to him staring up at the same star-filled sky. The air had turned a little cooler than it had been recently, but it wasn't the chilly air that made Brian feel uncomfortable. It was the total silence between himself and Justin from the minute they walked out into Debbie's backyard that made him nervous. Usually Justin was extremely talkative, but he had asked Brian to join him outside away from Debbie's guests with such a serious look on his face. Brian had decided to let Justin control things and was now waiting impatiently for him to begin talking. 

Justin stood within the crook of Brian's protective arm and tried to decide what would be the best way to approach the subject he had on his mind. Debbie had been right when she told Justin that he had to let Brian know about his concerns or the air would never be clear between them. He just wasn't sure how to go about it without sounding accusatory, thus putting Brian on the defensive. All he wanted was to go back to the way it was before the attack on him by Hobbs. He didn't mind Brian being a little protective when he thought that Justin was in danger, but he had become obsessive about it and what was worse was the way he treated his young lover like a fragile child. That was not who Justin was and it was important to him that Brian understand this. Finally, after what seemed forever, Justin spoke up.

"Brian," he began, turning sideways to face his lover, "can I ask you something?"

Brian had turned to face Justin the moment he finally heard his voice.

"You can ask me anything. You know that."

"Do you see me differently now...I mean do you see me as weak or incapable of taking care of myself? I remember once you told me that one of the things you liked about me was my strength. You liked the way I stood up for myself with my Dad and against the bullying at school. Has that all changed now since I couldn't keep myself safe from the worst bully of them all?"

Brian's face showed his puzzlement. 

"What the fuck are you talking about? Of course I don't see you differently. You have more guts than any man I know. You act like I blame you for what happened. You know that isn't true. It never would have happened if I had been more aware."

Justin jumped at that last statement.

"Ah ha!" he exclaimed. "I knew it. You blame yourself for what happened. Why in hell would you think that? Short of wrapping me in bubble wrap and locking me away from the entire world, you couldn't have stopped what happened. If Hobbs hadn't gotten me that day at the Museum, he would have attacked at some other time or place. His kind of hatred knows no boundaries. Brian, you have no idea how much it hurts me to see you suffering with this thing. I think I hate Hobbs as much for making you feel the way you do as for the attack on me, if not more. What's important is that I know he won't get away with it. Someday he's going to be caught and then he'll pay for what he's done. I believe that with all my heart, and I believe you'll be right there to see that it happens."

Justin noticed the pain in Brian's eyes as he started talking, but the clouded look seemed to clear as Justin continued on. Justin put his arms around Brian's neck and stood on tiptoes as he pulled Brian's face down to his. He kissed Brian with fervent passion, pouring his love into their connection. Brian's warm lips slowly but surely melted against Justin's and soon their feelings for each other took over. Their lips moved against each other, stoking the heat between them which dispelled the cool night air. After some time passed their lips parted, although they continued to hug tightly. 

"Brian," Justin started, with his face buried against Brian's jacket, "I need you to stop feeling guilty and give me back the man I fell in love with. I also need you to stop worrying about me so much. I can handle anything that life throws at me." He gazed up into Brian's eyes. "That is, I can handle anything except losing you, physically or emotionally. If Hobbs takes you away from me in any way...and I don't mean by hitting you over the head, then he wins and I won't allow that. He is not going to steal any more time out of our lives. We won't let him...will we!"

It was more of a declaration than a question. Brian felt something inside his body begin to melt away. It was the tension that he had never fully released from the moment he heard about Justin being in the hospital. He hadn't even been aware of how tense he had become as the time dragged on while they attempted to track down that fucking son-of-a-bitch who had tried to take Justin from him. Obviously Justin had been aware of it and it had bothered him more than he had let on. He lifted Justin's face up. As he stared deeply into Justin's concerned eyes, he saw how much the young man cared about him. It was equal to what he felt for Justin. 

"No, Sunshine! No way is he going to spoil what we have or rob us of another moment. I can't promise that I won't worry about you anymore. You mean too much to me to do that, but I can promise to dial it back a bit."

Justin's pale eyebrows rose. Brian let out a laugh.

"Okay, I'll dial it back more than a bit. And I promise that I'll put the blame for what happened squarely on the shoulders of one Christopher Hobbs, where it belongs. Now can I give you the good news I've been waiting to tell you since I walked in the front door?

Justin visibly relaxed the further Brian got into his declaration. He was so relieved. All he wanted was the confident self-assured man he had come to know in the beginning...the one who made him feel safe without even trying. He knew Brian always kept his promises. Brian's word was good enough for him. 

"I'm dying to hear your news. So what is it?"

"We have the best lead so far as to where Hobbs is holed up. We got a warrant to tap several phones that we suspected he might be calling. We finally caught him talking to one of his pals, the one we suspect gave him a way to get out of the city. The call came from a cell phone but we couldn't trace it. What we did get was valuable clues as to where he is at. We are certain that, as of this morning he is in New York City. We have permission to go there and investigate. I know it's a huge city but it is not that easy to get lost nowadays, even in a big city. We have high hopes of tracking him down before he knows we are even on to him. In the meantime we'll continue monitoring any phone calls he makes to the tapped phones."

Justin's face slowly began to change as Brian told his story. There was a kind of hope in his eyes that hadn't been there in a long time. Once Hobbs was behind bars, he knew life would be so much sweeter. Then he thought of something.

"What about the other bashings? Have they gotten any further with those?"

"They are still being investigated, but we have prime suspects now. We just need to get enough evidence together to take to the DA. We're keeping a low profile on that right now because we want them to be off guard. Right now they all have reason to think they are no longer in our sights. Actually we believe that bringing in Hobbs will be the impetus to bring the whole gang down. Meantime we are keeping a close watch on every single one of Hobbs' friends. So far there have been no more bashings. It's probably because their leader is out of town. We have every reason to believe that Hobbs was running the show."

"Well, at least one good thing came out of my attack. Hobbs had to go on the run and that makes the streets safer for fags everywhere...or at least in Pittsburgh," Justin laughed.

"Not funny, Justin," Brian declared with a scowl.

Justin reached up and smoothed the wrinkles on Brian's forehead with a tender hand.

"I know, Brian. But I would rather think that some good came out of it than wallow in self-pity."

Brian looked into Justin's eyes again and his heart skipped a beat. He bent his head and captured Justin's lips once more. The spark that ignited jumped between them and they found themselves lost in the pleasure they felt at their connection. The gentle pressure of their lips slowly grew in intensity. Soon they were kissing with their lips parted and tongues playing against each other like two dancers in perfect synch with one another. Without thought, their hands began to roam and they felt overwhelmed with desire. 

The couple had been standing in front of a large tree in Debbie's back yard. They were shielded from view by a six-foot fence. Brian started moving backwards, pulling Justin with him, until he reached the base of the thick tree. They inched their way around the tree until they were hidden from the view of Debbie's back door and windows by the huge trunk. Brian leaned against the trunk in the dark and Justin lay against his body. They began exploring one another, as if there was some new place to discover that they hadn't already visited countless times. For them, every time was like the first time anyway. 

Justin slipped his hands under Brian's shirt and rested his palms on Brian's naked chest. His fingers played with Brian's nipples and he liked the soft moan he heard escaping Brian's lips. They kissed over and over again. Next came the sound of zippers being lowered. Each man reached inside the open zipper in order to caress the rapidly-growing cock inside. As they stood there, they continued to fuck each other's mouths while their hands quickly achieved the satisfying result of bringing one another to full orgasm. At just the right moment, they turned sideways so that their seed could spill out on the ground. They were breathing so hard they felt they would explode at any moment. 

It had been a daring thing to do right in Debbie's back yard with a house full of guests, but they had needed one another too much to care. As their heartbeats slowly returned to normal, they felt more alive and together than ever before. The silent barriers that had unwittingly risen up between them had been smashed to pieces by their vows to each other, sealed with their lovemaking. Something told them that it wouldn't be long before their nemesis would be nothing but a horrible memory in the past, never to darken their lives again.

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

Chris flipped the channel for the third time in as many seconds. The crappy motel he was staying in didn't even have decent cable channels and there was nothing worth watching. He was bored with it anyway and had lots of other things on his mind, such as the message he had just gotten from his Dad through Eddie. His Dad said that he was coming to New York City on business and he was more than willing to meet with his son in order to pass on plenty of money. All Chris had to do was promise to get out of the Country. That was a deal that Chris was willing to take. If he handled it just right he could get the money, which he really needed, without being caught even if they were watching his Dad. The man had often come to the Big City on business so they probably wouldn't suspect anything, but just in case Chris would be watchful about the whole thing. 

More than anything, Chris wanted out. He was sick and tired of being haunted every time he looked over his shoulder which was every minute of every day, even inside his ugly room. He was certain that he would feel better once he headed somewhere without an Extradition Treaty. Hell, he figured his best bet was to go somewhere that had the right attitude about queers too. That would make him doubly safe. Justin Taylor could have his stupid sick lifestyle. As long as he never had to see the pretty boy's face again, Chris would be satisfied. With that thought in mind, he called Eddie for the second time that day. As soon as Eddie answered, Chris spoke. 

"Tell Dad that I'll meet him. Just have him call me when he decides where the best place will be to do it. Remind him not to use the house phone. They may have tapped it. I know they sometimes tap the phone of the parents of young people on the run."

The cops who were listening in smiled at each other. Stupid punk, they told each other. He obviously hadn't figured out that they could also tap the phones of friends or interested parties. As Eddie hung up his phone, he sighed with relief. The thought of Chris going far away was more than okay with him. Once Chris was gone for good, the whole gang could relax. No more risking their futures just to make a statement. No more Hobbs....no more danger.

To be continued....................