Chapter 15 - Commendation.

"Hey, Kinney! Hold up a sec."

Brian turned at the sound of someone calling his name from the soccer practice field. When he saw that the person hollering for him was his old friend, Winnie, he waved and smiled. He slumped back against the high chain link fence that edged the field, waiting while the Women's Varsity Midfielder jogged over.

"Well, if it isn't the always lovely Winnie Taylor. How's tricks, Win," Brian joked as soon as the girl was within hearing distance.

"Shouldn't I be asking YOU that, Brian?" Winnie replied with an unrestrained laugh as she eyed the hot looking dirty blond boy that her favorite Junior Class stud had been talking with before she interrupted.

"Touché, my dear," Brian answered with his tongue planted in his cheek and a playful leer on his handsome face. Turning to the boy who was waiting impatiently to regain his attention, Brian commanded, "Bailor Hall, room 420. Be there tonight at nine and I'll put you through my very own personal 'orientation program'. By the time I'm through coaching you, I'm sure you'll be UP for anything Pitt can throw at you."

The tempting blond boy just gave Brian one more coy smile and then ambled away without saying a word. Brian spent several moments admiring the plump backside clad only in a pair of rather skimpy soccer shorts before he turned his attention back to his female companion. He didn't seem to mind in the least the way Winnie was chuckling at his antics.

"Shit, Brian! Haven't you already fucked your way through the entire male population of the dorms yet?" she prodded him.

"That's the beauty of the college system, Win," Brian replied, draping his long arm over the shorter girl's shoulders and leading her towards the field house. "Every fall the Admissions Department provides me with a whole new batch of 'Fresh Men'. It's really very kind of them, don't you think. And I just love Fresh Men, don't you?"

"I don't think ANYONE likes freshmen as much as you, Brian," Winnie answered, still chuckling at her promiscuous friend.

"You're probably right," Brian agreed and laughed along.

"But I didn't call you over just to discuss your overactive sex life, Bri. I actually have some news for you that I think you'll like. My sorority sister, Lindsey, was telling me the other day that the Art Department is looking for models for their Life Drawing classes. As soon as I heard that I thought to myself, who do I know that's looking for a job and loves to hang around naked for long periods of time? Strangely enough, your name just popped into my mind."

"Ahhhh, Win! You don't know how good it makes me feel to know you think of ME naked," Brian teased as he held open the field house doors and then followed his friend inside heading towards the locker rooms.

"Stop it, you! A girl can dream, can't she?" Winnie punctuated her words with a quick jab to Brian's biceps. "Anyway, I hear it pays pretty good, and just think of all those hot young art students admiring your body all the time. It might even help you out with your problem of running through all the freshmen too quickly," Winnie teased right back. "If you're interested, just say the word and I'll give Lindsey your number."

"Sure. Why the hell not? It sounds like easy money," Brian confirmed. "Go ahead and give your friend my digits."

"Will do, Bri. See you later!" And with that they both disappeared into their respective locker rooms.

~**~**~**~**~

Brian strutted into the large open studio space wearing only a ratty old robe but acting like he was draped in the most expensive and regal vestments ever made. He loved the feeling of all the art students' eyes following his every step. He threaded his way between the offset rows of easels set up in a semicircle around a central raised dais where a red velvet chaise lounge was waiting for him. Brian politely nodded his head at the grey-haired older woman who was teaching as she briefly introduced him to the class before proceeding to give some last minute instructions to the students.

This was the fifth time Brian had modeled for one of Professor Frazer's classes, so he already knew the drill and didn't bother to wait for directions. He quickly mounted the three steps up to the platform, casually untied the belt of the robe and then let the fabric slide off his shoulders. He allowed himself one ego-boosting moment of pause as he stood there completely nude and listened to the muffled, involuntary gasps of appreciation which a couple of the less disciplined art students couldn't hold back. Then, with the ghost of a smirk on his elegantly handsome lips, he lowered himself onto the waiting chair in the most comfortable position he could find.

After Brian's initial, dramatic entrance, the class settled right down. There was a bit of noisy commotion while sketchbooks were opened, paper was shuffled, pencils were sharpened and such like, but soon enough a blanket of silence descended over the room. The only sounds after that were the scritching of twenty-some pencils over paper and the occasional hushed comments of the professor as she went from one easel to the next and critiqued the students' work.

All Brian had to do for the next two hours was lay there and try not to move too much - which wasn't really as easy as it sounded. It was difficult not to shift around as his muscles became cramped from holding the same pose for so long. It was also just plain boring after awhile. The warm, slightly dusty atmosphere of the art classroom combined with the oddly relaxing noises made by the various artists with the pencils and quiet chatting, and Brian found himself almost drifting off several times. In a valiant effort to try and stay awake, Brian tried to focus on the faces of the students he could see and amused himself by making up elaborate life stories for each.

Right in front of his couch he could see Winnie's friend Lindsey. Brian had liked the tall blonde girl right from the start. The one word that came to mind every time he saw Lindsey was 'vivacious'. She was always throwing herself passionately into whatever she was doing at the time, whether it was her art classes, her sorority's philanthropy events, or her vehement support of various campus political endeavors. From what Brian could tell so far, Lindsey was smart, sophisticated and sassy. She also obviously came from money, but had somehow escaped becoming snobbish despite her background. And, no matter what she was involved with, she almost always seemed to have fun doing whatever she did. She was a refreshing contrast to the image-conscious, cynical, far-too-full-of-himself side of Brian Kinney.

Brian's boredom must have been obvious from his face right then, because just as he started to yawn, the model saw Lindsey wink at him and deliberately knock a tin pail full of charcoal sticks off the edge of her easel creating a loud clang. The resulting moment of chaos gave Brian a chance to stretch a bit before he carefully rearranged himself back into his former pose. After Lindsey finished apologizing profusely to her professor and fellow students, she swiftly picked up the fallen art supplies and then went back to her own sketch with only a quirky smile aimed in Brian's direction. He sent her back an appreciative wink and smile of his own then looked away before he was tempted to further mischief.

Brian scanned over the other faces within his direct line of vision - careful not to move his head even while he was looking around him. This class was pretty evenly divided between men and women. He liked it better when there were more male students, for obvious reasons, but didn't really mind being ogled by either sex. What he didn't care for was when the female students would flock up to introduce themselves and fawn over him immediately after the class was over. That had happened consistently after almost every class he'd modeled for so far.

He was determined that today would be different, though. He really wasn't in the mood to try and politely discourage a bunch of 'MRS' degree candidates. Today, he'd much prefer if that nice looking, dark-haired twink over in the back row with the artsy van dyke beard would come up and introduce himself instead. He wouldn't mind being fawned over by that guy in the least. To that end, Brian assiduously devoted himself to eye fucking the hot looking young man throughout the remainder of the class.

~**~**~**~**~**~**~

As focused as he was on the artistic bearded guy, time flew by and Brian didn't really take in much more of the rest of the class. He definitely didn't notice the quiet presence of a familiar young blond staring at him from the far corner of the classroom. Nobody else in the room seemed to notice the young man either - not even Professor Frazer who walked within centimeters of where Justin was standing when she went to grab a new gum eraser for a student from off the shelf next to the back sink.

Since Brian had left home and moved into the college dorms, Justin found that his charge hadn't needed his protection much. Brian was permanently free of Jack's influence - the young college student hadn't returned home even to visit his parents in the last two and a half years. The young man had also made a point of staying as far away from trouble as he possibly could while at school - always finding a way out of any threatening situation without a fight. Accordingly, there were no longer any overt threats to Brian's physical well being and no reason for Justin to hover protectively.

Brian had also closed himself off from almost all possible emotional threats as well. Generally speaking, Brian was easy to get along with, he loved a good party, and didn't easily take offence or judge anyone except in joking. This equated to him being just as superficially popular as ever - if not more so - accumulating numerous acquaintances and shallow friendships amongst his fellow students, the people in his dorm and even in the athletic crowd. And, of course, he'd had more than his fair share of sexual encounters.

But in spite of his seeming notoriety on campus, Brian hadn't made more than one or two true friends in all that time. He would joke and clown around like everyone else, he'd flirt and fuck around wantonly, but rarely volunteered any personal information about himself. Letting anyone in - truly trusting someone - was just too difficult for him. Consequently, nobody opened up to him either, hence the lack of any deep friendships. Granted, he had kept himself safe from being hurt emotionally, but also isolated himself at the same time.

However, even though the manifest threats to Brian's safety were now gone, Justin still kept a distant eye on his boy. He'd long ago promised to watch over Brian and he wasn't going to stop now. For the most part, though, he tried to stay hidden - observing from the mists of whatever other dimension he occupied when he wasn't needed by Brian, or at the very least keeping his physical distance from the young man when he was here on the same plane. Brian continued to ignore the concerned young blond whenever he couldn't avoid seeing him. In his own highly compartmentalized mind he'd stashed Justin away where he barely ever even thought of his unusual childhood friend. Luckily, amid the busy world of a college campus it was exceedingly simple to avoid thinking about even the mere subject of Justin Taylor. And for Justin, it hurt too much to watch Brian from afar while being intentionally ignored, so his visits had become fewer and fewer.

That didn't mean that Justin had altogether given up on Brian, though. He hadn't forgotten those long ago dreams where he and Brian had been together, romantically involved, a couple. Somehow, someway, Justin knew they were destined to be. It might seem impossible now, but Justin had faith and all the time in the world. He would wait. It was all he could do for the moment.

And, while he waited, it didn't hurt to occasionally take a stealthy peek every so often at the subject of his dreams.

Justin had put his hopes for a future with the MAN he would one day love on hold while Brian had still been a child - back then he'd concentrated solely on being a friend and protector. But Brian wasn't a child anymore. He was all grown up. He'd become a gorgeous, strong, exceedingly handsome man. He'd become the very man Justin had dreamed of all those years ago. If anything, he'd become even more beautiful than the dream lover Justin remembered from his teenaged fantasies.

So who could blame him if Justin peeped every so often?

Of course, trying to give Brian some space meant that Justin couldn't really justify popping uninvited into Brian's room. He knew that Brian would NOT appreciate such a blatant invasion of his privacy. And while he could always stalk Brian at one of the more public locales the wild youth frequented - nearby gay bars, clubs or even, when he was acting his seediest, the local bath house - Justin hated watching Brian when he was with other guys almost more than not seeing him at all.

But, thanks to Brian's new modeling job, Justin had finally found a good place to indulge in his obsession with Brian watching. Here, in the familiar and neutral environs of this college art studio, Justin could get an eyeful of Brian without any guilt and without constantly fighting down his own jealousy. Here, he was free to revel in the sight of the man he loved in all his unclothed glory.

And, FUCK, was it ever glorious!

Now, if only incorporeal spirits could jack off . . .

~**~**~**~**~

At ten till, Professor Frazer called out to the class to finish up and turn in their drawings as they left. Brian gingerly flexed his cold muscles a few times in order to start restoring his circulation before venturing to stand up. He barely had his robe back on before a crowd of fans began to assemble, waiting for him at the foot of the steps leading down from his perch.

Brian sighed as he scanned the group. Damn! More clueless straight chicks. Where the fuck did beard guy disappear to? He'd thought, after the looks they'd been exchanging for most of the last hour, the guy would have got the hint. Oh well.

"Excuse me. Excuse me," the WASPishly polite yet insistent voice of Lindsey Peterson, pierced through the rest of the chattering as the elegant young lady ruthlessly elbowed her way through the throngs waiting to pounce on Brian. "Hey, Brian. If you've got a minute, I'd like to go over our Econ project with you now before you head off."

Brian's expression must have betrayed his confusion - he wasn't actually taking Econ this term - even as he stepped down to meet Lindsey.

"You didn't already forget the paper we have due on Friday for Econ, did you?" Lindsay insisted with an obvious wink.

"Of course not. I'd be happy to discuss it with you as soon as I'm dressed, Lindsay," Brian played along, willing to wait and see what the girl had up her sleeve.

Completely disregarding all the other students who'd been waiting to bombard Brian, Lindsay took hold of her friend's elbow and hustled him off through the crowd. In spite of her willowy build and proper manners, the young lady apparently had no problem plowing several of the more insistent fangirls out of their way as she escorted Brian back to the small closet/changing room where his clothing was waiting. Brian was grinning the whole way, thoroughly impressed at the ease with which she was extracting him from the unwanted situation.

"Take your time changing, Bri. I'll get Professor Frazer to shoo this lot out of here for you. Fucking vultures!" Lindsay whispered as she officiously closed the door behind Brian, popping the lock on the knob as she did so that Brian was safe from outside attacks.

It only took two minutes for Brian to get his clothes back on, but he waited a full ten before cautiously peeking out the door to see if the coast was clear. By then, most of the hordes had left, thankfully, and Brian felt safe enough to come out of hiding. Lindsay and Professor Frazer were waiting a few meters away, both apparently wanting to talk to their favorite model.

"Brian, I'm so sorry about all that," Professor Frazer started immediately as soon as she saw her model emerge. "I didn't think college art students would be so unprofessional as to harass a model - even if he is as handsome a model as you, my dear. There must have been ten women waiting to pounce on you back there. I don't think any of my prior Life Drawing models have had quite so much of an impact," the woman chuckled, remembering the scene.

"It WAS a little bit like a feeding frenzy in a tank of sharks," Lindsay added, flickers of mirth lighting up her brown eyes. "If I hadn't pulled you out of there when I did, Brian, I think they might have staged a fight to the death amongst themselves until only one woman was left standing and then she would have claimed you as her prize. Melinda Jacobs even jabbed me, hard, in the side with her sketch pad as I tried to get past her. She was definitely out for blood - or semen - I'm not sure which."

"I really appreciate the way you took charge and handled the situation, Lindsay," the Professor commented even while she gasped back a loud chortle. "After all this, I hope you're not going to bail on us the next time we need you to model, Brian. You really are a wonderful subject. And don't worry - next time we have you pose, I'll dismiss you first and keep the class back until you have a chance to leave. I also intend to give them all a bit of a talk about professionalism . . . In fact, I think I'll add that as part of the criteria for grades on the next assignment."

"No problem, Professor," Brian reassured the teacher. "As long as I've got Lindz here to protect my virtue, I think I'll be alright."

"Oh, stop, you!" Lindsay replied, blushing slightly as she led Brian away from Professor Frazer. "I think your virtue is long past saving, Mr. Kinney. And speaking of which," Lindsay added in a hushed voice as she turned him to face the one easel that still had a straggler waiting beside it. "I think you have one remaining admirer - and this one, I think, is more your speed."

There, partly hidden behind the easel, was the hot guy with the van dyke beard that Brian had been hoping to meet.

"Brian Kinney, this is Peter Mallory. Peter is a Visual Arts major, he's a junior and he lives off campus, so you two probably haven't met yet." Lindz did the introductions then smiled wistfully as she noted neither man was paying her any further attention. "So . . . Yeah, I'll just leave you two to get better acquainted then, shall I? Talk to you later, Bri."

"Hey there," Brian opened in a deep, gravelly voice as he edged closer to the obviously interested art student. "How about we let your 'Peter' out to play with my 'Johnson' for the rest of the afternoon?"

No reply was necessary. The look of lustful longing on the artist's face gave everything away. Brian slid his arm around the shorter man's shoulders and artfully guided his new artist friend out the door of the studio without another word.

Lindsay shook her head at the sight as she gathered up her own possessions from the easel where she'd been working. Her friend Winnie had warned her right from the start about Brian Kinney. Lindz had no delusions about the man. That didn't mean that she couldn't admire him for his excellent physical attributes - I mean, even she couldn't really avoid thinking about THAT magnificent cock . . .

As the tall blonde woman followed the two men out of the classroom, another blond who'd been waiting in the farthest shadowy corner of the room also shook his head. The object of his personal interest was gone - leaving without so much as acknowledging Justin's existence. The young blond sighed and then his form dissipated. Justin would wait for Brian someplace where he didn't have to watch his man flirting with another. Biding his time . . .

~**~**~**~**~

"So, this hot artist guy actually has the nerve to tell me he won't let me fuck him unless I at least take him out on one date. Can you believe that shit?" Brian related as he passed a fresh bottle of beer across the small bar table to his best friend.

"Idiot. He obviously doesn't know what he's missing," Michael replied in full support of Brian's studly reputation, as was required of him by the 'Bro Code'.

"I know, right? But anyway, I'm looking at the guy and he's pretty hot in a bohemian, artist kinda way and all, and I figure what the hell. I didn't have anything better to do that night and I'd just got paid for that modeling gig for the art department, so really, why not? I'd never BEEN on a real date before, right, so I think I'll give it a try." Brian explains then pauses for a sip of beer.

"You actually agreed to take the dweeb on a date?" Michael interrupted with the appropriate amount of shock in his voice.

"Yeah! I must have been temporarily insane or something, right? But anyway," Brian continued with his story. "So, I take the guy out to this little Italian place over by campus - it's pretty classy but cheap - and we sit and order a bottle of wine. I'm already bored by this point, of course, and the guy is going on and on talking art shit that NOBODY gives a fuck about, right? I'm looking around trying to find a way to escape but the guy can't even take a fucking hint. It's like, if the pretentious fuck doesn't shut up soon, I'll be so bored my brain will turn to mush and leak out my ears or something - that's how bad it was. I'm NOT kidding you, Mikey!"

Both Brian and Mikey were laughing so hard at this point, both still a little high from the joint they'd smoked in the car earlier and buzzed from their fourth beer, that they could hardly get a breath. There was a small crowd of other bar goers standing around now listening in as well, and they were all laughing along too. Brian was playing to his audience with consummate ease, as usual.

"Then, thank fuck, the waiter comes up and stands right behind Beard Guy's chair - the ass doesn't even stop blabbing about his pretentious art shit even then so I doubt he even knew the waiter was there. Shit! I was SO fucking ready to be out of there! The waiter was smiling at me and he kinda tipped his head to the side. I look over and see he's pointing towards the coat check room, right? I don't even say one word - well, it's not like I could get a word in edgewise anyway with Beard Guy going on like that, you know?"

By now most of Woody's was listening in on the story Brian was telling, so he raised his voice a little in order to be heard properly. "So, I just stand up, throw my napkin on the table and start walking toward the coat check room, right. I can STILL hear the guy at the table going on about some unknown artist that he fancies he'll be compared to one day - the pompous ass! The waiter, of course, is right the fuck behind me. The coat check room has those doors that have a top half and a bottom half, so I open the bottom up and let myself inside and like two seconds later the hot blond waiter follows me in and pulls the top door closed behind us with the whole fucking restaurant watching us. Beard Guy has FINALLy noticed that I'm gone and is calling out 'Brian?', 'Brian, where are you going?' and shit," Brian changed into a falsetto while he imitated his date, eliciting a round of chuckling from the audience.

"Brian! You didn't, did you?" Michael voiced his shocked pride at his friend's callous and crazy actions. "Tell me you did NOT fuck that waiter in the coat check room in front of a whole restaurant full of people including your date? No fucking way!"

"Hell yes! I fucked that waiter so hard we actually knocked over one whole rack of coats. And he was a fucking screamer, too! He kept hollering 'Harder! Harder! Yes! Yes! Harder!' for like the entire time I'm plowing his ass. You should have seen the looks on everybody's faces when we came out of there - It was fucking hilarious! They were all, like, frozen in place and staring at me. The fucking manager was even just standing there and didn't know what the hell to say. It was perfect!"

"Jeeze, Brian, I'd be so fucking embarrassed! What did you do?" Michael asked, the perfect foil for Brian's tale.

"I looked right at the manager," Brian paused to make sure everyone in the bar was quiet and could hear him, "and I said, 'What? Haven't you ever heard two guys fucking in a coat check room before?' with a completely straight face, of course." The entire bar erupted with laughter at the punchline.

"Shit, Brian! What did the manager do then? Did he throw your ass out on the street after that or maybe even call the cops?" Michael moaned, for some reason worried for his friend even though the story had occurred in the past.

"Nah. The manager didn't say a fucking word. He just handed me the check and courteously escorted me to the cash register. I paid for the wine and salads and left a big tip for the waiter who turned out to be a pretty decent fuck, all things considered - although I never tipped anyone for letting me fuck them before - and all the time nobody in the entire place said a fucking word. Then, as I’m putting away my wallet I all the sudden remember the eminently forgettable Beard Guy. And, when the manager sees me looking around for my date, he oh-so-tactfully says that my ‘companion’ had already left,” Brian explained and then took a break to finish the rest of his beer.

“Well, what did you do? Did you go after Beard Guy?” Michael asked, wanting a conclusion to the story.

“Fuck no! Why the hell would I do that? I was fucking glad to see the guy gone - he was boring as shit and no matter how fucking hot he looked with that little beard and his nice firm ass, not even the best fuck in the world would have been worth listening to even one more second of his boring artsy drivel,” Brian summed up his position, his tone more than assured that he’d done the right thing. “Besides, I never go after anyone, Mikey. I’ve never yet met anyone worth going after. If they want me then they can go after me. I’m NEVER going after anyone - EVER!”

Brian leaned back in his chair with a smug look before waving at a passing waiter in order to get another round of beers. Michael was still sitting on the edge of his seat, a devoted and reverent look on his face as he continued to beam a sycophantic smile at Brian. Michael’s admiring demeanor was echoed on several other faces throughout the bar as well.

As Brian lounged in his chair and sipped at the fresh beer, sopping up all the approval radiating his way, he felt vindicated in a way. Everything he’d gone through as a child, all the hardships, all the limitations he had from the start, seemed to fall away. Not just Michael, but all the men here in this bar clearly looked at him now as if he mattered. He felt important. He felt admired and respected - even if the only accomplishment he was being applauded for was his outrageousness, it was still more approval than he’d ever felt as a child. It was good. He liked this feeling. He liked being THIS Brian Kinney. If it meant that he’d go on feeling the adoration of the masses, he was determined to keep his fans happy however he could.

And that was the start of the legend of Brian Kinney, Stud of Liberty Avenue.