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BRIAN

 

Everyone except for Lindsay, Jenny, and Mel were at the diner when Justin, Gus, and I arrived. Michael begged us all to help get the girls moved. The girls seemed to think everyone could just bring cars to help get the stuff they put in storage to their house.

 

“I know they've moved more than once. Why do they want to spend all day on this, possibly longer?” Drew asked.

 

“Mom does this thing where she wants to do one room at a time. Something about placing everything where it should be.” Gus tells him.

 

“Then getting one of us to move it a month later.” Ted tells us.

 

“It's just, it would be faster to rent a moving truck, and guys to get it done. I don't mind helping, but none of our cars are made to haul couches and tables.” Drew tells us.

 

“Girls always want to do things the hard way.” Michael complains.

 

“Excuse me?” Comes attitude from Deb.

 

“I mean Lindsay and Mel.” Michael back peddles.

 

“You'd better.” She tells him, glaring.

 

Hunter comes in with Shelby following behind and asks why Deb is glaring. Michael tries to dig himself out, before Ben saves him.

 

“Why do they want to do things the hard way?” Shelby asked.

 

“We established that according to Michael, it's because they’re girls.” Emmett teases.

 

“Gus, how about we let the boys talk while you and I go check on Carl, a real man.” Deb glares at Michael. She threw her apron at Michael, taking Gus with her out the door.

 

“Mikey’s in trouble.” I chant.

 

“How is that new?” Ben asks us.

 

“Mel always tries to find ways to save money.” Ted tells Shelby.

 

“Doesn't Kinnetik offer relocation?” Justin asks.

 

“Yes my genius, it does. Hunter time to earn that check.” I tell him, kissing my genius. “Now we don't have to spend the day with the girls, playing musical furniture.” I tell them.

 

“Justin, you’re my favorite.” Michael tells him, kissing him.

 

“Saying thanks is all you needed to do.” I glare at Mikey.

 

“Yeah, don't do that again.” Justin wrinkles his nose.

 

“So it's twins?” Ben asks, laughing at Michael groaning.

 

“Please refer to them as Brent and Jamie, everything else makes Brian cranky.” Justin tells them, trying to keep a straight face. While I ignore the looks I'm being given.

 

“How's Marco?” I ask, as Emmett’s head hits the table.

 

“Emmett is still having issues?” Blake asks.

 

“Have you seen the guy?” Emmett asks.

 

“No, but I thought you were having problems with your other fantasy.” Blake tells him.

 

“What fantasy?” Justin asks. Emmett just stares at him. “You know, never mind.” Justin shakes his head.

 

“You seriously can’t say you and Brian never imagined one of us.” Emmett tells him.

 

“Nope, not once.” I tell him.

 

“Ben for the first few seconds after meeting him, but other than that, no.” Justin tells him.

 

“Not even Drew?” Emmett asks.

 

“By the time I met Drew there was already the established friend zone.” Justin tells him.

 

“What's the friend zone?” Blake asks.

 

“The place Justin and I didn't cross.” I tell him.

 

“It's not like we talked about it, but it was understood that our friends were off limits and so was anyone involved with them. So, I never bothered with imagining anything about you guys. Plus, we took so much flack for having an open relationship that you guys ruined all your chances of me imagining you guys in some of our games.” Justin tells them, snickering.

 

“My stance on that changed after watching the stuff all of us went through. I still wouldn't want one, but I understand it more.” Emmett tells us.

 

“Not me.” Michael tells us.

 

“I agree with Emmett. Who you love doesn't necessarily mean someone you choose to have sex with. It's considered wrong only because people have preconceived notions that sex equals love.” Ben tells him.

 

“Congratulations Professor, you figured out what these guys never did.” I tell him.

“Yet you two gave it up.” Michael tells me, smirking.

 

“Justin could do things better than anyone else. I figured it was time to stop kidding myself that there was anyone who could out do this mouth.” I answered, kissing said mouth.

 

JUSTIN

 

Brian and Ted left to meet my mom and go look at the building we were buying, taking Hunter with them to give the girls the information on the relocation expenses they could use, instead of us. I needed to work on some drafts for Kinnetik and give Shelby some blueprints for Rage and Zephyr. Michael was willing to look at some ideas for sexing his comic up, but wanted me to draw the first panels. Ben was coming with us to Britin, so I could sketch him. Michael decided he'd actually rather wait till it was done. I put Shelby in the kitchen, since Ben seemed nervous about modeling for me.

 

“I was only going to have you wear a bathing suit.” I tell him.

 

“Shelby is going to be my son-in-law, I doubt he wants to see this.” He tells me, getting changed.

 

“It’s different when I’m drawing, to me it’s looking to see the lines and bring out as much of the original as possible.” I tell him, getting started.

 

“It’s hard being the inanimate object.” He tells me.

 

“It’s not that I view you as an object, I see you for the well built man you are. My feeling is that when people model, they’re doing the artist a favor by doing it and don’t need to feel violated while doing their job.” I tell him.

 

“Michael’s comic does well as it is, why change it?” He asks me.

 

“Because Michael wants it, even though he’s still wary of doing it. He might fight me, but in the end he knew we were putting out a comic no one would. Once he’s able to see it could work without turning you into a sex object, he’ll do it.” I tell him.

 

“Why are you having Shelby help with Rage, other than Michael, you never let anyone help.” He tells me.

 

“I think it’s time for a fresh perspective. I don’t want it to reflect so much on Brian, the same way you don’t feel Zephyr should reflect your lives. I was going to offer to sell it to Michael, but he can’t see anyone but me drawing it. I’m hoping Shelby can show him there can be other illustrators.” I tell him.

 

“You don’t want to do it anymore?” He asks me.

 

“I was never as into it as Michael was, I only kept doing it because it kept me from having to depend on Brian for things. I don’t want to end it, but I also don’t want to deal with the deadlines when I’m busy with other things.” I tell him.

 

“The babies?” He asks.

 

“It’s a lot of it. My life as it is, doesn’t leave a lot of room for kids. Brian and I do well juggling Gus’s schedule, but the kids are going to live with us. I want time to be a father and not worry about having ten other things on my plate.” I tell him.

 

“Have you and Brian talked about how you’re going to manage it with Kinnetik and your shows?” He asks, getting comfortable on a chair.

 

“He knows that I want to be involved in my kids lives, and he never questions when I decide what I want to do. Rage was never something he cared as much about.” I tell him.

 

“Brian only cared that you were happy with anything you did.” He tells me.

 

“Not at first, at first he was constantly trying to force me to do things. It took what happened before New York for him to stop trying to make decisions for me.” I tell him.

 

“What Lindsay did?” He asks.

 

“She got blinded by what she would have wanted, then used Brian’s insecurity that he was holding me back to have us deciding I needed to go. It wasn’t all her, I wanted to eventually do it, but when I wanted to, not because everyone else thought I should.” I tell him.

 

“It probably came from the way Brian had to push Lindsay and Michael to do everything, he forgot who you were.” He tells me.

 

“It didn’t help that I forgot who Brian was when I started making a career.” I tell him.

 

“I only remember one time when I could say something was wrong with you two. Brian was hard to be around.” He tells me.

 

“It was when I stopped calling and took off to figure out if I was doing what was best for us. He found me and we talked to each other. I wanted to come home, and fuck the art world.” I tell him.

 

“Which didn’t happen.” He tells me.

 

“No, he told me taking the easy way out wasn’t us. Reminded me that we made promises to each other and he was still holding on to them.” I tell him.

 

“It really shows the strength of your relationship with him.” He tells me.

 

“I always thought you showed a lot of strength, staying with Michael in the beginning.” I tell him.

 

“I had to live with the ghost of Brian at the beginning. Michael finally stopped seeing a future that included him and Brian. I think a lot of it had to do with you.” He tells me.

 

“Our friendship?” I ask.

 

“The friendship is part of it, but it’s all the things that Brian depended on you for. You work with him in Kinnetik and help him when he needs to attend business functions. With Michael, Brian never depended on him for more, because he knew Michael couldn’t understand things the way you do.” He tells me.

 

“I really think it’s that Michael saw this, and Brian wasn’t going to do what you do for him.” I tell him turning the pad to him.

 

“You always amaze me.” He tells me, staring at himself.

 

“You know, Brian always adds ‘twat’ to that.” I tell him.

 

I left Ben to get dressed, only to see Brian telling Shelby something's different with Rage when he draws it.

 

“I drew the man I loved.” I tell him.

 

 

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