"Ah!" Emmett exclaimed as he spied Brian and Justin getting out of the taxi. "The Lost Boy returns."

"And in one piece," Ted added after running his eyes down the length of Justin’s body.

As the two approached them, Michael looked Brian over and noticed that he had recently taken a shower. As had Justin.

"Hey," he said. "Ready to head on back?"

"I don’t see why not," Brian responded. "You?"

Looking to Justin, who had the few possessions he had brought in a black backpack that was slung over his shoulder, he waited for an answer.

"Yeah," Justin said almost sheepishly.

"Well then, shall we?" Ted said as he began to walk back to the garage where they’d parked the jeep.

Justin remained rather silent during the brief walk but visibly relaxed and when Emmett slung his arm around his shoulders. Seeing that not only had Brian come for him but Michael, Ted and Emmett as well was beginning to make him feel rather guilty. Justin looked up to Emmett and smiled warmly in thanks before his eyes returned to Brian who had walking slightly ahead of him chatting lightly with Michael. When they got to the jeep, Ted suddenly stopped and folded his arms.

"Now here’s a problem," he began. "Where all we all gonna sit?"

Immediately, Brian reached into his jeans and pulled out his keys, tossing them to Michael who caught them with some effort. Then, he reached behind him and pulled Justin to him by the front of his sweater with a rough tug. Rolling his eyes, Michael got into the driver’s seat of the jeep as Ted and Emmett quickly exchanged a look of anxiety before they both made a mad dash for the passenger’s side. Emmett’s longer legs aided him well and he reached the car door first, pulling it open widely in victory as he shot Ted a satisfied smile.

"Christ," Ted mumbled under his breath as he climbed into the backseat along with Brian who had pulled Justin into his lap.

"Let’s get this thing going," Brian yelled from his seat as Michael started to ignition.

Once they were on the highway heading back to Pittsburgh, Emmett and Michael were amusing themselves by spotting various license plates as Ted struggled to ignore the two amorous men beside him who were busy locking lips. Justin had rearranged himself so that he was straddling Brian’s lap and ran his hands over Brian’s neck and hair as the older man caressed his shoulder and back through the material of his sweater.

"‘Florida’!" Emmett squealed with delight. "That’s two points."

"Fine," Michael agreed. "Don’t forget about that ‘Louisiana’ I saw a while back."

Emmett nodded his head as he wrote the information down on the sheet they were using to keep track. Daring a quick glance in the rearview mirror, Michael saw a scene almost identical to the night when Brian had first taken Justin home. Only this time Brian wasn’t high, Justin wasn’t scared and Ted was cowering in the backseat.

"You guys need to stop and stretch your legs or . . . anything?"

"Oh God bless you Michael," Ted exclaimed in relief. "And I think I deserve some time to sit up front."

"Um, says who honey?" Emmett questioned.

"Says me."

"I think Ted’s right," Michael agreed. "I mean, I’d do it but I’ve gotta drive."

Emmett frowned and looked back to the mass that was Brian and Justin.

"Have they been doing that since we left?"

"Yup," Ted was quick to reply.

"Amazing," Emmett added with a little laugh. "You’d think Brian would actually like him or something."

Without taking his lips from Justin’s Brian raised his right hand and calmly displayed his middle finger before returning it to Justin’s back.

A few hours later, the sun had gone down and the conversation had ceased. Ted was lightly snoring in the passenger’s side as Emmett was in the back. Michael struggled to keep in eyes on the road but found himself looking into the mirror above his head more than he meant to. Justin was now sitting sideways on Brian’s lap with his legs curled close to his body so that he wasn’t disturbing Emmett. While Justin was soundly asleep, his face buried in the crook of Brian’s neck, the older man’s eyes were open and staring mindlessly into the dark night.

Michael watched as Brian looked down to Justin who made a slight whimpering noise in his sleep and unconsciously tried to snuggle closer to the man holding him. Looking around for a moment in contemplation, Brian reached into the far back and grabbed one of his leather jackets that he had thrown back there before they left. In one smooth motion, he threw it over Justin and himself and leaned back into the seat again, closing his eyes. As if he could do nothing else, Michael studied his friend’s face as the muscles relaxed and became calm in a most beautiful fashion. His sharp facial features were slightly illuminated by the scarce streetlights that they occasionally passed and appeared to make him naturally radiate.

Suddenly, the jeep became brightly lit and Michael had to turn sharply to avoid hitting the oncoming car. The abrupt movement quickly roused Brian and soon after Ted and Emmett. It was only the feeling of Brian’s moving body that awoke Justin who groggily opened his eyes.

"What the fuck was that?" Ted questioned looking to Michael.

Emmett said nothing only stretched his long arms out before him and yawned. Glancing at the clock, Brian spoke.

"Hey Mikey, why don’t you find a motel?" he suggested. "We’ve still got two hours to go and everyone’s tired."

"No, it’s okay," Michael argued. "I can make it. Besides, I didn’t bring a lot of cash with me."

"I’ll pay for it," Brian stated. "Just find a somewhat cheaper one. My financial situation isn’t the best right now."

Brian directed the last bit of his statement to Justin but was somewhat surprised to discover that the young man had all ready fallen back to sleep. Michael nodded his head and took the next exit he saw leading to a small motel.

"Okay I said ‘cheaper’ not ‘rustic’," Brian said as they pulled in.

"You also said to pull over and this is going to be the last thing we see for while."

Brian grumbled but agreed as Michael parked the jeep towards the front of the entrance. Turning off the ignition, Michael walked around to Brian’s door and took his credit card from him before disappearing into the motel. Whispering something in his ear, Brian woke Justin who looked around for a moment in a sleepy daze as if he couldn’t remember where he was before he apparently remembered. Shrugging off Brian’s jacket, Justin attempted to remove himself from Brian’s lap but failed as his legs had been cramped for quite some time. Brian only smiled and helped him.

"You tryin’ to get rid of me?" Justin questioned with a smile.

"Yeah," Brian snorted. "I lot of good that’ll do me. I swear the more I push the tighter you hold on."

"You know you love me," Justin grinned as he finally managed to get out of the jeep and then held his hand out to Brian. Ignoring it, the taller man attempted to get out as well but ended up clasping the teenager’s hand when he found his legs were stiff as well. As Ted and Emmett assisted each other in cracking various joints, Michael returned from the front office.

"Hey," he said handing Brian back his credit card. "All they had left was one room with two queens."

At that, Emmett sharply turned.

"There’s only room for one queen in this group honey."

Justin smiled as Brian took the key from his friend.

"It’s fine. Let’s go."

Grabbing the few belongings that they had all packed, the five men headed into the room. Immediately, Brian threw his bag on the bed far to the right while everyone else awaited instruction. Upon seeing that Justin was looking around questioningly, Brian went forward and pulled the younger man to himself by the front of his shirt while he walked back to the bed. With that decided, the other three made their own decisions. Ted offered to take the couch, leaving Michael and Emmett in the other bed.

Grinning down at him, Brian’s fingers snaked under the hem of Justin’s shirt and pulled it over his head. After tossing the article on the floor beside the bed, Brian attacked Justin’s mouth.

"Oh jeez," Ted whined. "I think you two should sleep separately, or no one’s going to get any rest."

"Agreed," Emmett and Michael said in unison.

Brian only gave them a little smirk and held up his credit card, reminding them all who was paying for the room. The others sighed and began getting ready for bed. Brian smiled but released Justin and walked over to the other side of the bed where he removed his white over-shirt and jeans for the second time that day. Leaving his white muscle shirt on, he then crawled under the covers. Justin kept his own jeans on, deciding it was best for all involved, and slid into bed beside Brian. Soon after, the others emitted comfortable sighs.

"You all right over there Teddy?" Emmett asked from the bed he was sharing with Michael.

"Yeah," he answered. "Nothing a good chiropractor can’t fix."

"I can get David to see you when we get back," Michael offered.

"Maybe," Ted responded.

"Well good-night ladies," Emmett said in a cheerful but sleepy tone.

Various wishes of "good-night" came from the others and Emmett flicked the switch on the wall, throwing the room into darkness. No sooner had the lights gone off than Justin felt his heart beat rising. Brian was half-naked next to him in the dark, but so were all his friends. Nevertheless, it was unbearably enticing to feel the heat radiating from the older man beside him and not to be able to reach out for him. As his eyes adjusted to the room, he could make out Ted lying on his back on the couch and Michael on his belly with Emmett next to him on his back. The blond did not dare turn to look at Brian.

Soon after that thought went through his mind, Brian moved heavily next to him and before he could utter a syllable of protest, Justin found Brian lying directly on top of him looking down in an inviting stare. Even though he wanted to tell Brian "no" he allowed himself to be kissed and found himself soon responding as well. Feeling the familiar hands on his bare chest, Justin reached up and tangled his fingers in the hazel strands and kissed him deeper. Only when those hands found the waistband of his jeans did he pull away and lightly whisper "stop". Brian only smiled and then continued as if Justin had been making a joke and this caused the younger man to place a firm hand on his chest.

"No, Brian," he said a little louder.

"Why the hell not?" the man above him asked.

Justin’s eyes widened a little in disbelief.

"Your friends are right there," he said in an unbelieving tone.

"Oh please," Brian argued pushing his body down more on top on Justin’s. "Like every single one of them hasn’t seen me fuck at least once before."

Finishing his sentence, Brian’s lips found Justin’s again. At this point, Justin didn’t know if he should stand his ground and push him away or just give into him like his body was begging him to do. A certain memory however suddenly invaded his mind and he did indeed push Brian away.

"Stop Brian," he said in a firm tone.

The older man glared at him with a frustrated expression and then fell off him and onto the other side of the bed. Justin felt oddly strange that he had denied him, and it certainly was a first, but Justin knew first hand what it was like to watch someone you care about have sex. In more details than he wished to remember Justin could still recall "Hotlanta" kissing Brian before going down on him as he stood there and watched helplessly before he finally went to spend then night at Melanie and Lindsay’s. Deciding just to let Brian be upset with him, Justin turned his back to him and, curling his pillow under his arm, awaited sleep.

The next morning, Justin was the first to open his eyes. Looking across from him he saw that Michael was still lying on his stomach only now Emmett was using his back as a pillow. Ted had turned on his side and was cuddled up to a couch cushion. Smiling, Justin stretched the muscles in his legs, back, and arms. When he rolled over onto his belly to get few more minutes, he was surprised to feel Brian extremely close to him. Indeed, the older man was almost plastered to his back but his right arm was resting on his own hip and his left was around his waist. It seemed that Brian had wanted to get as close to him as possible without actually touching. Justin smiled and looked into the sleeping face, carefully toying with a brown wisp of hair, before he slowly and quietly rose out of the bed and went into the bathroom. After he was done, he washed his hands and walked back to find that Brian was now completely occupying the space that he had recently vacated. Justin moved to retrieve his shirt that he placed on the floor last night. Bending down, he picked it up but was so startled when he pulled back upright to find Brian’s sleepy eyes staring at him that the shirt fell back to the floor.

"Jesus," he gasped softly.

Brian smiled a little but swiftly relaxed his features again and as Justin moved away he clasped his wrist and pulled him down for a kiss.

"Brian," Justin responded in a warning tone when they pulled back. "Cut it out."

Brian only let his smile widen and pulled his entire body up to meet Justin’s lips again. The younger man tried to pull back, knowing that he would only push it farther, but Brian’s grip was too tight.

"No, stop," he said again but in a lighter tone. "I’ll scream rape."

Brian laughed against his warm, inviting mouth.

"You can’t rape the willing," he responded as he went back to the inviting mouth.

Justin could feel his resolve melting against the feel of him and this time he offered no resistance to him. Moving Justin back slightly, Brian pulled away and rose out of bed. The young blond tried not to be overtaken by the sight of his strong, naked legs as the tall man pulled him by his hands into the bathroom, shutting the door loudly behind them. The sharp noise was enough to jolt Michael out of his reseeding sleep. Stretching, he groaned when he felt Emmett’s weight on his back.

"Em," he said softly.

"Hmm?"

"You’re crushing me."

"Oh," Emmett said. "Sorry sweetie."

Emmett rolled over and stretched his own legs before he got out of bed and did the same with his arms.

"Aw, isn’t he cute?"

Michael followed his friend’s gaze to Ted who was clutching at the cushion like an infant to its mother. Michael smiled and looked over to the other bed, furrowing his brow when he saw that it was empty.

"Hey," he questioned. "Where’d they go?"

Emmett looked around the room and upon spying the light coming from the crack under the bathroom door, nodded towards it.

"You have to ask?"

Michael followed his gaze and immediately felt awkward. How could the two of them do that knowing that they were all out here? Emmett had knelt by Ted and was trying to rouse him when the door suddenly opened and Brian and Justin walked out looking very disheveled and flushed. Neither of them showed any shame for what they had done but then again, they’d done the same thing in Michael’s own bedroom. Why would a motel bathroom stop them?

"Morning," he said as he looked at Brian with a knowing stare as his best friend moved to slide his forgotten jeans back on. Working on the buttons, Brian raised his eyebrows at him.

"Morning," he said sarcastically. "Let’s go get some breakfast."

"What’s the rush?" Emmett questioned. "Looks like you two have already eaten."

Michael noticed that while the comment earned a sly smile from his best friend, Justin kept his eyes downcast and blushed slightly.

"We might as well just more on," Ted groggily agreed. "We don’t have that much longer right?"

"Like an hour," Michael answered.

"Well then let’s go!" Emmett said.

After they had all taken turns showering, they packed up their clothes the five men headed out to the jeep and started heading back towards Pittsburgh. Despite whatever feelings they may have had, everyone returned to the same seats with the exception of Ted returning to the back with Brian and Justin. Finally, it seemed that it had sunk into Brian’s head that Justin was uncomfortable with what they had done in the bathroom. After all, the young man had only known them all for about half a year. He was still in their territory. So thankfully while he still sat in Brian’s lap in the back, the older man kept their embraces to a minimum, only the occasional nudge at his ear or neck followed by a brief session of kissing. As they crossed the state line back into Pittsburgh, it occurred to Michael that he wasn’t quite sure where he was dropping everyone off. He’d taken the day off from The Big Q but Ted and Emmett still had to go in today.

"Hey," he said. "Where can I drop you all off? Back at home or what?"

"Actually, just let me out on Liberty," Emmett said. "I need to be at work in about an hour anyway."

"Ditto," Ted responded.

"What about you?" Michael asked looking in the rearview mirror.

Justin looked up to Brian in curiosity. After all, he had no clue where he was going. All he knew was that Brian wouldn’t let him live in the loft anymore.

"Just take us to Deb’s," Brian said.

"What? Why?" Michael asked.

"Just do it," Brian said in an annoyed tone.

Without questioning it further Michael did as he was instructed. After Ted and Emmett had been let out, Michael offered shotgun to Brian who surprised him by declining. This of course garnered a huge smile from Justin that quickly vanished when he accidentally met Michael’s eyes. When they got to Debbie’s house, Brian continued to surprise his friend by asking him to busy himself and let him speak with his mother alone. Confused and on the brink of utter annoyance, Michael agreed. When Justin moved to follow Michael who was apparently going to walk around, Brian grabbed him by his sleeve.

"Not you," he said pulling him into the house. "Come here."

Like a puppy obeying his mater Justin followed Brian blindly onto the front steps where soon after Debbie emerged to let them in. As soon as she saw him the colorful woman embraced Justin.

"Oh thank God you’re back Sunshine!" She said and with a sweeping glance down his body added. "And in one piece."

"Jesus, does everyone think I was going to dismember him?" Brian said.

Smiling, Debbie looked passed the two men and into the empty jeep.

"Where’s Michael?"

"I asked him to take a walk," Brian said. "I need to ask you something."

After about 30 minutes of aimless walking, Michael climbed the front steps to his mother’s house and slipping his key in the lock walked inside. Following the light chatter into the kitchen where he found Justin sitting at the table, his mother making hot chocolate, and Brian leaning against the counter with a beer in his hand.

"Great news Mikey!" Debbie said excitedly. "Sunshine’s gonna stay here from now on."

"What do you mean he’s staying here?" he asked taking a seat next to the boy in question at the table.

"I talked to his mom," Debbie continued. ‘She’s all for it."

"Well I’m not!" Michael complained.

"Well what do you care you’re moving in with David," she defended.

"It’s still my room it’s still got some of my things in it," he retorted.

"Well maybe you’d like to move some of your things out," Debbie suggested. "Sunshine’s gonna need to closet space."

Sighing, Michael cast an angry look at Brian who was regarding the entire situation with nothing but humor.

"This is all your fault thanks a fucking lot."

"What a minute," his mother interjected. "Brian finally did something right."

Walking over to where she sat, Brian crouched down and kissed her lightly on the cheek.

"Why Deb that’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me."

Smiling, Debbie reached out and playfully swatted the side of his face.

"Don’t press your luck," she warned him with a smile as he stood again.

Turning to Michael, Justin flashed him a childlike look.

"Don’t worry," he said. "I promise I’ll take care of it."

"You’d better," he answered in a non-amused tone. "Because I’m going to be making unscheduled checks. If anything’s missing . . . or damaged."

Brian laughed from where he stood and leaned back into the counter.

"Why don’t you two boys run along," Debbie indicated. "And let me explain the rules of the house to the newest member of our family."

"More rules?" Justin said disappointed.

Debbie nodded as Brian and Michael moved to leave.

"Starting with," she began. "No bringing tricks home after midnight."

Slowly Justin’s face relaxed in surprise and he listened with heightened interest to what else Debbie had to say.

Later that evening Brian returned to his loft to find it drastically empty. While he blamed it on the fact that almost everything of value he owned had been stolen, somewhere inside in recesses no man has ever ventured he knew it was partially because he missed the annoying little twink. But Christ, a lot of fucking things had been stolen and it pissed him off more than he ever thought possible. It was going to take months before the insurance companies reimbursed him and he could buy back the majority of his wardrobe. Cursing again under his breath he took of his shirt and headed to the shower but stopped when the heard the shrill calling of the phone. Upon seeing the caller ID, Brian smiled and picked it up.

"Is she kicked you out all ready?"

"No," Justin laughed on the other end. "I just wanted to call and say I’m sorry again . . . and thanks for everything you did."

"It’s fine."

"Are you still really mad about what happened?"

For some reason Brian felt compelled to lie.

"Nah," he responded softly. "It’ll be okay. Now, replacing all the fucking food you ate is going to be quite the challenge."

"Hey I made some of that for you!" Justin defended playfully. "And you loved it!"

Brian smiled.

"I said it was all right."

There was a silence between them that was quickly becoming uncomfortable.

"Well, I’m gonna go," Justin said. "So, I am going to see you again right?"

"Yeah, you’ll see me," Brian answered. "You can’t miss me."

"Okay," Justin said in a reassured tone. "Bye."

Brian waited for the click on the other end before he hung up as well. Smiling to himself, he unzipped his pants and turned on the warm water, watching as it danced against the cool tile.

back to stories
home