Just Us - Part 7

“What do you mean you’re not going?”

Lindsay rushed right over the moment he told her on the phone that he wasn’t coming along.

“I mean…I’m NOT going to the airport… I’m NOT getting on a plane…and I’m NOT flying to the big apple.”

“But how can you not be there?”

“Lindsay…”

“Do you know how important it is to him?  This is the most important day in an artist’s career.”

“What is it with women and taking care of Justin?  Is it because he looks like he’s 12?  ‘Cause I gotta tell you…he’s not as innocent as he looks,” he tried to joke.

“Brian!”

He decided to switch tactics.  “Look, he knows that I won’t be there.  And he’s ok with it.  Besides, it’s not like I’ve never seen his work before.”

“Yes, but this is different.  This is his own show.  He needs to have his family and friends there.”

“And he will…you’ll be there, his mommy, Debbie, Daphne…Andrew.”

Then it hit her.

“So, that’s what this is all about?” she asked.

“No.  That’s not what this is all about.”

“Then what?”

He sighed.  “It’s his chance for something…better…better than Pittsburg…better…better than…”

“You?” she finished.

He looked at her.  She walked over to him.

“He’s a big boy, Brian.  Maybe you should let HIM decide what’s better for HIM.”

~~~

He walked through the dance floor towards the bar.  The choice of potential fucks was very poor tonight.  He was hoping that a few drinks would help getting his mind off things and make him less picky.

The bartender came back with his drink when he heard a familiar voice next to him order a beer.  He turned to see Andrew.

“Brian Kinney in Babylon…looking for a fuck…now there’s a surprise,” Andrew said sarcastically.

“Shouldn’t you be in New York playing a supportive wife to the famous artist?” Brian asked in return.

Andrew looked at him confused.  “What the hell are you talking about?”

Now it was Brian’s turn to look confused.  “I’m talking about Justin’s opening…in New York.”

Andrew narrowed his eyes.  “He didn’t tell you, did he?” 

Brian’s confusion grew even more. 

Andrew snickered, “You know…you two REALLY deserve each other.”  Then his features growing serious, “Justin and I broke up over a month ago.”

Andrew got his drink and walked away, leaving a stunned Brian to ponder on what this all mean.

~~~

“Sunshine!” Debbie they spotted Justin in the gallery.

Justin beamed his smile at all of them.  He made his way over to them and got hugs from everybody. 

“Sorry I couldn’t meet you at the airport.  We were finishing up all the preparations.”

“Oh, that’s ok, honey.  We understand,” his mother responded for all of them.

“I’ll ask Natalie to call a car for you so you can go to the hotel and change,” Justin said and went in search of Kevin’s assistant.

“Wow, these are great,” Ted said.  They were looking at Justin’s work hanging on the walls.

“Don’t tell me you’ve never seen his work, Teddy,” Emmett said to him.

“I haven’t seen these.”

“This one is amazing,” Debbie was standing in front of a drawing of Brian and Justin the night before Justin left.  “When do you think he drew that?”

Michael walked over and stood next to her.

“Probably when they were still together,” he guessed. 

The whole group stared at the drawing…amazed at Justin’s talent, but also sad that the two people who had so much love and passion for each other were apart now…probably for good now.

~~~

“Honey, is Andrew coming?” Jennifer asked as she was about to get in the car.

Justin looked away.  He hated lying, especially to his mother.

“No.  He had some family stuff.”

“Oh.”

Before she could say anything else, he added.  ”I’ll see you tonight, mom.”  He gave her a peck on the cheek and she got in.

~~~

He stared at the familiar drawing…the one of the two of them.  It was now finished and even more extraordinary.  He was drawn to it…hypnotized by it.

“It’s not for sale.”

He turned to see Justin standing behind him.

“Everything’s for sale, Justin.  You just have to find the right price.”

Justin smiled at him.

“What are you doing here?” he asked him.

“I was in the neighborhood,” Brian joked.

Justin smiled again.  Looked around, then back at Brian.

“I need a cigarette,” he said. 

Brian nodded.

As soon as they were outside, Brian took out a pack of cigarettes, offering one to Justin, then taking one out for himself, lighting Justin’s, then his own. 

Puffing out a cloud of smoke, he said.  “Looks like it’s going great.”

Justin shrugged, “Yeah, I guess.  Still feels surreal.  I keep pinching myself.”

Brian laughed softly.

“You deserve it,” he said seriously.

“I don’t…I don’t think I belong here.”

Brian snorted out a laugh, “You are so full of shit.”

When Justin gave him a confused look, he continued.  “I’ve watched you in there,” he motioned towards the gallery, “You were…incredible.  The way you handled all of them.  This IS where you belong.”

“It’s just so fake…all of it…all of them.”

“What did you expect?”

“I don’t know,” Justin shrugged.

“Look, fake or not…they’re here because of your art.  They might be gushing over it a bit more than they really should, but trust me, nobody’s going to spend that kind of money if they didn’t think it was worth it.,” Brian reassured him.  

Justin smiled.  “I already sold two,” he bragged.

“Well, considering most of drawings are of my dick, I’m not surprised,” Brian joked.

Justin made a face at him, pretending to be offended.

“Justin, what in the world are you doing out here?” Natalie’s head popped out of the doorway.  “You have to mingle…you’re the artist here, remember?”

“I’ll be right there,” he responded.  When she disappeared, he let out a loud sigh.  “I should get back,” he said turning to Brian.  He put out his cigarette.  “Are you gonna stick around?”

Brian shrugged, “You know me.”

Justin nodded, understanding what that meant.  He tried to smile, but failed miserably.  “Bye, Brian,” he said softly.

Brian watched Justin through the windows…shaking hands, smiling, talking about absolutely nothing to people he didn’t know.  Suddenly Justin’s world has changed.  And now Brian found himself as an outsider looking in.  And he hated that feeling more than anything…whether they were together or not…he was always a part of Justin’s world and Justin of his.  Now it was changing.  He knew that if he walked away now, there would be no going back.  He’d lose Justin forever. 

~~~

Finally, having said good bye to his family and friends, Justin made his way to the hotel bar.  Even though it was very late, he knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep.  He sat at the bar and ordered a drink.  The opening night went great.  He sold three of his works already and got a lot of great feedback.  Kevin introduced him to all the important people that for the life of him he couldn’t remember the names off…the people who could help progress his career.  He should be ecstatic.  So, why wasn’t he?

“Mr. Taylor?” a guy from the front desk came up behind him.

“Yes.”

“This is for you,” the man gave him an envelope and left before Justin could thank him.

The envelope had “Justin Taylor, room 312” printed on it.

Justin opened the envelope.  There was a small piece of paper inside.  He took it out, immediately noticing Brian’s writing.  The note said, “Your room – Now.” 

Justin looked around, but didn’t see him or anybody else around.  He threw some money on the counter, got off the stool and made his way out of the bar.

~~~

Slowly opening the door, he walked in and looked around.  The room was lit with candles, table in the middle of the room set with more candles and flowers, a cart with a tray of food sitting next to it. 

“What took you so long?”

Startled Justin looked up to see Brian coming out the corner with a bottle of wine in his hands.

“You know Deb…she won’t leave you alone until you’re covered in lipstick,” he joked. 

Brian smiled, then walked over to the table, trying to open the wine in the process. 

“How did you get in here?” Justin asked.

“Natalie,” was his answer.

Justin laughed.  He didn’t need to know any more.  Brian could talk anybody into doing anything he wanted them to.

Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the table and stood facing Brian who was still working on opening the wine.  Gently, he took the bottle out of Brian’s hands and put it down on the table…their eyes fixed on each other’s.  Pulling his head down, Justin kissed him softly. 

~~~

He opened his eyes to find that he was alone in the room.  He looked around…Brian’s sweater that he ripped off the night before, his pants, jacket…they all were gone.  He flopped back down on the pillows and let out a loud sigh.  He was sure that last night meant that Brian wanted him back…it was his way of asking Justin to come back home.  Now he knew it was just another fuck.  He looked at the clock on the nightstand.  9:30. He knew that his friends’ flight was leaving at 12pm and they expected to see him before they left.  So, he got out of bed and started to get dressed. 

He zipped up his pants and was in the process of deciding which sweater to wear when the door suddenly opened.  He turned to see Brian walking in with a bag over his shoulder and a cup of coffee in his hand.  Brian stopped and looked at him.

“Going somewhere?”

“I thought you…” he didn’t trust himself to finish the sentence.  He was so surprised to see Brian there.  He looked away, blinking the tears away. 

“Where’d you go?” he finally asked.

Brian walked over to the bed and put the bag down. 

“Had to get my stuff from the jeep.  Plus, I needed a cup of coffee that costs five bucks,” he smirked, repeating Justin’s words.

Justin smiled back at him.  “I’m sure the hotel coffee costs ten bucks and is just as bad for you.”

Brian walked over to him and kissed him. 

“Morning,” he whispered, pulling away a bit.

“Morning,” Justin said in returned, searching his face for any sign of what was on his mind. 

Brian kissed him again, then walked over to the window.  “Besides, I needed to talk to Kevin.”

“Kevin?  About what?” Justin asked curiously.

Brian turned away from the window and looked at him.

“He said that you really don’t need to move to New York.  You can work just as well back home and if they need you to be here for an opening or for some lame ass party, you can always fly in for a few days.”

Justin raised his eye brows in surprised.  This was as close as Brian would ever come to asking him to come back home.  He wanted to tell Brian that he didn’t need to convince him.  He already made up his mind when Brian showed up at the opening.  But he wanted to see Brian squirm a bit.

“Just like that?”

Brian held his breath.  “Yes.”

Justin walked over to the window to stand next to his lover. 

“Ok?” Brian asked him.

Justin kissed him.

“Ok,” he simply said.

They were making out on the bed when they heard a knock on the door.

“Who’s that?” breathless Brian asked.

“Oh, shit…my mom…and the others,” Justin practically jumped off of him, zipping up his pants and pulling the first shirt he could lay his hands on from the closet.

Brian held himself up on elbows, watching his lover run around the room like crazy.  Another, louder, knock followed.  Justin stopped suddenly and looked at him. 

“What do I tell them?” About us, he meant.

Brian just shrugged. 

Another knock.

“Coming,” Justin yelled out.  Put his sweater on and headed towards the door.

He peeped out the door to see the whole gang along with his mom and sister standing in the hall.

“Hi, guys,” he smiled at them, pulling the door shut behind him. 

“Whatta hell took you so long?”  Debbie asked as she walked towards the door, with intention of getting inside the room.

Justin blocked the door knob, “Uh…it’s kinda messy in there,” he lied. 

He didn’t know what to tell them about him and Brian.  He didn’t know what to tell himself about him and Brian.  He decided that first they had to figure out what they were before everybody else found out. 

“Messy?  Justin, you lived in my house, remember,” Debbie said.

“Someone got lucky last night,” Emmett said.

Everybody turned to him, then back to Justin.

“Andrew’s here?  Let’s go say hi,” Debbie said, trying to make her way to the door again.

“Uh…it’s… not…Andrew,” Justin said.

“Oh,” Debbie looked at him confused.  Then realization hit her.  “Oh.” She said again. 

“Well, we should be going,” Jennifer said, ending the uncomfortable silence.

Justin nodded, gave everybody a hug, and wished them a safe flight home.

When he saw the elevator doors close behind them, he went back into the room.  He found Brian sitting in the chair by the window, drinking his coffee.  When he closed the door, Brian looked at him.

“They’re gone?”

“Yep.”

He walked over and sat on the bed.

“Why are you here?” he asked.

Brian stood up, put the coffee cup on the table again, and walked over to where Justin was.  Justin looked up at him. 

“Well, the last time we were here we didn’t get to see much of New York.” 

Justin laughed.  Brian pushed him back on the bed and got on top of him.

“I thought we’d do some sightseeing.”  He started kissing Justin’s neck.

“You do realize that I have been to New York before, right?” Justin said panting.

Brian pulled away a little bit, so he could see his lover’s face. 

“You haven’t been to New York with ME.”

Justin laughed. 

“How long can we stay?” Justin asked.

“As long as you want.”

Brian covered Justin’s mouth with his own in a passionate kiss.

Go to Part 8

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