I was right about how crowded the diner would be. It was pretty much empty when I got there. There were a few people at the counter, and the booths were empty except for the one occupied by Ted, Emmett, and Michael. I placed my order at the counter then headed over to sit with them while I waited.

They of course, are in their own little world and don’t see me approaching them.

Emmett is busy sipping his iced tea and relating some kind of story while looking intently at Michael. He’s wildly gesturing with his hands and suddenly he turns hushed.

“He’s soooooo in love with Justin.” Of course, I’m their topic of conversation. I should have figured. ‘Shut up Emmett’ I’m thinking as I stand back to listen.

“Oh Emmett, you’ve been saying that for years. That it’s only a matter of time before they’d be back together. It’s been ten years. They’re definitely not getting back together.” ‘Shut the fuck up Ted.’ What the hell does he know?

“Teddy… How can’t you see it?” Now I’m back to thinking ‘Shut up Emmett.’ I almost laugh not sure which version I like better, the soap opera fantasy that Emmett has of Justin and I, or Ted’s views on the world as he knows it.

“The only thing I see is Brian being Brian. He wants to be in charge. He has to control everything, even Justin’s recovery, again.” ‘Shut the fuck up Ted. I care about him, fine I still love him, that doesn’t mean I’m ready for everyone to talk about it, Emmett’s version wins.’

“I don’t think it’s any of our business.” ‘There ya go Mikey.’ At this point I decide to make my presence known. I slide in next to Michael and give Emmett and Ted my best smile.

“It’s NOT any of your business. So why don’t you all just shut the fuck up?” I avoid their guilty looks of being caught talking about me behind my back by watching as our waitress comes over and turns my coffee cup over and pours me some. I take a sip and decide to let them off easy.

“So? How is everyone?” I realize I haven’t seen much of them lately, just a few minutes here and there when they’ve been in to see Justin. It’s funny how now that he’s awake their visits seem fewer and farther between.

A weird silence was surrounding the table and Michael was the first to speak up, probably because he knew I hadn’t heard him say anything terrible or just because he’s clueless sometimes. Ted and Emmett both looked grateful that he was breaking the silence.

“I’m doing great. The store’s doing great. Things are pretty much great.” He’s eating a bowl of pudding with a spoon and he’s stuffing his mouth between sentences. I’m suddenly wondering why no one ever taught him how to correctly hold his utensils.

I look over at Emmett. He flashes me a smile and starts chattering on about the latest pieces of disco trash clothing that arrived in at Torso earlier in the day. I’m nodding like I care and find myself looking over at the counter wondering how long it actually takes to cook a cheeseburger and some French fries. I’m almost betting I could do it faster than this and I haven’t cooked anything in over ten years. Even then I was just heating up a can of soup for Justin when he was sick once.

I smile thinking about him. Even now, with his limited vocabulary, our conversations are a lot more interesting than this one is. I groan inwardly as I hear Ted recounting a porn incident gone wrong today on his website. I’m still feigning interest though and nodding occasionally.

“What about you Brian?” Emmett asks cautiously.

“You know me. I’m always fabulous.” I’m surprised when I realize that I actually do feel fabulous today. That hasn’t happened in a long time. I know it’s because Justin’s doing better. Truth be told the biggest reason for my improved mood is because we’re back in each other’s lives finally, just as friends but who knows… maybe?

“How’s Justin doing?” Ted asks, but looks as if he’d wished he hadn’t mentioned him for fear of reminding me of his earlier comments.

“Justin’s doing fine.” That’s all they need to know. “You might try visiting him a little more. He’d appreciate it.”

Ted looked down embarrassed and Emmett’s cheeks flushed as he nodded.

“It’s just hard Brian. We don’t know what to say to him. We don’t even know if he understands us. He doesn’t say anything. How do you know he hasn’t suffered some kind of brain damage?” If he didn’t sound so serious, I’d probably be more pissed off by that statement than I already am

“Michael, The only one with brain damage here is you. So shut the fuck up.” I roll my eyes and can’t believe he actually believes that. “Spend some time with him Mikey, you’ll see he’s just as smart as ever.”

We all sit there in silence until a few seconds later, when my cell phone rings. I pick it up and hearing the voice on the other end I excuse myself from the table. I walk over toward the front door where it’s quieter. I’m positive as soon as I hear her voice that I’m going to need some privacy for this call.

“Brian? Jennifer Taylor. I called my office today and they gave me your message.” Her voice is very cold and I feel myself tense up.

“Hello, Mrs. Taylor.” I feel like I’m standing in front of her condo and she’s telling me that she never wants me to see her son again.

“Oh God. What’s wrong?” Something about my voice must have clued her in.

“Relax, he’s okay. Well, he’s okay now anyway.” I sigh and slide into an empty booth.

She’s getting hysterical on her end and she hasn’t even heard me actually say that anything is wrong. She assumes and now she’s freaking out, jumping to conclusions and I’ve already told her that he’s okay. She’s calming down a little and repeating “I never should have left the country.”

“Mrs. Taylor.” If she’ll shut up for a minute, I’ll continue. I light a cigarette and the waitress is now at this table pouring me another cup of coffee. Jennifer finally is silent and lets me continue.

“He’s in the hospital. Head Injury. He’s awake.” For some reason I can’t get out much more than that. Her hysteria has rubbed off on me some I suppose.

“I’m coming home.” I nod as if she can see me. “How is he? You said he’s okay.”

“Yeah, he’s okay. He was in a coma for about five weeks, but he woke up about two weeks ago.

“Why didn’t anyone contact me?” She sounds as if she’s accusing me now.

“Jennifer I tried. I left this message for you seven weeks ago. You don’t fucking check your messages for two months and that’s my fault?”

I inhale some smoke deeply and exhale slowly trying to stay calm. Between Mikey’s comments and now Jennifer’s accusing tone; my fabulous mood is slipping away.

“I’m sorry Brian. I’m not blaming you, just calm down.”

“Yes you are. You’re always blaming me for something and I am calm.”

“Brian, I don’t want to argue with you again. Are you there with him now?” She asks.

“No. I’m at the diner picking up dinner for him.” She sighs heavily into the phone and I’m sure it’s because I’m spending time with him and that terrifies her.

“I’m going to go now. I’ll call Justin at the hospital to let him know that I’m on my way home as soon as I can make arrangements to get a flight out of here.”

“Don’t.”

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t call him.” As soon as those words are out of my mouth, I realize I’ve nearly raised my voice to yelling. The boys are staring at me now. I scowl at them and they turn back to what they were doing.

“Why?”

“He can’t talk to you. It’ll only upset him.”

“What do you mean he can’t talk to me?”

“I mean he can’t. It’s a part of his injury; he’s lost a lot of his vocabulary. He can’t verbalize what he’s thinking. I’ve talked to a specialist; it’s going to be fine. Justin’s going to start working with him next week and he seems positive that it’s only going to be temporary. He’s just frustrated right now and you calling, even if you think it’s just to talk to him isn’t going to help things right now; it’s going to make it worse. Trust me.”

“Brian?” Her voice is softer now; she’s almost too calm for words.

“Yeah?” I see the waitress heading my way with my takeout order.

“Tell him that I’m coming home.”

“I will. I’ve got to go.” The waitress sets down my order on the table and I fish some money out of my wallet and hand it to her. “Our food’s done and I need to get back there before it gets cold.”

“Thanks.” She says and it sounds like more than a thank you for giving him my message. It’s more like a thank you for taking care of him. I don’t want to deal with her mixed signals so I choose to ignore it.

“No problem. I’ll tell him. Bye.” I close my phone and pick up the food and head toward the door. Michael, Emmett and Ted are leaving as well and they catch up to me outside as I’m getting into the jeep.

“Brian?” Mikey is looking at me trying to read my face. I just look at him hesitantly and wide eyed.

“Are you okay?” He looks genuinely worried about me.

“I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” His hovering can be rather annoying so I’m sure my words are sharp and perhaps filled with a trace of anger.

“Who was that on the phone?” I sigh as he stares at me like a mother hen.

“Jennifer Taylor.” I make a face and he laughs.

“No wonder you look like you’ve been in the middle of a prize fight.”

I grin. He’s seen Jennifer and I go round and round with each other. For eight years I had to deal with her. I was the monster that corrupted her son. Then the person she tolerated for his sake. Eventually I was just the asshole who kept hurting him and making him miserable. She probably never knew she was one of the main reasons that I let him go. She finally got through to me one day and made me see how much I kept hurting him. She’s the one that made me see what I was doing to him. Damn her.

“It was fine Mikey. We were on our best behavior.” I smile rather unconvincingly.

“Yeah, I’m sure. That’s why you were yelling at her.” I grin.

“That is my best behavior Mikey. You know that.”

He smiles and turns with a little wave as he walks off toward his store. I get into my jeep and head back to the hospital and back to Justin.

To Be Continued…