Characters and show are not owned by me, obviously.
"When?"
"Friday," Michael answered just before a click followed by a buzzing tone signified that the call had been ended, not by himself. A frustrated sigh left his lips as he lowered the phone from his ear, snapped it shut, and tucked it back into the pocket of his worn jeans. Please let this end well.
"And tonight, we have a lot of lost time to make up for, boys," Brian completed his speech in a raised voice that blatantly expressed the pride and triumph that was rushing through not only him, but everyone surrounding him also. He smirked amusedly at the crowd, which consisted of screaming twinks and less animated, but still cheering studs, as bright lights began to flash and upbeat music arose, setting the thumpa-thumpa in motion.
With the spotlight no longer highlighting his form standing upon the barred platform, Brian relaxed his body and allowed his eyelids to fall shut as he sunk into the rhythm of the music. Only moments later he recognized the sounds of another body ungracefully climbing the ladder to the platform and joining him. The clambering sounds were followed by the feeling of warm hands gently grasping his currently moving forearms and forcing them to a still. "Congratulations," whispered the familiar voice in his ear.
Brian's lips slowly tugged upwards into a smile and his eyelids fluttered open as he replied, "I owe it all to you, Mikey."
Six months ago, Brian signed the contract which set in motion the rebuilding of Babylon. It would have never happened, though, if not for Michael's insistence that "some things aren't meant to change". The memory of that day, the two of them standing in the remains of blown-up Babylon, awoke other memories in Brian's mind - memories of Justin telling him something similar. Both of them - no, everyone - believed he was meant to be someone unchanging, a person who defined himself by the youthfulness of Babylon and the freedom of being a fag, which did not include cuddling or marriage. They believed that he had avoided change, through his reopening of Babylon and his resuming of tricking. However, he was not so sure...but he doubted they would understand the ways in which he had changed, even if he could admit them.
Shaking himself from his thoughts, Brian drew his attention back to Michael, who appeared unaware of his recent absentmindedness. Together, they danced until Michael caught sight of Ben happily watching them from his place alone at the bar, exactly where Michael had left him. He looked back to Brian then leaned forward to press their lips together in one of the chaste kisses they often shared. The kiss lasted only a moment, and as they slowly pulled apart, Michael gazed into the hazel eyes of his friends. To anyone else, Brian's eyes might seem to only portray his current happiness, as well as slight glossiness due to the drinks and drugs he had undoubtedly consumed. However, to someone who had known Brian as long as Michael had, sadness could also be found in the depths of the eyes. Michael forced a smile as he stared at his friend and prayed that the sadness would not linger much longer.
As Michael hopped back down from the platform and rejoined his husband, Brian lifted his arms and continued to dance, content to be alone and above the pulsing mass of bodies. Eyes closed and oblivious to the world around him, he danced until his body ached. He danced until all that remained were staggering, tweaked out night owls, the majority destined to go home alone that night...morning. When he finally opened his tired eyes, he glanced half-heartedly at the surrounding men, until his eyes alighted upon a pair of bright, dazzling blue eyes at the bar, eyes that were staring intensely back at him. Without thought, he climbed down from the platform and traveled across the club, his hazel eyes never leaving the ones staring back at him.
The reunion was not sweet, or even nice. Brian marched up to Justin until he was standing directly in front of the blonde man, who was currently sitting on one of the barstools and leaning on the counter behind him. Both pairs of eyes were narrowed.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" Brian inquired harshly, in a voice that sounded almost like a growl.
Ignoring Brian's question, Justin set his bottle of beer upon the counter and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded.
In a frustrated tone, Brian replied, "Maybe because I didn't want you to know." With that, he turned on his heel and exited the club, knowing that Justin would not be far behind. The stubborn blonde would never simply let their conversation end there.
Without speaking, both men climbed into Brian's corvette and drove to the loft in continued silence. Upon arrival, Brian parked, and before he could even turn off the engine, Justin was out of the car and making his way inside the building. This is going to be a long night, Brian thought to himself.
Six months ago, before Brian had even considered reconstructing Babylon, Brian and Justin agreed that nothing would keep them apart, not even the time in which they were separated by distance, with Justin in New York and Brian in Pittsburgh. However, their relationship did not simply continue as it had before Justin left; instead, it changed into something similar to the relationship they had when they first met, with Brian being reluctant, and Justin being persistent. The difference now, though, was that Brian was not reluctant because he was scared to commit to Justin, but he was reluctant to have too much contact with Justin, afraid that he would distract the artist from becoming the success he was meant to be. So, Brian attempted to distance himself from Justin.
Of course, like the time Brian had attempted to push Justin away when he had cancer, Justin would not allow Brian to push him away this time. He called Brian everyday, if only to tell the brunette goodnight, and that he loved him still. Also, he persuaded Brian to install a webcam by insinuating how nice it would be to watch each other get off, instead of simply listening to each other through the phone. Justin even convinced Brian to visit him once or twice a month. He did so by suggesting that he come to Pittsburgh to visit Brian, who would vehemently disagree, convinced that if Justin came to Pittsburgh, he would stay too long and only be further sidetracked from his art. In compromise, Brian would come to New York and usually stay at least a weekend, in which the two reunited passionately, and sometimes, Brian could even be persuaded to allow Justin to show him what New York had to offer outside of his apartment.
Despite their frequent conversations, Brian had not found it necessary to inform Justin of the reopening of Babylon. He would simply insist on coming back, he would have probably even wanted to help with the renovation, so Brian had kept it a secret. Nevertheless, Justin had somehow found out, and now he was back here, in Pittsburgh.
When Brian entered his apartment building, he did not find Justin waiting for him in the elevator as he expected. He must have taken the stairs. Wishing to stall for as long as possible, Brian stepped into the elevator and waited as it made its slow ascent towards the loft.
Pushing aside the door of the lift, Brian found his loft door thrown open. Of course, Justin still has his key. Upon walking inside, he made towards the small kitchen bar to pour himself a glass of Beam, only to find Justin there, already waiting with a glass in hand. He held the glass out towards Brian and watched as the taller man took the glass from him and downed its contents in one swig. Then he set the glass upon the counter and set his hazel gaze upon the blue eyes, which he noticed were less harsh but still just as expressive as they had been at Babylon. Now, however, instead of simply displaying anger, the eyes portrayed the blonde's obvious pain.
"Why didn't you tell me, Brian?" Justin repeated his previous question in a quieter tone, almost a whisper.
The faint lines of Brian's forehead crinkled as he furrowed his brows. "I didn't think it was important," he whispered back. He lifted one of his large hands and placed it against the pale skin of Justin's familiar cheek, then hesitated before saying, "Not as important as you being in New York, at least."
Justin rolled his eyes at Brian. "How did I ever become involved with such a queen?" he asked, a hint of amusement audible in his voice. He lifted his own hands and rested them upon the sides of Brian's neck.
Brian simply relaxed his face and lifted one of his previously furrowed brows in response to Justin's question. "New York is just a place, Brian," Justin said in reply. He moved one of his hands further upwards to press a finger against the brunette's lips and effectively silence whatever he was about to say. "Yes, I know it is a place with many opportunities, and I love being there. But, I hardly spend all my time there working on my artwork - I go out, I have friends."
"I know," Brian murmured, his lips moving against the finger pressed to his lips.
Justin released a quiet chuckle before removing his finger from Brian's lips, letting his hand resume its former position at the man's neck. "Which is why you should also realize that a brief trip Pittsburgh to visit people - mainly a certain one - more important than any city or opportunity will not stall my career."
"I know," Brian repeated, his facial expression now turning into one of slight annoyance and perhaps even boredom.
Justin was now the one to lift his brow in question. "You do?" he asked aloud. "Then why are you so against me visiting? Why did you not tell me about Babylon?"
Brian sighed and glanced downwards as he struggled to decide how to answer the question. When he glanced up a moment later, the blue eyes were still gazing at him expectantly. "What if when you visited, you decided that you loved someone so much that you didn't want to leave?" he asked in a quiet voice that Justin was only able to hear because of his close proximity.
Justin's lips curled up into a small smile as he recognized the difficulty Brian had voicing his fear. Leaning up on his tip-toes, he tilted the Brunette's head downward slightly in order to press their foreheads together. "I wouldn't have to worry about that. The person I love would be too stubborn to let me throw everything away - he loves me too much," he whispered, his warm breath brushing against Brian's skin as he spoke.
Brian couldn't stop himself from smiling also, as he realized what Justin said was true. "Then I guess we need to make the most of the time we have, because your ass needs to be gone by Monday," he replied, his voice now resuming the usual carefree, playful tone it had when he was with Justin. He chuckled amusedly as the blonde gently slapped him, then he tugged the smaller body closer to his own in order to press a kiss upon the pale pink lips that he loved so much.