Disclaimer: I don't own Queer as Folk. I just like to play with the characters.
A/N: Sorry for the wait! Here it is and all it's glory. Chapter 7. As always, please review!
Gus had been banging on the door for at least ten minutes. He knew he was home. His stupid car was parked outside.
"Dad! It's me! Open the fucking door!" He screamed as he continued to bang on it. A couple minutes later he heard footsteps from inside.
"Keep your fucking pants on. I'm coming!"
Brian answered the door, in a pair of jeans. He was barefoot and sans T- shirt. Gus blinked up at him for a few minutes and then shrugged a little.
"Sorry. Were you asleep?" He questioned, but his father only smirked.
"Not quite."
Only then did Gus notice Justin a little ways behind his father hurriedly trying to pull on a pair of pants. Gus rolled his eyes. It was absolutely ridiculous the amount of sex they had. It was a little embarrassing to be honest. You would hardly think that Brian was a father at all, with the way he acted.
"Can I stay here tonight?" Gus asked, in a voice that said he wasn't going to offer up why.
Brian raised a brow at him, staring him down for a few minutes. "Why? Lindsey piss you off again?"
Gus scoffed, shrugging. "You could say that."
"You can stay here. But you have to tell me what the fuck is going on."
He sighed a little bit, but nodded, because his other choice was to go home, and that wasn't an option. He pushed past his father, throwing his bag on the couch, and getting comfortable.
"Hi Gus." Justin said, walking out towards the couch. Gus nodded a greeting at him, before, sprawling out and getting comfortable on the couch.
"Alright. Since you're going to be eating my food and sleeping on my couch and ruining my chances of getting laid for the night…" Brian said, making his way around the couch and leaning over the back of it. "…Why don't you tell me why?"
Gus rolled her eyes. "What, you don't already know? My wonderful mother didn't tell you?"
Brian sighed, running a hand through his hair, shrugged. "Is this about your sister?"
Gus shivered. "Ugh. Don't make me vomit. Can we just call her J.R.?"
Brian nodded. "Sure. Doesn't make much of a difference to me."
Gus leaned back against the arm of the couch, blowing his bangs out of his face. "She should've told me."
Brian nodded in agreement. "Of course she should have. But she didn't. So now what are we going to do about it?"
Gus looked up at him, and then he shrugged. "Well, I was planning on wallowing in my self misery and then resenting my mother a little more."
Brian let out a little disgust noise. "Have I taught you NOTHING?" He shook his head, taking a deep breath. "What is that going to do? Nothing, but make you look like an immature child. You have to DEAL with this."
Gus sat up then, looking his father directly in the eye. "What would you know about it? You've never dealt with anything a day in your life. You just make sarcastic comments about everything and turn everything into a big fucking Joke! Well, guess what Dad? This isn't a joke!"
Brian stared at him, and then he looked up exchanging a look with Justin and then he shook his head.
"I know it's not a joke." He closed his eyes for a minute.
"You should've told me, at least. I thought you'd never lie to me." Gus said in a low voice.
Brian raised a brow. "I didn't lie to you. You never asked me directly. But if you had, I would've told you the truth. You're my son. I don't lie to you. Never have."
Gus nodded a little bit, because he knew that much. It was why he was here and not at home with Lindsey and Dave.
"Listen, how do you feel about this girl?" Brian questioned.
Gus looked at him, frowning a little. "J.R.? I think…." He closed his eyes. "I think she's amazing. But none of that matters now. Because she's my sister."
"Is she?" Brian questioned tilting his head a little. "I'm assuming you're aware that Lindsey is your mother. I am your father, but Melanie and Michael are J.R.'s parents. You have no relation to them. You have no relation to her. And you can thank me for that by the way. "
Gus blinked after a few minutes. "Yeah, but-"
"You have no relation to her blood. If you want her. You can have her."
Gus shook his head. "But…Mom…she used to …she was together with J.R.'s mom. They lived together. We…We were a family. And…And I'm starting to remember stuff."
Brian raised a brow, mouth opening slightly. "Like what?"
"Little things. I don't know." He shrugged. "It all seems like a long lost dream. I thought it wasn't real for so long. I remember Toronto. I remember…her. I remember having a little sister. I think I remember Melanie too. I just didn't know that was her name. Or that she had a daughter." He shook his head. "And now that I remember. I'm angry. I'm pissed. She abandoned me."
Brian watched his son curiously for a few minutes and then he shrugged. "The point is, you were supposed to be brother and sister. But you aren't. And you don't have to see Mel ever again if you don't want. Although, you'll regret it."
Justin stood up then, walking over to Brian raising a brow. "Are you telling him to pursue a relationship with his sister?"
"Would-be sister. And no. I'm just teaching my son to get what he wants." He pulled Justin into him by the waist. "I did."
Justin rolled his eyes a little, but then leaned up to kiss his cheek, and then his lips. "So did I."
Gus made a retching sound and then Brian and Justin turned towards him. "Sorry, sonny boy." He said ruffling Justin's hair before pushing him away a little.
"Now tell me something else…" He said, looking at him with a serious expression. "What's been going on with you?"
Gus looked up at him, shrugging a little. "I don't know what you mean."
"You know exactly what I mean. "
Gus rolled his eyes a little. "Nothing's been going on with me. I just don't like being at home. So I stay out at night."
"What's wrong with home?" Brian questioned, eyebrow raised.
"Dave's there."
"Ah. Dave." Brian said, a little smirk taking over his face. "Maybe if you had been around more, taken care of Linds, like I asked you to do, she wouldn't have found Dave."
"I was fourteen. What the fuck was I supposed to do? She's my mother. She's supposed to take care of me." He said, anger lacing his tone.
"Doesn't always work that way. She needed you. You bailed. You got Dave. You have to deal with that too. You can't just run away from absolutely everything. It's immature. You're twenty years old, Gus. Man up."
"Why didn't you take care of her? You're her best friend."
"She didn't need me. She needed you. " They were both silent for a few moments, and then Justin spoke up.
" Well I think it's all sort of romantic."
Brian raised a brow at him. "The fact that Lindsey doesn't know how to take care of herself…or…who she is for that matter?"
Justin shook his head. "No. Gus and J.R. It's practically Romeo and Juliet. Two star-crossed lovers from warring families….only the warring families are the same family…with split sides. It's good inspiration for a painting. "
"Or a teenage soap opera." Brian cut in, shaking his head a little.
"Fuck. Now were comparing my life to Dawson's creek?" Gus fell back against the arm of the couch, sighing.
Justin threw a blanket over him, leaning against the back of the couch a few minutes. "Maybe you should just sleep on it. It usually helps me. "
Gus sighed, shaking his head. "Whatever." He pulled the blanket up over his head, blocking the world out like he used to do when he was little.
" Go to Sleep. And if you jerk off on my couch-"
"You'll fucking shoot me. I know."
Brian grinned, moving Justin towards the bedroom. "Goodnight, Sonny boy."
Jenny woke up to the smell of breakfast. Pancakes. Sausage. Fruit. It smelled wonderful, and she was starving, but getting out of bed didn't feel quite like an option yet. She felt depressed, and uncomfortable. Am I still wearing clothes? She thought idly as she pulled the blanket back. Yup. Fully clothed. Weird. She ran a hand through her hair; it was tangled and probably looked closer to a bird's nest then actual hair. She sighed, trying to think. Oh. That's right. She'd fallen asleep with her clothes on because she hadn't had the strength to do anything else. She'd kissed her brother last night and found out that her entire life had been a lie. Awesome. She groaned, and then quickly pulled off her tights and skirt, leaving them on the floor, and going over to her bag to pick out a pair of jeans and a black tank top. She changed quickly and then pulled her messy hair up into a ponytail. She thought about calling her mom again, but she wasn't sure she was ready to do that yet, so instead she went in search of breakfast. Michael and Ben were in the kitchen. She assumed that Ben was cooking, she could hear and smell the sizzling sausages. They were talking in low tones, as if they were trying not to wake her up. She pressed herself against the door of her room, listening.
"Do you think she called Mel last night?" Michael was asking.
"I don't know. Maybe. She looked exhausted. She probably decided to wait till the morning." Ben replied. Always the voice of reason.
"What are we going to say to her when she wakes up?" Michael said, sounding worried, like he always did.
"Nothing. We wait for her to talk."
"Well, What if she doesn't?"
"Then she doesn't, Michael. We have to let her make the moves."
J.R. took that as her cue. She walked into the kitchen, forcing a little smile on her face.
"Good morning." She mumbled, leaning against the door frame.
"Hey, J.R., good morning. Have a seat. I'll get you some breakfast." Ben said, already putting a couple of sausages on her plate
"Thanks." She said sitting down at the table, cutting a little square of pancake with her fork, and then popping into her mouth.
"Did you sleep okay?" Michael asked her, trying to sound nonchalant.
"I slept fine, dad." She put her fork down, looking up at him. "I don't really want to talk about it. I feel lied to. And I feel like I can't trust anyone. I'd go home…it's just…my mom lied to me too. So…" She shrugged a little. "I guess I'll stay for awhile. "
"Oh." Michael said, exchanging a glance with Ben. "Okay then. "
She pushed away from the table. "I'm going to go for a walk. Isn't there a park a couple blocks away?"
"Um…there's one two streets over." Ben said, looking up at her. "Do you want one of us to come with you?"
"That would kind of defeat the purpose. I'll bring my cell phone." She said softly, turning to leave.
"Can you make sure and answer it this time?" Michael called after her.
The swing set creaked as J.R. gently moved back and forth, her feet firmly planted in the sand beneath her. It was cold out, and the metal chains holding up the swing were freezing to the touch. She stuffed her hands into the pocket of her sweatshirt hoping that'd she'd warm up soon. She didn't want to go home. Not even a little bit. She wasn't even really sure what home really was anymore. Or where. She pulled out her cell phone, flipping through the contacts. She'd saved Gus's number when Lindsey given it to him last night. And now her finger hovered over the send button while his name was highlighted. She couldn't deny her ache to see him. He was the only one who felt the same way she did. He was the only one who understood. She pressed the send button, pressing the phone to her ear. He answered on the second one.
"J.R.?" he sounded tired, groggy, like he'd just woken up. What time was it anyway? Her throat was dry, she didn't think he could respond.
"J.R.? Jenny? Are you there?"
She cleared her throat and then nodded before she realized that he couldn't so her.
"Oh. Uh…H-hi. It's J.R."
"I know." He was silent for a moment or two, and the he spoke again. "What's up? Are you okay?"
"I'm…" She had started to say okay. But that wasn't exactly the truth. "I'm…coping." She said softly. "Can I see you right now? I just really want to talk to someone who…gets it."
"Sure. Yeah. Of course. Where are you?"
"The park. It's two streets over from my dad's. Do you wanna meet me?"
"Yeah. I'll see you in a few. Don't move." There was a click, and J.R. assumed he'd hung up. She snapped her phone shut, stuffing into her pocket sighing. She had a feeling like maybe that wasn't the best choice she could've made.
Gus tried to ignore the contracting thing his heart was doing at the sight of her. She was still pretty, even in a sweatshirt and jeans with her hair pulled up. That was how you knew a girl was really pretty. He walked up to her, sitting in the swing directly next to hers. He waited for her to talk first.
"Do you remember me?" She said softly, looking up at him. "You must've been, what, four?"
He nodded, watching her for a few minutes and then shrugged. "Yeah. It's just little flashes though. Like…I remember a crib...And…a really long car ride, with lots of crying." He shrugged a little again and then raised a brow. "You don't remember anything?"
Jenny shook her head. "Not you. Not Lindsey. " She was quiet for a moment, and then she titled her head a little. "But I remember things about Pittsburgh. I used to come here when I was little. I don't know. It's nothing concrete."
She bit down on her lip, looking like she was going to start crying, but she didn't. "God, I just feel so stupid, ya know? Like…I'm so stupid not to have realized. Not to have questioned…" She put her face in her hands for a moment, and then looked up at him, looking as if she was completely lost. "And I thought…I thought you and I…I thought we might have something and now I just feel so stupid….you know? Like…why would I think even for a second that I would get something that…" She closed her eyes, shaking her head. "I'm always going to be the weird girl." She said the last bit under her breath, but Gus caught it.
"What are you talking about?" He asked in a soft voice.
She opened her eyes to look at him. "God, I'm even more pathetic than I thought." She blew out a breath, tugging on her ponytail. She took a deep breath, looking down at the sand.
"In Toronto, I was the weird girl. I was the girl who was always spacing out in class because she was drawing something. Or…the girl who didn't understand what the point of going to the mall and not buying anything was. I didn't have a lot of friends. Especially not friends of the boy variety…" She looked up at him through her lashes.
"When you looked at me…I didn't really know what to think. You were the first boy who didn't think I was a weirdo. It was nice. And you're my brother."
"Not by blood." He said softly. "And I don't think it's possible for me to think of you as anything less than exactly what you are."
"And what would that be?"
"One of the most amazing girls I've ever met." He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear that was escaping from the ponytail.
She smiled, that pretty blush that he loved so much coloring her cheeks. "And how many girls have you said that to?"
"One."
She scoffed. "It's okay. I get it. You don't have to lie. You're like….Mr. Pittsburgh, right? All the girls love you? You've been around the block."
"What gives you that impression?" He raised a brow, tilting his head a little.
She scoffed, shaking her head. "Um. You tried to get me drunk, took me dancing and then made out with me. I'm not going to lie, it felt a little like a routine."
He laughed, shaking his head. "Maybe it started out that way. But it didn't end like that."
"You still didn't answer my question though. How many?"
"How many what? It's a vague question. How many have I slept with? Danced with? Kissed?"
J.R. grinned. "Any one of the three."
He shrugged. "Alright. I won't lie to you. I've…been around…but I swear it was different with you."
She grinned, shaking her head. "I really don't believe you. I mean, I'm your sister, I could read you like a book." She joked.
"You're not my sister." He said a little laugh in his voice. "Family…isn't always about who's names are on your birth certificate or…in our case, who's kid is your other mom's."
She laughed, kicking the sand beneath her.
"It's about the people you grew up with. I didn't grow up with you. You're not my sister. You were just supposed to be. But you're not. And that's okay with me."
She looked up at him, blinking for a few minutes. "Gus…"
"What?" He said, suddenly completely concerned.
She shook her head, and then leaned over the swing creaking as she did so, and pressed her lips to his.
Gus was a little shocked at first, he hadn't really been expecting it, after all, she'd seemed pretty adamant about the fact that they were related and now she was kissing him, and god did it feel nice. He reached a hand up to cup her cheek, and she pushed herself against him a little more. Gus pulled away a little, shaking his head.
"Jenny…whoa. I don't want to do this just because you're confused and upset and-"
She cut him off, pressing her lips against his insistently. He sighed against them, pulling away.
"Jenny…" He sighed a little. "I also don't really want to do this in a park. Come on." He said, standing up, holding out his hand for her to take.
She nodded, taking his hand, and he pulled her along, crossing the street to get to his car.
"Where are we going?" She asked curiously.
"I'm not sure." He said unlocking the car door for her. It was an old fashioned car. The kind you still had to stick the key in the lock to open the door. It was a truck light blue. Brian had bought it for him for his sixteenth birthday. That, and a fake ID. All the essentials. He leaned against the side of it staring up at her.
"Where do you want to go?"
"Anywhere, where we can do this…" She wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him again. Their mouths moved in perfect synchronization. Like a dance. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in closer, and then he pulled away his forehead resting against hers for a few moments.
"We could go to my dad's. It's Sunday. He usually takes Justin out for brunch. They won't be home for awhile."
"Brunch?" She said with a little laugh. "Your dad really doesn't seem the type to do brunch."
Gus shrugged. "He's not. But Justin likes it."
She smiled a little. "That's sweet."
"Yeah. But don't expect me to take you to brunch." He grinned, opening the door for her.
"Oh I won't. I don't want brunch. I just want you to take me home." She flashed him a flirty smile and then got into the car gracefully.
Gus found himself praying that this wasn't a dream.
