Red Cape Comics...

Michael stood in his now refurbished shop, admiring the work that had been done. The new state-of-the-art display shelving was amazing; it had buttons you could press to rotate them to accommodate those customers who were in wheelchairs, or who were too short to reach the higher shelves. All that remained now was to remodel the bathrooms to add lower-seated toilets and grab bars, plus have a handicap-accessible button installed that could be pressed to open the door to the store more easily. The workers would be coming back to finish the rest of that work in a few weeks' time due to a delay in obtaining the necessary parts to complete the remodeling. Then, everything would finally be complete, and hopefully it would generate more business for his store.

Rubbing his face, Michael could feel his stomach tied up in knots as he thought about tonight. He didn't know who was going to attend other than Brian, Justin, and his mother, along with Carl. He did know it would be an awkward encounter, but a necessary one if he was to make amends with everyone.

Picking up his phone, he hit No. 1 on his speed dial, hearing it ring and listening for a voice he longed to hear, but receiving a voicemail instead: "This is Ben. I can't answer right now, please leave a message." Sighing, Michael took a deep breath before saying, "Ben, I miss you. Will you be at the dinner tonight for maw? Please. I love you." Hanging up, he stood there for a few moments before he turned and headed toward the door to lock up, wondering what tonight would bring.

The Loft...

Justin woke Brian up the best way he knew how, with his talented mouth working its magic. It didn't take long before hands sank into his hair and his mouth was filled with pleasure as a reward. Moving back up Brian's body, he kissed him soundly. "Morning."

Brian smiled lazily at his blond lover. "Morning, Sunshine."

Laying his head on Brian's chest, Justin snuggled into the warmth of it. "I love doing this with you; lying here, just like this."

Hugging him close and kissing the top of his head, Brian smiled. "Me, too; just don't tell anyone that I said that."

Laughing, Justin turned and placed a kiss over his heart. "Your secret is safe with me."

Sighing deeply now, Brian asked, "Are you ready for tonight?"

Running his fingers up and down Brian's arm, Justin replied, "We'll be fine. We'll get everything sorted out with Debbie and Carl."

Brian nodded, wrapping his arm tighter around his partner as they enjoyed a few more moments of solitude.

Novotny-Horvath House...

Debbie sat at the table, drinking her coffee and eating her breakfast, while Carl read his morning paper. The tension in the air was palpable.

Carl noticed the thoughtful look on Debbie's face as he placed his paper down onto the table and covered one of her hands with his. "It's going to be fine, honey. Brian and Justin will be here soon to discuss everything."

Debbie sighed as she squeezed Carl's hand. "I hope so," she murmured, hating all the strife present in her 'family.' Tonight would result in a resolution, one way or the other.

Later That Day…

Brian and Justin arrived as promised, and were greeted by Debbie with warm hugs. "Come in, guys."

Greeting Carl on the way in, they all ended up sitting in the living room area of the house.

Debbie asked, "Brian, how do you suggest we handle this tonight?"

Brian leaned forward, clasping his hands in front of him. "When Michael arrives at the loft, I think we should eat first, and then have our little conversation," he couldn't help smirking as he explained, "He's normally more rational when he's full of it. Food, I mean," he added, making everyone snicker. That broke the tension, making them all laugh.

Carl shook his head in amusement. "I like your way of thinking," he declared. "We should try that at the station when we're questioning our suspects."

They talked for a while longer before deciding on what type of food to order; Brian made sure that Debbie was receiving enough funds out of the account he had set up so she would never have to worry again about her monthly expenses, and Debbie assured him that it was more than enough; in fact, it was almost an embarrassment of riches, compared to what she was used to, but Brian was relieved to know that money would never be an issue for her ever again.

Debbie and Carl stood at the window, watching Brian and Justin pull away. Debbie leaned into her husband as she commented softly, "Most people really don't understand just how big a heart Brian really has, since he only shows it to a select few; we're damn lucky that he lets us see the kindhearted man that he really is."

Kissing her temple, Carl nodded with a smile. "We sure are, honey."

The Loft...

Michael arrived fifteen minutes early, deciding it couldn't hurt to create an initial good impression. He hesitated before knocking on the loft door.

Brian peered over at everyone upon hearing the knock. He commented grimly, "Here we go."

Opening the door a few minutes later, he was greeted by a very nervous-looking Michael. Brian stared at him for a second before sweeping his hand out toward the others. "Come on in, Mikey."

Michael hesitantly entered as Brian urged him, observing Justin, Carl, his mother, and thankfully Ben and Hunter. Handing Brian a bottle of wine he had brought with him as a sort of peace offering, he nodded over at the group. "Hi, guys." All he received in response was a series of nods and grunts, which caused his anxiety level to rise.

Brian placed the wine on the table, "So here's the plan, Michael. We're going to eat dinner...and then we're going to have our little chat."

Nodding, Michael tried to smile, but it came out as more of a tentative sort of expression. At this point, however, he would pretty much agree to anything. "That sounds fine; thank you," he murmured.

Dinner was tense and awkward, accentuated by only a few innocuous comments about the food and the weather, but most of them did manage to eat most of their meal. Michael, however, seemed to mainly play with his food, finding he didn't have much of an appetite at the moment. A few minutes later, they all headed over to the living room area to talk.

Brian stood in front of them all before stating, "So, Mikey...the floor is all yours. What do you have to say to your mother, Carl, Ben and Hunter?" He walked over and sat down next to Justin on the loveseat, peering up at his friend expectantly.

Michael licked his lips to wet them before standing to face everyone gathered in the loft. His legs felt like jelly as he began by addressing his mother. "First of all, I want to say how sorry I am for what I asked you to do, Maw. I never meant to put your health at risk."

Hunter butted in, "Well, you should have thought about that, Michael, before you screwed your mother over!"

Nodding, Michael had to agree. "I know, Hunter!" he cried out. "I really didn't think! I'm truly sorry for everything!" He took a deep breath, turning back to peer down at his mother. "I'm sorry for making you take out another mortgage, and for lying to you. Ben...Hunter...I'm sorry, too, for deceiving you - and everyone else - with my lies. I can promise you that it will never happen again." He held his breath for a moment before asking, "Can you all forgive me? I want a chance to prove myself." His eyes misted over as he told them, "I miss you all so much. These past few days have been hell."

Brian's angry face looked back at him as he growled, "Then you know half of what it felt like when your mother collapsed in my arms! I thought the closest thing to a mother that I would ever have was dead, and It was because of you. So you'd better mean those words, Mikey, because so help me, you'll rue the day you harm this family again. Are you listening, Michael? Do you understand?"

Swallowing hard, Michael nodded as he turned even paler. "Yeah. Yeah, I understand," he hastily replied. "I promise, Brian. I swear! I'll never do anything like this again!" He took a shaky breath before asking, "Can you all forgive me?"

Justin was the first to respond, nodding with his lips pressed in a tight line. "I'm willing. But you're not going to regain everyone's trust overnight. Right, Deb? Baby steps."

Debbie looked at her son, standing there looking scared, and despite what he had done, she couldn't help having sympathy for him. "Yeah...Baby steps, Michael. We can start with a hug," she decided, standing up and holding her arms out wide. "Come here and give your mother a hug, young man."

Relief washing over him, Michael stood there, embracing his mother, praying that maybe this was Step One to repairing what he had done; but only time would tell.