Brian slept well and was surprised how rested he felt. In the past, he would have handled any problem by imbibing large amounts of alcohol and having at least 3 or 4 tricks in an attempt to avoid dealing with whatever it was. The only thing his coping mechanisms had accomplished was to help him hide from his life and miss out on actually living. He was done with hiding and was ready to live a meaningful life. That meant that he had to face all the problems in his life, not hide behind a bottle, hoping they would just disappear.

He completed his morning routine, fixed himself a guava shake, and drove to the office. As he was walking in, he was met by a man who served him the restraining order. He took it, placed it on his desk, and went to the galley to grab a coffee. As he was putting several packets of sugar in the mug, Ted walked in.

"The guy served me with the papers as I walked in. Half surprised he wasn't waiting at the loft when I got home from my meeting," Brian said as he stirred the ingredients in his mug. "Who knows, maybe he was told by Mel that I wouldn't be home until the early hours of the morning, and he didn't want to attempt to find me at Babylon. Of course, I'm home these days by 10:00," Brian said, and then blew on his cup of coffee hoping to cool it down sufficiently so he could take a sip.

"You seem rather calm," Ted said, as he watched Brian fix his coffee.

"I sent my lawyer a copy of Lindsay's tirade last night. Well, actually it was Mel's tirade, but whatever. I plan on calling Kera about 9:00 and updating her on the latest games they are playing. Really, Mel is not stupid. The restraining order is against contact with them, knowing full well she can't do anything preventing my contact with Gus." Brian left the break room and walked toward his office. Ted walked with him.

"I'm calling Gus' school and letting them know I'll pick him up this afternoon. I'm going to ask that they tell him this so he will be able to concentrate in class. I heard him crying in the background in one of the calls Lindsay made last night. She made a point of telling me that it was my fault since she couldn't allow him to go with me for the weekend."

"You are such a good father, thinking of Gus first. I'm proud of you," Ted said. They arrived at the corridor for their respective offices and each man went toward their office.

Brian checked his emails and responded to any urgent ones. He set an alarm for 9:15 so he could call Kera, somewhat surprised at his calm demeanor. He called the school and the receptionist agreed to give Gus the information.

When the alarm went off, he called Kera. His call was directed to her in a few moments.

"Good morning, Mr. Kinney. What can I do for you today?" Kera said as she placed her coffee mug on the coaster on her desk.

"I told my son's mother yesterday about my sobriety and true to form, her wife has threatened to not let me see my son. This morning I received a restraining order to stay away from them. I assume that is her way of attempting to keep me from my son since I usually go to their home to pick him up," Brian explained. He hoped there would be a quick resolution as he did not want to fight for his rights.

"I see. Can you send me a copy of the restraining order? I'll look it over and then give you a call back."

"Sure. I'll scan it now and send it,' Brian said.

"Fine. I'll call you within the hour. I'll also listen to the recording you sent."

He scanned the document and returned to work. He hoped the solution was an easy one. However, before he could get started on his next project, his phone rang again. He was distracted by his earlier conversation and didn't look down at the caller ID.

"Brian, you're ignoring all my calls. This is important," Michael said, thrilled that his friend had finally picked up his phone. "I've left at least 10 messages since yesterday."

Brian took a deep breath and drank a sip of his coffee. As he savored the coffee, he thought back to the many conversations that he and Justin had regarding Michael. He'd been hoping to put off the inevitable but it seems that Michael was like a thorn in his side, poking him until he addressed the discomfort.

"I know. I listened. Did it ever occur to you that I didn't call you back for a reason?" Brian did not want to talk to Michael at work; he had deadlines to meet. Truth be told, he didn't really want to talk to Michael at all.

"But I'm your best friend. I don't know who put those stupid thoughts into your head about your drinking, but you are not an alcoholic. I've known you since we were 14 and you don't drink anymore now than you did then. So, if you were an alcoholic, you would have to have been one for over 20 years. I know that's not right," Michael said, explaining to Brian again why he knew more about his best friend than his friend knew about himself.

"Michael," Brian said, pushing his forefinger and thumb on the bridge of his nose in a familiar gesture. "I'm only going to say this one time and then I'm going to hang up." He waited a few moments to be sure that he had Michael's attention. "No matter what you do or don't think, I'm an alcoholic. I'm in recovery so I don't drink anymore. I don't go to Babylon or to Woody's and I will not be drinking. If you cannot accept those few truths, then you are no longer my friend and I wish you a great life. If you can accept those truths; then that's great. If I hear you suggest that we go to the bars or go drinking, I will assume you do not accept that I'm an alcoholic and our friendship is finished."

Michael did not say anything as he took in Brian's message. He wasn't sure that Brian really knew what he was talking about. He'd have to talk to Debbie about it. Maybe she could make Brian see reason. If Brian wasn't going to the bars, who would he hang out with? For now, he said, "Okay."

"Good. Now, I have a job to do. I'll see you at Sunday dinner," Brian said as he hung up. He wasn't sure that Michael believed what he said, but he'd addressed the issue. He realized that he felt lighter like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He pulled out his phone to share the news with Justin but decided that he would rather tell him tonight. Smiling again when he realized that this was the second time in as many days that he had pulled out his phone to share the news with Justin. He'd told everyone that was close to him and now the chips would fall.

He pressed the button on the intercom of his desk and asked Cynthia to come to his office.

"Close the door and sit," he said as he motioned toward the chair in front of his desk.

"I know Ted told you that Michael and Lindsay may be calling and that you should not put their phone calls through. I know that through the years you have encountered that request on more than one occasion, but this time it is very different," Brian said.

Cynthia nodded and waited for Brian to continue.

"I'm sure you've noticed that I've been coming into work earlier and leaving earlier for the last several months. I stopped drinking and I've been going to AA. Michael doesn't seem to believe I have an addiction and keeps trying to convince me otherwise. Lindsay is trying to use my sobriety as a way to keep Gus from me. I'm sure my telling her that I will no longer give her money for Gus and plan on paying for all of his needs is fueling her concern," Brian grinned as he remembered the look on her face when he informed her that the "Bank of Brian" was closing. He took a drink from his coffee mug and unconsciously compared it to the coffee at the diners that he and Justin had been going. He doubted the diners would tell him the brand of coffee they used, but maybe he could find out. On the other hand, he wondered if the coffee tasted so good due to being with Justin and working toward his sobriety.

"Anyway, I wanted you up to speed."

"Brian you don't owe me any explanation. You've taken a big step in attending AA, and I've noticed the changes in you when you're at work," Cynthia said, smiling at her friend and boss. "I take it Lindsay is less than happy with your decision to stop providing money for Gus." Cynthia wanted to say more, especially since she really did not like Lindsay who she felt always came across as entitled, but she didn't feel it was her place to do so.

"Oh, that is an understatement. I heard from Ted that there was a guy trying to find me yesterday afternoon to serve me a restraining order. Evidently, Melanie thinks that a restraining order preventing me from getting close to them will stop me from seeing Gus."

Brian finished his mug of coffee and went to his credenza to make a new one."Want some coffee? Sobriety has had an unusual impact on my coffee drinking. Since coffee is served at every meeting, and it really seems that a criterion for it is that someone burns it or leaves it in the pot for days, I've become very discriminating. After every meeting, my sponsor and I go out for coffee and I've become a real connoisseur."

"You have always had a discriminating taste, no detail is ever too small,' Cynthia said, trying to picture Brian going for coffee every night. It was such a mundane thing, something that he usually balked at. "Sounds like your sponsor has discriminating taste as well."

"Yes. Evidently, when he was starting his journey, he didn't have a lot of money so he used to go to a diner and order a pot of coffee, spending several hours at a time there." It surprised Brian that he shared this little bit of trivia about Justin. He knew a lot about Justin from their discussions, but it struck him that he'd only known Justin for a few months, yet he knew such mundane information. He wasn't even sure he knew some mundane information about many people, even ones he considered his family.

Brian finished putting the sugar and creamer into his mug, thinking again of Justin and his frequent comments regarding the sweetness of Brian's drink. He blew over the top of the mug, cooling it down slightly, and took a sip. "I guess I better get some work done around here. It's not like I stay late anymore," he said, walking to his desk.

"I'll make sure that Michael and Lindsay are kept at bay," Cynthia said. "Congratulations on your sobriety. I know you will tackle that challenge like you do everything else you do in life. If there is anything I can do for you, let me know." Cynthia stood up, opened the door, and walked back to her desk where she proceeded to continue working on her latest project.

Brian opened the folder with the information for the latest campaign and started reviewing it, but before he could get very far, Kera, his lawyer called.

"Mr, Kinney. The restraining order is for Gus' parents and does not mention him at all. Are you able to arrange visitation without encountering them?"

"I planned on picking him up this afternoon at school rather than at his home. I could definitely leave him at his grandmother Debbie's house and they could pick him up there at the end of the weekend. They typically go there for Sunday dinner."

"I would suggest at this point, you follow the legal proceedings and pick up Gus from school or at another neutral place. I will work on my end to cancel the restraining order as there has to be documentation and legal cause, neither of which his mothers seem to have."

"Thank you. I've already let the school know that I'll be picking him up, and I'll let Debbie know I'll drop him off there on Sunday," Brian said.

While there was really no resolution to the issue, he felt better knowing that he had legal precedent on his side.

Picking up his phone, he pushed the button to call Justin. It rang a few times and Brian started to hang up, chastising himself for disturbing Justin. Justin was his sponsor and didn't need to be bothered by all of Brian's drama. He was about to hang up when Justin answered.

"Hi, Brian. Sorry, it took so long to answer. I was trying to get to a quiet place," Justin said.

"I should apologize. You have your own life and I shouldn't be intruding. I'll see you at the meeting," Brian said as he started taking his phone from his ear to hit the button to hang up.

"No, don't hang up. It's fine that you call. What's up?"

"I just wanted to tell you that I talked to Michael and told him that if he couldn't accept that I was an alcoholic, our friendship was over. I also talked to the lawyer this morning."

"Wow. You've had a busy morning." Justin pulled his phone away from his ear and looked at the time. "It's only 10:30. Did you get to the office at the crack of dawn?" Justin teased.

Brian didn't have to justify his work hours, but he said, "No. Got here at 8:30. Seems sobriety has that effect on me. I actually fall asleep when I go to bed and since I'm no longer waking up with a hangover, I'm much more productive. Used to be that it would be at least 10:00 or even 10:30 before all the alcohol and whatever other chemicals were in my body had dissipated enough that I could function."

"So you decided what to do about Michael. I'm proud of you. What do you think will happen?"

"I wish I knew. I'm still not totally convinced that he believes me, but when I told him if he mentions drinking or going to the bars again, we were through, I think he knew I was serious. Regardless of his actions, I am confident in my decision, and that is what counts."

"Great. I'm glad that you made a decision. What about the lawyer? Did that go well too?"

"She told me she is working on getting the restraining order changed, but in the meantime, I need to make arrangements to pick up Gus somewhere other than his home. I've already called the school about picking him up there today."

As Brian recalled the information, he said, "Oh Shit. If I'm going to pick him up after school, that means that I can't make the afternoon AA meeting. Usually, I go to the meeting and then come back here to finish working. I usually leave about 5:30 or 6:00 and then pick him up in time for dinner." Brian could feel his heart rate increase as he felt a small surge of anxiety wash over him. "I've never missed a meeting."

"Do you want me to come over and we could have our own meeting? Nothing says that you have to have a group of people," Justin offered.

Brian's first reaction was elation, but then he said, "That's really great of you to offer, but I'm sure you have better things to do than have a personal meeting with me."

"Brian, I'm your sponsor and while some sponsors don't necessarily attend the same meetings as the people they sponsor, I decided early on that was the way I wanted to handle the responsibility. Tell you what, I could come over earlier in the evening and show Gus some photography skills. When he goes to bed, we could have our meeting."

Brian found himself relaxing and the adrenaline jump dissipating just as fast as it began. "You sure? I mean that is a lot to ask," Brian said, not used to people doing things for him without an ulterior motive. Brian hadn't thought about the fact that Justin chose to attend every meeting that Brian did. If he had thought about it, he would have realized that Justin was definitely going the extra mile, taking his sponsorship to a higher level. Whatever Justin's reasoning for his dedication to sponsorship, Brian felt that he had definitely made a positive impact on his journey.

"Sure. I told Gus I would teach him some photography skills," Justin said. He'd never thought about a private meeting, just two people but had read enough literature on the subject that it was still considered a meeting. Actually, by definition, a meeting was anything more than one person. He recognized that Brian was at an especially vulnerable point in his sobriety. He had told his "best friend" that he would cease their friendship if he couldn't accept his sobriety. This morning he'd been served by a court appointee to not be anywhere near his son's mothers in an attempt to keep him away from the very reason that he started the journey. He wanted to support Brian in any way that he could.

"Okay. But if you change your mind, it's fine. I'm sure that I won't start drinking if I have Gus."

"I know you won't drink when you have him, but meetings are important. Let me help you by having one, even if it is the two of us."

"Alright."

"How about I come over at about 7:30?"

"See you tonight," Brian said as he hung up his phone. He realized that he was so lucky to have Justin offer to be his sponsor. He was becoming a friend and he was excited to have a new friendship with someone who wasn't going to judge him by his past behavior.

Brian looked at the clock on the wall, seeing that the majority of the morning had slipped away. He had to leave by 2:00 to get to the school; therefore, he better get some work done. He opened his Trello list on his computer, reviewing his current projects, and mentally calculated their deadlines. Breathing a sigh of relief, he was happy to see that no projects had deadlines in the next week. He would just work a few nights after he came home from AA. He wasn't ready to forego a meeting at this point in time. In the future, he hoped that he would feel confident enough to do so, but right now, it wasn't an option he wanted to try.

He reviewed the projects, calculating the amount of time it would take to complete each one. Prior to attending AA, he would often spend many evenings working before he went to the bars and frequently spent a part of his Sundays working. Since he was no longer going to work hungover, spending the first several hours in a haze, he was able to get to the office earlier and was productive the entire time. While he rarely took work home now, he hoped to have Gus almost every weekend and that option wasn't on the table.

On one of the many occasions that he thought of the changes in his life, he realized that he rarely worked from home anymore. It was a little surprising to him when he came to that realization, and it took a little convincing of his mind that he was caught up and didn't need to take work home. He was able to manage work, AA meetings, and even a regular workout. He'd often found himself walking on his treadmill early in the morning or after AA, but both of those options worked for him. He wanted to be an integral part of Gus' life, not a father he saw only occasionally. He was not going to let this little hiccup of a restraining order change the expanding relationship he had with his son.

Choosing a project that he could finish in a few hours, he clicked on the file and started to work. A few hours into the project, Cynthia knocked on the door and he said, "Come."

She brought him a sandwich from the diner. "Eat. I know you have to leave early to pick up Gus. You need to eat. Turkey on white bread with mayo on the side. Maybe now that your taste buds are not numb from alcohol, you will increase your food repertoire. Turkey on white bread is so boring," she said as she put down the bag holding his lunch. She knew she could tease him about his taste buds without him getting angry. She had noticed the changes in Brian and was pleased to learn that he'd stopped drinking. At first, she was concerned that his cancer had returned, but when she saw him working full days and always being on top of his game, she knew something else was the reason for the change. As much as he was not forthcoming with his personal life, she actually knew quite a bit from the tidbits he let drop. He was not as mysterious as many people believed.

"Thanks"' Brian said as he unwrapped the sandwich and took a bite. He realized that the turkey was a little on the dry side and the mayo did not provide much taste. He'd been expanding his choices of food when he ate with Justin and realized Cynthia was right. He needed to expand his options. However, he realized he ordered the turkey sandwich as much for its low carb footprint as well as the desire to not have to think about his options. Food had not been an important part of his life, preferring to drink his calories rather than eat them. He was also very conscious of eating too much, wanting to keep up his slim figure and keep the tricks knocking on his proverbial door. While he was no longer tricking, he still had a reputation for being the "Stud of Liberty Avenue" that he wanted to uphold. He knew eventually the desire to trick would rise again. He smiled at his pun and took a few more bites of the dry sandwich. She had brought him a cup of coffee to wash down the sandwich and while it was not nearly the caliber of the coffee he usually drank, he drank it as well. He decided as he finished the sandwich, he and Gus were going to have something better than diner food for dinner. Throwing the trash in the wastebasket, he wiped his hands on the paper napkin and returned to his project.

He'd set an alarm on his phone to alert him when he needed to stop working in order to be on time to pick up Gus. He hoped that Melanie's half-assed attempt at a restraining order would mean that they expected him to just forget about seeing Gus this weekend since he most likely wouldn't stop his workday to pick him up from school. He had it all planned. If they showed up at the school, he would instruct Gus to get in his car, and he would just leave. According to his lawyer, they had no legal right to keep him from his son and he wasn't going to allow them to do so.

He hadn't finished his project; therefore, he did put the key papers in his briefcase. He would still have Sunday night to work on them as he was going to have to drop Gus off at Debbie's and not attend Sunday dinner. He'd have to let her know about Gus, but he had plenty of time to do that. He didn't want to be bombarded by her all weekend as he felt pretty certain that Michael would be telling her about their conversation earlier today.

Stepping out of his office, he said to Cynthia, "Going to get Gus. Call me if you need anything." He repeated the same message to Ted and left the building to drive to Gus' school.

The number of cars lined up to pick up the students was at least 20 deep, even 30 minutes before dismissal time. He'd remembered Lindsay commenting on the early arrival of so many parents and questioned why they were there so early. She had told him that she usually just arrived at dismissal time, not wanting to spend needless time in the carpool line. He hoped that today was no different and he'd be way ahead of her. He was glad that he had told the school that he would be picking up Gus so Gus would be looking for him and not Lindsay. He knew that if they arrived close to each other, she would insist that Gus go home with her, something he had no intention of allowing. He'd promised Gus that they would be spending the weekend together and he was not one to break promises.

He opened his briefcase and reviewed some of the documents he'd brought to work on over the weekend. Whenever he worked on a campaign, he needed to spend time reviewing information about the company's products, their business model, and past advertisements, if there were any. There was a lot of background work that needed to be completed in advertising, and most people thought it was only about the advertisement itself. After about 20 minutes, the line started to move so he put the papers back in his briefcase, placing it in the backseat.

He watched as the children poured out of the building. Looking for Gus in the sea of children was a little disconcerting, especially when he wanted Gus to come to his car even if Lindsay was there. Luckily for Brian, the carpool line moved quickly and as each car moved to the front of the line, a teacher poked their head in the car and asked who the person was there to pick up. Since it was the middle of the school year, most teachers recognized the drivers and the children who were to be picked up, but occasionally they had to ask. When it was his turn, he rolled down the window and told the teacher he was there to pick up Gus. She took out her clipboard and saw a note showing Gus' father would be picking him up. She asked Brian for an ID and he got out his driver's license. She looked at it and nodded her head in acceptance.

"Gus Peterson," she yelled toward the gaggle of students waiting for their carpool.

Gus came running out of the crowd, backpack in hand rather than on his back. Opening the door to Brian's BMW, he threw his backpack on the floorboards in the back seat and leaned over to hug his father. "I'm so glad to see you. Mom said I couldn't come over this weekend. It was just like you said. But this morning, Mr. Morris got a note from the principal's office saying you would pick me up. Did you and Mom work it out? How'd you get her to change her mind? Are we going by the house to get my stuff for the weekend?"

Brian put the car into gear and left the carpool lane, pulling out into traffic.

"Woah there, Sonny boy. One question at a time. First things first, we are not going to your house to pick up anything. Whatever you need for the weekend, we are going to buy. So let's start with the basics. You will need underwear, socks, jeans, shirts, and a toothbrush. I have your new camera, well actually it's a phone, but regardless you don't need that. Do you need anything else? We will buy a few changes of clothes so you can keep some stuff at my house."

"Dad, that's awesome. So we are on our way to Target? That's close to the Diner, can we stop and get a shake?"

Brian inwardly cringed at the mention of shopping at the Big Q. "We are not shopping at Target. We will go to Kohl's for your clothes."

"But Mom says I grow so fast, she can't afford to buy me clothes at a regular store. She'll have a fit when she sees the new clothes," Gus said, confirming Brian's suspicions that Lindsay was pocketing a lot of the money he was giving her to purchase clothing for Gus. Buying clothes at Target was a lot cheaper than Kohl's and since the clothes were of poorer quality, they would wear out easier, thus Lindsay needed to buy new ones sooner. She would be technically telling the truth when she told Brian that he'd outgrown the clothes or that they were falling apart. She just neglected to tell him that it was partially her fault since she purchased poor quality merchandise. He had already resolved that issue when he told Lindsay that he was going to buy all of Gus' clothing. He had a suspicion that once he started buying quality items for his son, his need to go shopping for him would not be nearly as frequent as Lindsay claimed.

"Wow, that's cool."

"Now, as far as your mothers are concerned…." Brian wanted to word his statements without malice. He didn't want Gus mad at his mothers. He remembered the conversation he'd had with Gus regarding his friends who had divorced parents. He stated that many of his friends felt awkward when spending time with the non-custodial (Brian's words, not Gus') parent as the parent always tried to fill their time with exciting adventures and fun activities. Gus told Brian that he loved just hanging out with Brian and he enjoyed spending time just doing everyday things.

Since Kohls' was not somewhere he typically shopped, preferring to order his clothing from Armani, Gucci, or Versace's biannual clothing shows, he had to look up where the nearest store was located. He had put his phone in the cradle of the dashboard as the familiar WAZE app talked him through the turns to their destination. He saw on the app that he had at least 4 miles until he needed to turn; therefore, he felt that he could concentrate on Gus' question rather than worry about missing the cutoff for the store.

"Your mother does not know that I picked you up from school. Well, she probably does now, since the carpool line moves very fast. Don't be surprised if she calls demanding you be brought home or tries to show up at the Loft demanding that she take you home. She asked me to take you for the weekend since she had some event she wanted to attend. I told her, yes and I was going to ask her to have you anyways." Brian thought about the enjoyable time he and Gus spent with Justin last weekend when they went to the Science Center and the Incline. He'd really enjoyed exploring Pittsburgh with them. "I told her about my sobriety and she decided that you weren't safe with me. She told me that I couldn't spend time with you since I might drink."

"Dad, that's stupid. Why would she do that?"

"Gus. I don't want you to worry about staying with me on the weekends. Remember the DNA test you took?"

"Sure. Does this have to do with the test?"

"Sort of. I'm not going to get into all the legal stuff with you. Just know that you are my son and I want to be a part of your life. I'll deal with your Moms." Brian had thought about the initial conversations with Gus and Lindsay but hadn't really contemplated that there would most likely be follow up ones as well. He'd never had to think about conversations in the past, except when he was planning a pitch to a client. This was also new territory for him. His phone started ringing and he recognized the ringtone. It was Lindsay.

His phone was on the seat. He picked it up, unlocked it with his fingerprint, and handed it to Gus. "It's your mom. Say hello," he said to Gus.

"Hi Mom," Gus said.

"Gus. Let me talk to your father." When Lindsay arrived at the school, she was told by the teacher in the carpool line that he'd been picked up by his father. She was absolutely furious. She had not expected him to go behind her back.

"He gave the phone to me. He's driving. I can tell him to call you back."

Lindsay wanted Brian to answer her right this minute. She didn't want to wait but decided that having this conversation when he was driving with Gus was probably not a good idea.

By this point, the WAZE app had told him that he was close, 1200 feet; therefore he was scanning the suburban shopping strip mall for the vaguely familiar logo. Eyeing it on his right, he turned into the strip mall and parked his car.

Brian put out his hand for his phone. "Hello, Lindsay," he said.

"Why did you pick up Gus from school?"

"I had no choice. I received a restraining order from the court to stay away from you and your wife," Brian said, refusing to name Melanie. "You had an event you wanted to attend and asked me to keep Gus this weekend. I had to pick him up at school since I couldn't exactly come to your house. I don't want to run afoul of the law," Brian said, explaining the situation in concrete terms so she could easily follow the line of reasoning.

"I'm coming to the loft right now to pick him up. I told him he couldn't stay with you. It's not safe."

"I wouldn't advise that. If you come to the loft to get Gus, then you are violating the restraining order. It wouldn't look too good in a court of law that you had me served with a restraining order and then violated it less than a day later. Maybe you and your wife should have thought this through a little more. Your fault, not mine. Now, me and my son have some shopping to do. I promised him to buy him some clothes so he won't have to wear the same thing all weekend. Oh, and by the way, I'll drop him at Debbie's on Sunday so you can pick him up. I won't be there. I wouldn't want to break the law."

Brian hung up the phone, smiling at the situation.

"Now, come on, Sonny Boy, we have some shopping to do." Brian put his phone in his pocket and the two of them went into the store.

TBC