QAF Fanfictional Series

* As always, the characters belong to their creators, and not to me... Regretfully...*

Sympathies

"He really needs his friends right now..." His voice was struck with hurt and disbelief. Justin Taylor, age nineteen, sat with clamy hands upon Brian's countertop. The latter shrugged while adjusting his shirt in the mirror, tilting his head back and forth as if admiring his own beauty.

"If he's expecting sympathy from me," Brian turned, whirling his keys on a finger." Then he is direly mistaken." He punctuated this dramatically, as he headed towards the door, sliding it open.

" ...How can you be such a jerk?! Mike's dying, in case you haven't taken any notice!" Blonde tassels fluttered across a detached, blank, yet strangely enraged visage. Brian paused, forehead resting against the loft door for a moment before, silently, he stepped out, slamming the door shut behind him. Justin dropped his arms, defeated.

"You're right," He muttered to himself, " He's stupid for expecting anything from Mr. Brian Kinney.." With a heavy heart, he grabbed his backpack and headed out of the loft, making his way, briskly, to Allegheney General.

***

" Bri...? We'll always be together, right?"

" 'Course, Mikey!" Brian tousled his hair. " We're inseparable. Like MungoJerrie and RumpleTeaser." He smiled down at the other affectionately." And there's nothing at all to be done about that." He sang this matter-of-factually, passing the joint he was smoking in Mike's direction. Mike placed a hand gently on the other's chest, responding with a slight lilt in his voice, " You're right..." A beat. " I love you, Brian."

Of course, Brian wasn't taken aback. These were teenage years, carefree, without the strain and stress of responsibility. He pulled Michael against him, a light smile playing across his lips.

"Right back at you."

***

The sounds of beeps and blips were almost deafening. Wild Red locks plastered themselves upon a haggard face that gazed off down the tortuous corridors of the hallway. Deb looked down at the coffee shifting uneasily within her shaking hands. Absently, she was pondering pillaging some more of Brian's Chronic in an attempt to calm her rising anxiousness. But of course, that Deb was gone with the 60's.

In the arms of the angel

Fly away from here...

" Can't they play less depressing music at these fuckin' places?"

" Would you just calm down? They said he was alright." Vic sighed into his palm. She'd been holding that cup of coffee for at least an hour now. And nothing was worse then a mouth of lukewarm coffee.

" Alright?! No kid of mine who gets it in his head to end his fuckin' life is alright!" A quick pause, and her head lowered into her ample bosom as she muttered a supplementary, " Stupid."

" Mike is just under a lot of stress, an-"

"Don't start feeding me that bullshit." She threw down her cup in a moment of irrationality, before regaining her composure, and turning to face Vic. " I just didn't see it coming, ya know? I talk to him everyday, three times a day." She sat down heavily in her chair, looking down at the amber liquid slowly spreading across the speckled linoleum. " Hell..."

Vic gave her a gentle smile, placing his arm over her shoulders. " Don't worry, Deb. They have custodians for just these kinds of things."

The mass of Red hair lifted up, just enough so tear specked hues could meet the other's. " I just hope he's still Mike in there..." Her hand rose to place itself over Vic's. " I hope to God he's still in there..." There was nothing left to be said. Vic turned in his chair and embraced her and her arms tightened about him in return, as she gazed off down the tortuous corridors.

***



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