Big Balls/CH 2
As the evening wore on, and the drinks continued to flow, Justin noticed his dinner companion had gotten much more vocal. Daniel waved one hand towards him and leaned across the table, "So, your aunt really NEVER told you what happened between her and me while I was in London with her, Justin?
I find that very diff...um...hard to believe! You two are really close, aren't you? I mean, didn't she sort of...wasn't she the one who talked to you at your mom's wedding and convvin….um you know, let you know it was okay to come out?" he was 'whispering' rather loudly, apparently trying to be discreet, but failing miserably.
Justin couldn't resist messing with his aunt's former boss and friend, as he gave him a faux look of shock and anger, "DANIEL! How dare you! Come out? What the hell are you talking about? You actually think I'm… GAY? Where on earth did you get that crazy idea from? Who told you that? I swear, I'll beat the shit out of them!"
Unlike his older friend, Justin was keeping his voice low, and since they had a table in the rear of the restaurant, he wasn't really all that concerned. Not that he would have been, anyway.
Daniel's eyes widened as he stuttered, and grabbed his glass of water, "Sorry! I just...um...thought...your Aunt Betty said something...about...you...uh...that, a long time ago! Or maybe it was Marc?"
Justin rolled his eyes, trying to keep a "straight" face, as his co-conspirators showed up, "Well, MARC! Of course, he thinks EVERYBODY is gay, just because He is! Speak of the devil, look who's here to join us? Hey, Marcy, Cliff-y! How's it hanging, guys? It's good to see you! Did you men catch the game last night? Wasn't it div...I mean fucking great?"
Cliff and Marc both approached the table and sat down, looking somewhat puzzled, "The game? What game? Oh, you mean...Fire Island? Or...Price is Right?"
Cliff hit Marc's arm which elicited a squeal, "OW! Why are you abusing me?"
Cliff grinned, and elbowed his husband very lightly, "I THINK he is talking about the basketball game last night, right? I didn't know you were into basketball, Justin? Actually, the Knicks are in the playoffs tomorrow night! I guess last night you saw the pre-game line up maybe?"
Justin and Marc both looked puzzled, shrugging and waving their hands in utter confusion but Daniel nodded in understanding, "Right! So, you did keep following the game after I tried to teach you that time years ago, huh, Justin? I have to tell you, your game back then was...pretty sad!
But maybe after ten years, it's gotten better, huh? They say it takes, like ten thousand hours, or whatever, right? Although, honestly, it probably would have taken at LEAST that long for you to...be any good! Sorry, but…"
Justin raised an eyebrow, "HEY! I may not know how to throw a touchdown or...score a...goal or um...whatever, but at least I'm taller than YOU now, Mr. Meade!"
"Okay, settle down, Michael Jordan! So, anyway...you're now some major basketball player who is NOT gay and who doesn't talk to your aunt about...her love life, is that what you're saying?"
Cliff and Marc both leaned forward, after joining in on the drinking and ordering appetizers.
"No bread, thanks!" Both men said together, as the waiter came around, but Daniel grabbed the plate, "I'll take that! Who do I have to look good for, anyway, huh?"
Justin shook his head, and after Daniel tried unsuccessfully to grab several pieces of bread, he handed it back to the waiter, as he leaned forward to Cliff and Marc, "You'll have to excuse Daniel.
He's clearly stress eating! He just found out that AB's boss passed away and she's coming back to New York soon. Like very soon! So, I think he's starting to freak out a little. Oh, and he decided to party in Willi's office like it was 2009 and he still ran Mode and took her calls!
Specifically, he called back The New Yorker and gave his former employee such a glowing recommendation that it took him half an hour to sing her praises!" Justin tried not to laugh at Daniel's expense. Actually, he found it sort of sweet. If incredibly overdue and far too little too late!
"Shut up, Justin!" Daniel was obviously extremely embarrassed and started to stand up, but got his tie caught in the table cloth and started to take it with him, until the other three helped extricate him and sat him down, "Hey there, Daniel, be careful! There ARE some paparazzi outside! We don't want to let them see you stumbling out of here! Let's sneak you out of here as soon as we get one more round to go! They actually have decent choclatini's here! Amazing!"
Justin felt bad for texting Marc and Cliff to join them in the first place and then sticking Daniel with the large bill, but he knew he would likely need some help getting the rather inebriated multi-millionaire past the press. Besides, he had somewhat surprisingly been unable to get Daniel to open up so far, even in his drunken state, and divulge exactly what had happened in London. He was hoping that having extra people might loosen the man's tongue a little.
Once they had managed to create a diversion of faking a Brad Pitt sighting, since the actor was rumored to be in the big apple, the three had Daniel ensconced safely in between them.
He leaned forward, "Brad Pitt is here? Really? I didn't see him! I tried to warn him about that Angie! She's a real ball-buster! But did he listen to me? Nobody ever listens!"
"We're all listening now, Daniel. You were just getting interesting back there, telling us all at the restaurant about what really happened with you and Aunt Betty in London! That kissing part sounded really juicy! What happened after the kissing? Did she slap you? Knee you? Or...kiss you back?"
Daniel furrowed his brows thoughtfully, "I told you that? No, I didn't! You're just trying to trick me into talking! Like I said if SHE didn't say anything, I'M not gonna! If my kisses were suppubly so damn 'unforgettable' then why the hell didn't she ever...tell ME that? Or...I don't know, told SOMEBODY about it, you know?
You would THINK that after all this...these uhmmm times...days, years! She-dda told her best friend or something that she kissed me. But I guess she didn't like it!"
"But Daniel, YOU were her best friend, remember? So...she DID kiss you back, huh?"
He nodded, trying to hide his crooked grin, "Uh-huh. Oh Yeah. She definitely did kiss me back alright. And it was...well...pretty damn INTENSE! At least...I thought so."
"What happened then? Why didn't she kiss you again or at least let you kiss HER again? Were you on a date? I thought she said that the date went well, but you both just hugged each other at the end. When did she kiss you back? In her place? She actually let you inside? " He seemed shocked.
Daniel shook his head, "No! Not on our date, that went fine, I guess, but it was pretty tame. It was...well, in her office the next week. We had sort of been flirting a little and she asked if I wanted to be her assistant. I thought it was all a big joke, but I said, sure, I wasn't working. Why not?
But we stopped kissing, because...we were interrupted! I was supposed to be HER assistant! I was just there to help her. But...I got carried away and...so did she a little and...then her DAMN boss walked in on us! She was...well...mortified!
Which just made her even more adorable, but...that wasn't a good thing, because he was really mad and yelled at us both and fired me! I started to yell back at him and tell him to go jump in a lake, that I didn't want his stupid job anyway, I was only there to help Betty, but I couldn't do that. I couldn't say anything. I knew how much she loved that job. She worked so hard all her life. So, I left.
I tried to call a bunch of times, but she was always 'busy'. I know she was really embarrassed, but…she wouldn't even talk to me, Justin! What the hell was I supposed to do? Just sit outside her doorstep and wait FOREVER until she stopped being embarrassed enough to go out with me again?
Finally, after four MONTHS of getting nothing but her voicemail, I got the message and took a hike. She clearly hasn't missed me since then. I mean the phone works both ways, you know. If she really wanted me, she could have told me so in all these years. But...she never did. Not once!"
Marc and Cliff exchanged looks, "Is that REALLY all that happened? Her now dead boss walked in on you two...KISSING? Why don't I believe that, Daniel? You forget I unwillingly at Willi's insistence filmed you and that lawyer woman, Grace Chin, years ago, doing the nasty and I do mean nasty Miss Jackson on a restaurant FLOOR, for Prada's sake! Now, you expect me to believe you got all PG on me? Since when?"
Cliff squinted, "Well, we ARE talking about Betty, Marc! She's not really the rolling around on the floor, having sex kind of girl, sorry, Justin, no offense! I mean, she's really beautiful, and I'm sure she's gotten very...um...sophisticated now that she's more mature, but…"
Marc deadpanned to his husband, "You REALLY need to get out more if you think having sex on the floor is 'sophisticated', honey! I mean ...sure, maybe sometimes in an emergency situation, but...not at her own office! Did she not remember to lock the door?
And YOU! Daniel Meade! Sex in the office, 101, MAKE SURE THE DOOR IS LOCKED! Did you get so excited finally kissing your little chalupa that you forgot everything you should have learned in all those years of being a man-whore at Mode? Sorry, Justin! Not that… Betty …I mean…"
Daniel made a face, "I told you, we weren't...doing THAT! Okay? We weren't having sex! We were only kissing!"
"Sure you were, slugger!"
He sighed, closing his eyes, "It doesn't matter! Justin, when is she ...coming home? Do you know?"
"Maybe. I might have her airline, flight number, and arrival information."
Daniel sensed a negotiation, "What do you want, Justin?"
"Not much. Just the truth. The whole truth and nothing but the truth! Guys, thanks for your help, and I'm glad you enjoyed dinner and drinks on Daniel's dime, but...I think I've got it from here."
Marc looked insulted, "Excuse me? Now that you got our help, you think you're just going to 'dismiss' us, little man?"
Justin stood up to Marc, "Excuse ME! Who are you calling 'little', Marc? Or should I say, MARC! Just because you're the Creative Director now, you aren't MY boss! So...back off, buster!"
Cliff and Daniel were both watching with rather amused expressions on their faces and Daniel laughed outright, "Sorry, are we going to have a girl fight right here, in front of my place? Look, I'm sober...or Close enough.
It's been a really long time since I take an, I mean took a drank and I can hold my liquor pretty good, so...you're not getting anything else outta me, anyhow, Mister Suarez! Or you, either, Mr. Marc...I mean...St. James! Is your last name really Weiner?"
Marc's eyes widened in horror as he 'bitch slapped' Justin, "You TOLD?! You BITCH!"
Daniel and Cliff pulled the two men apart as Cliff calmly took Daniel's keys from him and let them all inside. Justin proclaimed, "I swear I did NOT tell him...anything, Marc!"
Daniel flopped onto his couch and waved towards his kitchen, "You guys can help yourself to wine or beer or whatever. And Marc, Justin's right. He didn't tell me. Betty did. Accidentally. When she was…"
"In your bed?" Marc finished sarcastically as he took the glass of wine from Cliff and sat on a chair, glaring at Justin for a moment, then calmed himself, "Fine! I'm sorry, Justin, that's just...NOT acceptable information to 'leak' to some…"
Daniel looked slightly annoyed and hurt, "Some...what? I WAS Betty's best friend, once upon a time, remember, Marc?! And YOU were very mean to her many, many times! Sometimes, she told me things that made me want to fire you! But she always came to your defense.
One time, though, in particular, she was so upset at you, for treating her like shit as usual, that when she was a bit tipsy she spilled the beans on the Weiner thing… Sorry! Okay, I admit, maybe that was uncalled for.
But...whatever, she still would never let me fire you! I fired Gio, I threatened to fire that asshole Henry, plus trashed him to that law firm, and I actually punched Hartley! So don't think if it were up to me I wouldn't have fired your ass, too, and then punched you just for good measure if she hadn't stuck up for you!"
Marc looked almost impressed at Daniel's bravado, as misplaced as it was, but was still a bit miffed that his "chimichanga' had sold him out.
"Fine, whatever, Cliff, honey, clearly, we're no longer NEEDED here, do you want to go home?"
"I guess so. This WAS getting interesting. But...Justin, text me later, okay? Good luck with Betty coming back to the states, Daniel! It's been a decade! And now that her old boss is actually DEAD, surely you two can patch things up, right? It's not like you even had a FIGHT? You didn't…" he stopped, glancing at Marc, and took his hand, staring into his eyes meaningfully, "Let's go, honey. This is personal."
Marc looked guilty and upset, as he nodded. He wondered if he would always feel like the biggest jerk on the planet for screwing things up with Cliff years ago just because he got scared, so he had cheated for no reason to self-sabotage what was an amazing relationship. His heart literally ached to know that he had caused Cliff so much pain back then. When they reunited and married, Marc had vowed to do everything in his power to prove that he never needed to doubt his love again.
After they left, Justin grabbed the remote from his host, then leaned back in his chair, "So, it's just us, Daniel. Now talk. Tell me what really happened. And I'll let you tag along when I go to pick her up this Saturday at ten am, British Airways flight seven fifty-four. IF you're interested, that is."
Daniel got up and began pacing, "Fine, thank you. Of course, I am! But what I told you really IS all that happened, I swear to you, Justin! We were kissing pretty...you know, well, very uh...heatedly. And when that stupid old boss of hers walked into her office, she looked so...mad and embarrassed and ashamed!
After he left, later, I tried to talk to her on the elevator and she said she wasn't ever going to be one of "Daniel's girls" and that she had bigger plans for her life than just being another one of my 'thousands of conquests' or whatever.
I know she felt really unprofessional when he caught us and that's not at all like her, so I got why she was so pissed not only at me, but at herself, I think for letting us both get so carried away, but...still. She SHOULD have gotten over it and forgiven me at some point, eventually, right? Am I totally wrong here? Why has it taken ten years for her to forgive me this time? IF she even has yet!"
Justin shook his head, rolling his eyes, and patting Daniel's shoulders, "Daniel! Jesus, of course, she got mad! You two may have been 'besties', but she IS still a woman! You made her jealous, of all those other women she's seen you do the exact same thing with, don't you get it?
She was freaked out because she always told herself she was immune to your charms and she was never, ever going to just be another one of your many, many, many 'bimbos', that she had more integrity than that, more class. But when it came down to it, all you had to do was pucker up and bat your pretty blue eyes at her and she caved, just like all your other 'girls'!
She probably felt like a total idiot, falling for such a huge player, and yes, maybe she was afraid once you "got her", you would do what she had seen you always used to do and move on to the next 'conquest'.
I mean, granted, I know that you have changed and of course, Aunt Betty intellectually knows that, too, of all people, since she's the main reason you cleaned up your act, but still, after having to sit front and center for four years while she watched you bed practically every woman in a hundred-mile radius, do you really blame her for being scared of you? Of 'hooking up' with you?"
Daniel sighed, running his hand through his hair, "Okay, I see your point. After all this time, I stopped trying to make peace with her, I stopped trying to call her, because it hurt my pride that she refused to even take my calls or respond to my emails! I gave up! Plus, we both just...well, moved on, or tried to, at least."
Justin nodded, as he started to get his coat to leave, "Let me guess, ever since you got back here, and started trying to move on, to date other women and forget about her, nobody else made your heart beat fast like hers?"
Daniel grinned slightly, shaking his head, "No, not really."
"Well, it looks like you two finally have something else in common. Because that's exactly what AB told me about you when I asked her why she never settled down with any guys over there."
"Seriously? She really said that about me?"
"She did. Pick me up at nine Saturday. I'll make myself scarce once I get you two talking. Bring flowers, chocolates, teddy bears, jewelry, shoes, dresses, whatever. Come armed to apologize."
He nodded, "I will. Hey, Justin! Thanks for your help! I really miss her every day! I never got over her."
"Neither did she. Not to sound too much like my boss, but seriously, Daniel, you two deserve each other! You're both complete idiots!" He rolled his eyes and left.
Daniel grinned, as he felt himself drift off. He couldn't believe he still had a shot!
Betty opened her eyes when she heard the flight attendant made the announcement that they would soon be landing at JFK. She tried to reach the mirror in her purse, but she was too short to reach it until they had taxied to the gate. Then, it was a mad rush of the other passengers to deboard the plane. She ended up deciding to wait until she went to the restroom inside the airport to freshen up.
She was relieved that she hadn't checked any bags, because she had already shipped most of her clothing at the beginning of the month. That was always an extra ordeal at the end of a long flight. She tried to call Justin but kept getting his voicemail, so she texted him that she had landed safely and would be waiting for him to pick her up at the arrivals and went to go sit outside.
"Is this seat taken, young lady?"
She looked up to see hopeful, slightly sad blue eyes.
Her own widened as she realized she had been set up by her nephew, "Daniel? You...um...you're here!"
He smiled, taking her hand in his, as he took a deep breath, "Yeah. Oh! I almost forgot! Here! Your...um...nephew told me I should come bearing gifts!" He picked up a bag from the ground and pulled out a huge bouquet of red and yellow roses, a big box of dark chocolates, and a rather large, purple teddy bear, as well as balloons that read, 'Welcome Home', making her laugh.
"Oh my goodness, Daniel! That's so...sweet! Thank you!"
He shrugged, "Sure. He also suggested shoes, and clothing, and jewelry, but I figured that sounded more like things HE would appreciate, than you! At least...what I remember you like! It's...been a while!"
"DANIEL/BETTY I'M SO SORRY!" they both blurted out at the same time.
"I'm such an idiot, Daniel! I should have contacted you! I can't believe it's been so long! I'm definitely not...mad anymore! I felt so badly for how I spoke to you, how I YELLED at you! I was really embarrassed, but that wasn't your fault! I was the one who…"
He grinned, placing his hand lightly over her mouth, "Sh! Betty, stop! It was MY fault! I was SO disrespectful, acting like we were still at Mode or something and you were...in MY office! I had no right to put you in such a terrible position! You had just started working there and here I expected you to help me 'find myself' and "needed' your help or whatever as usual!
Then, I gave up way too soon, when I know it takes you a long time to sort through your feelings and cool down sometimes. I knew that about you. I should have kept calling, kept bugging you until you knew just how much you really meant to me!"
She stood up, holding the items he had given her as he took her carry-on luggage, and held out his elbow for her to grab, "Um...shall we?"
She smiled, biting her bottom lip and nodding, "Mmhmm...I'm going to kill Justin!"
"Did you say kill or kiss?"
She rolled her eyes, "How much did you tell him?"
He shrugged, "I don't really remember, honestly. I had been drinking, I think. It felt very weird to go have a drink with your nephew! Considering how young he used to be when I first met him! It made me feel really old! And before you say something you regret, just...don't! I am well aware how much older I am than you, young lady!"
"Don't call me that, please! But I do know what you mean about Justin! It's crazy to think he's older now than I was when I left Mode!"
He smiled, "You've aged pretty well, I'd say! Like a fine wine! Hell, you look even better than the last time I saw you. I'm the one who got old and grey and wrinkled! I've aged more like bad cheese!"
They both laughed, and she shoved him lightly, as she put all the gifts on the seat next to her and turned to smile at him. Seeing the man again, after all this time, felt surreal. But it filled her heart with hope and joy to see how happy he clearly was to see her again.
"So, you um...gave me a REALLY great reference, I hear! Thank you, so much, Daniel! I...um...got the job!"
He grinned, pulling her to him for a warm hug, then they gradually pulled apart slightly, still staring into each other's eyes, "I'm so happy for you, Betty!" He brushed back a strand of hair from her face.
"Me, too! It's a huge relief! I really didn't want to have to compete with my nephew for a job at Mode, working for Wilhelmina!"
"You didn't want to stay in London?"
She shook her head, "No. His um...son is taking over and going in a 'different direction' with all the magazines now. Besides, it was time for me to come home. I missed...everybody in New York. Especially… you."
