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Inspired by the Herc episode, Yes Virginia...Please read and review!

Chapter Two

They checked out of the hotel the next morning and stopped at a diner for some breakfast. Henry was glad to see that the sleep had done Ian some good. Some of the exhaustion was gone and he looked brighter. Ian's smile always seemed to light up everything else around him.

Henry treasured his friend's smile and his seemingly endless supply of energy. The man could hardly keep still most of the time. Henry had once sat in one of Ian's classes just for the heck of it. He had nothing to do and he had something he wanted to discuss with the man later.

Henry smiled as he remembered the way Ian seemed to bounce off of the walls of the classroom. He was energetic and vibrant; he moved with his words and interacted with the students. His students liked his bubbly, cheery personality and the man had gained a few female admirers. Ian was a bit of a ladies man, but he never got too serious with anybody. He once said that harmless flirtation was one thing; he wouldn't get into a relationship, however, with someone he didn't care seriously about.

Many years back, both men had been married. Unfortunately both of their wives and Henry's son had died in a car accident three years after the marriages. They had double weddings, and a month later Adam had been born. When Adam had been born, Henry had loved the child as his own.

Like Henry, Lily's family had been killed when she was young. Her uncle, who was an abusive drunk, had raised her. It was a dark time in Lily's life, and natural to one in her situation she had made decisions and took actions that she later came to regret. When she had discovered that she was pregnant, she left the home of her uncle, who had not cared either way. She had moved to Illinois, where she had befriended Francine. It was through Francine that she had met Henry. But it had taken some time for Lily to accept that Henry had loved her for her, and not out of pity for her situation. It had taken some effort, but their efforts had paid off. Henry was not in the habit of judging people based on their past.

For Henry, it had been love at first site. Lily was a stubborn, strong, independent woman who drew Henry to her like a child to a candy store. She regretted the actions of her youth and was determined to make a life for her and her child. Henry had loved her for her strong will, her determination, and her amazing capacity to love. When they had married, Henry had felt like his life was finally complete. He had the thing he had wanted for his entire life, a family.

On the day of the accident, their wives had scheduled doctor's appointments together. Afterwards, mere moments before the accident, Lily had called Henry from the doctor's office. Both she and Francine had been pregnant.

At first, Henry thought that the grief would drive him insane. When he had first gotten the phone call from Lily, he thought his heart was going to explode with joy. Ian, he knew, was even more excited than his friend. It was going to be Ian's first child and the blonde had been ecstatic. When he had gotten the wonderful news, he could barely contain his excitement. He was bouncing off of the walls and babbling a thousand words a second.

Then, as the two men were discussing going out for a celebration, there was a knock at the door. When he had identified himself to the police, they had delivered the news. He felt as though his whole world had come crashing down around him. He was barely aware of Ian's concerned questions, even less so as Ian spoke to the authorities and asked frantic questions. The memory of Ian driving them both to the hospital was blurry and unfocused. The only thing Henry remembered about the encounter was seeing the dead bodies of his wife and child, knowing that his wife carried a second.

After the shock had passed, Henry had been half insane with rage and grief. Both men had taken a sabbatical from teaching due to personal loss. Henry had gone down a path of self-destruction, trying to drown the misery and pain in alcohol. More than once Ian had to drag his friend out of a bar or club to prevent a riot as the bigger man attempted to vent his pain and anger.

It was two weeks after the accident that Henry had a revelation. It had come to him in the middle of the night, as he stumbled out of his room toward the bathroom. He still lived in the apartment he had shared with Lily, though he had been thinking of selling. On his way back to his room he had spied Ian, sprawled out asleep on his couch. Henry remembered that Ian had once again dragged Henry home, had taken care of him. Henry figured that Ian must have passed out from sheer exhaustion.

That's when it hit Henry. Ian had been taking care of him this entire time, not taking time for himself to mourn his own loss. Ian had put aside his own needs to take care of Henry. With a pang of revulsion, Henry realized that he had not given his best friend a chance to mourn

The revelation hit Henry like a ton of bricks. Here he was, acting like a drunken ass while his best friend was practically killing himself to make sure Henry didn't kill himself. Henry had been stunned. The revelation forced him to take a look at how despondent his life had become. He should have been mourning for his family, treating their memory with honor. He especially shouldn't have been treating his best friend like he had been. With a pang of horror, he realized that he had been acting like the 'no good hoyden' his foster family always saw him as.

The next morning Henry had confronted Ian, all but begging his best friend for forgiveness at his behavior. Ian had assured his friend that there was nothing to forgive. There had been a heartbreaking, mournful session as the two finally vented their grief and sadness at their loss. There had been many tears and sobbing confessions as the healing finally began for the both of them.

Thinking back on the memories, the man was beyond grateful for Ian's friendship and support. He knew that Ian appreciated the support Henry gave as well. Thanks to their friendship, they were able to get past the grief and move on. They grew sad every once and a while, such as on a birthday or anniversary. But both men could mourn and go on, like they knew their loved ones wanted. Henry was more grateful than ever for Ian's presence in his life.

Henry loved Ian. Not in a romantic fashion, not that he had anything against that. But somehow, Ian filled a void that Henry carried around for as long as he could remember. When the two men met in college, it was as if something inside Henry had sung, vibrated almost. He found himself immediately drawn to the energetic blonde and as they bonded, for the first time in his life, Henry felt that void in his heart fill.

Henry had loved his wife and son dearly there was no doubt about that. But Ian had always meant something more to the younger man that Henry could not easily explain. Ian was a kind, sympathetic individual who always put the needs of Henry and others above his own. He was Henry's best friend; he had always thought of the blonde as a brother, more real to him than the ones from his foster family. Luckily for them both of their wives had been able to understand and appreciate how the two men felt for one another, how close they were. For that, they had loved their wives all the more.

As he watched Ian dive into his breakfast, Henry couldn't help but chuckle. For his part, Ian loved the fact that he could always be himself around Henry and vise versa. Henry never felt that he had to pretend to be someone else around his best friend. For a moment Henry thought back to his foster family. If Henry ever had the mind to go back to his foster parents and introduce them to Ian, the bigger man was sure they would have a heart attack. Henry wondered if that would be before or after they would call the police.

When he was a baby Henry's parents were killed when their home burned down. He was shunted around before he was placed with his foster family at age seven. Henry never felt as if he was one of them. His foster parents were well-bred people, with connections high up in the social ladder. Henry never felt as if they really had tried to help him feel as though he belonged. He always felt like the outsider, a houseguest who had a prolonged stay.

It had become obvious to Henry as he got older that his foster parents were the sort of people who took in "poor, unfortunate souls" like him to look better in the eyes of their well esteemed peers. He trusted his senses when it came to people. He'd found that people gave off signs that could be so easily missed, but somehow he always saw them...the wrinkle across the forehead that hid a frown...the tightness around the mouth that signified disapproval…the soft snort and barely stiffened posture that indicated disagreement. Some people called it sixth sense, but Henry knew it was simply extraordinary observation and understanding of others. Maybe that was in itself a sixth sense, something he had only recently come to realize.

When Henry turned 18 and was released from his foster family, it was as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He had been accepted into the college of his choice with a full ride scholarship and had a great job and access to a trust fund, which would provide him with money for a good apartment later on, and none if it was connected in anyway to his foster family. Life was good. In the middle of his freshman year of college, it got even better.

*******Flashback

It was the middle of January and it had snowed hard for the past few days. Henry was in the college library, getting in as much work as he could. He certainly couldn't do it at his dorm. His roommate was loud, abrasive and reminded Henry of one of his foster brothers, Greg.

Greg was the oldest of his foster brothers, and the meanest. All three of his foster brothers were nasty, cruel little boys who always took pleasure in their greatest pastime, which was picking on Henry. They themselves were not foster children, and took great pleasure of reminding Henry of that fact. In public they would show themselves off as the well behaved, proper children a family should have and at home they would into rude, loud, annoying little spoiled brats who got everything they wanted from their parents and tormented Henry to no end.

Henry had no friends within the social circle his foster family was a part of. He was quiet, modest and always had his nose in a book. He had no real social skills or the attitude necessary for the game. While his peers gossiped and pointed fingers, he kept his own nose clean and out of other people's business. This moral highroad approach to life had given his foster brothers all the ammunition they needed. There was rarely any physical harm that couldn't be passed off as a 'boys will be boys' mentality when his foster brothers weren't being scolded for their 'deplorable actions' and 'behavior unfitting proper children.'

Of course Henry was duly punished for 'setting a bad example' and taking their kindness and generosity for granted when they had given him such a good home, shown him what a proper family should be which would be something he would never truly know, since he was nothing better than a common hoyden, a bastard child who should be glad that they had accepted him into their home when they could have tossed him onto the street, where he truly belonged. They of course, didn't say that last part out loud, but Henry could read between lines.

Though Henry felt no love or affection from this family, he could never find any real, solid grounds so he could request a change. He was in a good, clean household that provided for him and he was getting an education. Was it really worth the effort to go through so much paperwork, to transfer out of a home most children would fight to get, just because he was a little unhappy? So when court time came around he plastered on the appearance that he was a happy, settled little boy.

In hindsight Henry realized that if he had requested a change, if he had put up a good enough front, he probably would have been taken out of the place. But he was out now, and away from Greg and his other foster brothers. His roommate wasn't quite as bad as Greg, but he was certainly annoying. He tried his best to ignore his roommate and avoided him whenever possible.

Henry was sitting near the back among the shelves, away from any distractions. He had his Calculus book open and was trying to make sense of the jumbled numbers and odd squiggly lines that he was sure someone had doodled across the book. He was ready to slam the book closed and use it to bash his brains out.

Then someone laid a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump. He turned to face the person behind him, and was met with a slightly older blonde young man, who smiled at him. His blue eyes were alight with mischief and Henry knew instinctively that the blonde had made him jump on purpose. Surprisingly, this only made Henry smile in return.

The blonde leaned over Henry's shoulder to peer at his math book. "Calculus, huh? Sucks don't it?" The blonde sat in the seat next to Henry, casually leaning back as though it were his place. Henry nodded, staring at the blonde. He didn't like being interrupted when he studied, but he didn't object to the presence of this strange young man.

Henry gave a small laugh. "I'll say. Did they write this thing in English? If not, then I need the pocket translator."

The blonde laughed and Henry found himself laughing with him. The blonde's laughter wasn't derogatory, or forced just to make Henry feel better. It was loud and infectious, and Henry's heart soared at the genuine humor and the sincere twinkle of mirth and acceptance in the blonde's sky blue eyes.

When they both calmed down, the blonde sat up in his chair. He still had the smile, and Henry noticed that there was no force involved at that his eyes shone with a genuine love of life. "So," the blonde said. "You want some help? I did okay in Calculus. I'm no math whiz but I think I can get you at least B material. I'm Ian." He held his hand out to Henry to shake and Henry gladly accepted. His heart warmed at the offer and the honest kindness that emanated from Ian. For the first time, Henry felt a sense of friendship…and love. As Henry shook Ian's hand, he knew deep down that the two of them were going to be close. His senses, his "sixth sense" seemed to all but scream it at him.

***********************************

Unlike the majority of the people Henry had known in his life, courtesy of his foster family, Ian was unconcerned with social graces and the latest, embarrassing gossip. Unlike Greg, Carlton and Bentley, his foster brothers, Ian took no pleasure in tormenting the lives of others. Instead, Ian preferred to lighten up people's lives, help them in a time of need. He was the first to jump and provide a friend to someone who needed one. His bright, cheery personality was infectious and drew Henry like a dehydrated man to water. That Ian was a modest, upstanding person with a sense of justice so similar to Henry's own only drew him in more. Ian's "torments" consisted of practical jokes and pranks and when Ian laughed, it only made people want to laugh with him. In Ian, Henry had found the brother he had always wanted.

Henry sipped his orange juice. "So, I figure I'll drive for the first couple of hours, and then you can take over?"

Ian paused in mid sip of his coffee. His eyes widened as he remembered the small revelation he had last night. He quickly set down his mug and sat up straight in his chair. "Henry, we have to talk about this trip."

Henry frowned. "Why? Ian what's wrong?"

Ian leaned over and stared directly into Henry's ice blue eyes. "Where exactly are we going? More to the point, where are we?"

Henry opened his mouth to answer and froze. He frantically searched his mind for the answers that he knew should be there. Seeing his companion's confusion, Ian pressed on. "Did we ever plan anything out, like when we were going to turn back? How far are we planning to drive? Do we even have a destination? We just suddenly decided to take a road trip without even planning anything? Since when have you ever done anything without planning every last detail? Since when have I ever done that?"

The two men sat in silence. Henry's mind searched for answers to Ian's questions now that he found himself asking the same things. Ian was right. The two of them just randomly decided to take a road trip, threw some things in a duffle bag and took off. Neither of them had any clue where they were going.

Henry's thinking was mostly intuition, guided by something beyond logical reason. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that the lack of preparation or even destination didn't matter. That somehow he knew where they were going.

Henry took a deep breath and hoped to high heaven that Ian wouldn't think he was crazy. "Ian, throughout this thing, this random road trip, did you ever get the feeling that, well, that we do have a destination? That we're not randomly driving all over the country? That, that we, I don't know, that-"

"That we do know where we're going? That we're being guided somewhere?" Ian interrupted softly. He had this same thought last night. Henry nodded, relieved that Ian was thinking along the same lines. They often communicated with each other with their eyes and subtle movements and signals. They didn't always need words to convey their thoughts and feelings. It was second nature to them, almost as if they could read each other's thoughts.

As their eyes met from across the small diner table, they conveyed the same thought: 'What do we do now?'

Ian shifted in his seat, and then grinned at Henry as the bigger man inadvertently did the same thing. Henry glared, but smirked right back. Ian sighed then picked at his remaining breakfast with his fork. "As crazy as this may sound, I think we should keep going." A quick glance up at Henry told him that the bigger man seemed to agree with him, or at least showed no sign that he thought Ian was crazy. "This pull or whatever odd feeling that we're getting, I can't help but feel that it's leading us to where we are supposed to be. Wherever we're going, we're supposed to be there."

Henry said nothing, merely nodded. As right as Ian's words sounded, somewhere in the back of Henry's mind a voice told him that this entire thing was crazy! The same voice nudged at him to grab Ian, throw him into the old mustang parked out front and drive them back to Illinois full throttle.

But he forced that small annoyance to shut up. Henry felt the same way that Ian did, now that he acknowledged it. Wherever they were going, it was where they needed to be. Henry couldn't explain the strange feeling or the pull either, but he couldn't help but trust it. It was as simple as that. This was too right, and Henry whole-heartedly believed that they were doing the right thing.

Henry picked up the tab and threw a few dollars on the table. He smirked at his best friend. "So, I'll drive until lunch?"

Ian returned the smirk and the two men left the small diner, climbed into Henry's mustang and drove off.