Brian mentally cursed himself for letting Justin's name slip. He rolled his lips inside his mouth for a moment as he contemplated whether he should tell Justin the truth or lie and hope he believed it. The doctor had warned against telling Justin about events he couldn't remember or otherwise trying to restore his memory. He sighed; he'd lie, he had to, though he wasn't thrilled about the idea. He was well known for his honesty, at times, brutal honesty. Of course, that didn't always apply to Justin. Every time Brian had told Justin he didn't matter and most of the times he'd acted like he didn't want him around, he'd been lying.

Brian replied as nonchalantly as possible, "I heard your friend call you that."

Justin laughed. "Of course." He shook his head. "God, I'm so stupid."

Justin looked over at the man. His eyes held that same intense look they'd had when they'd 'met' earlier. It might be better to say when they'd encountered each other because they were kissing before one word had been spoken.

The man asked, "Why do you say that?"

Justin smiled brightly and blushed. Softly, he answered, "Well…it's just…I feel like I know you, and…"

The man prodded, "And…?"

Justin colored as he replied, "Well, the last couple of weeks, I've had these dreams."

"Dreams?"

He blushed more deeply as he said, "I shouldn't have even mentioned them. The idea is silly."

"Why don't you let me be the judge?"

Justin took a deep breath and avoided the man's eyes as he explained, "Well…I've been dreaming of the same man. Every night for the last couple of weeks. That's why I agreed to come to Liberty Avenue tonight. I was hoping…"

The man offered, "That you'd meet him?" The man didn't seem to be mocking him at all. His expression was serious, and his eyes intense.

Still unsure and embarrassed, Justin responded, "Yeah, stupid, right?"

"Not necessarily."

Justin raised his eyebrows.

The man asked, "So…did you?" He seemed to be genuinely asking, like he really wanted to know.

Justin laughed nervously. "What?"

The man, no hint of amusement in his face, that intense look in his eyes, asked, "Did you meet the man of your dreams?"

Justin swallowed hard and whispered, never once breaking eye contact, "When I saw you, I was sure I had."

Brian looked down and cleared his throat. His chest ached. He'd been on tenterhooks as Justin told him about his dream man, hoping Justin had been dreaming of him. But if so…Brian must have been a disappointment somehow. Trying to keep his voice steady, he asked, "And now?"

Justin paused, but, then, replied, "It sounds too stupid to actually believe, but, if I'm honest, I have to admit that I still do."

Brian's heart actually leapt. He wasn't sure what to say.

Justin looked down but, then, back up and, after a long pause, whispered, "Do…do you feel anything like that with me?"

Brian asked, again trying to keep his voice even, "Like what exactly?"

"That us meeting tonight was fated…I don't know what I'm saying. Never mind." Justin had blushed deeper and deeper as he spoke, and his voice had dropped lower and lower.

He looked down, now a deep red.

Brian lifted Justin's chin up with a finger and, then, touched his forehead to Justin's. He stated, softly, "Yes."

Justin's eyes widened. "You do?" His voice broke a little.

Brian attempted to maintain a matter-of-fact tone, but he didn't quite manage it. "Yes."

Brian couldn't help but kiss Justin's lips gently, and, then, more curious than he'd ever been, he asked, "What exactly did you dream about? What did your mystery man look like? What did you do together?"

Justin blushed. He replied hesitantly, "Well…I don't know exactly what he looks like. All I could ever see, or remember seeing, was hazel eyes and chestnut hair, but I remember the way he smelled…"

"And what was that like?"

Justin replied softly, "Uh…like cigarettes, whiskey, and something else."

It was clear that on some subconscious level Justin remembered Brian. He was dreaming about him, and, in the heat of the moment, he'd even said Brian's name, though he didn't seem to remember.

Justin interrupted Brian's contemplation. He breathed, "Like you" and looked at Brian with such intense desire and something else, something soft and warm, that Brian's heart actually skipped a beat, and he stopped breathing.

Brian swallowed hard and said, as calmly as possible, "You never said what you and your mystery man did in your dreams."

Justin's eyes darkened with lust. He looked at the man hungrily and replied, his voice husky, "I can show you."

A moment later, Justin was in his arms, kissing him like tomorrow would never come.