"Damn it, Brian!"
Having already rung the Kinney estate's doorbell and then knocked with no response, Michael dug in his shorts' pocket for his copy of the key. Where in the world was Brian? Michael had offered to pick up Brian and Justin in his SUV so they could all go to the airport to pick up Gus and JR for their summer visit to Pittsburgh. Granted, he was an hour early, but he figured they could shop for a present before the plane landed. Unfortunately, Brian did not appear to be home.
Letting himself inside, he closed the door and looked around the spacious foyer.
"Brian!"
Hearing no reply, Michael sighed and headed toward the back of the house to see if the missing owners were outside. The house was impeccably clean; the housekeeper must have been out this morning. Michael took a moment to admire the decor, all modern minimalist with black and white upholstery, dark wood, and clean lines. He recognized several of Justin's paintings, the bright colors complementing the more reserved tones.
The French doors leading to the outside deck were open, and Michael heard low voices without. Opening his mouth to shout a greeting, he froze at the doorway, sucking his breath in sharply at the sight.
In the center of the deck was a full-length pool, surrounded by lounge chairs and small iron-wrought tables. The ripples scattered shards of sunlight across the deck and back walls of the house. A large burgundy beach towel lay spread by the pool, occupied by a naked Justin on all fours. Brian knelt behind him, swimming trunks shoved to his knees, head thrown back, eyes closed, and cock buried deep in Justin's ass.
It was not the first time Michael had witnessed them fucking. Hell, not even the tenth. Back in the old days, he had walked into the loft often to catch them in every position imaginable, not to mention the back room at Babylon. Normally, he would have simply groaned, made an exasperated comment, and then retreated to a more secluded location while they finished. This time, however, something was very off.
He saw not a single condom in sight, especially not where it belonged.
Too shocked to speak, he withdrew into the shadows of the house, plopping onto a sofa while his brain struggled to digest what he had seen. Never, never, had he seen Brian without a condom, no matter who he fucked. It was his one, never-breached rule when it came to sex, and probably his only salvation considering how much he had tricked over the years. Yet, he definitely had been fucking Justin bareback just now.
Well, now I've seen it all.
He grabbed the remote and turned on the huge flat screen TV hanging on the wall, cranking up the volume. The Learning Channel popped up, displaying a hunk in dirty jeans and t-shirt demonstrating the proper way to lay bricks for a garden path. Michael crossed his arms and glared at the television for a full ten minutes before he heard the creak of the screen door.
"Mikey!"
A deeply tanned arm smelling of sunscreen wrapped around his chest as Brian leaned over the back of the couch and planted a careless kiss on his best friend's cheek.
"Why didn't you say you were here?"
"I rang the doorbell and knocked, but no one answered. Do you always ignore people at your front door?"
"Sorry, Michael," said Justin, approaching with a towel wrapped around his waist. "We were by the pool."
"Yeah, I know."
Justin had the grace to blush, but Brian headed to kitchen with a smirk. "Just like old times, eh Mikey?" He returned, carrying three bottles of Evian, handing one to Justin and one to Michael.
"Uh, I'm going to go shower before we leave." Justin made a quick exit, pecking Brian on the lips as he passed.
Brian flung himself on the sofa next to Michael and propped his bare feet on the coffee table. "Can't wait to see Gus. You got JR's room ready?"
"Yeah." Michael smiled as he remembered the reason he was here. "We even repainted her room lavender since that's her favorite color now."
"How gay." Brian gestured to cabinet beneath the TV. "I got Gus the latest PlayStation. Linz says he's totally addicted to it."
"You got plans for his visit?"
"Going to give him a summer job at Kinnetik."
"Wow, really?" Michael took a quick gulp of water while assimilating this piece of information. "Doing what?"
"Odd jobs around the office. There's always plenty of stuff needing done. Cynthia will run him ragged."
"Bet he'll enjoy that." Michael did not like Cynthia, often referring to her as the dragon lady. "You sure about this?"
"Got to keep him busy. He's sixteen . . . it's time to get his first job."
Michael smiled, his eyes staring off into nothing. "Remember our first job?"
"Ralph's Car Wash. How could I forget?" Brian raised his Evian in a salute to the past. "Washing all those cars with my shirt off. I got lots of blowjobs that summer."
"You were damn lucky Ralph never caught you."
"He was the lucky one. Do you know how many loyal customers I got for Ralph? They came for me, of course, but they paid him."
Michael sighed, shaking his head. "Go get your shower. We have to leave in forty minutes, and you smell like sex." He grimaced as Brian stood and headed for the stairs. "And don't fuck Justin again! We don't have time!"
Even though Michael was fairly certain Brian had fucked Justin in the shower, they still made it to the airport early. Wandering through the shops, Michael bought JR a fluffy teddy bear, while Brian selected a PlayStation game at GameStop for Gus.
"Don't you think JR is getting a bit old for teddy bears?" Brian tugged at the pink ribbon around the bear's neck, while Justin hid a smile.
"She's only thirteen!" protested Michael. "She has a collection of bears, remember?"
"I'm betting she's more into boys than bears, Michael," said Justin.
Michael's face transformed into a mask of horror. "Oh my God, you think she's into boys already?"
"Or girls." Brian led them to the mass of chairs at the gate. "Poor thing's been raised by lesbos. That alone would be enough to make her gay."
"Shit, I don't want to even think of her dating." Michael plopped into a chair by the huge windows and buried his face in the bear. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."
"Oh relax, Michael. She'll be fine and so will you."
"I gotta go to the restroom. Be right back." Justin whispered something in Brian's ear before heading across the aisle, leaving a grinning Brian to sit beside Michael.
"What did he say?"
"That my cum is still oozing out of his ass." Michael rolled his eyes. "What can I say? I've got loads to spare."
"Yeah, about that . . . ."
"Sorry, but you have your own partner, the professor, remember?"
"That's not what I meant!" Michael leaned forward, lowering his voice. "I, uh, noticed you weren't wearing a condom. What the fuck, Brian?
"So?" Brian frowned, suddenly serious. "Mikey, I know you and Ben can't fuck raw, and I'm sorry about that, but . . . ."
"That's not what I'm talking about! It's just that you've always been so careful. Aren't you worried about the two of you exposing each other?"
"No need to worry. Our tests came back clean, and we're not fucking anyone else."
Michael could not have felt more amazed if Brian had declared his intention to become a juggler in the circus. "You're monogamous?"
"Yep."
"You're kidding."
"Why does everyone have such a hard time with me being monogamous?"
"Because you . . . you . . . detest marriage!"
"Well, we're married now, so isn't monogamy part of the deal?"
"You're what?!"
"Michael, would you pipe down? People are going to worry you're about to have a heart attack."
"What do you mean you're married? I haven't been to any wedding!"
"We didn't have a wedding. Instead, we had our own private ceremony. Who needs a priest and a piece of paper?"
Michael was still sputtering when Justin returned, pausing when he saw Michael's face.
"Michael, you okay?"
"He's fine. I just told him we're married and monogamous now."
"Ah." Justin sat in the seat next to Brian. "I see."
"Justin, is this true?"
"Yep." Justin leaned over to kiss Brian on the cheek. "The stud is officially mine."
"Brian said you didn't get a license."
"We both know where we stand," said Justin, his eyes never leaving Brian's. "No license needed."
"None at all," said Brian, smiling.
Michael watched, still stunned, while Brian palmed the back of Justin's head and drew him into a deep kiss that garnered more than a few looks and smiles. One tiny, gnarled, old woman actually clapped, beaming at the couple. Michael shook his head, struggling to wrap his head around the idea of Brian being monogamous.
May wonders never cease.
Gus unbuckled his seatbelt and sat waiting while people filed past, making their way off the plane. His sister sat next to him, forehead against the window, watching the luggage being removed from the plane. Peering outside, he took in the airport, waves of heat shimmering across the runways.
Fucking Pittsburgh.
In truth, he had not used to hate Pittsburgh. There was a time not so long ago when he looked forward to visiting his father in the summer, counting down the days on the calendar in his moms' kitchen. Unlike his moms, his dad loved video games and always had the latest consoles available with a wealth of games to choose from. They would go swimming at a private club every weekend, visit arcades, and shop the malls for clothes his moms complained were too expensive. His father was cool and easygoing, unlike the moms who harped on him constantly.
This year, he had asked to stay home. Mom had been aghast, and Ma had scrutinized him as if he were someone she had on the stand.
"Why don't you want to go? You always enjoy visiting your father. God only knows why, but you do."
"Mel . . . ." Mom hated it when Ma put down Dad.
"I just don't want to go, okay? It's my choice."
"Actually, it's not. You're still a minor, and if we say you're going, you're going."
"It will be good for you, Gus. After all the trouble you've been in with your friends, wouldn't it be nice to get away for a while?" Mom had her puppy-dog eyes out, as if they still worked.
"There's nothing wrong with my friends! And I don't want to go!"
"You're going. For the whole summer."
"What?!"
"We think it would do you some good, Gus, to get away from your friends a bit. They're not a very good influence on you. Brian said he would be happy to have you spend the summer with him and Justin. I know you barely remember Justin, but you loved him when you were a kid."
"I don't want to see Justin, and I don't want to spend the summer in shitty Pittsburgh!"
"Tough. You're going and that's final." Melanie slapped her hand on the kitchen counter for emphasis. "Deal with it."
"Mom? Please . . . ." Gus looked at Lindsay, giving her his best contrite expression. It had worked before, although his advancing years were shredding the cutesy image he once had.
"You're going Gus. And you're going to have a great time. We'll join you in August for a few weeks before you have to come back."
No amount of pleading helped, so here he was, in Pittsburgh with JR. Bitterness burned like acid in his stomach. The entire summer. He missed his friends already, missed the evenings spent smoking pot in an old treehouse, occasionally snorting coke when they had some available. Most of it was for selling and making money. None of them wanted to become crack heads, but the occasional indulgence made for some really good times.
Then his moms discovered some of his stash while nosing around in his closet where they did not belong. Since then, they would not leave him alone, always demanding to know where he was at all times, refusing to allow him to go to his friends' houses. It was unfair, he decided. After all, his schoolwork was superb, his grades the highest in the class. What was wrong with having a little fun so long as he continued to ace his tests?
"Gus, come on. We're almost the last ones to leave." JR stepped over him into the aisle, thanking the flight attendant who helped her retrieve her bag from the overhead compartment.
Heaving a deep sigh, he followed JR to the front of the plane, ignoring the goodbye from the captain. Time to start his shitty summer.
JR practically flew into Michael's arms, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him on the cheek. Michael hugged and kissed her right back, smiling so hard that Gus wished it would split his face apart. He had never cared much for JR's dad or the way he spoiled JR rotten, but he had to admit Michael was always kind to him. When JR gave the bear a frown, he smirked.
"Dad, I don't really collect bears anymore."
"Oh . . . well. That's fine, I'm sure I can find someone who wants it."
Then Brian was there, striding forward and smiling as he slung an arm around Gus's shoulders.
"Hey, Sonny Boy. How's it going?"
Gus resisted the urge to hug him as he had in the past. He did not want to be here, after all.
"Fine, I guess." His grip tightened on his backpack, and he kept his gaze firmly on the floor.
"Hi, Gus."
He looked up slowly. A slight, blond guy approached from behind Brian and smiled a welcome. Gus recognized him from the pictures scattered around his moms' house. This was Justin, the man who ran off to New York and left his dad. Now he was back after all these years. Supposedly.
"Hey." He hoped he sounded just as suspicious as he felt.
Bingo. Justin's smile faltered, but he rallied enough to lean forward and give Gus's shoulder a squeeze. Gus looked away, gritting his teeth.
He followed the group toward the baggage area, JR chatting away about the past school year. Brian slowed down to walk beside him.
"So, how you doing? Everything okay?"
He wondered how much the moms had told his dad. Did he know about the drugs and money?
"Yeah. Got the highest scores in all my classes again."
"Excellent. I never doubted that for a second."
Gus saw Justin glance back at them. Piss off.
"I'm assuming your mom told you Justin's living with me now. I bought a new house so you'll have your own bedroom."
What?
"You sold the loft? You didn't tell me that!"
"Just did it two months ago. I wanted to surprise you. Got a cool media center, computer, and PlayStation set up and ready to go."
Gus's head throbbed as the blood rushed up in a wave of fury.
"And the best part is we have a pool in the backyard. No more going to the club. Justin and I have been looking forward to your visit."
It was too much coming at him too fast.
"I don't want to live in a new house! And I don't want to live with Justin either!"
The entire group froze, everyone turning to stare at him, including people walking by. Shit. He kept his gaze resolutely on the floor as he felt the tension building in the man beside him.
"Well, I'm sorry you feel that way." His dad's voice sounded flat and calm, but Gus knew he was furious. "You will, nevertheless, be staying at our new house. And Justin is my partner. He lives with me, so I expect you to treat him with respect. Is that clear?"
The fire turned to ice in his stomach, and Gus bit his lip to hold back the tears. His dad had never spoken to him like this before, and it stung.
"Well, let's get the bags, shall we?" Michael sounded unbearably cheerful. "I'm starving! How about you, JR?"
The group moved on, Gus trailing behind. He saw Justin whisper something to his dad, but his father merely shook his head.
Well, this summer was going to be great.
Dinner was at the Liberty Diner, of course. Gus rolled his eyes at the squealing woman with the red-haired wig, and was thankful she wasn't his grandmother. Poor JR was likely to smother before Debbie let her go.
He followed his father and Justin to a booth in the back and sat across from them, staring at the worn scratches in the Formica. Michael managed to pry JR from his mother, and they slid beside him.
"And there's Gussy!" Debbie pulled out her pen and pad from her apron. "You look more and more like your father every time I see you."
When Gus said nothing, Brian spoke up. "It's the Kinney blood. Stronger than anything." Gus could feel his dad's eyes boring into him.
"What'll you have, kiddo?"
"Cheeseburger and fries," he mumbled. There was a short silence.
"What's with him?" Debbie asked his father.
"Oh, don't mind him. He's got a case of teenage snobbery, but he'll get over it."
Gus gritted his teeth, fuming. While the others engaged in laughing conversation, he remained silent, reading and rereading the menu.
It was after the food arrived that his dad dropped the next bombshell.
"So . . . Gus."
Gus looked up at him for the first time since they had sat down.
"I've decided to have you come work with me over the summer. What do you think of a summer internship at Kinnetik?"
"What? You're gonna make me work?" No way.
"You're sixteen. Time to join the rat race with the rest of us. I'll have you work as Cynthia's assistant. She always needs more help."
"But I don't want to work! Especially where the boss is my dad!"
"I don't recall saying you had a choice." His dad was frowning, lips pressed in a thin line.
"Forget it! I won't do it!"
Silence dropped over the table as father and son glared at each other. Justin looked back and forth between them, his brow furrowed. Gus could see Debbie watching from behind the front counter. Michael decided to intervene.
"Hey, you know, Brian, I lost one of my employees last week. He left for college. If Gus wants to come work at the comic store for the summer, I sure could use the help."
The silence grew heavier as Brian continued to stare down his son. Finally, he relaxed and sat back in his seat.
"Well, would that be okay with you, Gus? Because you are getting a job this summer, whether you like it or not."
"Fine. I'll work at the comic store." The comic store was actually pretty cool. Much better than working under his dad's eye.
"Great! He can start on Monday!" Michael sounded relieved and resumed eating his barbecue pork sandwich.
"Thanks, Mikey." Brian had not touched his food. "Gus, what do you say to Michael?"
"Thanks, Michael," muttered Gus. He buried his face in his fries, wondering if they tasted cold from the iciness of his father's scrutiny.
He said nothing for the remainder of the meal but ate everything on his plate, including the ice cream Debbie brought him. As they stood to leave, he noticed his father had not eaten a thing.
After Michael dropped them off at his dad's new house, Justin disappeared, saying something about adding chemicals to the pool. Brian showed Gus around the house, starting upstairs and ending in his new room next to Justin's studio. There was a nice view of the pool from his room, and he could see Justin crouched next to the pool, his face lit by the pool lights. His dad also looked out the window, watching Justin.
"Now that we're alone, you want to tell me what your problem is?" The anger was gone, and his dad's tone was gentle.
"Nothing's wrong. I just don't want to be here."
"Because of Justin?"
"Because I just don't want to be! My friends are all in Toronto. I'll be bored here."
"You didn't used to be." His father sat on the bed, watching as Gus opened his suitcase and began unpacking. "I thought we always had fun."
"I'm not saying we didn't, Dad. But I'm older now, and Pittsburgh isn't my home. I want to be with my friends."
"I understand, but I hope you'll make some new friends over the summer. It would be nice if you gave Justin a chance to be one, too."
"Can't I just go back to Toronto and get a job there?"
"No, you can't. I'm sorry you're not happy to be here, but here you'll stay." His dad stood, pausing by the head of the bed to adjust a canvas hanging above. "I hope you will decide you like it here. Justin made this for you, by the way." He left without a backward glance, closing the door behind him.
Gus stepped closer to examine the painting. It was actually kind of cool, drawn in a retro-graffiti style. A wash of colors swirled around two figures in the center, a dark-haired man in a suit tossing a small boy in the air, their eyes only for each other. Even though they were drawn in caricature, it was obvious it was Brian and Gus.
He took a minute to absorb the feelings generated by the picture before taking it down and putting it in the closet. Sprawling on his back on the bed, he stuffed earphones in his ears and drowned out the past with Arcade Fire.
Justin spent some time straightening up around the pool, long enough for Brian and Gus to have the conversation that had been boiling under their skin all day. Finally, he went in to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water, listening but hearing nothing. Heading upstairs to the master bedroom, he found it dark, Brian lying motionless on the bed. His shirt and jeans were unbuttoned, feet bare and crossed at the ankles.
Closing the door behind him, he stripped off his pants and climbed on the bed, sitting next to Brian with his back against the headboard. Light from the bathroom splashed over Brian's legs, leaving his face in shadow.
"You okay?"
"Fucking peachy."
"He's a teenager, Brian. You know how they can be."
"Yeah, I seem to remember a certain twat of a seventeen-year-old who wouldn't listen to a word I said."
"I didn't need to listen. I heard the words you meant behind the ones you said."
Brian turned his head, lifting an eyebrow. "Really? 'Cause I'm pretty sure when I told you to get lost, I meant get lost."
"Nope. What you really meant was I love you, so don't give up on me just because I'm a complete moron."
Brian sighed, shifting until his head lay across Justin's lap. Justin set the bottle on the bedside table and began carding his fingers through Brian's hair.
"I never gave up on you, and I hope you won't give up on him."
"Of course not. It's just . . . he's never been like this. Give me a moment to mourn the little boy who used to treat me like I was a god."
Justin smiled, his eyes wistful as he remembered a moment with Daphne from long ago. "Everyone has to step down from his pedestal at some point, but being a man doesn't make you less admirable. He paused his ministrations. "Do you think it's me?"
"What do you mean?" Brian nuzzled Justin's groin, exhaling warm breath over the bulge in his underwear.
"Maybe he resents me being here. He doesn't know me anymore."
"He will. Give him time."
"Well, what if he hates me?" Justin shifted as Brian pried his cock loose.
"No one could hate you, Sunshine."
"Chris Hobbs did."
"Do not mention that name when I'm about to fuck you into the mattress."
"Brian . . . ah!" Justin jerked as Brian's tongue licked a stripe up his cock. "You know I can't talk when you do that!"
"We've talked. Time for my cock to come home to your ass."
Justin let out a grunt as Brian grabbed a hold of his hips and dragged him until he lay flat. His underwear disappeared over the side of the bed.
"I think we have sex more now than we ever did when we used condoms."
"If I had known how much more incredibly hot and tight you feel without a condom, I would never been a safety-first guy to begin with," said Brian.
"Well now that Gus is here, we should probably keep it down." Justin rolled over as Brian shucked his jeans and grabbed the lube. "I'm sure he doesn't want to hear his dad . . . oh, fuck!" He shuddered as Brian parted his buttocks and licked a path between. "God, Brian!"
Grinning, Brian grabbed a pillow and shoved it under Justin's head. "Better cover your mouth then, Sunshine. We both know how loud you can be when you're being rimmed."
Much later, with a spent and sated Justin curled in his arms, Brian lay awake, staring up at the painting hanging over their bed, Promise. Now that he had mended things with Justin, was his relationship with Gus going to fall apart?
Not gonna happen, Sonny Boy. I won't make the same mistake with you that I made with Justin.
If only that thought would erase the doubt coiling in his stomach.
Thanks again to Zevgirl for editing this! I hope you all are enjoying the story :)