A/N: Well, for those of you not wanting this to come to an end, I can verify there will be at least one more chapter:) Thanks to everyone who has followed along with me on this journey and who has especially taken the time to leave a review - I appreciate that more than you know and is the only reason why I keep doing this.:)

Justin's heart was pounding as he heard the doorbell unexpectedly sound downstairs; how long had it been since Brian had left? He had been so intent on finishing getting ready, he had lost track of the time. Glancing over at the clock, he noticed it was now 11:55. Nico was a little early then, he thought ruefully; it had to be him downstairs at the door.

Rubbing his hand over his face to steady his nerves, he reached over to gently pick up the instrument of all his woes – the ring on the gold chain lying on top of his dresser. Why in the world he had ever agreed to marry Nico totally mystified him now. It had all seemed so clear a week ago when Nico had been sitting there next to him at the park, wearing his heart on his sleeve and peering at him with those earnest, deep-blue eyes as he poured out his feelings to him. It hadn't seemed like such a bad idea at the time to see if their deep friendship could slowly evolve into love.

But now after being with Brian in every way, he realized how crazy that idea would have been. Nothing Nico could have ever done would have surpassed how he felt with Brian. He knew that now. Now all that he had left was to explain somehow to Nico and pray that his best friend understood. Such a simple goal to verbalize out loud, but such a monumental, life-changing task to accomplish.

He looked at the gold band one more time sparkling in the sunlight shining through the windows before, curling his hand around it to nestle it in his palm, he took one last look at himself in the dresser mirror before turning to rush down the steps to greet his friend.

Nico's heart did a flip-flop as he finally saw Justin walking down the steps from his apartment, dressed in a dark-orange, long-sleeved tee shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans. His hair was slightly tousled and appeared damp from a recent shower as the blond noticed him and he couldn't help smiling in anticipation of their reunion. Fuck, he's so beautiful, he couldn't help thinking as he watched his fiancé approach.

Justin was smiling back at him but Nico frowned slightly, noticing it wasn't his fiance's normal million-watt smile of greeting. He watched as Justin turned the knob to unlock it and swung the door open to greet him.

"Hey," he said softly to him as he stood aside for Nico to enter the shop.

Nico still couldn't help continuing to smile at the sight of his beautiful fiancé. "Hey yourself, Mr. Taylor," he said, gently taking Justin by the shoulders and leaning down to give him a short kiss on his soft lips. As usual, he found his heart beating rapidly merely in response to the blond's proximity. "We finally meet again. If I hadn't known better, I would have thought you were dodging me," he softly teased the other man.

He waited for his bantering to have the desired effect of eliciting a little broader smile, but to his surprise Justin averted his gaze before he said somberly, "Let's go sit down on the couch, okay?"

Nico gazed at him in puzzlement. "Okay," he agreed tentatively, slowly following Justin over toward the showcase area normally reserved for clients. He sat down on the edge of the couch and looked up, waiting for Justin to join him, but his fiancé seemed to be holding back; he had an almost uncomfortable look on his face as he suddenly turned his back on him and said, "Would you like something to drink? I can make some coffee, or get you a Coke. I've even got some lemons upstairs." He knew Nico well enough by now to know that he always liked to drink his regular Coke with a slice of lemon – he always told Justin it gave a little more of a kick to the flavor.

"Justin…." Nico frowned; why was his fiancé acting so strangely? He was trying hard not to be concerned but he wasn't stupid; he knew Justin too well, and something wasn't adding up here. First that man – he couldn't recall the man's name at the moment – had left Justin's closed shop a short while ago and now Justin's reaction to him was lackluster to say the least. He was trying so hard not to read something incorrect into the whole situation, but he was having a great deal of difficulty tamping down his suspicions. "Sit down, Justin," he said softly, his voice full of worry but firm in its request. "I just want you to sit down and talk to me."

Justin stopped and stood there, dreading what he was about to do but knowing it was best for him as well as Nico. His best friend – and that was all he would ever be – his best friend deserved better. He deserved the truth. He would hate like hell to lose his best friend as a result, but if that's what happened, he would have to live with it. Squaring his shoulders and seeking some inner strength, he slowly turned to face the worried eyes of his friend. "Okay," he said softly, walking slowly over to sit down next to the other man.

As he sat down with his body turned toward his friend, he watched as Nico reached out with the intention of taking his hand. Nico's face fell when Justin slowly opened his palm to display what was cradled inside and he realized what his friend was clenching in his hand.

Justin raised his gaze with dread to meet his friend's look of surprise. "Nico…."

"Justin, what...?"

Then his heart dropped in a sudden, dreadful flash of epiphany. "You're giving it back, aren't you?" he asked; he watched as Justin's eyes filled with tears and he knew he was right.

"I….I'm so sorry, Nico," Justin told him. "So fucking sorry. But I can't marry you." He reached over to extend the ring and chain out to his friend. Nico stared at the objects Justin was holding out to him for several seconds until, as if in slow motion, he finally reached to take it from his now ex-fiance's grasp. "Why?" he asked sorrowfully, but he knew – somehow he knew from the moment he had seen that other man leaving earlier. It had something to do with him.

"You're involved with that man….aren't you?" he suddenly asked in an accusing tone; he couldn't hide the hurt in his voice as he watched Justin look away toward the window to avert his gaze. It had to be the man he had seen earlier; it seemed there had been a good reason why he had been at Justin's shop when it was closed, and it hadn't been for business purposes.

"Who?" Justin asked, hating himself for acting so obtuse. He had promised himself that he would be honest with Nico – why was he evading his question?

"Come on, Justin!" Nico cried. "Don't play dumb with me!"

Justin looked up to meet Nico's gaze. The question of who Nico was referring to died on his lips as his friend explained.

"I saw him, Justin! I saw him coming out of your shop a while ago! It was the same man from the restaurant, wasn't it?" He wracked his brain for several seconds as he tried desperately to come up with the man's name before he remembered. "The man who's engaged to someone else - Brian Kinney! How could you do that to his fiancé? Hell, how could you do that to me?" He stood up and walked over to the window. He remained there for a couple of seconds waiting for an answer but Justin kept eerily silent. He finally couldn't stand it anymore; he twirled around, his eyes flashing. "Does his fiancé know, Justin? Does he know you're fucking the man he's going to marry? And when were you going to tell me? Before or after our wedding?" He laughed derisively. "How stupid I was, wanting to wait until our wedding night." He shook his head in disgust over his naivety. "I actually thought that you might love me! What a fool I am!"

Justin's face contorted in pain; this was what he had feared from the beginning, but this was even worse than what he had imagined. Not only was Nico hurt, but he had apparently seen Brian leaving. He had to explain everything, if Nico would even listen; he owed his friend that much – and more. He rose from his position to walk over toward his friend, his hands spread out in a plea for understanding. "Nico, let me explain…."

"What? Tell me another lie, Justin?" He brushed a hand through his dark hair. "Tell me that I didn't see what I thought I saw last week – how that man was fucking you with his eyes? God, how stupid I was!" he repeated.

"You are not stupid, Nico! Listen to me – please! I'm the stupid one for even agreeing to accept your proposal in the first place!" His eyes widened as his friend reacted to that statement as if he had been struck; this was not going well at all and he was doing a shit-poor job of trying to explain. "No, that's not what I meant!" he hastened to explain. Nico started to stomp away, but Justin wouldn't let him; he had to try and make him understand or he couldn't live with himself. He reached over to grab his friend's shirtsleeve as Nico angrily tried to wrestle himself away from him. "Nico, please…..you've got to listen to me!"

His friend twisted his body around to face him, his eyes flashing. "Why should I, Justin? You avoided me all week when I tried to call…..now I know why! You were busy, all right," he snapped. He shook his head sadly. "Why, Justin?" he repeated sorrowfully, a little softer this time, his initial bluster dissipating into something more mournful. "Why wasn't I good enough for you? I loved you….I still do." His eyes filled with tears – what he had thought would be a joyful reunion between them had quickly turned into a nightmare. Somehow, though, if he was honest with himself, he had already known something was wrong all week. He knew there was a reason why Justin had been 'too busy' to take his calls. He had just been refusing to acknowledge it, and now the reason was hitting him full in the face. Even in his worst scenarios, though, he could not have imagined this one. Not when it came to Justin.

"Nico," Justin began anew; he had to make his friend understand. "Please…..come back and sit down and I'll try and explain everything." He tentatively reached out to grasp Nico's wrist through his shirt sleeve; he half-expected his friend to roughly shirk it away again, but he was relieved that he didn't. He swallowed the large lump of guilt that rose in his throat as he noticed the almost beaten stoop of his friend's shoulders as Nico shook his head silently once more in disbelief. "Please….come over and sit down with me and let me try and explain. Please, Nico."

Nico finally raised his glistening eyes to look into Justin's pleading blue ones before he nodded his head slightly and allowed himself to be pulled slowly back over to the showcase area. He lowered himself down on the edge of the couch as he sat there, still clenching the token of his love for Justin in his hand, just as the other man had done earlier. He took a deep breath and let it out in defeat. "Okay, Justin….I'm listening. I'm only doing this because of the friendship we had." He snorted in contempt. "I guess that's all it ever was, though, wasn't it? At least as far as you're concerned."

Justin winced at his friend's use of the word had. He pursed his lips tightly together, trying hard to compose himself. This was so much worse than he had feared. How would he ever repair his friendship with Nico now? He only knew he had to try – and it had to start with being totally honest with him.

"You're right – about Brian, I mean. And you did meet him a week ago at the restaurant. And he was engaged to someone at the time."

"Was?" Nico couldn't help saying, picking up immediately on Justin's use of the past tense. "What? The two of you already managed to break up his engagement, too?" He began to stand up but Justin pulled him back down by his sleeve.

His eyes flashed as he snapped, "No, damn it! It wasn't like that at all! Will you listen to me? Please?"

Nico huffed out an angry breath and stared icily at his ex-fiancé, his friend…..his former friend. Hell, he didn't know what to call Justin. He couldn't deny how hurt he was feeling, but it wasn't as if he could just dismiss several years' of friendship without knowing the whole story. "Okay….but I want the truth, Justin – the whole truth." He crossed his arms over his chest, his lips drawn tightly together as he stared back at the blond.

Justin let out a breath to collect his thoughts. "I tried, Nico; I really tried to imagine being married to you. I thought since we were such great friends and had so much in common that maybe I could grow to be in love with you." He noticed Nico's eyes brimming again with unshed tears and he silently beat himself up inside over the look of anguish on his friend's face. But he had to go on – he had to tell him everything; he owed him that much. "But I couldn't do it, Nico. Daphne – you remember her, right?"

"Yeah, I remember her." He had been introduced to the petite, brown-haired friend of Justin's on a couple of previous occasions when their paths had crossed. He had found her to be quite witty as well as refreshingly candid about opinions. "What does she have to do with this, though?"

"Well, she came over the day after you left and when I told her what had happened…..She made me understand it had been a mistake to accept your ring."

Nico bit his lip, hurt by Justin's confession. "So why did you?" he whispered painfully. "Why did you accept it then?"

Justin stood up himself this time, hoping now that they were talking Nico wouldn't leave until he had a chance to try and explain. "I….I was having a hard time relocating back here to Pittsburgh. My business was struggling and I was lonely." He turned to face his friend and give him an apologetic smile. "I missed being around you, and hanging out with you."

Nico shook his head in confusion. "So you thought it would be a good idea to agree to marry me so we could see each other more? Justin, that is so fucked!"

Justin stared down into his friend's incredulous face. "No, that wasn't it," he maintained. He sighed before sitting back down next to Nico and gazing into his eyes. "I care so much about you, Nico. And when you came down here I was so mixed up about a lot of things. You were like some sort of lifeline for me, and you were so sincere about wanting to marry me." He took in a shaky breath and let it out. "I had always heard about how so many married partners start out as best friends, and I thought…..well, I thought maybe that could be us, too." He shook his head in disgust, realizing how ridiculous that sounded now. "I really thought I wanted to make a go of it and see if I could fall in love with you not just as a friend but a husband, too." He looked regretfully into his friend's troubled eyes as he admitted, "I just didn't plan on what happened."

Nico bit his lip and gazed into his friend's face. "Just what did happen, Justin? How does he fit into this picture?" His heart felt like a knife had just been sliced clean through it. It was bad enough hearing Justin say he made a mistake agreeing to marry him, but knowing there was another man in the middle of the picture made it even worse.

Justin pursed his lips together, not wanting to reveal his deep feelings for Brian but knowing he had to disclose all of it. "I….I was attracted to Brian from the first moment I saw him," he admitted softly, watching as Nico lowered his gaze to stare into his lap and brush a hand through his hair restlessly. He could tell it was all Nico could do to sit there and endure what he was hearing.

"Go on," his friend whispered painfully. "I need to know it all."

Justin licked his lips nervously. "I could tell Brian was attracted to me, too, but I was so confused, Nico! I knew he was engaged to Chagall – that's how we met in the first place when I went over to his office to have him sign the agreement. So I resisted him at first."

Nico snorted as he raised his eyes to stare into Justin's. "How noble of you. Well, that apparently lasted what, all of a week? You don't have much willpower, do you?" he asked icily, shaking his head slightly as his eyes glistened in pain. "So when did the two of first have sex? Before or after you said you would marry me?"

"Nico," Justin said softly, reaching over to try and take his friend's hand; but the other man pulled it away and tightly clasped his other hand in his lap before he had a chance to grasp it. "I realized it wouldn't be fair to marry you before anything happened between me and Brian. I would have broken off our engagement regardless. I just didn't want to do it over the phone."

"Oh, well, at least you were trying to wait until after you broke it off with me before the two of you fucked. How considerate of you, Justin," his friend icily replied. "You said you were attracted to him from the first day you met; how could that not have had a bearing on breaking off our engagement? I don't think you were exactly thinking objectively with him in the picture, even if what you say is true."

"I did try to stay objective where he was concerned!" Justin insisted. "I told him I couldn't be involved with him because he was engaged to another man. But then he came over the other day for what I thought was going to be some last-minute preparations for his and Chagall's wedding and the two of them had a big blowout here. I found out that their engagement had been a huge scam because Brian's company was bankrupt and he needed financing to stay afloat. In exchange for him marrying him, Chagall would supply whatever money Brian needed to keep his agency running until he had a chance to pay him back. Brian had every intention of leaving the asshole as soon as he had enough funds to do it."

"Uh, huh," Nico exclaimed skeptically. "So they're no longer together. Did he find out about Kinney's trysts on the side and break it off with him? So how's the little ex-fiancé going to stay afloat now? He can't remain solvent on your salary. You'd better be careful," he growled, "his lust for you and your blond boy looks will only carry you so far before he finds someone else with more money and drops you just like he did Chagall." He stood up and walked over to the windows to look out on the street. Everyone was busily going about their mundane business, totally oblivious to the pain piercing his heart at the moment.

Justin closed his eyes in misery in response to the hurt flowing from Nico's voice; he supposed he had all this coming. And despite his certainty that Brian really did care for him, he couldn't help questioning his ability to keep Brian interested. He was an intelligent, classically-gorgeous man who could have anyone he wanted. Could Nico perhaps be right - would Brian drop him if something better came along? No, he had seen the way Brian had looked at him, the way he had caressed him so lovingly, the way he had spoken to him in such a tender, caring voice; his feelings for him had to be much more than a surface type of lust. He was convinced that Brian really did care for him. Love? Perhaps not, perhaps not ever – but he intended to stay with him as long as he wanted him and until he could hopefully find out how deep his feelings were for him. It sounded almost pathetic, but it was the truth. He couldn't imagine a life without Brian in it now.

"I don't believe that, Nico," Justin avowed from his place on the couch. "If you could see him when we're together…"

Nico turned to stare at his friend in disbelief; his hurt and jealousy fueled his thoughts as he snapped, "Do you really believe that, Justin? The man is older, sophisticated and owns his own business! Do you really think he'd be content to be some flunky for another boss after owning his own agency? He didn't get where he did without having to be on the ruthless side. Don't kid yourself! He'll drop you at the first sign of someone else who can give him what he needs – sex and money!"

"No, he won't," Justin replied adamantly. "He just got a new, multimillion dollar client that will enable him to get out from under Chagall's control. He's going to pay him back as soon as the client pays him his advance. He won't need Chagall or anyone else after that."

Nico digested that intriguing bit of information; how utterly convenient for him. "Including you?" He couldn't help asking his friend. He felt a pang of guilt as he saw Justin flinch slightly at his remark, but he was too hurt at the moment to care.

"He never did need me," Justin pointed out. "I'm not exactly rich now, am I?" Nico of all people was well aware of his church-mouse bank account; he barely made by on what proceeds he got from his business. He could hardly be thought of as affluent, or even comfortable for that matter.

"Maybe not monetarily, anyway," Nico grudgingly agreed, as a sudden thought occurred to him. "You helped him out with an ad campaign, didn't you?"

Justin smiled softly as he recalled the other day when he and Brian had been together here at his shop and had brainstormed ideas for the Swanson Electronics account; it had been the same day that he had finally discovered just how deeply Brian was attracted to him and just why he so desperately needed his help. It had also been the wonderful day he had finally discovered just what sort of hold that pompous Chagall had over him, and the day Brian promptly kicked him out on his arrogant ass. "Yes," he admitted. "Brian needed help with some of the graphics and I gave him some suggestions."

Nico shook his head; he should have known. "No wonder you held such a fascination for him. You've come in handy in a lot of ways, haven't you?"

Justin stared into his friend's tormented eyes; he couldn't blame Nico for feeling the way he did, and he wasn't surprised how betrayed he sounded. He had misled his friend into thinking they could be more than they were, and he would feel sorry about that for a long time. But he wouldn't allow himself to question Brian's feelings for him; if he did, he might start doubting them himself and his heart was irretrievably captured now by the auburn-haired, hazel-eyed, too-gorgeous-for-his-own-good man. He refused to believe that Brian had merely been using him and was not sincere in his intentions toward him; there was no way he could doubt the feelings the other man had engendered in him last night, nor the look on Brian's face as he stared into his eyes after they had made love.

"No," Justin told him firmly. "It's not like that, Nico. He came over here last night even after the client had signed with his agency. He didn't have to come back once he had what he needed to get rid of Chagall."

Nico held his hand up. "Please – spare me the glorious details of your night spent fucking each other senseless," he huffed out. He snorted. "Justin, how can you be so naïve? Yeah, he'll come back a few times until he's had his fill of you and then he'll move on." His voice softened as he said, "I could have given you so much more than he ever could. I know you so well, and you know me. We have a much deeper foundation to build a relationship on than he will ever have with you. At least we did." He shook his head sadly, still not quite willing to accept what had happened in the past week. As he looked down at the golden band and chain biting into the flesh of his palm, however, he knew it was all too real. He swallowed the painful lump in his throat; the feeling of loss was still too raw. Despite his anger with Justin, though, he couldn't just turn his feelings off for him. Damn it – he still cared for him – too much.

"Justin," he pleadingly whispered, his eyes shining with unshed tears of disappointment. "Don't let him use you and throw you away like yesterday's condom. You deserve someone who will cherish you and love you. If you stay with him, you're only going to get hurt. And despite how fucking angry I am with you at the moment, I can't just sit by and watch that happen. Come to your senses, Justin! Surely you realize I'm right about this."

Justin swallowed hard as small tendrils of doubt crept into his mind. Nico couldn't be right, could he? Was it possible Brian was just using him? He could tell quite readily from the start simply by the way Brian behaved around Chagall that they weren't in love with each other, but could he be so sure of Brian's feelings for him? Could he look at their relationship as objectively as he had the other one? Or was he reading more into Brian's feelings for him than there really was?

He angrily shook his head. No, he refused to believe that. He wouldn't believe that. Nico would say anything to get him to change his mind, that was all there was to it. "No, Nico, you're wrong," he told him. "You don't know Brian. You're wrong," he repeated, not sure if he was trying to convince Nico or himself as he stared defiantly into his friend's eyes.

Nico sighed; he could tell he wasn't going to dissuade Justin from his opinion of the other man, however misguided it might be. "Okay, Justin," he told him resignedly. He gave an ironic laugh as he added, "You made your bed – now you'll just have to lie in it." He paused for a few seconds before saying, "I hope it'll be worth it when he dumps you."

Justin bit back the retort he wanted to say, instead replying with, "I'm sorry for all this, Nico. I really am. I hope somehow we can still be friends. I never wanted to lose your friendship."

Nico shook his head sadly. "I…..can't think about that right now, Justin." He sighed as he turned to look at the blond. He would always be the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, both inside and out, despite how much he had disappointed him. He knew deep down that Justin hadn't really meant to hurt him – sometimes his friend's heart was just too vulnerable and open for his own good. It made him a special person, but it also set him up as being easily duped and misled. He just hoped in this case he was wrong about Kinney, but he had a dreadful feeling he wasn't.

"I don't know if I can ever go back to the way we were," he told him softly. "I'm going to need some time."

Justin gazed over at his friend; he hated that he had been the instrument of so much unhappiness and heartache. He had certainly had his share of that lately himself, and he knew how painful it could be. He stood up to walk closer to Nico until they were a few feet apart. "I understand," he whispered. "I hope in time you'll understand what I did and you'll forgive me so we can still be friends."

Nico stared into Justin's soft blue eyes for a few seconds, unable to speak. He finally let out a labored breath and shook his head. "I don't know, Justin. I'll call you," he finally promised tentatively.

Justin nodded. "I'd like that…and I'll make sure I answer this time."

Nico looked at him as his lips twisted into a wistful smile. "Well, that's something, I guess." He glanced over at the clock above the shop's door. "I think I'll head back home now."

Justin frowned. "Why don't you stay the night? It'll be dark before you get home if you leave now." As much as Justin wanted to see Brian – as much as he needed to see him – he didn't feel right practically booting Nico out the door the moment their painful conversation had concluded.

"No," Nico said. "I don't think that would be such a good idea under the circumstances, do you?" he asked pointedly. Besides, he couldn't bear the thought now of spending the night in the same apartment with the man who had just broken off his engagement with him. It would be far too painful and would only emphasize what he had just lost – what he never really had, actually. He knew that now.

"No, I guess not," Justin admitted regretfully. "I could call my mother – I'm sure she'd be glad to let you stay in my old room."

Nico shook his head and smiled at Justin sadly. "No – I just want to go back home." He let out a breath of finality. "I'm going to get going." He began to silently walk away.

"Wait, Nico!" Justin cried before he could get too far. He walked up to him and impulsively wrapped his arms around the brunet's waist, laying his head on his shoulder.

Nico closed his eyes in agony over what it felt like to hold Justin in his arms, at least for a few seconds. How he wished it was for a different reason than saying goodbye. He couldn't help returning Justin's embrace as he slid his own arms around the slender body and relished the momentary, wonderful feeling of holding the man who had slipped through his fingers at the hands of Brian Kinney.

Justin pulled out of their embrace, tears of regret shining in his eyes. "Don't forget me," he asked. "I will never forget you. Please think about what I said."

Nico nodded. "I will," he promised. Just before he turned to go, he added softly, "I hope he knows what he's getting, Justin. I hope he knows how lucky he is. And I hope I'm wrong about him." With that, the brunet slowly walked toward the door and opened it, quietly closing it behind him.

Justin stood there, watching him go. The tears slowly trickled down his cheeks now, his face etched with sorrow over his now damaged relationship with Nico, and also perhaps with just a bit of worry over whether Nico could be right. He stood there rooted to his spot for several seconds before, making a decision, he reached in his pocket for his cell.

The phone was answered before the first ring was even completed. "Hey….I've been waiting to talk to you," was the soothing voice. "How did it go?" There was silence on the other end for several seconds. "Justin? You okay?"

"No," was the whispered, choked response. "I need you."

"I'll be right there."