Chapter 3 – New Rules

Things were going as planned.

Lots of sex followed by Justin demanding a relationship talk right on schedule.

"I miss you," started Justin. "I can lose myself in painting for hours, but the second the brush gets set down – I miss you. This move has been great for my career, but I'm not sure how good it's been for me." Justin gave a half-laugh. "I'm moving back to Pittsburgh after the show. I've got a ticket on a flight within the week."

Brian stared at Justin in shock, speechless. So much for plans.

"Brian, what's wrong? Don't you want me back?"

"NO." At the look on Justin's face Brian backtracked "Shit. That's not what I meant; of course I want you back." Brian took a deep breath. Justin had surprised him again. Only man he'd ever had in his life who could. "You can't move back to Pittsburgh. It's impossible."

Justin stared at Brian reminding himself that Brian had told him the only thing that mattered. Brian wanted him back. "Why is it impossible?"

"Because I'm moving to New York." Brian said through gritted teeth.

"You can't move to New York. Kinnetics is in Pittsburgh."

Brian was irritated as hell. This was not how he'd planned to tell Justin. "I've been killing myself for two months to line up New York contracts for Kinnetics. I have the first face-to-face meeting tomorrow afternoon."

Brian's arms were suddenly full. Brian took a few moments to enjoy Justin's reaction before he continued. "Wait a minute. I have some things that I need to understand."

Justin looked up. "What?"

"I can't…" Brian stumbled over the words, clearly uncomfortable. "I really don't want to move to New York and have you miserable again." Hazel eyes met blue, demanding an answer. "Sunshine, I love you. But it keeps happening. I think things are okay and then you leave. It's giving me nightmares."

Justin lay back on the bed, trying desperately to come up with an answer. Only Brian would put it so baldly. Brian, who had never broken his word, never pretended to be something he wasn't. Who had, with some reluctance, done everything Justin had asked. And yet, Justin kept leaving. No wonder Brian was worried. The really amazing thing was that he could admit it.

"I'm probably going to say this all wrong, so try to be patient." Justin sighed softly "Most of the problems went away when you told me you loved me, that you'd do anything to make me happy. I think rest will get solved by moving. Here in New York, I'm not the kid who got bashed and you're not the stud of Liberty Avenue."

Justin continued slowly, trying to find the right words. "Our family - everybody - kept telling me I was in over my head with you. I was too young, too innocent. You'd get bored. You'd never love me. It was endless. I love them all, but everywhere I turned, there were people watching, waiting for us to fall apart. I know they meant well, but… you hear it often enough, you start to believe it. I kept acting like an idiot trying to make you prove them wrong."

Brian leaned back "I didn't know they went after you too. I should have."

"Let's be honest, Brian. You'd probably have agreed with them. You kept talking about how young I was."

"Well, you kept talking about how old I was. It seemed fair." Brian was clearly pissed off. "I wouldn't have agreed with them, at least not after you moved back in that first time. I told you I wanted to come home to you. Did you think I didn't mean it? Why the fuck did you think I kept taking you back?" Intense hazel eyes met blue. "You were never too young, and you lost your innocence to me and a baseball bat a very long time ago."

Justin closed his eyes as a defense against the pain in Brian's voice. "I stopped worrying about you leaving the day you told me you loved me"

Brian looked down "I haven't stopped worrying about you leaving me." Brian leaned down for a kiss to soften the words. "What else went wrong?"

"Mostly I just needed to grow up. So did you." Justin teased with a small smile. "But now that we have, you've got to start including me more in the big decisions that affect us both – like setting up New York contracts. Or the house. Britin is beautiful, but you picked it out without talking to me. When you do stuff like that, it makes me feel like a junior partner or something."

"You said you wanted a country manor."

"I was kidding. Christ, Brian. You should know me better than that."

"Uh, I put the house up for sale."

Justin laughed, relieved at the sale, irritated that he hadn't known. "Just talk to me about big moves before you make them. Okay?"

"I was going to ask you to find us a place in New York. I still have to spend a lot of time in Pittsburgh. I thought you'd have time after the show to look." Brian looked at Justin with a smile, willing him to understand what it meant to give up that control.

"I'd love to." Justin responded. He leaned in to Brian, starting to touch him, hold him.

"You know, Sunshine. You've left one thing out of the discussion. Are you afraid I won't want new rules about other men?" Brian said.

"The rules were never really the problem."

"Bullshit," exclaimed Brian. "It drove you nuts when I did other guys. And you weren't too happy when I got syphilis."

"You had syphilis. Of course I was annoyed. I had to go to the doctor. No sex for ages." Justin sounded as exasperated as he felt. "As for the guys – it was the quantity that drove me nuts. You were running out of guys to fuck. Think about how much time that takes. I'd go days without seeing you until 3:00 am." Justin tried again. "Brian, I like the tricks too, just not as frequently. I like it a lot better when we're doing them together. That session with your mom's minister was hot. I tried being monogamous once. It got old really fast, especially when he lied."

"Ethan not that great in bed? Sorry to hear it." Brian took a deep breath, "So, what, we're going to put a quota on it? Three a week? Or joint fucks only?"

Justin let the Ethan crack go. "Not when we still have to be apart so much. Can you imagine the last two months with no tricks?" Justin laughed at the look on Brian's face. "I haven't been a monk, but," Justin paused, "I kept the original deal."

Brian's face softened. "Me, too. I probably kept the one we're making now. I only did a couple of tricks a week, if that."

Justin stared at Brian in shock.

Brian looked embarrassed, then defensive. "What? I can't take a break from non-stop fucking? I was busy getting New York clients. Did you do more?"

"Well. Yeah," said Justin, still surprised. "Didn't you miss it?"

Brian just looked at him, at an utter loss to figure out where the conversation was going. What the fuck did Justin really want?

Justin suddenly started laughing. "God, Brian, there are times when my life is too queer for me. I just pictured my mother's face if she heard me talking about quotas on joint fucks or me worried you weren't getting enough."

"Deb would just help us hash out the rules." Brian muttered. Justin cracked up at the thought.

Brian looked down and started to smile. Justin's laughter was contagious. "I guess I can take another chance on love. We'll keep the old rules. Somehow, I don't think it's going to be a problem. We can discuss the rules every year on your birthday, if you want."

That set Justin off again. "Sounds good, but let's talk after the birthday party - unless you really want Debbie's help."

Brian started laughing, picturing the scene as he fell back on the bed beside his giggling lover. He reached over, planning to kiss the laughter away.

Brian's phone rang. "Shit." Brian moved away from Justin so he could hear over the other man's gasping for breath between laughs. "What?"

"Brian, if Justin's there, don't let him know it's me?" Jennifer Taylor's voice came over the phone. "Can you give me a call when you're alone? We've got a problem."

"It'll be a while before I call back." Brian said, moving back toward the bed, intent on Justin.

"Why am I not surprised? Tomorrow's okay." Jennifer commented as she hung up.