<hr>
The Drifter -- Chapter Six

Daphne's high-pitched voice threatens to deafen Justin as she asks question after question without even pausing to allow him to answer.  It's still early morning, and Justin hasn't even gotten out of bed to take a shower and get ready for school yet.  He pulls his covers up and reclines, waiting for Daphne's steady interrogation to end. 

"Was it good?  What did you guys do?  So is he your boyfriend now?  Does he have a great body?"

Justin sneaks a few words in as Daphne takes a quick breath.  "It was amazing.  Well, we kissed and stuff."

"And stuff!  C'mon, I need more details than that."

"I'm getting there!  I just…this was…it wasn't just sex.  I like him a lot, Daph."

"All right…I'm sorry.  Continue your story."

"Actually, we both have to get ready for school.  I'll tell you the rest on the way to school."

"Oh, man!" Daphne whines.  "I can't wait that long."

"Sure you can.  Bye."  Justin hangs up the phone without giving Daphne any time to respond, and trots into the bathroom to get ready.

Thirty minutes later, Daphne straps herself into the Mercedes and proceeds with the inquisition.  Justin recounts some of the finer moments of his evening with Brian, leaving out the more gratuitous details.

"I'm so proud of you, Justin.  You kind of made the first move!"

Justin shrugs as he pulls the car into a parking space, "Yeah, I guess I did."

"So did you see him this morning?"

"No.  It was only seven when I left.  I don't think he gets up that early.  He was probably still sleeping."  Justin sighs, letting his mind drift back to all of the sensations--Brian's skin, his hot breath, his molded muscles.  "And I have to work until nine o'clock tonight.  I might not see him at all."

+++++

Justin's shift at Barnes & Noble feels as if it will never end.  He tries to make time pass by reading some books in the sexuality section.  <u>How to Please Your Man</u>, <u>The Joy of Gay Sex</u>, and a few others contain bits of information that might prove useful.  By eight o'clock, he has to scramble to make the section presentable, since he has spent most of his time daydreaming about using some of the more imaginative ideas from the books on Brian.  

The time clock ticks away the last few seconds to nine o'clock, and Justin streaks out of the front door moments later, giving his manager a quick wave.  Besides wanting to see Brian, he also wants to get home, so he can get his homework done by a reasonable time tonight.  

Justin swings the Mercedes into the driveway and parks.  He's disappointed that he can't see any lights on in the guesthouse.  He collects his bag and exits the car.  He smells something familiar in the air--marijuana smoke.  He looks toward the guesthouse roof and sees the glowing ember of a joint.  

He walks closer to the guesthouse and whispers in the general direction of the ember.  "Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing," is the only reply.  Justin hears an exhale, and then, "Want to help me finish this?"

"I can't.  I have homework to do.  I don't smoke during the week."  Justin falters, fearing that he is ruining his chances to see Brian tonight.  "I can come up for a few minutes, though."

A pause and another exhale, "OK.  Door's open."

Justin climbs the stairs quickly, opens the door and plops his bag on the floor.  Brian pokes his shadowed head in through the open window.

"Could you bring me a beer?  And grab yourself something to drink if you want." Brian says quietly.

Justin changes direction and swivels toward the opposite direction, pulling a beer and a can of Coca-Cola from the small fridge.  He climbs through the window awkwardly holding out the two drinks.  

"Thanks," Brian's shadow says.  

It's a dark night, and Justin's eyes have not adjusted to the darkness yet.  He can only see Brian's outstretched hand reaching for the beer and his shining, stoned eyes in the dark.  Justin hands the beer to Brian, and sits down heavily on the roof, sighing and waiting for his eyesight to focus.  

"Rough day?" Brian asks.

"No, it was OK.  I'm just tired.  How about you?"

"I got a lot of work done.  You should see the backyard."

"I can't see a fucking thing; it's pitch black!  I can barely see you."

Brian sits up and flicks his lighter, so it illuminates his features.  "See me now?"

"Yeah," Justin laughs nervously.  

Brian crawls the few feet to Justin on his hands and knees.  He lights his lighter when he reaches Justin's side, and their faces both glow in the flickering flame.  Brian's smiling widely as he dives for Justin's strawberry lips.  Justin's lips are glistening when Brian pulls away from the kiss.  "I've been thinking about your lips all day," Brian admits as his fingertip absent-mindedly brushes over his lower lip.

Relieved that Brian doesn't seem to regret anything, Justin starts to relax.  If anything, Brian seems prepared for another night of sexual exploration.  Justin sighs contentedly and leans his forehead on Brian's shoulder.  It's a cool night, so Justin curls into Brian's neck, kisses him lightly and shields his face from the cold breeze blowing.  

"I've been thinking about you all day too," Justin breathes into Brian's ear.

Brian retreats from their embrace to retrieve his beer from the roof.  Justin's eyes, having finally adjusted to the darkness, watch Brian carefully.  In the dim light, Brian's tanned skin looks deep blue with lighter blue highlights created by the crisp angles of his cheekbones and the sensual curves of his lips.  Brian raises the amber bottle to his lips and takes a healthy swig.  The color combination gives Justin some ideas for his final art project.

"Would you model for me sometime?"

"Anytime.  How much does it pay?"

Justin racks his brain for a fair price, before he notices that Brian is leering at him suggestively.  "I'm sure I could think of some way to repay you," Justin says smiling.

"I hope so."  Brian takes another gulp of his beer.  "I'd love to start a repayment process tonight, but you said something about homework earlier."  

Justin sighs heavily.  "Yeah.  I have to go."

Justin rises from the roof, picks up his unopened soda, and follows Brian into the guesthouse.  He puts the soda back in the refrigerator, picks up his bag, and turns in the direction of the door.  Brian is waiting there, watching Justin cross the room.  Their eyes don't leave each other as Justin comes closer and closer.  Justin reaches Brian, raises up almost on his tiptoes to reach, and kisses Brian softly.  

"Later…" Brian says.

"Later," Justin replies, grinning ear-to-ear.

Brian leans against the door, listening to Justin's quick footsteps recede down the stairs.  Sighing loudly, his hand brushes across his slight erection.  Brian had been looking forward to seeing Justin all day.  He was hoping to spend some time with him, but he understood the stresses of school.  It wasn't so long ago that Brian was going through his own education-induced anxieties when he was preparing his last paper for his final English lit class.  

Brian had been using this time after college to save up for grad school, but now he's not so sure he wants that.  He had quickly found that no one was hiring an English lit graduate, so he had started using the landscaping and carpentry knowledge that he had gained during his teens to make some easy money.  Brian had actually been giving a lot of thought to a career in advertising, since he had enjoyed those classes at UPENN so much.  It would definitely be a more lucrative career than English lit.  His few options within the English lit field were academically stimulating, which he craved, but, at the same time, they were financially bleak.  He had grown up in poverty, and didn't relish the thought of living in that manner for the rest of his life.  He wanted to make something of himself, so he could go back to Pittsburgh and shove it in his parents' faces.

Brian sighs deeply, pushes away from the door and heads to the roof to finish his beer and smoke another cigarette.  As he lights up, his eye is caught by Justin's illuminated window.  Justin is just walking into the room.  Brian watches as he throws his bag onto his bed, lays down his cell phone and wallet on his desk, and stares into his mirror for a bit.  Brian can make out a smile curling slowly across Justin's face.  It is then that Brian realizes that his own smile is breaking across his usually serious countenance.  <i>I better not fuck this up,</i> Brian says to himself.  Never having had something this important to fuck up, Brian then begins to wonder if he knows how to <i>not</i> fuck it up.

+++++

The next few days are a twisting whirl of activity for both Brian and Justin.  Brian is spending a lot of time in the gardens around the pool, planning and planting furiously, trying to recreate what he can visualize in his mind.  Justin's time is carefully divided between school, work and family.  Brian only catches small glimpses of Justin hard at work on various school projects through his open window shade.  And Justin only sees Brian during one shared meal with his parents close by.  They both steal small glances at each other during dinner, but neither has the time to spare for the true intimacy that each craves with the other.

Finally, on Friday night, Justin comes home from school in the afternoon and finds Brian hard at work in the backyard.  He stands quietly, not wanting to disturb Brian's concentration, as he watches his muscles flex with the labor.  Brian turns around to retrieve a gardening tool and catches sight of Justin.

A dazzling smile escapes when he catches sight of Justin.  "Hey, Justin."

"Hey, Brian.  How's it going?"

"Good.  Do you like what I've done with the place?"

Justin takes a moment to look around the yard at the new bushes, colorful plants, and neatly trimmed grass.  "It's gorgeous!"

Brian walks toward Justin as he continues to look around at Brian's handiwork.  "Gorgeous, huh?"

Justin meets Brian's eyes, as he realizes Brian's double meaning.  He furtively darts his eyes toward the main house.  "Is my mom home?"

"Uh, yeah," Brian replies as he takes half a step away from Justin.  "She was just out here a minute ago to check on things."

"I wish I could kiss you right now," Justin mutters intensely.

"Mmmm," Brian nearly moans.  "What are you doing tonight?"

"Daphne mentioned that she wanted to have a movie night, maybe.  Are you interested?"

"You'll be there, right?"

"Uh, yeah.  That's kind of the idea," Justin laughs.

"Yeah, that'd be fun.  What time?"

"I was thinking about going to the diner for dinner at about six, and then leaving for Daphne's from there.  Is that OK?"

Brian calculates the time it will take him to get ready and agrees.  As long as he picks up his tools by four, he'll have time to get ready and relax a bit before they head out.  Justin disappears into the house, and Brian is left tending to his new gardens for a few more hours.

+++++

At a quarter to six, Brian is sitting, reading his battered copy of <u>Brave New World</u> by Aldous Huxley, and leisurely drinking a cold beer.  As he pauses his reading to take a sip, he hears Justin climbing the stairs.  Brian waves Justin inside before he can knock.  

"Hey, what's up?"

"Not much," Justin replies.  "You ready, or am I too early."

"Nope, I'm just about ready.  Just have to finish this beer."

"OK."  Justin glances at the book in Brian's hands.  "What're you reading?" he asks.

"<u>Brave New World</u>.  Aldous Huxley," he replies, holding up the cover of the book.

"Oh, yeah.  I read that for school."

"Did you like it?"

"Yeah," Justin answers.  "I did.  They made us read a lot of crap, but that was a good one."

Brian laughs, because after four years in college studying English lit, he knew every overrated piece of literary dog shit intimately.  "I know exactly what you mean, unfortunately."

Justin blushes, remembering that Brian was an English lit major.  "I'm sure you do.  What do you think was the worst book you had to read for school?"

Brian contemplates for a moment.  "I don't know; there have been so many.  I'll have to get back to you on the absolute worst."  Brian rises from his comfortable chair and moves closer to Justin with an intense look in his eye.  "You know what's the worst?"

"What?"

"It's been two days since I have been able to kiss you," Brian responds, moving closer and closer.

Justin tilts his head up, raising his lips toward Brian's.  "We'll just have to fix that," his soft breath whispers against Brian's lips.  Their breaths mingle, and soon their lips follow suit.  

Ten minutes later, it takes all of their willpower to separate.  Brian has been looking forward to getting out of the house all week, because his lack of transportation has left him somewhat trapped in the Taylor compound.  Justin's soft lips make a good argument for staying home, though.  

"OK," Brian announces, pulling himself away from Justin's arms.  "Let's go, or we won't get out of here."  He collects his keys, wallet and watch, and pulls Justin out the door.

+++++

Justin and Brian request a seat in Ida's section when they get to the diner.  They quickly order and settle into an easy conversation.  Halfway through their meal, Brian notices a table about ten feet away that is full of high school aged boys.  One boy in particular keeps pointing and laughing in the direction of their table.  

"Do you know that kid over there?" Brian finally asks.  

Justin turns around and glances at Chris Hobbs.  Grimacing, Justin admits to knowing Chris.  "Yeah, he's an asshole.  Just ignore him."

"I don't think I can.  He keeps laughing and looking over here."  Brian has been having trouble enjoying his meal, since he began to notice the boy's obnoxiousness.  

"I didn't even know he was here.  I think I have finally mastered the art of tuning out his voice.  I've been hearing it for so many years; I just started to not hear it."

Brian had had his share of idiots making fun of him in high school, but by his junior year, he had started playing sports.  His talents in soccer had made the upperclassmen give him some respect and leave him with some dignity in his junior and senior years.  The effects of their taunting had never fully left him, though, and he was certainly sympathetic to Justin's troubles.

"OK," Brian smiles.  "If it's not bothering you, I will try to ignore it."

"Agreed."  Justin manages to keep Brian's mind off of Chris Hobbs during the rest of their meal, until Chris comes up to their table.

"Hey, Taylor.  Who's your new boyfriend?"  Justin attempts to ignore Chris, and Brian follows his lead.  "I'm fucking talking to you, faggot!"

Brian turns his head slowly toward Hobbs.  "I suggest that you leave us alone," he says, aiming a cold-as-ice stare at Hobbs.

"Or what?" Hobbs goads.  

Brian rises from his seat, and uses his height to intimidate Hobbs, who is at least four inches shorter than he.  He leans over Hobbs, an inch from his face.  "Or I will cut off your balls and feed them to you," he says menacingly.  

Hobbs looks a little bit scared now.  Before he can produce any feigned bravado, Ida appears.  She rests a hand on Brian's shoulder to keep him calm.  "Chris Hobbs," she says.  "Why don't you go sit down, before this gentleman is forced to make a fool out of you?"  Chris stays there for moment, glowering at Brian.  "Go sit down!" she says more forcefully.

After Hobbs goes back to his table, Brian sits back down and glances at Justin.  He can see Justin's hands shaking and tears welling up in his eyes.  Brian asks Ida for the check, so they can leave.  Ida just shoos them away.  "Make it up to me next time you come in.  I'll take care of the check.  You take care of Justin."

"Thank you, Ida," he leans to kiss her on the cheek, before quickly leading Justin out the door and to the car.

When they get to the car, he reaches into Justin's shirt pocket to get the keys, because Justin is too upset.  "Do you want me to drive?"

"Sure," Justin replies barely above a whisper.

Brian opens the door for Justin, gets in the driver's seat, and drives away.  "God!" Brian shouts and pounds on the steering wheel.  "What a fucking asshole!"  He slams the wheel once again, and then turns just in time to see Justin visibly flinch.  Brian makes a concerted effort to calm himself down, because he can tell that Justin is disturbed by his outbursts.  Brian has to pull the car to the side of the road when he turns his head to glance at Justin and sees a tear slide down his face.

"I'm sorry, Brian."  Justin's face crumples and he begins to cry.

"What are you sorry for?"  Brian pulls Justin to him and holds him as he cries.  "You have nothing to be sorry for," he whispers encouragingly in Justin's ear.  "I should be the one apologizing.  I shouldn't have let that kid get to me."

After a few minutes, Justin calms down.  "I'm just so sick of him.  He's been tormenting me since middle school, and I know he's never going to stop."

Brian's heart breaks listening to Justin sound so defeated.  "You'll make it, Justin."  He pulls Justin toward him again.  "Soon you'll be graduating, and then you'll move on--go to college.  It's only…not even two months.  You're almost there.  I just hope I didn't make it any worse for you by standing up to him."  

"No, you're right.  It'll be fine."  

Brian looks into Justin's eyes.  "You tell me if he fucks with you.  OK?"  Justin nods his head.  "OK?!"

"Yeah, yeah.  I'll tell you."

"Good.  Now, are you ready?"

Justin groans at the thought of any more drama.  "Yeah, I guess."

Brian drives away from the side of the road and laces his fingers with Justin's.  Justin relaxes against the seat and just enjoys the sensation of his hand in Brian's.