Hear Hear

Brian was sitting in front of the flitting flames. Justin was dancing around the loft. Brian tried to signal to the kid unsuccessfully. Brian was not happy. Finally he got up off the floor and grabbed the twink from behind with both arms. Justin removed the earphones.

"What's up, Bri?" he wanted to know.

"Bri has been sitting on the floor waiting for you for the last fifteen minutes," he was told, "And Bri is getting impatient. Bri might even be getting mad."

"Didn't you give me these Bose top of the line earphones to use?" Justin defended himself.

"Yeah, I did," Brian complained, "But they were not meant to be a substitute for me."

"I'm sorry, Brian," Justin apologized, "But these things are so neat. A great Christmas present. I just love them. I'm sorry if I seem to have them on all the time but the novelty will wear off."

"Just like the novelty's worn off me, I guess," Brian groused.

"Never, Sweetheart," Justin assured him as he dragged Brian back onto the floor in front of the fireplace.

"You're wearing those earphones too much," Brian kept on. "You can't hear me when I'm talking to you."

"I don't think I'm wearing them too much at all," Justin retorted. "You probably just got them for me because you don't like the music I like to listen to."

"I think maybe I did," Brian confessed, "But I didn't expect you to have them on as much as you do."

"Well I don't really think I wear them too much," Justin maintained.

"Well I've been trying to tell you for the last fifteen minutes how much I love you," Brian told him.

"Maybe I am wearing them too much," Justin reconsidered. "I'm beginning to see what you're talking about."

"And hearing what I'm talking about too," Brian laughed.

"The last time I looked at you, you were on the telephone, Brian," Justin pointed out. "If I would have taken off the earphones then you would have accused me of eavesdropping. What did Mikey want?"

"If you had taken off the earphones, Baby," Brian came back, "You would have known that it wasn't Mikey I was talking to. It was Daphne."

"You know it wasn't like I was in Timbuktu or somewhere," Justin responded, "I could have come to the phone."

"Then you really would have been eavesdropping," Brian told him, "Because she didn't want to talk to you. She wanted to talk to me."

"I'm not going to like this, am I?" Justin figured.

"Don't get paranoid, Kiddo," Brian interjected.

"It's about her New Year's Eve party, I know," Justin surmised. "She wanted us to come but I told her we couldn't. We have to be at Debbie's and I know you don't like messing around with the younger crowd. I'm sorry she bothered you."

"Well we are going. No reason why I can't fit in with the younger crowd." Brian informed him. "I told her we'd be there."

"Without consulting me?" Justin declared unbelievingly.

"Would I do anything like that?" Brian acted amazed. "You would never make any arrangements for me without consulting me, would you? Of course, I didn't make any arrangements for you. I told her I'd be there and maybe you would agree to come with me. I told her I'd ask you."

"I think I detect a little sarcasm there, Kinney," Justin deduced. "Maybe I should just put the earphones back on again."

"I don't think so," Brian warned. "I might be ready to tell you again how much I love you."

"Fat chance of that," Justin laughed. "But we can't go to Daphne's, Bri," Justin returned to reality. "We're supposed to be at Debbie's and I know you'll enjoy yourself more there than at Daphne's."

"And what about you?" Brian countered. "Where would you rather be?"

"Anyplace with you," Justin told him.

"Likewise," Brian assured the kid, "And I only told Daph that we would be there for an hour or so, either before midnight or after. And that will be up to you, Sunshine, that is, if you decide you'll come to Daphne's with me at all."

"How long do I have to decide?" Justin teased.

"As long as you need," Brian teased back.

They settled in at this point to spend some quiet time staring at the flickering flames. They both liked that.

"Brian." Justin eventually broke the spell, "I think I'll make a New Year's resolution not to wear the earphones at all when we're here together."

"I don't think that's necessary," Brian told him. "Sometimes we're both here and you're working on something or I'm working on something. There's no reason why you couldn't have the earphones on then. And anyhow your resolutions only last until January fifth mostly so it's hardly worth bothering."

"Yeah," Justin agreed, "You're probably right. But you know what, Bri, I'm going to make a resolution this year that I'm going to keep all year and maybe forever. I'm not going to tell you what it is though because it's a big secret."

"Good enough," Brian told him. "I don't want to stand in the way of any resolution that would make you a better person, and you know me, if I know what it is, I'll probably try to get you to break it."

"I don't think so," Justin sounded confident, "But I'll keep it a secret for now anyway. I don't guess it would be any use to try to get you to make any resolutions, would it?"

"I don't do resolutions," Brian reaffirmed, and that led to another period of silent contemplation.

It was Brian who broke the silence this time while also breaking with precedent. "Baby," Brian told him, "I think I will make a resolution this year. It's one I know I can keep though so I'm going to tell you what it is. I'm resolving to make next year the best ever year for us."

Justin seemed taken aback. "Geez, Brian," he said, "You've stolen my secret resolution. But I'm not going to complain. It will be so much better if we both have the same resolution so I don't mind you stealing mine."

"I think you better put your earphones on." Brian told the kid.

"What are you talking about, Honey?" Justin wondered.

"I think I'm going to tell you something and maybe it would be better if you had your earphones on," Brian warned him.

"Not a chance," Justin smiled at him. "I think this could be the best sound I ever heard, the best fidelity, the best stereo, the best range, the best everything. Sometimes you're better off without earphones."

Justin was not disappointed.

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