Contagious

It was a couple of days after St. Patrick's Day and the guys were getting themselves comfortable in front of the fake fireplace. The holiday had been very busy and very interesting. Justin had something on his mind, and Brian knew Justin had something on his mind. Brian also suspected that he knew what it was.

"Brian," Justin began the discussion, "I have a question for you and I want a serious answer, OK?"

"You know, Baby," Brian told him, "I'm pretty sure I know what you're going to ask and I promise I won't make a joke out of it, at least I'll try not to make a joke out of it."

"I don't think you know what it is, Bri," Justin challenged him.

"It's about Abelard, isn't it?" Brian hinted.

"Yeah," Justin admitted, "But what do you think I want to ask about Abelard?"

"Cut it out, Twink," Brian ordered. "You said you had something you wanted to ask me. So ask."

"Do you think Abelard might be gay?" Justin came out with his question.

"Anybody might be gay," Brian responded non-commitally. "What brings up that question?"

"Well I thought he and Chuck were making goo-goo eyes at each other a couple of times at the parties." Justin told him. "Didn't you notice anything at all?"

"Nope," Brian replied. "I guess I was watching you most of the time to see if you were making goo-goo eyes at me. Not that I'm sure I'd know goo-goo eyes if I saw them"

"Now you're trying to be funny," Justin groaned. "I knew it was going to be hard to talk about this with you."

"Mikey didn't think it was so hard to talk to me about it," Brian remarked off-handedly.

"You already talked to Mikey about this," Justin objected, "And you didn't say one word to me about it."

"I guess I would have said something to you eventually," Brian replied.

"OK, Kinney," Justin smiled at him. "You're not going to get me all riled up. What did Mikey say?"

"Well," Brian told him, "Hunter told Mike and Ben that Chuck is going out to Ohio State next week-end. Abe invited him out to see the place."

"Geez, Brian," Justin seemed surprised. "Maybe Abelard is gay after all. If he is, he has good taste. Chuck is a nice guy and he's about the best looking guy I've ever seen."

"The best looking guy you've ever seen, eh?" Brian wondered.

"You never let me finish what I'm saying, Bri," Justin laughed at him. "What I was trying to say was that he's the best looking guy I've ever seen that I'm not in love with."

"If I were you, Kid," Brian warned him, "I'd try to make sure I finished all my sentences."

"Oh I do try, Honey," Justin consoled him. "But sometimes I get interrupted before I finish."

"Well try harder," Brian pretended to grouse.

"You have nothing to worry about at all," Justin assured Brian. "I'm going to love you just as much as I do now, even when you're old and gray. I'll always be here. Didn't I promise to try to make sure I finished all my sentences?"

"Sometimes I think you figure that I'm going to get old and you're going to maintain your twinkship forever," Brian told him. "You're going to get old too. I'll admit though I'll probably age faster, because I have to put up with you."

"Yeah," Justin laughed, "And the pleasure of living with you will keep me young." Then Justin returned to the subject at hand. "Do you think it's contagious?" he asked Brian.

"What are you asking me?" Brian wanted to know. "Are you asking if Abe could have caught his gayness from us? Could you turn straight by being around straight people? If straightness isn't contagious, neither is gayness."

"Well Abelard always acted so macho," Justin defended himself. "And he always called me your useless cousin. I guess, if he's gay, he was just jealous."

"Of whom?" Brian wondered.

"Of you, of course," Justin decided. "You're lucky to have somebody like me around."

"Could it be you he was jealous of, for having me around?" Brian retaliated. "After all it was you who was the useless cousin, not me."

"I don't think so, Brian," Justin stated firmly.

"Well," Brian proposed, "You know how some hets do that wife swapping business. If Chuck and Abe get together, maybe we can manage a swap and see which one of us Abelard wants."

"You better be kidding, Kinney," Justin warned him. "It just could be that you're getting me a little bit riled, so you better be kidding. I'm a one-guy guy and you're that guy and you know it."

"You could end up with Chuck," Brian teased him, "And he's the best looking guy you've ever seen."

"That I'm not in love with, you dope," Justin pushed himself closer into Brian. "I'd rather have you even if you weren't as good looking as Chuck."

"Geez, you say the most romantic things," Brian remarked. That brought the conversation to one of those quiet periods which the guys liked so much.

"I think Abelard's falling for Chuck," Justin finally broke the silence, "And vice-versa. So I guess maybe Abe is really gay."

"We liked him straight, Baby," Brian said, "So I guess we'll like him gay just as well. And we like Chuck too so they ought to make a neat couple, but we should just wait and see. What does Malcolm think? I'm pretty sure you talked to him about this before you said anything to me."

"Malcolm said that Abelard wants him to start calling Chuck 'Cousin Chuck,'" Justin revealed.

"Well why didn't you tell me that in the first place?" Brian smiled at him as he tightened his grip on the kid.

After another quiet period, Brian looked at Justin. "You have a funny look in your eyes, Sunshine," Brian told him. "Oh my gosh, they're goo-goo eyes. You're making goo-goo eyes at me, aren't you?"

"Could be," Justin admitted. "You know they say that goo-goo eyes are contagious."

Return to Fireside Chats