No Tricks

Brian and Justin had been having a "minor" disagreement as they sat down in front of their fake fireplace. As usual, the fire was flitting to and fro but Brian did not put his arm around Justin and Justin did not lay his head on Brian's shoulder.

"I think maybe I'm going to put my foot down on this," Brian growled in continuation of the dispute.

"I can't understand why you are being so difficult Brian," Justin protested. "I'm an adult so I ought to be able to make my own decisions."

"Well I'm a more experienced adult than you are," Brian protested back, "And sometimes I don't get to make my own decisions around here - not since you moved in anyhow."

"That's a mean thing to say, Brian," Justin complained.

"Yeah, it is," Brian admitted, finally encircling the kid with his arm. "But can you honestly say it isn't true?

I think you know it's true."

"Well it might be true some of the time," Justin replied, "But you don't seem to mind."

"I guess I don't mind," Brian told him. "But this is something that I do mind. I want you safe. I want you around for a long time."

Justin's head slipped onto Brian's shoulder and he smiled just a little bit. "I've heard that before, I think," he said to Brian.

"And you'll hear it again when I think you want to do something dumb," Brian warned him.

"That's why I only do dumb things when you're not around, Honey," Justin responded with a laugh. "I don't want you to worry about me."

"Well that's where we are completely different," Brian laughed too. "I only do dumb things when you are around."

"That's kind of a romantic thing to say, Bri," Justin purred.

"Maybe," Brian allowed. "But if you think you're going to get my mind off this subject before we get it settled, you may be disappointed. I saw you doing tricks on that damn skateboard when I came to pick you up at school this afternoon and that took me right out of any romantic mood I might have been in."

"Well if you hadn't come twenty minutes early, you wouldn't have seen anything at all," Justin objected. "How come you were that early? I bet you were spying on me."

"Nope. I didn't know I had any reason to spy on you. I think it was because I was looking forward to seeing you," Brian corrected him. "That's why I was early."

"Now who's using romance to get his own way," Justin argued. "It's Malcolm's skateboard. I don't even own a skateboard. And Malcolm does a lot crazier tricks than I do on it."

"I have a feeling though that maybe you were thinking about a skateboard of your own," Brian guessed. "Or am I wrong?"

"I was thinking about maybe getting one of my own, I guess," Justin told him.

"And were you thinking of telling me about it?" Brian asked.

"Of course I was going to tell you about it?" Justin protested.

"How long after you got it?" Brian wanted to know.

"Geez, Bri," Justin complained. "You are getting really tough about this. Lots of the kids have them. Hardly anybody gets hurt."

"I don't want to see anybody get hurt, Baby," Brian pointed out, "But maybe you don't know you're kind of special to me. I really don't want to see you get hurt."

"Skateboards can be pretty safe, Brian," Justin insisted,

"I guess they can be safe," Brian said. "I see those competitions on TV but the skaters are wearing helmets and pads and they're on a special course. That isn't what you had in mind though?"

"It started out just as a quick way to get around campus, Brian," Justin confessed. "I borrowed Malcolm's a couple of times. The tricks and stuff came later."

"I can see where it would be a help getting around the campus," Brian allowed, "But the idea still scares me. If you'll promise me to take real good care of yourself, maybe it would be OK. I don't like the idea though."

"Brian, I'm not some teenaged twink any more," Justin said. "You ought to be able to trust me. And I ought to be able to make my own decision about skateboards."

"No, you're not really a twink any more," Brian admitted. "You're right, I know. Somehow though I think you may always be a twink to me. I figure if you really want the skateboard I shouldn't be such a wet blanket. You know, Baby, when you buy your skateboard, buy me one too. I'm too old for the tricks but maybe we could go skateboarding together sometimes."

"Brian, you're trying to scare me now," Justin protested. "I don't want you falling off some crazy skateboard and you know it. You're actually threatening me that if I get a skateboard, I'll have to worry about you all the time."

"Would you worry about me all the time?" Brian asked.

"I think I worry about you all the time already," Justin told him. "That's how it is when you love somebody."

"Yeah, it is," Brian said. "We agree on that."

"Brian," Justin concluded. "Sometimes I am such a dope. I don't know how you even put up with me. I promise I'll grow up someday if you can wait."

"At my age I don't know how many years I have left," Brian told him squeezing him just a little tighter, "And I'm willing to spend them waiting for you to grow up, but I don't really know if I want you to. Maybe you keep me young too. Maybe that's why I want a skateboard."

"OK, you win, Bri," Justin told him. "No skateboards. Except maybe to borrow Malcolm's every once in a while to get across campus. No tricks, I promise. I guess you think it's pretty funny that I'm promising to quit tricking. Maybe I am growing up - thanks to you. But this is my own adult decision. Of course I've listened to your arguments but I've made my own decision."

"Don't you always," Brian responded before the conversation dropped off for a while.

After a short pause Justin turned to Brian and asked. "Brian Honey," he wondered. "Did I just get conned? Something tells me that I was tricked into doing what you wanted me to. "

"Never, Baby," Brian assured him. "You know I've given up tricking too. You made your own mature independent decision on the matter."

"Well you're lucky to have me around then, Bri," Justin informed him nestling himself closer to Brian as if to strengthen his point. "If it weren't for my mature independent decision, you might have killed yourself on a stupid skateboard."

"Very true," Brian agreed. "I am lucky to have you around. I know that." And that was no trick on Brian's part. He really meant it.

Return to Fireside Chats