Am I Getting Old

The guys had been sitting, entwined on the floor of the loft in front of their fake fireplace, for quite a while before Brian broke the silence they seemed to be enjoying.

"OK, Kiddo, what's up?" Brian asked. "You know, it's been over two weeks since you tried to trick me into anything. I don't think you're sick - so do you want to tell me what's up?"

"Are you complaining, Mr. Kinney, Sir?" Justin replied with a smile. "You're always complaining about me being a schemer - and now you're complaining about me not being a schemer. Seems like you're pretty hard to please - if you want my opinion - which I'm pretty sure you don't."

"OK, Baby," Brian grinned at him. "You know damn well I'm not complaining and you know I'm actually fairly easy to please - or you should know that by now. I was just asking you a question, that's all. You don't have to answer it if you don't want to."

"Gee whiz, Bri," Justin grinned back at him. "You think it's easy to figure out plots to get you to do stuff you don't want to do. Well it's not all that easy at all. It's hard. Malcolm's not doing any plays right now - and I have everything I want. Do you want me to promise to hatch some devious plot as soon as I can figure one out?"

"I don't think you need to make any promises like that," Brian responded widening his grin. "Justin Taylor is a plotter by nature so it won't be long till something comes up, promise or no promise. It's just that's it's been a while…."

"You know what, Brian," Justin concluded. "Despite all your complaining, I think you like it when you think I'm trying to pull something on you - not that I would ever try to pull anything on you, but you think so sometimes. Well maybe that's just kid stuff and maybe I'm growing up. Maybe that's what's going on? Maybe there won't be any more of these so-called plots."

"My baby is growing up?" Brian mused in a way to give Justin some concern.

"You'll still love me when I'm more mature, won't you?" Justin wanted to know. "I'll still love you for sure."

"Well I guess we'll have to see, won't we?" Brian came back. "I never knew any mature Justin Taylor so who knows? And maybe a more mature JT himself will decide he doesn't need some old guy like me to keep him on the straight and narrow either."

"Brian Kinney," Justin complained. "You're trying to scare me - and you are succeeding by the way. And I can see that no matter how mature I ever get, you're still gonna pick on me every opportunity you get - and you'll make some opportunities too if some don't just show up. Because you're mean."

"Well I don't think I'm picking on you now, and I still love you now too, Baby. I really do," Brian was still grinning. "I guess you should enjoy it while you can. That's my advice."

The discussion was not over by any means but Justin decided that Brian's advice was worth taking and there was a period of silence while he took advantage of the opportunity to enjoy what he could while he could..

Justin must have done some intricate thinking during the hiatus because he took the offensive when he returned to the discussion.

"Hey Brian," he asked. "What role in what play would you really hate to do?"

"Guess you'll try to get Malcolm to do that play then, eh, Sweetheart," Brian laughed, "And then you'll try to get me into that role. If I was smart, I'd refuse to answer that question. And actually, I'm not even sure what the answer is. There are a lot of plays I don't like. I don't like 'The Glass Menagerie' at all. That's one candidate. And I hate both the guys' roles in it too. Too depressing. But you're never gonna get me into that one. Nope, no Tom for me - and no Gentleman Caller either. You can forget that particular scheme, Baby. Won't work."

"That's a kind of challenge, Honey. Bet you I could do it if I tried real hard," Justin rose to the dare. "Maybe you could play one role and I could do the other. Bet you'd like that. You could pick whichever of the two roles you want and I'd take the other one. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

"Maybe we could even alternate the roles?" Brian cajoled. "Bet I'd get better reviews than you in both of them. That would irritate you - and serve you right too. Or you know what, I just got an idea, maybe we could both play Tom. I could do the 'old Tom' scenes and you could do the 'young Tom' scenes. Then the critics could praise old Tom and pan the young Tom. Maybe you could talk me into something interesting like that."

"Now that is the craziest thing I ever heard of, Bri," Justin chortled. "I can see why you're not in show biz - thinking up something crazy like that. Nobody could get away with any such dumb idea."

"Well, maybe - just maybe - I'd do it if you could get Malcolm to split that role," Brian decided. "Let Malcolm put up with some of your trickery. Why don't you try my idea out on Malcolm?"

"Well maybe I will. I'll think about it." Justin told him, putting his head on Brian's shoulder and bringing quick closure to that part of the discussion.

"Hey, Brian," Justin resumed the conversation a while later. "Didn't Mikey once tell me you were in a Tennessee Williams play in college? It wasn't 'Glass Menagerie' was it? I don't think you ever told me about it."

"No I didn't tell you," Brian gritted his teeth just a little, "But I should have known big-mouth Mikey would. It was 'Suddenly Last Summer.'"

"But there's no good role for a guy in that play," Justin remembered. "Just that dumb doctor. That role is not good enough for you, Brian."

"Well that's who I played," Brian told him "The school paper gave me a bad review. The guy said I was wooden. Me - wooden. Can you believe that? Damn guy was gay too. I think he did it because he was mad that the sorority girls all thought I was wonderful. Bastard was jealous that I had to run away from all them dames after every performance."

"But if he was gay….?" Justin wondered.

"I think he was just mad because it wasn't him chasing me." Brian conjectured. "I'd have run faster if it was him chasing me."

"What if it was me chasing you?" Justin grinned coyly.

"Oh I'd still have run," Brian grinned back at him, "But I think I'd have figured out a way to let you catch me."

"You know what, Kinney," Justin decided, nuzzling his nose against Brian's cheek. "I have decided that you don't want me to grow up. I guess I'll have to someday - but not yet. I think I'm gonna stay awake all night and come up with some plot to pull on you tomorrow."

"Want me to stay up and help you?" Brian offered suggestively.

"I don't think it would be a good idea for you to help me figure out a plot to irritate you, Sweetheart," Justin opined. "But if you had something else in mind, maybe that would be a good idea. I could work on my plot tomorrow."

"Actually, I do have something else in mind," Brian admitted. "Want me to tell you what it is?"

"Nah," Justin said as he cuddled himself closer into Brian. "Surprise me."

"OK," Brian agreed. "We'll let it be a surprise."

But neither of them really expected Justin to be at all surprised - and he wasn't.

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