I'M ON TV
 

“I need to ask you something, Taylor,” Brian said – with a strange smile on his face – as the guys settled in front of their fake fireplace one evening.

“I think what you really mean to say, Brian,” Justin presumed from long experience, “is that you have something to accuse me of doing – or maybe not doing – that I either did or didn’t do - depending on which was the right thing to do or not do.”

“Yep,” Brian agreed to that assessment. “You are exactly right – as usual – and you should be congratulated on how clearly you can state stuff too – really clear….”

“So go ahead and accuse me unjustly, Brian Kinney,” Justin told him. “That’s what you want to do so just go right ahead.”

“Well maybe not exactly,” Brian defended himself. “But me and Ted stopped by Primanti’s for a sandwich at lunchtime….”

“You stopped at Primanti’s!” Justin seemed surprised. “You ate one of those mammoth sandwiches with like - coleslaw and French fries piled right on the sandwich. You – Brian Kinney – who refuses to go to Primanti’s with me – like – ever – so I have to go with Brandon and Jason or….”

“Well if you’d have gone today, you could have sat at the table next to Ted and me,” Brian told him. “ Wanna guess with who?”

“Nope, I can’t imagine…” Justin seemed at a rare loss. “Brandon and Jason wouldn’t go there without me, knowing how I like Primanti’s and how you outright refuse to go there with me…”

“Wasn’t Jason or Brandon, Baby. I’ll give you a hint though,” Brian grinned at him. “One of the three was the worst intern I ever had at Kinnetics – and the only one I ever fired….”

“OK,” Justin came back. “That would be Rodney, who was not nearly as bad as you said he was – but maybe he did have – like – eyes for me – a little bit. But remember too, he also played on stage with you in that play that Hix – who was surely one of the other guys at the table – wrote – and Malcolm directed - at the Community Playhouse….”

“I think maybe I was the star of that mess, Sweetheart,” Brian refined that assessment. “And Rodney was like – an extra – and Hix wrote that one scene for me and Rodney because Hix hates me – cause I know a lot more history than he does - and he knows what I think of Rodney too. It was like a gigantic anti-Kinney plot and you like – talked me into doing the damn play anyhow - and you knew all the time….”

“Dammit, Brian Kinney,” Justin complained. “I never in my whole life talked you into anything. Nobody else has either. You are a stubborn old mule and you only do what you want to do and only when you want to do it too….”

Strangely enough, it seemed at this point that what Brian Kinney wanted to do was to cause a temporary cessation in the discussion, which he himself had started – and he succeeded admirably at doing exactly that. Brian knew how to deal with those kinds of situations.

“So who was the other guy with them, Bri?” Justin returned to the discussion fearlessly and with that conviction of innocence which was a commanding part of his personality.

“Think his name was Phil,” Brian thought he remembered. “Yeah, Phil – I think.”

“Yep,” Justin confirmed. “There is a Phil. I guess you didn’t like him either. He’s actually a pretty nice kid – you’d probably like him if you didn’t see him with Rodney and Hix….”

“Well, it’s about what Phil said that I want to talk to you, Taylor,” Brian informed the twink.

“Phil said something bad about me?” Justin was visibly taken aback.

“Nope, he didn’t,” Brian assured him. “Actually he said some real nice things about you later on – that is….”

“Later than what, Kinney?” Justin wondered nervously. “I don’t quite get the picture yet….”

“Well - you know how polite Hix and Rodney always are, Sweetheart,” Brian explained. “Always sickeningly polite. Well they introduced me to Phil….”

“So what am I getting accused of, Brian?” Justin interrupted. “Just get to it already - so I can tell you where you’re wrong.”

”I am getting right to it, Honey,” Brian told him. “When we shook hands, Phil turned around to Hix and Rodney and said ‘Hey guys – this is the guy from the video clip’….”

“What video clip, Bri?” Justin looked puzzled.

“Like – you don’t know, Baby?” Brian retorted. “You’re gonna tell me you don’t know?”

“Yeah, BK,” Justin asserted. “I think that’s exactly what I’m gonna tell you – after you tell me what video clip you’re talking about….”

“Seems like Hix video-taped that whole horrible scene with me and Rodney in that God-awful play of his,” Brian pointed out.

“Gee whiz, Bri,” Justin admitted. “I did know that Hix video-taped the whole play. You knew that too. I’m sure you did….”

“Yeah, I guess I did,” Brian recalled. “But what I didn’t know till now was that the jackass uploaded MY big scene with Rodney to Youtube.com where it has been viewed by like – millions of folks - over the past couple of years – and I did not know that – and you did – me and Rodney – together - on people’s screens….”

“I did not either, Brian,” Justin was astonished. “We didn’t know that….”

“Ted knew, Baby,” Brian informed him. “Ted thought you knew. He thought I knew. And when I talked to Mikey later, he knew – so Malcolm and Hunter had to know too – and you’re telling me you didn’t know….”

“I did not know, Brian,” Justin avowed. “I did not know – and heads are gonna roll too. Believe me….”

“It’s OK, Baby,” Brian told him. “I’m not all that mad about getting put on Youtube. I guess no heads need to roll. At least I’m now on the internet….”

“Brian, Honey, Sweetheart,” Justin laughed. “I’d be afraid to google you on the net. I think you might have more appearances on the net than just that one scene on Youtube – with like – all those tricks from the past….”

“Ya think,” Brian grinned what might have been a grin of pride. “Well OK then. I’m OK with the whole thing. Everybody’s head is safe….”

”You think heads were gonna roll just because of that crazy video clip, Kinney?” Justin informed him. “Wrong. Heads are gonna roll cause I was not informed. I did not know, Bri. Me – out of the loop. Not cool at all….”

“Geez, Baby,” Brian thought he was closing the conversation. “Everything’s always about you – and that’s OK with me too – so….”

But Brian was wrong about the discussion being concluded. After just a brief silence, Justin resumed it once more. “Hey, Brian,” he asked the big guy who was already otherwise occupied – or at least ready to be otherwise occupied, “Did you really eat a Primanti’s sandwich? A regular Primanti sandwich?”

“You know who waited on us, Kiddo?” Brian replied. “That Helen dame who you’re always talking about. So I told her what I wanted and I thought she was gonna throw me out of the place. Then Rodney told her that I was your boy-friend. She knew you right off. She likes you a lot. So she let me order a tuna salad sandwich. I ate some of the tuna salad and she wrapped the rest of it for you. The cole slaw, the French fries and the other half of the tuna salad…..”

”The bun too?” Justin wanted to know – urgently enough to interrupt Brian’s description.

“Yeah the bun too,” Brian laughed. “It’s all in the refrigerator right now – but – Mr. Justin Taylor – you are not going to that refrigerator till we are completely through with this ‘discussion.’ – and I’ll decide when that is – me – the stubborn old mule - and that is my very final word on the situation. Get it?”

“Gee whiz, Brian Kinney,” Justin grinned at him. “Everything’s always about you – but I guess that’s OK with me – as long as you really don’t want any more of my sandwich….”

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