Stolen Hearts
Mel tried to appear interested as she, and Lindsey strolled through the Pittsburgh Institute of Fine Arts newly renovated gallery. Thanks to the generous donations of several wealthy philanthropists, and art lovers, the works of various P.I.F.A. alumni were now eloquently displayed. Mel wasn’t the only one who was bored. Gus had become restless. Now that the toddler had mastered the art of walking, he was no longer content to remain in his stroller for long periods of time.
“How do you like this one?” Lindsey asked.
“I don’t know what it is.” Mel said.
“Don’t try to figure out what it is, try to appreciate the color, and light contrasts. See the play on textures?” Lindsey pointed out.
“If you say so.”
Lindsey smiled, and shook her head before looking down at an empty stroller. “Where’s Gus?” she asked.
Mel looked down at her left side, then to her right. “Gus!” she called.
“There he goes, catch him. Gus, come here!” Lindsey called to her son.
The toddler was heading toward the exit at full speed. “Baby.” he giggled, as his mommies gave chase.
Justin held out his arms, and scooped up the little sprinter. “Hey buddy. What are you doing here? Kiss-kiss.” Justin smiled as Gus wrapped his arms around his neck, and gave him a juicy smooch on the mouth.
A relieved Lindsey, and Mel finally caught up. “Justin.” Mel panted. “Thank god it’s you. I can’t believe how fast he can get away.” she said.
“Who is that, did you find Baby?” Lindsay cooed. The toddler smiled, and clung to Justin’s neck.
“Do you ever think he’ll call you Justin?” Lindsey asked.
“I doubt it. He’s always called me Baby, haven’t you big guy?” Justin ticked the toddler’s tummy, and gave him another kiss.
“This place is beautiful. Is this your first time seeing it?” Lindsey asked.
“No, we were here for the opening.” Justin said.
“You and Brian?”
“No, I have a friend on the board.” Justin said. “There were so many guests on opening night. I wasn’t able to see all of the exhibits. That’s why I came back today.”
“I heard opening night was an invitation only, black tie event.” Lindsey said.
“Yeah, an exclusive list of rich, who’s who, the kind of people who put plaques with their names on it over the wings they’ve sponsored.” Mel added.
“Yeah, there were a lot of people with money.” Justin conceded.
“Rubbing elbows with the rich and famous, it must be nice.” Mel teased.
“What are you doing now? Do you have time to hang out, and show us around the place?” Lindsey asked.
“Actually, I was on my way out.” Justin said.
Mel moved closer to retrieve Gus. “Ummm, what’s that you’re wearing? It smells heavenly.” she said.
“It’s new, I can’t remember the name.” Justin lied. Gus arched his back, and struggled to hang onto Justin’s neck.
“Come on sweetheart, Baby has to go bye-bye.” Lindsey attempted to coax the toddler. “Ummm, that is nice. You’ve got to get the name of that cologne for me. Brian’s birthday is coming up soon, he’d love that.” she said.
“How are things between you and Brian?” Mel asked.
“I haven’t seen him.” Justin said. “I went away for spring break, and he hasn’t been around the diner, at least not when I’m there. I’m sure nothing’s changed, he’s still a selfish prick.”
“Where did you go for spring break?” Mel asked.
“Chicago.” Justin said.
“Justin, I know Brian’s probably the one who’s at fault for whatever happened between the two of you, and I also know that he’s too bullheaded to apologize, but I expect more from you. It’s been over a month. You know he loves you. How long are you two going to let this go on?” Lindsey asked.
“I’m not in the mood to talk about Brian right now.” Justin changed the subject. “Are you ready for your big day tomorrow?”
“We’re as ready as we can be, everything’s all set. This is the quiet before the storm. We thought we’d come here to try to relax.” Mel said. “You’re still coming aren’t you? You don’t want to miss Gus as the ring bearer. He’s been practicing.”
“Of course I am, how could I miss that?” Justin smiled.
“Say bye-bye to Baby.” Lindsey said. Justin handed the toddler to his mother, and watched as the trio walked away.
“Baby?” Anthony Massey had discretely strolled to the other side of the room. He pretended to be just another visitor until Justin was free to return to him.
“Gus calls me Baby, because Brian calls me baby.”
“How quaint.” Tony said nonchalantly. “How was I? I’m getting pretty good at this illicit affair stuff. Don’t you think so?”
“You make an excellent undercover lover.” Justin said.
“When are you going to make an honest man out of me? I’m beginning to feel cheap.” Tony said.
“I love you when you’re cheap.” Justin flirted.
Tony smiled, and checked his watch. “If we hurry, we’ll be able to catch brunch at the hotel. Then we can spend the rest of the afternoon in bed.” he suggested.
Justin smiled.
Mel and Lindsey placed Gus back in his stroller, and continued their browse through the gallery. “So what do you think Brian did this time?” Mel asked.
“I don’t know, but it must have been something big for Justin to stay away from Brian this long. A month is a long time to stay away from someone you love.” Lindsey said.
“Do you think Brian really loves him?” Mel asked.
“I suppose as much as he can, Brian’s a very complicated person. He’s fiercely loyal, and protective of his friends, but he’s always had a difficult time showing affection, except for when it comes to Michael.” Lindsey noted. “For some reason Brian has never had a problem with showing love to Michael. He’s always been very patient, and gentle with him, kind of like the way he is with Gus.”
“What about Justin?”
“Justin is a whole different ball game.” Lindsey smiled. “We mortals will never really know the depth of that relationship. I’m convinced that something divine connected those two from the very beginning. They’re so in sync, so in tune with each other. Have you ever really watched them together. They don’t even need words. It’s as if each one knows what the other is thinking, and they’re sharing secrets without even speaking.”
The two women came upon the second wing of the extended gallery. They paused to read the plaque mounted next to the entrance. “Justin Taylor Hall.” Mel, and Lindsey looked at each other.
The loft door was barely opened when Gus attempted to dash past his father. Brian caught his bundle of energy, and lifted him into his arms. “Slow down sonny-boy, where’re you going?” he smiled. The toddler giggled as dada gave him a hug, and a kiss. “Where’ve you been? You smell good.” Brian said.
“Baby.” Gus said.
“He’s telling you that he saw Justin.” Lindsey smiled.
Brian paused for a moment. “Justin?”
“Baby.” Gus insisted.
“He was at the new P.I.F.A. gallery.” Mel said, as she hauled in Gus’s clothing for the week, and a few of his favorite toys.
Brian lowered Gus to the floor, and watched as sonny-boy went about exploring the loft. “Could I get you something? I’ve got stuff for sandwiches in the fridge.” he offered.
“No thanks, we’ve already eaten.” Mel said.
“Where’ve you been keeping yourself? You haven’t been to the house.” Lindsey said.
“I’ve been busy.”
“Too busy to see your son?”
“He’s going to be with me all week, I figure we’ll get sick of each other.”
Lindsey looked worried. “You look tired Brian, are you getting enough sleep?”
“Yes mother.”
“Are you taking your blood pressure pills?”
“Yes, yes, what’s with all the questions?”
“I just want to make sure that you’re able to handle the job dad.” Lindsey said.
“I took care of him before, when you went to your teachers conference.”
“That was just for a weekend, this time we’ll be gone all week. Plus he’s not an infant anymore, he’s a toddler. You have to watch him. He can get away from you in an instant.” Lindsey warned.
“Yeah, you should have seen how fast he ran to Justin. I couldn’t believe how he managed to spot him in that crowd.” Mel said.
Brian didn’t reply. He walked over to Gus, who had found the small fish tank on his desk. He took a seat in his chair, and lifted the toddler onto his lap. “See the fish sonny-boy?” Brian pointed. “His name is Ali. Can you say Ali?”
Gus briefly looked at the fish, before turning back to his father. The toddler patted his hands. “Baby.” he said again.
“Justin plays patty-cake with him.” Brian smiled.
“It’s been over a month Brian. When are the two of you going to make up?” Lindsey asked.
“Stay out of it Linz, worry about your upcoming nuptials.” Brian snapped.
“You are coming aren’t you? Gus, and I are depending on you.” she said.
“I’ll be there with bells on.” Brian said sarcastically.
“Brian, does Justin’s family have money?” Mel asked.
Brian shrugged his shoulders. “That depends on what you call money. I’d call them middle class. Why?”
“There’s a wing at the new gallery dedicated to Justin Taylor. We were wondering if it was our Justin.” Mel said. She handed Brian the gallery brochure. “We didn’t see the Taylor name on the list of benefactors.”
As Brian scanned the list of financial backers, his eyes came to rest on one of them, Anthony Massey.
“Ummmmm.” Tony groaned. “You’re killing me princess, do you know that?” The older man pulled his young lover closer, and cradled him in his arms.
Justin snuggled against his chest. “You’ll be ok.” the teen whispered.
“Don’t you ever get enough?” Tony smiled.
“Not enough of you.” Justin purred. “How much time do we have? What time is your plane leaving?”
Tony exhaled. “I have some last minute business to attend to. I’ll be here for a few more days.”
“Excellent.” Justin smiled. The teen lifted his head, and kissed Tony’s throat. He moved his hand across his lover’s chest, down the front of his torso, and gently stroked his belly.
Tony closed his eyes. “Mmmmmm.” he sighed. “Do you know that you do that all night long?”
“What?”
“What you’re doing now, you kiss me, hug me, and stroke me all night long.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know.” Justin said.
“Don’t be sorry. It’s very sweet, very endearing.”
“Tony?”
“Yes princess.”
“Why don’t you have a boyfriend?”
“I’m too old for boyfriends.” Tony chuckled.
“Then why don’t you have a partner.”
“Are you worried about me princess?”
“You’re always there for me whenever I call for you. What do you do when I’m not around?” Justin asked.
“What I do when you’re not with me doesn’t concern you princess.” Tony said gently.
“That’s the same thing Brian says.”
“Don’t compare me to that whore, our arrangement is totally different. You and I aren’t in a relationship, I’m just your trick on the side.” Tony reminded him.
“Have you ever been in a relationship?” Justin asked.
“Once, a long, long time ago.”
“What happened?”
Tony thought for a moment. “I don’t know. I guess I was too busy running, running the streets, traveling, running my business, working on my first million. That takes a lot of commitment. I didn’t have time to give to a relationship, so we agreed on an open one. By the time I was ready to settle down, someone had stolen his heart.”
“Did you try to get him back? Why didn’t you fight for him?”
“There was no reason to fight, it was too late. When someone owns your heart, there is no coming back princess.”
“So you never fell in love again?” Justin asked.
“No.” Tony lied.
“That’s too bad.” Justin said sadly.
Tony turned Justin’s face toward him, and softly kissed him on the mouth. As much as he hated to admit it, what began as a lustful game of conquest had taken an unexpected turn. Justin was slowly stealing his heart. Anthony Massey was falling in love.
Brian barely heard Lindsey, and Mel as they rattled off last minute instructions for Gus. Why would Anthony Massey name a hall after Justin, unless they were seeing each other? Brian tried to tell himself that it was because of the bashing. After all Justin had become quite a local celebrity, and the unofficial spokesperson for hate crimes in Pittsburgh’s gay community.
“Don’t let him near the washroom, he likes to stuff paper in the toilet.” Mel said.
“Don’t give him too much sugar, it makes him hyper, and he won’t sleep.” Lindsey added.
“If he wakes up in the middle of the night, take him to potty.” Lindsey said.
“And take him to potty in the morning.” Mel added.
“Will the two of you just shut the fuck up! Go on your honeymoon and bond, or do whatever it is that people do on honeymoons. Sonny-boy’s going to spend the week with dada, and we’re going to have a good time. Aren’t we big guy?” Brian said. Gus scrambled out of his father’s lap, and headed to the bedroom.
Brian endured a few more final instructions before the trio stood to leave. “Mel, I’ll meet you and Gus in the car. I need to talk to Brian for a minute.” Lindsey said. She waited until it was just the two of them before turning to her friend. “I’m sure I won’t have time to talk to you tomorrow, so I wanted to take this time for us now.” she began. “I want to thank you for everything Brian, for being my friend, for being Gus’s father, and for gallantly charging to my rescue whenever I needed a knight in shining armor.” she smiled. “Most of all I want to thank you for teaching me to stand up for myself. If it wasn’t for you, I would have never had the courage to be who I am, and I would never have been as happy as I am now.” Lindsey put her arms around her friend’s waist, and gave him a hug. “I love you Brian Kinney.” she said.
Brian gently pushed her away. “Don’t go getting moist on me, you know how I hate that.” he said. “Just remember to take care of my kid. Gus deserves the best family I can give him, that’s you and Mel.”
“What about your family Brian?” Lindsey asked.
Brian looked puzzled. “What family?”
“Did you ever wonder why you brought Justin to the hospital with you the night Gus was born? Why did you let Justin name your only child? Michael was there, he’s your best friend, why didn’t you let Michael name Gus?” Lindsey didn’t wait for an answer. “I’ll tell you why.” she said. “Deep down you knew that Justin was just as much yours, as Gus was. Why do you think Gus calls him baby, when we all call him Justin? He learned that from you Brian. Gus knows that Justin is special to you. He connects Justin to you, the same way he connects Mel to me. Gus loves Justin because you taught him to love Justin. You’ve made yourself a family Brian Kinney, and you don’t even know it. Don’t let anyone take that away from you Brian. That kind of love is worth fighting for.”