Crisis Averted

Part 1

Sept 9:

Brian was in the middle of packing when Justin got home from class. Justin was a little surprised to see Brian at home so early in the day and was even more surprised to find Brian packing. He stood in the bedroom and watched as Brian loaded a garment bag with a couple of suits.

“What’s up?” Justin asked finally.

“Have to go to New York for a couple of days.” Brian answered.

“Oh.” Justin said in response. He went over to the chest of drawers and pulled out some of Brian’s underwear and socks, then shoved them into the overnight bag that was sitting on the bed. Brian looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “You always forget.” Justin replied with a small smile. Brian just nodded and went back to his suits. He’d managed to accumulate a rather extensive sock collection because of having to buy socks while on a business trip. He never bothered to replace the forgotten underwear, however. Once the clothes were packed, he went over to his desk and started going through one of the files that were sitting there. Justin came over and stood behind him for a minute before he reached up and started to massage Brian’s shoulders.

“What are you doing?” Brian asked without looking up.

“Trying to help you relax.” Justin answered, then leaned down and lightly kissed Brian’s neck.

“Trying to distract me is more like it.”

“That too.” Justin smirked.

“As much as I would love to fuck you into the mattress right now, I really have to do this.” Brian indicated the file.

“You can’t spare a couple of minutes?” Justin pouted.

“I have to be at the airport in an hour and I have to get this done before I leave.”

“Oh.” Justin said with a small sigh, looking disappointed. Brian reached up and pulled him down into a kiss.

“When I get back.” He said, wiggling his eyebrows. Justin smiled and nodded, then went to the kitchen to get something to drink. Brian let Justin take him to the airport, reasoning that Justin would need the Jeep to get around while Brian was gone and he didn’t want to have to pay airport parking or trust that his jeep would be in good condition if left in the airport parking lot. They parted with a kiss before Brian went to board his flight.


 

Part 2
 

Sept 10:

Brian intentionally arrived a day early so that he could sleep late and have plenty of time to go over everything before the meeting. He wanted to strangle Dan Johnson for almost fucking up the account and making him have to go to New York in the first place. Brian hated coming to New York on business. It just reminded him of what he was missing. He was in the middle of going over some of the reports when his cell phone rang.

“Yeah?” He answered, having recognized Michael’s number on the call display.

“Where are you?” Michael asked. Brian could tell he was annoyed.

“I’m guessing by that question that you didn’t see Justin at the diner today.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Michael huffed.

“He knows where I am.” Brian smirked. He really did love playing games like this with Mikey. His best friend was so easily frustrated.

“Just tell me where the fuck you are.” Michael commanded.

“New York.” Brian answered.

“What are you doing there?”

“Playing damage control for Dan Johnson. The clients are threatening to go elsewhere and I’m here to convince them that’s not what they want to do.”

“How long will you be gone?” Michael asked.

“Couple of days.” Brian answered.

“Lindsay is gonna be pissed.” Michael said.

“Why?” Brian questioned, then he remembered. He was supposed to have dinner with the munchers the next night. “Fuck.” He sighed.

“You need to call them.” Michael commented.

“No shit, Mikey.” Brian practically growled before hanging up on his best friend. He then dialed Lindsay’s number.

“Hello?” Melanie answered. Fuck, Brian thought.

“Where’s the mother of my child?” Brian questioned with a smirk. He loved irritating the hell out of Melanie.

“She’s at the store getting stuff for dinner tomorrow night.” Melanie replied.

“Slight change of plans.”

“The only thing that surprises me about this is that you notified us in advance. So…what’s the excuse this time? Rim-o-rama at Adonis? No towel night at the baths?”

“Try last minute, unavoidable business trip.” Brian answered.

“Really.” Melanie sounded skeptical.

“Yes, really. You can call my boss and ask him. He hates me as much as you do so he won’t lie for me.”

“You’re serious.” She said more than asked.

“Yes, I’m serious. I’m sitting in a hotel room in New York surrounded by paperwork and not enjoying myself. If you want we can reschedule for Thursday. I don’t get back in until late Wednesday night.”

“Alright, I’ll let Lindsay know.” Melanie then hung up. Brian sighed and went back to work. He wanted to get done in time to be able to go out and relax a little before the meeting the next morning.


 

Part 3
 

September 11, 2001

7:00AM

Brian awoke with a start as the hotel phone rang once again. He picked it up and accepted his wake up call, then went to go shower. He wasn’t looking forward to the meeting that morning but he really had no choice. Once he was showered and dressed, he made his way down to the restaurant in the hotel lobby to have breakfast. His meeting wasn’t until 8:30 so he had plenty of time to grab a bite to eat before heading over.

While he sipped coffee and nibbled on a cheese Danish, he went over the reports one more time. He seriously didn’t understand how Dan could have fucked up the account so bad in such a short amount of time. This was going to take some serious work. He’d be there for an hour at least. He was confident, however, that he could do it. He looked at his watch and realized that he only had about half an hour to get to the meeting. Luckily it wasn’t that far from his hotel to the World Trade Center.



8:20 AM

Brian walked into the lobby of the south tower of the World Trade Center and walked up to the main security desk. He looked around for a minute when no one was there. Suddenly a young woman popped up from behind the desk causing Brian to jump.

“Sorry about that. How can I help you?”

“I’m looking for Sanders and Associates. I have a meeting this morning.” Brian responded. The woman nodded and consulted a directory.

“They’re on floor sixty-five. There’s a bank of elevators to your left. Take the middle one up and then take a left once you leave the elevator. You’ll run right into their receptionist.” The young woman smiled.

“Thank you.” Brian said with a nod and followed her instructions. Sure enough, he found his way to the receptionist.

“How may I help you?” The woman asked. She was in her mid to late forties and looked like she hadn’t smiled in years.

“I’m Brian Kinney from Ryder Agency, here to see Mr. Sanders. I have an appointment.” Brian answered. The woman consulted her computer then nodded and stood.

“Right this way, they’ve been waiting for you.” She said. She smirked when she noticed Brian consult his watch. “You’re not late, they’re always early.” She answered and Brian nodded. He was led to the main conference room where the meeting would take place. Brian expected to only be meeting with Mr. Sanders but it turned out he was meeting with the entire board of directors. He didn’t let it phase him, however, as he planned to wow them into staying with Ryder.



8:46 AM

Brian was in the middle of his pitch and if he did say so himself it was some of his best work. It was just getting to the good part when an alarm went off. It was loud and annoying and followed by an announcement to evacuate the building. There was something about a fire in the north tower that he didn’t quite catch over the noise of everyone around him as they all started toward the stairwell. They’d been directed to use the stairs rather than the elevator. After about fifteen minutes and four flights of extremely crowded stairs, he noticed people started making their way back to where they came from. Just as he turned around, there was a loud explosion and the building shook. Everyone started screaming and making their way down the stairs again. Brian was nearly trampled and almost lost his footing twice. Just as he was getting into a position to start making his way down, the lights went out and the stairwell was plunged into darkness.

Everyone tried to keep moving, though progress was slowed by the lack of light. After a couple of minutes, some emergency lights came on and the progress sped up. The stairwell started filling with smoke and people were coughing and scrambling to get out. Brian pulled out his handkerchief and covered his mouth and nose, trying to keep the smoke from getting to his lungs. He coughed every now and then as he followed the mass of bodies trying to make their way out of the building. After what seemed like an eternity but ended up only being about a half an hour, he was finally outside in the fresh air. He started making his way away from the building as instructed by the fire fighters and police that were near by. He was taken over to a near by ambulance to be checked out for smoke inhalation. After a thorough examination he was deemed okay and told to move further away from the building.



9:10 AM Pittsburgh

“Turn the TV on!” Someone yelled as they came into the diner. Justin wasn’t sure what to think. Debbie went over and grabbed the little TV that they kept in the back for the cook on particularly slow nights. The person that had instructed to turn it on came over and found the first local news channel. Once the signal was clear, everyone was silent as the anchorwoman reported about the planes crashing into the World Trade Center. Justin had a really bad feeling about what was happening. Knowing that Brian was in New York at the time made him severely nervous. The diner was completely quiet except for the TV so everyone jumped when Justin’s cell phone rang. He gave everyone a sheepish smile as he answered. He was confused because he saw Brian’s office number on his call display.

“Hello?”

“Justin?” It was a female voice.

“Yes…”

“This is Cynthia, Brian’s assistant?”

“Oh, Cynthia. Hi. What can I do for you?”

“Are you watching the news?” Cynthia asked. She hated to have to do this but she knew that he needed to know. That Brian would want Justin to know.

“Yeah, they’re showing a replay of the second plane.” Justin answered.

“Justin…..I know that you know that Brian is in New York right now.” Cynthia started. A cold pit began to form in Justin’s stomach.

“Yeah…”

“Justin…..Brian had an 8:30 meeting this morning with a client. A client that happens to be headquartered in the south tower of the World Trade Center.” She said softly. Debbie watched as Justin’s face went pale and he almost dropped the phone. She came over to him.

“Justin…” She started. Justin cleared his throat.

“Thank you, Cynthia.” He said almost mechanically before hanging up the phone, not giving the woman a chance to say anything. Justin turned his gaze on Debbie. What she saw there scared her.

“Justin, sweetie, what’s wrong?” Debbie asked. Justin looked at the TV.

“Brian’s there…” Justin said pointing to the screen as the news station replayed once again the footage of the second plane flying into the south tower. Debbie put one hand over her mouth and the other on her chest, a tear rolling down her cheek.



10:05 AM New York

Brian had just gotten settled down on the sidewalk away from everything else. He was far enough away from the building to be out of the way, but not far enough away to keep from seeing it. He stared in shock as he watched the smoke billowing from both towers. The second plane hit just twenty floors up from where he’d been. If they hadn’t been moving at the time of the crash he didn’t know what condition he would have been in.

He was just getting over the initial shock of it when suddenly there was a large cloud of dust heading his way. He tried but couldn’t find a hiding space to protect him from the cloud. Rather than trying to out run it, he simply curled up in a little ball, putting his jacket over his head to keep as much of the dust away from his face as possible. It seemed like forever before the cloud finally cleared. He was on the verge of passing out from lack of oxygen when he was able to remove his jacket. He coughed several times and noticed that he was having trouble breathing. EMT’s were moving everywhere. The main thing Brian noticed, however, was that one of the towers was gone. That’s when he realized what caused the smoke.

His whole body started shaking as he took into account which of the towers was missing. It was the south tower. The one he’d been in. An EMT came over and directed him to sit down on the curb. The man then pulled out a portable oxygen mask and put it over Brian’s face. Brian looked at him a minute, then looked down at himself. He was covered in dust and looked like a ghost. The main thing he noticed was that he couldn’t stop shaking. Things kept running through his mind. If he hadn’t gotten out when he did. If he’d just been a little slower. If he’d started to go back up with the other people. There were a million different things that could have changed and he could have died in the collapse of the building. He started shaking even more when he realized how many people had been in the building. How many people had been around it when it collapsed? How many people had actually died already in this tragedy? Why was he lucky enough to survive? The next thought that ran through his head was would it really be considered luck to survive and have to spend the rest of his life remembering this event.



10:05 AM Pittsburgh

Justin sat glued to the TV, not wanting to move away. He’d seen the emergency number flashed on the screen but that was put there by the airline and not meant for people who had loved ones in one of the buildings. He couldn’t take his eyes off the screen, even for a second. What if Brian had been on one of the floors where the plane hit? What if he was dead or hurt? Then hope and bargaining started to enter Justin’s mind. Maybe Brian missed his meeting. Maybe he was late and he wasn’t there at all. Reasoning told him that Brian was never late for anything, especially important client meetings, but he didn’t want to think about what could happen if Brian were in the building.

He just about passed out when the news cameras showed the south tower collapsing. Debbie came over and hugged him tight. He buried his face against her chest, unable to watch anymore. If Brian was still in the building, he was definitely dead. There was no way anyone could survive something like that. His body started shaking as he sobbed, crying for the man he loved. He could only pray that Brian wasn’t actually in the building.



10:28 AM New York

Brian was still getting help from the EMT when a second cloud of dust came rolling down the street. Both men tried to protect themselves from the debris as much as possible. Luckily Brian still had the oxygen mask on, but he felt a pang of guilt that the EMT had nothing. They stayed curled up in balls until the dust and debris cleared. Brian then handed the mask back to the EMT. The man used it himself for a minute before giving it back to Brian. They were both covered in dust now. The EMT’s once black hair was now gray. Brian could only imagine what he himself looked like. When he looked up and saw that the north tower had collapsed, causing the second cloud of dust, his vision went blurry for a second before he was surrounded by blackness.



10:28 AM Pittsburgh

Justin was positively horrified as he watched the north tower of the World Trade Center collapse. He couldn’t believe that this was really happening and more importantly he couldn’t believe that the man he loved was in the middle of it. He could only wonder if Brian were okay. He wouldn’t be notified if the man were hurt or if he made it out safe. No one would tell him that Brian was in the hospital in New York because he was just Brian’s boyfriend. He wasn’t Brian’s emergency contact and even if he were, how would they know to contact him?

Justin closed his eyes as he started to think of all the horrible things that could be happening to Brian. What if he were trapped in the debris still alive? What if Brian was calling out for help but no one could hear him? He started shaking when he thought of his lover suffering in that way. Debbie came over and hugged him again. She held him as the tears started to fall more vigorously.

“We don’t know that he’s not okay, Sunshine.” Debbie tried to reassure Justin.

“We don’t know that he is, either.” Justin replied. She simply nodded and held Justin as they continued to watch the footage of what happened. Just then the news switched over to a story of a plane that crashed in a field just southeast of Pittsburgh. Justin was holding his breath as he listened to the story. The field wasn’t that far from where they were.

“What is going on?” Someone asked. They’d heard the reports of the plane crashing into the Pentagon as well. That’s when the news started saying things about a terrorist attack. Justin couldn’t fathom it. He heard as the news anchors mentioned that this was the first direct attack on the US on US soil since Pearl Harbor. It had been sixty years since the last attack like this on the United States. He couldn’t believe it. He was still shaking when he heard the bell over the door ring. It was the first person to enter or leave the building since they first turned on the TV. After a couple of minutes, Michael came over and put his arm around Justin after hugging his mother. They stood there together, watching the news as the stories continued.



11:45AM New York

Brian awoke with a start. He sat up in bed and his eyes started to dart around the room. After he took in the white walls and the bright lights and the noise in the hall he realized that he was in the hospital. He lay back against the pillows and stared at the ceiling as the events of the morning came back to him. The hospital staff had done a good job of cleaning him up, putting him in a hospital gown to rid him of his dirty clothing. A tear rolled down his cheek as images of the events came back to his mind. He closed his eyes and took slow, deep breaths, trying to keep from losing it completely. After a second, his eyes popped open.

“Justin…” he said softly. He wondered what Justin was thinking just then. Did he know that his meeting had been in the south tower? He was sure that Cynthia probably notified him. He buzzed the nurse, needing to call someone in Pittsburgh and let them know he was okay.

“You’re awake.” The nurse said with a sad smile as she came in.

“I need my phone.” Brian demanded.

“I’m sorry sir, but I can’t do that.” The nurse said. That’s when Brian remembered that he’d left his cell phone in his brief case, which had been sitting on the conference table on the sixty fifth floor of the World Trade Center. Part of him wanted to laugh at the irony. He would definitely never be seeing that briefcase again.

“I need to use a phone. Any phone. I have to call my family and let them know I’m okay.” Brian insisted.

“I’m sorry, sir, but the phone system is down at the moment. As soon as it’s back up, I’ll let you know. Until then, all we can do is wait.” The nurse told him.



12:15 PM Pittsburgh

“All we can do is wait.” Debbie said as she continued to rub Justin’s back. Though the diner was packed, no one was eating. Word had spread around the diner that Brian Kinney had been in the south tower. Some people prayed silently for those who had been lost, some talked softly amongst themselves. Debbie heard a couple of men reminiscing about the times that Brian fucked them and she couldn’t keep the small smile off her lips. She did manage to successfully hide it from Justin.

“How am I supposed to wait? Brian could be dead and I don’t know. He could be hurt or he could be perfectly fine, but I don’t know anything.” He was getting agitated.

“I tried calling his cell phone but I got no answer. When I called information they said that a large portion of the city is without phone service right now.” Michael sighed. “I’m sure as soon as he can, Brian will call.” He tried to reassure the blonde.

“If he’s able to.” Justin said softly. They sat together quietly continuing to watch the news. After a couple of minutes, Michael spoke.

“I keep waiting for the credits to roll.” He said.

“What?” Debbie asked.

“I keep thinking this is some made for TV movie and I’m waiting for the credits to start rolling. Like it’s not really happening.” He explained.

“I keep waiting to wake up.” A nearby patron said. There were several murmurs of agreement.

“I just can’t believe it’s actually happening.” Justin said. There were several more murmurs of agreement before the diner went silent again.



3:15 PM New York

Brian was going insane. He was stuck in the hospital. They were going to keep him at least over night for observation. All flights had been grounded so he would have to drive the six-hour drive home in a rental car, which he probably wouldn’t be able to get. He couldn’t call and tell anyone that he was going to be okay and that he was going to come home relatively in one piece. He was about to call in the first nurse he could find just to chew them a new one when a nurse came in.

“Sir, the phones are working again.” She said softly. She was slightly intimidated by the look on his face.

“Thank god!” Brian almost screamed before picking up the phone. He dialed the first number that came to mind.



3:15 PM Pittsburgh

The diner was silent as a tomb as everyone watched the TV. When Justin’s phone rang, Michael jumped and Debbie let out a small scream. The blonde reached for his phone and looked at the call display. He didn’t recognize the number so he showed it to Michael to see if maybe it was Emmett or Ted. He grew even more confused when Michael smiled.

“That’s a New York area code.” He explained and Justin answered the phone quickly.

“Hello?” He was praying that it was not someone calling to tell him Brian was dead.

“Justin?” Brian said. The line was very staticky, but Justin could recognize that voice anywhere. He sighed with relief and leaned against Debbie.

“Brian, where are you?” He asked. Debbie made the sign of the cross and Michael almost passed out.

“I’m in the hospital. They’re keeping me for observation. I’m fine, for the most part.”

“How are you going to get home?” Justin was suddenly concerned. He wasn’t sure he liked the idea of Brian on a plane anytime soon. Then he remembered that all flights had been grounded for the next several days.

“I’m gonna see if I can get a rental car and if that doesn’t work, I’ll fucking walk. I just want to come home.” There was a hint of desperation in Brian’s voice that made Justin want to hug him.

“You promise me you’re okay?” Justin asked.

“Physically, I’m fine.” Brian decided to answer honestly. Justin was sure that emotionally, Brian was seriously messed up. He wanted to get the older man home so he could take care of him and help him through it the way Brian helped him through the bashing. He knew that Brian would need time to heal. If Ryder doesn’t give him some time off, Justin thought, I’m going to feed him his own balls.

“Do you want me to come get you?” Justin asked suddenly. He could drive the Jeep to New York, stay with Brian at the hospital over night, then the two of them could come back together the next day. Brian was quiet for a minute as he thought about that.

“Yeah, but don’t come alone. Bring Mikey.” Brian said. Justin nodded, then remembered they were on the phone.

“I will. I’ll see you soon, Brian. You need to try to get some rest now, okay?”

“Okay. I’m not sure if you’re going to be able to get here because I think the bridges are closed. Try to get as close as you can and if you can’t get to the hospital, then I’ll think of something.”

“I’ll do what I can.” Justin said. After getting the hospital information, Justin hung up with Brian and looked at Michael. “You up for a road trip?” He asked. Michael nodded and the two went to get ready to drive to New York to pick up Brian. The whole way there Justin kept thinking one single thought. At least he made it out alive.

 

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