I Want You to Know

Part 4

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I was out of my seat and between them before either had a chance to speak. From the corner of my eye, I saw Debbie take Gus from Justin and head to the back of the diner, presumably to take him potty, but more than likely to protect him from the infamous Brian Kinney temper that had flared.

"What do you want Ian?"

As I stood, my body firmly planted in front of Justin, I kept him behind me with my arms protectively shielding him.  Looking past me Ethan spoke to him.

"So I see it's business as usual for you."

Pushing my lover further behind me, I tried to contain my anger as I spoke, "you aren't welcome here fiddle boy. Leave Justin alone or else."

"Call your bodyguard off Justin. I only came in for a cup of coffee and then I'm on my way," he continued to ignore me and my anger grew worse. Seething I pushed him away as he tried to reach out to touch Justin, "don't you ever touch him."

"Back off asshole."

I lost my control then and drew back to punch him, luckily Justin stopped me before I could do any damage. I was still standing there, with Justin holding onto my arm to prevent me from harming the kid when Det. Horvath sauntered in looking for Debbie and a cup of coffee. Ethan ran over to him to complain about my behavior and it was with a condescending tone that Horvath told the little smart ass off.

"You know what kid, I think you deserve an ass whipping, and you should be thanking Mr. Taylor for saving you from one. As for Mr. Kinney, I don't see where he did anything wrong, so I would take his advice and get the fuck out of here before Justin loses his grip on him and he does some real damage to that face of yours." As he watched the young man leave in disbelief, he yelled out to him, "and don't let me catch you stinkin' up the joint again or we may have to take a trip downtown. A pretty boy like you would be popular in the drunk tank on a Saturday night."

Ethan was halfway out the door when he turned to leer at Justin and me, "Just remember, he doesn't do love, sooner or later he'll break your heart Justin."

Standing in shocked disbelief, I watched Justin knock the kid on his ass. When he hit the floor the diner erupted in applause and one of the bears near the front door kindly escorted our fiddle player outside. I sat back in the booth next to him, watching him closely for signs that anything was wrong. It was only when Debbie returned with Gus and he grabbed Justin's hand to color that I saw him recoil in pain. Grabbing his right hand, gently massaging his wrist, he flinched at the pressure I was putting on his injury. I knew instantly he wasn't telling me everything.

"Debbie, we need ice over here, NOW!" I demanded and turned back to face him. "Now tell me the fucking truth, how long has it been bothering you like this?"

"It's not that bad."

"Why the fuck are you lying to me Sunshine? Either tell me the truth or I'm dragging you out of here kicking and screaming all the way to the hospital. One way or another I'm getting some answers today."

"Fine, you win, it's been kinda sore for about a month now, but really it's no biggie."

"And what does your physical therapist say about it?"

"I quit going," he said unable to make eye contact and pissing me off in the process.

"What the FUCK do you mean you quit going?"

"I couldn't afford it."

"That is no fucking excuse. Money is no object Justin, not when it comes to your health."

"Easy for you to say, you have more fucking money than I'll ever make in two lifetimes."

"I would've paid for it, if you had asked."

"I couldn't ask you to pay for therapy when you were already paying for my tuition. Besides I don't even know if I will ever be able to pay you back for that. I don't have a real job, and I still have two more years of school. A lot can happen in two years, Brian. Besides, we weren't together and it wasn't your problem."

"When it comes to you, everything is my problem. Now get your ass up and go call your therapist and tell him you need to come in today. And don't give me any shit about it. I'm paying and you're accepting, NOW MOVE!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Justin sat next to Brian in the booth and thought about what he had just said, finally he got up and called for an appointment for that afternoon, just to shut Brian up. They finished their lunch and took Gus to the park. Justin sat on a blanket and watched Brian and his son chasing the ducks, trying to sketch only to find that his hand wouldn't cooperate. He was sitting massaging it when Brian sank down next to him and pressed a light kiss to his lips.

"Justin, tell me the truth, how bad is it?"

Justin looked up at his lover with fear in his eyes, "I think it might be a good idea if you took me in to see the doctor about it."

"Let me get Gus, we'll call the munchers on the way to come get him. You sit here and don't do anything."

Justin watched Brian gather his son and all their belongings, loading Gus into the jeep first, and all the junk a toddler required. Brian called Lindsay and asked her to meet them at the Emergency Room. He handed Justin the phone and doing as he was told he to called his mom. Filled with concern, Brian watched him every time they were stopped for a red light or stop sign.

Justin was trying his best to hide the pain he felt, and Brian was growing more and more anxious as the pain intensified in his lover's eyes. Reaching the hospital, he pulled up front and jumped out to open the door for Justin. Letting him know Gus and him would join him momentarily, he told him to go in. Finally freeing the sleeping boy from the confines of his seat, they joined Justin as he was sitting in the chair filling out the necessary paperwork.

"They should really post instructions on those fucking car seats. Give me that," Brian said as he laid Gus across the two seats next to Justin and took the clipboard from him. "Fuck why do they need to know all this crap? What does knowing your middle name have to do with getting an x-ray?"

"It's," Justin was about to reply when Brian interrupted, " Aaron."

"You know my middle name?" He sounded like Brian had just spilled the mystery of life and looked at him with surprise visible in his eyes.

"Among other things," Brian smiled lovingly down at the young blonde.

Brian had gone to return the papers to the nurse when Lindsay and Jennifer arrived at the same time. Both women kissed Justin's cheek, Jennifer sat beside her son as Lindsay picked up Gus.

"Where's Brian?" Jennifer looked around trying to find the man who was once again saving her son.

"He went to turn in the forms he filled out for me. Oh there he is now."

"Yes here I am, hey Linds, Mrs. Taylor." Jennifer nodded at him, smiling a soft motherly smile, as Lindsay kissed him before taking Gus and leaving. Making sure that Brian would call to let her know that Justin was ok.

A few moments later Justin was called to the back as Brian held his hand, daring anyone to try to stop him from being with Justin as he was examined. Jennifer watched her son with this man and was glad that they both had finally come to their senses and got back together. She loved her son, but she had wanted to knock him on his ass when he left Brian. Brian on the other hand, she wanted to take into a hug and kiss away the pain she saw in his eyes, lucky for him Justin was back to help ease a little of it.

The strange trio sat in the examining room waiting for the doctor in silence, Justin in Brian's lap on the exam table and Jennifer in the only chair in the room. The doctor smiled at the protectiveness he could sense in the older man and spoke with both men, acknowledging their relationship.

"Mr. Taylor, I'm Doctor Sax, what seems to be the problem today?"

"Um, my hand is stiffening up and I'm having some numbness and tingling in it."

"I see on your chart that you were the victim of a bashing a little over a year ago, is this the result of that bashing?" Dr. Sax caught the slight tightening of Brian's arms around his lover, and made a mental note of the love he saw in his hazel eyes.

"Yes, this is one of the results," Brian answered for him.

"There are other problems?"

"Yes, he doesn't remember large blocks of what happened that night and sometimes he has tremors in his hand when he's been sketching too long."

"Thank you Mr?"

"Kinney. Brian, I'm Justin's boyfriend."

The doctor and Jennifer both caught the surprise that flashed across Justin's face as he moved deeper into Brian's embrace, smiling.

"I see, thank you Mr. Kinney. Justin, I want take some x-rays of your wrist and hand, just to rule out anything serious. When was the last time you went to therapy?"

"It's been over a month since my last session."

"Well you can't just quit going to physical therapy Justin, it's important if you want to keep drawing." Dr. Sax turned to Brian, "I expect you to make sure he goes back to his therapy schedule and that he doesn't miss anymore from here on out. Now Mr. Taylor I'm going to send a nurse in to take you to X-ray. I'll see you when you're done."

"Thanks Doctor."

An hour later they were back in the room waiting for the doctor to reappear and tell them what was going on with Justin. Jennifer had decided to wait in the lobby so the boys could have a few moments alone.  Brian was kissing Justin lightly when the doctor cleared his throat, as he entered the room.

"Mr. Taylor, Mr. Kinney, I just finished looking at the films. I am a little concerned about the fact that you haven't been to a therapy session in so long, but I'm more concerned about the fact that your therapist hasn't been treating you as a CTS patient. I'm going to recommend another therapist for you to see. With an injury like this, and you being an artist, I at least want them to look at the possibility of CTS being a factor."

"CTS?" Justin questioned.

"Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. It's pretty common nowadays, but it's still something that concerns me. For now I want you to wear this brace anytime you are not drawing and I want you to take it easy for the next few days and give your wrist some time to rest. And Mr. Kinney, your job will be to make sure he goes to his therapy sessions and that he rests that hand."

"Not a problem, Doc. Is there anything else we should know?"

"Yes, I want you to understand how serious this is Justin. Do what I've told you and follow your therapy sessions religiously or else you may never draw again."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Once I told his mother what we had learned, I took Justin back to his place for a much needed nap. My mind filled with worry as I contemplated what the doctor had told us.  Drawing was like breathing for Justin, his art is who he is, he defines himself by his art and without it I don't think he would know what to do with himself anymore.  Still sitting and watching him, he awoke smiling at me.  My heart filled with love for him as I took him in my arms holding him close, wanting to protect him from the cruel realities of the world.

"Brian, honey, I can't breathe."

"Sorry, Sunshine."

"You don't have to worry about me, I'm fine, really I am."

"It's just that I love you and I've never felt like this before, so I just want to make sure your ok."

"I'll be fine I promise. Will you go with me to the therapist tomorrow morning?"

"Where else would I be, Sunshine," I said reassuring him.

Leaving quickly before I changed my mind, I let him know that I would come for him at ten.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Knocking on the door at exactly ten the following morning, he greeted me in just a pair of jeans.  Waiting for him to dress, feeling jealous, as he moved about the apartment he shared with Ben instead of being back at the loft with me.  More than anything I wanted him to move back where he belonged. . . .with me.

As we sat in the waiting room of the therapist, I asked him to move back in. "Justin, come home. I want you to move back into the loft."

"Not yet, Brian. It's too soon."

"But I miss you there, it just isn't the same without you, it's all cold and empty."

He was about to answer when his new therapist walked into the room. Both of us sat staring at the 6'2" blonde, who looked like he had just stepped out of a Calvin Klein ad. I could feel the sex oozing from him and I knew that he was going to be trouble when Justin shook his hand just a little too long.

Return to I Want You to Know