Kindred Love: Boys to Men

Cutting To The Chase

Justin and Cameron were a bundle of smiles and laughs as they made their way up the steps of Justin's apartment building.

"Okay, so now we officially know that you were never meant to have a golf club in your hand - in fact, it should probably be illegal," Cameron laughed.

"Shut up, I wasn't that bad!" Justin defended, but was laughing as well.

"Um, I hate to break it to you, but yeah, you really were," Cameron told him.

"Okay, so maybe I lost my ball a few times, but why the Hell would they make it so that your ball could go right off the course and into a pond or stream of water?" Justin asked with furrowed brows.

"That's the whole fascination with putt putt - the challenge," Cameron simply answered.

"At least I beat you at a few things. I kicked your ass in Skee Ball, and also Tomb Raider, in the Arcade," Justin pointed out with a triumphant smile.

"Yeah, well you have to remember that when I was a kid I never went to places like the Family Fun Center. Unfortunately, my extra curricular activities only included Art classes, ballet, and choir," Cameron pointed out. "I never really had time to do all the fun things other kids my age did."

They walked down the hall and finally reached the door to Justin's apartment. "Maybe next time you can give me some tips on my under throw," he said with a smile. "That is, if you want there to be a next time," Cameron said, looking into Justin's eyes.

"I'd like that," Justin said, smiling back.

"Me too. I had a great time tonight, Justin. I'm glad you suggested that place. I can't remember the last time I had so much fun with someone," Cameron said. Justin blushed at the compliment, and Cameron took that opportunity to lean down for the kiss he'd been craving since he'd found out the sexy blond was back in town and had seen him that day in the diner.

Their lips were just about to touch, when Kylie Minogue's, Can't Get You Out Of My Head started playing loudly on Justin's cell phone, interrupting them.

A bit startled, Justin backed away from Cameron. "Sorry," he apologized nervously, and then pulled out his cell phone from his pocket and checked the Caller ID. Brian. 'Of course,' Justin sighed to himself. The ringtone continued to play, and Justin decided to let the call go to voicemail.

"Thanks for tonight," Justin told Cameron. Their "moment" had been spoiled, and especially since Brian had been the cause, Justin didn't feel right about kissing Cameron now. "I should go in," he told the other young man, who had an obvious look of disappointment on his face.

"Oh, uh... sure. I'll give you a call sometime. If you'd like, I could go with you to the PIFA orientation, next week," Cameron suggested.

"Sure, that'd be great. Goodnight," Justin told him.

"Yeah, um... goodnight," Cameron said with a small wave, and then turned to walk away.

Justin unlocked his door, and just as he opened it, briefly turned to watch Cameron walking back down the hall and towards the stairs. He wasn't sure how he felt about what had just happened. He had wanted to kiss the other young man, but there was also a part of him that didn't want to. He wasn't sure where things stood between him and Brian, not to mention his feelings were all over the place where the brunet was concerned. He sighed and finally walked into his apartment.

Justin walked into his living room to see Ted and Emmett on the sofa watching Smallville.

"Hey, baby! How was your date with Cameron, the hottie?" Emmett asked enthusiastically, now completely ignoring one of his favorite TV shows. "Come sit down next to Auntie Em and tell me everything," Emmett insisted, as he patted the spot next to him on the sofa, motioning for Justin to join them.

"I don't know if I'd call it a date," Justin told him, as he sat down next to Emmett.

"Did he pick you up?" Ted asked.

"Yeah."

"Did he take you out to eat?" Ted asked.

"Yeah."

"Did you go anywhere else?"

"Yeah, we went to the Family Fun Center," Justin answered.

"Did he pay?"

"Well, yeah, he insisted --"

"It was definitely a date," Ted answered, and then turned his attention back to the television. Justin smiled at them and then sat down.

"Did you guys have fun?" Emmett asked.

Justin smiled as he thought about the evening. "Yeah. I haven't done anything like that in a while. My parents used to take me to places like that when I was kid. It was really great to just let loose and have fun," Justin smiled.

"Are you going to see him again?" Ted asked.

"I think so... I mean, he seemed interested," Justin said.

"But are you?" Emmett asked.

"He's... nice. I had fun," Justin said, not really answering the question. Emmett decided to let it go.

"So... was there any kissing or did anything hands on occur on this date?" Emmett asked, wiggling his eyebrows, causing Justin to laugh at his expression.

"Not really - well almost. He was just about to kiss me outside the door, but then my cell phone started ringing," Justin admitted. "It kind of ruined the moment."

"Cell phones," Ted snorted, as shook his head.

"Yeah, really! The nerve! What if it had been an important moment in your life? What if it would have been the kiss of a lifetime; one that you would relay to your children!" Emmet said, pretending to be outraged.

Justin laughed at his friend's dramatics.

"So, who dared to interrupt your precious non-moment in time?" Ted asked, his eyes still glued to the TV.

"It was Brian," Justin told them.

"Impeccable timing," Ted said dryly.

"He came by here looking for you earlier," Emmett said.

"Really? What did he want?" Justin asked curiously.

"He didn't say. Why don't you call him back and find out?" Emmett said.

"Yeah, he left a voicemail. I guess I should listen to it, and then call him back," Justin told them, and then left to go to his room for some privacy. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and listened to the awaiting message.

"Hey, Jus, it's me. I uh... shit... Um, I just wanted to talk to you. Call me when you get this message. I don't care what time."

Justin slightly frowned. Brian sounded nervous about something. He wondered what was going on with him now? He sighed. He decided to get comfortable, and took off his shoes first, then the rest of his clothes, before slipping into a pair of light, thin-clothed pajama pants. They felt good on his skin during the hot summer nights when he lounged around the apartment. He wasn't accustomed to running around in his underwear in front of his roommate, so he often wore these pants when he wasn't in bed.

When Justin was comfortable, he lay outstretched on his bed and dialed Brian's cell.

"Hey," Brian answered.

"Hi... you called me?" he asked.

"Yeah. I stopped by your place earlier but Emmet said you were... out," Brian said with a slight pause at the end. He wasn't sure if he should let on that he knew about Justin being out with Cameron.

"Did he tell you I was out with Cameron?" Justin asked.

"Uh, yeah. So, did you you have a good time?" Brian asked, not really wanting to know, but just had to ask.

"Yeah, we did," Justin said, choosing not to elaborate. He wasn't sure if Brian would want to hear about his evening.

"Really. What did you do?" Brian asked, trying to sound casual.

"He took me out to Applebee's for dinner, and then we went to the Family Fun Center," Justin told him.

"Oh. That sounds like a good time," Brian said, trying to sound genuine, but had a feeling he wasn't pulling it off.

"Was there a reason you called, Brian?" Justin asked, wanting to get down to the reason Brian was acting strange. There was silence, and for a minute, Justin thought maybe they had been disconnected. "Brian? Hello?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm here. Sorry," he said.

"Brian, this is nuts. Now, are you going to tell me what's going on, or what, because I'm not psychic, and I don't have the energy to sit here and guess all night," Justin told him, aggravated. He was tired of trying to guess what was going on in Brian's head all the time.

"Can I see you?" Brian suddenly asked.

"Tonight?" Justin asked, surprised.

"Yeah. Is that okay?"

"I don't know, Brian. It's kind of late. I was just about to take a shower and settle in for the night," Justin told him.

"Please? I just... it won't take long, I promise. I just need to talk to you in person," Brian said.

Justin sighed. "All right. Do you want to come here, or do you want me to go there?" he asked.

"I'll go to you. I'll be there in about 15 minutes," Brian told him.

"Okay."

"Later," Brian told him, and hung up.

Justin sat there for a moment, wondering what Brian was going to say to him. His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in," Justin called out, and the door opened slightly, and Emmett poked his head in.

"Everything all right, sweetie?" he asked.

"I'm not sure yet," Justin answered honestly. Emmett gave him a concerned look, and Justin smiled, and waved him off. "Don't worry. I'll be fine," he assured him.

"Well, Ted and I were just about to hit Woody's and wondered if you wanted to come?" he asked.

"Thanks, Em, but Brian's on his way over," Justin told him.

"Oh, well then I guess it's a good thing we're leaving. It's time you two talked," Emmett smiled.

"Yeah, you're right," Justin said.

"Well, I'm just a phone call away if you need me," Emmett offered.

"Thanks," Justin smiled. Since moving in, he and Emmett had really become close, and he was glad that their friendship had blossomed.

"No problem, baby. I'll see you later," he smiled, and blew a kiss to the younger man, before closing the door behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brian stood waiting for Justin to answer his door, and when he finally did, the brunette's eyes couldn't help but drape over the blond's half naked body. He was wearing these light, thin-material pants which practically left no room for the imagination. He felt his member starting to react to the beautiful site of the younger man.

Justin noticed the look Brian was giving him, and immediately felt self conscious. He was so nervous about what Brian wanted to talk to him about and was too busy thinking, that it had completely slipped his mind that he was still wearing his pajama pants - the ones that were practically see-through. He wasn't wearing a shirt, either. He suddenly wrapped his arms around himself, feeling a bit too exposed.

"That was fast," Justin told Brian, as he stepped aside to let the other man into his home. Brian made no movement though, and continued to stare at him.

"Huh?" he asked with a confused look. Justin slightly frowned at him, snapping him back into reality. "Oh, um, yeah. You know, it's kind of late -- no traffic," Brian explained. Justin looked at Brian expectantly, but the other young man remained standing where he was.

"Uh, Brian... are you going to come in?" Justin asked, opening the door wider.

"Oh, right," Brian stammered, finally walking into the apartment.

"I'll be right back... Go ahead and make yourself at home," Justin told him, and disappeared into his bedroom for a moment.

Brian nodded and walked over to the fridge to get himself a soda. He made his way back to the sofa and waited for Justin to come out. When the blond returned a short while later, Brian noticed that he had put on an over sized T-shirt that hung just below his package, keeping it safely hidden from prying eyes. He couldn't help but sigh a breath of relief. It would be too distracting to have a serious talk with Justin if he was half naked and wearing those damn thin PJ's.

Justin joined Brian on the sofa, and got comfortable in the "Indian Style" position. He was trying to act as calm and cool as he could, and hoped he was pulling it off, even though his nerves were all over the place.

"So, where's Emmett?" Brian asked.

"He and Ted went to Woody's," Justin told him. Brian nodded, and then it was silent between them.

"Brian," Justin said when the brunet seemed to space out. Brian looked up to meet Justin's eyes, and then gave him a weak smile.

"Sorry. I'm just having a hard time gathering my thoughts together," he explained.

"Why don't you just start by telling me why you're here? What's been going on with you?" Justin asked softly.

Brian sighed. "It's just... it's not that simple," he told him.

"Try. It's me, remember? We've always been able to tell each other everything."

"I know." Brian took a sip of his soda, and then set it down on the coffee table in front of him. "I've been acting like a total ass, and I'm sorry for that," Brian told Justin.

"I wouldn't say that exactly... you've just been a bit distant," Justin said.

"Yeah." Brian was silent again for a moment, and Justin thought he might go crazy with frustration. He wished that the other boy would just spit it out. He had his suspicions about what Brian wanted to talk to him about, and decided he would throw it all out there.

"Brian, look. If you're here to tell me that you just want to be friends, it's okay. You don't have to be afraid to tell me that. I just want things to be okay with us," Justin said.

Brian looked up at Justin in surprise. "Jus --"

"No, really, Brian. I care about our friendship too much to risk losing you. So if you're not interested in starting a relationship with me, then that's fine. Just tell me," Justin said.

"That's not what I want," Brian said softly, his eyes meeting with Justin's.

Justin felt his heart breaking at Brian's words. He nodded in response. "Okay," he said, just above a whisper, and swallowed the lump in his throat. It had been a lot harder to hear it out loud than he thought. He could feel his emotions getting to him, and it was taking everything in him not to burst out in tears at that moment. He quickly looked away trying to hide his devastation from his best friend.

Brian saw the devastated look on Justin's face, and realized that the young man had misunderstood him. He scooted closer to the blond, and put his hand on his shoulder.

"No, Justin... I meant that... I don't want to just be friends... and that is the part that I'm having trouble dealing with," Brian explained.

Justin looked over at Brian then with watery eyes and frowned in confusion. "What?" Was Brian saying that he wanted to be with him?

"It's something I've been struggling with. I want... to be with you. I have for a long time. I'm just... afraid," Brian admitted. God, it sounded so pathetic when he said it out loud.

"Afraid of what?" Justin asked.

"Lots of things, but mostly, I'm scared of fucking things up, and losing you. I don't ever want you to be out of my life," Brian told him.

Justin reached out and grabbed Brian's hand, holding it in his. "Brian, I'm scared too. But if we want to be together, don't you think we owe it ourselves to give it a shot?" Justin asked him.

"What about Cameron? Do you have feelings for him?" Brian asked. Justin thought for a moment.

"I'll be honest with you. I like Cameron. We went out tonight and had a good time," Justin said. "I'm pretty sure he wants something more than just friendship with me, and I probably wouldn't be opposed to dating him," Justin said.

Brian's face fell, and he cursed himself for being such an idiot and waiting so long to talk to Justin about all of this. Maybe it was too late?

"But," Justin continued, "I have some unresolved feelings for someone else, and before starting anything with Cameron, I wanted to talk to this person first, because, you see, I've been saving a place in my heart for this other guy since I was 13 years old," Justin said, with a small smile.

Brian smiled back at Justin, and rested his other hand on the blond's leg, wanting to have more contact, than just holding his hand. "So, this other guy you're talking about -- do you still love him?" Brian asked, his eyes filled with hope.

Justin smiled at Brian. "I never stopped," he whispered, and then leaned in to capture Brian's lips. The brunet responded immediately, and opened his mouth to invite Justin's tongue into his. He reveled in the taste of Justin, and the feel of his soft lips against his. Their arms wrapped around each other, and they continued to kiss for several minutes. Their hearts both beat wildly, and neither wanted to end the contact. Once they had gotten a taste of the other, it was hard to pull away.

Justin was finally the first to break the kiss. He was starting to feel himself lose control and that was the last thing he needed. He didn't want to mess things up by jumping into anything too soon. He and Brian looked at each other, both panting from the passionate kiss, searching the other's eyes.

"That was even better than what I remembered," Justin admitted. Brian nodded in agreement.

"So... are we going to try this?" Brian asked with a hopeful smile.

Justin grinned and nodded his head. "Let's do it," he said, and threw his arms around Brian's neck, hugging him close.

Brian reluctantly pulled away from Justin. "I've gotta go. It's late, and I have to be at the Forrester Agency early in the morning," he said.

Justin nodded, a bit disappointed, but he understood. "Okay. I've got a morning shift at the diner, too. 8:00a.m. - 2:00p.m.," Justin informed him.

"How about I meet you here after I get off work? Maybe we can go grab a bite to eat or something?" Brian suggested.

"Okay," Justin smiled. Brian's stomach did a flip-flop as he looked at the blond's smile. He couldn't resist those lips, and leaned in to kiss him, once again. After a while, Justin pulled away.

"Brian, if you don't stop that you'll never leave," Justin giggled.

"I know, but I couldn't help it. I enjoyed it too much the first time, and now it's hard to resist," Brian said with an innocent smile.

Justin shook his head and laughed, then stood up, pulling Brian by the hand, and walked him to the door.

"Goodnight," he said, and opened the door.

"Goodnight," Brian told him, and leaned in to kiss the blond once again, but this time, just a peck, or else he probably would end up staying an extra half hour. Brian left Justin's apartment a happy man. He was glad that he had decided to go see Justin tonight. He had been worried, and he was so glad that things had turned out okay.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After Brian left, Justin shut the door behind him, he couldn't keep the smile off of his face. He couldn't believe that he and Brian were now finally, FINALLY, going to be together. He'd been waiting a long time for this. He floated all the way back to his room to think about the night's events. He couldn't wait to tell Emmett! Hell, he couldn't wait until everyone knew! He wanted to shout it from the rooftops.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brian let himself into the Novotney residence. He had lived in the dorms last semester but had moved back into his Aunt Debbie's house for the summer. With the money he'd made that summer, plus whatever was left over that he had been able to save up from working at the diner, he was now able to afford moving into his own place. He knew his Aunt Deb loved him living in the house, especially since Michael had moved out and was living with Josh now. He knew though that he couldn't stay at his aunt's house. He liked being independent, and as much as he loved his family, let's face it - it was hard to maintain any kind of privacy in that house. And as much as he appreciated his family's advice, he really just wanted to make his own decisions without someone having an opinion about it, or telling him what he should and shouldn't do for every little thing.

Brian had been working at the Forrester Inc. ad agency all summer. He had interned there during the last semester of school, and they had agreed to hire him on for the summer. It wasn't his dream job -- he didn't get to do any ad work - at least not yet. He intended to change that. They mainly used him as a gopher. He did everything, from being the copy boy, to filing, and answering phones. He didn't mind, because he was still learning a lot just being there and observing. The pay wasn't half bad either, and he had really worked to save as much as he could so that he would have enough money to be able to move out, buy the things he would need for his new place, and afford bills. Sometimes he even picked up a few shifts at the diner for some extra cash.

He didn't have a lot of extra time, but he had managed to do a little apartment hunting on his days off. He still hadn't found a place that felt like it could be home to him, though. School was starting back up in a couple of weeks, and he hoped he could find an apartment before then. It would suck to have to move when he had classes starting and also had work. He would ask Justin to maybe go with him over the weekend to look for a place.

Brian made his way up the stairs and into his bedroom, and stripped off all of his clothes before climbing into bed. He was exhausted. He lay there on his back, with his eyes closed, and then smiled to himself as he thought about Justin. He opened his eyes, and glanced over at his cell phone. He just wanted to hear the blond's voice on last time before he went to sleep, even if it meant listening to it on his voicemail. He sighed, and grabbed his phone and dialed the blond's number. He was a bit surprised when he heard Justin answer.

"Hello?"

"You're still awake," Brian said softly.

"Yeah. I was just laying here. I guess I'm a little restless," Justin admitted. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm great. I just... never mind," Brian said, with a small laugh. He felt like such a cheese ball.

"You what?" Justin urged.

"Nothing... I just wanted to say goodnight," Brian whispered. Well, he was being honest. He wasn't about to go out on a limb though and confess that he missed the blond, and wished he were in his bed with him. That would have been a bit much.

"I'm glad you called," Justin said, and Brian could swear he heard him smile.

"Me too," Brian agreed with a happy sigh.

"Goodnight," Justin whispered.

"Goodnight," Brian replied.

They both hung up.

Justin put his cell phone on his nightstand and could not stop himself from grinning. Brian's voice was just he what he needed before he went to sleep. He prayed he would have lots of nice dreams about the brunet. At that thought, he let his hand wander down his body, reached into his boxers, and gripped his already hard cock. His hand slowly slid up and down his shaft as he pictured Brian's handsome face. He thought about the passionate kiss that the two of them had shared just a short time ago, and started tugging on his dick faster...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brian's mind would not let him rest. He couldn't stop thinking about Justin and his soft lips. He pictured his beautiful smile, beaming at him. He thought about those thin-material PJ's, and his hand automatically found its way to his naked hard on. He jerked himself off, thinking about how good Justin had felt in his arms; how good he had tasted; how he couldn't get enough of his warm and talented mouth...

"Justin!" Brian hissed, as he released his seed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, God... Brian!" Justin cried out, as he came into his hand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Justin's day had been fairly busy so far during his shift at the diner. There had been a rather large lunch crowd and he was glad to be getting out of there soon. He was anxious to get home, shower and wait for Brian to come over. Also, he had yet to tell Emmett about what had happened between he and Brian, since his roommate had come home after he had already gone to bed.

Justin was busy behind the counter brewing a fresh pot of coffee, when he heard someone clear their throat.

"Hey, gorgeous."

Justin turned around to see Cameron sitting at the counter and smiling at him. He smiled back at him and leaned on his elbows on the counter.

"Hey. Grabbing lunch?" he asked.

"Well, that, and I wanted to see you."

Justin forced a smile back at Cameron, trying not to show his discomfort of the situation. He knew that the young man liked him, and wasn't sure how to let him down gently.

"So, uh, what would you like?" Justin asked, taking out his little note pad and pen.

"I'll have the meatball sandwich with a side of fries," Cameron told him. Justin nodded as he jotted down the order.

"Anything else?" he asked.

"Well, now that you mention it, how about having dinner with me tonight?" Cameron asked.

"Listen, Cameron --"

"I can get us a reservation at Papagano's. It's usually really busy or booked on Friday nights, but the manager is a good friend of my mother's," Cameron assured him.

"I'm sorry, Cam... I can't," Justin told him, seeing the disappointed look on the young man's face.

"Oh. You have other plans?" he asked.

"Yeah, I do. With Brian," he said softly.

Cameron looked into Justin's eyes and knew right away what that meant. He had thought that maybe Justin and Brian had decided against a romantic relationship. Maybe he had misread things, but he could have sworn that Justin seemed interested in him when they went out the night before. Justin hadn't mentioned anything about Brian being his boyfriend.

"Oh, um... all right. Maybe some other time?" he asked.

"Sure," Justin answered, knowing that there likely wouldn't be a next time. Not dinner, at least. They could still be friends. Now didn't seem like the right time to talk about that, though. "I'll be back soon with your order," Justin said with a nervous smile, and walked away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, my God, baby, I'm so happy for you!" Emmett cried, throwing his arms around Justin.

"Thanks, Em," Justin beamed, hugging his friend back.

"I'm so glad he listened to me," Emmett said.

"Brian talked to you?" Justin asked, surprised.

"Yeah, he told me that he wanted to be with you, but didn't want to risk losing you as a result. I told him in more or less words that he couldn't just waste away an opportunity because he was afraid of the outcome. He was really torn. I wasn't sure if he would go through with it."

"Well, he was certainly acting strange, that's for sure. I knew something was up. He was really nervous, and not his usual, calm, relaxed, confident self," Justin told him.

"So what now? Are you going to talk to Cameron? You said that you thought he seemed interested," Emmett said.

Justin sighed. "He showed up at the diner today and asked me out to dinner," Justin admitted.

"No!" Emmett gasped, covering his mouth. "What did you say?"

"I said I had plans with Brian," Justin answered.

"I bet that wasn't the response he was expecting."

Justin shook his head. "No. He looked disappointed. He didn't make a big deal out of it, though. He said that maybe we could do it some other time."

"Justin..." Emmett warned.

"I know, I know. I'm going to talk to him. It just didn't seem like the right time," Justin explained.

They were interrupted by the doorbell.

"Well, well. There's your Prince Charming, right now," Emmett sang.

Justin smiled back at him, and felt his heart beat faster, just knowing that Brian was there.

"Uh, Em... would you mind keeping it quiet about Cameron? I don't want to put a damper on things," Justin said.

"Sure, sweetie," Emmett agreed. Justin smiled, and hopped up off the couch to answer the door.

"Hey," Justin beamed, as he took in Brian's appearance.

"Hey, yourself," Brian grinned, and walked into the apartment, immediately grabbing Justin in a hug. Justin loved the feel of the brunette's arms around him again, and it made him want so much more.

"Mmm, you smell good. Are you wearing a new cologne?" Justin asked, as he deeply breathed in Brian's heavenly scent.

"Uh, no," Brian chuckled. "Same old, same old," he smiled.

"Hmm," Justin wondered. "For some reason you smell better," Justin said.

"Um... thanks, I think?" Brian smirked. "I guess I should be relieved to know that I don't stink," Brian joked, then leaned in to peck the blond lightly on the lips.

Justin responded to the kiss right away, and let it be known that he wanted a much longer one by capturing Brian's lips again and slipping his tongue into the other young man's mouth.

"Ohh..." Emmett said, wiping a tear. "You guys are so adorable!"

Justin and Brian who had forgotten that anyone else was in the same room with them, stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to Emmett, who was looking at them adoringly with moist eyes and a smile.

They both gave an embarrassed chuckle, and Justin buried his face in Brian's chest, trying to hide his blushed expression.

"I'm so jealous. It's been a while since I had a hottie of my own who made my heart go thumpa thumpa whenever he was near," Emmett recalled, with a sigh.

"You'll find someone, Em. It's just that because you're so special it might take some time. You can't just settle for anyone; they've got to be the best," Justin told him.

"Thank you for saying that sweetie." Emmett stood up quickly from the sofa and now had a determined look on his face. "Well, the hunt is on, tonight. You two up for Babylon?" Emmett asked.

Brian and Justin looked at each other briefly, and then back at Emmett.

"Maybe next time," Brian told him. "We kind of just wanted to spend some time alone together," he explained. Justin looked up at him and smiled. He was glad Brian hadn't agreed to go to Babylon. He just wanted to hang out with Brian alone with no distractions or interruptions.

"Of course you do, sweetie," Emmett said, walking over to Brian and kissing his cheek. "Well, I guess I'll give the other boys a call and see what they're up to. You two have fun tonight," Emmett told them with a wink, and then disappeared into his bedroom to phone the rest of the gang and make plans for the evening.

Brian pulled Justin to the sofa to sit down with him.

"Alone at last," he purred with a teasing smile, and leaned in to kiss those irresistible lips that he had been dreaming about all last night, and daydreaming about all day.

Justin's whole body warmed up, and he lost himself in Brian's kisses for a while - until his growling stomach interrupted them.

"I guess we should get some food in your stomach soon," Brian laughed.

Justin turned a bit red. He hadn't had time to eat anything since breakfast, but he had been so busy it hadn't even occurred to him.

"So, where are we going for dinner?" Justin asked.

"I was thinking maybe that new pizza joint, Antonio's," Brian said. "Michael said it's really good."

"Mmm, pizza. I haven't had that in a while. Sounds good," Justin told him.

Brian nodded, and gave him one more kiss before pulling Justin up off the couch with him, and leading him out the door.