Sick Day

The alarm started blaring bright and early on a Monday morning. Justin awoke suddenly as he looked at the clock. Unlike his lover, he hated waking up early. He had never been a morning person. It also didn't help that he was up half the night because of Brian's continuous tossing and turning and his deviated septum seemed to be causing him to wheeze more than usual.

Justin groaned and reached to turn off the alarm. His lover, who was usually already out of bed and starting the shower by now, lay beside him, unaffected by the alarm's noise.

"Brian," Justin called out softly, shaking his partner. Brian groaned and mumbled, annoyed that something was interrupting his sleep.

"Brian," Justin called again, more sternly. "It's 6:30, you got to get up." Brian opened his eyes slowly, and flinched. His eyes felt like sandpaper and he fought to keep them open.

"Fuck," Brian's voice cracked. "I swear, I just got to sleep an hour ago," he groaned. His throat throbbed as he spoke, and when he swallowed he felt a sharp pain as well. "Ohhh!" Brian moaned. He was also aware that his body felt as if he had run 100 miles. Every muscle in his body ached.

"What's wrong?" Justin asked concerned. He put his hand on Brian's forehead to smooth some hair away, when he noticed that Brian felt warm. "Brian, you're burning up," Justin informed him.

"Fuck, my throat feels like someone stuffed their 9 inch dick down it and tried to choke me to death. It's sore as shit!" Brian said, his voice still cracking. Justin immediately went to the bathroom to seek out the thermometer in the medicine cabinet. Shortly, he returned with said object in hand, motioning for Brian to open mouth and lift up his tongue. Brian let out a childish whine.

"No," he defied.

"Brian, stop acting like a 5 year old. Even Gus doesn't whine like this when Lindsay takes his temperature," Justin pointed out. Brian rolled his eyes.

"That's because Lindsay bribes him with a cookie," Brian said.

"Well, I could always bribe you with one of my infamous blow jobs," Justin suggested with his Sunshine charm. It would have sounded perfect if Brian didn't feel like shit.

"Fine. But it better be like the best blow job you've ever given me. I'll collect my bribe later, though. I don't even know if I could get it up right now," Brian said weakly.

Justin was surprised by the fact that Brian wouldn't want his blow job right then and that *gasp* Brian Kinney might not be able to get it up. He must really be sick! Justin leaned in and kissed Brian's lips softly.

"All right then, we have a deal. Now, open up for the choo-choo," the blond ordered with a mocking smile. Brian glared at his partner but opened his mouth and Justin slipped the thermometer under his lover's tongue and waited for the instrument to start beeping. A few minutes later, Justin removed it from his mouth, and frowned as he looked at the results.

"101°. Oh, my God, Brian. In all the years I have known you, you have never been sick. This is a first," Justin recalled. Brian snorted in response.

"Sick? I'm not sick. I don't get sick. I don't DO sick," Brian reassured the blond, his throat throbbing with each word he spoke.

"You don't believe me?" Justin challenged. He held out the thermometer and showed the results to the brunet. "Read 'em and weep," Justin said sympathetically. Brian looked at the thermometer even though he knew Justin was telling the truth. After seeing the results for himself, he remained quiet, and threw his head back on his pillow dramatically.

"Well, now it's inevitable," Justin said, giving a look of surprised shock.

"What?" Brian groaned.

"That you really are human after all," Justin joked. Brian did not find it amusing and gave the blond the middle finger. Justin just smiled as he went to retrieve the cordless phone. He started dialing a number.

"Who are you calling?" Brian asked.

"Cynthia. Rage is taking his sick day," Justin told him. Brian groaned.

"No. Hang up. I'm getting up right now," Brian said hesitantly and made an effort to sit up in bed. As he made the effort though, he immediately felt dizzy and decided to lay back down on his pillow.

"Why are you being such a stubborn ass? You've been working nonstop for the last couple of months with all these new clients you've had. Now you're sick and you need to rest," Justin said. He knew Brian had always forced himself to go to work, even when he had been up all night drinking and drugging and had the world's worst hangover. The only exception was when he had the radiation treatment after being diagnosed with cancer. Even then, he tried to go to work, determined to prove he wasn't too weak to keep on living.

Brian huffed in response.

"Hi, Cynthia, it's Justin. Listen, Brian is not feeling well today. He won't be coming into the office," he explained. Brian listened to the conversation, his head still spinning.

"No, I'm sure he'll be fine. It's probably just one of those 24 hour flu things that is going around right now. Can you go ahead and reschedule any meetings or appointments that he had today and move them to the end of the week? You know, just in case this isn't a 24 hour flu."

Justin looked over at his lover, seeing misery written all over his face and feeling a little sorry for him.

"Thanks a lot, Cynthia. He'll call you later and let you know what's going on."

Justin hung up the phone and sat on the bed next to Brian. "Done," he told him, as he ran his fingers lightly through Brian's hair and massaged his scalp. Brian moaned a little.

"That feels good," he admitted. His eyes were still closed, and he allowed himself to get lost in the soothing massage, noticing that his headache was slowly but surely going away.

"Now, this is what is going to happen. First I'm going to make you breakfast. Then I have to go to class. But don't worry, I won't be gone too long. I'll be back around 11:00a.m. to take care of you," Justin said, kissing his lover on the temple.

"I don't need you to take care of me; I'm not an invalid," Brian replied grumpily.

"Didn't someone once say to me, 'A man needs to know when to accept help,'?" Justin asked, giving Brian a knowing look. Brian rolled his eyes in response. This was one of the times he could kick himself for giving advice. He hated it when it came back to bite him in the ass.

"Okay, okay," the brunet mumbled.

"Great, glad that you agree with me," Justin smiled and headed for the kitchen. Several minutes later, he returned to the bedroom with a tray. Brian had fallen back asleep.

"Brian, wake up. You need to eat something," Justin told him. Brian only rolled over so that he was facing away from the blond.

"Not hungry," he grumbled.

"It's not anything heavy. You need to eat some fruit and drink some juice. It's important that you have a lot of fluids," Justin reassured.

"God, you're annoying!" Brian said.

"You want to get better soon, right? The faster you get better, the faster you can go back to work." Justin baited him. It worked. Brian sat up, and accepted the tray, setting it on his lap. He looked at the plate of fruit that Justin had cut up for him, and reluctantly started eating from it.

"That's better," Justin told him. Brian glared at Justin, knowing that the blond was enjoying this. It wasn't often that Justin got to be bossy and call all the shots. The blond was so going to pay for this.

"Christ, you sound like my mother. She was such a fucking spaz whenever I would get sick," Brian reminisced. "I bet if you asked her today, she would still swear that her excessive praying cured my post nasal drip," Brian smirked.

Justin laughed. "It's a miracle. Praise the Lord!" he joked, and went into the bathroom to take a quick shower.

Before Justin was about to leave the loft, he sat on the bed next to Brian, seeing that his beautiful brunet had finished his fruit and had fallen back asleep. He situated the blankets so they were securely wrapped around Brian. Justin wanted to make sure Brian stayed warm. He smoothed some hair from Brian's forehead, noting that he still felt warm, then kissed the top of his head.

"Feel better," Justin whispered, and then left for PIFA. He wished he could stay home, but knew Brian wouldn't want him missing any school. He hoped he wouldn't have trouble concentrating in class.

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

Brian awoke to the annoying sound of the telephone ringing.

"Fuck, I should have turned the ringer off," Brian thought as he reached for the cordless phone that Justin had left on the nightstand.

"What!" Brian answered the phone.

"Jesus, Brian. Why are you yelling? Aren't you feeling better?" Justin asked on the line.

"Well, maybe I'd feel better if I could get some fucking sleep! The phone has rang 3 times since you left, waking me up each time!" Brian grumped, his voice still cracking from his sore throat.

"Really? Who else called?" Justin asked.

"First it was Michael, saying that he had heard that I was sick and that he would be sure to stop by later..." Brian paused. "Gee, I wonder how he found out about that?" Brian said sarcastically.

"I stopped by the diner before school to pick up a coffee and a danish. The whole gang was there for breakfast and wanted to know where you were," Justin explained.

"Well, that would explain the call from Debbie, who also heard I was sick, and let me know that she would be sending some soup with Michael when he stops by later."

"I'm sorry you're not feeling better," Justin said softly. Brian heard the tone in his partner's voice and started feeling a little guilty for snapping at him. He knew Justin was just checking on him.

"It's okay. It's not your fault," Brian mumbled.

"So who was the third call from?" Justin asked.

"Fucking Vance. He wanted to call to ask if I would possibly be well enough to pitch our ideas for a potential client today at 3:00p.m.. I told him that that meeting would not take place today unless he pitched it himself. Apparently Cynthia tried to reschedule that meeting for the end of the week but they were unavailable," Brian said with annoyance.

"Well, I'm sure they could reschedule for next week sometime," Justin said.

"Whatever. I don't want to think about it right now. It's making my headache come back," Brian admitted.

"Well, I'll be home soon. If you want, I can pick up the soup and just tell Michael not to stop by," Justin offered.

"Fine," Brian replied, his voice apparent with exhaustion.

"I've got to get to my next class. I love you," Justin said.

"Mmm..." Brian replied sleepily, knowing that Justin would get its meaning. "Can't wait to collect my bribe," Brian said with a grin, his cock stirring at the thought of Justin's warm mouth wrapped around it. He heard Justin laugh.

"Even on your death bed you still think with your dick," Justin told him.

"Later," Brian said, still grinning, and hung up. He reached over to the night stand and grabbed the two Tylenol Justin had left for him there, popping them into his mouth and chasing it down with a glass of water. He then laid his head back down on his pillow and closed his eyes, feeling the tiredness take over him once again.

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

The next time Brian awoke, it was dark in the loft, except for the dim glow of the blue lights above his bed, and the small desk light by Justin's computer. He could hear some sounds coming from the kitchen, as well as the faint aroma of what smelled like Deb's famous chicken soup, which she claimed cured all ills.

Brian sat up in bed and noticed that the dizziness had gone away. He felt so much better. He rubbed his eyes, wiping the sleep from them. He stood up and walked to the bathroom to relieve himself. As he stood up he noticed that he still felt a little lightheaded, but not as bad as before. After he was finished with his business he made his way out to the living room where he found Justin at his desk studying. Justin looked up when he felt Brian's presence and a huge grin broke out on the blond's face. Brian stood in front of him in only his underwear, with one hand behind him reaching in to scratch his butt cheek. His hair was sticking up in every which direction. He looked absolutely adorable. Justin stood up and went to examine his lover.

"Hey. How are you feeling?" Justin asked, feeling Brian's forehead, noting that it no longer felt warm.

"Mmm, better," Brian said. Justin reached up to kiss his lover, when Brian stopped him. "Aren't you worried about catching it?" Brian asked. Justin shook his head as he grinned.

"Uh-uh. I had my flu shot this year," and reached up again to kiss Brian's inviting soft lips. Brian happily kissed him back. His cock was hard. It felt as if he and Justin hadn't fucked in days. He was filled with need, as they devoured each other's mouth, both panting and ready for more. Justin finally pulled back. Brian gave him a confused look.

"Later. You need to eat something first," Justin told him.

"Yeah, I was planning on it..." Brian smirked, his eyes full of lust, and his hand now stroking Justin's already hard cock through his jeans. Justin rolled his eyes, but smiled.

"Brian, I'm serious. You need to eat. I stopped by Deb's and picked up the chicken soup, and it's already on the stove." Justin walked away, leaving Brian standing there with a hard-on. Brian growled as he watched Justin walk to the kitchen cupboard, get down a couple of bowls from the shelf, and start spooning the soup into the bowls. He sighed and went to the table and sat down in one of the chairs and waited. Justin set a bowl of soup in front of Brian along with a glass of water. Brian looked at him questioningly.

"No alcohol. It will dehydrate you," Justin told him. Brian was really starting to hate this.

"Fuck! This flu is ruining my life!" He pouted as he took a gulp of his water. He really wanted a beer. Justin sat down across from him and started eating his own soup.

"God, do you think you could be more of a drama queen?" Justin said.

"Well, think about it," Brian said, eating his soup while he talked. "This fucking flu has disrupted my whole routine today. I slept like shit last night. I felt so bad earlier that I turned down a blow job. I missed work, which made me miss an important presentation. They couldn't reschedule, so now we might not get these clients to sign with us. I've felt like shit all day. I got turned down for sex. I am being forced to eat this soup which is loaded with sodium and carbs. I can't have a fucking beer. And the worst part - you know what the worst part is?" Brian asked.

Justin tried to keep a straight face. Brian was so queening out right now, and it was taking everything in him not to laugh out loud. He wished he had a tape recorder so that Brian could listen to himself later. He finally gave his partner a questioning look, and waited for him to continue.

"The worst part is being bossed around by you all day, and you loving it and thinking that I'm...cute," Brian shuddered, and continued to eat his soup, which by now was almost finished. Justin giggled.

"Oh, come on, Brian, you know you love the attention," Justin said with a smile. He got up from his seat and came over to Brian, and sat in the older man's lap, wrapping his arms around Brian's neck and leaning his forehead against the brunet's, staring intensely into hazel eyes. Brian was pleasantly surprised that Justin had come to him, and he hardened, knowing that Justin's tight little hole was positioned right near his cock.

"You love it when I take care of you," Justin whispered. He started grinding his ass in Brian's lap, causing Brian to moan. "Admit it," Justin said.

Brian didn't answer with words. He immediately dove for Justin's mouth, kissing him with all he had, and wrapped his arms around the blond trying to get as close to him as he could. Justin broke the kiss and hopped off Brian's lap. Brian stood up, grabbed Justin's hand and pulled the blond toward the bedroom, practically pulling his arm out of its socket.

Brian pushed Justin onto the bed and started pulling off the blond's pants and underwear in record time, while Justin pulled his own T-shirt over his head and tossed it on the floor by the bed. Brian stood up and pulled his own underwear down and stepped out of them, and then lunged forward to cover Justin's body like a blanket as he attacked his mouth once again. When they came up for air, Justin smiled.

"You're recovering quite nicely," Justin panted. Brian smiled back at his lover, also out of breath.

"Well, I had an excellent nurse - this sexy, blond haired, blue-eyed babe, with a hot ass." They started kissing again, and now their hands were touching each other everywhere. Brian ground his cock into Justin's, and they both moaned at the contact.

"Hey, how about collecting that bribe?" Justin asked eagerly. Brian didn't need to be asked twice. He immediately turned so that he was on his back. Justin climbed atop him, and kissed his swollen lips, then trailed his tongue down Brian's neck and moved to find his left nipple. When he found his goal, he sucked on it and flicked it with his tongue. Brian moaned with every flick.

Justin smiled up at Brian mischievously, and then bit down on the nipple he had been favoring.

"Fuck!" Brian yelled out in pleasure.

"You like?" Justin asked huskily.

"Mmm..." Brian replied with a growl.

"There's more to come, Patient Kinney," Justin purred as he ran his tongue down Brian's torso until he reached his belly button, and then dipped his tongue inside.

He heard Brian gasp again, and then made a line of kisses leading straight to Brian's glorious cock. He opened his mouth and breathed hot air on the head of Brian's dick, before swirling around it with his tongue. Then he went in for the kill and engulfed Brian's member whole, swallowing around it, while cupping his balls with his hand and massaging them. Brian thought he might explode. He knew he wasn't going to be able to hold off much longer. He needed to cum.

Justin could feel Brian get closer to the edge as he continued to deep throat his man just the way he knew Brian loved it. He stopped what he was doing for a moment to find out what his partner wanted.

"What do you want? Do you want me to finish you off like this or do you want to fuck me?" Justin asked.

Brian looked at Justin and saw his Sunshine smiling at him and felt his heart beat even faster.

"God, he's so fucking beautiful," Brian thought. "I want to fuck you... nice and slow," Brian finally replied.

Justin looked a little surprised by Brian's answer. They had been going at a pretty fast and desperate pace tonight; Brian wanting to slow it down when they were so desperate to get off was a little unusual. Justin decided he wouldn't question it, he would just go with the flow. He grabbed the lube and a condom, and put it on the brunet, making sure to coat it well.

"Lay on your back. I want to see your face," Brian told him.

Justin nodded and did as he was told and then waited for Brian to make his next move. Clearly, the control had been passed to Brian. Brian lifted Justin's legs and placed them on his shoulders. He gently stuck a lubed finger in Justin's hole and slowly probed in and out. Justin moaned his approval, as Brian worked a second finger in and out of him, stretching and preparing him for what was to come.

When Brian felt Justin was ready for him, he placed his cock at Justin's entrance and slowly started to push in. When he was fully inside his lover, he leaned forward and and kissed his beautiful blond on the lips passionately.

"Oh, God!" Justin cried out, loving the feeling of Brian filling him. Brian's hazel eyes held the gaze of Justin's baby blues, and they continued to stare at each other, all barriers down. Love was clearly written on both of their facial expressions, but neither of them said anything. They decided to let their bodies do all the talking for now. The intensity of their lovemaking was almost unbearable and they were both sweating profusely.

As Brian got closer to the edge he started to pump faster, harder and deeper, which Justin really appreciated, and it showed. Justin was now yelling incoherent words and phrases in between his cries of ecstasy. This encouraged Brian even more, and he took hold of Justin's cock and started stroking it in time with each of his hard thrusts. Before they knew it, Justin erupted in Brian's hand, and he in turn erupted into the condom, filling it to its capacity. Brian collapsed onto his lover, and was panting hard. Still not wanting to end the intense connection, he stayed inside Justin as long as he could, the way his baby liked it and showered Justin's neck and mouth with loving feather-light kisses.

Justin let out a sigh of contentment, and enjoyed the feel of Brian's kisses all over his face. He loved it when they had their after sex "cool down", which usually happened only after an intense sex session, like tonight. It gave them the chance to come down from their high, but still relish in the intimacy of it all. After a few minutes of sweet kisses and caresses, Brian finally pulled out of Justin and disposed of the condom, and then cuddled back up to his partner. Justin gazed into Brian's eyes, as Brian lightly ran his hand all over Justin's arms and chest. The ticklish feeling made him shiver from head to toe. "I love you so much," Justin whispered, keeping his eyes on Brian's. Brian gave Justin a reassuring smile before finally answering. "Me too," Brian replied.

Justin smiled and closed his eyes, and allowed himself to forget everything except he and Brian and what they had together.

"I know," Justin said back. "I knew from the first night," Justin said, the need for sleep suddenly overwhelming him. Brian looked at his partner and gave him a questioning look.

"How did you know?" Brian asked. Justin yawned and then mumbled.

"You told me."

A few moments later Justin's breathing indicated that he had fallen asleep. Brian just stared at him in shock. He hadn't really told Justin he loved him that first night, had he? This was the first he had heard about this; Justin had never said a word about it. He decided to let it go for now. It wasn't really important anyway. The important thing was that Justin knew how he felt about him.

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

The alarm started buzzing bright and early the next morning. Brian immediately woke up and reached to turn the alarm off. He yawned and stretched before turning toward his partner.

"Sunshine," Brian sang softly. He noticed when he spoke his throat did not hurt. In fact, he felt pretty good. Almost like his old self. Not 100% yet, but pretty close. Thank God!

"Justin," Brian urged, lightly nudging Justin's shoulder as he did so. "Time to get up."

"Ugh, no," Justin whined. He couldn't help but notice that when he spoke his throat was extremely sore. It was then that he knew. He let out a frustrated groan.

"Awww, shit."

"What?" Brian asked.

"I fucking got it," Justin told him. Brian gave his partner a confused look.

"Got what?" Brian asked.

"I fucking got IT!" Justin snapped.

"Uh, I hate to tell you this, but "it" doesn't have the same meaning as it used to," Brian said.

"I fucking got YOUR sickness! YOUR flu! Or cold! Or whatever the fuck. I got it!" Justin growled.

Brian smiled to himself. "Bingo!" Brian thought. It was revenge time! "Well, I guess there's only one thing to do," Brian said. He grabbed the cordless phone and dialed a number.

"Who are you calling?" Justin demanded.

"Debbie. I know you don't have class today, but you're scheduled to be at the diner at 8:00a.m., remember?"

"No, don't call her. I'll be fine," Justin protested. Brian raised his eyebrow at Justin. "You're not going in to work today. Trust me, it's going to get worse before it gets better," Brian warned.

Justin groaned in response. "Fuck."

"Later. For now we need to get you well." Brian paused.

"Well, it's about fucking time you answered the phone," Brian said into the receiver.

"What the fuck is your problem," Debbie squealed on the other end.

"Our poor Sunshine isn't feeling well, so, sorry, you're going to have to do without him for today," Brian explained.

"You gave it to him? You asshole. There's nothing like a good sucking and fucking to help spread the joy of the season's flu!" Debbie spat sarcastically.

"Hey, don't yell at me, he said he had the flu shot," Brian defended.

They exchanged a few more words and then Brian hung up. He walked into the kitchen and started cutting up some fruit for Justin, as his partner had done for him the day before. When he was done, he carried the tray to their bedroom.

"Justin, wake up. You need your Vitamin C."

Justin mumbled something incoherent under his breath.

"I'm sorry, Sunshine, I didn't quite get that," Brian said as he nudged him again.

"I said, FUCK VITAMIN C." Justin spat.

"Hey, don't get all bitchy with me. You gave me the same song and dance just yesterday. So guess what? I've got news for you." Brian said. Justin looked up at Brian wondering what his lover was conveying. "Payback's a bitch," Brian said with an overly sweet smile.

Justin rolled his eyes and then threw his head back down on the bed and covered his head with his pillow. It was going to be a long day. He hoped Brian would not stay home from work. His appointments were all moved to the end of the week just in case his flu hadn't gone away in one day, so it was a possibility it would. It could be a long and torturous day if Brian played his cards right.

"Now since I'm not really fully recovered, I'm going to stay home with you today so that I can take care of you," Brian said, as if reading Justin's thoughts. He set the tray of food on Justin's lap.

Justin peaked out from his pillow and gave Brian a look of disbelief.

"Don't look at me like I have plans to poison you. Jesus." Brian said.

"It's not that. It's just that you have never brought me breakfast in bed," Justin said, still surprised.

"Well, I suppose there's a first for everything. Besides, I know for a fact you'd do it for me," Brian said as he walked back into the kitchen. Justin could hear him dialing the phone and talking to someone. He sat up in bed and ate his fruit like a good little sick patient.

Brian returned a short while later with a couple of cut pieces of apple and orange and shoved them in his own mouth. Seeing that Justin had finished most of his fruit and drank all his juice, he removed the tray from his lap and set it on the floor next to them and then climbed into bed with his blond.

"There. Now that wasn't so bad, was it?" Brian asked as he put his hand to Justin's cheek. He felt warm. Justin definitely had what he himself had the previous day. Well, at least they knew what to expect.

"Well, I guess misery loves company," Justin replied. Brian handed Justin a couple of Advil and a bottle of water. He chased the pills down, hoping to God they would help with the muscle aches all over his body and the headache that was just starting to pound right behind his eyeballs.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do," Brian said, kissing Justin on his temple. The words made Justin smile and think of the night before. He snuggled up to Brian's warm body and immediately felt his chills start to alleviate.

"You know, I might have to fight you every step of the way today just to get a good bribe," Justin said.

"That wouldn't work. You see, if you decide to be uncooperative with me, I'll be forced to be an annoying shit to you all day long. We both know that I always know what buttons to press to really piss you off. So don't even think that you can fight me on this," Brian warned.

Justin looked at his lover incredulously, and Brian almost lost it. It was hard to do this with a straight face.

"Don't worry, Dear. I'll be the perfect little - I mean big house wife. I'll take good care of you I promise," Brian said in a falsetto tone. Justin glared at Brian through gritted teeth. He was already starting to be annoying. "Nope, I can't let you down," Brian continued.

"Fuck, here we go. Is he ever going to shut the fuck up?" Justin wondered.

"...I must be the best caregiver I can be. I will be sure to attend to you...in every way I can," Brian finally added, and raised his eyebrow, knowing that Justin would get his double meaning. He saw Justin immediately start to relax his jaw and knew that he understood that Brian had been messing with him before.

"Maybe letting him take care of me wouldn't be such a bad thing," Justin thought as he pictured Brian taking care of a hard-on he was sure to have when he woke up from his nap later. He snuggled up to his giant ball of heat, once again.

Brian held his blond, and kissed the top of head, then started to let sleep take over him. Before drifting off, Justin smiled to himself. The last two days had yet again confirmed what they already knew. They would always love and be there for each other. They were both in good hands.