Bunny's Birthday Ficlet

Author's Note: A small ficlet written forhappier_bunny's birthday.

*****

Brian leaned against the wall of the backroom and closed his eyes. His zipper was almost down when he pushed away from the wall and headed for the door.

“What the fuck!” the trick he’d knocked on his ass protested.

“I’d offer a rain check, but I don’t plan on being this desperate again,” Brian tossed the insult over his shoulder without pausing.

He ended up standing on the porch watching the rain. The fight had been stupid, pointless, forgettable, but what Brian had said after. Well, that had gotten them here. He heard the door open, but didn’t bother turning around.

“He’s still here if you want to come in.”

Brian’s only response was to lift his cigarette into the air; he wasn’t listening to that lecture again. The door shut, and Michael joined him at the railing. Brian passed him the cigarette, feeling a little smug when Michael inhaled deeply rather than putting it out.

“So what did you do?”

“How do you know it was me?”

“He suggested crushing Rage’s balls in a vice in the next issue.”

Brian winced. “Sounds about right. Is he still pissed?”

“He seemed alright when he went to bed, but that might have been the wine Ben brought out. One of the other professors makes it, and I think it’s closer to moonshine.”

“So why aren’t you passed out with the hubby?”

“Figured you’d show up eventually.”

“Justin wasn’t sure?” Brian tried to make it a joke, but he fumbled the cigarette when Michael handed it back to him. “Fuck,” he mumbled under his breath, crushing it under his foot and pulling out another one.

“He said you’d be here once Babylon closed, but he wasn’t waiting up.” Michael paused, but when Brian didn’t respond, he continued, “I think he meant he had better things to do than wait for you to drag yourself out of the backroom.”

“Don’t go all outraged housewife on me, Mikey. You know we’re not monogamous.”

“Maybe,” Michael conceded. “But you’re not exactly fucking half of Pittsburgh anymore, either.”

“It was a lot more than half,” Brian corrected with a laugh.

“And how many guys other than Justin have you fucked in the last month?”

“A few.”

“And tonight?”

Brian sighed, but didn’t bother lying. “One and a half.”

“A half?” Michael asked, confused.

“I got bored,” Brian shrugged.

“You keep telling yourself that,” Michael laughed. “Are you staying?”

Brian made a face. It wasn’t exactly the kind of sleepover he preferred, but waking Justin up then driving a half hour to the house just to go to sleep wasn’t going to improve either of their moods. “Yeah.”

“He’s in Hunter’s old room so please remember to keep it down. Oh, and Ben will make pancakes in the morning,” Michael added before going in the house.

A few minutes later, Brian put his unlit cigarette away and followed Michael inside. He made sure to lock the door before heading upstairs. He undressed quietly in the dark, but Justin stirred when his shoes hit the floor.

“Brian?” he asked softly.

Turning toward the bed, Brian caught sight of the clock. “I made it before three,” he said, not sure if it was a joke, an apology or a placeholder for all the other things he still didn’t know how to say.

Justin didn’t say anything, just lifted the blankets, but Brian didn’t need light to know he was rolling his eyes. The bed was small enough that they couldn’t avoid touching, but Justin held himself stiffly beside him.

“Justin,” Brian began, but he didn’t know what else to say.

Justin turned to face him, and Brian could feel the weight of his gaze in the darkness. “You have to trust me. This is where I want to be; I’m not looking for a way out.”

“I know,” Brian said, because he did. “I know.” He ran his hand through Justin hair, letting it come to rest on the side of his face as he leaned forward and kissed him. Brian held him there, kissing him softly, coaxing the tension out of him.

Justin dropped his head, and Brian kissed his forehead. “If you’d wanted out,” he joked, “you would have gone somewhere. . .”

“Without meddling friends,” Justin finished.

“I was going to say a bigger bed,” Brian corrected as he shifted around, trying to get comfortable. His hand drifted down to Justin’s ass, and he gave it a quick squeeze.

“You are not fucking me in Hunter’s bed.”

“Fine,” Brian grumbled, but he could hear the exhaustion in Justin’s voice. “You can fuck me in it tomorrow.”

“First thing, before the pancakes,” Justin promised, turning onto his back and pulling Brian with him.

Brian started to protest, but sighed instead when Justin began stroking his hand up and down his back. He wrapped his arm around Justin’s waist, keeping him close, and tucked his face into Justin’s neck. He kissed the soft skin just below Justin’s ear, feeling the steady beat of his pulse against his lips. Justin’s hand settled on his hip and soon the sound of his breathing had lulled Brian to sleep.

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