Rapture

Author's Note: Thank you very much to dottie_jane for helping me out with this.

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Sometimes Justin thought the thing he missed most about Pittsburgh was Liberty Avenue. It wasn’t that he didn’t miss Brian with a bone deep ache that never went away or that if a waitress patted him on the cheek, he wasn’t crushed when he looked up and it wasn’t Debbie. He still ran out the door with half-finished, insane ideas for Rage before he realized Michael was more than a bus ride away. But the people he’d left behind were as stubborn as he was, so between phone calls, emails, and visits they never faded from his life. But Liberty Avenue’s existence was confined to a few blocks in Pittsburgh, and there was simply no way to recreate how being there made Justin feel.

It wasn’t that there weren’t plenty of gay friendly areas in New York, but they weren’t the same. None of them held the memory of seeing Brian for the first time or the joy of celebrating Stockwell's defeat or even the pain of seeing how deep his father’s prejudice ran and realizing he could never go home again. Those moments belonged to Liberty Avenue, and New York couldn’t replace them.

Every time he came home, Justin made a point of walking from the diner to Michael’s store. He made time for Woody’s, Babylon, and the many alleys he and Brian had sucked and fucked and groped in. Brian teased him about what he called his “nostalgia tours,” but he joined Justin more often than not.

A warm spring evening had become a chilly spring night by the time they stumbled out of Babylon. “Christ, we practically need a cab back to the car,” Brian bitched as they began the long walk to the other end of Liberty Avenue where Justin had convinced him to park.

“It’s not that far.” Justin bumped his shoulder and grinned up at Brian before reaching for his hand.

Brian rolled his eyes, but entwined his fingers with Justin’s before shoving both their hands into the pocket of his leather coat. “The longer it takes us to get to the car the longer we have to wait before we can fuck.”

Now it was Justin’s turn to roll his eyes. “I just sucked you off in the backroom. We aren’t fucking before we get home.”

“You sure about that?”

Justin found himself pressed against the nearest building, Brian standing as close as he could without actually touching him. “I know I can get it up again. What about you, Sunshine?” Brian traced the shape of Justin’s cock in his jeans as he whispered in his ear.

“Convince me,” Justin challenged before winding his arms around Brian’s neck and pulling him down for a kiss. They’d been kissing all night so there was nothing frantic or urgent in the kiss. Their mouths slid together, lips parted and wet, making small noises each time they pulled apart that seemed much louder in the quiet of the night. Justin teased Brian with his tongue, running it across his lips or pressing just inside his mouth before pulling back. He felt Brian smile before he followed with his own tongue.

Brian pulled Justin closer and rolled their hips together. Neither of them was completely hard, but it still felt good, and Justin couldn’t help moaning a little. Brian did it again before stepping back and raising his eyebrow in obvious question.

Justin shook his head, “More.”

Brian sighed dramatically but resumed the kiss. Bringing his hands up to frame Justin’s face, he teased his mouth open with soft kisses, ending each one with a gentle tug on his lips. By the time Brian swept his tongue into his mouth, Justin felt completely boneless as though he melted into Brian and only Brian’s hands and mouth were keeping him upright.

When Justin tilted his head back to give Brian’s wandering lips access to his neck, he was shocked to feel raindrops on his face. His eyes flew open, and he heard Brian laugh at what he knew was a look of surprise on his face. It had been raining long enough for the rain to seep into Brian’s hair, and fat droplets ran off the ends of it. Justin caught one with his finger, holding it up to the glow of the streetlight as it dissolved against his skin.

Brian captured the finger with his teeth, sucking it into his mouth and licking the rain away. Their eyes met as Brian released his finger, and Justin forgot all about the rain. Then, Brian leaned forward and began to lick and kiss the rain from his face one drop at a time. Justin’s fingers continued to toy with Brian’s hair as the warmth of Brian’s mouth and tongue worked to chase away the chill of the rain.

Justin almost giggled when he felt Brian’s lips against his eyelids, his tongue swiping across his lashes, clearing them of the raindrops he’d felt gathering there. But his eyes opened at the contact and the expression on Brian’s face froze the laughter in his throat. Brian’s gaze was open and loving in a way that he only allowed when he was a little buzzed, but mostly just happy. Justin scanned Brian’s face intently and traced his smile with his fingers, wanting to memorize this look for the nights he went to bed alone.

When Brian looked like he was about to say something, Justin shook his head and brought their mouths together again. The rain was forgotten and they held each other tightly and let the kiss become more passionate as they rubbed against each other. Brian had just begun to work the button of Justin’s jeans when a group of people rushing to the nearby bus stop approached loudly, breaking the mood.

They broke apart reluctantly and resumed their walk to the car. They still didn’t hurry despite Brian’s constant bitching about what the rain was doing to his hair and his leather jacket. Finally Justin told him if he didn’t shut up, the only thing he’d be fucking in the shower was his own hand. It was an empty threat, made without any heat, but Brian pretended to believe him, and the rest of the walk was silent except for the sound of the rain and their laughter as they tried to dodge puddles without letting go of each other’s hands.

Six months later, Darren opened Liberty Avenue’s first five-star restaurant. Located several blocks from Babylon and the other clubs, Darren hoped his establishment would bring back people who left Liberty Avenue when they grew tired of quick hook-ups or wanted a night out that didn’t involve tweaked out party boys. Or at least that’s what his “silent” partner Emmett told anyone who would listen.

Justin made it to the opening night. It was a beautiful fall evening, and Justin convinced Brian to leave the Corvette near Babylon so they could walk to the restaurant. As they made their way along Liberty Avenue, they passed several of the restaurant's large advertisements designed, of course, by Kinnetik. When he saw the first poster, Justin knew Darren would have all the business he could handle. They were both sexy and sophisticated, featuring a black and white photo, a grainy and slightly out of focus close up of a man’s profile. His lips were parted and his eyes half-closed in anticipation of a kiss. The restaurant's name, “Rapture,” was scrawled in elegant script across at an angle drawing even more attention to the raindrops glistening in his eyelashes.

The front doors of Rapture were framed by even larger versions of the poster, echoing its history as a theater. “So what do you think?” Brian asked, coming to stand behind Justin when he paused on the front steps.

Justin leaned back into Brian’s embrace and continued to study the ads. “I think they’re beautiful.” The he looked around at the people, couples mostly, passing by them on their way into the restaurant. A quieter, less vivid crowd than you found closer to Babylon, but no less interesting. It was still Liberty Avenue, and it still felt like home. “This is good, what Darren’s doing,” he continued.

Brian had come to stand beside him. He shrugged at Justin’s last comment, but he didn’t object, and he reached for Justin’s hand as they continued up the steps. Just as they walked inside, a few rain drops began to fall. Neither of them minded the thought of walking back in the rain.

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