Love Conquers All

Part 2

While Justin was down getting some coffee from the cafeteria, Brian was in his room trying to clear his head. What was he gonna do? How was Brian Kinney supposed to get by if he couldn't even walk? And what about this thing with Justin? How was he supposed to get rid of that stubborn kid? The last thing he wanted was pity. All these months of missing Justin, now he was here and Brian was trying to push him away.

"Well, it doesn't matter. Once Justin remembers what an asshole I am, he'll be long gone!" Brian thought aloud.


Meanwhile, Justin called Ethan. The conversation went worse then he expected.

"What do you mean you're not coming home? Brian’s awake. There’s no reason for you to be at his bedside anymore. He's gonna be just fine!" Ethan screamed at him.

“I can't leave him alone. He's hurting right now. The doctor’s going to run some tests, but he's not sure why Brian doesn't have any feeling in his legs. He needs someone to be here while the tests are done and the results are read," Justin exclaimed, trying to keep the anger out of his voice.

He couldn't figure out why Ethan was so mad. Justin made his decision six months ago, and has stood by that decision. He’d basically closed off that part of his life. Justin hadn't really talked to anyone since the break up except for Michael, and that was just to talk about the comic book. This was different. There was no way Justin was going to walk away from Brian when he needed him.

Ethan sighed in disgust. “If Brian didn't push people away, he’d have enough friends to look after him. He wouldn't need you to hold his hand!”

Justin lost what little control he had. "You don't know what you're talking about. You don't know Brian or anything about his life. I'm here because I want to be. Brian helped me through some of the hardest times in my life and this is my chance to repay him. If that's too hard for you to understand, then maybe you don't know me that well at all!"

Ethan knew that he pushed to hard. It was just so hard to think of Justin sitting by Brian's hospital bed, holding his hand. All anyone had to do was look at the two of them together to know that they were head over heels for each other. Luckily for Ethan, Brian couldn't bring himself to admit his love to Justin. Well whatever the reason, Ethan realized he better make things right before he pushed Justin right back into Brian's arms.

"I'm sorry." Ethan stated. "I'm just tired. I got used to having you next to me at night. When you're not here, I have trouble sleeping. Go, do what you have to do. I'll be here waiting for you."

Justin felt bad for putting Ethan in the mess they were in, but he couldn't leave Brian during one of the worst times of his life. "I'm sorry, too. I'll call you as soon as I know anything." Justin replied.

As Justin hung up the phone he thought he heard Ethan say that he loved him. Justin knew that he wasn't ready to return the sentiment. He may never be ready. Brian was the true love of his life; unfortunately the feelings weren't returned, so Justin was forced to leave. It was the hardest thing he’d ever done, even harder then coming out to his parents, but it had to be done. He managed to get through the last six months by staying away from everyone and everything that reminded him of his life with Brian. Now here he was, right smack in the middle of it all again. Justin just hoped he could break away a second time.


As Justin walked back to Brian's room, he saw Michael, Ted, Emmett, and Ben waiting out in the hallway. His first instinct was to run and hide, but he knew it wasn't an option. He had to face the music eventually, so he might as well get it over with now. Emmett was the first one to notice him. He went racing over to greet him in a warm Emmett-like embrace, causing Justin to realize how much he missed this part of his life.

"Baby, we have missed you so much! How have you been? How's school? How's that adorable guy you have been living with?"

All the questions were left unanswered as soon as Michael and Justin made eye contact. The tension in the air was incredible while everyone waited to see what Michael was gonna do. No one was more surprised then Justin when Michael threw his arms around Justin and said, "He's awake. That's the important thing right now. He was just taken down to have more tests run. So, what's going on? You know Brian. He really hasn't said much, but I could tell something is wrong!"

Justin didn't really want to be the one to break the bad news, but his friends had a right to know what was going on, and it was obvious that Brian wasn't going to be the one to tell them.

"It seems that Brian has no feeling from the waist down," Justin mumbled to the group.

Everyone stood there for a few seconds before Ted broke the silence with "You mean the big bad Brian Kinney is out of commission? I can't believe it. What will Liberty Avenue do?"

Michael's face grew red with anger. "How can you make jokes at a time like this? This is serious! We are talking about Brian's life now!"

Ted hung his head in shame. "You're right. That was a bad joke." Looking at Justin, he asked, "How is he handling it?"

Justin put down the coffee and sat down. "How do you think he's handling it? He tried to throw me out, but I refused to go. He just wants everyone to leave him alone. What he needs to understand is that I'm not going anywhere. He stood by me when I needed him. I need to return the favor. Not out of pity, but because I love him." Justin realized that he said too much so he got up and walked over to look out the windows. A few seconds later, Justin saw Michael's reflection in the window next to him.

"It's okay. We all know how you feel about Brian. I'm just glad you're here for him. We all know that Brian isn't easy to love, but he loves you. I know that much is true. I also know that he hasn't been the same since you left. What you do with that information is up to you. Just remember one thing. Very few people get a second chance in life. We have to get to work. Tell Brian that I'll see him later." And with that, Michael gathered the group and left.


Justin sat there thinking about what Michael said. What did he mean by Brian not being the same since he left? There wasn't much time to dwell on the conversation. Brian was being brought back to his room. The coffee was forgotten.

As soon as Brian was situated, he looked at Justin and said, "What the fuck are you still doing here? I thought you would have been long gone by now?"

Justin sat down in the chair in the corner and stared at Brian. He couldn't help but think back to the first time he saw Brian out on Liberty Avenue. Justin was standing under the street lamp, and as soon as he saw Brian, he felt a jolt that shot right through his body. Justin had never felt anything like it before. The force of it actually scared him a little. It caused what could almost be described as a physical pain at the sheer beauty of the man in front of him. Now over two years have passed, and if anything, Brian is even more beautiful today then he was back then. Justin continued to stare at Brian, until unable to take the silence anymore, Brian lost his temper completely.

"Go away! Go back to your boyfriend and leave me the fuck alone. You made your choice, now go live by it. I'm a big boy and I can take care of myself. I don't need a babysitter!"

Brian was on the verge of losing total control so Justin did the only thing he could think of to calm him down. He got up and left the room. There was no way he was going to leave Brian alone, but Justin figured he could give Brian a few minutes to pull himself together.


After Justin left, Brian sat alone in the room hating the silence. 'Why did I push him away? What was I thinking? If I were honest with myself, I would admit that I really want the kid to stay. Nothing ever seems as bad with Justin by my side.' Brian thought to himself. Exhausted from everything he had been through; Brian fell asleep with thoughts of Justin in his head; just like he had every night since the Rage party.

After a quick walk around the parking lot, Justin went back to the room to find Brian sound asleep. He sat down next to the bed, watching Brian sleep and trying to figure out what he was supposed to do. He didn't want to hurt Ethan, but he didn't love him; not like he loved Brian. And now he knew he never would. But was he supposed to try to get Brian back and settle for what little the man could give him emotionally? Justin was so confused about what to do, but one thing was certain. Justin loved Brian more than ever. All he had to do was figure out what to do about it.


Brian awoke sometime later to find Justin sitting by his bed reading an art magazine. He took those few moments that went unnoticed and thought about what had happened in the final weeks before Justin had moved out. 'He's a big boy; he knows that without a paycheck, there would be no money. And a Hustler? Who wouldn't want a Hustler for their birthday? Okay, maybe I should have bought those roses, but no one’s perfect.' Brian's thoughts were interrupted as the doctor came through the door. Justin put away the magazine and sat on the bed grabbing Brian's hand, only neither one was sure whom Justin was trying to comfort.

"Well Mr. Kinney, as I was reading the test results I saw something very disturbing." The doctor stated his face unreadable. "Apparently due to the force in which you were thrown, you have developed a blood clot at the base of the spine so large, it’s pressing on the nerves in your back causing you to lose feeling in your legs. I want to start you on medication immediately that will hopefully dissolve the blood clot. It will take some time but I do feel that the medication might work."

Justin was the first one to speak. "And if the medication doesn't work? What then?"

The doctor looked rather uncomfortable with his answer. "Then we do surgery to remove the clot. The problem is that not only do you run risk of paralysis with any type of back surgery, but also with a blood clot that large there is always a chance that the clot could rupture in the body. If that were to happen, there would be a possibility that Mr. Kinney would not survive the surgery."

Brian heard a sob escape from Justin. As he looked over, he saw tears run down the kid’s face. There wasn't a lot of time to think about Justin's reaction, so Brian put the image away to think about later.

"Don't worry Mr. Kinney, I'm really hopeful that the medication will work and we won't have to worry about the surgery. Now I need to go make my rounds. If you have any questions, let me know. Otherwise, I'll see you later."

As the doctor turned to leave, Brian spoke up. "When can I get out of here? I need to go home."

After the doctor examined his chart once more he said, "Well, as long as you have someone to take care of you, I don't see any reason to keep you here. Provided that you come in three times a week for some physical therapy and your check-ups, of course."

"What do you mean someone to take care of me? I don't need a babysitter. I can take care of myself!" Brian exclaimed.

"Mr. Kinney, I understand your need to be self sufficient, but right now you have some pretty serious medical problems. You have no feeling in your legs and the last thing you need to do is to fall and cause more trauma to your back. Unless you can have someone there with you, I can't discharge you. I'm sorry."

The doctor braced himself for what was sure to be an all out explosion when Justin stood up and said, "I'll do it! I'll take care of him!"


No one was more shocked then Brian. "No, that's not going to work. I'll get Mikey. He'll do it. You go back to your boyfriend. I'll be fine."

Justin ignored the pain he felt from Brian's brush off. What did he expect after what happened with Ethan? But this was his chance to make up for all that went wrong. They may not be able to be a couple, but they could at least be friends.

"Brian, listen to me. Mikey has the comic book store. He can't be there for you but I can. Let me do this for you. After everything you’ve done for me, it's the least I can do. Please?"

Brian could not believe what he was hearing. Justin wanted to move in with him? Take care of him? What about Ethan? No, Brian thought. This was not an option. There was no way Justin could move back in the loft. Brian knew that what worried him most was how hard it would be to let Justin go once he was better. It was hard enough to watch him walk away six months ago. Letting him go a second time would surely kill him.


But before Brian got a chance to say anything, Ethan walked through the door with a smug look on his face. Brian could not believe the nerve of the man. To walk in there after everything that happened was not only low but also very stupid on Ethan's part.

"Justin," Ethan began, "I was sitting at home waiting for you and I decided I’d just come by to get you. I thought we could grab something to eat on the way home." As the last words were spoken, Ethan glared over at Brian. "Hello Brian. I'm glad to see you're awake. You had us all worried. Justin and I have been praying for your recovery. Since you seem to be feeling so much better, I'm sure you don't expect Justin to sit by your bedside anymore. We can just be on our way. I'm sure we'll see you around."

Brian had to use every ounce of willpower he had to keep his cool. 'How dare he come in here and talk to me like that. I think he needs to be taught some manners. And I'm just the man to do it, Brian thought to himself before shocking everyone in the room with his next statement. "Sorry Ethan, but you're a little too late. Justin just agreed to move in with me. Didn't you, Justin?"


End of Part 2
 

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