The End Justifies the Means

Chapter 13 - Hospitals and Holidays

Brian and Justin seemed to relish their new-found connection. Neither had ever experienced a relationship where there was no mystery…except in bed. Justin had discovered a couple of very creative porn sites and decided to see if they were accurate by checking out each and every position with Brian.

While Brian didn’t like being thought of as a guinea pig, he certainly felt that he shouldn’t impede Justin’s creativity and went along with these adventures in porn research.

After one particularly exhausting experiment Brian couldn’t help but remark, “Hey, Sunshine, don’t you think we should save something for the honeymoon.”

“Getting tired Old Man,” Justin laughed through his heavy breathing.

“I just don’t want your creative juices to run dry before we’re actually married. Remember this is going to be one marriage where sex is ALWAYS a priority.”

“I think my creative juices amongst other fluids will be just fine, but thanks for caring.” Justin patted Brian’s cheek and smirked. Brian simply swatted his hand away and rolled Justin over for another round of slightly less creative activities…yet equally inspiring.

Their secret engagement-not-to-be-fucked-up-by-friends, as they jokingly put it, was definitely a welcome inspiration for both men.
 

*~*~*~*~*
 

It had been several days and the two had spent a great deal of time visiting Michael and Ben in the hospital. There seemed to be quite a bit of trouble balancing Ben’s medications. And his now diagnosed pneumonia was causing an added complication that had been aggravated due to its resistance to typical antibiotics.

Brian and Justin had also taken one clandestine trip to New York City to collect the few clothes and belongings that Justin kept at Jill’s apartment and move them to the place that Brian had rented. While he felt that a purchase might be in their future, renting was good enough for the first year. This way they could explore different neighborhoods in the city and decide where they would be most comfortable on their occasional visits.

All of Justin’s stray art supplies were also moved out, and placed into his studio’s locked cabinet. His studio mates were pleased that he’d still be working there on and off for a while, because they thought it might bring them some much wanted attention. Justin was happy to oblige.

With the last bit of his clothes and coffee cup packed Brian looked on as Justin bid farewell to Jill and her apartment. All she did was laugh and say, “You know I’ll check out all your shows and get all the gossip about you from Daphne. Besides it’s nice to see you like this.”

“Like what?”

“With a smile on your face. There were only two times you really smiled since you moved in, each time was associated with Brian’s visits. No wonder so much of your work here was in gloomy, non-colors. It reflected you. This guy,” she continued as she pointed to Justin and glanced at Brian simultaneously, “is a whole lot more fun to have around than the one I was living with.” This time Jill pointed to Brian, “And you better keep him smiling or Daphne and I will gang up together and haunt you.”

Brian smiled, “You know I actually would be afraid of the two of you. Sunshine, how do you find these incredibly devoted fag hags? I swear, they’d fucking kill for you.”

“I guess it’s my warm and charming nature.”

“Uh huh, maybe I’ll get to see that warm and charming side soon. I’m still looking for it.”

“Fuck you.”

“My pleasure.”

“Hey, straight girl in the room. And while the opportunity to watch porn live does have its appeal, I’m trying to reclaim this place and cleaning cum off the floor is not part of the plan.”

“I like this girl, we’ll have to stay in touch,” Brian added for good measure as he kissed Jill on the cheek, picked up one of Justin’s bags, put his other arm around Justin and led him out the door.

 

*~*~*~*~*
 

Back in Pittsburgh, Brian and Justin remained at the loft and just made occasional visits to Britin. They both loved the quiet and peace of the house in West Virginia but too much was happening with their friends and they felt the need to stay close. West Virginia and Britin weren’t going anywhere and the hope was that Ben would soon be on the road to recovery.

On the sixth day after Ben’s hospital admission Brian’s phone rang. He was at Kinnetik going over some new boards that the art department had reworked as per his specifications for a very special, local client. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Debbie on the phone.

“Hey, Deb.”

“Brian, I think you should get Sunshine and come to the hospital.”

“We were going to meet at the diner for lunch and then go over right after that. Should we skip lunch?” Brian asked, feeling anxious and concerned.

“Honey, can you do take-out? And maybe bring something here for Michael and Hunter. The doctor said something about a crossroad and they could use having you guys around.”

“Sure, Deb. I’ll call the diner, get Justin and we’ll pick up the food and be there in less than half an hour.”

“Thank you,” was all Deb could say and Brian knew that this was not a good sign.

He reopened his phone and called Justin. “Hey.”

“Hey, to you too. What’s up, aren’t we seeing each other in an hour? Did you miss me that much?” he laughed unaware.

“Justin, I need to pick you up. Then we’re going to get a take-out order from the diner and head over to Allegheny General.”

“Fuck,” was the only response and both men disconnected.

At the hospital Brian approached Michael slowly as he was seated at Ben’s bedside with his head down on the bed rail. He looked like he was sleeping. Brian placed his hand on his friends shoulder gently and Michael turned his head towards Brian, wiping his puffy, reddened eyes as he did.

“This can’t happen. I’m not ready, it’s not his time, I just know it’s not,” was all Michael could utter as he found himself enveloped in Brian’s strong arms.

“Remember last time?” Brian asked.

“What?”

“Michael, listen to me, are you listening?” Brian took Michael’s face gently in his hands and forced him to look directly at him.

“I’m listening, what are you talking about?”

“Last time when Ben was in the hospital it looked like he wouldn’t wake up but he did.”

“So…”

“So, back then Ben only had you in his life and that was it, and it hadn’t been for that long, either. But think of all he has to live for now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Remember when I found out I had cancer?”

“Yeah.” Brian had Michael’s attention with that.

“I wasn’t sure I wanted to go through with the surgery and live through the pain of recovery, if I recovered.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“The option of surgery was still mine and for a while I wasn’t sure I’d take it.” Michael nodded at Brian knowing how his friend had played roulette many times with his life. “But then Lindsay brought Gus for a visit, and then you showed up on my fucking doorstep, and finally Justin was there. He was always there.”

“He really was there, always—and you loved it whether you’d admit it or not.”

“Anyway, I knew that living, even through pain and possible reoccurrence would be worth it… because I had a family that really loved me and even needed me. Ben has that now. Fuck, he has a husband AND a son and even a loud-mouth mother-in-law to round out the group. Keep reminding him Mikey. Don’t let him forget any of that.”

Michael clung tightly to Brian for a moment, “Thank you.”

In the meantime Justin was outside hugging Deb and talking to both she and Hunter. They filled him in on Ben’s progress and Justin decided to have a seat next to Hunter. He shoved a sandwich in his hand and said, “Eat.”

“What the fuck for? To prolong the inevitable?”

“We’re all going to die. Prolonging the inevitable IS the purpose.”

“Very funny, coming from someone who’s as healthy as a fucking horse, and eats like one, too.”

“Well, I do like to eat and enjoy working it off even more.”

Hunter huffed, “With Brian around that must be a worthwhile exercise regimen.”

“Yeah, it is, but that’s not the point.”

“So what is the fuckin’ point?”

“The fucking point is that Ben knows he needs to get well if for no other reason then to show you how HIV positive people can survive and thrive. Get your attitude focused on the future, and that includes Ben and Michael. Don’t let your attitude towards your past ruin what you’ve got now. Fuck, you’ve been adopted by two gay men. That alone is a huge step…for you and the fucking world.”

“How would you know about survival? You went from a cushy home life to Deb to Brian.”

“I think you’re leaving out a few steps but that’s okay. One step that you skipped was having to come back from a bat to the head.”

“Oh shit, I forgot.” Hunter put his head down.

“Well, I’m glad people can finally forget, but don’t forget the lessons from it -- one being that if you work, focus and want something bad enough it can happen. You weren’t around yet, but I actually couldn’t use my painting and drawing hand for a while and nearly lost my career.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah, it really was shit and so is what Ben’s going through. Don’t let him down. Be the son that he always wanted and never thought he could have.”

“I think I am a little hungry.” Justin simply smiled and bit into his own sandwich.

When Brian left Michael in Ben’s room he came out and sat near the small group. After all of them had a small bite to eat, deciding that when Michael was ready he’d come out to them if need be, Deb asked Brian what to do about the store.

“Jennifer has three great prospects for Michael to reopen his store. One of them is just a few doors down from the diner and according to her it’s a hot property. The only reason it’s vacant is that the owner retired with no family to assume his business.”

“So…” Brian asked, hoping she’d get to the point.

“No one can convince Michael to leave the hospital. He even showers here. I don’t want him to miss this opportunity to get his life back and he really may need the store depending on how long it is before Ben gets a full paycheck again. Disability won’t cover all their expenses.”

“You do have a point Deb.”

“Justin you spent a lot of time in Red Cape, you know what’s needed to make a workable shop.”

“Yeah, of course I do.”

“And Deb, didn’t Emmett help set up the shop in the first place.”

“Sure, I was there too.”

“Hunter, my guess is you’ve logged quite a bit of hours in Michael’s store.”

“Duh.”

“Brilliant response kid.”

Justin finally picked up on the flow of thoughts, “Brian, I think I need to make an appointment with my mom for a showing.”

Brian smiled, “You really are a genius, Sunshine. Deb, you call Emmett and get him on stand-by. Any pastry puffs he has to bake will have to be put on hold. I’ll call Ted so he knows he won’t be fired for briefly leaving Kinnetik.”

“Brian, don’t you think that Michael needs us here” Deb asked.

“We’ll take turns here and in the new store. Justin, can you also get my laptop from work? We’ll need to get our wayward comic hero a full stock of comics if he’s going to have a grand opening worth going to.”

“Aye, aye, Rage,” Justin saluted.

“You know it, JT.”

Hunter snorted, “You two are so weird.”

“For now, I’ll stay with Michael and Ben. I’ll also make sure and get some answers from the doctors. I think the more that Michael knows about Ben’s condition, the more in control he’ll feel.” Brian looked at this little group. “Well, what the fuck are you all waiting for? Get your asses in gear.”

As Justin stood up, he kissed Brian on the lips and said, “My ass is always in gear,” and ran out the door opening his cell phone as he went.

 

*~*~*~*~*
 

It was incredible how much better the entire family began to feel. All of them went into action. It almost felt like they were breathing new life into the Novotny-Bruckner family. This was not only a necessity but an act of love.

The place Jennifer had in mind was perfect and Justin wrote a check for the first two months rent as a binder. He also signed the lease agreement with the intention of signing it over to Michael as soon as he was able to deal with it.

From there Ted and Justin got online and started ordering a wide array of comics. Justin even sent an e-mail to Brett Keller and asked what the hottest titles were.

Emmett and Debbie took out their dusters, mops and cleansers and ran roughshod through the entire store. The place was in pretty good condition, but they made it sparkle as only a determined queen and devoted mother could.

In the meantime, Brian was working on a few choice campaigns, remotely, from the hospital. One in particular had captured his interest and he decided to handle it personally. He barked orders to Cynthia and Murphy via cell phone and sent notes and artistic suggestions through Justin, since he could see Brian’s vision perfectly.

 

*~*~*~*~*
 

Michael, with the help of Brian’s not-so-subtle intervention learned from the doctors involved with Ben’s case that they were trying a special combination of antibiotics to clear up the pneumonia. The drugs would wipe him out and might diminish his immune system, but it would only be temporary as they were simultaneously working on mixing the perfect cocktail of drugs for maintaining Ben’s health in the future.

They had learned that he, indeed, had a drug eruption to a drug he’d taken successfully for two years, but now clearly needed to be changed. The good news was that during those two years significantly more and more drugs were being developed to fight the onset of AIDS and to keep those infected under the umbrella of HIV Positive status. Ben was walking a fine line and was very close to crossing it but by one week later the crisis had been averted.

Michael looked at an ever-healthier Ben and kissed him gently. The two were absolutely oblivious to all others, except Hunter, when he made his presence known.

Ben looked so weak, but there was finally a small smile on his face. “Michael.”

“Yes, Ben.” Michael replied as he stroked Ben’s hair off his forehead. He couldn’t stop touching Ben now that he was assured that he would return to good health eventually.

“It’s time we took a vacation.”

Michael looked at him as if he were crazy, “Are you delirious?”

Ben snorted, “No, I mean when I’m back to my old self again, I think it’s time that you and I take a long overdue honeymoon.”

“I thought the bike trip was our honeymoon.”

“That was way too crowded. In March, during Spring Break, let’s leave Hunter with your mom and Carl and how about the two of us give ourselves a real holiday. One that we can treasure.”

“You got it big guy.” Michael gently hugged Ben, “But on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“Don’t ever fucking keep anything from me again—even if you think it’s for my own good! I’m a grown man, Ben, and I need you to consider me an equal partner in this relationship. I know you’re smarter than me and better looking, but…”

Ben put his hand softly over Michael’s mouth, “You’re perfect. And I’ll never treat you as anything less than an equal partner again…I promise.”

“That’s more like it. I love you so much.”

“Me, too, and I plan to stay around loving you for many years to come.”

“Now, that’s what I like to hear.”

“Hey, can anyone come in here or are just husbands allowed?” Hunter called into the room.

“Hey, champ, come on in. How’s school been going?”

“It’ll be okay.”

“What about Calculus?”

“You’ll never believe what I discovered…Ted’s good at math.”

That got a laugh from everyone as the gang started filtering in. As Brian entered, followed by Lindsay, who had dropped Gus off at day care, he added, “He fucking well better be a math genius with all the money I’m entrusting him with,” which got a further chuckle and a blush from Ted.

“So Professor, when are they springing you from this place? You should sue for lack of taste. Drab white on drab white is clearly eye abuse.”

“I’ll ask my lawyer to investigate the case when I’m out of here. Michael do you want to share the good news?”

“Ben is going home in three days. His new balance of HIV meds aren’t giving him any adverse side effects and the pneumonia is GONE!”

“Oh, honey, that’s wonderful!” Debbie yelled and gave Ben a big hug.

“Deb, you’ll have him in traction if you keep that up and then it will fuck up all our plans.” Brian smirked.

“What plans?” Michael asked, his curiosity peaked.

“Well, Michael,” Justin began, “We’ve all been working on a special project. It’s actually been a lot of fun.”

“Ben, do you know anything about this?”

“I’m in the dark.”

“I’m not for once,” Hunter chimed in. “It’s obvious that Michael, oh excuse me, Dad here, needed a new distraction to get back into the world so we supplied it.”

With that Brian and Ted unveiled a series of boards they brought over from Kinnetik. “Two weeks from Friday will be the Grand Opening of ‘All the Rage Comics: Birthplace of Rage, JT & Zephyr’, proprietor, Michael Novotny-Bruckner. Advertising and promotion handled by Kinnetik, Inc.”

“Holy, shit!”

“That’s our Mikey, so eloquent.”

“Where is it?”

“Right near the diner so I can always make sure you’re well fed, honey.”

“What about stock?”

“Done,” declared Justin and Ted.

“It’ll be a lot of work to arrange a Grand Opening.”

“No sweat sweetie, I’m on it. This takes precedent over all those hetero affairs and is much more fun to plan. Now I’ll have to think of the perfect theme, hmmm.”

“Emmett, Rage is the theme.” Brian deadpanned.

“Oh honey, you do not want another Rage party do you?”

Justin laughed, “I can definitely promise that this one will turn out far differently from the last.”

Lindsay smiled and added, “Michael, I’ll help Emmett with the décor, just to keep him in line.” Then she winked.

Brian smiled. It was nice to see the old Lindsay starting to resurface. Ever since their altercation at the loft it looked like she’d woken up to reality and was really moving forward. She even got her job back with Sidney Bloom, as his assistant. He never could get used to the woman he’d hired when Lindsay had abruptly decided to leave less than a year before.

“Ben, do you believe all this?” Michael couldn’t fathom what was happening.

“You know Michael, this makes it all worth while.”

“What?”

“Being here, being alive, to see you and your family is worth everything.”

“Our family.” Michael took Ben’s face between his hands and kissed him passionately.

“Mikey, not in front of the children!” Brian snorted and covered Hunter’s eyes.

“Fuck off, asshole,” Michael and Ben said simultaneously and the light-hearted mood continued.
 

*~*~*~*~*
 

Later that night when Justin and Brian were alone in the loft having dinner, Justin cupped Brian’s face and gently brushed his thumb across Brian’s cheek. “I don’t think I can ever love anyone more than I love you right now.”

“Eating Thai?”

“Don’t be an ass, you know what I mean.”

“Okay. Justin…”

“Yeah?”

“Right back at you.”

Justin smiled and once again Brian was reminded why Debbie called him Sunshine.
 

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