-
Something, an iota of sanity, snapped inside Corey, unlocking the potential for something inside him that he didn't fully understand. Shaking with anger, unable to sleep, awful thoughts, vengeful, violent, terrible thoughts ricocheted across the walls of his mind, almost scaring Corey with their ferocity. He did what he did best, he schemed. He schemed, then schemed some more. By the time the sun rose, Corey had a web of plans and contingencies burned into his brain, ready to be set into action if necessary. It was only then that he could find the sanctuary of sleep. You'd better be ready, Andy. No one steals Brian away from me.
--
Present Day, Saturday
Brian's eyes snapped open, a familiar noise waking him up. Was that my phone? He shot up, fidgeting with his phone, sleepiness vanishing from his head when he saw that the text was from Andy.
We need to talk. Meet me at the Starbucks. Christine, Brian, and Garret are here, but don't worry, I've made them promise, they'll leave us alone. Trust me.
"I trust you…" Brian whispered, closing his phone.
"That was Andy?" Corey asked casually, kicking aside his sheets to stretch out. There was a strain in his voice, but he tried his best to hide it. He didn't get as much sleep as he would have liked.
Brian tensed instinctively at the voice, forgetting that Corey was only a few feet away from him the entire time. Lying was pointless by this time, and he was really tired of giving him the silent treatment.
"Yeah. He wants to talk to me. It sounds important. I don't think it'll take too long."
"Happy Birthday, by the way. You're legal." Corey interjected, sounding slightly irate, despite the happy news.
Brian blinked, then slapped his head. Shit, I forgot? Of course it's my birthday! I'm eighteen! "Thanks," he said curtly, getting up to take a quick shower before leaving.
Corey growled, running in front of him, barricading his way.
"Get out of my way," Brian said impatiently, not wanting to hold up Andy more than he had to.
-
"No. We're settling things, right now. What the fuck gives you the right to be angry at me?! So I used to be friends with Brian, what the hell does that matter? It's your birthday, and you're going to leave me again to spend time with him? Brian, I'd hate to say it, but it needs to be said. You were the one who was practically cheating on me."
A vein pulsed visibly in Brian's neck, and Brian was filled with a rage that he wasn't aware that he could feel towards Corey. He shoved Corey backwards, but Corey managed to stay upright, unbelieving that Brian would actually use violence against him.
"What was that for?" Corey demanded.
Brian came up to him, using his slight height advantage to loom over Corey. "Do you want to know why? Why, that day, I threw up every time anyone touched me?"
Corey met his eyes, expecting to see fury, but he only saw sadness and hurt. He kept his resolve, nodding. He needed to know.
"It's because that night, the only person I could see, the only person I could imagine when we had sex was Andy. I couldn't help it, and I didn't want it to happen. It just did."
"What does that have to do with any of this?" Corey threw back. That confession didn't faze him, he assumed as much after witnessing Brian's little dream that night. "So why are you angry at me?"
"I'm angry because I felt guilt. I felt so guilty that it literally tore my insides apart. How can I ever sleep with you again if I can't even see you when we're making love? Every time you touched me, I wanted that to be Andy, and that made me hate myself. I never stopped loving you, not even a little bit."
"I must be retarded," Corey snapped sarcastically, "because I still don't get what any of this has to do with me."
Brian laughed derisively in Corey's face, small beads of saliva escaping his mouth. "You don't get it? I felt guilt when I was being unfaithful. You've been talking with Brian about our lives and who knows what else behind my back for months! You never told me, and I know you well enough to know that you didn't feel bad about it."
Corey found that he lost the ability to throw together a comeback, mostly because what Brian said was completely true. He never once felt guilty for talking to Brian behind Brian's back. Not once.
"I knew it," Brian huffed, sidestepping around Corey to reach the shower.
Corey didn't even bother to put on clothes, seating himself on his couch, silent, thoughtful. I never felt guilty… Brian doesn't want to have sex with me because he wants to be faithful to me. I'm such a fool…
The bathroom door slammed open, Brian stepping out, throwing on some clothes before stomping out. Even from all the way up in his room, Corey could hear Brian's tires squeal as his car shot out of the pad.
Corey slapped himself in the face to snap out of it, realizing that he had to act. He raced to put on clothes, heading out to his own car, ready to put an impromptu plan into action.
--
Corey managed to catch up to Brian's car, pulling into a spot right next to his Lexus, running to beat Brian inside, before he managed to talk to Andy. He needed to make a scene; he had a point to make. He had a Brian to win over.
Brian barely took two steps into the store, before every single eye was pointed towards him. Or rather, two steps to his right, where a hysterical looking Corey sprinted in, once again impeding Brian's path.
Corey didn't have too many sources of inspiration for what he was about to do, but he thought about his wedding dream. It was desperate, but he didn't have too many other options. He would have to force Brian's hand. Everyone in the restaurant gasped when Corey kneeled in front of Brian, taking his right hand in his hands.
Brian's eyes darted around nervously, in utter disbelief that Corey was willing to make this much of a scene. To his horror, he saw Christine in the midst, mouth agape.
"Brian," Corey said loudly, clearly, brimming with sincerity and confidence. "I am so sorry. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, you're my light, my joy, my reason to live. Today, when you left, I had my first taste of what life would be like if you weren't there to spend it with me, and I realized that I could never let that happen. There would be no Corey without a Brian. I know this isn't the most romantic place to be doing this, and I know that you're still furious at me. You don't have to answer me now. Brian Anthony Mannus… I love you. Will you make me the happiest man on Earth and be my husband?"
The crowded Starbucks was silent, all eyes on this bizarre scene unfolding before them. Brian was in shock, his skin crawling, hating these eyes everywhere, hating that Corey would do this to him, here. A few people in the store started murmuring to each other, a low din of noise clouding Brian's judgment and resolve. There has to be a chance we can fix this. He'll have to understand…
"No," Brian scoffed, pulling Corey up to his feet. He was trying his best to put on the arrogant face he maintained at school. He needed to be convincing. "Quit joking around, Corey. I'll catch you at home. I won't be long here." He patted Corey's back, pushing him subtly towards the doorway.
No one managed to see Corey's face as he stumbled, lifelessly, out of the door. No one except for Andy and Brian, both following Corey's walk to his car, which pulled out of the parking lot, speeding away.
Andy flashed Brian a meaningful look, and he nodded in assent. He saw Corey's face, too. The color was totally drained from Corey's face, a twisted, shocked, shattered expression frozen to his face, the ghastly pallor accentuating its gruesomeness. Brian, on the other hand, looked smug, almost pleased with himself as he took his usual seat, waiting for Andy to arrive as promised.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Whatever scene Corey tried to make at the Starbucks dissolved the moment that he stepped out of the store, business reverting to normal as Brian sat down.
"Go ahead and start, but wait for my signal," Andy whispered, nodding to the rest of his friends, especially Brian, as he shook the phantom of image of Corey's face out of his head, taking the seat opposite of Brian.
"What was
the huge emergency?" Brian asked, drumming his fingers impatiently against the table.
"First off, I have to ask. What was that all about?"
Brian sighed, clearing his head, knowing that he probably made a mistake. But Corey should have known better than to put him on the spot like that. "Things aren't going so well at home. I'll apologize to him later. More reason for whatever this to hurry along."
"Please don't get mad about what I'm about to say, Brian told me everything he knew, which he assures was everything Corey told him. I know that you and Corey are the only people who know the whole story."
"Get on with it," Brian prodded, a fresh needle of irritation pricking his side from hearing Brian's name.
"You left everything, your family, your friends, your entire old life, to be with Corey, to submit to what the school wanted, right? You didn't want to hurt them anymore, because you couldn't be everything that everyone wanted you to be?"
Brian's eyes glazed over, remembering regretfully his decisions from the past. "What of it?"
Andy furrowed his eyebrows. He thought that just saying Brian's intentions out loud would be enough to get him to realize how stupid they sounded. "Brian, what if I promised you that you could have the best of both worlds? I can help you, Brian, if you let me. I've spoken to everyone. What do you have to lose if you just make peace with them?"
Brian scoffed, the idea seeming impossible to him. "I don't want them. And I don't want them to want me. I'm only there to hurt them; I can't bring myself up to their standards. I'm not that good of a person."
Andy shook his head, seeing that there was no chance to get through to him like this. He decided to try a different tactic. "Brian, do you love Corey?"
"More than anyone, more than myself," Brian admitted, without a moment of hesitation.
"What would you do if he decided to leave you? Answer me honestly, please, I need to hear you say it."
"I…" Brian mumbled. He's given the topic some thought before, but even thinking about something like that gave him physical pain. "I would do anything it takes to get him back."
"And if you couldn't?" Andy prompted, feeling a breakthrough about to arrive.
"I… would kill myself," Brian stated matter-of-factly, the idea seeming so easy if he imagined himself in that situation.
"So how do you think your parents felt?"
Brian sat in stunned silence for a moment, not sure how to answer that question. Did I really do that to them? He slowly slumped into his chair, a teardrop slowly descending from his eye. I did that to all of them… His eyes grew wide, and he shot to his feet. I can't let that happen to Corey!
During their conversation, Brian didn't notice the normal patrons of the store start to file out individually, the store slowly emptying until only people he knew remained. When Brian stood up, he wiped his eyes clear, staring confused around the now almost empty store.
Andy smiled broadly, giving them the signal. "Guys, Brian's back!"
-
Brian heard a noise that he was once very familiar with; the sound of Christine screeching. He turned in the direction of the scream, only to see a very hysterical brunette attach herself to him, crying hysterically. He held out his arms open for a moment, afraid to touch her, and then submitted, returning her embrace.
"I missed you…" Christine whispered, still crying from happiness.
Brian couldn't say the same thing back, and that made him feel terrible. Over these months, he had methodically erased his old life from his active memory. No more… I can make up for what I've done. "Why is the store empty, where did everyone go?"
Brian stepped forward, his face shining with self pride. "I pulled a few strings… and I bought out the store for an hour or so."
Brian didn't show any signs of understanding, so Brian whistled loudly. From his signal, the doors to the back of the store opened. Brian immediately understood, seeing his own parents emerge first, both holding onto a large cake that brandished the words, "Happy Birthday, Brian! Welcome back!" Behind them, the parents of his friends emerged, wearing goofy birthday hats and carrying noise makers and party crackers.
Brian immediately felt a weight that he didn't know existed lift off of his chest, his only desire right now was to hug the life out of his parents. They put the cake down, and he ran to them, incoherently babbling apologies as he squeezed the both of them in his arms.
"Son… you've gotta give us a bit more breathing room than that," Richard Mannus joked hesitantly. "Have you been working out? There won't be much parent left to miss if you keep hugging us like that."
Brian laughed, letting them go. The only thing that could make this moment better was if Corey could be here to enjoy it with him. But I pushed him away…
The rest of the party crowd closed in around Brian and his parents, smothering them all in a group hug full of laughter. Brian pulled away from the mass of people, unsure what to do with himself. Andy was way ahead of him, already done setting the cake with eighteen candles, lit and ready for him to blow out.
Brian was embarrassed, but he missed being embarrassed like this, it felt good. The group sang him "Happy Birthday" as badly as a huge group could be expected to, and he eagerly blew out the candles, his only wish was to be able to share even just half what he was feeling right now with Corey. It was way too much happiness for just one person.
The party guests cheered as he blew out the candles, and Brian looked across the table to a smiling Andy. He did all of this… for me. He approached Andy purposefully, every eye in the store on him.
Before Andy could object, Brian grabbed him by his head, smashing their lips together, forcing his tongue into his mouth for a prolonged kiss. Andy quit struggling in less than a second, easing himself into the kiss, returning it with equal ferocity. Their tongues danced for what seemed like hours, the people around them dissolving into an indiscernible blur.
The silence ended as they parted, out of breath, the people around them either cheering or aww-ing. Brian gave Andy a chaste kiss on the lips before pulling away. He panted, staring into Andy's eyes appreciatively. "Thank you, for everything. That was one hell of a kiss."
Andy nodded in agreement, his chest heaving too.
"That's our first and last," Brian stated, and Andy nodded in agreement again.
--
As the party ended, Brian hugged everyone goodbye before racing out of the parking lot. I have to apologize for everything, I have to tell him the good news!
He was initially disappointed though, noticing that Corey's car wasn't in its usual spot. He parked nevertheless, calling for him in the house before taking a look around. He pulled out his phone, calling Corey's cell phone number, frowning when he immediately reached his voice mail. His phone is off? He left a short message just asking for him to come home, before retiring to their bed.
He raised an eyebrow, seeing a simple white greeting card standing vertically on his side of the bed. Noticing that there was no writing on the outside, he opened it. It was in Corey's handwriting. He read the note, something about it causing a cold shiver to run up his spine.
"Happy Birthday, love. I'm out getting your gift. I'm sorry I can't be here right now, with you. I just wanted you to know that I forgive you, for everything. I hope you'll forgive me."
--
It was ironic that Brian was the first person to leave his own birthday party. Andy assured everyone that Brian had something really important he had to do, though. Everyone helped to clean up, and before Andy knew it, the store looked like a normal Starbucks again on a busy Saturday afternoon.
Andy's parents congratulated him, and his mother flashed him a special wink. He laughed, knowing exactly what she was thinking. "We're not like that, Mom… it's a long story."
"That look on your face disagrees with you," she commented, before following Andy's father and brother to their car.
Brian's parents were confused by everything, especially that impromptu display of affection for Andy, but Andy reas
sured them that Brian would probably fill them in later. They trusted him, and besides, they already owed him everything. They each gave him an appreciative hug before departing as well.
"Well, Andy, took a birch-load of effort, but you did good work here," Brian congratulated. "Christine and I are going to head out to her place; I haven't had a day off in forever."
Garret raised his eyebrow, Christine and Brian hastily retreating before he decided to comment. "I guess it's just you and me," he said.
Despite being in a crowded store, Andy still felt unusually awkward around this last particular person. "For the first time since we broke up." He's my last loose end. "Listen… do you want a drink? I've got a discount, it's on me."
"I'm sorry, Andy," Garret blurted out. Andy looked at him in the eyes, but he knew that if Garret wanted to keep something a secret, it stayed a secret. He just had to take his word for it. It wasn't like Garret to be dishonest.
"I already forgave you," Andy said quietly. "Remember? I do that, it's just who I am. Still think it was a mistake to forgive Brian?"
Garret sighed, knowing when even his nearly infinite intuition was defeated. "No, I don't. I don't know how you do it; you always bring out the best in people," he said, holding out his hand for a handshake.
Andy smiled, remembering what Brian did the first time he tried that. I think I'll take a leaf from your book this time. He slapped the hand aside, hugging Garret instead.
"Come on, we have a lot of catching up to do."
--
"I'll be right back, I have to freshen up, and I'll make some popcorn, too," Christine said, heading upstairs.
'I'm actually dating her…' Brian thought happily, watching the DVD menu animations patiently, waiting for Christine to come back.
Just as he was about to settle into the couch, his phone started to ring. I don't recognize the number… who could it be?
"Hello?" Brian asked, ready to hang up if it was just a solicitor.
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