Brian's POV I lay spread out; sitting at one end of a yellowish tan couch with an ice cold, cheap cut packaged streak resting over my left eye. The coldness has burned the side my face into a state of numbness. With my good eye, I stare forward at the darkened T.V. screen, discreetly watching blondie’s reflection. Justin sits curled up at the other end of the hand-me-down couch. With his knees tucked beneath him, he rests his left elbow on arm of the couch supporting the side of his face. His other hand plays with the stupid ring which caused the damage to my face. Boy, don’t we make a miserable sight as we wait for Michael to return. I smirk. I can almost hear a Michael's rattled whiny voice berating Justin for messing up my gorgeous face. That should be fun to watch. Well, it will until he finds out the reason that the brat felt slugging me was in order. Then we will both be in the dog house. I wonder which one of us he would be angrier with. But in my defense, this could be construed as Michael's fault. He knows what I'm like, and he should know better than to leave a hot little boy toy with me. Mikey was only asking for trouble. Besides, like I said, gay men can't be faithful when it comes to relationships. Justin allowing me to kiss him that first time in the kid’s room proves my point. Sooner or later they will cheat on each other; it’s just a matter of time. How those two managed to get this far is beyond my understanding. Shit, the way these idiots think about love almost makes them a perfect pair. Intellectually of course – they both probably have about three brain cells between them. They’re fuckin’ starry eyed school boys, if you ask me. I finish off the few swigs of beer that linger in my bottle which, coincidently happens to be the last of the alcohol in the apartment. Fan-fuckin’-tastic. Justin and I started consuming the small stash of sorted liquors after we left the bathroom. I'm not drunk, well, not drunk enough that is. I mean, I still have a conscious state of mind here, but I'm not sober either. Though, I’m probably more sober than blondie over there – he’s looking a little green. I run my right hand through my hair, all the way down to nape of my neck and clench my fist around a good sized tuft of it. As my grip lets up, I heave a deep sigh and turn my head in Justin's direction. I really shook up the young man, which wasn't my intention. Well . . . okay I meant to shake him up a bit. He needed some help getting back to earth. I hadn’t planned on him reacting that way. But I like the way he struggled against me. Fighting enables the facts of life in our reality. Maybe I have taken it a step too far. Too far? Nah . . . I merely nudged him in the right the direction. Still, I almost want reach over and hold him. Now what the hell is that all about? Justin's POV Listening to every tick of the Spider Man clock, the annoying sound echoing through my brain, I wait anxiously for my fiancé to get back. I’m dreading it and looking forward to it at the same time. Now how much sense does that make? Michael should have been back by now and I’m beginning to worry. Feeling his eyes burning into me, I fear Brian is about to speak to me. I really don't give a shit what that asshole has to say. This is his entire fucking fault. I wish I never met him, that he wasn't such an important part of Michael's life. Frankly, I wish he would just go the fuck away. Before I give him a chance to utter a word, I get up and shoot him an icy glare, and then make my way to the bedroom. I flop myself down on the bed and reach over to the nightstand to retrieve the phone. Calling Michael’s cell phone first, I only receive his voice mail, so I hang up with a sigh. His cell must dead again. How many times must I tell him to recharge it? Michael always has a problem keeping the battery alive. Christ, I hope he didn’t loose the re-charger – again. Rolling my eyes, I quickly phone Debbie's, only to get the answering machine. Lovely. Michael must be on his way home. Emitting a sigh of relief, the contents of my stomach begin to swirl angrily, causing me to regret having a few drinks with Brian. Hanging up, I head over to the window seat not wanting to go back in the living room. I open the window and a pleasant breeze nips across my exposed skin. I welcome the air into my lungs as I take in a deep breath. Brain's POV As soon as blondie had disappeared into his bedroom, I fought off the urge to get up and follow him. I figure he needs some space, but after a few minutes I wonder if he was going to hide in the bedroom until Michael gets home. Taking a moment or two longer, I finally make my way over to their bedroom. The door is open a crack, so I take that as an open invitation, and poke my head only to find that Justin is nowhere in sight. I push the door the rest of the way open and walk in. "Justin?" I utter into the empty room. I check the closet and under the bed, the only real hiding places in the room. Nothing. Well, not nothing. Both areas are jam packed with Mikey’s comic crap. I wonder if Justin has anything of his own. I rub my chin. "Where the hell did he go?" A cool wind whispers the answer to me. Justin's POV Lighting up a cigarette, I close my eyes inhaling the bitter sweet toxins into my body and instantly my mind is briefly swept up in moment of peace. Leaning over the ledge of the roof, I watch the hustle and bustle of activity going on below me, and soon, lose my mind in an abyss of nothing. My heart skips a beat when I realize someone is behind me. I turn around looking for Michael, but I find Brian instead. Great. Now what? Staring at him, as he heads over to me and takes my cigarette – which is about down to the bud – we silently look down to ground below. After he finishes the last my cigarette, he smashes it side of ledge and flicks it over. I watch until it fades from sight. I sigh, a look of distain at his actions passing over my face. He snorts, chuckling softly, and digs in his pocket, obviously searching for something. Brian's POV I fish up a joint. "Lighter?" I ask him. He grumbles something under his breath but hands the lighter to me. I simply place the joint between my lips lean towards him. With a roll of his eyes, Justin lights it and then starts to walk back to the fire escape. "Nice hiding place you got here." He stops and turns around. "I wasn't hiding . . . I . . . I just needed some fresh air, that’s all." I smirk. "I see . . . Well, you were looking a little green inside. Here . . .” I hold the joint out to him. He hesitates for a second. "It isn't going to bite you." He glares at me, and then casually takes it. He inhales it with ease, like an old pro. He sure knows how put on a brave face, I’ll give him that, but the emotions reflecting in his azure eyes betray him. He is scared shit-less. Justin tries to pass the joint back, but I ignore him and climb on top of the ledge. "What are doing?” he asks in a panicked tone. "Standing on the edge of the world. Wanna join me?" "Uh, no thanks," Justin remarks, in a tone that clearly states that he thinks I've lost my mind. And maybe I have. "Why not? Are you scared? Afraid of heights?" I arch an eyebrow. "No . . . but I'm not suicidal either." "That makes two of us. Now get your bubble butt up here," I order and reach my arm back for him. "I promise not to push you over." Justin's POV I have really lost my mind here. But hell, if Brian can do it, then so can I. Swaying dangerously and cursing myself in process, my body wobbles as I attempt to make it safely on the ledge. Brian grabs a hold of me wraps his body around mine, causing me to jump, knocking us both off balance slightly. Luckily, Brian steadies us. I want to tell him to let go of me, but I am afraid I just may fall without him. "Whoa there blondie, just relax before you get us killed," he chuckles in a low, husky voice, his hot breath tickling my ear. I feel a shiver run through my body, and something tells me that it’s not from the temperature outside. Immediately, I brush that thought away. "Before I get us killed?! It was your crazy idea to stand up here," I hiss. "Yeah, but who’s the bigger fool? The original fool or the fool whom follows the fool." God damn it! "Asshole," I mumble under my breath. He snorts softly before resting his chin on my shoulder. I look down at world below me, and I can feel his eyes boring into the side of my face. You know Brian was right; being up here is like standing on the edge of the world. It is kind of amazing. )=( Michael's POV Opening the door and stumbling my way in, I call, "Jus and Bri, I'm home.” Stupid television! Oh, why didn’t I just let Justin go fix it? I wasted over two hours and still didn’t get the damn thing to work. Now, he'll have to make a trip out there tomorrow or should I say later today. "Guys, I'm home!" Where are they? "I said I'm home! Justin! Brian?" Okay, now this starting to weird me out. I feel like I'm in some b graded horror film. Any second, the killer is going . . . "Justin, Brian! Come on, guys, where are you," I say, though it comes out more like a whine. "This isn't funny. I'm sorry for ditching the two of you. Now will you guys come out?" I know they are here because Brian's jeep is parked across street. I guess they could have taken a taxi some where. Only Justin would have left a note on the fridge, and there's no note except for the grocery list. With the bathroom door open, I check Gus' room. I see Brian's suit case and duffle bag. He hasn't even unpacked yet. Huh. Where the hell are they? I turn back into the living room only to find an empty bottle of beam, a couple of glasses, and several empty beer bottles. I shake my head smiling at the sight. Looks like Brian drank us dry. Should have expected that. Shit, I should stock up. Oh well, I can hit the liquor store tomorrow during my lunch break. Hmmm . . . Maybe they went out for more alcohol? Cleaning up the mess, I decide that this isn't how I imagined the night would go. I sigh. Looking around the clearly empty apartment, I listen quietly for ‘the killer’. As I’m attempting to put myself into the mindset of a killer, thinking if I was one, where would I be hiding – I hear faint laughter. Quickly, I head to the bedroom, the laughter becoming louder with each step. Upon entering the bedroom, I'm struck with a light blanket of chilly air and the lilting sounds of Justin’s laughter. "Bingo,” I grin. )=( Brian's POV My back aches with pain as I lay spread out on the hard rooftop. It hurts to move, and yet . . . I'm laughing despite myself. I don't know what's so goddamn funny. I should be pissed at blondie – who is only lying inches away – for causing us to fall off the ledge and onto the cold, unforgiving concrete of the rooftop. However, when Justin started laughing, I couldn't help but join in. His laughter is addictive. His deep crystal blue orbs are full of twinkling amusement and his wide grin reveals the gleaming whites that make up his blindingly bright smile. I'm not sure if it's the drugs or the mixture of the drugs and alcohol, but as Justin beams, I could swear that he was an angel lying next to me. Suddenly, his expression melts into blankness and his giggles fade. He begins to study my face and then tentatively reaches his hand to lightly caress it. Justin’s soft cool fingers brush across the heated wound on my cheek. My blood rushes through me in excitement, as my heart picks up the pace from his delicate touch. I try to read his clouded eyes, but I am unable too. I wonder what is going through his mind. Slowly, his hand moves downward to my lips. A few nimble fingers tips slide over my bottom lip until his thumb rests upon it, pulling it slightly. I snake out my tongue to greet his thumb. As soon as Justin feels the wetness against his flesh, he quickly snaps his hand back from me. As if on instinct, my hand snatches his wrist in mid air. I can feel his rapidly beating pulse in rhythm with mine. I meet Justin’s gaze, his wide eyes with confusion and surprise. I offer him a slight smile, and he flashes a weary on in return. Justin gently frees himself from my grasp. He breaks eye contact and stares aimless into the dark sky. I start to lean towards him when out of no where comes . . . "Found ya!" "Michael," Justin grins in an excited tone as he hurries to his feet to greet Mikey without a moment’s hesitation. "What are you two doing up here? God, it's chilly. You both are going to get sick hanging out here." "I'm sure you’ll warm me up!" Justin purrs with a goofy smile as he latches onto Mikey. Justin instantly begins groping him like I'm not even here. Fuck! "I've missed you. I've missed you so . . . much." Michael pushes Justin back for a second. As he continues to study Justin’s eyes, he asks bitterly, "Brian, what did you do to him?" I shrug, but he doesn't see. In fact, he hasn't looked in my direction since Justin left my side. I sigh again at the coldness I’m left with in Justin’s absence. Michael is right; it is kind of nippy out here. Justin begins to assault Mikey's lips and my stomach tightens up painfully. Christ, they're going to fuck right in front of me! Well, fuck that. Pushing my stiff body up, I make my way over to the fire escape. "Brian . . . Brian where are you going?" Mikey calls out from behind me. I don't even bother turning around. I say sharply, "Out." "But I thought we were going to . . ." he whines. Justin groans and whimpers. Fuck! I've got to get out of here. "The night is still young, Mikey, and you're home now to relieve me from my babysitting duties. Besides, you’re buzy right now." "But . . ." "Don't worry, Mikey. I'm not going anywhere." At least not yet. ***Edited by The Slash Faerie. ***