Chapt 2 That night Hunter slept on a chair beside his bed, his head lolled back against the seat. JT tossed and turned in his sleep, waking up suddenly out of breath. He reached for his side, tugging up on his old white t-shirt. The bruises had practically faded by now, although there would always be a light scar across his abdomen from the switchblade. He glanced around the room, slowly taking in his surroundings and resting on Hunter’s face. A rare smile touched his lips, as he stood and grabbed one of the blankets from the bed. Carefully, without really touching Hunter’s body, he placed the blanket over him. JT crawled back onto the bed, grabbing his sketchbook and settling back under the covers. Quietly he sketched the look of content on Hunter’s face as he slept, the relaxed positioning of his body, and the moonlight as it shown through the windows. His hand moved over the paper for over an hour before he stopped, admiring his work. Now finished, he flipped the book’s pages all the way to the beginning and stared at the drawing of his mother, sister, and himself. They were all smiling, like the perfect family. He traced their happy faces with his fingertips, whispering so no one could hear him, “I miss you, why won’t you come find me? I’m waiting.” His eyes felt wet with tears but he was all done crying, no point in it now. He opened the sketchbook back to his most recent drawing and left it open on the table beside Hunter’s chair. He really wanted to thank his friend for all he had done for him, but every time he opened his mouth only a few words came out. It was all that he could handle right now. Thankfully Hunter and the other boys seemed to understand and nobody pushed him beyond his limits. It was safe inside the walls of his mind. He curled back into a ball and fell asleep again, keeping the nightmares at bay for the rest of the night. Hunter woke up the next morning with a crick in his neck and a smile on his face as he gazed at the drawing left on the table. JT was sitting upright on the bed, staring at one of the walls, as Hunter neared him. “Morning JT, you wanna get something eat? You must be hungry by now. You may not tell me, but I know you would eat 24-7 if I had food placed in front of you all day long.” JT laughed softly and shifted his eyes in my direction, nodding his head in agreement. His laugh was like a beautiful melody you hear on the radio once and then wait every day after to see if it will play again. I grabbed some clothes on my way out the door and left JT alone to get changed. He was shy about his body and never let anyone see what was underneath. When I entered the living room, Ben and Michael were just sitting down for breakfast and reading the paper. I wished them good morning and started to fill 2 cups of coffee. Ben smiled in my direction. “Morning Hunter, I hear we have a new tenant in the apartment.” “Yeah, his name’s JT and obviously Michael has told you all about him. I know you don’t have to tell me it’s a short-term thing or he better not steal anything. He’s a quiet guy and he won’t make any trouble.” “Hunter, I know. I didn’t plan on lecturing today, just looking forward to meeting the kid that’s made you all soft.” Ben laughed in amusement. “Shut up.” And of course at that moment, JT walked into the room. He was wearing some old worn jeans and one of Hunter’s t-shirts that fit snugly across his abs. He nodded slightly to the three men and sipped on the coffee Hunter handed him. Ben greeted him warmly, “JT, it’s so good to meet you. Hunter has told us a lot about you and you are welcome to stay here as long as you want.” JT avoided looking directly at Ben and nodded in my direction instead. I motioned him over to a nearby seat but he chose to stand and look out the window instead. I know from living on the streets that you can get this amazing feeling of warmth just from looking out the window at the street and knowing you’re not looking from the street in. JT can appreciate that. For the last few nights he’s been with Chet down under the bridge. It’s all right there but they should have given him more blankets. He was like a Popsicle when he arrived yesterday. They damn well know how sensitive he is to the cold. Everyone had cereal while JT hung back with his coffee. He never ate in front of other people, always afraid that he would eat too quickly and lose his WASP manners. He was still living by some of his parent’s rules even though he hadn’t seen either of them in the last two months, since his father caught him in his dorm room with another boy. Then it was no more dorm, no more tuition, no more family, and hello to the street. He just had to wait it out, for his mom to accept him. Until then, life was suspended and there was no reason to reach out of his cocoon. He was shaken out of his reverie, when there was a pounding on the door. Hunter jumped up to open it and Brian walked in without hesitation. “Move aside Little Hustler, I’m here to pick up your aunties for the gym. Boys, would you cut out the scene of domesticity or I may be sick.” Ben and Michael shook their heads in annoyance, while Hunter took the opportunity to sidle up to Brian. He reached for his chest but Brian pushed him back irritably. “Step back Casanova, not interested.” “Come on, you know you want me. Just give me a shot and you won’t be disappointed.” Brian chuckled and stepped past him, only now noticing the petit blond by the window. The way the sun was shining through the window, it created almost a halo around his head. You could only see the backside from his position but that magnificent ass was quite the view. The jeans hugged him in all the right places. His curiosity was definitely peaked. “So Mikey what do we have here? A playmate for you and the Professor” JT whipped around suddenly at the statement and their eyes met. JT looked directly into his eyes, unflinching. Brian was caught off guard by the penetrating blue gaze. For once, he had nothing to say. His attention was diverted by Mikey’s shrill whine, “Jesus Brian, he’s just a kid. He’s Hunter’s responsibility, not mine.” Brian stepped a foot closer to the young man, his eyes continuing to travel up and down his firm body. JT rarely looked anyone in the eyes but for some reason with this new man, he couldn’t look away. As Brian inched closer and closer, JT found himself glued to the floor. Brian was now close enough to touch him. He raised his hand and Hunter quickly intervened. “Don’t touch him. He’s none of your business, Brian. Just leave the kid alone.” “The Kid can speak for himself, can’t he? What’s your name?” Hunter quickly interjected, “His name is” But before Hunter could finish his statement, a tiny voice replied, “Justin, my name is Justin.” Brian smirked in Hunter’s direction but he was too stunned by Justin’s announcement to pay much attention. The most he had ever gotten out of the blond were simple yes or no answers and sometimes one word descriptions of how he was feeling. This was a full sentence, plus the added knowledge of his real name. They had found the initials JT on the inside of his only jacket and had taken to calling him that, even though they were uncertain whether that was his real name. “Well it’s a pleasure to meet you Justin. How did you end up making the acquaintance of these fine gentlemen?” “Hunter” was his short response and once again the walls came up. Hunter was well versed with this particular form of behavior from Justin and stepped in to take the pressure off. The blond was beginning to fidget and slowly back himself closer to the window. “Brian, Justin and I are friends. We look out for each other and he’s gonna be staying with me for a little bit” Justin seemed grateful for the assistance and conveyed his feelings with a simple nod of his head, before shifting his eyes to the ground. Brian watched the entire interaction, confused by the blonde’s sudden shift in attitude. There was something off about the way he held himself and refused to keep regular eye contact. It reminded him of a wild horse that didn’t trust it’s new master. Hell, his ability to mask his feelings rivaled Brian’s own. “Well then, we’ll have to take him to Woody’s or Babylon sometime.” “Brian, I don’t think so but thanks anyway. Shouldn’t you guys be heading to the gym now?” Brian studied him intently. Hunter was hiding something and he wanted to know what. The hustler had been trying to get into his pants from day one and now he’s practically kicking him out the door, what the hell is that about? Maybe Hunter and the blond are involved except Hunter wasn’t acting jealous, he was being protective. Mikey had to know what the story was and the gym would be the perfect place to get the scoop on Hunter’s new friend. “Yeah, we’ll go but I expect to see both of you at Deb’s tonight. She’ll want to meet the newest member of the Bruckner household. I’ll see you later Justin. Hunter.” Mikey and Ben grabbed their gym bags and the three walked to the door together, saying their good-byes. Brian glanced back at Justin one more time and allowed a small smile to grace his lips. He waved slightly and was halfway out the door when he heard that beautiful soft voice again, “Later Brian.” He kept walking, but Brian’s smile had grown. Once the door closed, Hunter whipped around to stare at Justin. “You wanna explain to me what just happened here?” “I just saw the face of God.” Justin softly explained and smiled. He quickly grabbed one of his sketchbooks from his bag and sat down, oblivious to Hunter and the world as his hand flew across the pages.