HOME RUN Chapter 16: Liberty Diner: ~~~~~~~~~ Michael took out his cell phone and hit the quick dial button. “What are you doing?” asked his Mom. “I’m calling Brian’s cell. I’m sure he doesn’t realise this is going out over the air….” but Debbie snatched it out of his hand. “Oh no you don’t”, she said. “But Mom…” “No, Michael. Talking like this might be just what Brian needs.” And she put the cell phone in her pocket. Justin: ~~~~ Justin realised he was gripping the steering wheel so hard his knuckles were turning white. To hear Brian say his name like that over the radio had made his stomach do a million somersaults. He realised Brian had said, “His name is Justin and not was Justin”. He must still think of him; care for him even and as he started the car engine and headed for home he wondered if there might be the slightest chance they could ever try again. Brian: ~~~~ After Brian had said Justin’s name, he desperately needed to draw the conversation to a close, knowing he’d probably said way too much. “I’m sorry. I can’t …. I have to go”. And he put down the phone, just hearing Dr. Franklin say to please call him if there was anything he could do at any time. “You’re not mad at me Dad, are you?” asked Gus, looking up at his Father. "No, I'm not mad at you", said Brian, putting his arm around the boy's shoulders. "But I wish you'd told me how you felt before. You don't have to worry about me Gus, really you don't. Come on, it's late. It's Christmas Eve already. Time for bed if you want to stay up and go to the Empire State Building", and he walked with his son back to his bedroom and made sure he was safely tucked up in bed before retiring himself. Brian thought about the telephone conversation. How the fuck could he have said all that to a complete stranger? But there was something about the man that had made Brian trust him completely and open up to him. Justin: ~~~~ Phil had told Justin he needn’t come in tomorrow. He’d put in so many hours the passed month, almost doing two people’s work that the least he could do was give him Christmas Eve off. But he couldn’t go home just yet; he kept going over the radio show in his head. Listening to Brian talking, he could hear something in the man’s voice he’d never detected before: vulnerability. He drove around for over an hour and was surprised to find the lights still on when he got home. Tim greeted him with a glass of wine when he opened the door. “Finally! I was thinking I was gonna have to send out a search party”, he said, grinning at Justin, who was removing his jacket. “I didn’t think you’d still be up”, said the blonde. “Well, I thought we could start celebrating Christmas early”, and Tim slipped his hand inside Justin’s shirt and lent forward for a kiss. “Tim, don’t. I really don’t feel like it”, and Justin pulled away and sat on the sofa, not inviting any conversation. “Seems you don’t feel like it a lot just lately. It’s gonna be some fucking Christmas if you’re gonna be like this. Do you mind telling me what I’ve done this time?” asked Tim, sitting in a chair on the opposite side of the room. “It’s not just you. It’s ….. . I don’t know. I’m not sure what I want right now”. “Well in that case, I’m going to bed. Perhaps you’ll tell me what’s wrong in the morning”. And Tim left him sitting alone in the living room. Having finished his wine, Justin got up to get a refill and noticed the mail on the table; the usual circulars and a few Christmas cards addressed to him. There was one envelope written in a hand he didn’t recognise, but it had a Pittsburgh postmark. Curious, he opened it up and took out the letter from Gus. This couldn’t just be a coincidence; he didn’t believe in those. He read the letter over and over. Gus must really miss his Mom’s, but it sounded like he was getting on great with his Dad. He knew Brian had always loved Gus: even if he didn’t admit it at the beginning. One of Justin’s most precious memories was seeing Brian in the hospital, cradling his new-born son on the night that Gus was born; the birth of their relationship also, as this was the very same night they had first met on Liberty Avenue and it was Justin who had named the infant. Gus sounded so excited that his Dad was taking him to New York for the Christmas holidays; talking about all the things they planned to do there. But there it was again, Gus had written how he thought his Dad was lonely and needed company. Justin couldn’t help but remember the last time he saw Brian, on the night of the Rage party. He knew he should never have left then. He should have fought to keep their relationship going, but instead he chose to run away. And it occurred him that maybe he’d been running ever since. Justin knew he still loved Brian and if he thought for one moment they might have another chance…….. He read the letter again and smiled, trying to picture Brian and Gus together at the Empire State Building. He missed him so much; the feeling had never gone away, not whilst he was with Ethan or even with Tim. Thoughts of Brian were never far beneath the surface and suddenly, Justin made a decision. He had to go to Brian; to see if there was the remotest chance he felt the same way. He had to give it another shot. If there was nothing left after all this time, at least he’d know that he’d tried. Justin went into the bedroom and got his rucksack from the bottom of the closet and started to put in some clothes and toiletries: enough for a few days. Tim woke. “Are you going somewhere?” he asked, sleepily. Justin looked at him. “I’m going to New York”. “Are you out of your fucking mind and what the hell’s in New York anyhow?” Tim was now wide-awake. “I don’t have time for explanations right now. This is something I just have to do”. “How are you going to get there? There’s a holiday coming up or have you forgotten?” “I haven’t forgotten and I don’t care how I do it. I only know I’ve just got to get there”. And Justin finished packing, walked towards Tim and gave him a quick kiss. “You’re not coming back, are you?” Justin managed a slight smile and walked out the door. Liberty Diner: ~~~~~~~~~ Debbie smiled to herself as she turned off the radio and removed her apron. Marty was back from visiting his daughter in Harrisburg and had arrived to take her home. This was going to be their first Christmas together. She had a strange, yet warm feeling about what had happened with Brian. She couldn't explain it, but she knew that things were going to turn out just right. "You know, Marty", she said, looking skywards and squeezing his arm as they left the diner, "I think it’s going to snow. Don’t you just love Christmas?” To be continued.