Carefully stroking his brush against the canvas, Justin stops suddenly when he hears the studio's door creak open slightly. Smiling, he pretends not to notice Brian walking towards him and continues to add detail to the edges of the painting he is working on. Once he feels Brian's breath against his neck however, Justin lets the paintbrush slip out of his hand and onto the table by his easel.

"Hi," Brian whispers, kissing the back of Justin's neck.

Closing his eyes, Justin smiles, feeling the tingle of Brian's lips against his skin. "Hey."

Brian looks at the picture that his lover was painting. Wow.

Glancing behind his shoulder, Justin's smile widens. "You like?"

Brian nods, "Shit, Justin, that's really good."

Blushing, Justin continues to smile, "Really? You aren't just saying that? Because I have three others."

"What?"

"Of the picture you wanted. I made four of them. I wasn't sure which you would want, so I have four that you can choose from."

"You made four of them?"

Chuckling softly, Justin confesses, "I made a lot more actually, but none of them were really for you... they were for me... I dunno, I found myself doing a lot of drawings, and realizing that they were either of you, or about you... and after last night... when you said you wanted to see them...I chose four that I felt best portrayed the way I see you."

Brian nods, speechless, still staring at the painting in front of him.

Justin grins, "Well?"

"What?"

Laughing, Justin asks, "Do you want to see the other three?"

"I like this one," Brian answers, continuing to stare at the painting in front of him. It showed the four elements: earth, wind, water, and fire, which were blended together on the canvas. In the center was a shadowed outline of Brian's eyes staring back at him. The painting was powerful and intense, yet at the same time surprisingly calming.

Grinning, Justin walks over to the wall and begins to pull down the long, white sheet that was covering the other three painted canvases. Brian follows him, stopping at each painting to take in its own unique beauty. "Justin, these are incredible."

Beaming, Justin returns to Brian's arms, gently kissing his lips, "I'm glad you like them."

Smiling, Brian returns the kiss. He is about to invite Justin into the shower with him, when Justin breaks the mood by asking, "Are we going to Deb's tonight?"

"What?"

"It's Thanksgiving, remember?"

"Aw fuck!" Brian growls. I hate these fuckin' holidays.

Justin smiles sweetly, lifting up on his toes to kiss Brian one more time on the lips, "Happy Thanksgiving."

Frowning, Brian shakes his head, "Whatever."

"Sooo?"

"So what?"

Laughing, Justin wraps his arms around Brian's waist, asking a second time, "Are we going to Deb's or not?"

"Fuck."

"It'll be fun."

"I doubt that."

With a mischevious grin, Justin asks, "Really?"

Knowing that smile, Brian can't help but smile back, "What did you have in mind?"

"Only one way to find out," Justin teasingly replies.

"Brat."

"Thank you." Taking a step back, Justin is about to return to his easel, when Brian pulls him back by the wasitband of his pants.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Smiling, Justin answers, "No place special."

Chuckling softly, Brian continues to pull Justin towards him as he walks backwards out of the studio and towards the bathroom.

In the bathroom, Brian comments with a wink, "I can change that," and shuts the door behind them.

Justin's laughter is cut short by Brian's tongue dipping past his lips to do battle with Justin's tongue. Falling backwards, Justin is caught by Brian's arms and pushed gently against the shower's glass door.

Releasing Justin for a moment, Brian stares at him intently: studying his features before hungrily devouring his lover’s lips once again, this time his hands glide down Justin’s sides, pulling down his pants so that he stands naked in front of him. Taking a step back, Brian admires the young man before him. So fuckin’ beautiful.

Justin licks his lips in anticipation. Stepping out of the pants that lay at his ankles, he walks towards Brian, the hungry smile never leaving his lips as he reaches and takes hold of Brian's jeans, asking, "Why did you even bother putting these back on?"

Smiling softly, Brian shrugs, "I woke up cold."

Pouting, Justin smiles once again as he undoes Brian's pants. "Let me help warm you up then."

Brian says nothing as he watches Justin get down on his knees. God, I could cum just by watching Justin cock-worshiping... fuck... Justin's tongue lightly flicks against Brian's tip.

Justin smiles inwardly, feeling Brian leaning forward slightly with his palms against the glass. Sliding his tongue down Brian's shaft, Justin tenderly sucks on Brian's balls, listening to Brian's quiet moan from above.

Fuck... he...gives...the...fuckin...best... Unable to complete his thought, Brian sighs, eyes closed, as Justin’s mouth returns to his throbbing cock.

Cupping Brian's balls in his hand, Justin gently massages Brian's jewels while licking up the underside of Brian's erect organ. He knew that keeping his movements slow would drive Brian wild, and that was just what he wanted.

Tapping the head of Brian's cock with his tongue, Justin keeps himself from engulfing the entire organ into his mouth. Teasing him with his tongue was all Brian was going to get...for now.

Biting the inside of his cheek, Brian knows that Justin is purposely teasing him. "Justin..."

Holding back a smile, Justin continues to circle his tongue around Brian's tip, tapping at the ring of the head before returning down the shaft.

"Aw fuck..." Brian exhales deeply.

Resting Brian's balls against his wet tongue, Justin smiles softly, watching Brian's facial expressions as he licks upward to the very tip of his cock.

Brian shudders as Justin repeats the slow and deliberate movement a few times until he can't stand it any longer.

Grabbing Justin by the shoulders, he kisses him hard before asking in one breath, "Condoms?"

"Bedroom."

"Fuck."

Chuckling softly, Justin is about to return to his knees when Brian quickly pulls him back up to his feet and pushes him with the force of his kiss back into the bedroom and onto the bed.

In one swift motion, Brian grabs a condom and lube from the night table while quickly turning Justin over onto his stomach before devouring the back of Justin's neck with his mouth.

Justin gasps, the pleasure radiating down his spine. Biting his lip, he closes his eyes, feeling Brian's hands travel over his awakened skin. Writhing under the weight of Brian's body, Justin presses against his lover's cock, wanting to feel him inside.

With his fingers, Brian readies Justin as he whispers, "I'm going to fuck you so hard..."

Justin moans impatiently, wanting to feel Brian's swollen cock deep inside his walls.

Brian continues to play with Justin's hole, pushing in a second finger and circling them around inside of Justin before bending them apart. He smiles as he hears Justin moan once again, writhing underneath him. It is almost evil, Brian knows, but he can't resist as he continues to finger-fuck his lover.

"Brian..." Justin moans, reaching behind to grab hold of any part of Brian he can grab.

Taking Justin's hand, Brian starts to suck on Justin's fingers as he continues to finger-fuck him with his other hand.

"Brian!" Jesus Christ!... His body shaking uncontrollably, Justin tries to turn his body around in order to face Brian.

Immediately, Brian replaces his fingers with his cock, thrusting inside of Justin fiercely before his lover is able to turn around.

Brian lifts Justin by the hips, pulling him close and pushing Justin’s upper body back down against the bed.

Grabbing hold of the sheets, Justin wishes he had a headboard to hold onto as Brian plows deep inside of him, slamming hard against Justin's ass.

"Oh, God...Brian..." Nothing more can be said as Justin holds back from screaming in ecstasy as Brian roughly fucks him.

For a brief moment, Brian lets go of Justin's hips to slide his hands up his partner's sides to his shoulders. Justin sighs, feeling as if his own body is melting from Brian's touch.

Hands now returning to Justin's hips, Brian pulls out nearly completely before slamming hard back inside of Justin's hole.

Penetrating further, Brian continues to ride him, fucking him mercilessly. "Oh...fuck...Justin... I...I..." Sliding his hand to Justin's stomach, Brian takes hold of Justin's throbbing cock, jerking it in his hand as he pushes deeper and harder into him. Within the overwhelming waves of pleasure, Brian cums with a gasp as Justin does the same.

Falling against him, Brian takes a deep breath before slowly exhaling, "Shit, Justin, who needs the fuckin' gym when I have you?"

Laughing softly, Justin closes his eyes, "Gee, Brian, how romantic of you."

Rolling off of him, Brian retorts, "What can I say? I'm like fuckin' Racine or Herrick."

Laughing, Justin props himself up on his elbows, "You've read their poems?"

Brian sarcastically retorts, "Aren't I a box of surprises?"

Chuckling, Justin shakes his head, knowing that he will never get a straight answer out of Brian about his knowledge of poetry.

Throwing away the condom, Brian is pulled back onto the bed.

Wrapping his arms around Brian, Justin kisses him passionately. Pulling away for breath, Justin smiles as he states, "I love you."

Brian returns the smile, and the kiss.

Their thoughts on going for a second round are interrupted by the phone.

"Fuck," Brian mutters.

Justin smiles, "Ignore it."

Nodding, Brian continues to kiss him, but the phone doesn't stop ringing. "Shit, don't you have an answering machine?"

Sighing, Justin comments, "Adrienne must have turned it off."

With an annoyed groan, Brian reaches over and answers the phone, "Yeah?"

Kissing Brian's throat, Justin slides his tongue down Brian's chest to play with his nipples when Brian speaks unenthusiastically into the receiver, "Hey, Emmett."

Justin stops, "Emmett?" Grinning, he can't wait to tell his friend all that transpired last night. But Brian has other plans, "Yes... yep... How the fuck should I know?... yeah... uh-huh... I don't know... fuck you... whatever... I don't know... you can ask him yourself... tonight at Deb's... yeah... uh-huh... bye, Emmett...I gotta go, bye."

Justin watches Brian hang up the phone. Smiling, he asks, "So we ARE going to Debbie's?"

Brian shrugs, "You convinced me."

Laughing, Justin sits up on the bed, "I'm glad."

Brian teases, "Me too."

"Oh shit!" Justin recalls, "What in the fuck are we going to bring?!"

Brian shrugs, "How about you throw some of that canned soup you were eating yesterday into a bowl and say you made it?"

"Brian!" Justin scolds. Crawling out of the bed, Justin quickly goes into the kitchen, "The stores are going to be packed with people!"

"If they're open," Brian muses.

Justin returns to the bedroom, a look of alarm on his face, "You think they might be closed?!"

Leaning back on the bed, Brian concludes, "Well it is Thanksgiving."

Justin is about to hurry back into the kitchen, when Brian calls him, "Hey, come back!"

Crawling onto the bed, Justin seriously explains, "Brian, today is Thanksgiving. If we are going to Deb's, then we have to bring something. Lindsay said that she and Mel were bringing roasted potatoes in garlic. Emmett and Travis are bringing the wine. Ted and Blake are bringing the salad. Michael and Ben are bringing a lentil loaf and a zucchini casserole! Shit, Bri,we have to bring something!"

"We are. We are bringing ourselves. That should be reason for celebration."

Justin rolls his eyes, "Brian."

Smiling, Brian suggests, "How about your jambalaya?"

"I don't want to make jambalaya. I don't even think we have the ingrediants to make it!"

Brian stares at him with amusement.

"Brian!"

"Bring dessert."

Justin is pensive, "I can do that."

Smiling, Brian nods, "See? What would you do without me?"

Grinning, Justin lightly kisses Brian on his lips. He's about to get off the bed, when Brian gently takes hold of his wrists, "Hey, I think I deserve a reward for my brilliance."

Smiling, Justin plays along, "Oh yes, you most certainly do."

Brian tries to stop smiling when he asks, "So what's my reward?"

Standing up, Justin answers with a mischevious grin, "Meet me in the bathroom and bring a condom to find out."

*************************************************

"I'll be right there!" Justin calls out as he heads to the door. Checking his reflection in the mirror one last time, he quickly opens the door to see Brian. "Hey," he greets with a smile and kiss.

Brian smiles back, returning the kiss. "I brought some Beam in the car for us to bring too."

"But Em and Travis are bringing wine."

"And they can have it. I'll be drinking the Beam."

Amused, Justin shakes his head. As Brian heads towards the kitchen, Justin begins to close the front door when he notices it's begun to snow, "Oh my God, it's snowing!" he exclaims with excitement.

Brian nods, checking to see what Justin ended up making. "You made two things?"

Justin nods, sitting by the window as he watches the snow softly flurry down, "Does it look like it's going to stick?"

"What?"

"The snow. Do you think it'll stick to the ground? I can't tell."

Brian shrugs, "Probably. What kind of cake is this?"

"Apple crisp. I hope the snow sticks! Hey, maybe there'll be a blizzard?!"

"I doubt that." Checking the other plate, Brian asks, "Macadamia nut cookies?"

Justin nods, "Yeah, with white chocolate chips in them. The store was open... they just closed early today."

"So let's get this over with," Brian states with a groan. Thank God I brought the Beam. This dinner is going to be so fuckin' boring...

Justin grins, "It'll be Christmas soon!"

Brian sighs, "Ho ho ho. Come on, grab the cake, I got the cookies."

"Don't start eating them now."

"Too late," Brian replies as he takes a bite out of one.

"Brian!" Justin scolds.

"It's good," he states with a smile.

Justin smirks, "I know."

Putting his jacket on, Justin asks, "Do you think we'll have a white Christmas?"

"No fuckin' clue."

Taking the cake, Justin walks out the door with Brian behind him. "It's so beautiful!"

"What is?"

"The snow! Look, it's sticking!" Justin exclaims.

Amused, Brian comments, "Wow, look at that."

"Don't mock me."

Brian continues to smile, putting the plate of cookies on the roof of his jeep in order to retrieve his keys.

"Hey, Brian?"

"Hm?"

Wrapping his arms around Brian, Justin asks, "What do you want for Christmas?"

Smiling, Brian leans down and kisses Justin's sweet mouth.

"Tell me," Justin asks again dreamily, his lips still tingling from Brian's mouth.

Still smiling, Brian whispers against Justin's ear, "For somebody to move back into the loft with me."

"Somebody special?" Justin asks knowingly.

"Very."

"Someone that you love?"

"Yes."

Beaming, Justin teases, "I wonder who?"

"Hmph, me too."

"Brian!" Justin playfully pushes him backwards.

Chuckling softly, Brian pulls Justin back against his chest. "What do I want for Christmas?"

Justin nods, snuggling against Brian's chest.

Looking up into the dark night, Brian watches the snowflakes drift across the sky and hit his lashes. Blinking a few times, he lets his thoughts run away with him for a moment as he remembers moments with Justin and himself in the loft: waking up together, going to sleep together, and everything in between. Even the little things like sharing the same space but doing different things.

"Brian?"

"Yeah?"

"Where'd you go?" Justin asks.

Kissing Justin's lips, Brian answers, "I'm right here."

Justin smiles, "So you were about to tell me what you wanted for Christmas."

"An espresso machine."

"An espresso machine? Don't you already have one?"

Brian nods, "Yes, but I want a traveler one."

"A traveler's espresso machine?"

Brian nods again, still smiling, "I saw it at The Sharper Image."

Justin smiles, "A traveler's espresso machine. Alright."

Grinning, Brian holds Justin tighter, "But what I want...even more than that...," kissing Justin's hair, Brian breathes in his soft scent. Yes. "I want... you... to move back in...with me."

Justin smiles, looking up and into Brian's eyes. That can be arranged.

Afterglow: Paradise