Chapter Five A few days had gone by, and the tension in the house was thick enough to be cut with a knife. Brian and Justin didn't talk much, and they had quit hanging out. Justin spent a lot of time in his room, and Brian spent a lot of time pacing the house, checking and rechecking windows to make himself feel useful. Justin lay on his bed, writing his daily entry in his journal. He's kept a journal since he was in ninth grade. They started out as just something to do, but quickly became a daily routine for him. He liked to document his life for him to read later in life. The previous journals that got filled up were kept in a locked safe in the corner of his room. Finishing up his entry about the day before, he sighed, closing the journal and putting it into his bedside table drawer. He stood up and stretched, his stomach grumbling. "Fuck. I'm hungry," he said to himself, opening the door to his bedroom and going out into the living room. He made his way to the kitchen and stopped when he saw that Brian was standing at the stove. Brian turned when he heard someone at the door. "Hey, I'm making good old macaroni and cheese … want some?" he asked, stirring the noodles in the boiling water. Justin bit his lip, then nodded. "Yeah, sure. Thanks," he said, sitting down at the table. The silence just hung in the room until Brian couldn't take it anymore. He put the spoon down and turned around. "Listen. We need to talk," he said, leaning against the counter next to the stove. Justin shrugged. "What's there to talk about?" "This," Brian motioned between them. "It's not good for us to not be on speaking terms. That's one of the reasons that this is just not a good idea." "What's not a good idea?" "Us hooking up." "Why not?" "Because, Justin. Think about it," Brian sat at the table across from Justin. "I'm your hired bodyguard. I'm being paid to protect you. This is my JOB," he started. Justin didn't say anything, so he continued. "If my boss found out that something was going on between us, I could be fired from this job, maybe even from the Pittsburgh PD completely," he said. Justin glanced down at his fingers. "How would your boss find out? It's not like Michael's going to say anything. You guys have been friends for-fucking-ever, I doubt he'd do that to you." "Still, Justin, it doesn't make it right." Justin stood up and went over to the stove, stirring the macaroni in the pot. Brian stood up as well, crossing his arms across his chest. Justin came back to the table and stood next to Brian. "Fuck what's right. I want you, you want me, end of story," he said, grabbing Brian's collar and pulling him down to crush their lips together in a heated kiss. Brian tried to resist at first, but quickly realized that there was no way he could. He wanted the blonde way too much. Forcing his thoughts back, he wrapped his arms around Justin's middle, pulling him closer and sliding his tongue into the younger man's mouth. Justin let a satisfied moan transfer from his mouth to Brian's, tangling his right hand up in the other man's soft chestnut hair, pulling at it a bit. His left hand held onto Brian's built bicep, grounding himself, since he seemed to be floating. Both of them were so involved in each other, they never noticed Michael walk in. Michael smirked, rolling his eyes. He cleared his throat. Nothing. Chuckling quietly to himself, he cleared his throat really loudly, and the pair broke apart, glancing at the doorway. "Sorry. Just came in to see if there was any food being cooked, or if I needed to cook something," he said, an eyebrow raised. The two let go of each other, and Justin moved towards the stove. "Oh, Brian's got some macaroni and cheese cooking … you're welcome to that," he said with a smile. Michael nodded. He glanced at Brian and crooked a finger at him, motioning to the living room. Justin stayed in the kitchen to tend to the food while Brian followed Michael into the living room. "Yes, Mikey?" Brian asked, sitting down on the couch and putting his feet up on the coffee table. "What are you doing, Brian?" Michael asked. Brian shrugged, crossing his arms across his chest again. "It looks like I'm sitting on a couch," was his smart-ass reply. Michael rolled his eyes, sitting down next to Brian. "I mean with Justin. You know, you could get into some serious trouble with that. What if Beckett finds out? He could fire you." "Is that all?" Brian asked with a roll of his own eyes. Michael tilted his head to the side. "Just … be careful, okay?" Brian stood up and gave Michael a friendly kiss on the lips. "I always am," he smiled, walking back into the kitchen. Michael shook his head, watching him go. ------ I sat out in the backyard, watching in the window. Watching my beautiful Justin. With that horrible man. That … cop. Something has to be done about this. And soon. Justin will be mine. If I have to kill that cop, he will be mine. End Chapter Five 07/26/05