A gust of wind blew across the rooftop of the building Justin was standing on. He shivered, cursing his own stupidity for leaving the apartment without a sweater. It was still pretty cold for late May.

He sucked from his cigarette, looking at the rising sun. His thoughts were miles away, as he worked out what his best choice would be at the moment.

His life in New York had taken a turn for the worse. Justin should have known that his living arrangement with Eric was going to bite him in the ass.

During his years in Japan, Justin had met Eric, who was a young agent looking for fresh, new artists. He had been impressed with Justin's art from moment one, and they became friends over sake. Sharing a toilet while barfing brought people together. When it was time for Eric to return to the States, he offered Justin a deal, agreeing to find him commissions and keep him busy. Eric even got Justin a spot at a gallery downtown where Justin could display his paintings.

It was more than Simon had ever done for him in his first years in the city.

They lived together, but Justin never noticed Eric’s real intentions.

Some nights they spent together, but mostly, they entertained themselves separately. It was a casual thing and everything Justin needed, because a relationship was the last thing he wanted.

Eric never asked him for money to help pay the rent. The apartment wasn’t luxurious, but it wasn’t a rathole, either.

It took Justin years to overhear Eric talking to one of Justin's potential clients at a party. Eric wanted an absurd amount of money for a commission, and the woman was willing to pay every penny. That night, when they were home in bed, sharing a roach, Eric brought up the subject of a potential new client for Justin. The price he gave Justin was thirty percent of what the woman had agreed to pay.

At the time, Justin had figured the terms and conditions had changed, but from then on, he paid closer attention to Eric’s deals. Justin was never allowed to meet with the client, and if it was a must for them to discuss the painting in person, Eric was always present.

Soon, it became clear what a liar Eric was.

He had taken advantage of Justin over the years, barely giving him fifty percent for each painting he created. That angered Justin beyond reason, and the other night, he had confronted Eric. They had a huge fight, and Eric had confessed to having many artists like Justin. But Justin was the only one he truly cared for, and that was the reason why he was living with him.

Justin felt dirty and used. He had stormed out and walked aimlessly most of the night, ending up in a club where he spent the night drinking and fucking a few guys in the bathroom stall. He had let himself back into the apartment close to four in morning.

There was a note from Eric saying Justin was acting like a brat and they should talk about what upset him. In that moment, Justin knew that he was ready to do the walk of shame back to Pittsburgh.

He had made a name for himself, but he didn’t have a portfolio of clients, because Eric kept it somewhere hidden in his office. With that thought in mind, Justin took advantage of the fact that Eric wasn’t home and went through his files. Justin found his thick portfolio of clients and the amount each and every one had ever paid for his paintings. The prices were absurd compared to what little Justin got.

So he packed his bags, along with the portfolio, then went to the rooftop to clear his head.

After lighting a new cigarette, he called the only person who could understand him and accept him back without judging. While he listened to the ringing in his phone, Justin kept his eyes on the sun now visible above the buildings.

“Hello?” A groggy voice answered, and Justin felt like shit. It was too early in the morning.

“Hey, Daphne. It’s me.”

“Justin,” she gasped. “We haven’t talked in ages!”

“I’m sorry for being a shitty friend. I’ve been busy,” he said quietly.

“How are you? Any plans to visit any time soon?”

“Funny you mentioned that.” He cleared his throat, taking a deep breath. “Think I can crash at your place for a while?”

“Of course, silly! You don’t have to ask. You’re welcome for as long as you want.”

Justin inhaled from his cigarette, closing his eyes. “I’ll see you soon. Thanks, Daph!”

“Don’t mention it. Want me to pick you up from the airport?” she offered, eagerly.

“Nah. I don’t know when my flight will be. I haven’t got a ticket yet.”

“Okay! I’ll be home.”

Feeling immensely better, Justin went back to the apartment he shared with Eric. He found Eric on the couch, looking at the pile of bags near the front door.

“What’s this?” Eric demanded.

“What the fuck do you think it is? It’s over. I’m done being your puppet. I’ve sent Cathy an email about packing my paintings and sending them to my new address. I’m going back to Pittsburgh.”

“Way to ruin your life!”

“It’s my fucking life. I do whatever the fuck I please with it. Anywhere is better than in this poisonous place.” Justin shrugged into his leather jacket. “One question, though. Why?”

“This is the way I’ve always done business. No one has ever asked about the paycheck.” Eric shrugged.

“Well, good luck with fooling other idiots!” Justin pulled the strap of his duffle bag over his head, put his backpack on his shoulders, secured his laptop bag on his shoulder, and hoisted a large suitcase off the floor. “If I forgot anything, don’t bother to send it to me.”

“You’re going to end your painting career if you go back there!” Eric moved closer. “We can make this work. I can give you more. Sixty percent? Seventy percent?”

“Goodbye, Eric.” Justin didn’t look back as he left.

The cab ride to the airport was long and filled with all of his memories involving New York – from his arrival, to Brian’s seldom visits, to Justin receiving the news about the opportunity to visit Japan and paint there, to his and Brian's break-up, and then the life after Brian. He had never found his place. Eric had been convenient, just like the club boys, but Justin had never let go of Brian.

When he left Brian all those years ago, he had wanted to promise they would see each other again, and that he didn’t expect for Brian to wait for him.

On the plane taking him back home, Justin entertained the thought of getting back with Brian.

When he arrived at Pittsburgh International Airport, Justin was greeted by a large advertisement campaigning for the legalization of gay marriages in Pennsylvania. Without knowing for sure, Justin had a gut feeling that the ad was Brian's doing. It was aggressive and stated its message clearly, just like Brian liked it.

His campaign had been definitely successful, because Justin had read several days before that gay marriages were legal in Pennsylvania now.

Justin arrived at Daphne’s late in the evening. He knocked on her door, rocking on the balls of his feet.

The door swung open, then his best friend threw her arms around him, only to let go when she noticed the bags.

“I’ll explain inside,” Justin said, smiling brightly.

She helped him with the suitcase, then closed and locked the door. “What’s going on?”

“Heh.” Justin let all his bags drop to the floor one by one. “Eric was an asshole. I couldn’t live like that anymore.”

“So you’re back for good?” Her wide brown eyes stayed on his face.

“I think so.”

“Oh, Justin!” She hugged him tightly. “You can stay here for as long as you want.”

“I don’t plan to be a bother for too long. I’m sure I’ll find a job soon. I need a break from painting,” he admitted.

#

After getting installed in the spare room, Justin joined his best friend on the couch in the living room. She poured them some fruity liquor, curling up next to him.

“Wanna talk about it?”

Justin took a sip from his glass, cringing at the sweet drink. “Let’s just leave it at Eric kept money from me. Like, a lot of money.”

“I’m so sorry, Jus.”

“It’s okay. I guess I’ve been blinded by the good life I had. I was doing what I liked and he was a pretty nice person… until I discovered what a liar he was.” Justin put down the glass. “Do you have anything else to drink?”

“There might be whiskey.”

Justin retrieved the bottle from the wet bar, pouring a healthy amount in his glass. “Now tell me about you. Anything new in Pittsburgh?”

She watched him warily, twisting the end of her ponytail. “Something… happened.”

“Yeah, I heard.” Justin grinned.

Daphne raised an eyebrow, shocked he was smiling about the news.

“They legalized gay marriages.” Justin beamed.

“Yes, that.”

Justin narrowed his eyes. “What’s wrong?” He expected his favorite fag hag to be beyond excited with the news.

“You haven’t talked with anyone lately, have you?”

“As in the gang? No, not really. Why?”

She looked away, hugging her knees to her chest. “I don’t think it’s my place to tell you, but news travel fast around here. And I ran into Emmett at the store the other day, and we had lunch together.”

“Spill it out,” Justin demanded. He figured she was going to give him some monumental news about Brian, and his mind conjured all crazy scenarios.

“I’m sure you’ve seen the ads pro gay marriages…”

“I knew he was behind them. They worked, huh?”

Daphne bit on her bottom lip. “He got in big trouble over them. Like, huge! He was sent to court and risked jail time over these ads.”

“What?” Justin could feel his heart beating into his throat. “Brian’s in jail?”

“No, because he’d conveniently run into one of his old friends days before he was accused of those things…”

“I’m not following.” Justin couldn’t wrap his mind around someone being so homophobic as to throw the man behind these ads in jail.

“In a nutshell, Brian's way out was to get married.”

Justin dropped his glass, staring at Daphne in shock. 

“That’s what the city’s attorney decided Brian should do to stay out of jail. He got married to this friend of his at the end of last week.”

“This is the worst joke you’ve ever come up with,” Justin said shakily.

“I wish I was joking. Sweetie, if you thought there was a chance to get back together, there’s none. They’re supervised, because they probably didn’t fool the judge.”

“You mean they’re married, but they don’t even like each other? That’s sick. Can you imagine how Brian must feel? Marriage – the very essence of what he’s run away from all his life, and even worse – married to someone he doesn’t like.”

“He was willing to marry you,” she reminded him.

“That went out so well, did it not?” Justin sneered.

“Be careful if you run into him,” Daphne advised softly. “I bet there are still feelings from both of you, but if the wrong person sees you… he risks jail.”

“Fuck.”

#

Justin stepped into Liberty Diner at nine the following morning. He was surprised to notice Debbie wasn’t around, though there was a new bus boy who looked wet behind the ears. Justin felt for the kid when he noticed a bear groping his ass.

“Hey dickhead, drop your hand or I’ll break it,” Justin snapped, approaching them.

The bus boy looked relieved, but the big guy threw Justin a nasty look. Thankfully, he didn’t pick a fight, for which Justin was grateful.

“Hey, kid.” Justin smiled at Gabe, as his name tag read. “I’d like a coffee and some pancakes.”

“Sure thing. Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” Justin winked, looking around for an empty table. He spotted one at the back of the diner and made his way there.

He failed to notice a jacket thrown on the other bench, and when a man in his fifties appeared at his table, watching him curiously before sitting across from him, it took Justin a moment to realize his mistake.

“Shit! I’m so sorry!” He started to get up, but the man waved him off.

“It’s fine. The diner’s full. I don’t mind.”

“Are you sure?” Justin checked, embarrassed beyond belief.

“It’s no problem.”

Gabe brought Justin's breakfast, while Justin made small talk with his table companion. He co-owned a company along with his husband, which was cool. But the more he talked, the more Justin got an odd feeling.

“What is the company’s name?” Justin asked suddenly, cutting Evan off mid-sentence.

“Kinnetik.”

Justin wanted to laugh and cry and give fate the middle finger for the sticky situation he got himself in. He had already said too much when Evan kept talking about the advertising company he worked at, admitting that he was looking for a job and he was a pretty decent graphic artist.

“You’ve heard of it?” Evan asked.

“You could say that,” Justin answered, amused.

“Ah, the new campaign. Pretty strong, huh?”

“It’s something else.” Justin nodded in agreement.

“Like I was saying. We are looking for a new graphic artist since one of our best has quit after the last campaign went down the drain, even though it was successful. Funny how these things work.”

“Funny, yes.” Justin couldn’t agree more.

What were the chances for him to run into Brian's husband in his first hour out of the house?

Evan pushed his business card across the table, smiling. “We’re waiting for you at the office to talk.” He looked up somewhere behind Justin, his smile widening.

Before Justin could turn to confirm his suspicions, the hair on the back of his neck stood up as another person approached. The next thing he saw was Brian's back as leaned down to greet Evan. Justin stared bemused as they kissed, not believing that kiss was pretense. It looked real enough to him.

Then Evan made Brian aware of his companion, and Justin wanted to duck under the table.

He plastered a big smile on his face, though he could feel it was forced. When Brian turned toward him, his eyes widened, and he even took a step back. He looked like he had seen a ghost.

“Hello Brian,” Justin whispered, proud of himself that his voice didn’t shake.

Brian took another step away from Evan, his right hand covering his left one, his eyes moving from Evan to Justin.

Justin stood up, barely aware that his body was on auto-pilot. Then he stepped around the table and wrapped his arms around a stoic Brian. What felt like an eternity later, Brian hugged him back, squeezing him tightly. Justin mashed his face into Brian's neck, fighting back the tears threatening to spill over. One of Brian's hands stroked Justin's hair, while the other clutched at his shirt, keeping him close.

“You two know each other?” Evan’s surprised voice pulled them apart.

Brian caressed the side of Justin’s face, and Justin did his best to ignore the coolness of Brian's wedding band against his cheek.

Brian glanced at Evan. “Justin is what I wanted to talk to you about the other night.”

Evan blinked. “You mean to tell me that you are in a relationship and that you accepted… that… all we did…”

“We haven’t seen each other in over nine years,” Brian admitted. “You asked about the paintings in my— our office. Justin painted them all.”

Justin shuffled his feet, suddenly uncomfortable. He felt like he was intruding on a private conversation.

“You said you’re a graphic artist,” Evan demanded.

“I’m versatile,” Justin replied without thinking.

“And ambidextrous, I remember.” Brian laughed.

Justin could feel his cheeks turning red as memories of his first night with Brian invaded his mind.

“Sit down, both of you!” Evan pointed to the booth across from him. “Explain, Brian.”

Justin shot Brian a look, silently saying he would like to do the talking, then he turned to Evan. He told Evan in a few sentences the complicated history of his relationship with Brian.

“This is so fucked up,” Brian muttered. Under the table, his hand found Justin's.

Justin had butterflies in his stomach as he squeezed Brian's hand.

“You know our history?” Evan gestured between himself and Brian.

Brian froze next to him. “Let me explain, Evan. We worked together when I got my first job. Evan was my boss. Now, about a month ago he came to me asking for help. I offered him a position at Kinnetik, but shortly after, all hell broke loose. His quick thinking about us marrying saved me from going to jail.”

“Daphne told me.” Justin nodded. “I can’t believe someone would go to such lengths to keep us from taking the final step. I’ve been to a few Pride Parades here, and to some in New York. The homophobes love to attend them as well, but every time they started shit, we were bigger and angrier.”

“Let’s clear up a few things,” Evan said. “First, do you still want to work for us?”

Justin glanced at Brian's surprised face, then nodded. “Yes.”

“Second, I understand you two have history, and I can tell there might still be something there, but under no circumstances is either of you to engage in it! You’re risking everything, Brian.” 

“Don’t worry about it,” Justin answered.

Brian threw him a look, full of promises to break that rule. “I love my freedom,” Brian told Evan.

“Good. Then we expect you at Kinnetik for an interview.”

“Evan, I know what Justin can do. He’s as good as hired. We’re one graphic artist down. Peter left last night. I never got around to telling you when I got home, but he came into our office and placed his resignation on my desk. He said he didn’t want his name associated with that campaign anymore.”

“It was his fucking idea!” Evan shouted.

“There is no reasoning with him. I say we drop it.”

“You don’t have to worry about me chickening out. If you have any other similar campaigns, I’m all for it,” Justin told them.

“I think we should stay away from politics for the time being,” Evan reasoned. “We have the cookies account to worry about.”