testdog65 (testdog65) wrote in qaf_challenges, @ 2006-12-31 18:50:00 |
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Original poster: _alicesprings
Title: Christmas in the Pitts
Written By: zortrana
Timeline: Season one
Rating: PG
Summary: Brian and Justin’s first Christmas “together”.
Author's Notes: Thanks to shadownyc for the beta.
It starts, of course, with Debbie at the diner: “What’re you getting Sunshine for Christmas?”
“Deb,” Brian sighs, “You know I don’t do Christmas.”
Debbie regards him with unveiled disgust. “No, you just do Sunshine and the rest of gay Pittsburgh.” Brian throws a twenty on the counter and stalks out.
It goes without saying that it doesn’t stop there. Brian and Lindsay are shopping, pushing Gus in his stroller. Lindsay oohs and aahs over every adorable Christmas item. “What are you getting Justin for Christmas?” she inquires casually, while examining a Gus-size Santa hat.
“Why would I get that annoying brat something for Christmas?” Brian bites out.
“Ummm, because he practically lives with you on the weekends? Because you care about him? Because it will break his heart if you don’t?”
“I don’t care about him. I fuck him.” Brian feels a Justin-related headache coming on. It’s a familiar feeling.
“Look, I’ll buy him something and you can just sign the card.” Lindsay offers. Brian looks at her with murder in his eyes.
“Or not,” Lindsay acknowledges defeat.
Emmett is next, bouncing up to Brian at Babylon in a fashion frenzy. “We got the most adorable things in Torso, just in time for the holidays! Justin would love some of the fabulous clothes. And he would look hot! Really hot!! I know-- you can get him some for Christmas!” Brian tosses back the rest of his drink and heads for the backroom.
Jennifer stops by Deb’s unexpectedly late one Wednesday evening to see Justin. Every time she’s called recently, her son hasn’t been there.
“He’s not here,” Deb explains.
“Not here again? Where is he?”
Debbie knows it’s time to bite the bullet. “He’s with Brian. Don’t worry; Brian will make sure he gets to school on time. He’s been real good about that.”
Jennifer feels a migraine start up. She thinks of them as Brian headaches since she has no memory of having them prior to seeing the name written over and over in one of her son’s sketchbooks. She summons all her patience, “It’s a school night. What is Justin doing over at Brian’s? And just how much time IS he spending there?”
“Honey, Justin is 18, I can’t keep him here. He stays at Brian’s 3 or 4 nights a week and Jennifer--you know what they are doing there.”
“Debbie, you told me that Brian would use Justin and discard him. Break his heart and never look back. When is that going to happen?” For a second Jennifer wonders when her son’s heart being crushed became an attractive alternative.
It’s impossible to miss the look of worry on Debbie’s face. “I just don’t know what is going on with those two. Brian keeps him around; maybe Sunshine makes him feel young or something. But maybe Christmas will be the end of it.”
“Why?” Jennifer is wringing her hands in distress.
“Because that asshole won’t get your sweet kid anything for Christmas and probably won’t even celebrate with him. Maybe that will finally be the last straw for Justin and he’ll wise up that Brian isn’t who he wants him to be.”
Jennifer gives up trying to call her son at Debbie’s and starts ringing Brian’s number again.
“Why don’t you have a cell phone like every other country club kid in the good old U.S. of A.?”
Brian snarls at little Sunshine one night after Justin hangs up from talking with his mommy.
“My parents thought they were ‘unnecessary’ and something that had to be ‘earned’, ” Justin quotes, “Plus, St. James hates the things--you can get expelled for having one in class.”
“It’s okay to beat up faggots, but a cell gets you expelled?” Brian has never forgotten Justin’s split lip.
“St. James prides itself on how well it prepares its students for life,” Justin says a trifle sarcastically. He heads toward the bedroom stripping as he goes and the subject is forgotten.
It’s the Sunday before Christmas and the usual ‘family’ dinner at Debbie’s. Brian is outside smoking and Michael is talking. Evidently, it’s his turn. “Look, Ma says you have to get your personal stalker a Christmas present or she’ll deep fry your balls and serve them at the diner. To the highest bidder.”
“Jesus Christ, Mikey,” Brian is betrayed, “Not you too!”
“Uh, I don’t much like the kid and I don’t think you should encourage him, but Brian, it will really hurt his feelings and it is Christmas for fuck’s sake.”
Brian throws down his cigarette and grinds it out with his boot, possibly with more force than actually needed. He and Michael head back in where the horror continues.
“We expect you the first thing Christmas morning to see your son open his presents,” Lindsay is all sweetness and steel. Brian hates her.
“Why the fuck would I want to do that?”
“Because it’s his first Christmas, you asshole.” Mel joins the fun.
“Then you can come over here for dinner sweetie, or are you going to your Mom’s?” Debbie is in full Mom mode herself.
“And why the fuck would I want to see her?”
“Well, with your Dad being sick and all, it might be nice to be there for her.” Debbie points out.
Brian jumps up and heads out. Justin at his heels. “That went well,” Ted observes on behalf of the group.
Later on, Brian is just starting to feel better when the phone rings. “It’s your mother.” He tosses the phone to a naked Justin and goes to the kitchen for a bottle of water. After Justin hangs up, he stays sitting cross-legged on the bed, cradling the phone. Brian doesn’t really care what that is all about, he just goes back to the bedroom to get his jeans or better yet, resume his prior activity.
“She insisted that I come over for Christmas Eve.” Justin shares although Brian hasn’t asked. “She said no matter what we are still a family, it’s Christmas, and we should be together. She said that Molly misses me,” Justin concludes miserably.
For about the millionth time in the last few months, Brian wonders how he ended up in the world of teen angst. “Do you WANT to go?”
Justin sighs, “I do, it’s just that I haven’t seen HIM since, well, you know.” Brian does know, he remembers very well indeed the day he tried to get rid of this relentless blond and took the brat back home where a kid of that age belongs, only to find that Justin didn’t belong there anymore. And Brian doesn’t do regrets, so he doesn’t regret taking him back out of there again. Briefly, he wonders if the kid regrets following him--any of the times.
Annoyed with the thought, Brian reaches for Justin and takes the phone away, putting it on the night stand. “You need a cell phone," he says again, “Your mom is a real mood killer.”
“I would buy one myself,” Justin retorts, “Except I’m paying off some guy’s credit card charges for a trip to New York City. As if the guy didn’t enjoy that hotel room as much as I did.” The two look at each other with identical expressions of remembrance and families, Christmas, and phone calls fade away.
It is bitterly cold as Justin heads into Babylon on Christmas Eve. His visit to his ‘home’ had lasted less than 30 minutes before the shouting started and Molly ran upstairs in tears. Justin can not recall ever feeling so alone and lost. He brushes the tears from his eyes and starts looking around.
He spots Brian easily, propped up on the bar, and as wasted as Justin has ever seen him. So wasted he doesn’t even put up an argument when Justin takes the Jeep keys and helps Brian stagger to the passenger side. On the way to the loft Brian rambles about holidays, and commercialism, and the hypocrisy of Christmas. Justin wonders if Brian even knows who he is talking to.
By the time they reach the loft, Brian is singing a few of the best holiday jingles he came up with for Ryder. Justin pushes him straight to the bed and Brian passes out before Justin even gets his boots off. Justin lies beside him, softly stroking his hair and wondering just what Christmas was like in the Kinney household. Probably as miserable as this one is. Justin’s eyes fill with tears again and he softly cries himself to sleep beside the unresponsive man.
Justin wakes up early the next morning, starving, and hops off the bed and heads to the kitchen with higher expectations than usual. Brian has been given fruit baskets, boxes of candy, and the usual holiday treats from appreciative clients. He informed Justin one evening that instead of throwing them into the trash as he did in prior years, Justin might as well dispose of them for him. Brian had been bringing the gifts home ever since.
Justin flicks on some of the lamps in the loft and is surprised to see the dining room table covered in packages and bags. He looks into the biggest bag and sees a number of gifts obviously professionally wrapped in bright children’s paper. Another bag contains flowers, with a handwritten card: To Mom, Merry Christmas, Brian. The last bag contains a state of the art cell phone, with all the accoutrements, and another plain handwritten card: Give your mother this number and tell her to stop calling here.
Justin is sitting at the table holding the card when he hears footsteps approach. Justin jumps up and throws his arms around Brian. “Merry Christmas!”
Brian disentangles himself and looks at Justin scornfully, “So are you going to take a shower with me before we go to the munchers, or what?”
Justin’s smile lights up the morning. “Shower, then ‘or what’, then the munchers.” he says firmly. Brian smiles back slightly, quirking an eyebrow, and heads for the bathroom. Joyfully, Justin follows him.