Intrepid Traveler - Part 3

Brian closed the door as he entered his dorm room, dropping his bag on the floor in the corner before proceeding toward the bed.  Flopping down on the uncomfortable bed, the teen closed his eyes.  He got to the campus earlier that week, taking advantage of the early move-in date.  The summer was brutal.  During the semester, he tended to forget, or at least block out of his brain, how impossible living with his parents was, since he only had to go home for the holidays.  And that was only for a weekend.  He had thought about taking summer school, but since he needed the money, he decided to return to the Pitts for the whole time.

The three, almost four months he spent in the Kinney household served as a refresher course for him.  He still couldn’t understand how Claire could have voluntarily stayed there after graduating high school.  He couldn’t wait to get out of that house every morning.  And after having a few run-ins with his dear old dad, Brian couldn’t be happier to be back in school, no matter how uncomfortable the beds were or how tiny the dorm rooms were.  Most people had closets bigger than the rooms the students had to live in.  But didn’t matter.  He was on his own here…free to come and go as he pleased…which he took full advantage of.

And speaking of coming…Brian’s mind wandered over to the place where the image of a blonde twink with intense blue eyes was sitting and waiting patiently for his attention.  The thing was, yes, the guy was hot - gorgeous face, the blonde silky hair.  But…Taylor…that was his name…wasn’t the first hot guy Brian had come across since he had come out.  Or at least, since he knew he was gay.  In fact, he had already fucked more hot guys than he could count on his fingers and toes.  And he was nowhere near done yet. 

But there was just something about the blonde.  Something that he couldn’t quite pinpoint.  Like the way Taylor’s eyes bore into him.  Almost in wonder…an inquiring gaze…but at the same time…a look of familiarity…as if the other man knew him somehow…knew who he was. 

And then there was the touch…the jolt of electricity he felt the moment their hands touched…skin on skin…  His whole body heating up…burning up…so badly that he had to get out of there…away from the blonde…before he self-combusted.  He couldn’t remember ever feeling like that before from just one touch.  Not even a sexual one.  Just a brief shake of the hand.  And he was still reeling from it…the feel of the other man’s skin on his. 

No.  He needed to stop that train of thought.  There were a lot of hot guys that he could fuck without a complication of having them live one floor down.  Simpler.  And he was all for simple.  He wanted his life as simple as it could possibly get.  Easy.  And fun.  That was what college was all about.  Aside from being his ticket out of the hellhole that he grew up calling home.

Complications…he definitely did NOT need.

Brian shook his head, trying to lose the last thoughts of the blue-eyed blonde somewhere deep in his mind, and rose from the bed.  It was getting late now and he needed to get out of there. 

Changing quickly, he opened the door, only to be immediately greeted with a guy practically throwing a flyer in his face.  Cursing the guy silently for nearly knocking him off his feet…for the second time today…Brian looked down at the piece of paper.  It was an announcement for a pizza party down on the ground floor. 

Parties weren’t allowed in the dorms.  Or to be more precise, alcohol wasn’t allowed.  And since nobody in their right mind would have a party without booze, most parties took place at the students’ apartments or frat house.  Unless, people got really desperate and broke the rules.

But Atherton was definitely not one of the dorms known for breaking the rules, since it housed the honor program students, all of whom were nerds, with the exception, of course, of Brian and a few other people.  Not exactly a formula for a fun get-together.

Deciding that ten minutes of his presence at the “party” could be counted as charity – brightening up the place with his beauty – Brian snickered at that - and getting free dinner in return, he made his way down the stairs to the third floor. 

It seemed the party was actually planned because the lounge area was packed with people, most of whom didn’t look all that nerdy, which only meant that other dorms had been invited.  Brian scanned the crowd for familiar faces, his gaze settling on one…standing across the room…a lost look on the beautifully pale face.

The memory of their touch flooding his mind…and body…Brian crossed the room, moving through bodies of strangers toward the other man.

Taylor seemed to have noticed his advancing because somewhere along the way Brian found himself being completely blinded by the brightest smile he had ever seen. 

“Hey,” the blonde greeted him when he got close enough.

“Hey,” Brian couldn’t help but return his smile. 

“Do they have parties here often?”

Brian shrugged.  “Actually, it’s the first one since I’ve been here.  But they will have some kick-ass ones later in the month in the apartments.”

The blonde nodded, gazing out into the crowd.

Strangely enough, Brian found himself being nervous about talking to him.  So, he settled on doing what the other man was doing, watching the other people mingle and chew. 

“You meet your roommate yet?” Brian finally asked, his eyes settling back on Taylor’s face.

The blonde nodded.  “Yeah.  Jim Cole.”

Brian’s face turned into a grimace before he even realized it. 

“You know him?” Taylor asked.

The brunette sighed, nodding.  “Unfortunately.  The guy’s a major sleaze.  Thinks he’s better than everybody else.”

“He must be really good if he’s in the honor program,” Taylor rationalized.

And he was right.  At least partially.  Cole was definitely smart.  But he was also the biggest asshole Brian had ever had the displeasure of having to deal with in his life.  He shrugged instead of replying.  “Just watch your back.”

The other man nodded, looking away once again.

“Pizza?” Brian asked for the lack of anything else to say. 

Taylor lifted his eyes, meeting Brian’s gaze.  And there it was again…the same look of familiarity he had seen earlier that day outside the dorm.  As if the other man already knew him…knew things about him that nobody else did. 

The blonde cocked his eyebrow.  “You eat pizza?”

“Yeah.  Don’t you?”

The other man bit his lower lip, watching him with the same intensity in his gaze.  Only now Brian could also notice a spark of amusement in the blue eyes.  And the brunette began to feel nervous under the scrutiny.  “What?”

The pouty mouth curved up at the corners.  “Nothing.  It’s just…there’s this guy I know…he wouldn’t eat carbs or fat after seven.”

Brian arched his eyebrow at the ridiculousness of that diet.  He was definitely self-conscious about his weight, but he figured that as long as he exercised he’d be fine.  Besides, he was a poor college student.  He didn’t have the luxury of being picky.  “It’s pizza and it’s free.  That’s all I care about.”  Saying that, Brian moved toward the table where the wonderful smell was coming from. 

He didn’t look back but he could feel the other teen following closely behind. 

~~~***~~~***~~~

Grabbing a few slices, the two of them made their way toward the stairs.  Justin didn’t say anything, didn’t ask where they were going, but from the glance that Brian threw him over his shoulder, the teen assumed he was expected to follow.  Which is exactly what he did…trailing behind the taller man up the stairs to the fourth floor and down the hall toward the farthest door. 

Brian held the door open for him before walking through it as well and closing it behind them.

Nervously, Justin looked around the strange closet-like room.  His wasn’t any bigger, on top of which he had to share it with another person…a guy who weighed about 300 lbs and who already gave him shit for just being in the room.  Nathan thought this one out, definitely, throwing in some torture as a bonus.

“Where’s your roommate?” Justin asked, watching Brian flop down on the bed and take a bite out of his slice of pizza.

Brian took his time replying, chewing instead.  “It’s all mine.”

“Yours?”

“Yeah.  The guy that I was supposed to room with either dropped out or got hit by a bus or something.  All I know is that he’s not here and they haven’t assigned anybody new.  And hopefully it’ll stay that way.”

Justin was still standing in the same spot he had occupied since walking into the room, watching Brian’s portion of pizza disappear in record time.  Apparently, Brian could eat pizza faster than Justin could, a fact that Justin would have brought up every time the ad exec made fun of him inhaling food if only he was aware of this bit of information before.

“What are you smiling about?”

Brian’s voice brought him back to the present.  He shook his head, finally moving over to the unoccupied bed and sitting down. 

“It must be nice to have it all to yourself,” Justin said after taking a small bite out of the pizza. 

Brian smirked.  “Fuck yeah.  Not having to deal with psycho roommates, no hangers on the doors.  I can fucking do whatever I want.”

Justin knew all too well what the other man meant by that remark.  He could fuck anybody here…and nobody would be the wiser.  He could bring guys to the room any time of the day and nobody would say a word.  Because it was all Brian’s. 

He placed the paper plate, already soggy from the grease dripping from the pizza, on the desk, not feeling particularly hungry.  Instead, he rose from the bed and walked over to the tiny bookshelf over the desk, reading the titles of the textbooks. 

“Biochemistry?” He asked, glancing at Brian over his shoulder.  “Wow.”

“Yeah, well,” Brian tossed his empty plate on the desk and leaned back on the wall.  “My brilliant guidance counselor decided that since I was in the fucking chemistry club in high school, I actually liked that shit.”

Justin smiled, before his eyes settled back on the thick cover of the book.  “That’s right.  I forgot.” 

“Forgot what?”

The artist swore silently.  He definitely couldn’t be a spy, even if his life depended on it.  “Nothing,” he shook his head, painfully aware of two hazel eyes following his every move.  “So, uhm, what other classes are you taking?”

He held his breath as Brian rose from the bed, coming up behind him.  Standing so close, Justin could smell the shampoo on the brunette’s hair.  It wasn’t the expensive French shit the ad exec used in 2003.  It smelled like one of the over the counter shampoos.  Probably, whatever was on sale when the teen went shopping.  But under the smell of shampoo and aftershave, Justin could still smell Brian.  There was no mistaking that.  And the scent was intoxicating…entering his nose and progressing down to his cock with the speed of light. 

Justin moved closer to the desk, pressing his hard-on against it in hopes that the other teen wouldn’t notice his current condition.  His heart pounded in his ears as Brian moved even closer, feeling the hot breath of the brunette on his neck.  Justin swallowed hard, his mouth suddenly feeling as dry as the desert, as the long fingers brushed against his hand.  The blonde inhaled sharply, waiting for Brian to make the next move. 

Instead, they heard the door open behind them.

Turning around to see who the intruder was, Justin froze.  A blonde, brown-eyed teenage girl was staring back at him. 

Well, some things definitely never change.

“Linds, didn’t Ron and Nancy teach you how to fucking knock?” Brian said, annoyed, as he moved away from Justin, partly to the blonde’s relief and partly to his dismay.  He hadn’t felt Brian so close to him in months.

“I didn’t think you’d be here,” Lindsay replied, closing the door behind her and another girl. 

“Then what the fuck are you doing here?”

Lindsay gave her friend the look that all four of them seemed to understand perfectly well. 

Justin noticed Brian’s mouth curve up at the sides as the brunette rolled his eyes and glanced over at him.

And Lindsay finally seemed to have noticed another person in the room.  Letting go of her girlfriend’s hand, she took a few steps closer, studying Justin with amused curiosity – the look that was returned in full by the artist.  He couldn’t believe how young the woman looked.  Her hair was longer and she was wearing an oversized sweater over faded jeans. 

“I’m Lindsay,” she finally smiled at Justin.

“I’m…” Justin paused, this time remembering his new name.  “Taylor.”

“Nice to meet you,” the young woman said.  “This is Hannah,” Lindsay turned back to the brunette still waiting by the door.

Justin’s eyes shifted to where the girl was eyeing the three of them wearily.  She looked so familiar, but the blonde just couldn’t figure out why.

“How long has this been going on?” he heard Brian behind him, and had to bite back the laughter at how blunt Brian was, even at nineteen.

“Since this summer,” Lindsay replied in a hushed voice.

That was when Justin finally remembered.  Of course.  Hannah Rollings.  Lindsay’s first long-term relationship.  He had heard all about her from the woman on more than one occasion. 

“Really?”

Justin knew that tone in Brian’s voice so well.  The man not only was amused, he was definitely planning on having fun with this.  And from the look on the poor girl’s face, she was not up to dealing with Mr. Sarcasm any time soon. 

“So, are you all sophomores?” he asked, glancing at Lindsay, who greeted him with a grateful smile.  She, obviously, knew about Brian’s ability to make people want to crawl up in a hole and die.

Brian, on the other hand, just rolled his eyes as he was once again the subject of three pairs of eyes.  Sighing loudly for dramatic effect, he relented.  “Fine.  I had plans anyway.”

Lindsay smiled as she kissed him lightly on the cheek.

“But, NOT on my bed,” Brian added.

“Alright,” Lindsay nodded, already pushing the man toward the door.

“I don’t need pussy in my bed,” Brian mumbled as he found himself being shoved out the door with Justin following closely behind.

Justin couldn’t help but snicker when the two of them heard the door slam shut, the loud sound echoing through the hall. 

“Well…I know I’ll never get hard in that room again,” Brian continued to whine.

Of course, Justin knew better.  Brian could get hard anywhere, with anything, and with anybody watching him.  Except, maybe Melanie, but then Mel’s death stare rivaled Brian’s and could make anybody soft. 

“You wanna get out of here?”

For the first time this evening, Justin allowed himself to really look at Brian, taking in the look, the clothes the other teen was wearing - black tight-fitting jeans and shirt.&nbssp; It wasn’t what he was used to seeing his lover in…the Armani suit or Prada shoes…but he could definitely see a glimpse of the label queen the young man standing before him was destined to become.  His clothes might not have been expensive, but they were definitely stylish and were worn with the same Brianesque attitude.

The blonde nodded before following the other man down the staircase and out the building.  They walked in silence for a while, and even though Justin had no clue about where exactly they were headed, he wasn’t sure he should ask.  He knew Brian wasn’t going to shove him into the bushes and have his way with him, even though the artist wasn’t entirely sure he would have minded that.  So, he just tried to keep up with the taller man.

“So, uhm…” he started to speak, mostly to fill the silence.  “How long have you known you were gay?” 

Suddenly, Brian stopped, glaring at him.  Ok, maybe it wasn’t the best way to start a conversation.  Justin swallowed, waiting for what was to come next.  He had been on the receiving end of those glares so many times since he had met Brian; he knew he wasn’t going to like it now. 

But instead, he got an arched brow.  “What makes you think I’m gay?”

The blonde’s response was an arched eyebrow of his own as he held the other man’s gaze.  He wasn’t sure how long they stood like that when finally Brian’s mouth tugged at the corners. 

“A while,” Brian replied as he resumed walking.

Sighing in relief at having dodged that bullet, Justin sped up his pace, trying to catch up.

“You?” Brian asked.

The artist shrugged, even though the other teen wasn’t looking at him.  “A while, I guess.  But I came out when I was seventeen.”

Brian stopped once again, his eyes boring into him.  “Came out?  Like to your parents?”

Justin nodded in reply.  He knew that Brian’s parents didn’t know about him being gay until recently…or further in the future…or…  He shook his head.  The whole time thing gave him a headache any time he tried to think about it.  So, instead he chose not to.  He remembered Brian telling him once that he told his dad a little while before he died.  And his mother…well…he definitely knew how Brian’s mother found out her son liked to suck cock.  “Yeah.”

“Wow.”  Brian seemed to be really impressed.  “That must have been rough.”  He started walking again.

“You can say that again.”

“Did they blow the gasket?”

“Pretty much,” Justin grinned.  He found himself stopping again, in front of something that loosely resembled a car…and was a lot closer to being a pile of metal than anything that could move more than a mile an hour. 

Brian walked around over to the driver’s side, putting the key in the lock and turning it. 

 

“This is yours?” Justin asked, not even trying to hide the mocking smirk.  It was a rusted through, looking like it would fall apart at the first rush of wind, black Pontiac Grand Prix.

Brian shrugged.  “It gets me from point A to point B.  That’s all I care about.”  He got in and unlocked the passenger-side door for Justin.

Justin couldn’t remember ever driving in something so old.  He was afraid his door would fall off when Brian pulled away from the curb.  And he was definitely more than a little surprised to find that the death mobile actually had a seatbelt. 

When he was finally content with the fact that the car was sturdier than it looked, Justin allowed himself to relax in his seat and looked out the window.  Unfortunately, it was dark now and all he could see was occasional cars passing by and lights from the dorms and apartment buildings.

“So, where are we going?” Justin asked, casting his eyes on the silent form of the driver.

Brian smirked.  “To point B.”

Deciding that he wouldn’t get much more out of Brian, Justin turned his attention back to the window. 

“Christ, I can’t believe I just left two dykes in my room.”

Justin snickered as his eyes once again settled on Brian’s profile.  “Lindsay’s a good friend.”  He hoped Brian would interpret it as a question.

But the brunette seemed to have noticed that it was meant to be a statement.  He briefly glanced at Justin.  “Yeah, a friend.”

From where he was sitting it was hard to tell what exactly he heard in Brian’s voice.  Sarcasm?  Hurt?  Justin wasn’t sure.  He did, however, have one idea.  “Have you fucked her yet?”  This was something that Brian had never denied or confirmed, but Justin still had a suspicion that at least once Brian and Lindsay had done the nasty.  It wasn’t anything that either of them said…ever.  But the look on Lindsay’s face any time she’d look at Brian was unmistakable…a look of something she once had that had been lost. 

“You’re awfully rude,” Brian replied.

“Have you?” Justin insisted.  This was his chance to get some truth out of Brian, for once.

He watched as the other man inhaled sharply, held his breath, and breathed out slowly.  Brian glanced at him, meeting Justin’s eyes.  “Yeah, last year.”

“How many times?”

Brian stared straight ahead.  “Once…twice.”

Justin nodded, looking away as well.

“It was my trip into the hetero land,” Brian added.

“And what did you think?”

Brian smirked.  “I’m here, aren’t I?”

Justin nodded again.

“Have you?”

The artist met Brian’s eyes.  “Have I what?”

“Fucked a woman before.”

“Yeah.  Once.” 

Brian’s brow arched, expecting a better explanation than that. 

“My best friend wanted me to be her first and I was curious I guess, so we did it.”

“And how did that go?”

Justin shrugged his shoulders, wincing at the memory.  He almost lost Daphne then.  “Weird.  Not something I’d wanna do again any time soon.”

Brian chuckled as he turned his attention back on the road in front of them.  “I would never fuck my best friend.”

Despite his better judgment, Justin’s mouth spread into a grin.  “That’s good to know.”

Only when Brian’s inquiring gaze fell on him once again did Justin realize that he had said it out loud. 

“What?”

“Uhm…nothing,” the blonde shook his head, staring out the window again, and hoping that in the dark Brian wouldn’t notice his face burning a bright shade of red.

Just then Brian pulled into a small parking lot in front of what looked like a one-story house. 

“What is this place?” Justin asked as Brian turned off the ignition.

“A bar,” Brian shot back.  “It’s nothing fancy, but the guy has the cheapest beer around and he doesn’t card.”

Justin watched as Brian got out of the car before following the other man’s lead.  Meeting Brian at the entrance, Justin followed the tall brunette inside.

The place looked a lot like Woody’s, only smaller.  Justin noticed a few lava lamps in the corners of the room, the décor resembling the 60s and 70s rather than beginning of the 90s, which surprised him.  There was one pool table that stood on the opposite side of the room. 

“You want a drink?”

Justin looked up, his gaze once again settling on Brian.  The other teen’s eyebrow arched expectantly. 

The blonde nodded and followed Brian over to the bar.

Brian ordered Jim Beam while Justin just settled for a bottle of beer.  The young artist figured it would be better to stay lucid his first night in the 1990. 

As the two of them waited for their drinks, Justin’s gaze once again scanned the place, taking in the crowd.  “Is this a gay bar?” he asked, looking over at Brian.

Just then a man that closely resembling Emmett, dressed in tight pink shirt and black leather pants walked past them. 

“What gave you that idea?” Brian scoffed.

Giving him a pointed look, Justin picked up his drink, taking a sip. 

“It’s not the flashiest of places, that’s for damn sure.”

“And this is not Liberty Avenue,” Justin added.  After all, it wasn’t Philadelphia or even Pittsburgh. 

Lips pressed together, Brian studied Justin’s face carefully.  “You’ve been to Liberty Avenue?” he asked, incredulously. 

“Why?  Haven’t you?” Justin shot back, taking another chug out of his bottle.

The brunette smirked. 

“So, uhm…” Justin put the beer down on the counter and turned his attention to the other man.  “Is it hard being gay at PSU?  I mean, being out?”

The tall man shrugged.  “You won’t see anybody marching in parades or screaming ‘I’m gay and I’m proud’, but getting your needs met is not a problem.”

Justin nodded.  Of course, Brian could find an ass to fuck in Siberia if the need arose. 

“Speaking of getting needs met,” Brian mumbled as yet another guy passed them by, obviously cruising Brian.  The two of them watched as the trick slowly made his way toward the bathroom.  Brian gulped down the last of his drink and put the empty glass down.  “Be right back.”

Justin squeezed his eyes shut.  He had seen Brian going off with a trick so many times, he should have been used to the sight by now, but he wasn’t.  It still hurt.  Immensely. 

Turning away, the artist focused on the half-empty bottle of beer, as he tried to figure out what exactly he was doing here.  He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, when he heard a voice behind him.

“Well, you’re a sad sight to see.”

The blonde jumped, startled, his eyes settling on a short man who seemed to have come out of nowhere. 

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

Nathan shrugged, climbing on a stool previously occupied by Brian.  “Thought you’d like some company.”

Justin looked around, making sure nobody was watching them.  “What if somebody sees you here?  What if Brian sees you here?”

“Looks like Brian’s currently occupied with…other things,” Nathan replied.  “Besides, nobody can see me but you.”

“So, it looks like I’m talking to myself?” Justin asked.

“Yep.”

“Great,” the teen sneered.  “Not only does everyone see a pathetic little faggot.  They’ll think I’m crazy as well.”

Nathan snickered.  “Relax, kid.  They’re too busy sizing each others’ cocks.”

Justin exhaled sharply.  “What do you want?” he asked, his voice sounding harsher than was intended.

“Hey, no need to get snippy.”  Nathan took out a cigarette and lit it.  “I just wanted to check up on you.  See how your first day is going.”

“Wonderful,” the blonde scoffed.  “Can’t you tell?”  Justin kept his eyes trained on the bottle, his fingers tracing the smooth surface of the bar.  “I think I’m turning into Michael.  Sitting on the sidelines, waiting for Brian to pay attention to me, while he gets his dick sucked.”

Nathan scooted a little closer, his hand patting the teen’s shoulder gently.  “You don’t have to be Michael or anybody else if you don’t want to.”

Raising his head, Justin met Nathan’s eyes, his mouth curving up in a smile. 

The timekeeper took one more puff out of his cigarette before putting it out in the ashtray.

“Why do you do that?” Justin asked, curiously, pointing at the barely burnt cigarette.

“Do what?”

“You take one or two puffs and then you throw it out.”

Nathan grinned.  “Trying to cut back.”

Justin snorted.  “Why?  Do angels get cancer?”

The timekeeper glared at him.  “Not an angel, remember?  And no.  The Big Guy doesn’t approve.”

“Ahh,” Justin nodded, stifling a chuckle, his expression turning serious again when his eyes settled on a lone figure of a tall young man appearing in the entrance to the bathroom.  Brian looked well-fucked and completely stoned. 

Nathan, apparently, noticed the other teen as well, because he rose from his seat, placing his hand on Justin’s back.  “You know, you could just go home.”

“Home?”

“Go back to the future.”

Justin’s gazed traveled across the room as the teen considered the offer.  He watched as Brian stumbled through the tables, his eyes dazed, looking for someone…him, he realized…smiling when their eyes met.

The blonde shook his head.  “Someone needs to take him home.”

Go to Part 4

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