That normal feeling should have been their first clue. It should have warned them that something was coming. But they were so caught up in the holiday that they paid no attention to any odd feelings that they had. Denise flew out for the few days around Thanksgiving, and Howie’s girlfriend joined them. They had a great holiday together full of laughter and good memories that were made.
Later, AJ and Brian would think of it as the eye of the storm. Horrible things had happened, and for a while there was peace. But as is true with the eye of the storm there is always more on its way to you.
Two days after Thanksgiving they took Denise back to the airport, managing to avoid being sighted as they hugged and kissed her and put her on the plane. Once they went to leave the airport, though, that was a different story. The first sign of trouble was so obscure that they almost missed it. Someone in a crowd shouted ‘Pervert!’ But they paid it no attention. They had no idea that it was meant for them.
AJ was laughing, elbowing Brian as he teased him. But he froze, mid step, as they passed by a newsstand. Brian almost kept walking until he realized that AJ had stopped. “What’s up?” he asked, stepping back to join him. But AJ just stood there and stared. There was such a look of horror on his face that Brian felt afraid.
He didn’t want to turn. Didn’t want to see what it was that had AJ looking so horrified. Yet, at the same time, how could he not? Slowly he turned just his head, following AJ’s gaze. What he found had his stomach dropping down to his toes. “Fuck me.” He whispered.
Right there on the newsstand was a magazine with a picture of Brian and AJ. Once he got past the shock of seeing it, Brian recognized the day it had been snapped, though he hadn’t known they were being photographed.
The day of housework had exhausted the two men. AJ had been bossy and ordered Brian to relax on the new couch in the living room. Stubborn, Brian had said that if he was going to relax, then AJ was going to sit with him. So he’d pulled AJ onto the couch with him and snuggled in. He’d ended with the front of his one shoulder against AJ’s chest, his face buried against his chest, his other hand coming up to rest by AJ’s heart. In return, AJ had wrapped his arms around Brian, resting one against the small of his back, the other thrown over Brian’s hip.
It was an obviously intimate picture. One that made no mistake in showing the relationship between the two. There was no doubt that the way they held one another there was as lovers and not friends. It was visible in the way they held on, and the way that AJ’s cheek rested against the top of Brian’s head.
Brian couldn’t break his eyes away to read the words under the picture. He didn’t need to. The picture itself was all the words that were needed. His mind reeled and it took everything he had not to reach out and grab AJ’s hand. AJ showed no such qualms. His hand latched onto Brian’s arm, just above his elbow, in a grip that was almost too tight. “Brian…” AJ said hoarsely.
Someone shouted something behind them, but they didn’t pay attention. They couldn’t. Everything they had was focused on the image that was going to make or break their lives. Who had done this to them? It was the question they both were asking themselves. Who had done this?
Suddenly the voice behind them was louder. It broke through their daze. “It is them!” Someone shouted right as a hand grabbed AJ’s hood and yanked it off his head. Instinctively he moved, placing his back toward the newsstand. Years of dealing with fans had taught them all that you never left your back to a crowd. You always made sure you could look around to see the group that would build around you.
But this wasn’t fans. Or at least, not all fans. There were some girls standing there who looked thrilled to see him and Brian, but the faces of the others were disgusted. The crowd was large. Enough so that Brian and AJ both felt a small thrill of fear. This was not good.
“Fucking perverts!” Someone shouted to them. With the amount of people building it was impossible for them to see who was speaking. But those two words triggered the reactions in everyone else. People started to shout.
“Freaks!”
“Faggots!”
“You’re fucking gross!”
All of it twined in with the voices of the few who were screaming happy things to them. Brian looked around, trying to see a way out of the group, and panicking slightly when he saw nothing. That was when the first thing flew. A plastic soda cup, like that you get at any restaurant, hit AJ’s shoulder. It broke open, sending soda all over him.
Other garbage started to fly, and Brian felt AJ’s hand take tight hold of his and then AJ was running, pushing through people and yanking Brian along behind him.
Brian felt as he bumped into people, and he could see the ones who were trying to follow them. But he didn’t stop running. His legs ate up the pavement. AJ barreled a way through the crowds, dodging around people and objects as needed. Behind them people were running as well, screaming love and hate at them both.
For a moment Brian almost lost his footing as AJ suddenly veered right, taking them into the airports parking lot. As they ran, Brian saw AJ reach into his pocket with his free hand to grab his keys. One press of the button unlocked the doors, the other started the truck.
AJ didn’t let go until they got right to the trucks tailgate. Brian stumbled slightly at the loss of momentum, but he recovered quickly and grabbed the passenger’s door, yanking it open and almost throwing himself inside. He barely managed to get the door shut and locked before people were suddenly there, yanking on the handle.
Wide eyed he turned to look at AJ and the people that were beating at his door. Someone was trying to climb up onto the tailgate, to get into the back of the truck. AJ wasted no time in throwing his truck into gear and slowly starting to back up. He didn’t want to hit anyone, and that was their fear. More often than not people automatically backed away from a moving vehicle, but sometimes people were so eager to get at them that they could accidentally get hurt.
This crowd was in a frenzy, a small part of it in love, the larger part made up of haters and gay bashers. But somehow AJ managed to get the truck backed out. He shifted gears, cursing steadily under his breath, and started to inch the car forward. People parted around them, making it easier for AJ to gain speed until he managed to get out of the row and toward the main road. But, instead of giving up, it seemed that some of them were running to their own cars to follow.
Brian’s eyes were wide. He was turned in his seat, looking out the back window to watch as cars started to speed out of their sports. “Alex…”
“I’m on it, Bri.” AJ growled. The car suddenly jumped forward, zipping into traffic. With the skills of someone used to evading the press, AJ darted back and forth through traffic. Brian blessed God that they had both learned Portland well enough to know back streets. AJ took any back streets that he knew in an effort to lose them. Some still persisted, though.
“Brian.” AJ’s voice caught Brian’s attention. He turned to look at his lover, still in shock. AJ’s face was concentrated on the road in front of him. He didn’t even spare a look at Brian as he spoke. “Call D and warn him. They might have hit the house already. Then call the security company we got set up with. We may need them at the house for a while.”
Having something practical to do gave Brian steady ground to latch on to. He pulled his cell out, ignoring as best he could the sharp curves that AJ kept taking, and the horns that blared at them as he cut people off. With one hand on the handle over the door, Brian dialed his phone and held it to his ear. He kept the other hand on the handle to keep himself from moving too much as the truck went around another corner.
Howie answered pretty quickly. “Hey, Rok, what’s up?”
“Shit’s hit the fan, D.” Brian didn’t waste any time.
“What?”
“We walked past a newsstand and there was a picture of AJ and I.” He didn’t need to elaborate on what the picture was. Howie started to curse in his ear, but Brian spoke over top of it. “People saw us when we were standing there looking at it, and a hell of a crowd built. Not all nice either. We’re trying to outrun them right now.” He grunted as AJ did a U-turn at the light, something that was technically illegal. “At least, if AJ doesn’t kill us in the effort.”
“You wanna drive?” AJ snapped out.
Brian ignored him. “Keep Nina in the house, and make sure the gates locked. Thank God the installation finished yesterday. Can you get ahold of the security people for me? I don’t have their number in the car.”
“Sure, Bri. I’ll have some people over here asap. You guys gonna be able to make it home ok or you need police?”
“We should be fine. I think AJ’s got us away from them. We’ll be home in about ten minutes. But, go ahead and call the cops, get them out there. They’ll need to know what could happen. Maybe up patrols. If what we saw was an indicator, then there might not be a good reception for us with this one.”
“Fuck. On it, Brian.”
They hung up and Brian put his phone back in his pocket. He looked out the windows again, but they were alone now on the road. Still, they stayed vigilant as they reached their front gate. AJ punched the code in and the gate opened. He tore up the driveway, letting Howie buzz it shut from the panel in the house.
Once the car was parked they both quickly climbed out. AJ’s face was thunderous as he stormed through the front door. As usual he kicked his shoes off in the entry way, against the wall where the shoe rack was. As pissed as he was he simply kicked over there so that they bounced off the wall. Brian bent down and put them on the rack before he followed his lover toward the kitchen.
Nick and Howie were already waiting there at the kitchen table. It looked as if Howie had just hung his phone up. At the sight of them, their two friends both gaped slightly. It took a second for Brian to realize why. Then he remembered everything that had been thrown at them. He looked down at his shirt and saw the stains from food that had hit his clothes. With a sigh he grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head, setting it on one end of the table.
As if just remembering as well, AJ looked down at his sweater. If anything the look on his face grew angrier. “God damn it.” He swore loudly. “This is a comfortable fucking sweater and it’s covered in soda and food. Fucking assholes!”
He yanked his sweater off and threw it against the wall. Then, realizing that it was on his pants too, he cursed even louder and started to yank those off. He was so furious though that he kept tripping over the material. Finally, with a loud growl of anger, he dropped himself to his ass and grabbed the ankles of the jeans, pulling them off and throwing them as well.
The whole situation sucked. It was a horrible thing happening to them, and the repercussions were going to be shit. But, despite all that, Brian found his lips curving. He wasn’t the only one. Nick and Howie both were fighting back grins. They almost had it under control when AJ suddenly swore again, a finger touching his hair. “They got food in my hair.” He hissed.
That did it. Laughter bubbled up from Brian’s throat, bursting out despite his best efforts to hold it in. once it did it was like a release for Howie and Nick and the two were laughing so hard they almost fell off their chairs.
With food in his hair, AJ looked at them all and glared daggers. That only made them laugh even harder. Brian had to hold on to the edge of the table, he was laughing so hard.
Reluctantly AJ started to smile. That familiar sparkle lit his eyes, and he started to chuckle. Soon he was laughing with them. There, in the center of their chaos, the four of them laughed until they cried.