*March 10th 2005*<?xml:namespace prefix = o />
*Jaden’s 1 year 5 months old*
God, it seemed like it was one thing right after another. AJ couldn’t believe it. Only a few months ago he’d been at the hospital for dehydration and, well, basically because he had the shits and was puking, and now this! He’d caught another damn cold and been sick for an entire week. A week! But last night he’d felt better. Wonderful, really, compared to how the cold had made him feel. Mikayla had declared that the worst of it was over and he should be fine the next day.
Well, he’d woken up this morning to an empty house and had felt wonderful. Then he’d tried to talk. Any singer knew the sensation of losing their voice. It sucked and it sucked hard. So when he spoke and all that came out was a hoarse rasp, he’d known exactly what that meant.
The only logical explanation had to be that the combination of vomiting so much and still talking with Brian and Jaden and probably even the nighttime singing to Jaden had stressed his throat. So, he was without a voice. God damn it! The rest of him was finally feeling better and he was stuck without a voice? Oh, this was going to be hell!
But he knew the basic things to do to help himself. Tea, and lots of it. No talking whatsoever. Rest his voice and nurture his throat and he might be lucky enough to only be without a voice for a day.
So he went down to the kitchen and made a pot of tea. While that brewed, he went down to the bathroom and did his morning ablutions. Just as he was finishing at the toilet, the doorbell rang. He cursed lightly inside his head, moving to wash his hands. The doorbell rang again. Geeze, whoever it was, they were damn impatient! He turned to dry his hands off and then hurried out of the room.
The doorbell chimed yet again. Running to it, AJ glared as he yanked it open. Was it necessary to ring the doorbell three damn times to get someone’s attention? Couldn’t a man have a moment of privacy to take a piss? Of course, he couldn’t say any of this. All he could do was stare at the people on the other side of the door; Nick, Kristen and Kevin.
“Hey AJ!” Kristen said cheerfully. She stepped up and wrapped him in a hug. “How’re you doing?”
AJ shrugged, but he gave her a small smile. It was hard not to smile at Kristen. She was such a happy woman.
He stepped back and gestured for them all to come inside. Another wave of his hand signaled for them to follow him. Being around Brian for so many years now had left AJ with more manners than he’d ever had when it came to company. That thought made him smile a little bigger. Brian would kick his ass if he let company in and didn’t offer them food or refreshments.
The pot of tea he’d made was ready for him. He knew that the others wouldn’t drink it; tea wasn’t their thing. So he automatically went to the coffee pot they kept for guests and set about making a pot of coffee. Automatically he opened his mouth to ask them if they were hungry. Instant burning in his throat reminded him that it wasn’t a good idea to try to talk. Shit. Shit, shit, shit. This was going to be difficult.
“Boy your house is quiet today.” Nick said. He took a seat at the table, kicking back in his chair and putting his feet up on the edge. “Where is everyone?”
AJ raised a hand, gesturing toward the front of the house, trying to indicate that they were out. He’d need to find a damn pen and paper soon or this conversation was going to go to hell. He couldn’t even talk well enough to tell them that he couldn’t talk!
“You just wake up?” Kristen moved up beside him, giving him a one armed hug. “I told them we shouldn’t come over so early but Kevin insisted that Brian said he’d be up by now.”
Kevin pretended to glare at his wife. “He did! I don’t know why he isn’t here. Where’d he go, Age? An where’s my nephew?”
Silent, AJ finished putting the coffee on and moved over to the fridge. He grabbed the fruit platter Brian had made up for them to snack on later; hopefully his husband wouldn’t mind that he commandeered it. Guests came first, right? He shrugged to himself and shut the door with his foot before bringing the tray over and setting it on the table. Once he’d set it down, he knocked Nick’s feet off the table and glared at him. The little shit just smirked at him. Ass hole.
Now that all that was set up, AJ turned his attention back to his tea. He poured a cup, adding a liberal dollop of honey to it. Honey was a good thing for easing throats. Helped soothe it all and shit like that. Though he wasn’t fond of the taste it added.
Kevin snagged his arm as he turned to put the honey back. “You ok, AJ? Is something going on?” He looked so concerned. Ah, damn. It was sweet to know that his friends cared about him, it really was, but he was already grumpy this morning and dealing with someone freaking out just because he wasn’t talking wasn’t something he could do.
Still, there was no getting around it. AJ sighed and raised a hand, patting it at his throat. Kevin only looked confused. Annoyance lit AJ’s face. He tapped his throat again and opened his mouth, gesturing to his mouth, before closing it again and shrugging.
Understanding dawned on Kevin’s face. “You lost your voice?” he asked in surprise. “But we haven’t been performing! How the hell did you do that?”
AJ just stared at him, a corner of his mouth quirking. After a moment Kevin seemed to realize the absurdity of his question. There was no way AJ could answer him!
Elbowing her husband out of the way, Kristen stepped up and gave AJ a hug. “Well, don’t worry about it, sugar. We won’t make you talk. If there’s anything we can do, grab a paper and pen and let us know. We’re happy enough to help out. Now, I hope we weren’t disturbing you from doing anything.”
There was no way you could do anything but smile at this woman’s personality. Some of AJ’s tension eased. He shrugged at her. He hadn’t made any plans yet because he’d barely been awake. The only thing he’d planned on doing once he’d realized Brian was gone was to take advantage of the silence and play on the piano they’d had put in one of the rooms upstairs, a room they’d converted from a guest room to a office/music room.
With a smile, AJ pantomimed playing a piano, knowing she’d understand him. Kevin and Nick didn’t know that AJ played the piano. The only people that did know were Brian, Mikayla, Howie and Kristen. It was a quiet passion of AJ’s that he didn’t readily share with anyone. Plus, they already had one pianist in the group; Kevin. He was talented, too. No reason to have two. That left AJ’s playing private, just the way he liked it.
But Kristen got so excited when she realized what he’d been planning. Only twice had she heard him let go enough to play and she’d been quite impressed by it. “Oh! Can we listen in, please?” she begged him shamelessly.
AJ looked from Kristen to Kevin and over to Nick, thinking about it. Then, with a sigh, he shrugged again. Boy, it was a pain in the ass not being able to say a word. Prevented a person from being able to curse properly, too. Didn’t sound the same inside your own head. But AJ still ranted silently as he gathered up his tea tray with the pot and his cup on it. He carried it upstairs, trusting they’d follow him.
Sure enough the three of them trailed behind him all the way upstairs, following as he went into the newly finished room. Nick, naturally, sprawled out on a chaise lounge they’d had put in. “Nice room, J.” He commented as he looked around.
“Really nice.” Kevin was doing the same, checking everything out. There was a simple desk with a computer in the room, a comfortable computer chair for them to sit in. But on the other half of the room was everything a person could want for a music room. The baby grand piano stood near the window where AJ liked to have it. He loved being able to play and look out as the snow fell. On the other wall was a case that held the other instruments he and Brian liked to play around with. A sax, one of AJ’s personal favorites, a fiddle, a violin, which was one of Brian’s secret favorites, a few flutes, and two guitars.
Kevin walked over to the piano as Kristen moved to the case. “Wow, AJ.” She said softly. “You guys have quite a lot of instruments. Do you really play them all?” She looked back over her shoulder and saw him shake his head. He set the tea tray on a table by the piano and moved over to the display case with Kristen. He pointed to the sax, then the fiddle, the flutes, and the guitar and then pointed to himself. Then he pointed to the violin, himself, and shook his head no.
She nodded her understanding. “Does Brian play that one?” she asked, surprised. With a grin, AJ nodded. He pointed to all of them except the sax, then gave her a look, hoping she understood what he meant. The look she gave him said that she was clearly impressed.
Embarrassment had AJ’s cheeks going red. To cover it up he moved over to where Kevin was still fondling the piano. He was running his hands over the keys lovingly. “This is a beautiful piano, Age.” His voice was soft and revenant. “Just beautiful. You two looking to learn how to play?”
Mischievously AJ shrugged. Let Kevin draw the conclusions that he wanted. This might actually end up being fun.
The way that Kevin looked at the piano was like the way a person looks at their lover. “I could show you a few things, if you wanted me to.” He offered. AJ just smiled. Taking that as assent, Kevin gestured to the bench. “Why don’t you show me what you’ve learned already so I don’t feel like a fool showing you something too basic or too advanced.”
Well, he asked for it. AJ tipped a wink to Kristen, who was smothering her smile behind her hand. He took a seat at the piano, straightening his posture and shaking out his hands. If only Kevin knew that he’d been playing since his mom first put him in lessons at age five. Rolling his head to pop his neck, AJ thought about what he wanted to play.
“You need me to get any sheet music for you?”
Kevin’s offer was nice, but what AJ wanted to play, he didn’t need the sheet music. He’d played it so many times it came from him by memory alone now. It had always been his favorite and one that he played to soothe himself. After laying his hands on the keys, he closed his eyes and slid into the music.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shutting the engine off, Brian slipped the keys from the ignition and slid them into his pocket. He smiled at Mikayla as they climbed out of the car. “I hope they didn’t wake J up.” He said, inclining his head toward Kevin’s car. When he’d left with Mikayla he’d totally forgotten about Kevin, Kristen, and Nick coming by.
He unhooked Jaden from his seat and was holding his hand as they moved toward the front door. Music floated on the air, stopping Brian in his tracks. A soft sigh came from Mikayla. “AJ’s playing.”
“Yeah.” A smile curved Brian’s lips. God, he loved listening to AJ play. Most especially this piece. Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, first movement.
To move faster, Brian scooped Jaden up in his arms. He hurried up to the door, not bothering to pull out his keys. AJ would have unlocked the door already to let everyone in. Sure enough, the door was unlocked. Just opening it made the sounds of AJ’s music louder, more beautiful. Mikayla followed behind him as they headed straight upstairs. Neither of them hesitated to head straight for the music room. Rarely did AJ have the wherewithal to sit and play for long stretches anymore as he used to do, so they always took advantage of listening when they could.
Even Jaden was quiet as they stepped into the music room. He cuddled against Brian’s side, one hand fisted in his shirt, eyes trained on his Daddy. No one noticed their entrance. Kristen was standing, hands clasped to her chest, a look of pure enjoyment on her face. Nick was sitting up straight on the chaise, mouth open, gaping at AJ’s back.
It was Kevin who looked the most entertaining. His eyes were wide, locked on AJ’s hands. He looked clearly shocked, as if unable to comprehend what he was hearing. All the while the beautiful music played through the room, captivating them all.
Mikayla’s hands were suddenly there, taking Jaden out of Brian’s arms. The little boy made the transfer easily, his head going to rest on her shoulder. “Go.” Mikayla whispered. “Go play a duet. You two never do it anymore. Take advantage of this, Bri.”
It was the truth. They rarely ever played a duet anymore. One, a duet took a lot of energy, depending on what kind of music you played. The both of them had a passion for the classical when they played and those were usually long and emotional. Two, there was always something else they seemed to be doing. Their lives had grown so busy since the center had opened. Even now they had only about two hours before they were due down at the center to show around a group of potential investors.
Jaden was never a problem when they played. He had inherited their passion for music and was content to sit and listen, or to try to make music of his own. Frequently he tried to climb into AJ’s lap as he played the piano, wanting to press the keys himself.
Silent, Brian moved forward, toward the display case. He had to smother a chuckle when Kristen jumped, finally noticing he was there. Amusement lightened his eyes. He held a finger to his lips, signaling her to stay quiet. Then he opened the display case and pulled out his violin. It only took a moment to test the strings, making sure it was set right. He’d been in here the day before to play on his own, so it should be in tune.
Once he was sure it was ok, he moved toward the piano. AJ’s eyes flickered over to him, not an ounce of surprise there. No one else may have noticed when Brian, Mikayla and Jaden entered, but it was obvious that AJ had. He inclined his head at his husband and finished off the part he’d been playing. Just as he did, Brian stepped up beside him, almost laughing when he saw Nick and Kevin both jump.
Brian lifted his violin up, tucking it under his chin. “Play with me?” He asked AJ teasingly. Yet again, AJ inclined his head, a small smile curving his lips. For a moment Brian thought about it, then his own smile spread. “Allegro?”
In answer, AJ laid his hands back on the keys. Brian took a deep breath and, together, they stared the music. It was a piece they’d worked hard to be able to play together. Brahms, Sonata number three in D minor, a piece they loved. As always, Brian lost himself in the music, his body swaying as he played. It took him away to somewhere else, drifting among the flow of the music.
When it finished, it was like being jolted back to reality. Applause sounded around them. Brian flushed slightly, bringing the violin down. “Thanks.” He told his friends, smiling. AJ wore a wide grin. He took advantage of the pause to pick up his tea cup and take a drink, his eyes twinkling merrily above the cup at Brian.
“That was awesome, Frick.” Nick called out. “Pretty music. Not really my style, but I enjoyed it. You guys know how to play anything a little more fun, though?”
Laughter filled the room. Brian looked down at AJ, an idea coming into mind. His husband caught on quickly. Together, with one final grin, the two spun into a fast tempo song. It took everyone just a moment to recognize it and then they were all laughing. AJ and Brian had started the music to “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.”
Still chuckling, Brian put his violin away. Then he moved over by AJ, putting his hands on his shoulders and bending down to kiss him. “Hello, husband.”
AJ beamed up at him, a look of love on his face. He nuzzled against Brian’s arms, his eyes sliding closed. It was such a sweet gesture. “Sorry I forgot to warn you about everyone stopping by. I’d forgot all about it till I was out with Kay.”
It looked like AJ was about to say something before changing his mind. His eyebrows drew down in what Brian thought of as AJ’s sulky face. It was cute, to be honest. He didn’t tell AJ that, though. Why ask for trouble? AJ opened his mouth again, this time his expression turning even sulkier. Worry had Brian dropping down on the bench next to him so they could be eye to eye. “Alex? Is everything ok?”
The look AJ wore was so annoyed and so sulky it actually almost made Brian laugh. His husband looked like a frustrated little kid!
When AJ opened his mouth this time, sound came out, but it wasn’t what Brian had expected. Instead of words, AJ barely managed to rasp any kind of sound. It only took a second for Brian to make the leap. “You lost your voice?” He exclaimed. A second after the shock hit, the insane urge to giggle struck him. He bit the inside of his cheek to try and hide the smile.
It didn’t work. AJ glared at him, punching his arm. His look clearly said he knew that Brian was trying not to laugh. But, because he couldn’t speak, he couldn’t curse at him. That did it for Brian. He gave in to the urge and just let himself laugh, long and loud. Even when AJ pushed him, making him fall off the bench to land on the floor on his ass, he still laughed.
Of all of them, it had always been hardest for AJ if he taxed his voice too hard on tour and was forced to be quiet for a while. It would be even harder for him now, with a small child to chase around. Not to mention the center, their meeting with potential investors this afternoon, and a million other things. This was going to be difficult for him. But, it was the consternation on AJ’s face that had Brian laughing the most. The little kid look.
“Quiet!” AJ managed to croak out.
Mikayla made her way through everyone, toward AJ. “Hush.” She told him sternly. Looking over at Nick, she ordered “Downstairs at the kitchen table is my medical bag. Fetch it for me.” Then she turned back to AJ. With one arm still holding Jaden, she shifted and used her other hand to tip his chin up, feeling at his throat. She looked into his eyes, felt his temperature. When Nick came back she had him hold her bag open and dug around until she found her small light. Then she had AJ open his mouth so she could look at his throat.
When she was done she put the light back in her bag and put her free hand on her hip. “I think it’s mostly just from the throwing up lately, combined with all the talking you do, singing to Jaden each night, and so on. You need to give your throat a break to let it heal. Plenty of tea, maybe with some honey if you can stand the sweetness. Oh, you know how to care for a lost voice. You’ve done it before.”
AJ nodded grimly at her. He picked up his tea cup, pouring in a little more tea. He raised it to her as if to say cheers before he took a drink.
“Well, either way, I’m putting you on restriction, Littrell.” She told him sternly. “No talking whatsoever for three days.”
The tea he just drank almost flew back out his mouth. He started to protest, but she flung her hand over his mouth. “No! I mean it, mister. Your throat is really red. So, three days, no talking. Not a word! No whispering, no sneaking out little conversations here and there. No cursing. Don’t even moan out ‘more’ during sex. No sound for three days!”
Grinning, Jaden looked at everyone and said, with perfect diction, “Sex!”
Everyone in the room stared at him in stunned silence for a moment. Then, it took every effort for them not to laugh. Laughing would only encourage him to say it again. Brian wiped the tears of laughter from his eyes. He stood, trying to keep from laughing all over again, and took Jaden from Mikayla. “No, honey.” He told the little boy. “Don’t be going around saying that. You’ll get Papa in trouble.” His eyes shifted up to Mikayla. He tried for stern but knew his eyes were twinkling. “Aunty Kay’s already in enough trouble for the both of you.”
Her cheeks were red. “Sorry!” She apologized quickly. “I keep forgetting, mini recorder here.”
“Mmhm. I’ll just let you explain it to people when he announces that word randomly.”
Shaking his head, Brian turned back to look down at AJ. “Well, husband, this ought to make the next few days interesting. I’ll have to keep my eye on you.”
AJ rolled his own eyes in response. He looked around the room for a minute, apparently searching for something. Then he was moving toward the desk. Brian watched as AJ pulled a notebook and a pen from one of the desk drawers. He wrote something down before holding it up for Brian to see. It said “Where’d you guys go this morning?”
All thoughts of the morning appointment had slipped out of Brian’s mind. In that instant it came back to him. He felt his face light up. “Oh!” He exclaimed. Joy arrowed its way through him. He grabbed Mikayla’s hand, pulling with him toward AJ. “We went to her OB appointment. Remember? That was today?”
Understanding lit AJ’s face. He scribbled quickly, then held the paper up again. “So what’s the news that has you glowing?”
It was Mikayla who answered his question. She grinned at him, at the whole room, and dropped her bomb. “Well, with my genetics and the predisposition of the procedure itself, we knew it was a possibility.” Her hands went to her stomach. “Say hello to baby number two and three, Age.”