Business and Pleasure: Chapter 29

[saiya-tina.livejournal.com]

Title: Business and Pleasure
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Brad/Ryan
Summary for the chapter: Enjoying life while you can. 

Overall Summary: Brad's running his own large business and has everything but what he wants the most: someone to be there for him. After 'purchasing' Ryan from the Utopia group to serve the purpose, he slowly realizes that he's breaking their most important rule: he's falling in love with him. After two years together, two years of love, the time has come for Ryan to be taken away. The rules will change, the game will too and the three friends are going to go through the ultimate test.

A/N: If you want to blame anyone for this chapter, blame rycolfan! Her fic for me made me so happy, this chapter cropped up in a day's time! I'm incerdibly pleased with it too! Please leave a comment and this one's for you, rycolfan! ;) Also, sorry the banner isn't up, but LJ's decided to try and blackmail me into opening a photobucket account....

Brad growled as he heard another thump from outside the house and covered his head with his pillow, grumbling to himself about ‘kids’ and ‘no respect for elders who needed to sleep’. He’d been hearing those sounds since about 6 in the morning and that had been nearly three hours ago. He knew that he was supposed to get up soon, but he would have liked to have at least gotten more than 6 hours of sleep. After so long of going without the chance to talk except for one night, he and Wayne had kept Ryan up by constantly bombarding him with questions and updates until the poor man was nearly asleep on Brad’s shoulder. Colin had then insisted on everyone getting some sleep because they still had a lot to do over the next couple of weeks and they’d need their energy, helping Brad get a by then completely asleep Ryan to bed.

 

Brad smiled slightly as he remembered falling asleep to Ryan’s gentle breathing next to him, though they were on separate beds. He had missed that sound a lot and had spent what felt like an hour just listening to the soft breaths, assuring himself that he was really there. It had been so long since he had heard that sound that when he woke up once in the middle of the night, he had felt he was dreaming until he turned to see Ryan curled up tight on his bed, surprisingly comfortable considering his position. He frowned now, not remembering the last time Ryan had slept like that; he normally either sprawled over the entire bed or ended up stuck to his side.

 

Another thump broke him out of his thoughts and he groaned, giving up on the idea of sleep and opting instead to go for a shower and maybe get some breakfast. He spent at least a good half an hour in the warm shower, loving the feel against his skin. He normally preferred a cold shower, something about it being invigorating and it never failed to wake him up, but this wasn’t so bad. He smiled as his mind took him back to thoughts of warm showers with a hot body next to him....and suddenly he wished that the water was colder.

 

Dressing himself in a white t-shirt and sweatpants, he toweled off his hair and padded down the stairs towards where he had been told the kitchen was. He could already smell some truly wonderful items being cooked and felt himself start salivating, imagining everything from eggs to waffles. He didn’t know why but he pictured Mother Mochrie, as she had insisted on them calling her, to be an absolutely wonderful cook and mostly because Ryan had once raved about a meal Colin had made for him which he claimed was to die for. Coming from someone who had made Brad better food than a five star chef, it had to be quite a dish.

 

“Morning Bradley,” Colin smiled at him from the kitchen table, taking a sip from the cup of coffee he was holding.

 

“Morning,” Brad greeted before doing a double take. Colin looked like he had been attacked by a bob cat, his jaw was bruising, he had scratches on his hands, and he seemed to be favoring his ribs. “What happened to you?!”

 

“Your boyfriend did,” Colin chuckled, gesturing for him to sit down, “We decided to up the training for the next few days and apparently, I’ve taught him well.”

 

“Whoa,” Brad let out a low whistle, “You look like you were run through the shredder.”

 

“And I’m the shredder,” Ryan smiled at him as he entered the dining room as well, pouring out two cups of coffee and handing one to Brad before sitting down with the other. Though he didn’t look as bad as Colin, Ryan obviously had been on the receiving end of some blows as well. His neck had purple scratches on it like someone had been gripping it harshly along with a bruise on his cheek and there were a few dark marks on his forearms and biceps.

 

“Jeez, what did Colin do to you?” Brad frowned, tilting his head up gently to get a better look at his wounds.

 

“Nothing major,” Ryan waved it off, “The neck scratches are a result of learning how to get out of a chokehold, the bruises on my arms are defensive wounds from blocking Colin and the face bruise is what happens when you get distracted during hand-to-hand combat.”

 

“Well, maybe next time you’ll know better,” Brad chuckled, briefly pressing his lips to his bruised cheek.

 

“Not if that’s my medicine,” Ryan winked and then got up to help Mother Mochrie set the table.

 

“Ryan, you don’t have to do that,” she protested, trying to grab the plates from him.

 

“I want to,” Ryan held them up above his head where she couldn’t reach them but then doubled over as she back-handed him on the stomach, “Oof!’

 

“Don’t use your height on me, young man,” she admonished but let him set them on the table, simply shaking her head with an amused sigh.

 

“He appears to be more comfortable with your family now,” Brad observed as Ryan went back to fetch the cutlery from the kitchen drawer.

 

“That’s what I was thinking,” Colin agreed, “He’s nothing if not adaptable.”

 

“That’s good. Mother Mochrie seems really fond of him; she’s already treating him like a son.”

 

“That’s because, to her, he is one. Our families were incredibly close, even to the degree that I never believed that they weren’t related to us someway. My parents were his godparents and his were mine. After so long of thinking that her youngest ‘son’ was dead....it’s like she’s been given another chance.”

 

“He needs a proper family,” Brad nodded, taking another sip of the hot coffee, “And Colin?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Ryan getting sent to Utopia....you know there’s nothing you could have done to prevent it, right?”

 

“Rationally, yes I do,” Colin sighed, rubbing his forehead, “but despite knowing that, I still feel guilty. I know I shouldn’t, I know it’s dumb, but-”

 

“It wasn’t your fault,” this time it wasn’t Brad who had spoken, but rather the subject of the conversation himself. Ryan gripped his shoulder firmly, putting all his assurance into that action and his words, “You couldn’t have prevented that anymore than I could have.”

 

“I know, but-”

 

“Don’t ‘but’ me or I will hurt you.”

 

Colin rolled his eyes and patted his hand, but Brad could tell Colin had taken his words to heart, looking for the first time like the burden of the world wasn’t on his shoulders. Breakfast was a light and fun affair, everyone interacting with one another, telling stories and Ryan and Wayne even acted out a small improv scene for the Mochries that had them in tears of laughter. Brad was pleased to see that time and events had done nothing to hamper Ryan’s comic skills and timing as he was as witty and snarky as he had always been while performing.

 

Clapping as Ryan ‘fainted’ in Wayne’s arms after telling him he was pregnant in the style of ‘Soap Opera’, Brad laughed as Wayne immediately withdrew his arms to take a mocking bow, dropping Ryan onto his back on the floor. Ryan’s yelp just made everyone laugh harder and when he chased Wayne out of the house and into the spacious backyard, everyone went to the window looking out at the yard where they watched Ryan tackle Wayne to the ground and tickling him until his squeals could be heard even in the house.

 

“Somebody better get them back in before the neighbors misinterpret what they’re doing,” Andrew chuckled as Wayne shoved Ryan off and started taking revenge.

 

“I’ve got it,” Colin shook his head and walked out, separating both of them and marching them both into the house. Mother Mochrie stood in front of both of them with her hands on her hips and Ryan and Wayne looked down at the floor like two kids about to scolded. The sight was so adorable that Brad felt like his grin was going to split his face.

 

“Boys, what do you say?”

 

“Sorry,” they chorused.

 

“To whom?”

 

“Each other.”

 

“Good,” she clapped, “So...?”

 

“Sorry,” Ryan and Wayne looked at each other and that was the last straw because they burst out laughing hard enough that they were clutching their sides and trying to breathe in between fits. Mother Mochrie just sighed with a smile and went in the kitchen to clean up the dishes, Colin and Andrew joining her and leaving Brad, Wayne and Ryan alone.

 

“I see you didn’t forget my tickly butt,” Wayne scooted away from Ryan to keep said butt firmly on the floor.

 

“How could I forget such a fig ol’ futt?” Ryan responded lightly.

 

“Man, I can’t believe it. You haven’t done this in years and you’re still just as good!”

 

“I guess it’s not something you forget easily,” Ryan shrugged lightly, “Plus, all you have to do is just make it as you go along.”

 

“Point,” Wayne agreed, “Well, I’m going to take a shower. Grass stains take forever to get out if you don’t do it right away.”

 

“You know things like that and somehow I’m the gay one?”

 

“The universe works in mysterious ways....”

 

“Suuure,” Ryan watched Wayne run up upstairs in an attempt to salvage his clothing, “he’s just in denial. There’s no other explanation.”

 

“You’re in a really good mood today,” Brad observed. He hadn’t seen Ryan this happy and giddy since before he was taken away. It was a massive change from the person he had seen in past couple of months.

 

“I know,” Ryan smiled slightly, “As to why, I don’t know why myself. I just woke up and I felt like everything was going to be all right. It’s probably due to the fact that last night was my first night in a non-Greg place in a really long time. Sleeping without worrying about being jumped in the night does wonders for one’s health.”

 

His expression turned apologetic as Brad scowled, “Sorry. I know you don’t like hearing about it.”

 

“I don’t, Brad admitted, “But if you ever need to talk about anything, I’ll listen. You know that, right?”

 

Ryan smiled, moving up to kiss his forehead, “I do. Thanks.”

 

They sat in a companionable silence for a few minutes, the only sounds they could hear were the Mochries cleaning up the remains of the morning’s meals and the sounds of sprinklers of the neighboring houses. Brad shifted over slightly to lean against Ryan’s shoulder, only to jolt back up when the other man flinched.

 

“Sorry,” Brad murmured, trying to hide his disappointment. He had thought Ryan was comfortable with him touching him.

 

“No, I don’t mind,” Ryan shook his head, “I actually landed hard on that shoulder this morning so it’s a little tender. You just surprised me.”

 

“Is it really a good idea to be beating yourselves up now?”

 

“We don’t have much time and we need to be as capable as we can by then. We’ll stop a week in advance to rest up, but we can’t let our guard down for even a moment. It’ll just be me and Colin physically against those guys after all.”

 

Brad understood the wisdom behind Ryan’s words but frowned as a previously ignored thought suddenly cropped up. He and Wayne were supposed to depend on Ryan the entire time, but what if he needed help? They were strong in their own way – both having been good athletes in high school - but not enough to beat up several armed men and that fight in the alley so long ago had proved that. If anything they’d just be a liability and if anything happened to Ryan and or Colin because of them, he was sure that they’d never be able to live with themselves. He wouldn’t be able to handle that....

 

“Brad?” Ryan must have noticed the change in his expression, because he was now leaning forward worriedly, almost as if afraid that Brad had changed his mind again or that he had offended him.

 

“Ry, could you do me a favor?”

 

Ryan frowned, “Okay.”

 

“Teach me how to fight. Well.”

 

Dl

 

Dl

 

“No, that’s still not it....” Ryan sighed, moving Brad back into position. “Brad, it’s impossible for you to learn how to fight in two weeks, why don’t you just give it up? I told you I’ll be with you the entire time.”

 

“I can’t just go in there without knowing anything, Ry,” Brad knew Ryan was getting frustrated, but he was adamant.

 

“Brad, if you hurt yourself trying to overdo it, you won’t be going at all. Just stop this, please?”

 

“No.”

 

“But why?!”

 

“I’ll tell you why,” Brad turned to lock their eyes together, “Because I am scared to death that I won’t be able to help you if you’re in trouble there. You saw the extent of my survival skills in that alley and if it hadn’t been for you, both Wayne and I would have been killed. You can’t protect us the entire time, Ry, not if you want fulfill your objective at the same time.”

 

Ryan knew that nothing was about to change Brad’s mind and just shook his head, ushering Brad back into his previous position and trying his hardest to teach him the most basic of moves. After Brad tripped and fell on his ass again, Ryan refused to teach him anymore, not even when Brad pleaded with him with the puppy eyes.

 

“Brad, you can’t learn this, why can’t you accept that?” Ryan groaned, putting his face in his palm.

 

“The reason he’s not learning is because you’re teaching him the wrong things,” Colin’s voice came from the backyard entrance where he was looking at them with amusement, “It’s nothing to do with your teaching abilities or his capacity to learn, but you’re teaching him techniques which aren’t suitable for his body type.”

 

“Meaning?” Brad frowned.

 

“Just look at yourselves. Though you’re the same height, your body mass is miles apart. I taught Ryan specific moves that focus more on maneuverability and momentum. You’ve noticed most of his moves require a certain amount of movement beforehand to get in the most force. Brad, however, would be more suited to more powerful blows instead. He’s got a heftier frame and, from what I’ve seen, great brute strength. You need to utilize that if you want to fight well.”

 

“.....”

 

Colin rolled his eyes at their befuddled expressions, “Let me put this is terms you can understand. Brad, punch the dummy as hard as you can.”

 

“But Wayne’s not here.”

 

“Brad....”

 

“Fine, I’m sorry,” Brad chuckled, making his way over to the makeshift dummy Colin had constructed earlier. Following Colin’s instructions, he reared back, pictured Greg’s face as his target, and hit the dummy as hard as he could. A loud smack was heard and a crack as the dummy’s stick broke and it fell down into a crumpled heap at his feet.

 

“Wow!” Ryan’s jaw dropped as Colin went over to examine the traget, “That was awesome! Even I can’t do that!”

 

“That wasn’t a reckless punch,” Colin said from next to the dummy, “You knew what you were doing. Experience?”

 

“It may be possible....” Brad replied, tongue in cheek, “that the sport I took part in during high school was boxing.”

 

Ryan’s incredulous expression nearly made Brad burst out laughing but it was Colin who he was more interested in at the moment. The man had a, by now, very familiar gleam in his eye.

 

“I think our chances of success improved considerably.”