Runaway Chapter 9

Brian smiled broadly. "Of course we can Ty." He leaned forward for a soft, quick kiss. "But right now we need to pack and get ready to go to the arena," Brian explained.

"Oh," Tyler said in quiet disappointment as he looked down at his hands.

Brian gently lifted Tyler's face up. "I promise we will continue this Ty." He softly stroked Tyler's cheek. "We'll be on the bus tonight, but I'll make sure we have some time alone, okay?"

Tyler smiled slightly and nodded. Brian stood up.

"Good. Now come on," Brian said as he pulled Tyler to his feet. "We have to pack. Even though you're too weak to work tonight, I still want you to come to the concert."

They walked into their respective rooms to pack. The six men were ready on time and the luggage was taken down to the bus, while they climbed into the limo.

Once at the arena, the singers were whisked away to make-up or costume. Marcus walked with Tyler to a small office where he could sit until the concert. The room was small but comfortable and Tyler relaxed quietly. After a few minutes, there was a knock at the door.

Tyler was hesitant about answering it, but realized that only authorized people could get backstage. He opened the door.

"Hi Tyler," Jay, one of the crewmen, said in a subdued voice.

Tyler was surprised to see him. "Hi Jay. What are you doing here?" he asked.

Jay looked down at the floor. "Um…can we talk?" he asked quietly.

Tyler was confused but opened the door fully, allowing Jay to walk in. Jay stopped in the middle of the room. "Um…before I say anything else, can I ask you a question?" he said softly.

Tyler sat back down, still feeling weak. He nodded. "Sure."

"Steve said that Nick called today to say you wouldn't be able to work. He didn't give much info, but said it had to do with your father. Will you tell me what happened? Please," he pleaded.

Tyler stared at the man he hardly knew. Why was he so interested? Finally, he made the decision. "My father has been abusing me, badly, for the past few years. I thought that I was finally free of him. Somehow, he found me, and showed up today. I panicked, and ran. I ran up 25 flights of stairs, then sat outside on the roof freezing, until Nick found me," Tyler explained flatly.

Jay stood silently in the center of the room listening to Tyler talk. When Tyler stopped, Jay sank down to his knees and hung his head. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

Tyler stared in confusion. "Why?"

Jay looked up and Tyler could see tears on his face. "When I was about 12, my sixteen year old brother ran away. We had a good home life, loving parents. No one understood why he ran. It destroyed my parents and our family. Almost three years later, the police called. They had found his body." Jay paused to regain control of his emotions. "I vowed that if I ever met a runaway, I would do what I could to reunite them with their family." He looked up a Tyler. "When I met you, you seemed like a shy, but sweet kid. Then I found your picture on a website for runaways."

Tyler was beginning to realize what Jay was saying. "You called him?" he asked in disbelief.

Jay nodded through his tears. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know he hurt you. I was just trying to do the right thing."

Tyler didn't know what to say. He wanted to yell and scream at Jay. Who did he think he was? But Tyler couldn't gather the energy. He wasn't going to waste any more energy on his father. He stared down at Jay.

"Maybe next time you find a runaway, you might want to ask why they ran. Not everyone has had a perfect childhood like you did," Tyler said coldly.

Jay looked over and nodded. "You're right." He stood up. "I am sorry Tyler. I don't expect us to be friends, but I hope you won't let my selfishness affect us working together."

Tyler sighed and nodded. "It won't. I'll be there for the next show. I promise," he said quietly.

Jay walked over to the door. He paused and thought about saying more, but decided not to. He closed the door quietly behind him.

Tyler closed his eyes and leaned back. A few seconds later, the door opened again.

"You okay Ty?" a familiar voice asked.

Tyler smiled and opened his eyes. "Yeah. I am now. Is the concert about to start?" he asked Brian.

Brian nodded. "I thought you could sit in the control booth tonight," he suggested, not wanting to risk Tyler with the general audience in his weakened state. Tyler nodded and they walked to the control room.

Over four hours later the six men stumbled onto the bus. It was close to midnight. Nick and AJ sat down in the kitchen for a snack, while Kevin and Howie continued on to the bunks and bed. Brian gently grasped Tyler's hand and led him to the back lounge.

Tyler smiled slightly as Brian closed and locked the door. "Now this seems familiar," he said softly as he stared out the back window. The bus began to move and Tyler sat down. Brian sat beside him on the couch.

They sat silently. Eventually, Brian reached over and picked up Tyler's hand in his own. He simply held it.

"What are we doing?" Tyler asked suddenly in a soft voice.

Brian turned to look at him. "What do you want to do?" he asked gently.

Tyler met his gaze. "I'm not sure. I'm still confused about a lot of things," he murmured and looked away. "But I do like kissing you," he whispered.

Brian leaned close to Tyler. "Then all we'll do is kiss," he whispered next to Tyler's ear.

Tyler turned his head slightly and found Brian's lips. They were full, and soft and warm, and tasted sweet. Tyler moved his mouth over Brian's lips, exploring them. Brian sat passively allowing Tyler to make the moves.

Soon Tyler turned in his seat to face Brian, putting his arms around the singer. Brian responded and moved his arms around Tyler's back, pulling him closer. Brian increased the pressure of the kiss and slowly Tyler's lips opened allowing Brian access to his mouth and tongue. Tentatively, so not to scare Tyler, Brian ran his tongue lightly inside Tyler's lips, barely touching the tip of his tongue before withdrawing. Tyler had never been kissed like that before and he quickly discovered he wanted more. His mouth opened wider, allowing Brian greater access. Brian took advantage of the offer and delved deeper into Tyler's oral cavity. He found Tyler's tongue and sucked on it gently, eliciting a moan from Tyler.

The kiss continued for a few more minutes, until both had to pull back for air. Tyler's eyes were wide as he gazed lustfully at Brian.

"Wow!" he whispered. He was sure his entire body was flushed with heat.

Brian smiled tenderly and ran his fingers down the hot flesh of Tyler's cheek. "I'll second that!" He leaned forward for a quick kiss. "You know you have your own bunk on the bus Ty, but would you consider sharing mine? Just to sleep," he added. "I like to feel you in my arms," he whispered.

Tyler blushed and smiled shyly. "I like that too," he murmured.

Brian stood up and pulled Tyler to his feet. Hand in hand, they walked back out to the bunks. After stripping down to their boxers, Tyler crawled onto their bunk, followed by Brian. Brian leaned over and gently kissed Tyler.

"Goodnight Ty," he whispered, as he lay on his back.

"Goodnight," Tyler whispered back as he turned onto his stomach and stretched his arm across Brian's chest. He smiled to himself when he felt Brian's arm wrap around his back, holding him close.

Tyler woke up to a new city and an empty spot beside him. He rolled over to look out the small window of the bunk. The bus was parked outside another hotel. Yawning, Tyler crawled out of the bunk and grabbed his pants from the floor where they'd been dropped the night before. He made his way to the kitchen and found Nick sitting on the couch playing another of his video games.

Nick looked up as Tyler walked in. "Hi Ty!" he greeted the teenager.

Tyler smiled and walked over to the fridge. "Morning Nick," he said as he opened a small bottle of orange juice. "Where are we? And where is everyone else?" Tyler asked as he sat down at the table.

Nick turned off the game. "We're at the hotel in Vegas. The others are just taking the stuff up to the rooms. We've only been here for about ten minutes, but Bri didn't want to wake you, or have you wake up completely alone," Nick explained.

Tyler blushed at Brian's consideration. "Oh."

Nick grinned. "You really are cute when you blush, Ty," he commented.

Tyler's eyes widened and Nick laughed. "What? Didn't Brian tell you?" he asked.

Tyler shook his head. "No. He just said two of the group was gay. When I asked him, he admitted he was one. I never asked who the other was," he admitted. "Besides, I'm certainly not cute!"

Nick stood and walked over to Tyler. "Yeah, well, if I didn't see the way you and Brian look at each other, I would show you just how cute I think you are," Nick said softly. He leaned down and kissed Tyler's cheek. "But I wouldn't do that to two of my friends." He pulled away, leaving a stunned Tyler. "Why don't you throw your clothes on Ty and we'll get into the hotel? We have the day off and I think the others want to check out the sites of Vegas."

Tyler nodded and silently returned to the bunks to get the rest of his clothes. He thought about what Nick said. 'The way you and Brian look at each other.' He was still confused about everything. Was Nick saying Brian was in love with him? Tyler sighed and decided to just wait and see what happens. He started back to the front of the bus. Besides, anything else may be moot if the test comes back positive.

Tyler shuddered as those dark thoughts coursed through him again. He looked up and found Nick watching him intently. He tried to smile weakly but found he couldn't. Nick silently walked to him and wrapped his arms around him.

"Hey Tyler," he said softly. "You worry too much." His hand rubbed Tyler's back gently. "Try to put it out of your mind till tomorrow okay?"

Tyler just continued to cling to Nick. He didn't hear the bus door open or see the man step onto the bus. The next thing he knew another pair of arms were wrapping around him and holding him tightly.

Tyler recognized Brian immediately and turned into his embrace. He managed not to cry, but just relaxed into the embrace, allowing Brian to comfort him. Brian didn't speak, he didn't ask what was wrong. Either he knew, or it didn't matter. Not at that moment anyway.

Tyler inhaled a deep shuddering breath and extracted himself from Brian's arms. He smiled at the singer. "Thanks. I really needed that," he said softly.

Brian stroked Tyler's jaw. "Any time baby. Are you ready to go into the hotel?"

Tyler nodded. As they began to leave, he noticed that Nick was already gone. He smiled to himself as he realized what a good friend Nick was becoming.

In the suite, the guys devised a plan for the day, full of activities. Each knew Tyler was to call for his HIV results the next day and they wanted to keep his mind on other things.

Once everyone had unpacked, the six men left the hotel, not returning until close to midnight. Tyler managed to pull off his clothes before falling exhausted onto the bed. He quickly drifted to sleep, only disturbed when he felt the bed move as Brian lay down beside him. He sighed contentedly and fell into oblivion.

A soft, ticklish touch along his cheek woke Tyler up the next day. Reluctantly he opened his eyes to discover Brian kneeling beside the bed planting butterfly kisses down his cheek. Brian pulled back and smiled when he realized Tyler was awake. Tyler smiled happily.

"Mmmm. That was nice," he murmured, not fully awake yet. He stretched his arms above his head and Brian took the opportunity to kiss one of Tyler's exposed nipples. Tyler laughed and lowered his arms. "Hey! That tickled!"

Brian giggled and stood up. "I brought you some breakfast Ty," he said as he walked to the table where a tray of food sat. Tyler pushed himself up in the bed to lean against the headboard. He watched Brian pick up the tray and bring it back to the bed.

He smiled shyly. "Breakfast in bed? Thanks Bri," he said softly.

Brian set the tray on Tyler's lap, and then sat on the side of the bed near Tyler's knees. Tyler looked at the tray of bacon, eggs, toast, juice, and pancakes then shook his head slightly wondering how he was going to eat it all. Finally, he picked up the fork and began to eat. He and Brian talked quietly while Tyler ate and before he realized it, all of the food was gone.

He looked at the empty plate then to Brian. "Guess I was hungry," he said with a smile.

Brian nodded and picked up the tray. "Looks that way." He returned the tray to the table then looked back to Tyler. Tyler was following Brian with his eyes and their eyes met.

Tyler chewed on his lower lip slightly before closing his eyes and inhaling deeply. "Guess there's no point in putting it off huh?" he said softly.

Brian picked up Tyler's wallet from the dresser and returned to the bed. He sat down on the other side and moved over beside Tyler. Ty took his wallet and reached for the phone on the bedside table.

Brian wrapped his arms around Tyler as the teenager dialed the number for the doctor's office. He remained silent as Tyler spoke to the person on the phone, giving them his test number. Tyler was silent for a moment as he listened to the other person, before thanking them and hanging up.

Tyler hadn't reacted and Brian was anxious to know the results. Suddenly, he could feel Tyler's body tremble, and he knew Tyler was crying.

"Tyler?" Brian whispered as he held him tightly.

Tyler turned around to face Brian, the tears clearly visible on Tyler's face. "It was …."