Chapter 11 - Brotherly Advice

Ryan’s POV

I sat on the bed, rhythmically threading my fingers through Max’s hair.

I was going to kill Ben for this.

I had gotten Ben to put Max onto my bed, the man unconscious on the dark blue blankets, and had made Ben sit on the couch until I came back.

The mans breathing was even and his chest rose and fell with every breath, and that was the only thing keeping me from freaking out. He was alright, he was going to be fine. I sat there, impatiently, for quite a while, anxious to be sure that he was ok.

Max stirred slightly and I leaned forward on the bed, hoping that he would open those green eyes of his. My heart had been hammering in my chest from the moment I walked in the apartment.

I really hoped that Max would be alright, and if he wasn’t then I would rip Ben’s hair from his scalp and punch him so hard that his teeth would fall out. Then I would feed him to a bunch of sharks, yep, sharks. And not the nice ones like on finding nemo, the bad ones that kill just for fun. Yep I will find a bunch of psychopathic sharks and feed Ben to them. Good luck Ben.

A bit harsh?

NO

This was Max!

I was distracted from my thoughts of murdering my idiot brother when Max’s head moved and his eyelids fluttered.

Slowly his eyes opened and he jumped up, now sitting upright on the bed startled and confused.

‘Max, it’s ok,’ I tried to calm him down but the man just looked even more confused.

‘Ryan!’ his eyes focussed on mine, ‘There’s an intruder, and he’s here for you,’ he said, his eyes searching around us for this so called intruder.

‘No Max, it’s ok, it’s just Ben,’ I reached out, my hand on his arm as I reassured him.

‘Your brother?’ He asked me, his green eyes wide and confused.

‘Yeah, he’s staying with me tonight, flew in from New York today, I'm so sorry, I should have told you.’

‘Oh. He hit me with a bat!’ he remembered and his hand flew to his head.

I now regretted never showing Max any photos of my brother.

‘Yeah, he sort of thought that you were the intruder’

He laughed weakly, ‘Oh god, this is messed up. I should go apologise’

‘You’re going no-where, you were knocked out, I am officially putting you on bed rest for the next few hours.’

‘Your mean to me,’ he pouted and I grabbed his hand, gently lying him back down on the bed.

‘Stay with me?’ he asked, and I leant down, placing a soft kiss on his lips.

‘I should go talk to Ben, but I’ll be back, ok?’

‘Ok,’ he smiled at me and I kissed his temple before jumping out of the bed and leaving the room.

When I got to the living room my brother was sitting on the couch, confusion and guilt playing on his features.

‘Is he alright?’ My older brother asked, jumping up when he saw me.

‘Yeah, I think he will be fine.’

‘Thank-god,’ he sighed, sitting back down.

I joined him on the couch, ‘How about you two work on your communication skills huh? Might save a life next time.’

‘I know, I’ll go apologise to him soon. I feel awful, just the way he was looking at me and he was so determined to find you, I thought he was going to hurt you.’

It made my heart warm to think that both Max and my brother were so protective of me, but I just wish they could have shown it in a way that didn't involve my handsome boyfriend getting hit in the head.

Ben continued, 'I mean, I was just sitting in your apartment and some random guy just comes in and I seriously thought he was going to hurt you. Your famous, I figured he was a stalker or something'

‘He would never hurt me,' I told him, complete truth coming from my mouth.

‘I know that now,’ he gave me a half smile, 'I also probably should have noticed who he was, it was a stressful situation.'

It was silent for a few minutes.

‘So.. You and Max Stark huh?’ he winked at the end, an action which made me want to go and jump out of that window over there, oohh pretty view, I like this city at night, all bright lights and stuff, wait, I’m getting off track. Did he know?

I tried to say ‘What?’ but it ended up as a mumble of jumbled sounds.

He laughed and put a hand on my arm, ‘I saw the look in his eyes when he thought that you were gone, that you could be hurt, and I saw the look in yours when you saw him pass out. You looked so scared and worried. That’s love. I know it when I see it’

I stayed silent and just gawked at my brother.

‘How long?’

I managed to whisper, ‘A year.’

‘Are you cheating on Claudia?’

‘No, we, uh, we aren’t really dating.’

I waited for some sort of gesture, but a hug was not one of them, but that’s what happened. My big brother just wrapped his arms around me and brought me in for a long hug.

When he pulled away I just continued to gawk at him.

‘I’m proud of you Ryan.’

‘You are?’

‘Of course, you obviously love this guy, and I want you to be happy.’

I smiled a huge, giant grin and I felt free.

My brother was the only family that I had other than Max, and to hear that just made me feel amazing.

‘You’ve got a good one, isn’t he like a movie star or something?’

‘Yeah he is.’

‘Isn’t he supposedly dating Alisa Zalesskii?’

Who?

Alisa?

Oh! Sparkly Slut!

I remember her now!

URG.

YUCK.

‘He went on one date with her,’ I told him, my voice flat and he nodded.

‘Why haven’t you guys like, I don’t know, come out as a couple? Why keep it a secret? Why date Claudia if you are in love with this guy?’

‘I just, he wants too, but it’s my image and you know.’

He just looked at me expectantly.

‘I love him, but if I give up my reputation and Claudia, then I will be giving away my career and you know how much I love singing.’

‘No-one will care about that Ryan, you can have Max and your songs.’

‘You don’t live in Hollywood, it’s not like that, people like my music, sure, but it’s my image that keeps me at the top.’

‘Isn’t Max more important than that?’

I ignored that direct question, ‘I need to be able to sing and continue being famous because it’s what gets me sold out shows, pay checks which keep a roof over my head’

He put his hand onto my arm, ‘Ryan, this isn’t like when we were kids, we have money now, and if your pay checks get smaller then so be it, you won’t be out on the streets. You have savings and Max’

‘I don’t ever want to be in the situation we were when mom and dad died.’

I remembered back to how much we struggled back then and shuddered.

‘It won’t be like that again Ryan, I promise.’

He made sense but it still scared me.

‘Anyway, that’s one of the reasons I came,’ he said, pulling an envelope out of his pocket and handing it to me.

I opened it, ‘Ben, this is a check?’

‘I’m starting to pay you back for law school tuition.’

‘What? You can’t afford this!’

‘I have a job now, at a big New York law firm, I can now,’ He told me and I was so proud of my brother.

‘Wow, that’s amazing Ben.’

‘Ryan, I know that you’re scared, but if you really love Max, you need to take this risk at some point.’

‘I know.’

‘Good,’ he smiled and I felt like I had a bit more understanding. I wasn’t going to break up with Claudia tomorrow, but I felt like I could someday.

‘Anyway’ he changed the subject, ‘Let’s talk about happier things, such as the fact that you’re dating Max Stark! How did that happen?’

I launched into a five minute story about how we met, ending somewhere totally different.

‘..And those abs, oh god, I could lick them all day..’

‘Too much information bro.’

I ignored him, who doesn’t want to know about Max’s abs?

‘They are just so tanned and amazing, oh and did I mention his hair?’

Somewhere along the line I started talking about Giraffes?

‘And they have these really long necks, and well you know that, but-‘

‘And that’s about ten minutes,’ my brother commented.

‘What?’

‘You just rambled and changed the subject like ten times in just over ten minutes. YAY!’ he exclaimed and tackled me into a hug.

He was crazy.

Actually crazy.

Maybe it runs in the family?

MY POOR CHILDREN!

Max and my children will be super hot, but so crazy, Oh no. Those poor attractive babies.

‘Your gay, you’re not having children with Max,’ my brother cut into my thoughts.

‘MIND READER!’ I screamed pointing to him.

‘Nope, you are actually speaking not thinking moron,’ he laughed and I pouted.

‘I am so glad!’ he exclaimed happily.

‘Huh?’ was he on drugs?

‘I was so worried that Hollywood would change you but it is good to know that my crazy little brother is still in there,’ he ruffled my hair, like he always did when I was young.

‘Are you sure you’re not just a mind reader?’

I bet he was a mind reader.

Maybe it was like his super power!

‘Pretty sure, you were rambling like a sex crazed lunatic.’

I realised that I probably was acting a bit crazy, I mean, I was so happy, my brother was here, I didn’t have to hide Max from him, max had told me that he was no longer going to see Sparkly Slut, I had popcorn for breakfast, I just bought ice-cream…. which is now all over my floor along with my other food. Oh no. NOT THE ICE-CREAM! How will I go on!!!

Eh.

I’ll buy more tomorrow.

Anyway, what was I saying?

Oh right, I was happy.

‘Well I am going to go to bed, you should go tend to your injured boyfriend.’

Ooohh, tend to? Nah, how about sexy time with boyfriend! YES PLEASE

‘Yep, I must go work my healing magic on the poor injured man!’ I yelled running to my bedroom, but when I got there Max was asleep in the bed, under the covers, his shirt hanging off of my bed post.

I smiled at the sight and got undressed, leaving only my blue boxers and got into the bed, resting my head on his chest and throwing an arm around his torso. I soaked up his warmth and intertwined my legs with his.

‘Love you Ry,’ he mumbled, moving around so he could hold me closer, pressing his face into my hair.

I loved this feeling, Max’s body wrapped around mine as if we were one person. His warm skin pressing familiarly against my own and those strong arms holding me as close as possible, as if I was his prized possession and he couldn’t bear the thought of being without me.

His hold was strong but gentle at the same time, and resting against his chest was comforting and it felt like home.

‘Love you Max,’ I replied, closing my eyes.

No sexy time tonight, but somehow this was better.