STICKS, MAYBE STONES TOO

Who is Brandon?

Pain, excruciating pain! That was what woke Tony up.

Expecting to find himself lying on the floor in the basement where he last remembered being the previous night.

Tears rolled down his face as the scene with Janet and Elvis replayed in his mind, the hatred in their eyes. The disgust, the loathing, the look of rage in Elvis's face as he unapologetically lifted that bat.

Feeling the urge to empty the contents of his stomach, Tony hurriedly sits up subconsciously but ends up in pain, pain from falling off the bed.

“Ouch!" he groans in pain. The headache he has been trying to ignore increases at the thundering of footsteps around him.

He holds on to his head to alleviate some of the pain, only to finally notice the IV drip attached to the back of his hand.

Hospital? How? How did he end up in a hospital? He didn't have friends at least not any that would care enough to send him to the hospital after all Elvis did use his ‘friends’ to trick and drug him. That is how he had ended up in that basement.

It was supposedly a birthday party for him. Tony Anderson was turning 32! A big number, a great milestone that deserved a celebration. That is what they said on the phone before Victor came to drag him out is house that night.

Elvis had a surprise party for him, but Victor being a ‘good' friend had let it slip that Elvis had gone ring shopping that weekend. So what else could the surprise be if not a proposal?

Finally he was going to be asked the big question!

Finally he could get his own ‘official' special someone!

So Elvis had indeed gotten the hints he had been dropping since the year began. A big smile bloomed on Tony's face, a sudden bounce in his step, a little sway in his hips.

If this what walking on sunshine was like the Tony was doing it!

A sudden jolt wakes him up from his thoughts as he felt warm manly arms lift him off the floor and back on to the warm bed.

He couldn't be that light!

‘This does not feel right. No, this is not right.’ his heart rate quickens as he tries to pin point the nagging feeling at the back of his head.

“Careful" a deep voice laced with concern calls from above him.

Whipping his head fast as finally realizes he has company, making his headache worse to the point of tearing up Tony finally manages to catch a glimpse of his supposed saviour. Through vision blurred by tears Tony sees an extremely good looking man staring down at him.

“Call for a nurse next time you need something ok?" but instead of the yes Tony meant to say as reply all he manages out is a chesty cough that brings him to tears. “Someone get him a glass of water," the stranger commands coldly and the answer is hurried steps going out and coming back into the room before a veiny hand holding a glass of water enters Tony's line of vision.

Tony gulps down the water leading to another fit of coughs.

“i***t!" the stranger with the deep voice admonishes but there is laughter in his voice. Cheeks heating up Tony looks away feeling embarrassed.

“Brandon, if you did not want to get married there was no need to pull such a stunt in order to gain my attention. why would you throw away your life like that?" the stranger suddenly yells loudly.

“Who is Brandon?" that is the only thought going through Tony's mind at this point. He realised that he didn't know a Brandon.

The stranger seeing him lost in thought again snaps his fingers in front of his face, "I am talking to you Brandon, why aren't you saying anything?"

Suddenly realizing he is the Brandon in question Tony snaps out his thoughts and back to the present. “Who is Brandon?" he questions worriedly “are you mistaking me for someone else?". Had the good looking stranger saved him mistakenly from Elvis and Janet? Was he supposed to save someone else but got him instead? Oh no! Maybe some Brandon somewhere still needed help and here he was being safe at his expense.

“I am not Brandon, I am sorry I am not Brandon,” he mumbles in panic. “I don't know any Brandon.”

The look on the strange man suddenly turns fierce, “Am I that bad? First you try to take your own life just to escape our marriage and when that fails you fake amnesia?! I will let you in on a secret Brandon, THERE IS NO WAY I AM LETTING YOU GO! NEVER! YOU HEAR ME."

Rage!

The amount of rage in that voice was enough to make a grown man panic.

Being suddenly screamed at and violently shaken causes Tony to feel dizzy, with vision blurring and ringing pain in the head he tries to pry the strangers hands off himself only to make him more angry leading to even more violent shaking.

“I'm sorry" he mumbles as his vision turns dark...

“Brandon, I am sorry I did not have another option, the only condition George gave us in order to save my family business is your hand in marriage. I could not say no." his step father reasoned pathetically.

So the stranger was George, and his family practically sold him to this George in order to gain money for business.

How selfish were humans?

Brandon had already resigned to his fate and there was so no way he could have tried to take his own life. He still had goals set to fulfill. He had a ton to live for.

One the day of his engagement party he had decided to take a walk around the pool to clear his head.

That was his favorite thinking spot and since it was winter it was guaranteed to be peaceful as no one cared for a swim in the freezing cold.

The party had been huge with waiters shoving drinks into his hands every five minutes, people proposing toasts. He knew few of them but most were strangers, lots of George's business friends.

For an introvert with no social circle the human contact was too much and he needed a break after a while.

Accepting one last drink Brandon sneaked out for some time alone feeling a little dizzy but blaming it on the wine he had drunk at the party.

Lost in thoughts at the edge of the pool someone suddenly covered his mouth and nose with piece of cloth with a weird smell, if being small bodied was a problem, imagine being small bodied and drunk, Brandon could not fight his attacker, in fact he only got to see a glimpse of a tattoo on his ankle.

The attacker seeing Brandon loosing consciousness, pushes him into the cold water face down. The cold indeed wakes Brandon up but at this point he is too tired to swim or even struggle up for some much needed air.

Gulping in more water in his quest for oxygen Brandon watched as his life faded into nothingness.

Beep.. Beep!

Waking up startled in a hospital bed Tony finally realizes what actually happened. The blow from Elvis ended his life but by a weird twist of fate he woke up Brandon's Body.

Rebirth, reincarnation! Tony had been given a new chance at life! A chance to go back. A chance to start again, to live to the fullest. What would he do with it?

In the back of his mind the nagging feeling of solving Brandon's murder haunted him, after all he was Brandon now and there was a high chance he would still be targeted once the perpetrator realized they had not succeeded.

Brandon's memories flashed in his head like a photography slide filling him in on his new life making him light headed.

Tony accepted his fate. He was Brandon now and even though he was not Tony anymore, if Elvis, Janet and the rest of his betraying friend existed in this universe he swore to get his revenge!

They had to pay for torturing and ending his life. He had to get back everything that rightfully belonged to him one way or another.

Sitting up, slowly this time Brandon finally has a chance to take in his surroundings. He was in a big cozy hospital room that actually had a television set in one corner a bunch of flowers in a vase and comfortable chair against the wall. Some one was sleeping on the chair even though you could clearly see the sofa was too small for them.

On second glance a smile bloomed on Brandon's face as he realized that it was George and how adorable he looked while trying to fit his tall form on the tiny chair.

He must have gotten uncomfortable which lead to the tossing and turning which eventually led to the resounding thud on the floor as George fell of the chair onto the tiled floor.

"Hahahaha!" Brandon could not hold back his laughter. George looked funny as he groggily tried to get his bearings right.

"Careful.." George mumbled as Brandon started coughing due to laughing too hard. Getting off the floor to get him a glass of water.

"I'm sorry," said George guiltily while looking away.

"What for?" asked Brandon looking confused

"For loosing my temper earlier?" Brandon figured out George was talking about the incident when he first gained consciousness. He was really startled earlier but with George looking so guilty he decided to let everything go.

"It is ok, I understand why you were angry earlier" Brandon brushed away the whole incident. Looking up Brandon realizes George is looking at him in a intently. "What is it? George? What is wrong?" he asks worriedly

"Nothing, its late. Go back to sleep." says George and even though Brandon does not believe him he settles down to sleep one more time as the medicine in his system still makes him drowsy.