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To celebrate the wrap of their most recent shoot, Burnie had made a reservation for two at he and Gavin's favorite restaurant. It was very nice, but not so high class that the couple would run into anybody they knew. The maître d' showed them to their favorite secluded table with a knowing smile, and as they sat down, one of their favorite waiters hustled over with a bottle of expensive red wine and two glasses. Burnie thanked him and Gavin flashed him a grin as he bowed and turned away.
Burnie uncorked and poured the wine for both of them, passing a glass across the table to Gavin. Through the dimmed lights of the restaurant, Gavin's eyes glinted as he raised his glass for a toast. "To a successful wrap, and to five years of happiness with you." Burnie clinked his glass against Gavin's and they both smiled as they sipped their drinks. One glass of wine later, two plates of lobster were on the table and they were enjoying a nice conversation about the film they'd just finished shooting. Burnie, as a director/producer, always made it a point to hire Gavin and his camera crew for every movie he could. He liked having Gavin on the set and it strengthened their relationship, working on projects together.
At a lull in the conversation, Gavin let his eyes sweep the rest of the restaurant. His blood froze momentarily when he saw a familiar face; Joel and a much younger man were being led to a table that didn't seem to be too far from where he and Burnie were seated. He relaxed, he knew that Joel and Burnie went way back, but froze again as he realized what was off. He'd chatted with Joel's usual "friend" at some parties, and he'd always seemed nice but a little starstruck and out of place. Gavin quickly remembered that his name was Ray.
The man that Joel was with? He wasn't Ray.
At a glance it was hard to tell that it wasn't Ray, this new guy had the same general stature and coloring, but his hair was a little more stylish and he didn't wear glasses. That suit was definitely designer, too, and Ray's style had always been a little more "off-the-rack" than tailored. Gavin brought his eyes back to Burnie, who was looking at him concernedly. Gavin nodded at Joel's table, trying to convey his confusion and worry through his face so he could have a few more seconds to figure out what he wanted to say.
Burnie turned to follow Gavin's motion and narrowed his eyes. He'd heard a rumor that something had happened between Joel and Ray, but even if it was true... This was still a little fast for Joel. Usually he tried to play up the "eligible bachelor" angle when he was between companions. That he'd found a new one so quickly... Burnie wondered if he'd been right when he sensed that there was a connection between his old friend and Ray. Joel never had been able to handle negative experiences well. Burnie was suddenly reminded of the first role that Joel had missed out on, a leading part in a mob drama, and how he'd taught himself how to speak Italian in a week so that he wouldn't miss out on any more mobster roles. It was such a forced effort that there was no doubt that Joel was just using it to distract himself, especially when he made the mistake of bragging about it at the next party and then couldn't actually say anything in Italian when pressed.
"What happened to Ray?" Gavin finally asked, snapping Burnie back to his seat.
"I don't know," Burnie replied. "I thought there was something there. I mean, ten parties. That's the longest Joel's ever kept a guy around. I heard they'd even done dinner a couple times. That's pretty serious for him." Gavin looked sad, and Burnie felt guilty about the direction that the evening had taken. "We can talk about it later, though. Let's finish our dinner and go home. I got that movie you did the slow-mo for, that big-ticket, record-smashing one? I thought we could watch it and you could tell me all about how cute Robert Downey Jr. is in person and how hard you worked. What do you think?"
Gavin blushed. Burnie didn't usually want to hear about the technical side of film sets. "I think we should leave before Joel sees us. I know he doesn't know." The words hung in the air, reminding them both that no matter how long they'd been together, it was still too secret to be "official". It didn't bother either of them as much as it had at the beginning, though. Five years felt pretty official to them.
As the hostess held the door for the men on their way out, Gavin felt Burnie's hand brush his own. To the casual observer in the restaurant it would have looked accidental, but Gavin knew better.
Oh, how he knew better.