Time Passages (Queen or Freddie Mercury Fanfic)

63. The Truth Will Set You Free

Freddie

I froze. Completely. The only muscle in my body still moving was my heart, for I'm fairly certain that I forgot to breathe as well.

Had I heard her right?

I couldn't have, I told myself. That's not what she said. I'm hearing things. That bitch has driven me completely fucking mad and now I'm hearing things.

I turned back towards Julia, who stood hunched against the wall as though she couldn't even hold herself up under the weight of the snowflakes gathering on the top of her head and shoulders.

"What was that?" I whispered.

She pursed her lips, took another drag- and repeated in a halting, husky voice, "He's yours. Danny, is, um- he's yours, actually."

Head spinning, I had to put a hand on the stone wall to steady myself. I shut my eyes tightly and opened them, but nothing vanished. Nothing changed. We were both still freezing to death on our bridge in Central Park, standing only three feet apart even though to me, she seemed so much farther away. This wasn't that same horrible nightmare that haunted me sporadically through the years, reminding me of all the dear things I wanted- and would have had, in a perfect world. At least, not so far as I could tell.

Either way, I was thoroughly petrified.

"But," I finally found my voice, "you- told me he wasn't."

"I know."

"So you lied to me."

"Yes," she sighed.

It was strange for Julia to be so forthcoming all of a sudden; getting the truth out of that woman was usually more like pulling teeth. I had to wonder what was going on. I hated to be cynical, it's such a mean, lifeless way to approach a person, especially someone you love- but I could take no more chances.

"How do I know you're not lying to me now?" I said coldly. "He could be anybody's, the way you talk."

Julia shook her head. "He's yours."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm- quite sure." She bit her lip.

"Why?"

"Because you're the only man in the world I've ever made love with, Freddie. That's why."

"Do you mean to tell me that until yesterday, you hadn't had sex since- 1977?"

She hesitated, then nodded. "That's right. I hadn't."

"But- I mean, I thought - certainly you and Gertrude-"

"Stuart is perfectly content with just kissing my mouth and grabbing my ass, as long as he gets oral sex on 'Hump Day.' That was the agreement. So no, my body is not Stuart's, either."

Those horrid mental images of Julia and Stuart in the backseat of a Mercedes swamped me again without warning; as much as I have done and seen in my life, I felt extremely queasy. But I kept myself together enough to stammer out, "No one else has touched you?"

"Aside of you, no." Julia's eyes opened, turning to mine as she grasped at the gold chain glittering round her throat. "You are the only one."

My heart fluttered. This time, I forgot to be skeptical. For I highly doubted any man or woman would make up spending that much time in celibacy, especially someone at her age. And anyway, as I recalled, Julia hadn't exactly been a social butterfly even back when we lived together the first time round. Not that she wasn't friendly, or warm, but she always seemed rather particular about people. This was, after all, the same woman that rebuffed Roger- and I honestly still couldn't get over that.