When Life Becomes Hell

Summary: Sequel to Capable of Love. The family discovers Michael and Gob’s relationship and Maebey has something to tell George Michael. What chaos will ensue? Michael:Gob, George Michael:Maebey.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything!!

Chapter 1: Even More Secrets

Michael Bluth paced back and forth outside the room that his son and niece shared, “Oh God, how am I going to explain this to them?” Michael thought aloud.

Narrator: George Michael and Maebey had just come home from a date and caught him and his brother, Gob, kissing. No, not kissing. Sucking on each other’s tongues and groping each other was more like it.

(Clip of George Michael and Maebey walking through the front door and seeing Michael and Gob making out)

Michael had talked Gob into going home and told him that he could handle talking to the kids about what they had witnessed downstairs. He knew that Gob would have tried to make up some excuse for their actions, like downstairs when he said he and Michael were drunk, and Michael thought it would be best if he stayed out of it. All he could do now was be honest with the kids and hope to God that nobody else would find out. Michael opened the door and stepped inside. His son acknowledge him being there, but said nothing, while Maebey just glared at him and said, “You’re a (bleep)ing hypocrite, you know that?” Michael was a bit taken back by what his niece had just said, considering that he’d let them date.

“Could you please just let me explain?” he said, “What you just saw down there was… well… you see, for the past month, your uncle Gob and I have been in kind of a relationship”

“How did this happen?” George Michael asked.

“That’s not important” said Michael. Michael wasn’t about to tell his son that the relationship he had with his brother started when in a moment of pure lust he gave in to Gob’s advances, “The point is that it’s important that you guys don’t tell anyone about this. The family is finally starting to turn things around and this could ruin it all”

“You should have thought of that before you let Uncle Gob (bleep) you” Maebey remarked.

“You’re right about that,” Michael admitted, “I should have – Wait, what makes you assume that I’m the one getting (bleep)ed?”

Narrator: Michael was the one getting (bleep)ed most of the time.

“You’re you,” Maebey answered, then a thought occurred to her, “Wait, this started a month ago? Did this have anything to do with your decision to let me and George Michael be together?”

“Yes, it did…” Michael answered, “I felt like a hypocrite for on our way to Cabo telling George Michael not to pursue you, because only a week after we got back I slept with my brother”

“Does anybody else know?” Maebey asked.

“No,” Michael answered, “Buster almost found out once, but Gob told him that I had stopped breathing and he was giving me CPR. Luckily he believed it”

“Don’t worry, Dad. We won’t tell anyone,” said George Michael, “I mean, if people found out… I don’t even want to think about that”

“Thanks, guys,” said Michael. When he left, Maebey decided to ask George Michael about something.

“Do you think that we should tell your dad about us being married?” she asked. Maebey was of course referring to the mock wedding they had performed for the alzheimers patients that turned out to be real. They even still had the marriage certificate. By now, an annulment wasn’t even an option, since a week ago they had consumated the marriage.

“I don’t know. Do you think so?” George Michael asked.

“He just admitted to sneaking around with Uncle Gob,” said Maebey, “Besides, it would be kind of a relief for someone else to know about it”

“Okay,” said George Michael, “But I think that we should wait a bit. For now this family’s keeping enough secrets as it is”

That was when Michael came back into the room, remembering the message that he was supposed to give Maebey, “By the way, Maebey. Just so you know, your parents are coming home tomorrow from New York”

“Oh God, they had sex, didn’t they?” Maebey exclaimed. Maebey had figured out by now just why her parents had gone away for the week.

“I was as surprised and disturbed as you are” Michael said. When he left again, George Michael thought that he should say something to make his cousin feel better about the situation.

“Don’t worry. At least your dad didn’t have sex with his brother” he said.

“This just proves how (bleep)ed up this whole family is” said Maebey, resting her head on George Michael's shoulder and sighing in frustration. That was definitely something they could be sure of. If it wasn't money it was drugs and if it wasn't drugs it was incest. The Bluth family was as insane as a family could be.

Meanwhile, Michael decided to call Gob on his cell phone and let him know that everything was under control and that the kids wouldn’t tell anyone. Michael managed to catch him on his way back to Steve Holt’s house.

Narrator: Steve had convinced his mother to let Gob live with them after an incident that resulted in the destruction of Gob’s yacht, The C-Word.

(Clip of Gob’s yacht on fire and Gob on the dock, stumbling around in his robe, drunk and cursing violently about gnomes)

Gob wasn’t so sure about the kids being reliable in keeping the relationship a secret, “Are you sure that we can trust them to keep quiet?” Gob asked.

“Yes, I’m sure. I told them about how people knowing would screw up the family’s progress and even admitted that our relationship played a part in me letting them have a relationship,” Michael said, trying to reassure his brother, “We can trust them, Gob, and next time don’t tell someone we’re drunk because they’re right away going to know we aren’t”

“How?” Gob asked.

“Because that’s one of your top five excuses for when you get caught doing something,” Michael answered, “I’m surprised that’s not what you told Buster when he caught us making out that one time”

“Well CPR seemed like the most believable explanation,” Gob explained, “If that didn’t work I would have just slipped him a forget-me-now and not even bothered threatening him to not go blabbing it to Mom”

“Yeah, that’s right… he might have told someone if you didn’t threaten to throw him in the seal tank at the aquarium” said Michael.

“Eh, you’re probably right about the kids, especially George Michael. I’ll see you later, Mikey,” Gob said, “I love you”

“I love you, too” Michael said for the second time that night before hanging up. It amazed Michael that he and his brother had come such a long way from fighting over a woman on the courthouse steps or letting what their father said get to them and getting fooled into being pitted against each other. Things were different now.

When Michael came back with his son and father from Cabo, he was amazed that everything was just the same as when he left, with some minor exceptions. Lucille had been bailed out of jail for the charges that had originally been placed on his father, Lindsay and Tobias were working out the problems in their marriage, and Buster was a little more independent thanks to the time Lucille had spent in jail. Other than that, things were the same, and Gob… he was still Gob; still clingy, needy, pathetic, and starved for love and respect.

Michael knew that part of the reason Gob was screwed up enough to seduce his own brother was because of the way their parents had treated him. Gob was never respected by them and they always treated him unfairly. For what reason Michael could never understand, but he knew that it had left Gob desperate for approval from people, especially their father, but lately Michael noticed that Gob wasn’t as desperate for their father’s respect. Gob even told George Sr. to (bleep) off once when their father had called Gob an idiot. Later when they were alone, Michael asked Gob about it and Gob said, “Why should I care if he respects me? You respect me and that’s good enough for me. In fact, it’s more than I deserve” lately Michael had tried to show Gob the respect and love that he craved. He had sometimes in the past been as dismissive of Gob as their own parents and knew that was one of the things that had driven Gob to such desperate measures when it came to trying to cause a spark between them. There had always been signs of Gob's attraction to him, even when they were teenagers.

(Series of clips throughout their lives including many agressive hugs, Gob putting his arm around Michael at the movies, Michael waking up to find Gob sitting at the foot of his bed looking at him, Michael catching Gob spying on him while he's on a date, and at Tracy and Michael's wedding when Gob objects and everyone looks at him for a moment and is silent before Gob sits back down, and Gob trying very hard not to smile or laugh at Tracy's funeral)

He hated to put so much pressure on George Michael and Maebey to keep such a big secret, but it was for the good of the whole family. Some of the other family members didn’t take it well that the two non-biological cousins had been permitted to date, and Michael was pretty sure their reactions would be much worse if they knew about his affair with Gob. Every time he thought about it he had to stop himself, because if it wasn’t for his dignity, Michael would have wet his pants out of fear. Then he remembered what Gob had said to him once when he cornered him in the hallway during a family get together. He said that if their father knew what Gob wanted to do to Michael at that very moment they would both be dead. Michael had a feeling that they would meet such a fate if anyone else found out about them.

XxX

The next day when Lindsay and Tobias came back from New York, Michael was surprised because they were acting like… a couple. They were holding hands, whispering to each other, using pet names. It was enough to make any normal person sick. Maebey was no where to be seen, and Michael envied her. It would be awkward being around her parents, knowing that they had sex. It was hard for Michael to even be around his sister knowing that, “So I take it you guys had fun in New York?” he asked.

“Yeah, it was great,” Lindsay answered, “Maybe you should go there Michael. If it could help my marriage, maybe it could help your love life. God knows you haven’t gotten any action in the longest time”

“I’ll pass” Michael said. He wasn’t the kind of person that would go somewhere just to get laid.

Narrator: Besides, he didn’t need to worry about a lack of sex anymore thanks to Gob. He’d even beaten his previous record of three times in a row and was now at five.

“So, for a while I've been curious about this,” Michael began, “What inspired you two to start working on your marriage again?

“You,” Lindsay answered. Michael was a bit taken back by this, “When you turned me down, I was ashamed of myself. If someone as desperate as you didn't want to be with me then what hope did I have?” Michael wasn't sure whether to be relieved or insulted by that, “And when you gave your speech at the party... it made us realize that you were right. We might have our ups and downs but we love each other and what we have is worth fighting for. I admit it, okay? You were right this whole time” Michael was happy to hear that.

“Well I'm glad I could help” Michael said.

“Now where is our little girl?” Tobias chirped, “It’s like we hardly ever see her anymore”

“I haven’t seen Maebey all day actually,” Michael answered, “And she was acting really weird yesterday. She was on the phone with someone and she was whispering. She wouldn’t even tell George Michael about it”

Narrator: Maebey had been on the phone making a doctor’s appointment for the following day. She had been feeling sick lately and hadn’t told anyone about the appointment considering a few of the possibilities of what was wrong.

“Anyways, I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you when she gets back” Michael said.

After Tobias went upstairs, Lindsay asked Michael about something he wasn’t quite prepared for, “Who’s the woman you’ve been seeing?”

“What!?” Michael asked in shock and a somewhat high pitched voice. Where was this question coming from? Oh no, she didn’t know about him and Gob, did she? She wasn’t trying to trick him into admitting it, was she? No, that was more Mom’s style. Lindsay would probably ask him about it straight and to the point.

“I’ve noticed lately that you’ve been more relaxed and not as uptight and stubborn as you usually are,” Lindsay explained, “There’s only one logical explanation since you’d never in a million years do drugs. There’s a woman”

“Just because I’m not being stubborn you assume that I’m seeing someone?” Michael asked. He should have known better than to think that Lindsay had gotten wise to him and Gob!

“Well yeah,” Lindsay answered, “You know, it’s weird. Along with you not acting like such an uptight control freak, Gob is starting to act like a decent human being. Who’s he trying to impress?”

“I don’t know. Maybe he’s just trying to be a good person” Michael said. Little did Michael know that Gob was trying to impress Michael and prove that there was more to him than what people saw and didn’t see.

Lindsay was laughing at Michael’s answer for about a minute until she realized that Michael wasn’t laughing with her, “Oh, you’re serious?”

“Yes, I am,” Michael answered, starting to get irritated, “Maybe Gob isn’t as dumb, or irresponsible, or horny as everyone says he is”

“Well, you’d know,” Lindsay said, shrugging, “You guys have been spending a lot of time together. Then again, Gob always does go to you for emotional support”

“Where else is he going to get it Lindsay?” Michael said defensively, “Not too many people are willing to take him seriously just because of some minor screw ups. This is the kind of stuff that led him to… that thing that happened when we were younger…” Michael trailed off, remembering just what that thing was. It was hard to think about and the family rarely ever spoke of it. Michael liked to pretend it never happened because then he could pretend that he never came so close to losing his brother, “I was the only one that even cared enough to go see him in the hospital more than once” Tired of the conversation he was having with Lindsay, Michael walked out of the room, leaving his sister to wonder why Michael would have suddenly brought that up.

XxX

Maebey came home later that day from the doctor’s office feeling anxious. She’d just been told what was wrong and she wasn’t quite sure what to do. On one hand she was happy, and on the other hand she was scared. She knew it would have been a possibility, but she and George Michael had been careful. They used protection. How was she going to handle this? What would everyone else say? Oh God, what would George Michael say? Maebey was pretty sure that he’d be happy about it, but what if he wasn’t? Besides, they were still so young, “How am I going to tell him that I’m pregnant?” she thought.

When she went upstairs to their room, George Michael was at his desk, studying. She went over to him and hugged him, fighting the tears that were welling up in her eyes, “I love you…” she said.

“I love you, too” George Michael said, returning the embrace. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he knew that something was bothering his cousin, “Is there something wrong? Are your parents still…?”

“No, I saw them on the way up. They were making out on the couch” Maebey answered.

Narrator: It was not pretty.

“Well then, what’s wrong?” George Michael asked, “I can tell there’s something bothering you. C’mon, you can tell me”

“It’s okay, I just…” Maebey said, still trying not to cry, “I'm under a lot of stress, with things going on at the studio since they shut down production on our latest film, my parents have got this whole 'happily married' act going, and this whole thing with your dad and Gob. It's just a lot to handle”

“Alright… But are you sure that you’re okay?” George Michael asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I'm sure I'll be alright…” Maebey answered. She wasn’t ready to tell him yet, but she would tell him. It was strange. To think that months ago she would have been scared of a relationship so serious, but now... she couldn't ask for anything more than what she had with George Michael, and now they were going to have a child.

XxX

“Michael, I need a favour” Gob said as he walked into his brother's office.

“Gob, we've been together for a month, you don't have to say that every time you want to do it anymore” Michael responded, looking up from his paperwork.

“That's not what it is” Gob said.

“Do you need money?”

“No”

“Did you screw something up?”

“No, I need a place to live,” Gob answered, “Apparently I've worn out my welcome at Steve's. Eve kicked me out and I've got nowhere else to go. Can I stay with you?” Gob waited for Michael's answer, almost expecting him to say no.

“Okay,” Michael answered, “I've switched rooms with Lindsay and Tobias since they came back from New York so we can just share a room”

“Oh thank-you, Mikey!” Gob said, overjoyed and as usual hugging his brother tightly. Michael had by now gotten used to this, “And this means that now it'll be easier to keep doing it a secret because I won't have to make up excuses for why I stayed over” Gob did have a point there. A few seconds passed where neither of them said anything until Gob said, “So... do you wanna do it now?”

“Okay, just make sure you lock the door this time,” Michael answered, kissing Gob, “We had a pretty close call last time”

“Why do people believe our lame excuses?”

“I don't know”

XxX

Later that day Gob moved his things into the model home. Lindsay and Tobias were suspicious about how easily Gob had convinved Michael to let him live there, let alone why he'd willingly let Gob sleep in the same room as him. They simply dismissed it, though, guessing that it was just because Gob and Michael had been getting a long a lot better lately.

George Michael and Maebey, however, knew better. George Michael actually felt uncomfortable being around Gob, now knowing what he'd done to his father, “So... does this mean that you and my dad are... gay?” he asked Gob later on.

“No, I'm straight,” Gob answered, “It's just... I'm completely in love with Michael, and my sexual orientation doesn't matter at all in that situation. I'm pretty sure the same goes for your dad”

“... Okay” was all George Michael had to say.

“Hey, I guess this kind of makes me your second father, huh?” Gob pondered before snickering, “I guess it's better than when you were a kid and while your mom was in that coma you thought I was your new mommy”

Narrator: During the beginning of Tracy's hospitalization, Gob had moved in with Michael and started helping Michael around the house and to take care of George Michael, even inviting himself to sleep in the same bed as Michael (much to Michael's dismay). This eventually led to George Michael being confused about Gob's role in his life.

(Flashback to when George Michael was a little kid)

George Michael: (Walks up to Gob while he's folding the laundry) Are you my new mommy?

Gob: What?

George Michael: You took my mommy's place. You're even sleeping in the same bed as my daddy. You act like you're married. So are you my mommy and my uncle now?

Gob: ... No... Now that he mentions it... it does seem like Michael and I are married (Smiles)

(End Flashback)

“That was pretty embarrassing” George Michael laughed nervously.

“You were six. Your dad only let me sleep in the same bed as him because I said I thought it would make him feel less alone. After I told your dad that you thought I was your new mom he threw me out anyway,” said Gob, “And I guess now we know why” Gob always felt that when Michael tried to keep things plotonic between them it was because he was fighting his love for Gob. It would explain so much about Michael's behaviour towards him.

“Hey, Gob, I have a question,” George Michael said, “Maebey's been acting really weird lately. I don't know what it is and I don't want to be nosey. Did she say anything about it to you or my dad?”

“I don't know what's going on with her,” Gob answered, shaking his head, “But I have noticed something's been up with her lately” the other day Gob went up to the attic to get Franklin, and Maebey was up there going through Tracey's old baby books and stuff from when she and George Michael were kids. Gob suspected something, but he didn't want to say anything since he knew that she probably didn't want to be asked about it. She seemed to feel uncomfortable around Gob ever since seeing him make out with Michael. Then he remembered something that definitely needed to be taken care of, “Oh, I just remembered, from now on since your dad and I are sleeping in the same bedroom... and bed, if you go to your dad's room... at any time at all day or night, knock. Just thought I'd warn you so you won't learn that the hard way” George Michael knew exactly what Gob meant, and despite wishing he hadn't heard that, it was nice of Gob to give him some warning.

That was when Michael walked into the living room, “Hey, guys”

Gob held Michael around the waist and took him aside for a moment and said to him, “Don't worry, I already warned George Michael about knocking”

“Uh oh” Michael responded playfully, pressing his forehead against Gob's.

“Don't worry, I didn't say anything that could scar him” Gob said before kissing Michael lightly on the lips.

“Gob, my son is right here” Michael said as he grasped Gob's wandering hands. He still wasn't comfortable with public displays of affection in front of his son.

“Okay, but you'll make it up to me later, right?” Gob asked, nuzzling Michael's face lovingly. Both of them were unaware of Lindsay being right behind them. Then again she was used to seeing her brothers like this, but not used to seeing Michael allowing it.

“Are you guys alright?” Lindsay asked.

“Yeah, we're fine” Michael said, pulling away from Gob.

“Okay” Lindsay said. She wasn't quite sure what to make of Michael's recent behaviour. He said he wasn't seeing anyone, but then why was he always in a good mood lately? Not to mention that he and Gob were getting along much better ever since he came back from Cabo. It was like the whole world was going insane.

XxX

“George Michael, I just want you to know that this doesn't change anything,” Michael said later on that day. George Michael should have seen this coming. Every time his dad dated someone he told him how it wasn't going to change things between them and they'd always be The Bluth Boys. By now he knew that, “Just because I'm dating Gob doesn't mean that I've forgotten about your mother, or that...” it was as far as Michael got before his son cut him off.

“I know, Dad. You say this to me every time you start a relationship, and I'm always fine with it”

“I know, it's just that since it's Gob I thought you'd feel differently about it,” Michael explained, “I mean, he is my brother and your uncle after all”

“Actually it's kind of the opposite,” George Michael replied, “I actually can't believe I didn't see it coming. It explains a lot, like why Gob didn't like Mom and used to call me Damien. Besides, Gob was always really affectionate with you, so it's not that different. It's just that now it's out in the open. Kind of anyways. Gob's always been around anyway, and... when I was a kid I did think he was my new mom”

“Yeah... there was that”

XxX

That night was the first time Gob and Michael shared a bedroom since their teen years, and that time Tracy kicked Michael out of the house after a fight. Gob was going to take advantage of this situation the way he always wanted to, and Michael was aware of it, unlike those years of awkward subtle advances and unrequited feelings. Michael should have expected it but he was still surprised when Gob climbed into bed with him, “You do realize that if anyone besides the kids catches us like this they'll ask questions?” Michael asked.

“Yeah, but I don't give a (bleep)” Gob answered happily, wrapping his arms around Michael, “Do you wanna have sex?”

“Gob, we could get caught,” Michael cautioned, “We should at least wait a while until everyone's asleep”

“C'mon, Mikey, don't you trust me?” Gob pleaded, nuzzling Michael's face.

“Gob, of course I trust you, but if anyone catches us...” Michael trailed off as Gob began kissing his face and his hands travelled lower down his body. Michael slowly gave in and kissed Gob full force. He was already taking big risks with Gob, so this wouldn't hurt. If they didn't get caught the many times in his office, or the copy room, or in the stair car then they weren't in much danger now, “What the hell...” he muttered, throwing all caution to the wind.

XxX

“George Michael, have you seen your dad?” Lindsay asked, poking her head into George Michael and Maebey's bedroom. The two teens were laying on the bottom part of the bunk bed cuddling. If Lindsay weren't trying harder to not annoy her daughter, she would have commented on how cute they were together.

“Yeah, I think he's in his room with Gob” George Michael answered. When Lindsay was out of ear-shot, he commented, “She better knock first”

“I don't want to know” Maebey said, looking up at her husband. She didn't want to know, but she was sure she knew what he meant.

“Trust me, you don't” they laid in silence for a moment before it was broken by Lindsay's shrill scream of, “WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING!!”

“She didn't knock” George Michael said with despair in his voice, knowing the events to follow would not be pleasant.

TBC

XxX

There's the first chapter. Poor Lindsay, having to see her brothers in that kind of situation. I'm sorry for the long wait, but I had writers block and also I got a new laptop and was waiting to get MS Word, but since my dad was busy he just downloaded OpenOffice onto my computer for me. I hope to have the next chapter up sooner.