After watching Facebook for about a week, they finally got the date for their first rehearsal. Conan hurriedly rushed around his house trying to grab everything he needed. This rehearsal was only a table read, so he didn't need most of the things he would for a normal rehearsal. That all came later. He combed out his hair, grabbed his brother's arm, and ran out the door.
As they got there, Gavin Reed was already waiting for them. He was sat at a table with a script book, sitting next to the girl who would be playing Zoe Murphy. They were smiling and laughing and talking. It made Conan happy that he was able to make friends and find a home within this theater group. Conan and Connor were approached by the director and handed their scripts. They thanked her and went to sit down at the table.
Conan sat down on Gavin's other side, Connor next to him. Gavin turned around and looked at Conan and smiled. "Hey!" He said with a huge smile on his face that made Conan feel warm and fuzzy inside. "Hey!" He replied back. Gavin looked past Conan and greeted Connor with the same excitement, causing Connor to smile as well.
The director sat down and asked that everybody opened their books. "Don't worry about singing any songs today. We will just skip over them for now. Next rehearsal will be dedicated to some songs. This is a process that progresses as the set gets built. We start with learning lines, then songs, then choreography, then working with the set, then, before you know it, it's show time!" She enthused. Conan smiled excitedly. He's done this a million times at this point, but the excitent never went away.
The read through went well, everybody was laughing and having a good time as they completed their first official rehearsal. The trio waved goodbye to each other before heading off home for rest.
About a week later, they had their first music rehearsal. The only ones called were Connor, Conan, and Gavin to work on solos and duos and trios. Conan was first with Waving Through a Window. The other two sat and watched it.
Their director turned to Conan and asked, "Do you know the words and queues?" Conan laughed and responded, "This show is my life. I know every entrance and song," making Kate chuckle. They got to work, Conan's voice sending shivers down Gavin's spine. Both he and Connor were then called on stage to work on Sincerely, Me.
They all knew the words, so they decided to work on choreography. They got everything done up to one part where Kate suddenly started laughing. The three boys looked at her confused until Conan realized what part of the song they were at. "What's your plan?" He asked, sounding like he knew the plan already. She responded with a one words answer: "Gay."
She then left ideas open to the boys, seeing as she didn't know how comfortable they were with doing things. Gavin's face lit up suddenly. "Got an idea?" Kate asked. Gavin nodded and pulled Conan to the middle of the stage.
They stood in the position they were in just before the part began. Gavin suddenly held out a hand for Conan to take. Conan gladly took it, and was swiftly spun into Gavin's chest. Even more to Conan's surprise, Gavin's hands traveled to his back and sides. He then dipped Conan, holding him there comfortably. "Comfy?" He asked. Conan laughed and nodded, knowing he was sincerely asking and not joking. "Good, because you won't be in a second," he said with a smirk. "Sing your line," he told Conan. "But not bec-" Conan began, but was stopped when Gavin dropped him to the floor mid sentence. He looked up laughing. "What the hell?" He asked. The realization of what just happened set in and he fell in love with Gavin's idea. So did Kate. "Can we switch it so Evan is holding Connor and drops him at his line out of embarrassment?" She asked. The two boys nodded.
As rehearsals of that song went on, the boys got closer and closer, both physically and in a bonding way. The spin into Conan's chest eventually turned into him being pulled in and almost kissed by Conan. They were falling in love.
Over the next two months of rehearsal, everything went perfectly. There were laughs, bonding, falling in love, developing relationships, and tears (mostly when Conan sang words fail). Now there was only one scene to block with the trio.
The three stood in the center of the stage. Gavin was nervous. He had to push Conan to the ground. Sure he dropped him in Sincerely, Me, but this was a straight up shove to the hard floor. Kate showed him exactly where to put his hands and how hard to push. Gavin gave him a little shove and Conan pushed himself the rest of the way to the ground. "Looks really to me," Kate said nodding her head approvingly. Gavin held a hand out to pull Conan up and it was glad taken. He stumbled slightly and laughed.
Tech week rolled around. This was where illness and stress set in and sleepless children ran sound like mad. The time came for their first dress rehearsal. They decided to all show off their costumes, Conan and Gavin showing their's last. Once they were all changed, they got whatever makeup was needed and headed on stage for a make up and costume check. Once that was finished, they started their rehearsal.
Eventually, the rehearsal ended and everybody went him after notes at about midnight. This went on for about five more days. Finally, it was opening night.
Conan and Gavin has grown extremely close over time. Now, they sat back stage comfortingly holding each other's hands. They smiled and talked a bit, calming their nerves. Eventually, they heard the opening music, and ran into place. Conan laughed slightly and quietly after hearing Gavin laughing at him after he had almost fallen off his prop bed after jumping on it to try to get into place. He eventually got himself situated and the show began.
They went through the whole first act, and then intermission started. The trio sat in the back, Connor in a chair, Gavin on the floor, and Conan standing against a wall. "Good opening night so far..." he concluded. The other two nodded. They continued to talk for a while until they were told the second act was starting.
They all ran into place for act two. The curtain opened. They second act went even better than the first, at least to the actors...by the end of the night, almost the whole audience was in tears. Finally, it came time for the finale. All the actors finished the finale and ran backstage to get ready for bows. Conan threw his polo back on and grabbed Gavin's hand. They ran back into the wings, getting ready for bows. As soon as the music started, everybody was rowdy again. Cheers rang through the theater as all the ensemble came on. Then some of the main characters. Finally, Gavin and Conan came on. They ran on, still holding hands. They broke apart so that Gavin could bow, then Conan. They all then bowed together.
Now came something nobody told Gavin about, but Conan was well aware of. Once bows were over, everybody began to run and jump off stage. Not wanting him to be left, Conan grabbed Gavin's arm and pulled him off. He jumped down first, then helped steady Gavin as he jumped down, seeing as he wasn't used to his like Conan. They then followed the other's to a big circle of people in the lobby as they jumped and yelled. Eventually, they all calmed down, and met their families.
Conan introduced Gavin to his dad and Gavin introduced him to Elijah. They then went to a cast party. Eventually, then went home and went to a much needed sleep.
The next two shows went the same way, except the bows on the last day were different. Gavin and Kate were aware of the plan that Gavin had, but Conan was not. When it came time for their bow, Gavin pulled Conan out two best early. Conan looked confused, but trusted Gavin. He let Gavin lead him out and onto their spot. They did their usual bow, but this time, Gavin grabbed Conan's polo and kissed him for their bow. Conan kissed back, much to Gavin's surprise. They pulled away and ran to their next bow spot.
They ran off stage again, and Conan stopped Gavin in the lobby, a huge smile on his face. "The hell was that about?" He asked laughing. Gavin smiles widely. "Can't you tell? I really like you, and that was how I deemed appropriate to tell you," he shrugged. Conan hugged him. "Well, I really like you too," he said, kissing Gavin again. The two walked out together, both having two things: A huge smiled and a new boyfriend.
