Untouchable

The Spring Concert

Mike set down his end of the riser and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "Thank god that's the last one," he commented to Rob, who also looked totally over everything. "You know, we say it every year - we should have the spring concert without risers. By the end of May, I'm way too tired to be moving this stuff around."

"We do say that every year." Rob looked around the stage and sighed. "At least we're done. The kids can do the rest. I'm not moving any timpani tonight." Moving timpani was the worst. They were heavy, cumbersome, and the wheels too tiny for their girth.

"Agreed." Mike sat down on the end of the trumpet riser and looked out into the auditorium. It was hard to believe it was already the end of the school year. Year ten for him, and six for Rob. Six years already for him. Before I know it he'll be wanting to go off and be on his own somewhere. It will suck to lose him. "Is it just me, or did this year go by super fast?"

Rob sat down next to Mike and picked up his stainless steel water bottle, unscrewing the lid and taking a long drink. "Seriously. It feels like we were just doing the start of the year paperwork."

Mike made a face. "At least you've finally figured out that my methodology on organizing that paperwork is superior to your way of doing it. It only took you two weeks this year." He elbowed Rob in the side jovially. Even though he was tired, this concert put him one day closer to the end of the school year, and the end of the school year meant he no longer had to hide Chester.

"Fine, fine. Your way is better," Rob agreed with exaggerated grumpiness, thinking back to the disaster his first year had been. Mike had delegated start of the year paperwork to him, complete with meticulous step-by-step instructions that Rob proceeded to ignore. That error cost him two months of conference periods while he tried to sort it out, and even then, neither of them were completely sure it was all done correctly. It had been a conflict from their early days of teaching together that Mike loved to bring up every chance he got.

"I know that's right!" Mike exclaimed, slapping Rob on the leg before he stood up. "So, word on the street is Lacey Armstrong is coming to the concert tonight," Mike said slyly, giving Rob the side-eye. The change in Rob's demeanor was instant.

"Who'd you hear that from?" Rob asked instantly, his voice a little too eager.

"I overheard some of the kids talking about their other teachers that are coming." Mike shrugged causally, pretending not to notice Rob's interest. "I'm sure she's only coming to see the kids, though. Nothing for you to get worked up about." He started to walk off the stage, headed back to the band hall for chair and stand racks, and to find kids to finish the set up for him.

Rob bounced up from the riser and screwed the lid on his water. "Yeah, you're probably right."

Mike could hear the little tones of disappointment in Rob's voice and felt bad. Rob's crush had been going on all year, but he'd never found the courage to do anything about it. Mike reached out to pat him on the back. "Hey, you never know. She could be interested."

Rob snorted gently through his nose. "I see how it is, now that you're getting some you can be generous, huh?" he shot back.

There was a silence as Mike debated what his response should be to that comment. He and Rob were more than colleagues and more like best friends, but he didn't know if that closeness extended to discussing his sex life - or the fact that he and Chester hadn't crossed that line yet. We're so close. Just a few more days of school. We've both managed to keep from tearing off each other's clothes, which is amazing considering how hot he is. I don't even know what I want to do first. It's been forever since I had sex.