[the longest time]
[by mondie]
[written: july 14, 2004]
HAPPY BIRTHDAY B!! :D
[chapter one: lavender suits him]
[chapter written: july 14, 2004]
[summary: blush for b's birthday/blink week! broadway, lavender suits, and dancing!boys. yay!]
[disclaimer: newsies = disney's. damn.]
)(
The audition had gone extremely well so far.
I recognized nearly every other boy still remaining in the group, which had been cut to twenty so far. In fact, I knew most of the other performers' strengths and weaknesses, and knew that they knew the same of me. I had been in at least one dance class with almost every boy still in the group.
I could beat out Ross, known as Snipeshooter (sarcastically nicknamed, since he never hit his target and always ended up far on the wrong side of the stage, and had probably only made it this far in the audition because of the prestigious dance school he had attended, and the benefit of the doubt on behalf of the director), and I also knew that the dull-witted Jake Emerson would never make it past the next tap combination. I felt no competition whatsoever from Sean "Spot" Conlon (nicknamed regarding his small size, and the fact that his jazz dancing was so perfect that he could land on an itsy-bitsy spot placed on the floor time after time, without breaking a sweat or even appearing to concentrate upon the task), who was excellent at making it look like he knew what he was doing when he had no idea, but who would never be able to fake the ballet portion. Samuel, or Boots (softshoe champion of Denton School of Dance), had a cold, and was slightly younger than the director was looking for, anyway. There were two boys that I had never seen on the circuit before, named Jack and David, who aroused my suspicions. Jack was actually quite good, and seemed to know it, too. What David was lacking in talent, he made up for with enthusiasm; that being said, he had also been forced to drag his kid brother, Les, to the audition, and this had caused much anger on behalf of Joseph, the producer, and Will, the stingy director. Joseph Litzer and Will Earst had a strangely close relationship, with Joseph producing everything that Will directed. The two were quite successful in their joined endeavors, and while it was nowhere near usual for the producer to come to something as meager as beginning auditions, Joseph always came to every stage of the production for one of Will's shows.
Every stage, if you catch my drift.
I looked around at the other boys, stretching and chatting blithely at random spots upon the stage, while I took a swig of water during our five-minute water break. There was some incredible talent here, like Scott "Dutchy" Carlins (inventor of the Dutch Clop Swing, and who could now imagine a dancing show without that move? I had heard they were even performing it in dance recitals in Ohio), and Billy "Bumlets" Lark (owner of the most precise movements I had ever seen - as well as the best ass). The presence of so many of the most talented dancers I'd ever encountered was a bit unnerving. I needed this job. I needed it.
"That's it, enough of a break! Back on your feet!" Will called, clapping his hands impatiently. We sprang up from our reclining positions and slipped back into our line across the stage's front lip.
Twenty minutes later, the tap combination had been sorted out, and Jake, Boots, and Snipeshooter had been cut, just as I had guessed. David had also been cut, and Jack had run out of the front line to give his parting boyfriend a sweet little consolation kiss, and had been cut as well for leaving the line without asking permission. This had caused much smirking amongst the Denton School of Dance graduates, of which all of us who remained were alumni. The strangers had been cut, and now everyone had a much clearer picture of what they were up against, and had a pretty good idea of where his chances fell in comparison to everyone else.
I was feeling confident, considering the talent around me.
"As you know," Will was yelling, and I snapped back to attention. "The hottest young star of Broadway, and a graduate of Denton's, just like the rest of you, is going to be under the spotlight of this show." He smiled. "He came to see how the auditions are coming along, and to help me decide upon the members of his chorus."
My heart hammered in my chest. If there was one thing I owned, it was a large obsession with Micah "Mush" Meyers, who had won fame as Angel in Rent, and maintained his poise and beauty to become the newest Broadway staple.
Mush was really the reason why I needed this job. Having broken up with my last boyfriend months ago, I needed some good eye candy.
There was a moment of silence as every boy present stopped breathing, and none of us started again until, with a click of beautiful, soft, dark leather driving slippers, the presence of Mush Meyers was announced. He was a vision in a beautiful lavender suit, which looked quite expensive. His curls fell about his forehead in the most adorable way I had ever seen. Sure that my jaw was on the ground, I hastily tried to look away before I had a nervous collapse.
"Hi, boys," Mush said, in a very cute, very gay voice. He pressed his white, lavender-polka-dotted ascot smooth against his chest.
"Hi," came a collective breathy reply from the group. Although all of us except one (Spot) are gay, even just the presence of such an idol would have resulted in the speechlessness of everyone, and the fact that Mush was so attractive was merely an added bonus.
"So, I hope you all remember the last tap combination, because we're going to do it again. Mush is going to walk around looking at all of you; just pretend like he's not there. Got it? Good." Will pointed at the piano player, who began chunking out the same little ditty that had been playing all afternoon, and I immediately launched into the routine, simultaneous with most of the other boys. Elijah, or Skittery (named for his exquisite tapping; he was so fast that it seemed like he was just nervous and suffering from shakes, because nobody could understand how anyone could make his own limbs move so quickly), was in such awe at seeing Mush that he missed the cue. I felt myself biting the inside of my cheek to keep from cheering aloud. Skittery was one that I had been worried about. It did not seem like Skitts would be much of a challenge anymore.
Mush was winding himself around the stage, checking out the dancing boys' physiques as much as their styles of dancing. He stopped next to me, and I felt my face redden, but kept my grin forced on my face, and coerced my limbs into continuing the dance flawlessly. I heard Mush murmur, "Gorgeous," before he moved on. From that point on, the grin on my face was anything but forced.
The song ended, and we boys all stopped and stood still again, trying to ignore the fact that our idol was still roaming about, now blatantly checking out our asses.
The sound of Will's voice rose from his spot in the chairs before the stage. "Sean Conlon and Elijah Markward, thank you for coming out."
Spot cursed loudly, and stomped toward the exit, flipping Will off in the process. Skittery just looked stunned. I was sure that Skitts had never been cut from anything after the tap part.
Marcus, or Snitch, Skittery's boyfriend, and nicknamed for being able to copy any dance combo thrown at him with perfect ease the first time, and therefore snitching away other boys' roles from them, stepped out of line angrily. "You can't cut Elijah!" he protested. "He's the best tapdancer in the state, maybe even the country!"
"Cut it, Marc," Skittery interjected dully. "I'm not worth it."
"He missed the cue," Will answered patiently. "We can't have dancers who miss their cues."
Snitch was positively shaking. "You can't do it! He's better than your stupid show, anyway!" He shook his head in anger. "C'mon, Elijah. We're leaving."
"Goodbye, Marcus, we'll miss you," said Joseph sarcastically.
My head was positively jumping with joy. Skittery and Snitch, both gone? It was like Christmas had come three months early. I had never thought that I would be able to dream for a present such as this.
In the excitement, I had nearly forgotten that Mush was still wandering about the stage haphazardly, until I heard a soft, delicate voice in my ear. "Step forward."
"What?" I asked, scandalized at first, thinking it was one of the boys hoping that I would get cut, too, for doing something out of order.
Then I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder, and looked over to see Mush smiling, mere inches from my face. "Step forward."
I stepped.
"Micah? What's this?" asked Will, leaning forward in his chair to shuffle through the resumes on his table, trying to figure out my name. "Trey, is it?"
"Yes, sir," I answered, clearing my throat nervously.
Mush smiled sweetly. "I want Trey in the show."
"But, Micah, we haven't even seen all of his dancing."
Mush pouted. "He was the best tapper in the bunch, besides that Elijah kid, who was just cut." He laughed. "Besides, he's from Denton's school, isn't he?"
"We all are," piped up Specs from the other end of the line.
Mush ignored him. "Well, Trey?" I looked at him, and could scarcely catch my breath, due to his intense beauty. "Can you dance ballet?"
I went into an impromptu recital, making sure to show off just how high I could stretch my legs and my intensely amazing tour jets.
"Beautiful," Mush said in delight. "And jazz?" I complied. "Copy this." He went into another tap routine, his slippers clicking delicately across the wooden floor. I watched him, and as he started it over again, joined in flawlessly. I couldn't have stopped grinning if it were required. Here I was, dancing with my idol seamlessly, step by step in perfect synchronization.
Mush beamed when the routine was over again. "He's very talented," he said to the producer and director. "Not to mention quite attractive. I want him in the show." He winked at me. "I'm a sucker for blonds."
"If it's what you want, Micah, then it's done," Joseph announced, in a drawling, annoyed voice. "Trey, you're in the line."
"Oh, no," Mush broke in. "Not in the line."
There was a pause from both Will and Joseph. Then Will asked, "What do you mean?"
"I mean that I want him in my cast. He's too good for the line." Mush struck a pose, showing off his incredible physique. "We haven't cast the role of the girl's brother yet. I want it to be him."
"We were going to offer that role to Jai Rodriguez!" Will erupted, sounding scandalized.
Mush shrugged. "You don't want me in the show, fine. But either Trey gets the part, or I'm gone from your little production."
If my jaw was on the floor upon seeing Mush for the first time, it was now through the floor and resting on the theatre's foundation. Why was Mush doing this for me?
"Fine, fine," Joseph said quickly, evidently more worried about losing his star then offering the role to a worthier candidate than myself. "Trey has the role of Todd in the show."
"Good!" Mush said happily. He ran to the front of the stage and bent down and whispered the rest of his recommendations to the men. "Now, I'm leaving," he announced.
"But... the ballet portion..." Will began feebly.
Mush waved them off. "I'm sure you boys are big enough to figure it out by yourself." He grinned and held out his arm to me. "Trey, we're going for coffee. Grab your bag."
Taking his arm, I grabbed my duffel on the way out the stage door.
Shocked? Why, yes, I was.
[if you said goodbye to me tonight
there would still be music left to write
what else could i do?
i'm so inspired by you
that hasn't happened for the longest time]
[billy joel]
