Chapter 52

Everyone was gone, the GSSEC was closed and locked. All the couples lingered inside for a while. Peter and Katie were still being careful not to flaunt their ‘friends with benefits’ status to everyone. They were doing a lot of hand-holding.

It was close to midnight before we were back to our usual quintet. With a slap on her butt, and a cheek kiss, I sent Isabel to sleep.

I gave out kisses to the rest of the ladies. Always very competitive, it was first, Ally, then Katie, and finally Jennifer, each being more redolent than the last.

The next day at school, after both orchestras, I went back stage at Thomas Auditorium to find out if anyone had shown up for the back stage positions we needed to have filled. I stumbled upon over two dozen kids, with many girls listening to Samuel.

He stopped whatever he was talking about and asked me to come up front.

“Michael, you told me to expect a few kids, this is more like an army. Is it all right with you if I take upon the task of teaching this many at once?”

“If you can keep them both interested and busy, go ahead? You have young people here from both schools. Don’t be afraid of them and they might not be afraid of you.”

“I think Sam is kinda cute,” Natalie Richardson said to giggles from the other girls.

“I warned you Sam, have fun everybody. I am hoping to get you students some kind of school credit for doing this. Pay attention to what he says. This may not be as easy as you may first think.”

I left them in his strong looking hands. I had better keep Katherine from him. Peter and she might just keep going if they can stay a secret for three more months.

I went over to Lincoln High on a hunt for Stuart. I just went to the auditorium and waited to see or hear him.

“Michael?”

“Hey Stu, do you have a minute?”

“It sounds serious Michael, am I in trouble?”

“Sit down Stuart, I have a proposition for you.”

He did, looking a tad nervous.

“Does this have something to do with the new performance complex being built behind us?”

“Yes, it does.”

I explained the details of the complex to him. Including the size of the auditorium being built.

“So, you want me on the staff of the technical operations side of things?”

“No ... I want you to manage the technical operational sides of things. You would have a permanent staff of as many people as you feel you would need. Starting salary would be $60,000 per year.”

The look on his face ... was priceless!

“You would have full choice over your staff. My only strong suggestion is that everyone you hire be fifteen and older.”

Getting his voice back, “I can do that! Holy Shit, Michael There are over sixty students at Lincoln alone graduating in the next eighteen months. Can the staff be already graduated from Lincoln?”

“My task is to have a young, bright, and talented staff for my building. Everywhere I can, I plan to have teenagers working in every possible paid position. At least, in the two theatre complexes.”

“Two?”

“The big complex, like I just told you, will hold near 25,000, while the much smaller one will hold around 600 people, for a more intimate atmosphere.”

“The building managers will be my mom and dad, along with Jennifer’s mother, Alice. She has a boyfriend who works at BMI. They, along with ASCAP and SEASAC have already declared the intent to have an office here even though they all have an office in Nashville.”

“Why would they do that?” he asked.

“They all have offices in the same cities around the USA. The minute they heard BMI was interested, the other two confirmed as well.”

“Cool.”

“So, can you give me an answer, or do you need some more time?”

“When will you actually need me, Michael?”

“In two years, to look over and purchase the equipment necessary. The two principals only know of the building, not about my plan to poach you from the school district. Have you been approached for the extension you previously told me about?”

“No, I haven’t. What should I do?”

“No ... I am not entering that negotiation for you. However, if you were to get a two-year contract, with an option for three more after that, you could walk away clean as a whistle. If they want you to sign something longer than that, leave them for me. I will hire you immediately at the rate we already discussed.”

“What about the schools? If I leave here that abruptly, they will be pissed off at me.”

“Leave that to me. First, try to get a two-year contract. They don’t need to know why you only want two years. Simply say something like ‘I want to look at my options.’ That will sound like you are willing to negotiate with them, but you won’t.”

“How do you know about all of this?”

“I watched a lot of TV when I was younger. Don’t worry, I have got your back, Mr. Holland.”

We shook hands and I left.

I went to lunch with Jenn, telling her about my conversation with Stuart. She thought it was a pretty smart thing to do, I hoped things could stay contained as I hoped.

During lunch, I got a call, it was Stu.

“Yes, this is Michael.”

“Hey, should I take on an intern?”

“Excellent idea. Only don’t tell them anything about ‘you know what.’”

“Got it, bye.”

I think he believes he may be a secret agent now!

The three of us were headed home.

Jennifer asked, “Are the WEST SIDE STORY auditions before or after the summer break?”

“What do you think, JJ?”

“What did you call me?”

“I thought I would try out a nickname for my fiancée, don’t you like it?”

“I think it’s cute,” Isabel said.

“See, my sister likes it,” I said in between the two of them.

“Let me think on it for a while. People might think my middle name starts with a J if you do that.”

“Then how about Jennifer Joe?”

Isabel giggled.

“GI Jenn?”

More giggles.

“Jenn-Jenn?”

“Get serious, Michael.”

“OK, let me think on it.”

“Jennifer,” Isabel said, “Since he’s Peter Pan and I am Tinker Bell, you could be Smee?”

Jennifer led the laughter at that suggestion. Izzy and I both joined in.

“Maybe ... Tiger Lily?” she said.

“Perfect,” said Isabel. “Even though that’s longer than Jennifer, I think it’s very pretty.”

“That’s because she’s pretty, Tink,” I responded.

“Yeah, I like that. We can try to keep it to ourselves, but I doubt it will last very long,” Tiger Lily said.

She pulled up to the house and I gave each of them a kiss before any of us got out. They told me they both had homework, so I was alone. Apparently, the ladies were working late with the costumes again.

My phone, in my pocket started to ring. It was spam!

I told both ladies that I can’t really decide if I want to do a musical, or a concert. Brian can get us just about anything, except we will be paying big bucks for anything we want. I had an idea earlier that the auditions could be open to any high school student in the city.”

“You are so smart Peter Pan. I love you.”

“Not as much as Tiger Lily does, Tink,” Jennifer said.

“Thinking way ahead, I see Jenn playing Mrs. Darling. Depending on how tall and curvaceous you get Izzy, you might be able to play Peter Pan.”

“That’s a boy’s part, Michael,” she argued.

Snickering, I explained. “It’s a very long tradition that Peter is played by a girl.”

“A long tradition on the stage,” Jennifer corrected me.

“Thank you, TL,” got a rousing laughter from them both.

“If a girl usually plays Peter Pan, why can’t she be voluptuous?”

“I will let you think about that for a minute Tink,” I said.

She got up and started thinking. “Oooh, she’s a girl, but people talk to her like she’s a boy? And a boy can’t have big tits,” she said sounding logical.

The moment she said it, she handed me a dollar. “Sorry?”

I put it in my pocket giving her a kiss on the cheek.

We all got up and dressed for bed but came back out to talk some more. What surprised me was that Jennifer came out in a T-shirt, but without a bra on.

As I started to speak to her, Tinker Bell came out dressed exactly the same way. I could see her much smaller breasts and tiny nipples. Neither said anything to me, so I did the same, although I was a little awestruck over this development.

As we sat down to cuddle, “You are exactly right Jennifer. I saw him looking at my little boobies. Do you like them, Michael?”

“So, Jackson is putting on DAMN YANKEES in September. Do you know that show at all, Tinker Bell?” I said, desperately needing a change of subject.

“No, tell me about it, please?”

I got a look from Jenn.

I gave her a very shortened version telling her about all the girls’ parts.

She seemed to react to the part of Lola.

“She’s a seductress, Izzy. Do you know what that means?” I asked.

She climbed up on my lap and said, “I recognize part of that word, seduce. Isn’t that what a prostitute does?”

“I guess, but a seducer doesn’t even need to be a woman, much less a prostitute. Guys do it too.”

“So, what does it mean ... to seduce someone?” she bounced back asking.

“Jennifer, how would you answer that?” I said.

“Well, I might walk over to a guy I would like to know better and say something like, ‘Hey, do we have a class together?’ and if he says the right thing back to me, I have done my job at seducing him. I may bat my eyes, or have my shirt opened a little more than usual to show off my ... boobies. It works all the time, especially once I actually had cleavage to show off.”

“What about when you were flat, like I am?”

“I have always had a pretty face, and if you don’t have tits, guys like a pretty face or a nice and tight butt to look at. You do have a very pretty face. I see Michael looking at your butt all the time.”

I was enjoying this, until it came back to me.

“Tinker Bell, have I ever told you why I like you so much?”

“Nooo, tell me please?”

“You have the prettiest eyes of any girl I have met in my entire life. They just draw me towards you. I am always thinking about you, but when you bat your eyes at me, I simply melt and want to embrace you so very tight.”

She uttered a groan and I wrapped my arms around her midsection.

“Isabel, that was my Michael seducing you. Did it work?”

“Oh ... yeah ... it sure did. Did you mean everything you just said?”

“Mostly, but I did add some key words to draw you in. If any boy besides me starts talking to you like that, let me know, and I will break his leg.”

“Wow, Michael. You sure do say all of those things sounding like you really mean them, doesn’t he, Jennifer?”

“Oh yeah. When we first met, I am not sure who was seducing who, but it seemed to work. We went from not knowing each other to kissing each other in only a week or so.”

“She kissed me first,” I remembered clearly.

“Well, the look on his face told me that I needed to make the first move. He was responding and started initiating our kisses in a matter of days.”

“Nowadays, everything can happen in a hurry,” I said. “That’s when we can’t keep from making love to one another.”

“I guess that must mean that my coming to live with you has caused some problems?” Izzy said, hitting the nail on the head.

“No, not really, we find ways to satisfy our urges. This isn’t freaking you out, talking like this, is it?”

“No, not at all ... it’s very interesting. If it doesn’t bother you, it shouldn’t bother me.”

“That is a very adult attitude, Tinker Bell,” Jennifer said.

They smiled and giggled at each other.

“You guys have been awfully quiet over there,” Katherine’s pleasant voice interrupted our conversation. “What are you talking about?”

“Seduction,” came from Isabel’s mouth.

Before she could form a remark, I asked, “How did you seduce Peter, Miss Stapleton?”

She came around and sat down. “Since you are now the ripe old age of 14, I suppose I can explain. After I realized he was serious about becoming a couple, I decided I should send the right signals to him. I had been trying them out on Michael for a while. He even almost made a move on me, but I told him that he couldn’t fall in love with me. I was too old and he was much too young.”

“Did she really do all of that, Michael?” Red asked, turning to look at me.

“Yes, she did. We even kissed a few times. She became very intolerant of me acting like a lovesick puppy, as she called me. I even told her I had naughty dreams about her, but she refused my advances.”

“What kind of naughty dreams?” Izzy said.

“I don’t think you are ready to hear any of that quite yet. Did you do any theatre in elementary school, Katherine?”

“Even then, at Isabel’s age, I was almost a C-cup. I was proud of them, but the other girls all snubbed or bullied me. Besides that, the boys really treated me like I was a snob, but they also looked at my body never looking me in my eyes. All they saw were these,” she said taking hold of them and shaking them.

“You see Tink, having big boobs isn’t for every girl. I think Katherine is beautiful and I have told her so, but she would be just as pretty as a B cup. Some of the prettiest girls at both schools, including Carmen Bennett and Doreen Saathoff from Lincoln and Sofia Moore, the black girl who transferred into Jackson is beautiful for being only eleven. I never thought I would say that about any black girl. She is one of the many diverse students who have only recently come to Jackson.”

“Isabel,” Jennifer said, “Now that you have heard all of these methods of seduction, why don’t you try to seduce Michael?”

“Are you sure that’s all right with you, Jennifer?” she said.

She nodded in agreement. I’m not so sure about this.

She got up off my lap and fixed her shirt. Showing a flash of her red panties. Uh-oh!

“Michael, may I get on your lap and talk to you about something?”

“Certainly, Red,” I replied.

She got up then turned her face to mine. She just looked at me, nothing else. I looked back at her. Her eyes had dilated as I saw her lips purse just a little. I smiled back at her, wondering if she was going to say anything at all.

Her hair was in pigtails, but she undid them including shaking her red hair loose.

Oops, there he goes!

She leaned in to put her face only a few inches from mine. She pursed her lips again. Next, she moved her shoulders in an incredibly sexual way. I wanted to touch her so badly.

“Michael, you smell so nice!”

That did it ... but I took her shoulders and kept the kiss she wanted from happening. She left going to the bathroom.

Katherine got up saying, “You really got close there, Loverboy?”

Jennifer asked, “Did you cum?”

“No, but it was really close to happening. Wow, she was really turned on ... I could tell.”

“Her nipples went hard, but you were looking into her eyes the whole time. I am proud you resisted so well. I am turned on, myself.”

Isabel came back out, but she had on a different pair of panties.

“Did anybody help you learn to do what you just did?”

“Nooo, I have been watching Jennifer and you, Katherine and Peter and some of the kids at school. Didn’t I do it right?”

“I shouldn’t say this, but I feel compelled to. If nobody else had been around, we may have ended up making love together. Assuming the Birth Certificate is correct, you were born on Monday, March 9^th, 1998, making you 88 days older than I am!”.

“Really! Jennifer, I am so sorry I turned him on. I know he is your guy. Thank you both for the best five minutes I have ever had. Goodnight.”

She got up and left us alone.

Jenn whispered, “You better be ready to fuck me in two minutes, Peter Pan.”

The next morning, I was totally unable to get out of bed. Jennifer smiled as I told her that. She promised to tell Isabel I wasn’t feeling well. Izzy would probably understand the concept of being fucked to the point you can’t walk, but I wasn’t ready to admit to that.

Ms. Stapleton walked in asking, “Are you OK, honey?”

“To be honest, I am not really sick. Jenn was so turned on by the kiss Isabel and I almost had, she fucked me practically to death. It’s funny, I never missed a day of school until I met Jennifer and you. You bring out the worst in me.”

“You certainly changed my life, so I can’t be upset with you. Don’t worry, I can cover for you. What’s the official story?”,

“I woke up with a bad headache and an upset stomach. Part of that is true. I am sorry, lover.”

“Get better Peter Pan. Tinker Bell wants a fully functional big brother by the time she gets home ... you know that.”

“Yeah,” I chuckled.

“MICHAEL,” Isabel came in saying, “Are you all right?”

“Just not feeling well, Red. A day by myself could help me recover, I hope.”

“I should stay home with you. Katherine, may I stay home with him, please?”

“Tinker Bell, I will be just fine. Go on. If I need anybody, I will call you. I have your number. Don’t worry too much. Focus on school. Think about how close you are to being in 8th grade. Think about being Peter Pan someday.”

She leaned over and gave me a simple touch kiss on the lips. Katherine closed my door wagging a finger at me.

I took a drink of water, started my playlist for the upcoming show and fell back to asleep.

Including sexagenarian Mr. Stephen Schwartz, we were all on our way to Indianapolis to perform at the Old National Centre. Brian drove us all there handling the traffic and the bus wonderfully. Stu and the sound stuff was with us. He wasn’t sure if he would be allowed to hook our stuff up or not.

I got off the bus and saw a few persons by a side door. We shook hands and he told me to bring it all through the door we were adjacent to. I told Brian to back it up.

The door was open and the place was quite amazing inside. Everything was in gold tones along with red velvet-looking seats everywhere. Plus, this place only had seating for 2,600 people. Our new place was going to be ten times the size!

Mr. Schwartz introduced himself and got any seat he wanted. They were first come-first serve sit anywhere tickets.

There was staff there to help us get setup. I asked if my tech guy could add in our cheek mics. They had no problem with that. That sent Stu into the back of the theatre. By the time we were all set up, he came back down and handed out our mics.

I put mine on and heard him talking to me, “House opens in 40.”

“Thank you, 40.”

“Everybody, we need a mic check.”

That went straightforward enough.

“Singers, are you warmed up?”

I started hearing a lot of separate warm ups ... everything I heard was good.

They provided us with a set of risers for our singers.

“Stu,” I asked. “Are you running lights?”

“No, only sound, Boss, sorry.”

“It’s OK, Stu ... do the best you can.”

“You know I will, Sir.”

Nobody had told me how full the place was going to get. I only hoped we didn’t embarrass ourselves only getting 500 to 600 people.

From Stuart, I heard, “The house is open,” and the sounds of teenagers took the air out of the place. They were coming through the doors as fast as a bullet from a gun chamber. I saw parents and younger kids as well.

I started up “Sing, Sing Sing,” to see if that would help settle people down. The moment Tiffany’s beat began, the place got quiet, but kept filling up. My singers were swaying to the beat.

I got up, “HEY EVERYONE ... WE ARE THE GOLD STANDARD SOCIETY!”

The practically full house all screamed in response. I glanced at Jenn and Mom. They had big smiles on their faces. We had three hours of music prepared.

I got up to conduct them, Nancy moved over.

Mr. Bell was inspired, as were they all. Marge, our first clarinet, was having a Benny Goodman moment of her own.

The moment it was over, everybody stood up and applauded. I called Isabel out to center stage as they started quieting down.