VANCE STREET by Mike Austin
nasstop@yahoo.com
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XXXIV.
The guys woke before the alarm and had great 69 action before leisurely getting their Monday morning underway. They had plenty of time and Ivan phoned Dave to remind him that Tim was driving them this morning vs having to get the bus and if he wanted to come up for coffee they had extra made. Dave declined and Ivan thought he heard another voice in the background. Perhaps Towns had welcomed Dave back home, Ivan thought and said nothing more. When he hung up, Ivan mentioned the other voice to Tim and they both grinned. They gave Dave time to shoo his overnight guest out the door before appearing downstairs and catching them on the landing again. Dave was ready to get back to classes and students after the grueling hospital ordeal and negotiating things with his folks. Tim jumped in his driver side rear door as Ivan crawled in the passenger side and Tim sped away, depositing the duo at the New Town bus stop before making his way to his side of town, the car wash and then on to the Executive Car Service's office to check in the limo and get any new job order.
Ivan waved a good day to Dave as both headed in their separate ways. Shelley was already at her station when Ivan badged in and learned that "Elvis was already in". As on that first day, Ivan's walk down the long hallway was punctuated with practice session, today a flute, a French horn, a piano duet and some string instrument before arriving at Grace's desk and her morning greeting. He stuck his head in John's office to offer a good morning and John motioned him in to take a seat while being on the phone. Ivan sat down reluctantly then John greeted him, as he walked to his office door and closed it. ivan grew tense. "Ivan, I think we need to plan for the future regarding Alex" he began. "While he may rejoin us, there may be a restricted amount of actual work he can perform, if any amount of dance and I'm going to rely on you to pick up the slack. This is NOT saying I'll demote Alex, withdraw my support of him or cast him aside, but we'll have to plan a strategy that enables and fosters his creativity while not relying on his performance skills on the floor to demonstrate a concept or routine. While I'd thought of enhancing Alexi's role in the creativity mode, given his recent "issue", I don't think I need to reward bad behavior and choices with good, and I doubt he'll change, given his patronage support, if you understand my point." Ivan remained quiet, pensive and was reeling from John's admission. "So I need your commitment now to step up to this future as you did the birthday program project with 100% focus and perhaps will rely on Alex to play roles in development strategy and fund raising projects and a co-creative capacity to you, do you understand my thought process?" John stood without waiting for a reply and as Ivan also stood, extended his hand as a commitment and replied, "I do John, I will, count on me". John escorted Ivan to the door and wished him a great day. Ivan was stunned and his day had barely begun, as he filled his mug at the beverage bar and wandered to his office in somewhat a daze.
Opening his email, he found the inbox already full. In his usual format, he checked items from John, Grace, Dan and any Board members first, then progressed through the rest of the items. It took him two hours to review and reply to them all, with a break for another coffee refill. Next he hit the Student classrooms as he wanted to maintain his twice weekly visits there for support and to be alert for any real potential talent. He also got in visits with the instructors to encourage them as well. Grace flagged him down while on her phone, as he walked by toward his office. "Rick the new development staffer will not be in this week, his father died suddenly and there's a team meeting in 10 with the other staffers. Can you stand in for him please, I'm swamped here" Grace begged? Nodding sure, "where" he asked and gathered his tablet then made his way to conference room D at the end of the long hall near Shelley. He arrived with 4 of the 9 staffers in place, milling about and they all grew quiet seeing Ivan attend the meeting and sort of tensed up with more formal greetings and intros. As each subsequent staffer arrived, they too were concerned and interested in Ivan's presence at their monthly planning session. When all were present, Ivan stood, thanked them for coming and announced Rick's loss and that he was attending in his capacity and may attend future panning sessions as well, "so please be prompt and come armed with ideas and concepts." The meeting began with a review of the prior meetings notes, action items and progress. Ivan noted that some of the action items dated back 3 or 4 months with no ensuing updates. Before this meeting ended, he stood again, thanked them for their time and energy but admonished them for the lack of updates on the really aged items and requested a follow up meeting in two weeks to cover those 7 Open Action Items. When he hit his office, he pounded out an email, recapping his staffer expectations at the next meeting in two weeks on the 7 items and asked for the principal party for each item and if none were identified, then volunteers on those items was hoped for by the time of the follow-up meeting. Ivan copied Grace, John and Alex.
Ivan's schedule was full with lunch next, then a group meeting with Costuming-MaryAnn and Charisse; Make-up- Lauren, Donald, Andrew and Becca; Facility, Staging, Props, Lighting-Towns and Audio/Music- Gary, to review the 6 programs set for the Fall. They met at 1:30 in the same Conference Room D as the morning's development staff meeting. Ivan greeted each and admitted having no previous info on the Fall program other than a list of the Program Titles and scores for each, and Alexi would dance Program #1. The first program was a combo work "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" (DeBussy) and "Afternoon of a Faun" (Chouinard) set to open mid-August for a 3 week run. Alexi was the primary dancer and looking around the room asked if Alexi was ready for this role? No one responded. "Come on guys, we're in this for the Company, our audience and the patrons- please set aside feelings, pro or con, diplomacy and let's be honest. If I need to adjust or enhance, I will, but this has been your show thus far and I RELY ON MY TEAM for their input and honesty. If I do something to fuck us up, tell me about it and I'll be candid with each of you. It is pretty clear that Alex won't be back for this first program so we also owe him this effort as well." The room remained silent until Gary spoke up, "Alexi likes to steal the show at others expense" and it was like a dam breaking as the others opened up with their concerns. Ivan took notes feverishly. They reviewed the program blocking and Ivan got the status from each dept. before the meeting ended. He ended the meeting at 3:30 having only covered one program, but asked to convene the following week and present the status of Program #2- "West Side Story" and Program #3- "Big Band Swing Time". They'd cover programs 4 (A Broadway Musicals Parade), 5 ("Who Can Dance- A History of Dance") and 6 (Jean Michel Jarre's "Oxygene") in July meetings. As an afterthought, he asked what the student program was and when, as nothing was listed on the program guide for them? He got blank stares. "Never mind then, I'll handle that, just be prepped for next week" he closed. Walking back to his office, his mind reeled with the work facing him. He paused at Grace's desk and asked that she send Rick an arrangement from just him and the development staff. She interjected that "they'd already sent one from the Company". He grew stern and repeated "and I want to send one from HIS cohorts and me" then went to this office. While stern, she gained a new appreciation for this man and saw a compassionate side that she respected. Ivan collected his meeting thoughts, then fired off a meeting summary email to the team and added; `we will also add a student program and it will be called "Four Seasons at New Town- A Student Dance", the dates and details to be determined, but we need to recognize new talent, hard work and parents' and copied John and Alex on the email. Within 10 minutes came John's one word email-OUTSTANDING!!!
After attending to more administrivia, Ivan realized it was already 5:30, had not heard a peep from Tim, Alex or the Peters all day and sat back, phoned the Peters to check on the patient and how they were doing as well and if they needed anything? After a good long visit, he learned that Alex was in some pain but was managing it, that Tim had surprised them all with a fruit basket and a visit and that Mrs. Peters was fixing supper and reminded Ivan that he always had an open invitation. He thanked them but declined and took a rain check. He then sent Tim a text asking about his day? Ivan had packed up, badged out and was at the bus stop when he got Tim's reply text---at home cooking for us, c u soon--- Ivan's heart thumped and he felt a real sense of belonging. The bus arrived and again it was the hot Latino driver that Ivan had cruised once before. They made some small talk as Ivan took the seat across the aisle to be able to cruise the hottie enroute to Vance St. The day had been full and Ivan almost missed his stop as he'd drifted off it seems. He made his way to #14, got the mail, climbed the stairs and found Gordon and Tim engaged in a conversation. Ivan was a bit stunned to say the least, but was cordial to his guest, took no time and kissed Tim, set his tote and backpack down and went about feeding B&B before filling a wine glass and kicking back on the loveseat to unwind from the day.
Tim began, "I saw Gordon when I came in, invited him for supper and he offered to bring a salad, so thought that was great and I made lasagna and am borrowing Gordon's oven for the Italian bread". Gordon raised his beer to toast Tim and Ivan, smiled and emptying it, went back to his place to check on the bread and get another beer. It gave Ivan a chance to ask Tim if he and Gordon had screwed? Tim shook his head no, and asked "but would that bother you if we did or had a 3 way?" "Guess not" was Ivan's reply as Gordon knocked and returned with the hot bread loaf. The three fixed their plates and Ivan remained on the loveseat as Tim and Gordon ate at the bar. After a couple more glasses of wine, Ivan was growing amorous and more relaxed with Gordon being there. The three cleaned up the kitchen, then Gordon invited them to his place and a little more room to "relax". Gordon thanked Tim for the meal and as he was headed out for a 10-day road trip, really appreciated the home cooked meal as a send-off. Gordon's bed was a queen size and in place of a loveseat he had a large L-shaped desk, with a conference circle at one end a credenza, files and bookcase and his desk chair and 3 guests chairs around the end of the conference circle. His bed could be screened from view if he had business partners there or informal guests. His desktop had a huge video display as well, that worked well for multiple Windows work sessions, TV watching and porn. The display could pivot and be easily viewed from the bed.
Tim and Ivan were sitting at the conference circle end of the desk as Gordon sat in the desk chair and keyed up a "Golden Girls" episode which they all enjoyed. The mood changed a bit as he opened a series of his porn favorites, scrolled through a few, before settling on a 3-way. There were an older blonde, a brunette and black haired guys each gorging on dicks in a daisy chain to start. The blonde stood up and the other two moved to their knees giving him head and sucking his balls. The blonde was toying with the brunette's hole, the black haired guy began rimming it. Before long the brunette was doggy straddling the furry blonde, riding his dick inside and rotating his hips, corkscrewing his hole up and down the blonde's dick. The black haired guy stands and stands beside the bed, pushes the brunette forward a bit then slides his own dick in with the blonde's as they double fuck the brunette. Their piston action soon causes both their dicks to explode deep in the brunette, whose moans and groans fill the room. When done, they flip the brunette on his back, stroke their softening cocks over his face as the brunette jacks off furiously and blows a huge load across his torso.
At midnight, Ivan and Tim woke up, Gordon stirred awake and asked where the guys were going? Ivan winked, mouthed `Thanks Bud' but we need to get home and sleep in our own bed. Tim leaned forward and kissed Gordon who plopped back and went immediately back to sleep as Tim and Ivan made their way across the landing to #L and sleep.