Page 5 of Flirty Dancing

5

Blurry

Thursday was a blur. They ran through Retro again and also had to learn the hip-hop show. Mateo was all business, barking orders and nagging at him about his turnout. “It’s not ballet, Archer. You need to settle into your knees.”

“I am,” Archer muttered through gritted teeth, not quite loud enough for Mateo to hear. He wanted sexy, smoldering tango Mateo back, or the uncertain, fumbling Mateo who came to find him in his room, not the drill sergeant ragging on him about his knees.

They were taking a water break when Caleb approached. “Mateo’s extra pissy today, hey?”

“Mmm,” Archer replied, pulling his heel back for a quad stretch.

Caleb chewed his lip for a moment, looking uncustomarily sheepish. “Listen, I’m sorry about taking your clothes and stuff yesterday.”

Archer dropped his foot. “Thanks. I appreciate it, Caleb.”

“It was supposed to be funny.”

“Yeah. It wasn’t.”

Caleb shrugged. “Your body is scorching hot though.”

Archer took a drink of water, considering. “Are you hitting on me while apologizing?”

“Maybe.” Caleb’s normal mischievous grin crept back. “Is it working?”

Archer chuckled and shook his head. “No.”

“Damn it. Better try something else.” Caleb winked at him and sauntered away. Archer watched him go. Awfully cute, though. And, he had to admit, the attention was flattering, considering he had been rejected by everyone and everything the last five months.

“If you’re done daydreaming, Archer”—the drill sergeant was back—“we’re taking it from the top.”

Archer had another long, hot shower—this time his thighs ached—taking quick peeks past the shower curtain at the slightest sound in case Caleb decided it would actually be fucking hilarious to steal his clothes again. When he got out of the shower, he saw that Lynn had sent him a picture of the most beautiful engagement ring—gold with a pink teardrop diamond—and the caption I found it, Arch!!!

GORGEOUS, he texted back. Omg, she’s going to love it. Good job, you.

Any brilliant proposal ideas? she replied.

Archer sagged. No, in fact. He hadn’t even thought about it since they talked the day before. What a terrible friend. Well, he typed, brain whirring. You guys met in the library, right? What if you went back there and hid the ring behind a book on marriage law or something?

YES! she replied. Love it! It’s quiet, not super public, cause she would hate a spectacle, cozy and romantic… Okay. I think I’m gonna do it.

When?? Archer asked, with some relief that he thought of something at the last second that didn’t suck.

We’re planning on a date Saturday. Maybe then?

So excited for you, babe. You’ve got this xx

Caleb sat next to Archer at dinner and peppered him with questions about his background. It would have felt a little interrogatory, if not for the fact that their thighs kept brushing together.

“So mostly ballet?” Caleb asked, dabbing a piece of lettuce into the side dressing.

“Yup.” Archer had second thoughts about the fry in his hand, but he ate it anyway. “My parents took me to see The Nutcracker when I was four, and I’ve done ballet ever since, then jazz, contemporary, and acro as I got older.”

“Cool, cool.” Caleb nodded and set down his fork, half his salad uneaten. “Same for me, but I did tap, too, and some ballroom. My parents have a studio so I kind of did it all.”

“What was your favorite?” Archer asked, sneaking one more fry.

“Um.” Caleb blinked at him for a second. “My mom said I was best at tap.”

“Yeah, but…” Archer studied Caleb for a moment, once again appreciating his beauty. “That’s not what I asked.”

“Oh. I, uh… I love ballet. I like that it’s so rigid and controlled, so many rules, but then from that, something fluid and beautiful emerges—something close to perfection.” He shrugged, then snuck a fry off Archer’s plate and winked. Their thighs touched again.

“You heading to the cabin tonight?” Archer asked.

“Yup.” An easy grin stretched across Caleb’s face. “You?”

The party was extra that night. Extra loud, extra drunk, extra naked. The music blared, swimmers hurled themselves into the water bathing suit–free, and someone had brought a keg. Perhaps it was that they only had three nights left before the guests arrived, or perhaps it was that they were all getting to know each other better, but whatever it was, the cabin vibrated with a near-manic hum of lust and urgency.

Caleb hadn’t left his side since dinner, and Archer was still enjoying the attention. And the guy, while maybe a little too self-assured, was funny and extremely charming and displayed occasional glimpses of unexpected layers. They were lounging on the couch, swapping audition horror stories, slightly buzzed and nearly yelling over the music and ruckus from the group playing beer pong.

“Can you sing?” Caleb asked, leaning so close his breath brushed Archer’s cheek.

“Yeah.” Archer shrugged. “I did some musical theater stuff in Dayton.”

“I went to an audition once that didn’t say anything about it in the ad, then I got there and they wanted me to sing !” Caleb laughed. “I can’t fucking sing! But I was too embarrassed to bail at that point, standing up there in a line, so I panicked, and I’m like, what musical do I know all the words to? And I go with The Book of Mormon .”

Archer was delighted. “Which song did you pick?”

“‘I Believe.’”

“No!” Archer cackled.

Caleb cracked up. “I know, worst choice ever! And then I ended up forgetting all the fucking words anyway.”

Archer tipped his head back and laughed, feeling wonderfully loose and warm up against Caleb’s side.

Caleb nodded at his empty bottle once their laughter had faded. “You want another?”

“Sure, thanks.” Archer watched Caleb’s tight ass make its way over to the fridge. He caught Betty’s eye across the room where she was chatting with a bunch of the other dancers. She gave him an eyebrow waggle with a pointed glance at Caleb.

Archer grimaced and shook his head.

Sure, she smirked back at him.

Archer turned his head to ignore her, pointedly.

“What do you think?” Caleb asked when he got back, extending his bottle toward the beer pong table. “Think we can take those assholes from maintenance?”

Archer studied the fluid, muscled lines of Caleb’s body. “Hell yeah, we can.”

They could not. But they drank and laughed even more, fingers brushing, shoulders bumping, as they got their asses handed to them by the sturdy, well-practiced maintenance crew.

Mateo was there early on, hovering around the edges, glowering at his beer. Archer tried to ignore him, but his gaze continued to find that thick, brooding frame. Then, when Archer was leaning against Caleb, laughing at a catastrophically bad beer pong shot, he looked up and saw Mateo watching them.

Mateo’s face was blank, unreadable. They held eyes for a moment as Archer’s laugh faded. Something flicked over Mateo’s face, then he turned away. Archer watched his back disappear down the hallway toward the stairs.

“Okay, my turn,” Caleb said, nudging Archer aside with a hip, words slightly slurred. “I’ve got this.”

Archer shook himself and clapped Caleb on the shoulder. “Here we go. We need this shot.”

The night got louder and fuzzier after that. They did some shots with Betty and Dominik, then ended up back on the couch, Caleb edging closer and straightening the collar on Archer’s shirt. They might have danced for a while, bodies liquid, sweat beading on Archer’s hairline, Caleb’s hands on his waist, then back to the couch again.

“Archer!” It was Betty, he was able to determine, once the blond head floating over him came into focus. “Dude, it’s three A.M. You good?”

“So good.” Archer knew he was hammered, and his wide, blurry smile was fooling no one. Caleb’s hand was on his thigh. He blinked at Betty. “What’re you still doing here?”

“Get to bed, you guys.” She patted his shoulder. “Rehearsal is in five hours. And please, for the love of God, drink so much water.” She fluttered her fingers at them, shaking her head, then she was gone. Archer realized it was much quieter now, not many people left. One couple was slow dancing—if he squinted, it looked like Gage and River—and someone was passed out on the couch across from them.

“Fuck, man,” Archer mumbled. “We should go.” He stood and hauled Caleb to his feet. Caleb leaned on him, laughing as he sagged, and they managed to stumble outside and down the stairs to begin making their way up the dark, uneven path.

There was a bleary moment when Caleb paused, took Archer’s hand, and tilted his lips toward his, but Archer swayed and stumbled on.

That was the last thing he remembered.

“Archer! What the fuck? Wake up!” Ben’s voice called to him from far away. No, wait, that was Beau. “Archer!” A pissed-off Beau. “Get up, man! Rehearsal starts in five!”

“Wha?” Archer pried his eyes open. The light in the room clawed at his eyeballs. “Fuck.” He closed them again.

“Seriously, get your ass out of bed.”

A rueful chuckle from Ben. “We tried. See you there, Archer!” The door closed, a sound that bounced off the inside of his head in a clatter.

“I’m coming,” Archer mumbled, sitting up and trying to hold his throbbing brain in place. He swung one leg out of bed, then another. His stomach roiled. “Oh God,” he muttered. “What did I do?”

The night came back to him all at once. The drinking. The laughing. The flirting. Caleb. His head jerked over to Caleb’s bed, a move he instantly regretted. His bed was empty.

Then Archer realized he was naked. His boxers were crumpled under the covers. And so was another pair that he didn’t recognize. “Oh God .” Did he and Caleb sleep together? Or only… sleep together? And where was Caleb?

Archer rested his forehead in his hands, mind and stomach spinning. “Okay,” he breathed, hoping the burst of oxygen would help. “Get it together, Archer.” Rehearsal was now officially starting and he was still in bed. Not great. So he got up and stumbled to the bathroom, puked in the toilet, scrubbed his face with cold water, and studied himself in the mirror.

He looked exactly like he had been partying all night. He pulled on tights and a tank top for rehearsal, threw sweats on top, tried to drink some more water, and jogged over to the theater, despite his pounding head. Only ten minutes late. Could be worse. Except it was only day three. Fuck. He resolved to not be late the rest of the summer, knowing he was likely fighting a losing battle against his nature.

They were already into choreo for the Around the World show. Looked like some country and western line dancing. Caleb was in place, fresh as a spring day. Archer approached the stage, gnawing on a lip.

Stewart stood from his usual front-row seat. “Well, well. Archer has decided to join us.”

His stomach quivered. The last thing he needed to do was give Stewart a reason to dislike him. “Sorry, Stewart. I, uh, slept in.”

Someone in the ranks snorted.

“Do not apologize to me, Archer.” Stewart waved his hand at the other dancers. “Apologize to your colleagues whom you have let down.”

Archer faced his troupe. Most of them looked amused, including Caleb. Mateo’s face was a storm cloud. “Sorry, guys.”

Dominik grinned at him. “It’s fine, bro. We’ve all been there. Well…” His eyes shifted. “Most of us.”

Stewart sniffed. “Indeed. This reminds me of the morning after Matthew Broderick’s bachelor party. Quick warm-up, Archer, then fall in.”

He didn’t get a chance to talk to Caleb until the first break. He sat next to him on the floor for a stretch. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

Caleb smirked and pulled his cowboy boots off to rub his feet. “I tried. You were out cold, princess.”

“Were we, uh… Did we…” He leaned closer to Caleb and lowered his voice. “Did you sleep in my bed?”

Caleb grinned. “You don’t remember?”

Archer’s cheeks flushed. “No.”

“Yeah, we both passed out in your bed. Nothing happened, though.”

Archer breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, good.”

“Ouch.”

“No, it’s not that, it’s—”

“Relax. I’m messing with you. Trust me, if we fucked, you’d remember.”

Heavy feet stopped next to them. Archer looked up to see Mateo’s frown. “Hey, Mateo, I’m really sorry—”

Mateo shook his head. “I was right about you.”

Archer furrowed his brow. “Right about what?”

“You’re just here to party.”

“What?” Archer’s stomach dropped. “I’m not—”

“Look.” Mateo’s face was twisted with distaste. “All I’m asking is that you do your job like a fucking professional, and part of that is showing up on time.”

“I’m sorry, I—”

“Save it, Archer. I don’t give a shit about your apology.”

Archer’s jaw wobbled as Mateo turned to leave. Yeah, he messed up, but Mateo didn’t have to be such a—

“Look who’s talking,” Caleb mumbled.

Mateo stopped and marched back. “Excuse me?”

Caleb sighed and rolled his eyes. “Nothing.”

“Say what you need to say, Caleb.” Mateo looked huge, towering over them where they sat, hands on his hips.

Caleb stood. “It’s rich, you lecturing us about being professional.”

Mateo’s eyes darkened.

Jaw clenched, Caleb stared back.

Mateo opened his mouth, then closed it again. Then he whirled and stormed off, barking at the troupe to get in formation.

“What a dick,” Caleb muttered.

Archer gave him a weak smile of agreement, but his heart sank.

“What did you mean about Mateo being unprofessional?” he asked Caleb later at dinner.

“You’ve heard the stories, haven’t you? He got fired from the role of a lifetime for being ‘unprofessional.’”

The other conversations around them quieted, heads turning in their direction.

“Like how?” Archer asked.

“Same old. He started drinking and partying, missing rehearsals, making demands of everyone to treat him like a fucking god. And I guess he was an asshole to Abby. Refused to even talk to her backstage.”

Abby Hodge was perhaps the most famous trans actor in America these days, certainly the most famous to ever make it big on Broadway. She had even been nominated for an Oscar this past year. And Mateo was… here. With Archer, who couldn’t get a job to save his life. Ouch.

“So, why is he working here?”

Dominik shrugged. “No one knows. He hasn’t exactly been making friends.”

There was murmured agreement around the table.

“This is his first season?” Archer asked.

Dominik nodded, purple mohawk bobbing. “Yeah. We were all shocked as hell when Stewart introduced him the first day. One thing’s for sure though,” he added, popping open a can of sparkling water. “That man can dance .”

The conversation drifted onto other topics, but Archer’s thoughts stayed on Mateo. How does one go from being the toast of Broadway to toiling in a tiny cabaret show upstate? He finished his stuffed peppers in silence.

“Cabin tonight?” Caleb asked him, feet bumping under the table.

Archer’s stomach quivered. “No way, man. No drinking for me.”

“Come on, Archer,” Dominik interjected. “Cannonball contest!”

“Everyone’s doing it.” Betty poked him and grinned.

Archer groaned. “Okay, fine. I can beat you all sober, anyway.”

Caleb sighed and stood, stretching his arms above his head and revealing a rather impressive six-pack. “You can try.” His voice was low as his gaze dropped to Archer’s. “But you’re going down.”

Archer raised an eyebrow at Caleb. Maybe.