[Author's note: This chapter involves MMF activities, but I promise on the whole it is still very, very gay.]
The theater was bright but lonely with just Zach, Dion, and Kat on stage, Professor Davidson their only audience. Zach felt a little silly standing on his mark, pretending to polish a glass and wearing an old fashioned soda jerk hat. He knew it would feel less silly when they had proper lighting and he would be in the background, his silhouette barely visible as Dion and Kat were lit center stage. Even now he felt almost invisible, the pair's chemistry nearly as blinding as a spotlight.
It was an important scene, the romance at the heart of the play. The high school sweethearts, George and Emily, were madly in love and deciding their future. Dion was holding Kat's hand over a small table, and even out of the corner of his eye Zach could see him looking at her with a bashful intensity.
"Listen, Emily, I'm going to tell you why I'm not going to Agriculture School. I think that once you've found a person that you're very fond of...I mean a person who's fond of you, too, and likes you enough to be interested in your character...Well, I think that's just as important as college is, and even more so. That's what I think."
"I think it's awfully important, too," Kat said, earnestly but with a hint of fear.
"Emily."
"Y-yes, George."
"Emily, if I do improve and make a big change...would you be...I mean--could you be..."
"I...I am now; I always have been," Kat smiled, her eyes watering. She'd done that every take and Zach was deeply impressed every time.
Dion grinned widely and Zach felt weak in the knees, "So I guess this is an important talk we've been having."
"Yes...yes."
"Wait just a minute and I'll walk you home."
Dion started rummaging in his pockets, increasingly desperate. That was Zach's cue. He turned towards the couple, setting the glass down and throwing his towel over his shoulder. He affected a paternal smile.
Dion turned to him, "Mr. Morgan, I'll have to go home and get the money to pay you for this. It'll only take me a minute."
Taking mock offense Zach said, "What's that? George Gibbs, do you mean to tell me..."
"Yes, but I had reasons, Mr. Morgan. Look, here's my gold watch to keep until I come back with the money," Dion said, extending a plastic watch painted gold to Zach.
Zach waved it away, "That's all right. Keep your watch. I'll trust you."
"I'll be back in five minutes."
"I'll trust you ten years, George...not a day over," Zach turned to Kat, "Got all over your shock, Emily?"
"Yes, thank you, Mr. Morgan. It was nothing," Kat said smiling affectionately up at Zach as she wiped her eyes.
Dion took her hand, gently rubbing his thumb along her knuckles, "I'm ready."
Dion and Kat left the stage silently. As Zach watched them go he slowly took the towel from his shoulder and the jerk hat from his head, setting them down on the table. He turned to the audience.
"Well," Zach said bittersweetly as suddenly his pocket watch sprang open in his hand and he glanced at its face, "Now we're ready to get on with the wedding."
Professor Davidson gave a quick clap, "Great, great job you three, I think we've got it."
"Just 5 times? I was expecting 8 at least," Dion said hopping off the stage and giving Kat a hand down behind him.
"We'll have plenty more with the rest of the crew," Davidson said, "But if you really want to go again we have the time."
"Oh, please god no," Kat said exhausted, "If I have to be happy weepy again I may die."
"Gotta save that for Act 3," Zach joked as he jumped off the stage too.
"I have to finish up some grading, you guys should get something to eat, it's getting late," the Professor said packing up her bags, "again, really great job, you three have it down pat. I'll see you Thursday." And Professor Davidson walked back to her office leaving Zach, Dion, and Kat alone.
"Actually, I'm fucking starving," Zach said, "you guys want some pizza? My treat."
"On the condition we smoke some weed first, I need to relax after that," Kat said, picking up her purse.
"Done and done," Dion grinned between the two of them.
They walked to the Sig Chi house, Dion's right arm around Kat's waist and his left slung across Zach's shoulders as they gossiped about the other theater kids and enjoyed each other's company. When they reached the frat they went straight up to Dion's room and Dion got to packing his one hitter between Kat and Zach on the loveseat.
"I'm honestly kinda dreading Act 3," Dion said tamping down the greens, "Soda fountain romance is fun, that's straight Back to the Future. But man, is ghost town gonna be a downer."
"Oh shut up, you don't even have a fucking line in Act 3, that's all on Kat," Zach said.
"Please don't remind me," Kat said taking the piece and lighter from Dion, "and you're gonna have to help me through it Zach, you've got plenty to do too."
Before Zach responded his phone buzzed in his pocket. "Pizza's here," Zach said, and he went to stand up to go get it.
"Oh no you don't, pledge," Dion said grabbing Zach's shorts by the waistband and pulling him back onto the couch, "Jack or some other asshole catches you they'll steal half our pizza. Let me go get it."
As Dion left the room Kat sparked the one hitter and took a long drag, closing her eyes. She looked a little like Greta Garbo with the cigarette shaped pipe hanging out her mouth and smoke curling around her face. As she exhaled she half opened her eyes and smiled at Zach.
"I won't bite, come sit next to me," she said, patting the empty space Dion had left between them and offering him the pipe.
Zach scooched over till their thighs were touching. "I didn't think you'd bite," Zach grinned shyly as he took a hit. As he ghosted it he passed the bowl back to Kat.
She knocked out the ashes and got to filling it again, "I'm sorry we haven't really had the chance to talk. I know you asked to have lunch or something Saturday night but between school and the play and sorority stuff I've just been so tight on time."
"It's no problem, I've been busy too," Zach said.
