Press Play

by Sam LaRose

  If that name seems familiar, you may remember that Montgomery spent most of his teen years making headlines with his drug and alcohol infused antics on the Manhattan club scene. Oh, and his father, Peter Montgomery, is one of our state’s senators.

  In 20xx, Montgomery cleaned up his act and taught an inaugural class at CSG for the Foundation. He was accepted to NYU in the Studio Art program, then left to take part in the prestigious Henri Apollo Fellowship at UCLA. An amazing artist in his own right, Montgomery has made waves since he was a child. His hyper-realistic style is awe-inspiring. It’s no wonder he caught the attention of Leeman and was taken under his wing. Leeman was a friend and mentor to the young Montgomery ever since their first meeting. Upon his return to Manhattan, the young artist resumed teaching Foundation classes at his alma mater. He has also made some minor waves as the potential inspiration of Dark Little Town front-man Tyler Norse’s solo EP released to TuneTable in July.

  Montgomery declined to comment when we caught him as his class was releasing on October 14th, the day after the will reading. His students, on the other hand, were more than happy to talk to me.

  “Dylan is one of the best teachers I’ve ever had,” said Susan McBride. “He has infinite patience and is very easy to talk to. I can’t believe he’s the same person that got arrested for public nudity!”

  Other students had similar accolades for Montgomery, citing his easy teaching style, fun and adaptable curriculum, and open creativity. “He lets us explore the kind of art we want to make, not what he or the Foundation think are important, which is cool,” Mike Pearson stated.

  More information about the Stuart Leeman Foundation can be found at their website.

  ***

  Dylan sighed, clicking his phone screen off. David had forwarded him the link from the Journal. He’d warned the kids that there may be media present as they left the school and to not talk to them. Kids. They never listened.

  “Bad news?” Benjamin asked. The coach creaked as he straddled Dylan’s hips. He held a can of soda in one hand and a bag of plain potato chips in the other. “You look tired.” His lips brushed Dylan’s jaw, then his neck.

  Dylan tilted his head back, accepting a lazy kiss on the mouth. “There was an article in the Journal about me. It was supposed to be about the will reading, but it was half that and half reminding people I used to be terrible.” He reached up, taking the can. “Is that for me?”

  “It wasn’t, but I can grab another one for myself.” Benjamin set down the chips and put his arms over Dylan’s shoulders, leaning on the back of the couch. “Can we talk?” His intention wasn’t clear as he took another kiss.

  “While you’re sitting in my lap? It’ll be difficult, but I’ll try.” Dylan’s free hand moved underneath the hem of Benjamin’s t-shirt. His fingertips stroked a firm expanse of skin until Benjamin tsked, pushing Dylan’s hand away.

  “Come on. Be serious for two minutes?” Benjamin forced himself to lean back, putting as much space between the two of them as he could, while still sitting on top of him.

  “What’s bothering you?” Dylan fisted the sides of his t-shirt. He bit his bottom lip, staring up at him expectantly. His eyes flitted downward. Benjamin’s kissable lips doing the talking were very distracting.

  “We’ve been hooking up for a couple of weeks now. I like spending time with you.

  “I like spending time with you too.”

  “I think we should tell David we’re dating.”

  “Dating? Are we dating?” Dylan’s distraction ended. An unfamiliar panic rose in his throat.

  Benjamin frowned. “Dating sounds nicer than saying we’re fucking on the regular.”

  “True, but, if that’s what we’re doing, why tell David? What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

  The frown deepened. “Dylan, is what we’re doing just sex?”

  “Is it not supposed to be? I thought we were clear on it just being a Netflix and Chill situation.”

  “We’ve spent almost every night together for the last two weeks.”

  “Hooking up. Incredibly casual. No feelings or strings attached.”

  “No feelings. Right.” Benjamin reached, uncurling Dylan’s fingers from his shirt before he backed off the couch. “I misunderstood.”

  “Benjamin,” Dylan grunted as he got up to follow him to the kitchenette, “I enjoy coming and petting your cat and hooking up. It doesn’t change that you’re on my parent’s payroll. I toe a lot of lines. I can’t let you lose your job too so we can be boyfriends or some shit.”

  “Even if I think you would be worth it?”

  “Fuck no!” Dylan recoiled. “I’m not! At all! I’m an immature asshole who has openly and blatantly been using you for my own gains almost literally since I met you. Why the hell would you catch feelings for me?”

  “It’s not like I have control over it.” The refrigerator door’s contents rattled as Benjamin extracted another soda and closed the door harder than necessary.

  “Benjamin, I thought it was obvious,” Dylan’s voice lowered. “I’m still in love with someone else. I can push those emotions deep down to have casual fun, but I don’t know when I might return those feelings.”

  “I know that, but I think I could make you happy if you gave me half a chance.” Benjamin’s cheeks burned. The soda tab cracked open as he took a long drink in the awkward silence.

  “That’s not fair to you.” Dylan finally spoke, moving to pick up his jacket. “I better go.”

  “You don’t have to leave. Forget I said anything. We’re fine, right?” Benjamin took him by the sleeve, tugging him back. He tried to lean in for a kiss, but Dylan’s hands on his chest stopped him.

  “We’re not. I’m sorry. I let this go on too long. We should stop now before it goes any further.” Dylan shrugged into the jacket as he shoved his feet into his sneakers.

  “Let me take you.”

  “I appreciate it, but I’m fine.”

  “Please let me drive you home. It’s getting late and you’ve been in the papers lately. Safety first.”

  “I’m breaking up with you and you’re still concerned with my safety?”

  “Your safety is always my first priority.”

  “You’re too nice, Benjamin. You can’t be real.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I’ve been jerking you around for two weeks now. Using you for your cat and your dick. Now you think I have feelings for you?”

  “Dylan, I know you’re not perfect. What makes you think I’m not using you too? I’m a guy. I like sex. What we’ve been doing is consensual from both sides.”

  “Why tell David what we’ve been doing then?”

  “I’d like to take you on a date. In public. As a single man who sometimes likes men. Not as your bodyguard.”

  “I need to think about it,” Dylan answered. “I still want to go home.”

  “Fine,” Benjamin agreed. “I’ll take you home.”

  “Fine,” he repeated.

  The drive to Alphabet City was silent. Dylan’s hand went to the door handle before the car had even come to a complete stop. He hesitated for a moment, turning in the seat to face the man.

  “Benjamin, I’m going to do the adult thing for the first time in my life,” Dylan began. “I don’t want you to jeopardize your job. I don’t want to hurt you like I hurt every other guy who falls for me. I like you. I hope you’ll allow me to come over occasionally to snuggle with your cat. We can’t keep doing this though. It’s never been hard for me to find people to sleep with. I don’t need more notches in my bedpost; I need friends and it’s harder for me to find and keep those.”

  Benjamin nodded slowly. “I get it. You can come over and see Goliath anytime. He likes you. He’d be really upset if you disappeared.”

  “You’re taking this very well.”

  “To be honest, I expected it. There was a tiny part of me that hoped you’d be into it, but I already knew how this was going to play out.”
<
br />   “Thanks for the ride. I’ll see you around.” Dylan leaned over, pressing a kiss to Benjamin’s cheek.

  Benjamin gave him a small wave as he got out of the car.

  Dylan made his way into the apartment building. He gave an acknowledging nod to the doorperson at the desk before he stepped up to the elevators. He had boarded and was just about to press the button for his floor when he heard a voice call out.

  “Hold the elevator!”

  Instinctively, he pressed the HOLD DOOR button. He regretted it as Tyler and Simon stepped into the carriage. He released the button and pressed the one for his floor without saying anything, as Simon did the same on the other.

  “Hello.” Tyler decided to be the bigger person. “How are you?”

  “Hello,” Dylan repeated. “I’m fine.” A beat passed before he politely inquired, “How are you?”

  “Fine. Simon and I grabbed dinner. He was going to do something with my hair for me.”

  “That’s very nice of you, Simon.”

  “It is.” Simon gave Dylan an appraising look. “Who’s doing your hair lately?”

  “Most recently? His name is Rian. He comes to my parent’s every six weeks to do my mother’s hair. He offers cuts to the rest of the household and staff while he waits on her sets.” He reached up, tentatively pulling at the ends of his hair. “I might have missed his last visit. Why?”

  “Just curious. You have a healthy shine. It’s rare to see a man who knows how to take care of his hair.” Simon grinned. “I do everyone else’s hair. I’m happy to do yours too.”

  “Thank you, but my hair is fine.”

  The elevator went quiet for a minute before Tyler couldn’t help himself.

  “I like your new art style. It’s unique.”

  Dylan didn’t answer, not sure if he was being baited or not.

  “The watercolor technique for the coloring was a nice touch.”

  Dylan bit the inside of his cheek. “You weren’t meant to see that and you know it.”

  “It seemed pretty obvious that it was directed to me,” Tyler replied.

  “First of all,” Dylan turned toward him, “I never expected you to be in my apartment. I didn’t feel the need to keep it hidden. Second, if I had been prepared for you to see it, I would have given it to you when I was finished. I didn’t give it to you, because I don’t have an answer for you. That was just one option.”

  “How long should I be waiting for an official answer then?”

  “That’s a real rich question coming from the guy who explicitly told me I wasn’t allowed to listen to that EP. If you feel like you’ve been waiting months—”

  “I shouldn’t have had to put out that album. If you’d just talk to me like a fucking adult—”

  “I am an adult,” Dylan’s voice raised. “I’m twenty-two fucking years old. I’m not the stupid sixteen-year-old dumbass you think you’re in love with. I hope to fucking god you’re not the same stupid asshole I fell for!”

  “Yeah, so,” Simon interrupted. “I’m going to get off the elevator. If you two would like to continue shouting at each other, it’s all yours.”

  Tyler flushed red, stepping away from Dylan. He hadn’t realized he’d closed the space between them, backing him into the wall of the elevator. He was torn between grabbing him by his coat lapels and shaking him or kissing him. Either one was likely to get him slapped.

  “Sorry, Simon.”

  “Sorry,” Dylan repeated. “This is my floor anyway.”

  “The shouting is actually good,” Simon called after him. “Believe it or not, it shows progress!”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Don’t,” Tyler pulled Simon back inside the elevator. He pressed the button for their floor again. “I started it. I can let it drop.”

  Simon reached over, pressing the HOLD button. “Maybe you should go after him? Finish the conversation.”

  “No. We have plans. You’re cutting my hair, remember?”

  “Your hair isn’t going anywhere. My scissors are always sharp. We can put a pin in our plans until later.”

  “No, I am fine letting it go,” he assured him. “Please.”

  “All right,” Simon agreed, raising his hands in defeat. “I’ll grab my kit. You want to wait or head up without me?”

  “Are you going to get distracted if I don’t go with you?”

  “Probably. Dani said she was going to start watching the new season of Drag Wars. I just can’t look away from that debacle.”

  “I better go with you to keep you on track.”

  Even with accompaniment, it was nearly twenty minutes before the two men stepped back off the elevator in front of the apartment that the three members of Dark Little Town shared. A still irked looking Dylan stood in front of the door, waiting. He was holding the frame that Tyler had seen a few weeks before, as well as a folder tucked under his arm.

  “I don’t want to argue with you,” Tyler said as he took his keys out. “If you’re going to yell at me again, you might as well come in.”

  Dylan followed him into the apartment. It was the first time he’d been in it since his return. He stopped at the end of the foyer, taking in the space. The furniture was still the same, but there were now three Platinum records hung on one wall.

  “Simon, why don’t you go ahead and set up in the kitchen, huh?” Tyler encouraged, hanging up his jacket.

  “Sure thing,” Simon agreed. “Come on in when you’re ready.” He tilted his head, giving Dylan a look. “If you’d like to stick around, I’d be happy to give you a trim too. No charge.”

  “No, thank you. This won’t take long,” Dylan announced.

  Simon shrugged. “If you change your mind, you know how to find me.”

  Tyler waited until Simon had strolled over to the kitchen, humming as he disappeared.

  “So? What is it?”

  “I’m giving you this.” Dylan picked the frame up and set it on the couch. “I don’t want it around anymore. You can do whatever you want with it.” Then he handed him the folder. “I’m giving you these too. It’s not done, but I am. I’m not going to give you a public response anymore.”

  “What is this?” Tyler tentatively opened the folder.

  “It’s what I started of a comic I was going to post in reply to your EP. My side of the story. Honestly, I’m done dwelling on the past. I hurt you, you hurt me. We’re even. We can just be done now, okay?”

  “Done?” The word caught in his throat. So final sounding.

  “We’ve done an excellent job of avoiding each other,” Dylan continued, ignoring his tone. “Let’s keep doing that.”

  “I don’t want to avoid you.”

  “Then I’ll do the avoiding.”

  “Dylan, will you please talk to me?” Tyler closed the folder, tossing it onto the couch cushion beside the frame. “We were good at it, at the beginning of the summer. Why is it so hard now?”

  “If you think we feel at all the same way about each other, you know the answer to that question.”

  “I know it’s hard, not knowing where we’re going to come out of the conversation, but fuck, Dyl. We can’t move forward if we don’t stop and figure it out.” He bit his lip. “Did you listen to the second EP?”

  “Second EP?” Had someone mentioned it? He couldn’t recall, considering all the angst he’d be drowning in.

  “It dropped a week or so ago. It was a follow up.”

  “I don’t want more songs, Tyler,” Dylan declared, his voice rising. “Just like you don’t want more stupid comics.”

  “Your comics aren’t stupid,” he interrupted. “You say you’ve grown up and changed, but you’re the same self-deprecating little shit I met in that grocery store.”

  “Maybe I am. Which is more reason you should stop trying so hard. You’re forgetting that you broke up with me. Not the other way around.”

  “You were lying to me about using drugs again!”

  “I never lied to you,” Dylan correct
ed. “I didn’t tell you. There’s a difference.”

  “You think that makes it better, but it doesn’t. The line is very thin.”

  “It doesn’t matter. I stopped doing drugs. I stopped drinking. I don’t sleep around. I don’t go to clubs. I have no friends, no social life, and I spend a third of my free time going to meetings to make sure I continue to not do those things.”

  “I’m glad you’re taking control of your habits,” Tyler said carefully. “What does that have to do with being with me?”

  “You were the first person I didn’t need to be high to enjoy being around. Even when I knew how disappointed you’d be, I still started taking that Adderall. I still bought the pot.”

  “I’m secure enough now to know it wasn’t my job to keep you sober. I want to support you. I can do better this time.”

  “I needed your support four years ago. You dumped me instead. I had to do all of this on my own. I moved three thousand miles, to the other side of the continent, to take care of myself. It was too fucking hard to be in the same city as you. So, please, stop and leave me alone. We both need to move on.”

  “I tried to move on,” Tyler reminded him. “It didn’t take. I always want to come back to you. You’re the person I want to be with most, in the whole world.”

  “That sounds real pretty,” Dylan retorted. “Unfortunately, you’re not that person for me.”

  “I’ll wait until I am.”

  “Don’t. Why waste your life for something that might never happen?”

  “You’re worth it.”

  Dylan shifted uncomfortably. Part of him knew Tyler was being overly dramatic. Artistic license with his words to incite an emotional reaction. He also knew he was being overly dramatic himself. Panic tightened in his chest and he shoved it down again. Now was not the time.

  “I need to go.” He stepped away from Tyler, giving him a wide berth as he moved to the door.

  “Wait.” Tyler reached out, taking his wrist. He laced their fingers together as he tugged him closer again. “How was the comic going to end? The long version.”

  “We would have gotten back together and been deliriously happy with one another.”