“Thank you for asking! Let me get those papers for you while I talk, okay?” Without waiting for an answer, Elaine bent over and ducked her head down under her enormous desk. Her voice was muffled, but still clear enough to be understood. “My nephew was in a car wreck. He’s only just gotten his license, but right now the police believe it wasn’t his fault. The other driver was drinking, but not drunk.”
Simon winced. “I’m so sorry. How is he?”
“He needed surgery for the broken bones in his arm and leg, but there was nothing life-threatening like we all feared. In a few months, he’ll probably be right back behind the wheel. Though I doubt if my sister will let him drive alone for a long while.”
“I’m glad everything seems like it’ll end well,” Simon said, relieved. A woman like Elaine deserved to have as few hardships come her way as possible.
“As am I. And really, thank you for asking. It means a lot.” Elaine straightened up with the papers, which were crisp-white and shiny as if they had been printed only a few hours ago.
Simon reached out, but he didn’t take the papers. Instead, he placed his hand over the top of Elaine’s and gave her fingers a gentle squeeze. “You keep the school together, Elaine. All of you in the office do. More than Nathan, more than any of the teachers. You ever need anything, you let me know.”
She smiled at him and patted the top of his hand with the one of hers that wasn’t being gripped. “You’re so sweet. And please, the same goes for you. We’re up here for a reason. Come talk to us whenever you need something, and we’ll see what we can do for you.”
Simon accepted the papers, and then let himself be talked into taking a cookie. Then three more.
“Everything really should be easy to figure out. I imagine one gym is just like another. But, if Nathan becomes available, I’ll let him know you’re here, and he might come down to see you.”
“Thank you, Elaine. I hope the rest of your day goes well.”
“And yours, Simon.”
Holding his papers and munching on one of his cookies, Simon wandered off down the hallway in the direction of the school cafeteria. There were two doors on either end that led to the gymnasium, and he pushed his way through.
The scent of cleaning fluids and old sweat hit his senses like a brick to the face. The wolf inside him rejected the reek, but the man in him loved it. This was where things happened, where action and intuition was everything, and emotions were for the people sitting on the sidelines.
Simon took quick stock of the gym while standing in the doorway, just making observations about the place that now pretty much belonged to him. He was surprised at the state of it. There were six basketball hoops, all folded up against the walls they were connected to. They looked to be relatively new or recently polished. The walls were as white as gym walls could possibly be when a person took into account the atmosphere inside, and the floor was shiny. A few scuffs here and there, a few bits of fading and staining, but wear and tear was to be expected in a place like this.
All in all, the first impression wasn’t bad.
The bleachers, though…Those might give him some trouble. He walked over to the bleachers, which were folded up against the wall on either side. They were the chunky blue plastic kind, cheap pieces of crap that always slipped a hinge. They never folded up exactly right, which really wasn’t safe.
Going to have to inspect them, see the condition they’re in. I might have to see if I can get some help fixing the hinges, or if I’m just going to have to deal with it.
He would also need to inspect the basketball hoops, the scoreboards, the clocks, and all the doors. Everything needed to be examined, defects and general condition written down just in case something went wrong later on in the year.
Schools were more of a balancing act than a lot of people realized. Public establishments like Churchland often had to perform a sort of crude triage, deciding what repairs or replacements could be made and still stay within the expected budget. The less important things that didn’t need immediate attention would be pushed back year after year, quality ever degrading, until there was finally no choice but to get new ones.
The papers he held right now would be a major influence upon those decisions. Nothing could be neglected. An accident would be his fault and no one else’s.
The banners and everything that were hung around the gym were looking pretty tattered, but they were only made of paper. He could probably enlist the art teacher to make new ones for him.
Moving across the main area of the gym, Simon went over to the water fountains which sat between the boys’ and girls’ locker rooms. Though they were clean, the fountains still looked filthy, stained from prior leaks and who knew what else. He wouldn’t have wanted to drink from there, though young boys usually had less standards. Girls, on the other hand, would rather dehydrate and die than put their faces anywhere near this.
Reaching out, Simon pushed the button on one of the fountains. Water dribbled out in a weak streak, forming a tiny arc that would practically require a kid to put their chin on the metal surface. He let the water run for a minute, then bent down himself and sipped at the water. Not warm, not cool, and not very tasty.
He did the same thing to the other fountain and got about the same result. Not encouraging. Unfortunately, also not very surprising.
There was a closed door to the right that wasn’t a locker room, and he supposed it was the storage area. He had no key, but he went over and tried the knob anyway.
Much to his surprise, the knob twisted in hand and the door opened without any difficulties at all. Simon fumbled around for the light inside the storage area. His fingers slid across a dusty, greasy wall before encountering a light switch.
The switch didn’t work, no matter how many times he flipped it back and forth.
Sighing, Simon crouched down and inspected the door knob in the filmy half-shadows of the darkened room. There was definitely a lock on it, which meant he either was missing a key, the key was missing, or the lock was just busted. No matter which was the answer to the dilemma, he would need to get it looked into.
The light bulb would come first, however. He’d need to replace that before he could inventory his new equipment.
Turning away from the storage, Simon checked out the boy’s locker room. It was about in the state he expected, which was to say that he felt gross just being inside it. Some heavy-duty cleaning was in order.
I’ll have to impart on the boys how important it is to keep this place clean.
As with the rest of the gym, there were a few things that definitely needed to be tended to. Some pipes were prone to leaking when he tested the sinks. The waterflow was unreliable, and the temperature variance was nil. Some of the lockers were dented and didn’t seem as if they would close or latch, and some of the changing stall doors were hardly hanging onto their hinges.
Backing out, Simon went back past the water fountains to go over to the girls’ changing room. He paused by the fountains, hairs prickling faintly on the back of his neck as if he was being watched.
He pushed the feeling away, however. This was an unfamiliar place. It would be a few weeks before he started to get comfortable here. Then, he would have to repeat the entire process once the school year actually started and there were children swarming all over everything he had tried so hard to fix.
Approaching the girls’ area, Simon rapped his knuckles briskly on the door. “Anyone in there?”
There was no answer.
He waited a moment longer, then gingerly pushed the door open and stuck his head through. “Hello? Anyone in here? I’m doing inspections.”
Again, no response.
That was as it should have been, and his shoulders relaxed. He didn’t really think there would be anyone in here, but he had it rammed into his head that he should always ensure he wasn’t going to walk in on some female in the middle of doing who-knew-what. That lesson came very early on in his career, from an older coach at his
very first job, and he stuck by it to this day.
“Excuse me, sir.”
Simon flinched and whirled around, clamping his hand over his heart. A lump rammed into his throat, choking off his breath. He’d been so focused on making sure that no one was in the room that he hadn’t heard someone approaching from behind. The high, falsetto voice was clearly fake, put on by a man, but he couldn’t stop himself from momentarily panicking anyway.
Nathan stood in front of him, grinning bashfully. “Sorry, Simon. If I had known I was going to scare you so much, I might not have done that.”
Since Nathan’s mere presence was intimidating anyway, especially since Simon knew what he did about the alpha, he didn’t comment on this. Instead, he just shrugged and tried to pretend that he hadn’t reacted as violently as he had. “Oh, I’m fine. Did you finish up your meeting with the superintendent?”
Nathan grimaced. “Unfortunately, not. Superintendent Michael likes to say a lot of the same things in a different way. We’re only halfway through. We just took a short break, and I decided to see how you were getting along. How are things?”
Based on that description of the superintendent, Simon might have guessed Nathan would have had a better relationship with the man. They both sounded as if they wanted the exact same sort of things out of life: rigorous structure, all details sorted out in the right way. Then again, perhaps that was the problem. When confronted with similar personalities, they might not like what they saw in each other.
“Did you know that the superintendent has an adopted son? An adopted shifter?”
Simon blinked, startled by this news. “I didn’t. Did he know when he adopted?”
“I don’t believe so. It’s a very quiet thing. I believe his son might be a wolf, though I’m not exactly certain. Things are apparently not great between them and not just because of that. It doesn’t help his mood.”
Simon was certain about that. Even not having any other information about Superintendent Michael or his adoptive wolf son, he felt equally sorry for both parties. He could relate to the two men, having been thrust into a situation he didn’t quite understand.
“Simon?”
“Sorry! I was just thinking.”
Nathan nodded. He reached out and placed one heavy hand on Simon’s shoulder, making hot tingles shoot through his body. Leaning in close, Nathan murmured, “I’ve given you a lot to think about lately.”
That was all it took to turn the sparks inside Simon into true flames. His groin tightened, his knees going weak. He nodded dumbly, his breath coming faster.
Satisfied, Nathan leaned away again. There was a noticeable tent at the front of his fashionable slacks. “How are things going?” he repeated.
“Well, it’s all about what I expected. I’m surprised about the actual state of the gymnasium. Has it had recent work done?”
“Just before last year, yes.”
“It shows. I could stand to see a few things taken care of, and I’ve got the whole checklist to go through…”
“I see.” Nathan nodded.
“By the way, where would I find the janitorial supply closet? The light bulb in the equipment room is burned out.”
“Burned out? Well, that’s no good. It’s all dark and quiet in there now.”
Simon frowned a little. That response seemed uncharacteristic, but the fires inside him were casting smoke across his thoughts, making it hard for him to understand why. “I guess so.”
“Did you know that this is an older school building? Well, the main part is older. There was a new wing added on, but this part of the school was made with solid concrete walls and thick layers of insulation. It’s very soundproof in here.”
“That’s interesting.”
Simon would have said more. He would have commented on the soundproofing making it possible for the other classrooms to continue uninterrupted by the various gym glasses throughout the day. The high school gyms were incredibly noisy in comparison. However, any words he had wanted to say were blown out of his mind when Nathan grabbed him by the wrist and thrust him towards the open supply closet door.
Everything made sense now, regarding what Nathan had been prattling on about.
The alpha shut the door behind them, then frowned as he tried to lock it. “Lock’s busted.”
“I already noticed.”
“Good. We can’t have just anyone wandering in here whenever they want.”
Like us?
“In the meantime, we’ll just have to be careful.” Nathan turned around and undid his belt, then the front of his slacks. Reaching inside his pants, he brought out his throbbing cock and held it in his hand.
Though it was dark in the little room, Simon had no problem seeing. Night vision skewed the colors, turning everything shades of silver and gray, but it didn’t matter. He didn’t need color to see that the tip of Nathan’s cock was glistening wet, or to understand what it was the alpha wanted.
His alpha, somehow.
The one who had control of his body, though he had never imagined that such a thing would ever be.
Simon dropped down to his knees in front of Nathan and placed his hand over the alpha’s. Nathan released his cock, letting Simon hold onto the firm, thick shaft on his own. The organ seemed to have a life of its own, twitching and pulsing against his fingers.
Simon closed his eyes, because now he didn’t even need his sight at all. He could navigate the world with touch, with a wolf’s superior sense of spatial awareness. He felt the heat of Nathan’s presence pressed close to him in the dark space, which smelled simultaneously of musk, damp, sex, and canine.
Slowly, Simon ran his curled hand up and down Nathan’s cock. The alpha groaned and rocked with the motion, grabbed at handfuls of Simon’s hair.
It was no wonder that Nathan had been able to reach so deep inside him the last time they had sex. His member was thick and long, perhaps the longest Simon had ever come across.
Leaning forward, Simon pressed his lips to the swollen head and kissed it with explorative sweetness. He flicked his tongue over the tip, tasting the dewy wetness clinging there. His lips parted further and the kiss deepened as he took in more of Nathan’s cock.
“Fuck yes,” Nathan growled. He nudged his hips forward, clearly trying to get himself even deeper. “More. Take more.”
The omega wolf inside Simon was only too willing to obey, the animal unleashed by the bidding of the alpha.
The world narrowed down to a dance of tongue and lips as Simon worshipped Nathan’s cock, sucking and kissing it from the base of the shaft to his tip. Nathan started to buck against his mouth, pulling on his hair and thrusting slightly.
Simon applied gentle pressure with his lips as far down as he could reach, then slowly pulled his way up towards the tip. As he reached the over-sensitive head, Nathan gasped and started to shake all over. His body shifted position, feet bracing against the ground as he started to orgasm in Simon’s mouth.
Simon took all that was given to him, with a guilty sort of greed that managed to surprise him even through the sexual fog in his brain. As Nathan started to relax down, he suddenly realized he also felt sated. Had he…
Yes, he had.
It was the power of the alpha, to give pleasure even without so much as a touch. Simon had orgasmed when Nathan had, as their minds had connected for a brief moment.
Nathan stepped back from Simon and tucked himself into his pants. He zipped up, then buckled his belt as if nothing at all had happened. “Well,” he said, a little briskly. “I believe my break is over. You’ll need a copy of the janitor’s key from Elaine, since the custodian isn’t in the building right now. She’ll tell you where the supply closet is.”
“Thank you,” Simon murmured.
Thank you for the information. Thank you for the sex.
Nathan flashed a smile at him and then opened the door to the storage area. He walked out into the brightness of the lit gymnasium, whistling slightly.
But I have
to say, I don’t really understand you. Or any of this. At all.
7
Early June became July, and just like that, the summer was half-over. Portsmouth was busiest this time of year, being a moderately attractive tourist spot because of the fact that a river coursed right by its outer edge. The North Atlantic Ocean was less than a half hour’s drive away, beaches studding the shore. Anyone wishing to save on expense would be more than happy enough to just make the drive each day.
Norfolk across the river tended to have more seasonal traffic, despite the fact that it was further from the ocean. Then again, Norfolk tended to have more of everything.
As calendars were flipped and the months changed, the mood across the entire city turned into something frantic. Students of all ages were increasingly aware that their time for fun was coming to an end. Parents perked up, realizing their relief was in sight. Everyone was eager for something: for the days to go faster, time to go slower, to squeeze out just an extra hour’s worth of relaxation and joy before responsibilities reasserted themselves.
Activity around the school picked up in a major way. Teachers returned to their place of business, dragging their feet as if the weight of their lesson plans were too much for them to handle on their own. Simon met a few of them and had already started to form opinions of who was okay and who he wouldn’t be able to stand. They, in return, seemed to be formulating similar ideas about him.
For the most part, he didn’t interact with them unless they deliberately came to see the new guy or he saw them in the office while stopping by for some of Elaine’s cookies. The “real” teachers were down in the wings, and he was here in the gym, inventorying, repairing, testing, and planning.
It’s probably very indicative of a school’s atmosphere, the fact that I’ve made friends with the band teacher and the office ladies, instead of anyone else.
Maybe there was something profound to be found in that thought, but Simon wasn’t a profound sort of guy. He was just happy not to be outright hated.
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