Strictly Business - 5. Teacher & Student

“Mmmm, good morning to you too!” Sam said, holding a cup of hot coffee and enjoying its aroma. He couldn’t wait for this coffee break to come since he was so sleepy and needed his fix for the morning. Other coworkers were coming and going, but Sam was just sitting at a table in the cafeteria, silently enjoying his wake-up drink.

Jared came and set next to him. Ever since their last conversation, Sam was more comfortable around him, although he still had mixed feelings. He realized Jared was actually a pretty nice guy, but he was also aware that things between them wouldn't develop beyond friendship.

“Hey, what’s up?” Jared said casually. He didn’t want to push it with Sam (at least for now). Although, they made a deal that if Sam ever changed his mind and wanted to take their relationship to the next level, he’d tell him openly.

Sam preferred not to discuss love and guys, not even with Clara. However, Jared could somehow make him open up and not feel embarrassed about it. Sam wasn’t sure whether he liked that about him or not. However, he was sure Jared could be a good investigator for the police.

“Can I ask you something personal?” Jared started, glancing at Sam. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.”

“Sure, you can ask,” Sam responded, not sure where this was going.

“The guy that you mentioned… Is it by any chance that Brian guy?”

“Wow, is it that obvious?” Sam was surprised that Jared figured it out and didn’t want to lie to him. He didn’t see the point in lying.

“Well, yeah. I’ve seen how you look at him.”

Sam thought he probably looked desperate. “Oh, great, probably the entire company knows. Maybe even Brian knows,” he thought and started blushing. “Damn, I thought I was hiding it better,” he said.

“Well, that’s what you get when you want to ‘hide’.”

“I know… But I’m not like you, I can’t just go up to him and ask him out,” Sam replied, lowering his voice in the middle of the sentence, realizing that there were people around them.

“Yeah, you don’t want anyone to hear out great conspiracy!” Jared couldn’t help but joke with him. Sam laughed along.

“OK, changing the subject or I’m leaving you here to talk about work with the guys from accounting!”

“OK, OK,” Jared conceded, but kept the smirk on his face.

--

A few days after returning from his vacation, Brian still hasn’t made himself do anything about Sam. He knew that he needed to stop thinking that every guy is the same as his ex, but it was hard after you’ve been with someone for that long. He wanted to get to know Sam more than anything, but also didn’t want to get hurt again.

Still, his sister’s words were on his mind. He just needed to find a way… He’ll probably come up with something when he stops thinking about it so much.

“Fuck invisibility or super strength. If I could read people’s minds, that would be the best superpower,” he thought randomly.

As he was trying to juggle his briefcase, cell phone and a cup of coffee in his hands, and open his office door at the same time, he saw Sam walking by.

“Brian, hey. Need a hand?” Sam approached him and smiled.

“Oh, hey. Could you please just open…” Brian pointed at the door with his head and Sam quickly opened it.

“There you go. Here, let me hold that for you,” Sam said as he took his briefcase.

Brian entered the office and started putting down the stuff he was carrying on his desk. Sam was just standing in the doorway, not sure if he was supposed to come in or not. He started to look around. “Even his office exudes masculinity,” he thought. Brian was a real man in every sense of the word. Sam thought how he would just melt if Brian took him in his strong arms.

“Gracias,” Brian replied, smiling and nodding.

“Oh, you speak Spanish?” Sam was mildly surprised.

“Yeah, quite well actually. My sister lives in Madrid and I often go to visit her.”

“That’s cool, I’ve liked it ever since I started listening to some Spanish music when I was a kid.”

“Well, if you ever want some private lessons, I’m your guy,” Brian said spontaneously. “Wait, did I just…” he froze for a moment.

“Really? That’d be cool,” Sam was trying to sound casual. “You sure?”

“Yeah, why not. You don’t think I’d be a good teacher?” Brian teased Sam, causing him to chuckle.

“Well, I don’t know. I guess I’ll find out,” Sam smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

“How does Thursday after work sound?”

“Sounds good. So, do you have your own classroom?” Sam asked jokingly and Brian laughed. “He has such a great smile and sexy laugh,” Sam thought.

“No, but I think my living room will do the trick.”

“OK, so we’re going to his place. I hope he lives alone,” Sam thought.

“I live alone, so we won’t be interrupted... Unless Bo decides to join us, but since he doesn’t even speak English, I doubt it. Well, he understands ‘sit’ and ‘fetch’, but that’s about it,” Brian said.

“Hmm, I thought babies usually learn ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad’ first,” Sam teased. He loved making Brian smile. Sam was also a dog person, so this was a big plus in his book (not that Brian needed any more plusses with him). “Cool, can’t wait to meet your dog!” he added.

Both men were obviously in a good mood as Sam turned to leave Brian’s office.

“OK, see ya Thursday then!” he waved and closed the door behind him. As he was walking to his office, he couldn’t believe what just happened. He will finally be alone with Brian, in his apartment! It sounded too good to be true.

Brian was having similar thoughts. He was excited he would finally spend some time alone with Sam, even though it’s not going to be a proper date. He thought about how it all happened quickly and easily, and was sort of mad at himself for not inviting Sam over sooner.

“Better late than ever, I guess,” he thought.

--

The next two days went by at a snail’s pace for both Sam and Brian. They could hardly wait for Thursday to come.

Sam was thinking about whether he should bring anything. After all, he would be going to Brian’s home for the first time and didn’t want to seem rude. Maybe a bottle of wine, a potted plant? He had no clue anymore… He wanted to text Brian and ask him, but realized he didn’t have his number. He’ll have to ask him for it when he sees him next time.

At least he picked the outfit he was going to wear that day. He wanted to look extra good. After some thinking, he chose a cream patterned short-sleeved shirt, navy blue pants, paired with his new navy blue plimsolls. He didn’t want to be overdressed, but knowing how gorgeous Brian looked, he had to make an effort.

Brian took his role of a future teacher seriously and actually spent a lot of time thinking about what their first lesson should be like. He prepared some teaching material and came up with a loose plan of all the stuff he wanted to cover with Sam. Even though they hadn’t discussed it yet, he was hoping that the lessons would be a long-term thing. Of course, the first class would just be some basic introduction, he didn’t want to overwhelm his student right from the start. Besides, he didn’t want to spend his entire time with Sam teaching him Spanish. He also wanted to get to know him better. He wanted for Sam to stop thinking of him just as a colleague, and start seeing him as a friend and maybe something more.

Wednesday afternoon was spent in making sure the apartment was meticulously clean. Brian also bought wine and some food he was going to prepare the next day, just in case they got hungry and thirsty. He was really good in the kitchen and loved to cook whenever he had time. Sadly, that was not as often as he would have liked, due to his work obligations.

“Ok, Bo, tomorrow we have a special guest,” he said, sitting on the couch and putting his Labrador next to him. “So you have to be extra nice!” The dog looked him in the eyes as if he understood exactly what was going on. A second later, he tilted his head, which was a sign for Brian to scratch his neck. Of course, the owner obliged right away, and the dog just closed his eyes and enjoyed the cuddle.

“It’s so easy with dogs…” Brian thought and smiled.

At 5:30 the next day, the doorbell rang. Bo barked and Brian quickly got up and went to open it. He was so excited for this – their first encounter in a more relaxed setting. No Stein & Burns, no offices, no coworkers. Just the two of them. He opened the door and saw Sam standing there, more handsome than ever, or so it seemed to him.

“Hey!” Sam smiled.

“Hey, come on in!” Brian greeted him and gave him a hug. Sam thought he would faint. He tried to get as much of Brian’s masculine scent in without being obvious and creepy. As the two of them entered the apartment, Bo quickly came to see the newcomer. He barked a few times at Sam, as if to say hi.

“Hey there, big guy!” Sam smiled at him and scratched his head with one hand. “I almost forgot, here you go,” he handed Brian the bag he was holding.

“Oh, you didn’t have to bring anything.”

“Just some doggie cookies for Bo, I hope he likes them,” Sam replied. He couldn’t take his eyes off of Brian. He looked even better in his casual clothes, even more manly. His strong, firm chest and biceps looked so inviting under his tight T-shirt, and his hairy forearms were in full display. “How do I get through this day without jumping on him?” Sam thought. Of course, he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face even if he tried. There was just something about Brian, the way he made him feel. He was always so nice and friendly. Sam wondered if he ever met anyone like that before.

“Would you like something to drink?” Brian asked. He was in a good mood and it showed. This would be his first chance to get to know Sam and to allow Sam to get to know him. He wanted him to have a good time and to make him want to come back.

“Just some water, thanks,” Sam replied. Brian poured them a glass of water each, and quickly explained to Bo that he had to go to the other room and be good. No problem – in just a few seconds, the two men were all alone in the room, sitting next to each other on the couch. Still, neither of them dared to move closer.

After some random chit chat, Brian thought it’d be best to “get down to business” and start the first lesson. He explained his plan to Sam, what they were going to cover and how they were going to start. Sam agreed, and Brian started explaining some basic things about the Spanish language. After that, they moved on to things such as common expressions, greetings, numbers and days of the week. One hour flew by and the guys decided it was enough for the first day.

“You hungry? I may or may not have prepared something for dinner,” Brian smiled at Sam.

“Oh, you didn’t have to,” Sam laughed, but then added “Although, I am starving!”

“Great! Why don’t we go to the dining room,” Brian suggested, pointing Sam to the dining table. As the guest sat down, Brian served grilled chicken with tomatoes, as well as salmon with Greek salad.

“OK, everything looks delicious, I’m gonna have to try a bit of everything,” Sam said. He didn’t want to offend Brian by refusing food, but he was also hungry and genuinely impressed by the meal. Also, he realized by now that this “lesson” has pretty much turned into a date, although neither of them really acknowledged it.

“Be my guest,” Brian grinned seeing Sam enjoying himself.

“This is delicious,” Sam said, his mouth half-full. “You’re a great cook. All I can do is bake cookies and cakes… So, if you ever wanna get fat, you can come to my place.”

“Well I never say no to dessert,” Brian smiled. “I’d love to try your specialties some time, I’m sure they’re great!”

Every minute, Sam enjoyed himself more and more. He was having a great time and started to wish it could be like that every day. He was finally getting to know Brian and was not disappointed for a second. Not only was he a mature man who knew what he wanted, but he spent the entire evening making sure Sam was comfortable and pleased. Sam couldn’t help but notice that.

Of course, the feeling was mutual. As the evening drew to a close, Brian kept thinking about when he would see Sam again. Being with him made him feel like he could do anything, like everything was going to be fine no matter what problems he might have. After they finished dinner and Sam got up to go, Brian didn’t hesitate to ask him:

“So, when should we schedule the next lesson?”

“Tonight,” Sam wanted to say. Instead, he just smiled and said: “How about Saturday, around 3?”

“It’s a date,” Brian nodded and smiled back.

After a goodbye hug, Sam went home feeling like he was floating ten feet above the ground. As he was smiling and thinking about that whole evening, a thought crossed his mind: “I should win an Oscar for tonight.” He chuckled and kept on walking.

Let’s see if Brian teaches Sam anything As always, thanks so much to everyone who is reading this!