The Shell Must Break 1/6 Adam/Kris
Kris sighed as he heard the commotion in the hallway. He put the last book back in its place on the shelf and pushed the returns cart back behind the counter. He didn't go look to see what the noise was about, he already knew. It happened at this time every day, as well as just before lunch, and at the end of the day. And pretty much any other time the high school's new music teacher passed by the library. He had yet to even meet the man but he already disliked him. Kris had worked hard to keep a low profile and Adam Lambert's presence at the school was already attracting more attention than he liked. He really knew nothing about him other than he was supposed to be some sort of local celebrity but Kris did know that the last thing he needed was some local 'rock god' attracting attention to the school.
The warning bell rang and the noise outside the library started to die down as students ran off toward their classes. A few girls who usually spent their study hall hour in the library pushed their way through the doors still giggling and talking as they found a table in the back of the room. Kris glanced over at them, and they waved and did their best to stifle their giggling. Kris knew he should go over and tell the girls the noise needed to stop completely, but they were the only students there so he let it go, they weren't being that noisy. He had other more important things to spend time on than worrying about two students making noise in the otherwise empty library, so he focused on getting the cleaning done before the bell so he could leave as quickly as possible. He really couldn't afford to be late again. As he dusted and checked for misfiled books on the shelves nearest the girls it also gave him a chance to learn a little more about Mr. Lambert.
"Should we go see him this weekend?" One of the girls asked, leaning closer to her friend and casting a furtive glance at Kris.
"My mom is never going to let me go to a club," the other whispered back. "How would we even get in?"
"Crush is all ages. I don't see why she wouldn't let you go."
"I can ask but should we? I mean, he's a teacher he may not want students to see him there. It could be weird."
"He wouldn't have mentioned where he was playing if he really didn't want anyone to go."
"I guess. It would be fun to see him not being a teacher."
The final bell rang, interrupting any more conversation and the girls started shoving books in their bags. "Bye, Mr. Allen!" The girls said, waving as they headed to the exit. Kris waved back and headed back to his small office to grab his keys so he could lock the doors.
He pulled the office door closed and locked it. The main library was locked at night but he always felt better keeping his office locked as well. He made one final sweep of the library to make sure a student didn't come in while he was in the office. As he headed toward the main entrance the doors swung open and Kris groaned. He hoped whoever it was could find the book they needed quickly because if he didn't leave in the next ten minutes he'd be late again.
"Can I help you find…" Kris' words trailed off when he realized it wasn't a student. "Mr. Lambert, I was just getting ready to lock up. Was there something you needed?"
"I was thinking of assigning the advanced music class a paper on music theory," he answered. Kris wasn't sure if Adam's smile was because he was just ignoring the irritation in Kris' voice or if he was actually that oblivious to it. "I just wanted to be sure the library had enough references for them to do the research."
"I'm sure we do." Kris said curtly. He really needed to leave and didn't have the time to deal with this now.
"Would you mind if I take a look around, see what you have? It'll make it easier for me to form the assignment if I know what they have to work with."
Kris sighed and looked at his watch. He was going to be late. This time it wasn't even his fault, it would be because the new rock star music teacher had to wait until the last possible minute to do his research. God forbid he'd have come in during his free period.
"If you have somewhere to be it's fine," Adam said. "I can come back tomorrow or something."
"I really do have to be somewhere very soon, Mr. Lambert," Kris said. "Umm, I'm here early every morning though if that would work. I can be here by seven."
"Adam," he offered, smile returning and holding out his hand. "I'm not really a morning person, but I can manage it for one day, Mr. Allen."
Kris returned the hand shake and said, "I'm Kris. I'm afraid mornings are usually better for me if you need to use the library outside of school hours."
"I'll remember that," Adam said, holding the door open and gesturing Kris through. "I won't hold you up anymore. See you tomorrow."
Kris nodded and offered a slight wave as Adam was immediately surrounded by the students still lingering in the halls.
** ** **
"Go ahead and look for whatever you need," Kris said to Adam as he pushed the library doors open. "Just let me know if you can't find something."
Kris went into the small office to put his things away. It had been a hectic morning and he'd barely made it here in time to meet Adam. He should've known better than to offer to meet him so early, it was cutting his time really close and that never went well. The small coffee pot in the corner beeped quietly. He pulled down a mug from the shelf above the machine and filled it. He took a sip as he walked over to the door to watch Adam.
He stood and watched for several moments before realizing that Adam didn't seem to have any idea where to start. Kris had paperwork that really needed to be done and he should just go back to his desk and pretend he hadn't seen the lost expression on Adam's face. That was what he should do, it didn't stop him at all from pulling another mug from the shelf and filling it with coffee before heading back out to find Adam browsing aimlessly through the history section.
"You don't have a clue what you're looking for, do you?" Kris asked, holding out the extra mug to Adam.
"Not really, no," he sheepishly admitted. "I'm a singer, not a teacher. I just really needed the money and Megan convinced the school board to give me a shot."
"So why bother with a writing assignment at all?"
"I don't think the students are taking me seriously," Adam admitted. "They know who I am and just assume I'm going to be a pushover or whatever."
Kris nodded. He had no doubt this was true. He'd heard very little about Adam Lambert that wasn't about his looks and his voice. The students probably weren't overly concerned about him being a tough teacher. "Okay, well what are they studying?"
"You don't have to do this," Adam offered. "Just point me in the direction of the right books and I can find something on my own. I'm sure you have work to do."
"I have a few minutes," Kris said as he pulled out a chair at the closest table.
Adam pulled sat in the chair across from him and began explaining the lesson plan for both the last few weeks and the upcoming weeks. Kris listened and commented occasionally, and the discussion eventually evolved into the two of them discussing their own musical influences. They both looked up in surprise when the warning bell rang.
"It's been an hour already?" Adam asked.
Kris glanced at the clock and nodded. "That could be a good writing assignment though."
"The sudden disappearance of time?" Adam asked raising a brow, "That doesn't really sound like a musical writing assignment."
"No. Musical influences."
"Good idea," Adam said smiling. "And I don't have time to look at available material. Any chance you can come in early tomorrow?"
Kris hesitated. Coming in early was really a huge hassle but it was his job to make sure the teachers had access to the library if they needed it. "Yeah, no problem."
"See you tomorrow, then." Adam said, waving as he pushed his way past the library doors and into the hallway.
** ** **
"Oh my God," Adam said as he pulled the library door closed behind him. He leaned against the door, letting the messenger bag on his shoulder drop to the floor, and added, "Hide me."
Kris glanced up from the paperwork he had been reading, "Hide you from what?"
"Teenage girls. They're everywhere," Adam said. "Does this door lock?"
"It is a high school, so no escaping them, sorry. And yes it does, but it has to be open during school hours."
"Do you mind if I have lunch in here?" Adam asked holding up a lunch bag, "It's my free hour and I usually end up losing half of it to students stopping me before I make it to the teacher's lounge."
"I was just going to have lunch as well," Kris said, walking toward his office, "We can eat back here."
"Thanks," Adam said following Kris into the small office and dropping his bag next to the chair across from the desk. "I just really needed a few minutes of quiet."
Kris nodded, he could definitely understand needing a few minutes without a pressure and as much as he hated to admit it, he liked Adam. He was still worried about all the attention he was drawing but he felt an immediate connection to him this morning. "You should be safe in here, most students avoid the library."
They ate their lunches and picked up their discussion about music from that morning. They talked about their own musical interests as well as possibilities for the advanced music class' paper. Adam scribbled down Kris' suggestions for the paper on a notebook he'd fished out of his bag. Once again Kris was so caught up in the discussion that he was startled by the bell signaling the end of the period.
Adam glanced up at the clock, "Once again we managed to spend an hour talking and not actually get out there to look at any of the books."
"Tomorrow we'll look for books first, and then talk," Kris suggested. "Actually I'll see if I can pull any books that might be of help this afternoon."
"You just want more time to talk to me," Adam said, smiling.
"No, that's not-"Kris stammered, eyes wide. "I didn't mean…"
"Relax," Adam said, holding a hand up. "I was kidding."
Kris relaxed and gave him an embarrassed smile, "I'll see you in the morning, then?"
** ** **
"Daddy, when are we having dinner?"
Kris looked up from the computer at his son, then back at the time. He'd completely lost track of time going through the forms to order new material for the library. He and Adam had spent the morning going over the library's books on various musicians and music theory. Kris had even helped him form the assignment. Adam had shown up again at lunch time, and they'd spent another hour just talking. Adam told Kris about his family and his music. Kris felt bad that he'd been as vague as possible to any questions Adam had asked of him, but he'd worked so hard at keeping his private life private that he just couldn’t tell Adam much of anything.
"Sorry, lost track of time," Kris said closing his laptop. "Should we just order pizza?"
"Sure," David agreed quickly. "Can I play video games until it gets here?"
"Homework done?" Kris asked reaching for his phone.
"It's Friday."
"Homework first," Kris said, "Then you'll have all weekend to play games."
"But it's only one worksheet," David argued.
"Great, then it shouldn't take you long at all," Kris responded, as he waited for someone to answer the phone.
He watched David storm back into his room and shut the door. He didn't need to follow him to know he was on his bed pouting, but would eventually get the worksheet done so he could play video games. There are days he wonders how his parents survived raising both him and Daniel. Nights like this he wishes he could ask his mother how she dealt with pouty eight year olds who didn't want to do their homework. He can't though, it's too risky to call her, so he manages as much as he can. He quickly places the pizza order before dropping his phone back onto the desk and going to check on David.
He knocked softly before pushing the door open a crack. "David?"
"What?" He was laying his back, arms crossed over his chest.
"Do you want help with the worksheet?" Kris asked walking into the room and looking down at his son on the bed.
"No," David sighed. "It's easy, I can do it alone."
"If it's that easy you could already be out there playing your game, if you hadn't wasted all this time pouting."
David sat up and looked at Kris, "I don't know why I can't do it on Sunday like everyone else."
"I'm sure other kids have to do it on Friday too," Kris said. They had this argument every week since David starting receiving homework. "And we've discussed it already, you need to learn good study habits and waiting until the last minute is not one of them. Now, if you finish it before dinner we can play Mario Kart before bed."
"Fine," David said, going over to the small desk in the corner of his room and pulling a folder from his bag as he sat down. "I'll do it now."
Kris went back to the living room to finish up the last of his book order. He couldn't very well put off his own 'homework' after insisting David do his right away. His mind still kept wandering back to the last few days and getting to know Adam. His fear of Adam's celebrity, even if it was only local, being a danger to him and David was starting to make way for the desire to finally have someone to talk to. An adult. He loved David but occasionally talking to someone over eight years old was necessary.
He was also curious about Adam's show, he'd heard talk around the school since the term began about either how wonderful or how shocking the shows were and he was curious to see for himself, but he didn't know if that was even possible. The girls in the library had said the other day that Adam was playing at Crush however even an all ages club didn't extend to eight year olds. Nor did he want to expose his son to the show if it was anything like what some of the people who labeled it as shocking had described. He quickly looked up the club and checked the performance time. He'd be able to go and still back fairly early, and it wasn't like he had to work on Sunday. Making a decision he grabbed his phone and sent a text before he could change his mind.
you busy tomorrow night? need a sitter.
Allison responded almost immediately. Kris hadn't been expecting that having assumed she'd be out with her friends tonight.
sure. what time?
7 ok?
i'll be there
Kris set his phone down, just as there was a knock on the door. "David, pizza's here!" he yelled.
David came into the kitchen just as Kris was pulling out the paper plates. "I finished my worksheet, do you want to check it?" He asked holding up a sheet of paper.
Kris put a slice of pizza on David's plate and two on his own and carried them over to the table. "Set it down, I'll look at while we eat." After grabbing bottles of water for each them Kris took his seat and scanned the homework assignment as he ate the first slice of pizza. "It all looks right to me."
"You'll play Mario Kart, now?"
"As soon as we finish dinner," Kris agreed. "Allison is going to come over and watch you tomorrow night, is that okay?"
"Yeah," David said slowly. "Where are you going?"
Kris sighed. He'd left David with Allison before but never at night. It was usually on days he couldn't get to latchkey before closing or David had a day off from school but the high school didn't. He really never went out at night. "I was going to go see a friend, but if you want me to I can stay home."
"Like a date?"
"No," Kris answered. "Not a date. One of the teachers I work with is singing somewhere and I'd like to go see him."
"Can I stay up late with Allison?" David asked.
"As long as you're good and she doesn't mind, yes."
David stood up and grabbed both his empty plate and Kris' and took them to the trash. Kris followed behind and grabbed the pizza box and stuck it in the refrigerator.
"Go see your friend," David agreed.
"You're sure?"
"Yep. I like Allison."
"Okay then," Kris said, smiling, "Ready to lose at Mario Kart?"
"No way," David argued already heading into the living room. "You're going to lose."
Part 2