Page 4 of Everything's Better With You
“It helped me as well,” Joe said. “Dance Machinenever would have been possible without my experience here.”
Barry nodded. “Which is why we’ve asked you to come.” He shot a glance in Les’s direction, which made Joe frown.
“We?”
“We-e-e,” Les said, trying to hide his excitement, “asked you to come because we have a proposition for you.”
Joe crossed an ankle over his knee and looked between Les and Barry.
“A proposition? I thought I was coming for Spring Fling.”
Les glanced at Barry and he leaned forward, lacing his fingers in front of him on the desk.
“You know I was recently made president here at Greenvale, Mr. Judd—”
“Joe, please.”
Barry nodded and continued. “I have a mandate from the board. They want to see some significant changes. Our enrollment has been declining the past five years, we’re losing qualified students and staff to the larger schools, but we firmly believe that the education we provideis top rate and a special experience for our students. We want to continue to offer unique programs as well as quality extracurricular activities. Which is where you come in.”
Joe’s eyebrows rose as he glanced between Les and Barry, but he didn’t speak.
Les had been standing next to Barry’s desk, but he took a seat in the chair next to Joe and turned it to face him. He didn’t want to seem like they were on the attack. What they were about to propose could send Joe running for the hills. No one knew that possibility more than Les. It was a huge departure from Joe’s current lifestyle, and Les knew from their brief encounter fifteen years ago that Joe was destined for greatness and a big life. But he had exactly what Greenvale needed, and wasn’t that advantageous for Les?
“What my brother is so eloquently trying to say is that we need your special skill set. We want to revamp the athletic program at Greenvale, make it possible to recruit the top athletes in our various sports programs, and put Greenvale College back on the winning track, financially as well as with our alumni. Participation and donations have been dwindling, attendance at our events have petered out. We need to make this an exciting place to be again.”
Joe chuckled. “I don’t mean to offend, but exciting is not exactly a word I would have ever used to describe Greenvale. Safe? Yes. Nurturing? Absolutely. Fun? Sometimes. But not exciting.”
This was going to be a hard sell. Les had known that, but he was determined. There was no better option for Greenvale, and no better way to make his plan work.
“All right, maybe I could have chosen a different word. But I’m going to whip this football program into shape and get the team into the playoffs year one. Year two and beyond, I plan to clinch the conference title at the very least. But it’s not just about football. In the past, Greenvale had champion soccer, volleyball, and softball teams…and of course, the Yellowjackets Cheer program. We want to bring that winning spirit back. And how could we even possibly consider rebuilding our championship sports programs without talking to you?”
Joe shrugged. “Sounds great. I’m glad you are including the cheerleaders in your plans.”
Barry cleared his throat. “Leslie has agreed to end his run at the network as an NFL talking head to coach the Jackets Football program and to help me recruit the best of the best coaches for the rest of the teams.”
Joe shifted in his chair, swapping one long leg for the other. “I’m happy to hear it.”
Les leaned closer to Joe. “Actually, Joe, we asked you here because we want you to join our coaching staff as well.”
Joe blinked. “I’m sorry, what? Want me for what? I’m not a coach.”
“You’ve been an instructor and a choreographer. You’ve coached contestants on your show. You’re a motivator.” Les wasn’t sure how much to divulge of his borderline unhealthy fixation on the man, which included having all twelve seasons ofDance Machinesaved on his DVR. “You’re exactly what we need.”
No, that definitely didn’t sound like you were hitting on him.
“To be completely transparent,” Barry said, cutting in before Les made a total fool out of himself. He was always so damn awkward when it came to discussing, well, anything other than football. “Your accomplishments and reputation will give the program the credibility it’s been lacking in recent years. Recruitment is going to be key to the success of this endeavor and I’ll be honest and say that having Joe Judd join the faculty at Greenvale will go a long way in easing the board’s concerns about this gamble.”
Joe sat for a long time without speaking. An uncomfortably long time. Then he folded his arms over his chest and licked his lips. “I’m…flattered?” He let out a burst of nervous laughter. “Never in a million years would I have ever imagined my name would ease anyone’s concerns about anything. I mean, what exactly are we talking about?”
Barry held out his hands. “Carte blanche. Oversee the cheer program, foster its growth and improvement. There is significant interest in offering a dance program as part of our Fine Arts department, which we could see you spearheading. You certainly have the experience. Year one would be a building year, and classes would have to be approved by the board, of course.”
From what Les knew about Joe’s past—what he’d gleaned from watching countless interviews and reading anything in print he couldget his hands on—Joe had been a ballet dancer as a child, had switched over to more contemporary disciplines when he was a teenager, and by the time he hit college he was primarily a hip-hop dancer. Then, after two years of attending workshops and auditions, he was chosen forDance Machine’s debut season. The reality show put dancers through a grueling competition where they were challenged to develop their skills in multiple disciplines. Joe soared, coming in second behind a bubbly young woman who was a social media darling. Joe’s darker disposition turned some of the audience off…and then there were those in the show’s demographics who would never vote for an openly queer dancer no matter how much he danced circles around the competition. He took it all in stride and used the attention to launch his career. Nabbing Joe Judd to coach the cheer program and potentially found a dance program at Greenvale would be a huge win for Barry…and it would please Les to no end. He just didn’t know if it was possible to tie Joe Judd to one place for any length of time.
Leslie certainly hadn’t been able to tempt him with previous attempts.
“I don’t know what to say. Thank you, obviously. I’m flattered you would even think of me for such an opportunity,” Joe said.
Les was impressed at the lengths Joe was going to come across professionally. Les knew from experience that Joe had a sharp temper and snarky sense of humor.
