"Yuck. Quit. Quit right now," Rico ordered him.
"Wow, Thayer makes a good first impression," Rob said.
"Narrow face, thin lips, no chin or charm to speak of," Yu listed. "What's not to like?"
"You're so shallow," Raquel told him.
"Says the girl who wanted to mace him," Stan reminded her.
"Let's forget about him. We need to find a good spot to watch the parade," Sam reminded them. He was always the sensible one.
As they staked out a good corner, all the kids got hoisted up for a better view. Rob leaned down to talk to Danny. "You want to be up high too?" he asked.
Seeing all the other kids sitting on grown-ups' shoulders, Danny nodded. "Me too," he said.
Rob put him up on his shoulders, and Danny immediately hugged his head. "Don't cover my eyes or I won't be able to see the parade," Rob said with a laugh. Danny loosened his hold only a little.
"Don't worry, Rob won't let you fall," Julian told him and smiled at Rob.
Not long after that, the parade started. At the head of it was a float with a giant, colorful turkey followed by a marching band. That started the crowds cheering and waving. Then it was floats piled with arrangements of giant fall fruits and vegetables and some other foods too. A group of older kids waved giant cardboard leaves in different colors and did dance moves in synchronized formations. They were followed by a procession of elderly ladies in elaborate hats, and then a float with a giant chipmunk or maybe squirrel munching on an acorn. That got the crowd cheering loudly again.
In the midst of it all, Julian felt a sharp tug on his arm and then saw Thayer grinning at him, beckoning him. Rather than make a scene, Julian decided to step away. That's how Thayer always got him. Rob might not hesitate to get in his face, but Julian felt bound to keep things low key and outwardly civilized.
"I guess I just keep surprising you today," Thayer said smugly. "When I heard that the old man was paying you a visit, I thought I might pay you a little visit too. Aren't you glad to see me?"
"You really shouldn't be here. It's not your kind of place," Julian told him coldly.
"You don't tell me what to do. You still work under me," Thayer said eyeing him lewdly and giving his biceps a squeeze. He tried to pull Julian closer.
Julian jerked away from him, and in the same second, a punch landed Thayer flat on the ground.
Looking to his right, Julian saw Rob pull back his arm and shake out his hand as he stood over Thayer, glaring down at him. Stunned, Julian cursed under his breath. With a quick look around, he confirmed that only a few people saw that. He got down next to Thayer. Rob tried to pull him away from him, but Julian shook him off.
With Rob looming over him protectively, Julian leaned closer to warn Thayer, "You say a word about this, and I'll bury you under so many charges..."
Thayer didn't even let him finish his threat. "That was assault. Your boy toy is going to jail."
"What's this now?" Mr. Upton said suddenly appearing behind them with Stella at his side.
"That thug assaulted me," Thayer said pointing an accusing finger at Rob who stood by impassively, like he was fully prepared to be arrested and it didn't faze him.
Then Stella spoke up. "Not really. They got into a scuffle, that's all. Julian's boyfriend just got the better of him," Stella claimed while hanging on Mr. Upton's arm like she planned to make that her permanent position.
"Boys will be boys," Mr. Upton told her with a wink. Julian was pretty sure he was only going along with her lie.
Seeing how Mr. Upton was looking at her, Thayer knew better than to contradict Stella. Done playing the victim, he got up and brushed himself off.
"I'm sure we can settle this amicably. Can't we, Pete, my boy?" Mr. Upton said to him. On the surface, he was kindly, but there was a hard edge to his words, and Thayer didn't dare to defy him.
"Of course. This was all a misunderstanding. My friendly visit was misconstrued," Thayer said and stared daggers at both Rob and Julian.
Julian realized he was holding his breath. Did they just get very lucky? Looking over at Rob, Julian saw that he was still coldly furious under a mask of calm.
"Let's go join the others," Julian said to him and took his arm.
Rob came along, but first he glared at Thayer and nodded his thanks to Stella. She and Mr. Upton stayed behind to see Thayer off.
As they walked away, Julian let his hand slide down Rob's arm so he could take his hand.
