There's 'loving' something and then there's loving something. The latter shows through so clearly, as if the joy it brings simply oozes from one's pores. James saw that love in the way Eli's eyes brightened, in the way the corners of his mouth turned up whenever he spoke of it, in the very way he moved when he danced (even if it was erotic dancing!).

It's something that made him fall for the boy all over again ever time he was lucky enough to see it. Yes, he felt lucky. Privileged, even, to have this young man's heart. There's a passion in him which James, over his many years with hundreds, maybe even thousands of students, has rarely seen.

And when he has? It's always in the artists, the musicians, the dancers. Sometimes in the writers, too.

"As am I."

After a beat, a more thoughtful look came over his face. It seemed like the idea he just had might come across as a 'too soon' sort of proposition, but...

"You know, the loft upstairs has never been finished. It's just storing some things right now. We could make it a useable space for you to practice if you'd be interested in that."