Date: Sat, 18 Oct 2003 06:57:47 EDT
From: Noburu@aol.com
Subject: IS THIS OUR YOUTH chapter 2

Disclaimer: This story is a work of pure fiction and is not intended to
imply that Hayden Christensen is gay.

If it is illegal for you to be reading this story in your city, state or
country, or you are offended by homosexual activity, then leave now.

This story time frame starts about March/April 2002, the time when Hayden
was in the west-end starring in "This is Our Youth". Remember, this is
fiction, nothing more.

Sorry this chapter took so long to write, very very busy.

Any constructive feed back will be much appreciated. Since I am relatively
new to writing, I have had to move from a first-person perspective in the
first chapter, to a third-person perspective for this one. I might change
perspectives quite a bit in future chapters, as I am still finding my
bearings.

IS THIS OUR YOUTH?

Chapter 2

After meeting up with Tom outside his work, Joe had decided that it would
be best to get something to eat. He preferred telling his stories over a
cup of coffee and a large sandwich. They went to their usual hang-out in
central London; Neil's Corner Sandwich Shop. Joe had done his
work-experience in the building opposite, four years ago. He would go to
Neil's on his lunch breaks. He loved the place so much that he kept going
to the place long after he had finished his work-experience. Even his
friends had become regulars, and his older brother Mike had gotten a job in
a shoe shop just down the road. Joe always made jokes that his brother had
gotten the job just so that he can go to Neil's. The place itself is really
small, with just a few small tables, but there was always one available for
Joe and his companions. Most people just prefer to order there food and
take it away with them, but Joe likes to dwell on things and linger for a
while.

Over five cups of coffee and three sandwiches between them, Joe had told
Tom about the marvels of the play (without giving away too much about the
plot) and the magnetic performances of its three stars, especially Hayden
Christensen. He told Tom about running back to try and get the autographs,
and about Hayden looking back in the car when it was driving away. Tom
thought he was nuts.

"I think your nuts!"

"Excuse me?" replied Joe, after just taking a bite out of his sandwich.

"You heard me. This fantasy...it's stupid."

"What? You don't believe me?" Joe was starting to go red.

"Of course I believe that you went back to get the autographs. Its just I
know you have an overactive imagination, and you do have a tendency to see
more than is really there."  "But he did look back at me!" Joe was getting
increasingly angry with Tom.

"He was probably looking back at his fans." This had brought Joe back to
earth; being reminded that there were indeed others for Hayden to
spot. "I'm sorry Joe, and I know that you don't want to hear this, but the
logic does make sense."

Joe and Tom were more like brothers than friends. What originally connected
them was the fact that they were both Southeast Asian, but that wasn't as
important to them now. There was never a sexual attraction between them,
simply because Tom was straight, and Joe felt that it was sort of
quasi-incestuous for him to feel that way for Tom. They had known each
other since they were eleven and so they knew everything about each other,
especially about what made them tick. Tom couldn't afford for Joe to break
down into one of his fantasies again. Last time that happened, Tom wasn't
able to help him at all. Joe had to climb out of it by himself, and even
then he hadn't fully recovered.

Joe said something under his breath. "I just wanted to forget."

"And so you should, but having daydreams is what brought you to that hole
of yours in the first place."

Absorbing thoughts and words is second nature to a dreamer. Dwelling on a
sound idea helps bring Joe back to the real world. He did this while
staring out of the window, noticing the people pass by, leaving Tom to
finish his Sandwich.

"Shit!" Joe had gone into shock. He picked up the menu from the side of the
table, and held it in front of him to hide his face.

"What?" asked Tom, with the corner of his mouth retaining a smudge of
mayonnaise. Joe signalled for Tom to wipe his mouth. Usually, Joe would
have made a big deal of Tom and his "smudges". He found them
hilarious. They were a regular occurrence, but now, Joe was too distracted
to even acknowledge their long-running joke.

"He just walked in," whispered Joe.

"Who's just walked in?" Tom was still confused as to what was going on.

"Hayden Christensen," replied Joe. As Tom just shook his head in
uncertainty, Joe added, "The guy from the play. You never pay attention."

There he was, just standing three feet away from them, ordering a chicken
salad sub and a tall latte to go. Joe loved his ruffled dirty blond locks,
and was jealous for the smile he was giving to Rachel, the barista. He
wanted Hayden to be smiling at him.

"What is he doing here?" wondered Tom.

Joe replied in disbelief. "What are you talking about? You know this place
makes the best sandwiches in London."

"Go talk to him."

"What? A few minutes ago you were telling me to stop daydreaming!"

"You know me...I'll say anything."

Anxiety was building up fast in Joe's gut. The reality of what Tom had
said, and not what he was now saying, was taking over. "No, we need to get
out of here...now!"

Not wanting to push the subject, Tom agreed. They both got up and
manoeuvred their way through the crowd of customers, trying to avoid coming
into Hayden's sight.

It was too late. Having paid for his sandwich, Hayden had turned around to
face the crowd and move towards the exit. As he looked forward, he saw two
men leave. One of them looked very familiar. The tanned Asian skin and the
deep brown eyes flashed in his mind. Hayden's heart started to race
abnormally. Something compelled him to move faster to the exit and call
out, though he didn't know why.

"Hey...Wait!"

Joe and Tom froze. Tom looked back, but Joe just stared straight ahead,
unsure whether or not to turn. Hayden walked towards them, and as he did
so, Tom took the initiative.

"Hi, I'm Tom. This is Joe." He pushed on Joe shoulder, forcing him to turn,
"Nice to meet you." Tom then offered his hand.

Hayden reciprocated. "Hi, I'm Hayden."

Joe remained silent. He had no idea what to do or say. He looked to Tom to
keep control of the situation, but Tom merely stated, "Right, I better get
going."

Tom turned to walk away, and so did Joe. Tom Stopped dead in his tracks,
making Joe bump into his back. He turned to face Joe, and told him to stay,
then walked off. Soon, he was out of view.

All this had seemed surreal to Hayden. All he wanted to do was talk to the
guy, but it was getting very difficult due to Joe's reluctance. He kept
questioning to himself why this man was resisting so much. Hayden couldn't
imagine that it was out of fear. He decided to ask a question; not the one
that was plaguing his mind, but a simpler one. One that he already knew the
answer to;

"You were sitting in the front row, right?"

"Excuse me?" Joe asked. He felt a bit raw from being temporarily abandoned
by his best friend. He was expecting Tom to give him the courage he
needed. Little did he realise that Tom had done his job.

"Today..." replied Hayden. "the mid-day matinee. That was you, right?"

"Yeah, I guess." Joe just didn't fully comprehend what Hayden was
saying. He just could not believe that an actor had hollered for his
attention in the middle of the street.

"Thanks." Hayden had given a response that even he wasn't expecting. Joe
was puzzled, wanting Hayden to explain further. "Usually I see girls in the
front rows, but they come for the eye candy of famous people. But when I
saw you watching me, I knew that you saw me as a real person; as an actor
doing a performance." Up until now, Hayden was avoiding eye contact with
Joe, and so he took the risk in order to make a connection. But when he
finally did, Joe just wore a blank expression on his boyish face. "You must
think I have a massive ego."

"Yeah," agreed Joe, a faint smile beginning to show, "but no more than my
own."

The tension had diffused so much that Hayden was feeling bold. He
desperately wanted to know much more about this person. They had only just
met five minutes ago, but those two hours in the theatre was enough for
Hayden to want more; to know all about this strength Joe gives to others,
and why he doesn't use it for himself.

"Do you want to go back in? Maybe we can talk for a while."

For once, there was no doubt Joe's mind, nor was there any apprehension in
his voice. "That would be nice."

The two of them made their way for the door, entered the cafe, and walked
through the crowd of customers to Joe's table.


TO BE CONTINUED