The tale of being famous ON HOLD (Jamie Campbell Bower)

Chapter 11

The weeks went by like a speeding train and I was so busy with rehearsing, learning my text, getting singing lessons and trying on costumes that I didn't even realize how far we already had gotten with the musical. The theatre completely filled my life. But I didn't mind. I actually liked it, liked the routine of it and that I got to spend my days with people I liked. I loved my job.
The only thing I was a little sad about was that I couldn't see my friends from the last play that often. I really tried to pop by the theatres they played in during my lunch break and we ocassionally met at Benny's. We somehow all had kept the habit of going to this little café that we had discovered last summer. But I still missed them. Emily had gotten herself a new part in a Shakespeare adoption that was shown in the Globe Theatre which made me quite proud, to be honest. But with her working on the other side of the Thames we barely ever saw each other. Max still was one of the few who had his part in "The Lie in our Glamour" and the critics loved him to bits. To be honest, I didn't know where Aaron worked at the moment, I hadn't talked to him all summer.
But today I was actually thrilled to finish work for once. Em and I were going to meet up today. I was to pick her up at the second hand shop she helped in voluntarily during her free time and then we wanted to go dress-shopping because she was invited to a wedding (of her boyfriend's aunt, I think) and didn't have anything to wear.
Gus had another singing lesson because he had difficulties with his one solo so I left the building alone on this bright summer day. It was so warm I hadn't even needed to take a jacket in the morning.
Still, I wasn't a person for open shoes so it were my Vans that stepped out on the warm pavement. I took out my mobile and planted the ear buds where they belonged, scrolling through my playlists. In the end, Swim Deep made it because they were the perfect no-worries-summer-band.
It almost was a relief to step into the coolness of Covent Garden Station, just in time to get the train to Camden. It was nothing more than a 10 minute ride but I had hit rush hour so it wasn't exactly a nice trip. The air-conditioning didn't help much.
I was happy when I could leave the underground even though I knew I would have to face the heat outside. The station hall was surprisingly empty, all of the people seemed to crowd in the corner in front of a news stand. Whatever interesting thing that was there, I was glad it gave me the opportunity to make my way to the exit without getting hit in the stomach by a hundred bags and/or elbows.
I had just slit my Oyster card over the magnetig field on one of the swinging doors and made half of my way across the hall when my phone buzzed.
It was a text from Jamie. "get me out of here. look left." There was no kisses behind it which could only mean that it was urgent. Very urgent. I swear, the boy could be facing the apocalypse and knowing he would only have seconds to live, he would still add an 'x' to his text.
So I spun around on my heel, looking to my left as quickly as possible. There was the crowd. And in the middle of it I could see a peek of blonde messy hair and an arm waving helplessly in no certain direction. I could hardly supress my laughter. That boy was really something.
Now, I needed a plan, quickly. Because I was not going to push through all of those people and drag him out. No fucking chance in hell. Besides, it would never work anyway because even IF I could make it to him they would never let us leave just like that. And I wasn't in for being followed around half London.
I knew I had to distract them, but how? How? It had to be something more interesting than Jamie. And then it hit me. The only think bigger than the Londoner's need for celebrities was their need to help. This was about to get mega-embarassing but what didn't I do for my best friend? And besides, I'd done worse things on stage. Which I'm not going to evaluate now.
I put my bag down and made sure my phone wasn't in my trouser anymore so it wouldn't break or anything. And then I went full-on into faking an epileptic attack.
Have you ever rolled around a station floor, making strange sounds, waiting for all the people there to notice you so your famous best friend can hurry away? No? Well, you haven't had real fun then. Because I had been right. Not even seconds after I had started faking the attack all people of the crowd had moved over and tried now to calm me down.
There were hands all over me and if I had actually been an epileptic they would have done the worst job ever in helping me. The hands were still all over me and when it got all too much I decided that Jamie had had enough time to run away and hide, so I stopped, smiled, got up and took my bag from the floor. The people around me looked very confused. VERY confused.
"Bu- but m'am! Don't you... we... don't..." an elderly man stuttered.
"Weeeell... I tried to get out of the embarassing situation. "I guess I'm okay now."
And with that I literally ran out of the station. Panting, I rounded the next corner to get away from the still confused yet partly angry people that left the station now, too.
As soon as I had turned left I slammed into something hard. As I looked up I saw a pair of laughing blue eyes.
Jamie grabbed my hand and pulled me after him, around a few more corners until we were in a small alley where no people were watching us. There, we broke into loud laughter. Jamie laughed so hard he actually had to lean against a brick wall to not fall onto the pavement. He held his stomach, screeching "Ouch!" between his fits of laughter which made me chuckle even more.
When we finally were able to talk nearly normal again I said "You could at least thank me for getting you out."
Jamie chuckled once again. "Thank you." he said. "You have no idea how glad I was to see you walk by."
He then proceeded to tell me how he had just casually been on his way home because the inner city had been closed off for some film they were shooting there at the minent so he couldn't take the Jag. I guess just a pair of Ray Ban sunglasses hadn't made that great of a disguise because a group of girls had recognized him and soon every single person in the station wanted to have an autograph and/or photo.
He usually was up for stuff like that and took the time to make every single fan happy but he had a somewhat important appointment with Dan today. I didn't know for what exactly because he made a huge secred about it (Every time I had asked him all he had said was "I don't want anyone to know as long as it's not sure."), just that it was REALLY important.
"So where do you have to go now?" I asked. "Because I won't save you a second time, babe."
"Fastest way to my flat." Jamie said. And after a few seconds he added "Did you just call me babe?"
I grinned. "I might have. Come on." I slid my arm through his. "I'll walk with you for a little. Protect you from the bad paparazzi." I knew I still had a little time until Em finished with her shift. Originally, I'd wanted to go to a café and have my obligatory afternoon-latte but walking with Jamie was just as nice.
When we had made about half of the way his phone buzzed. He looked at the screen and his eyebrows furrowed. Clearly, this text wasn't something he had wanted to recieve. Maybe it was Lily again. I had thought he was over her by now, to be honest.
"What is it?" I asked.
"They cancelled the appointment..." Jamie said without even looking up, no particular emotion in his voice.
"Oh..." I didn't know what else to say because I knew how important it had been to him but I didn't exactly know WHAT it was about. Still, I felt like he could need a hug.
He held me for a few seconds, his face snuggled in my hair. Then he pulled away. "It's okay. I guess we can just... ask for another one." He forced a smile onto his face.
On the one hand I was kind of mad that he absolutely didn't want to tell me what the oroblem was, on the other hand he was allowed to keep secrets and maybe it was a surprise or something like that.
Whatever it was, he definitely neededsome cheer-up right now.
"You don't need to go home now, do you?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No. Not really. Why?" he asked curiously.
"Because." I said, "Me and Em need your help. You remember Em, right?"
"Of course." Jamie said, following me as I had already started walking on. "She was the small one with the short hair and great arse." he smirked. I slapped his arm.
"Keep your shit together, mr womanizer. She's taken. And so are you!"
"Kind of...!" he said, raising his finger like a teacher.
"Whatever." I laughed and slapped his arm slightly.
Twenty minutes later we had arrived at the shop Em worked in. It was in an empty little alley, so a perfect place for Jamie not to get papped again. I dragged him by his arm as he hesitated on the front porch.
"What is it?" I asked, once again.
"I don't know, I just feel so... out of place here. Like, this is your and Em's little world. I'm invading something I don't fit into." He suddenly sounded very sad.
"What shit are you talking about?! You are certainly not invading! Elsewise I wouldn't have brought you here! And now come on, we have a friend to meet." And with that I simply shoved him into the small shop, if he wanted to or not.
It was dusty and dark inside and smelled of... well, charity shop. Behind the counter sat an older lady with a friendly look on her face while she was reading what looked like the newest issue of Homes&Gardens. I couldn't see Em anywhere so I approached her.
"Excuse me? Do you know where Emily is?" I asked.
The woman looked up. "Oh, she must be somewhere in the back where the dresses are, dear."
"Thank you." I smiled. She was cute and reminded me of my own grandmother before she had died. Just as Jamie and me turned to walk further into the back of the shop the lady spoke again.
"Dear? Would you mind borrowing your handsome friend over there to me for a second? I have a few heavy boxes to put into the storage room and I could need a little help with that."
"Oh of course!" Jamie and me said at the same time.
"Oh that's great!" the woman smiled. "Just come here, love." She waved her hand for Jamie to follow her as I proceeded to walk further into the back of the store. The hose was surprisingly long, it seemed to make up for what it lacked in width with its length. If you would make me and Jamie stand next to each other and stretch out our arms we would both be touching a wall and the other's hand.
I dived under a rack filled with mohair jumpers (I liked them, maybe I would buy one) and dodged a few faded jeans lying on a old wooden table.
Finally, I had made it to the dresses section savely. And there stood Emily, ironing a red 90s mini-dress.
"Hey girl!" I chirped, hugging her from behind. She literally jumped in my arms.
"My God! Scar! You scared the shit out of me!" I laughed a little. Not that I had planned on doing so, noooo. She turned around to hug me properly.
"Long time no talk." she said.
"Ugh, I know. Work has been so busy lately, I'm sorry."
"Yeah, you should be." she laughed sarcastically.
"Is it okay that I brought Jamie along?" I asked.
Her eyes got big. Even bigger than they already were, though I didn't even know that this was possible till then. "Wait... THAT Jamie?! The one you're acting with at the moment?!"
"Yes, Em. You already met him once, remember?"
"Yeah, I know, but..." she grinned. "No, of course it's no problem. He's hot, so he's allowed to stay." I slapped her arm.
"You have a boyfriend!"
"I know, but I'm allowed to look." she grinned. "Where is he, anyways?"
"Who? Your boyfriend? How should I know?"
"No. Jamie."
"Oh he got damned to help carrying stuff into the storage room." I quickly explained.
"Uh-huh. Old Miss Lancester again, always getting herself the pretty ones." Em said and we both broke out into loud laughter. I just had this picture of a naked Jamie sprawled out over boxes in the storage room and the old lady... ew, no. Noooo. I shouldn't have thought that.
"What's so funny?" a voice behind us demanded to know.
"Nothing." Em and I said in unison as we whirled around. Jamie raised one eyebrow questioningly, his hands on his hips like a proper american cheerleader-bully. "Really?" he asked.
"Yup." I shrugged and giggled once more.