Post-Show Relaxation [James&Matthew]

Every night he had a show going, and every night it ended the same. The large, velvety curtains closed and the crowd cheered and applauded. The cast came out, bowed, and the audience applauded once again. Then the ‘main cast’ came up one by one, and (once again) the audience applauded. It didn’t matter who was sitting in the cold, hard, plastic chairs of the audience. The lighting was too dark for that angle for the actors to see anyways; but every night, there would be applause from the darker side of the room. It would all be in order, and it would start as a single clap. Just one clap, which usually turned to a thunderous chorus each and every time, showing true appreciation to the cast that had put on the show.

Every night after the show though, James would be sitting center stage in the audience section, munching on whatever snacks he could get from the concession stand. One night it would be a bag of popcorn and a drink, the next it could be a box of candy; tonight it was a candy bar. With his legs kicked up and crossed as he stretched it across to the seat beside him. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but he did not care. The Australian continued to munch on the crunchy bar. It was how he relaxed after a show; how he congratulated himself after a successful show. He didn’t get a major role in this one, heavens no, but he did play the minor role well enough to get himself somewhat noticed. Did he work hard to get noticed and not show up the star? Yes; it was tough to do so, but he managed to do it.

Now he was just going to sit and relax after the show, rather than go home. He much preferred to stay in the dim room of the auditorium anyways. It was much more soothing than home. No family to bother him at all. He didn’t need to think about how his little brother could show him up, and he disliked the idea of spending time with his family in general. Rather than walking the four blocks home, he waited around in the theatre until his father went on a scavenger hunt for him… That, or the brunette would just wait until he got bored (or tired) and go home himself.

However, for now he would just sprawl across the chairs and finish the candy bar. If anything, he could always strike up a conversation to those who worked post show. There always had to be that one person who had to go around and clean up post show. If there weren’t then why were the seats and floor so clean of rubbish and other vile excrement that human children often spewed and left out for they had small bladders and no self-control? He was fairly sure the floors did not clean themselves, and if they did not do it themselves, then who would? Of course it would have to be someone’s job to do so in the show business. So all he had to do was sit and wait for company to come.

Even if they did not come, he still had a delicious candy bar to finish before going home.

Matthew never actually sat and applauded the performances that went on in the theatre; he had never sat through an entire one before. The closest he would get is when he happened to be passing by with his buckets, ears straining themselves as he never opened the closed doors. He, most likely, could not afford a ticket to watch such a performance, making hearing something of a privilege. The idea of being part of the audience did not fail to strike Matthew, at least, not at the beginning. But, after a while, he would hear the same voices before and after show. The same obnoxious laughter. It was difficult not to wonder what actors were truly like; it was not as though Matthew would work in the same room as them. Possibly, it was a good thing or a bad thing that he did not work closely with the actors; he would not know what to say if there was a conversation somehow thrown in.

He would not enter the theatre until after the show was over, meaning Matthew had to hurry with time depending. With the last show, he was able to take his good old time. There was simply the matter of Matthew actually wanting to be hanging around in a creepy old place and have to peel gum off the bottom of a seat somewhere. Having the time was good for him, making sure that his job was done properly and neatly. Janitor was nothing like being president or a head actor, but it was something of a responsibility after all. Could he really be proud to walk around in a worn looking coverall and an equally stupid looking hat? Could he really have no shame to say that the only thing he pushed around was a garbage can? Well, there was no point in swimming around in Self-Pity Land so Matthew was not about to allow it control him. Some day he would most certainly be in a better place and situation.

For the time being, Matthew had to make do with stepping around in grey boots, pulling along a trash can. The prize for the night was getting home before one the next morning before he had to do it all over again. Matthew rubbed at his eye with a free hand, blinking over his glasses. He faltered upon entering the theatre, almost being tripped by the trash can as one of its wheels got caught with his shoe lace. He struggled for a moment, trying to pull his foot away. Instead of letting himself free as Matthew had planned, the trash can bumped into him and caused him to fall to the floor. The trash can decided to follow with him, tumbling down and beginning to slide down the aisle in attempt to take Matthew with it. He flailed, shaking his foot wildly. The latest attempt proved to be useful, boot slipping off his foot and going the rest of the journey with the trash can. Matthew jumped up to his feet, hurrying following it and mentally scolding himself.

The trash can had completed its ride down in front of the stage, Matthew catching up to it. He pushed hair out of his eyes before he grabbed his boot, forcing it back on his foot. He made sure to tie the laces rather tightly as well as double knotting before he stood. His left foot began to grow numb as he stood up, Matthew wobbling as he got the trash can to stand upright with him. With his glasses practically hanging off his nose, Matthew turned away from the trash can to take a look to see if anything was dramatically crying for his attention. Pushing the glasses back up the bridge of his nose made things clearer, leaving him to a slight surprise. He was expecting a seat that had been stained with soda or began to fall apart—not a person. Absentmindedly, Matthew lightly fiddled with his fingers. He was not entirely sure what to do. He had no idea why the odd person was simply sitting around in the theatre. But Matthew knew he could not allow him to stay, so, something had to be, well, done.

He shook his head out of the petty habit, forcing his arms to his sides. Matthew was not about to act like a stupid girl.

“Um…excuse me…? Sir?”

James was preoccupied with his own thoughts to know what (or who) had entered the room. He had been expecting for company after all. Though, rather than turning to look at the other, he paused from his chewing and waited. What did he wait for exactly? There could have been a number of things to wait for. For one, he could have waited to find out who the person was. Even if James was sure that it was a custodian, there was the off chance of it being a security. In any case, he would then start a casual conversation and see where it went from there. If it were a custodian, then he would not have to worry, but if it were a security, then he would have to dance around a little to try and stay at the theatre for a little while longer than… Well longer than how much he overstayed.

The sound of someone falling, the rolling of some large object and the sound of panic amused him, but he did his best to conceal that. He did not even pay attention towards the direction of the noise. Instead, he looked at the empty candy wrapper with feigned interest. He was dying to look over to see what the spectacle was, though he refrained himself from. He did not want to get into any conversations where he would eventually be ‘politely escorted out’ by anyone, and he was fairly sure if he took note of anyone and looked them in the eye, it was bound to happen. Nope, he was going to try and stay in the theatre for as long as he could, even if looking at the wrapper was fairly dull. But that was what acting was for. He needed to fit the role of someone who was intrigued by the object… That should not be too hard.

To look at an object and think that it is foreign? Well that was simple enough. Think about how to create a brand new character, and make it so they have never seen the object before; simple, right? That was exactly what James was doing at the moment. It was nothing out of the ordinary for him, as much as he hated to admit it. To be the foolish and childish one out of the lot, that was him. Of course he knew that there were others that were equally, or even more childish than he was, but he was the one that is pretending to be fascinated by something that most people would see as garbage.

“This is new ta ya. Ya never saw this before. Nothin’ else ta look or keep an eye on…” He kept repeating it to himself, though when he heard the other’s voice, he looked over casually. He did his best to not to smile or giggle when he saw the sight before his eyes. The bloke before him seemed pathetic enough as it was, so why go make things even worse? He was not an arse; or at least he knew he wasn’t a large arse. Especially when it involved the pathetic little people involved in the show, such as custodians.

“Somethin’ the matter?” He asked in his best local accent as he looked at the man carefully up and down; studying him. Well, there was not much to study. The other did not look out of place for a janitor. Heck, if anything, James would be the one out of place considering the setting and the time. Maybe it was the small frame (or at least it was small compared to James) and how meek the other sounded, but whatever it was, it topped off James’s final thought for this guy: and to him he was not much of a threat.

Despite him not being a threat, the Australian shifted himself so that his feet met the floor and not on the seat beside him. The wrapper that was in his hand now lay pathetically on the floor, forgotten by the brunette already. If he had remembered about it, he would have known to keep it and throw it out somewhere properly, but for now, he was distracted. The single track mind had its course set, and it was too late to turn back to remember its preceding course.

Blindly, Matthew reached out to grab onto an edge of the garbage can for unnecessary support. He was not sure what to say right away. The stranger did not show any sign of moving nor did he appear surprised by Matthew’s appearance. It was either the stranger was a hobo or he worked in the theatre. Either way, the brunet was not meant to stay. If he was a hobo, maybe he would give him a packet of travel tissues and some change; if he was something else, Matthew would not be sure what to do. Maybe he loved his job so much that he slept there and Matthew had never seen him until that night. Either way, it would be on his mind all night unless he said something.

“Not particularly, I don’t think, no. . .” Matthew replied, slowly. “But, um, I’m sorry. . . You can’t stay here. I have to clean and you’re sort of in the way. The show is over, sir. . .”

But, in all seriousness, could a hobo afford a ticket to a show? It was not West End or Broadway, but, surely . . .! No one would really want to stay there all night. At times, the theatre was a tad creepy looking to Matthew so he knew he would at least not want to spend the night. Or leave garbage on the floor. His eyes followed the wrapper that fell from the other man’s hand and he instantly brought himself to lean over to pick it up. Cleanliness was not an obsession—hell, why did he even do that in the first place? Matthew frowned to himself before he dropped the wrapper in the garbage can. He pulled a broom out of the nearly empty garbage can, holding close.

“If you need an escort out of the theatre, I would not mind assisting you.”

The sight before him was still amusing as ever. He could not help but to continue and stare at the other for a moment. It was truly amusing how awkward the other was acting. It was as if he didn’t know who he was, and he was still trying to figure out the mystery. Well that made James proud of himself. He was able to confuse someone. It usually took a lot for him to confuse someone, but he managed to, which was a good thing. Or at least it was a good thing for him. All he did was just lounge around the audience seats. Who would have thought that he would be capable of doing something such as confuse someone when he was just relaxing. Wouldn’t his father be proud of him now?

“Ya don’t say?” He asked when he heard the other had stated the obvious about the show being over. “I just thought everybody left for a really long intermission and they never came back, even the cast!” As soon as he said that, he knew that it had sounded like he was using heavy sarcasm. He did not mean it in a rude manner or a mean manner. He just could not help but to let that slip out, and he didn’t have a chance to fix his tone of voice. Think before ya talk… Think before ya talk! He scolded himself though his facial expression was still the same as he looked at the other.

If anything his smile broadened as he saw how the other had leaned down to pick up the trash. Such a good janitor; James made a mental note to thank the man about his work. He was pretty sure that the man did not do it because he loved to clean, but it was his job. But then again, to each his own, and the brunette was not one to judge. He was not even there to assume anything. Just relax, and waste time. The theatre was a calming space for him. It was so quiet that James could hear himself think (even though he did not think as often as one should). Well, at least he could hear his ‘imaginary’ friend, Steve, speak.

The boy scratched the stuffed bear on his shoulder’s head, and he turned to look at the other when he spoke again. Think… Ya gotta think now. He took a breath and turned his eyes to look at the blonde, giving him a large smile. “I think I know the way out. Thank you,” He nodded, though despite saying that he did not budge from his spot. He continued to sit and look at the other, looking as cheery as ever. He may have finished his candy bar, but he was fairly comfortable in the chair, and he was not ready to leave for home yet. He still needed to relax more than eating that little bar of candy.

Oh no. Matthew was not the total moron to have fallen for that sort of thing. The brunet must have been an actor; it was becoming clear in the way he was acting and how he was not getting the hell out of the theatre. One of Matthew’s bigger fears was beginning to come to life—actors were assholes! He believed that such a trait only persisted in the true assholes that started out as assholes from day one. But, no. Matthew had no idea what to say to him. How was he going to convince a guy who made more money than him to get out so he can earn his buck? It was not an ordinary thing for Matthew to be pushy, because, well, he wasn’t. The situation was proving to be a slight devastation and saying ‘please’ probably would not get everything to go away and have everyone be so happy that they were shitting rainbows.

“Oh, okay. . . Um, have a goodnight.”

Those were the words that one would use to end a conversation and walk away. That was what Matthew was hoping would happen. Maybe he was not giving the other enough credit and maybe he was a truly nice guy, but he really was not meant to be here. It was then he slowly turned away, looking down at the garbage can. He felt that if he gave the brunet a few seconds, he would be making the moves to leave and then they could all move on with their lives so they could do it all over again tomorrow. Matthew began to count in his mind, not quite sure where he would stop. Ten was probably his best bet.

James was still content in his seat, though he did study the blonde as he made his movements. Crossing one leg over the other, he leaned deeper into the seat. The brunette knew fairly well that he couldn’t just leave. What was the fun in that if he up and left when the other had just asked him to? No fun whatsoever. So instead he sat and studied the other.

It didn’t take a genius to see that the other was just waiting for him to move. Or at least that was what he took it as, but then again; James wasn’t the sharpest crayon in the box. He wasn’t the brightest one either. “Don’t tell me ya’re leavin’ a’ready.” James yawned. It was more for emphasis than being tired. After having sugar in him, how CAN he be tired? Or at least not be energetic. He patted the seat next to him and grinned at the other. “’Ave a seat an’ relax~. The show’s gonna begin soon right?” He stated, a large grin still plastered on his face. He was still going on from his comment from earlier, though this time his voice wasn’t filled with the harsh sarcasm it had held before. It was just a smaller dosage.

Despite his voice though, his body language was still very open and relaxed. James was leaned back in his chair, arms rested on the armrest. The Australian’s legs were still crossed, and his chin was held high, in a haughty manner. “Not like the boss is gonna know ya sat down for a bit~” The teen said, trying to convince the older man to sit. As extra emphasis, he patted the seat next to his once before letting his arm lay on the armrest once again.