A fangirl's dream: A Josh Hutcherson Story

Chapter Three

Chapter Three-Lifelong Idol
As I watch Jennifer and Sam shoot a scene, Josh does a couple of things on his phone. No matter how interested in the scene being shot I'am, I can't help glancing at him. He rarely lifts his head from his phone and thousands of thoughts run through my head. Like what he's searching, who he might be texting, whose text he might be reading, what page he might be writing on . . .
He lifts his phone up to his ear and as the director calls cut to talk to Jennifer and Sam, I strain to hear what he's listening to. I know I shouldn't be so nosy, but it's in my nature to poke it where it doesn't belong. A grin spreads across his face and I tilt my head in curiosity, wondering what it is that's making him smile so brightly.
I discreetly scootch closer and listen harder.
"You like Les Mis then?" Josh asks, startling me. I jump in shock and look at him with wide eyes.
"What do you mean?" I ask. How could he possibly know that?
"Your rendition of 'On my Own,' is very beautiful," he grins. I open my mouth to ask what in the world he's talking about when he turns his phone screen round and I see that he's on my facebook page, listening to the video I did of myself singing 'On my Own,' from Les Miserables to get my friends off my back about it.
"Tha-that's my facebook page!" I exclaim. "That's classified as stalking!" I'm about the same height as him, so if I'm quick enough I could get his phone off him before he sees something I don't want him too. Hearing my singing is bad enough but what about the stuff about him? Thinking the same thing as me, Josh climbs onto a step ladder as I make a grab for his mobile, making himself taller than me and making the phone out of my reach.
"Oh, I'm the stalker?" he teases. "So this photo saying, 'Keep Calm and Marry Josh Hutcherson,' you have in your album isn't? Or this photo your friend tagged you in isn't?" I close my eyes in horror when I realize what photo he's talking about.
"I didn't ask her to tag me in that!" I protest as he shows me the exact photo I thought he was talking about.
My friend Ella never tires of teasing Mya and I for being hopelessly in love with Josh and is always messing with us by tagging us in photos and memes about him. So a couple of days ago she tagged me in this photo where it's a picture of Josh introducing himself before an interview and it says, 'Hey, I'm Josh Hutcherson.' Then below that there's a troll face saying, 'No, you're the sexiest being in the universe.' She was laughing her ass off at it.
"I wasn't any part of that photo!" I continue to defend myself. "She tagged me, I couldn't do anything about it! I didn't even think it was that good a photo as a matter of fact."
"So your comment: 'Oh my lord . . . no words can describe . . . *collapses* you guys just go on with life without me, I'm just gonna lie here for a while and stare,' was what? Your way of showing that you didn't think it was that good of a photo?" Josh grins, looking amused.
"As a matter of fact yes," I lie, folding my arms.
"And, what about this: 'Joshua Ryan Hutcherson backwards is nosrehctuh nayr auhsoj which means 'perfection' in the language I just made up'?"
"Shut up," I huff. Josh laughs.
"Aw, come on, I think it's cute," he says.
"Uh-huh," I mumble. "Sure. I'm surprised you haven't ran for the hills yet."
"You see, this is usually the part in the conversation when I'd say I've met worse but . . . well . . . I haven't."
"Oh joy, that makes everything so much better," I grumble sarcastically. I watch as Jennifer and Sam go back to their places and continue to listen to the director as he tells them where to go and what to do.
"Let's go for a walk," Josh says. "This is boring."
"Don't you have any scenes to do?" I ask, gesturing to his Peeta hair and plastic gun that's slung over his shoulder.
"Nah, not until later anyway." He holds his hand out, a clear outreach of friendship. I look at his hand momentarily before smiling to myself and taking it. His grip anchors me and the butterflies that have been flying around in the pit of my stomach retreat, leaving me feeling stated and slightly happy.
"It's pretty cool around here," I say, gesturing around the set as we walk.
"Pretty cool?" Josh asks, quirking an eyebrow at me.
"Okay, no words to explain how amazingly awesome this is," I say. "I get to walk around set, get autographs, meet the cast and my childhood idol! Not just childhood idol, whole life idol."
"Who? Jen? Ah, yeah, she's great," Josh grins, completely missing the point. "Inspires nearly everyone she meets." Does he really not see it? After looking at my facebook page and teasing me for all the stuff on there, he still doesn't get who my idol is? Sheesh.
"Well, yeah. She's great," I agree, nodding my head as we get further from the cast and crew. "But not who I was talking about . . ."
"Sam?" Josh asks. I shake my head. "Woody?" Shake. "Liam?" Shake. "Willow?" Shake. "Then who?"
I stare and raise my eyebrow at him. He tilts his head and frowns before his eyes widen. "Oh," he says.
"Yeah," I reply. I suddenly worry that he's going to get to freaked out and run away, leaving me here on my own. But he doesn't, his eyes just flick to the ground and he smiles. I could swear his cheeks turn slightly pink but that could be my imagination.
"Well, wow, I'm honoured," he says, looking up at me through his eyelashes. I flush and smile weakly. How can one look from him make my insides melt and my brain turn to mush?
I smile and sway my arm. "It made me want to become an actress myself but . . . you know . . . things get in the way," I say. "So I dedicated my life to the Hunger Games. It was just amazing luck that you were in it." I rub my arm sheepishly. "Since, you know, I've been a follower since Bridge To Terabithia."
"That long?" he asks in disbelief.
"Well, yeah," I answer. "But I've seen everything. I mean, I always believed that if I was as dedicated as you were about getting into the acting business then I'd make it some day. Except I've given up hope. I'm aiming for drama teacher now."
"You never know, maybe some day you'll get there."
I laugh. "Sure," I say. "Because there's so many opportunities around here."
"There probably is. You just need to know where to look."
We fall into silence. Our joined hands swing back and forth insync with our footsteps and I can't help noticing how this looks so relationship like. I entertain the idea momentarily. Walking with my boyfriend, Josh Hutcherson, on his break from filming, chatting about nonsense before stopping and kissing each other in plain daylight, not caring who sees . . .
"So . . . what's your favourite?"
"Huh?" I ask.
"Your favourite . . . movie?" Josh asks, smiling shyly.
I gape. "Don't make me choose!" I exclaim. "Uh . . . I guess it was Detention. It was legendary. The randomness pulled me in like a magnet and I watched it like five times in one day. Then it would have to be The kids are all right. Even if I was a tad too young to watch either. Just below the age though!"
"If you don't mind my asking, what age are you?" Josh asks.
"Seventeen," I sigh. I grin and joke, "Sorry, I'm a tad young for you." Josh smiles back and nods, but past that he looks slightly disappointed. I don't really know why though.
A couple of minutes later, I'm looking at myself in the mirror in the crew bathroom. I can't help grinning at my expression. I'm spending the day with Josh Hutcherson! How the heck did I get here? It's so strange how a day can turn for the best for once instead of the worst.
My mobile buzzes in my back pocket and I see that Rhiannon has sent me a link with EXPLAIN! written across the top of the message. I click on the blue link and do a double take at the photo. It's Josh and I, holding hands in the street from about twenty minutes ago. Josh is staring at the ground and I'm smiling at him. It looks undeniably intimate and I don't know how it got to look like that.
Below the photo is a capiton:
"Spotted barely half an hour ago, it seems that Hunger Games star Josh Hutcherson has a new girlfriend. Considering previous partners, Vanessa Hudgens and Shannon Wada, nobody can identify this girl as a fellow actor of any kind.
Is this the beginning of a new relationship or a light hearted fling intended for nothing?
Just Jared will keep you posted."
Just Jared! That guy is everywhere!
Girlfriend though? Girlfriend?! Are you kidding me?!
I need to find Josh. Now.