Date: Fri, 10 Aug 2007 06:55:47 +0000 From: Chris Salter Subject: How I Met Jake: Chapter 4 Y'all should know the drill by now. Don't read this if two men offends, it is probited by law in your country/principality or if you are under the legal age, go to youtube or encyclopediadramatica. Disclaimer: I am by no means affialiated with Jake Gyllenhaal, nor do I wish to imply the sexual orientation or the private life of Jake. This work is fiction and is not to be taken seriously. This applies with perpetuity throughout the universe. Chapter 4: It was quite a hike to the cinema. About 20 minutes later they finally arrived at their destination. Not much was said during the walk, but Jake could see Chris had something on his mind. Walking through the doors the pair were greeted by a welcoming cold breeze from the air-conditioning, as well a giant board detailing the various screening times for the films being shown at the complex. Jake pulled his hands out of his pockets and folded his arms, looking at the board. "What did you want to see?" He asked. Chris quickly glanced at the board and couldn't see much that peaked his interest. He then saw that The Simpson's Movie would be starting in 20 minutes, "How about Simpsons Movie? Though you've probably already seen it." "No no, I haven't seen it yet." Jake laughed, "Okay great, we'll see that then." He continued as he began to make his way over towards the ticketing booth. Before Chris could object, Jake had pulled out his wallet and purchased two tickets. "I could have paid for myself," Chris grumbled as he accepted the ticket from Jake. Jake smiled as he pointed over to the snack counter. Chris shook his head and they began to make their way into the empty theatre. "How about, I pay for the tickets, you pay for dinner then?" "Yeah I suppose that sounds fair..." Chris responded. They then made their way down the dark corridor. Once inside Jake lead the way up to the back of the seating rows and sat down in the far right corner. Chris followed by sitting down next to him and leaning his left foot on the seatback in front of him. The duo sat for a few moments in a period of awkward silence as a few people entered the theatre and took their seats. Finally Jake spoke up, "Is everything okay Chris? You've been a little distant since that phone call." Chris leaned forward so he could turn to face Jake while he spoke, "Sorry Jake, I wasn't trying to be rude, I just had a sudden realization that everything with Danny was completely over. It just got to me suddenly. It's just suddenly dawned on me that 3 years have fizzled away into nothing." He then crossed his arms and held them close to his body, "Sorry, bit of a dippy-downer I know.." Jake smiled innocently at Chris' attempt to lighten the move. He then slowly moved his left hand and put it on Chris' right shoulder, "I understand," he said softly, he also noticed Chris jump slightly at his touch. "It does take a long time, but you take it one day at a time." He thought for a moment as to whether continue with his train of thought, eventually deciding to, "This may sound harsh but you just got the best thing you can get in a breakup..." Chris leaned back into his seat again before enquiring, "And that is?" Jake then continued with his insight, "You got closure. I wish I had something like that with Kirsten, we were off and on for a few months, then the media would make up storylines that we were back together and splitting up for months after the fact." Jake noticed the lights beginning to dim, so he lowered his voice before continuing, "The fact is, you're now single and you don't really have any baggage holding you back from future relationships...or friendships." Chris laughed softly at Jakes statement, "Yeah, now I'm free and back on the meat market I guess." A preview came on the screen that was fairly loud, so he decided to wait till the preview had finished before continuing, "Hey thanks for listening. I really appreciate it." "Anytime," Jake whispered, "It's the least I could do after you helped me get out of that place yesterday without being spotted." He looked over and smiled warmly at Chris, who in turn smiled back. They shared an uncomfortable lock of eyes for a short period before their attentions were drawn towards the screen. Throughout the movie, Chris continued thinking about the awkward stare and wondering what it could mean. He was pretty sure Jake was straight, but that moment made Chris begin to wonder about that fact. After the movie had finished Jake remained seated while the other patrons made their way out of the theatre, once the last one had left he decided to stand up, followed by Chris. "So, where was this pizza place?" Jake asked, placing his hands back into his pockets. The duo began to head down the steps of the theatre as Chris began speaking, "Well it's down the end of my street, but the parking is usually terrible down that end. If you maybe want to follow me, there should be some parking outside my apartment, then we could just walk down." "That sounds good to me," Jake replied with a sincere smile on his face. They made their way back towards the parking lot, arriving at Jake's SUV first. "Okay, I'm not sure how this is going to work, I might lose you on the way, so maybe you should give me your address." "Sure, you got a pen and paper in there somewhere?" Chris asked. Jake searched through the centre console for a few moments before finding and old fast food receipt and a black pen. He then jumped out of the seat and then handed Chris the writing implements. Chris quickly noted down his address and handed the paper back to Jake. "I'd better give you my cell number, just to make sure." "Sure, that would be great, if you don't mind a lowly commoner having your number." Chris joked. Jake had already begun writing the number down when Chris thought it would be easier and safer to have it inputted directly into his phone. "Hey Jake, just put it in here." He said as he handed his cell phone to Jake. Jake laughed at the sexual innuendo in Chris' innocent statement. He quickly entered his number into the phone and handed it back to Chris. "I don't mind giving you my number, and I don't think you're a lowly commoner...you're great!" Jake replied with a serious tone. "That's good to know," Chris replied, flashing Jake a cheesy wink. "If you want to go home or something first that's fine, just come up to my apartment." Jake thought for a moment, he was beginning to smell from the heat of the day. He finally decided he'd go home and then head over to Chris' in about an hour. They said their goodbyes and Jake headed back home. As Chris headed back to his car he pulled his phone out of his pocket once more and began to sort through the various numbers stored on its memory chip. He kept looking until he stumbled across the number that had just been placed in there. It read 'Jake G. :)' followed by not only his cell phone number, but also what appeared to be his landline. Chris smiled at the notion of Jake trusting him with these phone numbers after only meeting him the night before. He placed the phone back in his pocket and continued towards his car. Several minutes later he reached his car, jumped in and started the engine. He then accelerated onto the street and headed back to his apartment. It had been about 20 minutes since Jake had returned from his day out with Chris. Jake quickly ran up to his ensuite to freshen up before heading back out to meet Chris. He turned the taps on and allowed the water to heat up to sufficient levels. Once the stream of water was hot enough he grabbed a towel from the towel-rack and hung it over the shower door. "Wow, I really stink." Jake muttered to himself and he peeled his olive T-shirt off allowing his slightly hairy chest to be in fresh air for the first time all day. He threw it into the laundry basket quickly followed by his socks, jeans and boxers. Completely naked now he jumped into the shower and began to clean the sweat off his toned body. Not wanting to be late he quickly lathered his body, rinsed and shampooed his hair before rinsing off and turning the shower completely off. The whole process took no more than 5 minutes. He then toweled himself dry, followed by wrapping the towel around his waist as he moved into his wardrobe. Jake began another search to find something to wear in a plethora of clothes he had stacked in neat piles. He finally decided on a lime green polo shirt and another pair of dark blue jeans. Quickly slipping them on he then headed back into the bathroom to complete his grooming process. He slowly lift the sleeve of his polo shirt to see how the injury on his arm was working out. Luckily for him he didn't bruise often, and when he did, they tended to disappear quickly. The bruise didn't appear to be as severe as he thought it would, so he rolled down the sleeve and finished getting ready. A short time later he bounced back down the stairs, picked up the keys for his gold Lexus GS460, and headed outside. He jumped in the car, started the engine and was about to put the car into reverse when he suddenly remembered Chris' address was still in the pocket of his jeans inside. After dashing inside to collect the piece of paper he finally set off towards Chris' apartment. It took him about 15 minutes to get to Hawthorne Street and by the time he found a parking spot it was quickly approaching 6:30pm. He jumped out of the car and was immediately greeted by the intense heat emanating from the sidewalk. Pulling the piece of paper out of his pocket, he began slowly walking down the street trying to spot the right number, eventually finding it. Jake walked up the steps of the building and searched through the short list of numbers on the intercom system. Finding the correct number, he pressed the intercom button and awaited a response. "Who is it?" the voice on the other end queried after a short delay. Jake smiled as he recognized the voice. "Hey, it's me, Jake." "Okay, just come up, I've just some things I need to do," Chris responded followed shortly by a buzzing sound of the gate unlocking. Jake quickly reached for the gate and pushed it open. He slowly walked along a short path until he came to a set of concrete stairs. He knew Chris' apartment was on the third floor so he slowly began to climb the stairs until he reached the third level. Once at the third floor landing he came across two doors, 3A and 3B. He walked towards the door labeled 3A and knocked on the door. "Just a minute!" Came a muffled tone from the other side of the black and frosted glass door. A few seconds later, the door unlocked and opened. "Hey!" Jake said as he admired Chris' athletic build in a black polo shirt dark blue jeans and barefoot. Jake noticed Chris' dark brown hair was lacking any kind of product. Obviously, Jake had caught Chris freshly out of the shower. Chris stood aside and motioned for Jake to enter the apartment. "I got caught in traffic, so I'm running a bit late." Chris apologized as he lead Jake from the main entrance to the lounge area. "I've just got to do my weave and feed the cat, then we can get going. Just make yourself comfortable.." "No rush, can't let your weave being out of place.." Jake joked. He watched Chris dash into what appeared to be the bedroom. It was then Jake began to take in the surroundings. The apartment was average in size, with the exception of the modern interior. Jake remembered Chris saying it was Danny who designed the apartment, so he assumed Danny was involved in the decoration as well. The walls were a plain white with various pieces of modern and colorful art hanging on the walls. The lounge area was dominated by a square looking black leather couch. The was also a oversized glass coffee table, a bright red egg chair and two old looking end tables. He sat down on the egg couch and continued to look around. In front of him, there was a 32" LCD TV mounted on the wall above the fireplace. In front of the fireplace was a black shag pile rug and a fake fur blanket neatly folded on the floor. Jake turned around to continue to snoop around the apartment, taking note of a dark wood dining table surrounded by dining chairs covered in black fabric, he also took note of the kitchen full of stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops. The apartment looked quite good. After a few minutes, his attention was drawn to Chris walking out of the bedroom door. He was now fully dressed and heading to toward the kitchen. "Just a couple more minutes." Chris apologized as rushed over to the pantry to open a can of cat food for Fergus, who was sitting on the kitchen bench eagerly awaiting his dinner. Jake turned around on the couch and leaned his chain against the backrest. "Serious Chris, I'm in no hurry." Jake replied as he watched Chris flutter about the kitchen. He watched Chris as he opened the can and poured the fish contents into a waiting bowl. Fergus immediately began eating as Chris threw the can opener into the sink and rinsed the can before putting it into a recycling bin. Chris then turned and headed towards Jake, "Okay, let's go.." "Great, how far is this place?" Jake asked, getting to his feet and stretching his arms. Chris picked up his keys and wallet and placed them in his pocket; he made sure to leave his mobile on the table and motioned for Jake to follow him out the door. "It's about 5 to 10 minutes walk, depending on how fast you want to move." Chris quickly locked his apartment door and headed down the stairs, followed closely by Jake. "You look good by the way.." Chris complimented. "Thanks, so do you!" Jake replied bouncing down the stairs behind Chris. Jake then followed Chris out the gate and down the street. After a few minutes, they reached an intersection and Chris pointed towards a small restaurant with a few trees planted in grey urns near the door. "That's it there." They crossed the intersection and headed towards the door. As they got closer, Jake could smell the pleasant smell garlic wafting out of the open doors and windows. As it was still fairly early in the evening, combined with being a Sunday night, there were only a few people on the street and inside the restaurant. Jake looked at the canopy over the door, as it gave the only indication as to what the name of the place was called. He spotted a small sign on the canopy with the name Celeste's. "It smells good." Jake commented. "It's great." Chris said as he motioned for Jake to enter the door first. As soon as they stepped inside they were greeted by a young chirpy woman. "Welcome to Celeste's, my names - oh my god it's you!" The woman squealed. Jake was suddenly overcome with an immense feeling of horror, he thought he had been spotted until he realized the ecstatic response wasn't directed at him. "Hi Selena, long time no see girl!" Chris said as he hugged the young woman. Selena smiled and continued to hug Chris, "Where have you been?! Sarah was in a couple of weeks ago telling me you and Danny were no longer." Chris stood back and continued to engage Selena in conversation as Jake stood behind him politely staying out of the conversation, keeping his hands in his pockets. "Yeah, Danny and I broke up, he's moved to New York." "Oh I'm sorry, so what else have you been up to?" Chris smiled weakly and continued, "Oh you know, work, sleeping and trying to stay out of trouble..." He then noticed Jake was being left out of the conversation, "This is my friend Jake by the way." Selena looked over towards Jake tried to think who he looked like, it finally dawned on her that it was Jake Gyllenhaal. "Hi Jake, it's nice to meet you," she said extending her hand out to shake his hand. "Nice to meet you too," Jake replied warmly shaking Selena's hand. "So, a table for two, or will others be joining you?" she asked. Chris piped up again, "Nah, just a table for two, probably either close to the cool breeze or out of sight." Selena made her way to the counter and picked up a couple of menus. "Not a problem, we can probably cater for both at the same time." She then led Jake and Chris to a small table located near the window, but blocked from street view by the plant-life outside. As the duo arrived at the table, she quickly pulled the two seats out and placed the menus on the white tablecloth. Jake and Chris sat down, with Chris against the wall and Jake facing Chris, so as to reduce the chance of being spotted by paparazzi any more. "Can I get you two something to drink? Water? Wine? Soda?" Selena asked. Chris thought for a moment, he was mainly after something cold, "Can I grab a coke and a glass of water?" "Certainly, and for you Jake?" "I guess I will have the same, but without the water." "Absolutely, I'll be back in a minute..." Selena chirped as she wandered towards the kitchen. Jake picked up the menu and began looking through the various pizzas and other meals listed. "So what's good here?" "I quite like the Greek style pizza. It's got feta, olives, gyro's and some other stuff." Chris responded as he leaned over to point it out on Jakes menu. Jake read through the description of the pizza, "It sounds good, but I don't know if I'd want to try a whole pizza of it on my own....what else is good here?" "They've got quite a lot, a lot of seafood varieties, but it makes me sick, so I've never tried it." Chris replied calmly. As Jake was about to enquire about Chris' seafood issues Selena arrived back with their drinks, "So are you guys ready to order?" Chris closed his menu and pointed at Jake, "Well I know what I want, but Jake here is still trying to make up his mind." "Yeah, I'm hopeless when it comes to decisions.." Jake joked. Selena laughed and spoke up, "Well, if you don't mind me suggesting one, maybe you would like to try that?" "Yeah sure, what kind would you suggest?" Jake asked as he handed the menu card to Selena. Opening the menu card quickly and searching through to find the one she was looking for she handed the card back to Jake and pointed, "It sounds simple, but the Margherita pizza here is to die for. It's the best I've EVER had." Jake nodded in agreement, "I'll go with that then." "Sure, and for you Chris?" Chris smirked, "You should know by now, Greek style, extra feta." "Absolutely, and both medium sized like normal?" Chris looked over at Jake who nodded slightly, he then returned his attention to Selena, "Yeah, sounds good." "Great, I will be back shortly with your pizzas, have fun boys." Selena smiled before heading back into the kitchen to finalize the order. The two sat for a few moments watching a couple walk into the entrance of the restaurant, walk around and then walk out, obviously intimidated by the interior. Chris then looked back towards Jake and noticed Jake looking at him, "If you want we could swap over a few slices with each other, and then you could try the feta one." "Yeah that sounds good; I'm not that big a fan of Feta cheese though." Jake replied as he noticed Chris reaching into his pocket to find something. "What's the water for?" Chris finished fishing about in his pocket and pulled a small container with pills out of his pocket. He opened the container and tipped out one small white pill. "Oh they're Elizabeth Taylor strength Vicodin." Jake suddenly snorted his drink out of his nose, "You're kidding, right?" Chris shot Jake a cheesy grin before explaining, "Of course. They're just antibiotics for a chest infection I had a few weeks back." "Ah fair enough. What did you think of my apartment by the way?" Chris quickly threw the pill to the back of his throat and downed the entire highball glass of water in one shot. "It looked great. I take it Danny did the decorating too?" Chris laughed at the thought of Danny trying dealing with fluffy pillows and vases, "God no, he had an amazing eye for architecture, but when it comes to interior design everything would be beige and bland. I wanted the place to feel comforting yet clean at the same time, so I delved into my Scandinavian roots and decorated the place as I saw fit." "Scandinavian hey," Jake asked, "What part of Scandinavia does your family come from?" Chris thought for a moment before explaining, "It's a bit of a confusing issue, we managed to trace them back to an island off Sweden, but from there the trail ran dry." Jake smiled, and calmly picked the glass of Coca Cola up, "I'm a Swedish Noble you know..." "Really? That's pretty cool. I suppose I'd have to bow and salute you now hey?" Chris joked. Jake joined in with Chris' laughter, "Yeah that's right, you can call me Sir Jake." After the two finished laughing at each other Jake returned to the subject at hand, "Seriously though, your apartment was nice. Looked modern, yet homely." A few minutes later Selena returned with their meals and left them on their own. The duo ate their meals while exchanging small talk and pizza slices. About half an hour later, they pushed their plates to the side. "That was pretty good, and filling." Jake commented as he leaned back in his chair. Chris nodded in agreement, "Now you can see why I love this place. It's just a shame it closes before I get home from work sometimes." He then nodded towards Selena for the check. "Did you want coffee or something?" he asked. "Nah, I'm cool." Jake responded as Selena approached the table. "How were your meals guys?" She asked. "Great thanks." Chris and Jake responded in unison. Selena laughed. "So who gets this bit of bad news?" She asked as she pulled the bill from her back pocket. "I guess I'll take that..." Chris muttered with a fake grimace on his face. He quickly pulled his wallet out of his pocket and flipped through to find his credit card. Several minutes later, the bill was sorted and Chris and Jake headed out of the restaurant. They then headed back up Chris' street towards his apartment. Once they reached the gate of the building, Chris paused to find his keys. For the second time that night, there was an air of awkward silence. "So, did you want to come up? We could watch TV or something.." Chris asked and immediately smacked himself on the forehead. "Sorry, force of habit." Jake laughed and kept his hands in his pockets. Secretly he did want to come up and hang out some more, but he thought it would probably be best if they called it a night. "I'm beat. I'd better get home before I collapse onto the street." "Oh okay," Chris said in a soft tone, obviously embarrassed by his previous actions. "Maybe some other time then." "Did you want to hang out sometime later this week?" Jake asked, hoping to see Chris again soon. Chris' demeanor improved slightly from hearing the question, "Yeah that would be great. I have plans tomorrow, but from Tuesday on I am free." Jake smiled proudly, "Great, how about I give you a call tomorrow night and arrange something." Chris nodded and smiled, "Definetly." He then began to yawn, "Well, I suppose I should get on up to bed. I will speak to you tomorrow." "Okay Chris, goodnight. Thanks for today, it was awesome!" Jake replied as he pulled his hand out of his pocket to shake Chris'. Chris extended his hand to shake Jake's and felt an immediate spark shooting up his arm, "Goodnight Jake, drive safe." He then pushed the gate open and began to move inside, as the gate began to shut, Jake waved towards him and he waved back. Yawning once more Chris slowly made his way back up the stairs to his apartment door. Once inside he slipped his shoes off, dumped his belongings on the table and then shuffled his way into the bedroom. He leaned back on the bed for a moment and stared up at the ceiling thinking about the fun day that had just passed. Slowly he closed his eyes just to rest them, however not long after he was fast asleep. ----Stay tuned for an all new chapter sometime in the next millenia---- Well, I hope you enjoyed reading thus far. In all fairness this was originally going to be about half the file size, however after converting it I realised that it would be a fairly short and pointless chapter, so here you go, two chapters combined. I'm always open for a chat or some ideas and I love hearing from y'all. As usual, abuse will be ignored, although I have yet to receive any, (That does not mean it should start however.). I can be contacted via email/msn on chezmoi_ou_cheztoi@msn.com and I love hearing from you guys! Thanks for reading!