YOUNG LOVE

Countdown. Sixty minutes . . . fifty-nine . . . fifty-eight . . . fifty-five. After seven hours of answering phones, reciting prices, taking orders and pulling tickets, I could finally start counting down that last hour before I could go home.

But when Hayley walked into the box office I forgot all about the time.

I hadn't seen Hayley for almost four years, and hadn't really talked to her in over five, not since "The Scandal" involving her and Chad. We were both sixteen then; Chad was almost thirty. I tried to tell her the truth about him: that he was only interested in using her talent, her incredible voice, to make himself rich and famous. She told me I was just jealous. I told her that was ridiculous, that I had no interest in Chad whatsoever. She didn't believe me. Then one night I told her that I had heard Chad talking to our other accompanist about his male lovers, and how once he had Hayley in his bed he'd be able to completely control her life. She slapped me and walked away. Hayley hadn't said more than three words to me since.

She was right about one thing – I was jealous. But not of her being with Chad. I was jealous of Chad being with her. That's why I tried to get her to see the truth. I didn't want to see her get hurt.

We had both changed.

I recognized her the minute I saw her; she hadn't changed much, except for a new aura of self-confidence. I had just let her into the box office and had turned to tell June (my manager) that she was here, when she suddenly realized who I was.

"Val?!"

I turned back to look at her.

"Hi, Hayley. I didn't think you'd recognize me." Well, I didn't. I had dropped twenty pounds, changed my hair, and gotten contacts since she saw me last.

Then, the unexpected happened.

"I'm glad I ran into you. I was going to get your number, see if we could get together for lunch or something while I'm in town."

I didn't know what to say. Fortunately, I didn't have to say anything, because just then June finally came over to talk to Hayley.

"Hayley! When did you get in? And don't ask for tickets for tonight, because we're SRO."

"Good to see you, too, June. I got in a few hours ago. How's the show this year?"

"Pretty good. Where are you staying?"

"I've got a suite at the Hyatt Regency; I wanted to be close enough to walk to the theatre. Got any tickets left for Friday night?"

"How many do you need?"

Hayley looked at me for a brief moment before answering. "Two."

"Let me see what I can pull." June turned and started digging through the ticket rack. I looked at the clock – twenty minutes and counting. Remembering how Hayley had looked at me before asking for two tickets, I decided that it might just be my lucky day. That, or I was having one hell of a daydream. So before I could talk myself out of it, I made my move.

"Listen, Hayley, I get off in a bit. Would you like to go grab a bite to eat?"

"I'd like that, Val. It's been a long time since we've had a chance to talk." She smiled. Hayley has the most beautiful smile I've ever seen – and I've seen quite a few.

Just then June came back with a pair of tickets in her hand.

"Hayley, will box seats be okay?"

"Perfect! June, you're an angel. What do I owe you?"

"Nothing. Josh said you might be coming in and told me – and I quote – 'Give her as many comps as she wants; maybe she'll forget about New York and move back here where she belongs. She SHOULD be our leading lady, damnit!' End of quote."

Hayley laughed. "That sounds like Josh."

That does sound like Josh. Hayley was on her way to becoming the company's next leading lady when things happened with Chad, then she moved to New York; Josh had been trying to get her back ever since. Like most directors he hated to lose a young actress who is as talented as she is beautiful.

Of course, June would have given Hayley free tickets without Josh telling her to. June had been "Mom" to all of us when we were kids learning the theatre trade in the company school. And Hayley had been one of her favorites.

June looked at her watch then smiled. "Val, get out of here. You and Hayley have a lot of catching up to do."

"Thanks, Mom!" (I was also one of her favorites.) After promising to come in early the next day I grabbed my jacket, and Hayley and I walked out to my car. We drove around for almost forty minutes trying to decide where to eat before we finally picked up some Chinese take-out and went back to her hotel.

Our conversation covered everything from what we've been doing to music and movies. Hayley surprised me – it was a pleasant surprise – when she brought up her favorite movie of all time, "Desert Hearts" – a beautifully handled lesbian love story. The impossible suddenly seemed possible.

Time flew by, and when I looked at my watch it was after midnight. Time for me to leave.

"It's been great seeing you again, Hayley. How long will you be in town?"

"Only a week. I've got an audition next Thursday so I'm flying back on Wednesday." She looked away, a very un-Hayley-like action. "Val, are you free Friday night? I know I should have asked before I got the tickets, but I was hoping you might like to go to the show with me."

"I'd love to." Not really believing that this was happening, I decided to push my luck. "Why don't I pick you up at six; we can go out to dinner first."

"I'd like that. See you Friday." She leaned in and kissed me softly on the cheek, then smiled and closed the door.

I had the definite feeling that past events had been forgiven, if not entirely forgotten.

Friday seemed a lifetime away. Thursday I made dinner reservations at a nice but reasonably priced restaurant, took my nicest pantsuit to the cleaners, and asked June to give me Friday afternoon off. She gave me the whole day off. And Saturday. As a matter of fact, she told me to take a vacation for a week. I tried to protest, but Mom said she hadn't seen me this excited since I understudied the lead in Funny Girl the previous season. I shut up.

When Friday finally dawned I was up with the sun. I spent the morning washing my car and deciding what jewelry to wear. After lunch I cashed my paycheck, picked up my clothes from the cleaners, and stopped by the mall to pick up a new bottle of "Obsession" – one of the few scents that works for me. I got home with just enough time to get ready for what I hoped would be the best evening of my life.

Hayley was waiting in the lobby when I got to the hotel. She looked absolutely stunning. Her black-and-royal blue dress perfectly set off her ebony hair and sapphire eyes. Driving to the restaurant I had to force myself to keep my eyes on the road.

Dinner was excellent, even if the service was a bit slow. I didn't really mind; it gave me more time to look at Hayley as we got to know each other all over again. This was new territory for us; this was a DATE.

The show, a musical adaptation of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," was the best production of the season. After the performance we went backstage to congratulate the cast and chat with friends. Everyone was glad to see Hayley, and somewhat surprised to see me with her. We were talking to Josh – he was trying to get Hayley to at least agree to come back for one show - when someone mentioned that Chad was floating around backstage. Hayley's grip on my arm tightened.

Seeing the fear in Hayley's eyes I made our good-byes and guided her out to the car. Ten minutes later we were standing outside her suite.

"Hayley, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, now that I know Chad isn't going to suddenly appear. . . ." She smiled. "Would you like to come in for a drink?"

Of course I did. Hayley turned on the radio while I opened the bottle of champagne I found in the 'fridge. When we sat down I noticed that she was still shaky. Suddenly I realized that there must have been more to the situation with her and Chad than anyone had ever suspected. I proposed a toast to our renewed friendship and Hayley smiled, but a moment later the smile vanished.

"Val, there's something I've wanted to tell you for a long time. I . . . I never apologized for the way I acted about, you know, the whole thing with Chad."

"Hayley, you don't have to apologize . . . ."

"Yes, I do. You were right all along. That's why I went to New York – I had to get away from him."

"What happened?"

"Well, I had auditioned for Gypsy, and Josh offered me the lead. I didn't have a chance to tell Chad until that night. We were playing a gig at this jazz club near Montrose. . . . Anyway, I was going to tell Chad after our first set, but he disappeared. I went looking for him, and finally found him in the manager's office with this guy. They were . . . ."

"I can guess what they were doing," I said. "Go on."

"Well, Chad knocked me halfway across the room for interrupting his 'meeting'. I left the office, and left the club. We were living together by that time, so I waited for him to come home. When he did he started yelling at me, asking me what I was doing coming into the manager's office in the first place, and I told him about the role. I was one big bruise by the time he stopped hitting me. He said I couldn't take the part, that he had already committed us to some singing gigs and they were more important. I moved out the next day."

She took a pause to refill our glasses.

"So that's why Chad wasn't at the opening?" I asked.

"He kept trying to see me, but he knew I'd have him thrown out of the theatre if he showed up. I wanted to talk to you at the opening party, but I was too embarrassed. I'm really sorry about the way I acted. I should have listened to you. I . . . ."

She started to cry. I put my arm around her shoulders, trying to comfort her, and got an unexpected response. Hayley turned and threw her arms around my neck, still sobbing. I gently stroked her hair, wondering if this beautiful woman knew the effect she was having on me. Gradually, her crying stopped, but she continued to hold onto me. Keeping her arms around my neck, she sat back a little and looked me straight in the eye. My heart leapt at the emotions I saw dancing across those sapphire orbs. The next thing I knew I was kissing her, or she was kissing me, maybe we were just kissing each other. A lifetime later I regained my senses and pulled away.

"Val? What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just, well, I never expected this to happen." That wasn't exactly true. I had pulled away because I had finally realized that I was in love with Hayley, had been since the day I met her, and that scared me.

"Val, I need you. Four years in New York, and every time I think about Houston, I think about you. Spend the night with me. Spend the week with me. Please?"

I turned and took her into my arms, knowing damn well I was going to stay.