Olden Days

Watching sixty and seventy year old movies was a favorite pastime for Brian. Doing anything with Brian was a favorite pastime for Justin, but he really did enjoy the old movies too. So every month or so they watched the DVD of one of those ancient films, always followed by some discussion.

They had just finished Meet Me in St. Louis as they were taking their places on the floor in front of the fake fireplace. "That was a pretty good movie, Bri," Justin was saying as they settled in. "I always wondered where Dorothy went after she got back from Oz."

"You do know that wasn't Dorothy from Oz, I hope," Brian replied. "It was Judy Garland. She played Dorothy in Wizard but this is an entirely different role. Judy Garland was a big star back then and she played in lots of movies."

"Of course I know the difference. Do you think you're talking to some moron, Honey?" Justin remarked. "Abelard isn't here."

"I wish you'd leave Abelard in Columbus," Brian told him.

"And I wish you'd leave Abelard in Columbus too," Justin laughed. "I'm most happy when Abelard's in Columbus."

"Well, I was just making sure," Brian defended himself, returning to the subject at hand. "I don't know how Judy Garland felt but there are some actors nowadays who go ballistic if the fans confuse them with the roles they play."

"I think those actors must be paranoid, Bri," Justin said. "Fans aren't that crazy."

"Guess not," Brian agreed, "But that will never be our problem."

"Nope," Justin agreed. "That movie took place over a hundred years ago," Justin marveled. "It's kind of amazing. People were having fun a hundred years ago."

"And people will be having fun a hundred years from now too," Brian philosophized, "But not us, so we better have fun now."

"Sometimes you're hard to talk to, Brian," Justin complained. "I bet we would have had fun if we would have been in St. Louis back then. We could have gone to the fair."

"And at the fair, we could have seen demonstrations of that new fangled invention - electric light," Brian pointed out, "And then gone home and turned on the gas lamps, or lit the candles."

"I bet a lot of people back then just sat around in the dark looking at their fireplaces and talking," Justin observed.

"Yeah," Brian agreed. "Thank goodness we don't have to do dumb stuff like that nowadays."

"You're funny, Brian," Justin smiled as he delivered a light poke with his elbow to Brian's ribs. "I hope the people who did that back then had easier people to talk to than I do."

"Want me to find you somebody easier to talk to, so you can sit with him instead of me?" Brian offered.

"Nope," Justin responded. "I kind of love the challenge I've got."

"Anything else you love?" Brian wanted to know.

"Can't think of anything?" Justin quipped.

"What about me, Baby?" Brian wondered.

"Geez, Brian," Justin explained himself. "Who do you think is the challenge that I love?"

That seemed to please Brian. He didn't seem to mind being a challenge. The conversation tailed off for a while then and the wordless communication took over.

"What are you laughing about Brian?" Justin broke the silence.

"I wasn't laughing," Brian replied.

"Maybe not outside," Justin maintained, "But I could tell you were laughing on the inside and you were probably laughing at me."

"Now who's paranoid?" Brian remarked. "I'll tell you what I was thinking about. I was thinking about the night we met. If you had been standing under a gas lamppost, I might not have even seen you. Then you would not have been able to transform me from the rat I was into the saint I am now. Maybe I was laughing inside, just a little bit."

"But I would have seen you, Bri," Justin told him. "You were what I was looking for and I knew it right away, and I would have known it no matter how dark it was. You would not have gotten away."

Brian did not answer so Justin went on thinking out loud. "You know, Bri," he said, "You're not the only one who's changed since that night. I was kind of a self-centered nasty brat back then, even though I was pretty nice, and cute."

"And could you remind me just how you think you've changed?" Brian had to ask, earning himself another somewhat harder elbow to the ribs.

"You're lucky I love you," Justin told him, "And you're lucky I'm so patient."

"Yeah I am," Brian agreed. "I've learned all my patience from you." Justin snuggled up closer to him and Brian reached over to tousle the kid's hair. So another quiet period ensued.

Justin resumed the discussion after the brief pause. "Are you old enough to remember street cars, Brian?" he wondered.

"Oh yeah," Brian told him. "Those old horse-drawn cars used to clang, clang, clang past my house all the time, but we finally got rid of the horses before we got rid of the trolleys."

"You're making fun of me," Justin complained. "How am I supposed to learn about the olden days if you won't tell me?"

"You could ask Mikey," Brian suggested. "He's older than me."

"It would serve you right if I did," Justin threatened.

"It would serve him right too," Brian came back.

"Oh so you're also mad at Mikey," Justin had to smile.

"Yeah, I am," Brian cajoled. "He was supposed to be my friend. He should have saved me from you."

"I think he did try to save me from you," Justin responded.

"I think he did too, but Mikey had the whole situation wrong," Brian pointed out. "He thought I would ruin you. He never figured how tough you were when you wanted something. I don't guess anybody did. I sure didn't."

Then Brian noticed the look on Justin's face. "Now I think you're laughing at me. You are, aren't you, Twink? You're laughing at me."

"Gee whiz, Brian," Justin complained, "You must really think I'm still a nasty brat. Of course I'm not laughing at you."

"Well, what are you doing inside that weird blond head of yours?" Brian asked.

"I'm just thinking about how much I like to think about those olden days," Justin told him.

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