Time Off

Special Guest Courtesy of Mr. Cavanaugh's TF Stories

Chris wanted time off. After a rapid succession of movies, he needed some down time alone to recharge his batteries. Not that he didn’t love his family and acting mind you. He just hadn’t had a good vacation just for himself in a while.

There was a break in filming on location in New York City and the weather had turned sunny after raining most of the day so he decided to go for a stroll.  Along the way, he came across a newsstand with a tabloid he had never seen before. Not usually one to care about tabloid gossip he nonetheless picked up the paper and paid the vendor.

Cavanaugh’s Celebrity Chatter

The front page had a picture of the Amell cousins and the second page had a story about Matt Bomer, both of which he glanced at but quickly skipped over. It was page 3 that really caught his attention. There was only one headline.

Chris Hemsworth: Tired of Acting?

The picture showed him dressed exactly as he was now. Intrigued for sure how that was even possible but after all it was only a tabloid so he closed the paper and thought no more about it. As he started to leave he made eye contact with a young man just coming out of a bar. He shivered as a cold chill travelled throughout his body. Shrugging it off as just a cool momentary breeze he continued onward to a small coffee shop. He opened the paper again while drinking his latte, surprised to see his picture had changed.

Chris Hemsworth: Tired of Acting?

This time he was back in Oz sitting on his prized Triumph bike, taking a break at his favorite hangout. That was impossible since he was…

In the blink of an eye Chris found himself dressed for the warm weather of Oz… sitting on his bike… outside his favorite hangout. What the…?

Just a little hole in the wall that only the locals knew about, he could always be just Chris here and not the famous actor everyone wanted a piece of. He stepped inside hoping his mates would be there waiting for him. He wasn’t disappointed. Food and drink had already been ordered as if they had been expecting him. Leave it to his posse to always look out for him, always have his back. This would be a welcome break for a short while, no matter how incredibly it had happened. Who was he to question such a gift? Soon Chris was feeling a pleasant buzz when nature called and he had to answer.

“Be back in a bit.” He told his mates as he went to the loo.

He was surprised when he entered one of the stalls and the tabloid fell from his back pocket. All but forgotten in his excitement of being home and with his mates, the paper beckoned him to open it. Flipping to the third page again, Chris was shocked to see CH Takes Time Off beside a different picture most definitely not of him but one that somehow looked familiar. Spooked, he threw the paper into the trash and rushed to get back to his group.

Bright sunlight flooded his eyes when he opened the door, making him instinctively reach for the sunglasses he had in the pocket of his leather jacket. He looked around for the bar thinking he must have gone out the wrong door but it was nowhere to be found. Wait… leather jacket? He hadn’t been wearing a jacket nor was that the only difference. None of his other clothes were the same either as he now wore a clinging white tee, tight black leather pants (with nothing on underneath!), and black boots.

After a few minutes pondering the situation, Chris thought back to the picture in the tabloid. He was wearing the same clothes as the guy in that picture! Damn! He should have kept the tabloid instead of throwing it away. It seemed to be the key to everything that had happened.

He dug out the wallet he found in a pocket of the jacket (there certainly wasn’t any room in these damn tight pants for one). He almost wished he hadn’t when he looked at the license he found there. The picture showed the same man as the tabloid, the one who’s clothes he now wore, and a name: “Cameron Hampstead” – “CH”, the initials he had assumed to be his own.

Chris looked down at himself, hoping what he suspected wasn’t true. He most definitely wasn’t himself anymore. He started to panic. He had only wanted some time off, not a different body.

“Cam? Is that you?” He turned his head to the voice he heard. “I’ve been looking for you. Where have you been man?”

Chris had no idea who the impeccably dressed young man standing before him was or how to answer his question.

“I took some time off.” He didn’t know what else to say. Given how he was dressed maybe there was some truth in it.

“Why didn’t you tell me? When you didn’t show up for work today I thought you had dropped off the face of the earth. Wow. Look at you. Into the leather hunk look now, stud? Think they’ll like that back at the office?”

The memory of being the youngest and most successful product manager at his company entered into Chris’ mind. He knew he dressed conservatively at the office. Had to when he talked with clients. No. That was Cameron, not him. But he was Cameron… or at least he looked like him. He shook his head trying to get a grip on what was happening. He would either need to take a lot of time off until he was himself again or pull off an Oscar worthy performance pretending to be Cameron.

“Sure. Thought I’d go to work looking like a wet dream, Henry.” That had not been what he intended to say for sure and the name just popped out of his mouth as though he had known the man his entire life. Then it registered on him that his voice was slightly higher and very American sounding with a tinge of an east coast accent.

“I know a few people who would approve of it.” Henry jokingly shot back. “Come on hunk. Let’s go get a drink.”

“Sure. Might as well. I have nothing else to do.” That wasn’t a lie either. Maybe if he relaxed a bit he could think straight and find out how this had happened and how to reverse it.

The two went to what Chris in some way was remembering was one of their favorite hangout bars that they frequented after work. No one looked up when they walked in nor did anyone rush to get his autograph. But then again, he wasn’t a famous actor anymore.

“Find us some seats and I’ll meet you after I take a leak.” A creepy Deja vu moment came over Chris that he simply shrugged off as a random thought. He came face to face with his new look as soon as he entered the bathroom. The license and tabloid pictures hadn’t done Cam justice. He was one good looking man and the outfit he wore accentuated that handsomeness even more. Cam’s body was younger and nicely toned even if it wasn’t quite as impressive as his real one nor quite as tall. The longer he stared into the mirror, the more the image became comfortable to him, natural, memories bombarding his mind and becoming more prevalent until Chris forgot he was ever anyone other than Cam. He relieved himself and went to meet Henry.

The two men talked and drank for a while until Henry motioned for the bar tab. “I’ve got to get back to work, Cam. Not everyone has time off.”

As Cam and Henry left the bar they spotted Chris Hemsworth at a small newsstand looking at some sort of magazine. Cam and Chris momentarily made eye contact, sending the funniest feeling throughout Cam’s body.

“Man, I wish I had his life.” Cam sighed as he and Henry walked on. The two soon parted, each going his own way.

“See you when you get back Cam.”

“I should be in next week. Hold the fort down for me.” The time off would do him good. He had needed to relax, to get away from his job for a while. Maybe he would check out the night action later. He knew he wouldn’t have any trouble at all finding companionship for the night.

A short while later Mr. Cavanaugh sat in his study reflecting on his day’s work. He had enjoyed being another Henry for a while. Yes, it had been a good day indeed. Somewhere out there was another deserving person who needed his help but he would think about that tomorrow.