Aaron Stone, for his role inMidnight Empire.
Cheers erupt in the theater. I can hear Alex whooping especially loud from somewhere behind us and to the left, and the applause from his peers, those he admires above all others in his craft, is nearly deafening. The show is a sensation, and has been for a while now, but his character has had an amazing arc recently, and it looks like I’m far from the only one who’s noticed how special this guy is.
Aaron is in shock for about three seconds, then he leans his head back and lets out a noise I can’t possibly describe, but let’s call it animalistic, and very, very joyful. He’s laughing, wrapping me in his arms as we both stand, and he rocks me side to side for a little too long before I push him off me to get up on stage. The camera follows him as he goes, another one tracking his progress from the front.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a big smile on his face before, and I will remember this moment forever.
He takes the stairs two at a time until he greets the presenters, shaking their hands, kissing the cheek of the female and doing a bro-hug combo with the guy. They hand him the award, and he grips it with both hands, like he can’t believe this isn’t a dream.
He leans down a little to reach the mic, the statue in one hand, his other flat on the podium.
“Shit!” he calls out jovially. “Ah, crap! I can’t say that, can I?” he asks, looking offstage, where a stagehand is shaking their head rapidly with wide eyes.
“I’m sorry! This is why my girlfriend told me to write a speech, isn’t it?” Chuckles and laughter break out across the audience, and the camera in our aisle zooms in on me. I can feel my cheeks heating with a blush as I shake my head lovingly at him, my lower lip between my teeth as I watch him up there.
“Y’all, I really didn’t think I was gonna win this thing, and I don’t have anything prepared. But I do have a lot of people to thank who make it possible for me to live my dreams out, so I can be in this amazing show and somehow win this award right here.” He pumps his fist that’s clutching the golden award, and a few hoots and hollers ring out.
“First off, the showrunners, producers, directors, cast and crew ofMidnight Empire. Each and every one of you make this show what it is, and it’s an honor to get to work with each of you day in and day out. Everyone who voted for me. Not sure why the heck you picked me when there are literal legends up in this category, but if I’m dreaming, please don’t wake me up yet.” More chuckles sound around me.
“My agent, publicist, everyone on my team, all y’all who took a chance on me, it takes a lot to make the magic happen on camera and get it out to the world, and I appreciate you all so much for what you do to make it happen.” A warm smile lights his face, and he looks around the room.
“My family, my parents, have supported my career goals since I was a kid. They uprooted us from a little town in Alabama and moved us down to the Hollywood of the South to help me start my acting career, and they’ve helped me more than I can orshould say on network television. But let me just say that thank you isn’t nearly enough. I love you Mom, Dad.”
My eyes were already tearing, but now my vision is blurring, as I read between the lines of all he’s saying, and all he isn’t.
“And, uh,” he goes on. “When my super smart girlfriend said I should have a speech prepared ‘just in case’,” he makes air quotes on that, “I told her I wouldn’t need it, but if I somehow won, I’d speak from the heart, so that’s what I’m gonna do.” His eyes seek me out for just an instant before he continues. “There’s someone else who has been with me from the very beginning of my career, at the ripe old age of thirteen, and they haven’t gotten nearly enough credit for helping me get this far. I would’ve given up countless times without their encouragement and support. I would’ve gone crazy without the sanity they bring into my life. I can say without a single doubt, I wouldnotbe up here today, not doing what I love every day of my life without all they’ve done for me over the years—which is a lot more than I can fit into a short speech when they’re motioning at me to get offstage right now.” He shoots a smirk at someone the camera can’t see, and keeps going, even as quiet music starts playing to encourage him to wrap it up. “I promise I’m almost done. But I seriously owe such a huge part of my life, my joy, my success to this person, and I want everyone who can hear me now to know that I appreciate this person’s efforts more than I can possibly say, but I’ll keep trying, anyway. Gem, you’re the love of my life, and you always have been. There’s a reason we were brought together so young in life, it was always supposed to be us, forever. I’m so damn lucky to have you on this journey with me. I thank the universe for you every single day. Thank you, not just for putting up with me, but for building this life with me. More than anyone, this award is because of you. And this is for you, baby.”
Tears are freely streaming down my face, and try as I might to wipe them away, I can’t catch them all, so I give up. He’s ledoffstage, along with the presenters, amid cheers, wolf whistles and lots and lots of applause. There’s not a single voice I can hear that’s louder than the distinctive holler that belongs to Alex.
The host reclaims the stage for himself, but every fiber of my being is focused on Aaron, waiting for him to rejoin me. I’m so fucking impatient to jump into his arms, but until they pause filming for the next commercial break, he can’t get back to me, and I’m not supposed to leave my seat during a presentation, either.
The second they pause for a break, I can’t take it anymore. I dart out of my seat, down the aisle to the back, while more faces than I can recognize—even as a former tabloid junkie—turn to stare and smile as I practically run to the rear of the room.
Sure enough, he’s caught up talking to a hot director I know he’d salivate for the chance to work with. But he sees me headed for him, holds up a finger to the other man and breaks away from him, facing me with arms out wide.
I don’t care who’s watching, what’s proper or not, I jump straight into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist, bury my face in his neck and hold on to him for dear life. His arms band around my body, holding me to him tightly, hands rubbing me up and down as we both laugh tearily.
“You did it,” I tell him proudly. “You fucking did it.”
“We did it, baby,” he says with the most genuine smile in the world. “There’s only one way to make this night better,” he tells me.
He places me down again, and I straighten out my dress, making sure it hasn’t ridden up too high after that little stunt.
“Yeah?” I ask him, and I can feel my eyes sparkling as I say it.
“Yeah,” he growls back at me. He grabs my hand and leads me out of the auditorium, through the grand lobby and to a quiet, plush alcove off to one side, draped in velvet.
I look around us nervously. There aren’t really people visible right now, but this space is hardly what I’d call private. No kink shaming here, but public play isn’t exactly what gets me going. I like alittleexcitement, but knowing that the head of his studio, or my teen celebrity crush could find us in a compromising position…well that freaks me out more than anything.
“Can you wait till we get in the car?” I ask him.
“No,” he says, and he means it. My throat bobs, my blood warms at the look in his eyes, and I start to wonder if maybe this isn’t a bad idea after all.
“I need to do thisnow,” he says, and he drops to his knee.
One.
Singular.
