Audrey and I are closer than ever. Creative streak a mile wide in this family. The love of her life is music. She’s attending Juilliard. The kid has an amazing voice. Watching her play the piano and sing gives me goose bumps and brings tears to my eyes.
Ethan’s cell vibrates with an incoming text. Lifting it out of his pocket of his tux, he looks at the screen and blinks twice. I watch those yummy chocolate orbs grow wider and wider.
“What is it?”
He hands me his cell phone. One look at the picture on screen and my eyes bug out. This, right here––this is what makes me nervous.
…and the winner for best supporting actress in a Comedy or Musical is…Amber Vaughn, for Lovers and Liars…
I freeze, suddenly ripped out of my thoughts by a roar of applause. My bewildered eyes meet my husband’s and everything else melts away. We may as well be the only two people in the galaxy. For me being in love wasn’t about learning how to give love, it was about learning how to accept it, how to allow myself to be loved.
“Go,” he mouths, everything else drowned out by the roar of the crowd. “I’m so proud of you,” he adds as I rise out of my seat on unsteady legs. He plants a quick kiss on my lips and pushes me in the right direction.
On autopilot I walk up the stairs and take the award from the beautiful Amazon whose job it is to hand them out. Reaching the podium, I take a moment to gather my thoughts. The spotlight heavy and hot on me, I take a deep breath and scan the crowd. I don’t have to read this speech. I’ve been practicing it in the shower my entire life.
“Thank you. Thank you. I’ll be as brief as I can be but I’ve been waiting for this moment for thirty––cough, cough––something years. No way am I coming out of the age closet tonight.” A low chuckle permeates the crowd. “I stand before you a misfit, a dreamer, a lover, a fighter, an artist, an actor…I stand before you an actor. It’s taken me forever to get here and I won’t lie, the ride has been rough.” In the crowd, I see a lot of sympathetic expressions. “In hindsight, however, I can honestly say it made the journey more interesting––this victory sweeter. But if I can impart any knowledge to make the road a little smoother for the next woman, to spare her a little pain, it’s this––
“Success is not glamorous or sexy. It’s hard work and perseverance. It’s falling down but not staying down. It’s never giving up hope. So to all the misfits out there, to all the dreamers, keep fighting, keep working hard. Your chance will come. All it takes is one person to believe in you and that has to start with you.”
My eyes connect with the eyes of the man I have the honor to call my husband and best friend. Ethan never slew dragons for me. He didn’t have to, because he did even better. He slew the dragon in me and filled the space with love and acceptance.
“Speaking of believing, Marty Glaser, my dear beleaguered agent, this is a farfetched dream without you pushing me every step of the way. And finally, on a personal note, I stand before you a wife, and a mother. To my husband who sustains me every day––this means nothing without you. Thank you for being my one true believer. And to my dear daughter who should be watching at home but isn’t.” I stare into the camera, my exasperation as clear as a neon sign. “Tiger Lily Vaughn, get down from the chandelier. I don’t care if Connor Shaw bet you that you couldn’t do it.”