“I’ve already been through all that with you before. I can handle it. You don’t have to worry about me. I’d enjoy seeing you win an award.”

He told me it was casual; he was going to wear just jeans and a T-shirt. I got a little more dressed up by putting on one of my nicer button-up shirts and my fanciest pair of jeans. The ones I only broke out for special occasions. Just in case I was photographed again.

The night of the festival, he came to pick me up, and when we arrived at the event, the car had to go through several checkpoints, as the streets had been closed down, just like they’d been at the Oscars.

He explained, “This film festival is tied into a street carnival that the city throws. Traffic will be insane afterward, so I rented a hotel room across the street so we can wait it out.”

I could see for myself why such a thing would be necessary. There were people everywhere; the car was moving along at a snail’s pace.

We finally made it to the theater where the awards were being given out. I saw a glimpse of his costar, Rubie Jorgenson, talking to a reporter. Reina and Morgan met us at the car. Reina was going to take Noah around to the fans and journalists, and Morgan was there to babysit me again and do whatever Reina needed.

Noah kissed me, promising to see me soon, and I could tell the exact moment when everybody realized that he was the one getting out of the SUV because of the explosion of lights and people screaming his name.

Once Rubie and Noah had both gone inside, Morgan had me get out of the car, probably under the assumption that nobody would care about me once the stars had left. She gave me a badge to wear and told me to guard it with my life, because it provided me with all access to the venue.

She took me backstage, and I really enjoyed listening to Noah talk about his role in the movie. He was witty and self-deprecating and intelligent and all-around delightful in his responses. Someone from the crowd yelled out, “Malec Shadowfire lives!” and he responded by laughing and saying he loved Malec and missed playing him.

After he finished, they brought out Rubie, and she was equally charming and also had the audience eating out of the palm of her hand. They were both skilled performers, on-screen and off.

I watched as the president of the film festival presented them with their awards and they said a few words from the podium, thanking their professional teams, the cast and crew of the movie, the festival board members, and the fans for their support.