PAPARAZZI - PHAN

DANIEL HOWELL

     daniel howell couldn't see a thing. and maybe that should've worried him, but it didn't. he was blinded by a sea of lights coming from seemingly every direction, making it difficult to see ahead of him. unlike the amateurs who had just finished their lap around the carpet, he didn't flinch when the camera flashes took over his field of vision, or even when a crowd of interviewers shoved a bunch of microphones in his face. because unlike everyone else here, he was a professional.

     this was his moment. this night, surrounded by his closest family and friends, was all he could've ever asked for. he knew it wouldn't last forever, so he made sure to take it all in while he had the chance. he knew it was just an award show - practically everyone in hollywood was invited to the academy awards, so it wasn't that special - but this time, things were different. he wasn't nominated for two or even three awards. this time, he was nominated for seven.

     in daniel howell's mind, he was the only option. everyone told him that he had those awards locked, and he believed them. this was the best year of his career he'd had so far, acting in no less than five movies, and directing two of them. they may as well just give him the awards now. he made sure that there was no doubt in anyone's mind that he was the star of tonight.

     "mr. howell!" called a young reporter wearing a tragic yellow dress. dan, ever the actor, made sure to hide his disgust, and bite back the comment he'd felt compelled to say. after all, who wears yellow on the red carpet? the color contrast was awful, making the reporter look like a sad attempt at a mcdonald's advertisement.

     "mr. howell,' the reporter continued, oblivious to his thoughts, 'how confident are you in your nominations for tonight?"

     daniel tried his best to appear humble, but couldn't hold back the smirk as he responded. "lets just say we already have a celebration party planned after the ceremony."

     daniel could hear his manager's voice in his head, telling him to get a move on and stop loitering, but the women asked him another question before he could make an excuse to leave. wanting to seem polite, he stayed.

     "one more question before we let you go, mr howell." daniel nodded and gave an award-winning smile, already preparing an appropriate response in his head.

     "what is your response to the allegations made to you by cassandra newton?"

    daniel, caught off guard by the word "allegations," laughed uneasily. "excuse me?"

     the reporter looked at him for a few seconds, almost, but not quite, suspiciously. "actress cassandra newton's allegations toward you.. " when dan failed to respond, she hesitantly continued. "surely you must have heard... it's all over the internet."

     before every award show, daniel had been prepped on how to act, look, walk, and speak while on the red carpet. he had spent countless hours receiving lectures on standing straight and how to avoid tripping. the amount of time he spent answering fake interview questions in preparation for the real ones was unfathomable, but he always excelled at it. he usually, if not always, had an answer to a question before the interviewer could finish saying it. that was before. he had not prepared an answer for a question like this, and he found himself at a loss for words.

     it took him a few moments before he found something to say. the interviewer was looking at him expectantly, pointing a microphone towards his face. the lights were still coming from every direction. they began to make him feel uneasy.

     "i haven't heard of any allegations lately, but i assure you, i've been so busy with filming and directing that i haven't had the time nor the mind to do anything that would cause such accusations."

     the reporter nodded, and daniel couldn't tell whether she believed him or not. he was telling the truth, though. he honestly had no idea what she was talking about. "thank you for your time, mr. howell, and we look forward to seeing you on stage tonight."

     as he walked off, the interview remained at the back of his mind, but he tried his best to clear any thoughts of it and told himself that he wasn't going to think about any allegations till after the ceremony. he was going to have a good time tonight, he'd decided. after all, this was his night.

     the red carpet was still swarming with paparazzi. he made sure to smile for the lights. he knew that in hollywood, the lights could ruin anyone's career. one bad photo could create problems for anyone. always smile for the lights.

     he continued walking down the carpet. no one else asked him about any allegations.