Broken

Thirty Three.

"Hey Sarah. Congratulations on the nominations." The commotion around me quieted. I could hear Jake talking perfectly clear. I shook myself out of staring at him.
"Thank y-you." I stuttered. A gorgeous woman stood next to him, holding his hand.
"This is my girlfriend, Jeanne Cadieu. Jeanne, this is Sarah Rose. She's..well..she's my—" Jake contorted his face nervously. I shook her hand firmly.
"I'm his ex-wife." The three of us laughed awkwardly. A hand resting on my bare back had my eyes meet with Chris.
"Hey Jake." Chris smiled, keeping his hand on my back and shook Jake's with his other. I pointed to Jeanne.
"Jeanne Cadieu, Jake's girlfriend. Jeanne, this is my boyfriend Chris Evans."

"Nice to meet you." She said, happily. She almost seemed relieved I have a boyfriend.
"It's nice to meet you, too." Chris politely replied. Jake mouthed 'boyfriend' to me. I nodded my head, smiling. A tap on my shoulder turned me around to Carrie.
"It's time to get to your seats." She said into my ear. I nodded to her then returned my eyes to Jake. I held out my arms in front of me.
"It was good to see you."
"You, too." He smiled wide and embraced me in a hug. "Good luck tonight." He said into my ear.
"Thank you."
"Good luck to both of you." Jake voiced to us as he released the hug.
"Thank you, Jake." Chris happily shook his hand. I waved at them then turned around to walk into the amphitheater. Carrie walked next to me.

"Is it really time to go inside?" I muttered to her. She only shook her head carefully for me to see. I scrunched my nose at her.
"Actually, we need the both of you to do some interviews." Megan said to us, pointing at the painfully long line of reporters and journalists.
"Together?" I asked her. Chris squeezes my hand tighter. I looked up to him. His smile gradually grew wider. I have never been excited to do interviews until now. Chris and I walked up to the first interviewer. Chris rest his arm around me, placing his hand on my side.

"Sarah Rose and Chris Evans are here! Hello, you two. Amber Martin, Entertainment Tonight. You are both glowing!"
"Thank you! It's been an incredible night." Chris replied.
"Absolutely! Sarah, you're nominated for Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress. Chris, you're nominated for Best Director. Best Motion Picture. The Tom's are nominated for Best Actor and Supporting Actor. How are you two so calm?" Chris and I giggled and exchanged glances.
"I'm screaming on the inside. I'm glad it's not apparent on the outside." I admitted.
"Not at all! You look amazing tonight!" Amber commented. I thanked her bashfully. Chris pulled me closer to him by my waist. Carrie tapped the back of my arm. "You guys are a beautiful couple. Have a great time tonight and good luck!"
"Thank you so much." Chris said, shaking her hand as we moved to the next interviewer.

We eventually finished the numerous interviews with the same questions: how excited we were to be there, what will we be doing if we win any of the awards, which designer I was wearing.
The Tom's met up with us inside at the front row of the theatre. I hugged them and hugged Charlotte like I didn't just see them for photo opts on the red carpet. My nerves must have been getting the best of me. Finally sitting down made me realize my angry feet were also getting the best of me too.
I stared at the stairs that led up to the stage. I counted quietly to myself. Chris' little chuckle brought my eyes to him.

"What are you doing?" He asked, bringing my hands into his.
"I'm counting the stairs. If I have to go up there, I don't want to fall." I laughed with him explaining my plan.
"Baby, I'm right here. I'll catch you."
"You're here now but you're not always going to be there to catch me." I whispered, smiling uncontrollably. He cupped the side of my face with his hand.
"I'm your band-aid, remember?" I pouted my bottom lip at him. He chuckled again and brought his lips to mine.

"Ewww! Get a room!" A voice said to us. I laughed and looked up at the voice to see Bradley Cooper laughing. I bounced in my seat.
"Oh, my god! Coops! I haven't seen you in years!" I beamed. He lowered his body to my level to hug me the best he could. He released the hug and hugged Chris, patting his back.
"Chris! My man!" Bradley and Chris talked about how long it had been since they last saw each other at the Avengers Endgame premieres. Bradley turned his attention back to me. "Sarah, we have known each other for so long. I wanted to personally tell you myself about how I enjoyed every moment of the film. Your performance was astounding. Whether you win or lose..we all hope you win.." I giggled softly with the tears building in my eyes. "..you have won the hearts of everyone with your talent. Don't let anything stop you." I covered my mouth with my hand and stood up to give him a hug.
"Thank you, Brad. That means so much to me." We hugged each other tighter. He held me in front of him by my arms. An announcement echoed throughout the theatre that the show would be starting in five minutes. We hugged again quickly to return to our seats.

The show was entertaining and glamorous. I tried to allow it to be a distraction but every time a new presenter spoke on the stage, I squeezed Chris' hand or thigh. When they would announce a different category, I would release him from my intense grip. He never complained once. He would only kiss my forehead or back of my hand.
We applaud the winners of Documentary Feature as they walked off stage. Two cameramen appeared in front of me. I swallowed the lump in my throat. One of the cameraman explained to me what will happen after I'm announced for the nomination and the scene plays on the big screens all over the theatre. I only managed to nod my head. I remembered what Mykie told me. Fluff the curls. Six steps. Fluff the curls. Six steps.

"The nominees for Outstanding Supporting Actress are." Amy Poehler said from the stage. Both Tom's and Chris hyped me up by shaking my arms. I fluffed my curls. I watched the first nominees and applauded them.
"Am I last?" I asked the cameramen. They nodded their heads simultaneously. "Of course I'm last. Of course." I babbled. I took in a deep breath. Finally, my name was announced and the scene played on the screens. The camera's red light turned on as we watched the scene. They had to pick this scene. My face was swollen, bruised and bloody. Tears and snot running down to my neck. I winced at the scene. The cameraman pointed to me which meant the shot was completely on me. I smiled as Chris and the Tom's hyped me up again.

"And the Oscar goes to.." Maya Rudolph began. I stretched my arm across Tommy to reach for Tom to hold his hand. Tommy held onto my arm. Chris held onto my hand with both of his hands. I closed my eyes. "Sarah Rose, The Boss!" My name repeated in my head. The Tom's leaped from their seats. I covered my mouth with my hands and opened my eyes. Chris stood up and held out his hand. I accepted the help up from my seat. I hugged the Tom's. I turned back around to cup Chris' face with my hands and kiss him. He held out his arm. Six steps. One, two, three, four, five, six. I walked up to Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph and Tiny Fey. I hugged each one of them then was handed the award by Amy Poehler. I walked up the microphone. The lights were bright enough to not see the entire theatre, only the first row.

"This is surreal." I said into the microphone. The applauding faded. "Thank you to the Academy. The other nominees. You all are inspirational and magnificent women. It is an honor to have been recognized alongside you all." I tightened my grip around the award and smiled at the Tom's "Tommy and Tom. Thank you both for giving your everything into this film. This was a once in a lifetime experience to work with both of you." I giggled at the Tom's excitingly clapping up to me. "To my dad.. I think you're over there?" I pointed to the left side of the theatre then blocked the bright lights with my hand. My dad stands up and yells from his seat. My eyes tear up. I wave my hand at him. "Hi dad!" Everyone laughs at his yelling. "You never give up on me. You push me to be better every day. I'm lucky to have you as my dad." I shifted my eyes to Chris as everyone applauded again. "Chris.." Our eyes met. My lip quivered seeing the tears build in his eyes. "..you are my best friend. If there's one thing I can have from this whole experience: the very beginning on paper to the very end here on this stage accepting this award, it would be having you in my life. I love you." Chris mouthed 'I love you'. I held up the award. "Thank you!" The tears fell from my eyes as I walked off stage.