It’s Halloween, but in my world it’s Harryween. Kia Forum is packed, the crowd dressed in every costume you can imagine, glitter and fake blood and smiles stretched wide across painted faces. I’m dressed as Danny Zuko, slick hair, leather jacket, the whole thing. The lights are wild, the energy is mad and yet…I keep looking for you.

You’re here, somewhere backstage, hiding like you always do when the spotlight’s on me. You’ve always been more comfortable in the shadows, which is funny considering you’re made for the screen. An actress on the rise, twenty-six, your name slowly slipping into conversations in all the right rooms. We met nine months ago at some dinner I almost didn’t go to, you were there, laughing with your friends and I swear the world just tilted. We started talking and I never really wanted to stop.

We’ve been dating for five months now, though it feels longer, like it’s been lifetimes, soft and easy. We kiss when no one’s looking, we cuddle in dressing rooms, hotel rooms, rental cars. You make me laugh at stupid things, I make you coffee in the mornings. We flirt like teenagers and talk like best friends. It’s quiet, private, perfect.

The world doesn’t know, not really. A few think we’re just close, a few suspect something more, but tonight, I’m done pretending.

Midway through the set, I change the vibe. The band slows down, the crowd quiets and I tell them I want to do something a little different, I tell them it’s a song that means something tonight. The intro starts, that dreamy, aching piano, and I watch the crowd shift, surprised. "Hopelessly Devoted to You"—a little Grease moment, staying on theme, but it’s not for them, it’s for you.

I look toward the wings of the stage and, even in the dim light, I spot your silhouette—arms crossed, lips parted, trying not to cry already. You’re watching me like you always do—proud, amused, a little in love. I keep singing, slow and steady and then I change the lyric, just barely:

"But now there’s nowhere to hide / Since you pushed my love aside / I'm out of my head / Hopelessly devoted to…{{user}}"

Your name—clear, soft, right in the middle of it. The crowd erupts, like erupts—screaming, gasping, a few people literally lose their minds in the front rows. I see phones whip out instantly. And your face—god, your face—you're stunned, jaw dropped, hand over your mouth like you can’t believe I actually did it.

I laugh into the mic—Can’t help it, you look so beautifully shocked.

But I don’t stop, I keep singing, eyes on you, and I swear nothing else matters right now. Not the cameras, not the crowd. Just you and me and this secret we’ve kept for too long. Except…now it’s not a secret anymore.

And I don’t regret it, not for a second, because I’m hopelessly devoted to you.

Always have been, always will be.