TREVOR
“What if one of those awful right-wing groups shows up to protest?” Skyler asks nervously, breaking the last five minutes of silence in the back of the limo.
Not that he’s seen it himself yet, but from the parts of the script he’s read with Skyler, he’s sure it’s going to be great. And how could anyone not be charmed by a cartoon version of Skyler?
“They will. Your fans are going to love it. So many children are going to love it. And you know there’s no point in trying to please the homophobes, right? All we can do is ignore them, let them be miserable, and continue being who we are.”
“It’s not only that,” Skyler says quietly. “I know it’s an animated film, and I’m only voice acting. But it’s still acting, which is something I haven’t done since I was a teenager.”
Oh. Trevor feels like an ass for not picking up on this sooner.
He knows Skyler’s worried about the perception of the movie because it’s a queer children’s movie, and doing a good job was so important to him because he wanted to present a character that queer children could feel represented by.
But naturally, Skyler wants his acting ability to stand on its own, too.
“Baby, I spent hours reading lines with you,” Trevor reminds him. “And you are a fantastic actor. I’m sure you did an amazing job. I can’t wait to watch the film tonight and get to see everything come to life.”
Skyler nods, but his body still shows signs of tension. Trevor hasn’t really seen him like this since way back at the beginning of the band days, when he would freak out right before a performance or an interview.
But Trevor hasn’t forgotten what to do. He slips his hand from Skyler’s so that he can move it up and wrap it firmly around the nape of Skyler’s neck.
The effect is immediate. Skyler takes a deep breath, and then his body relaxes. Everything about him softens. Especially his gorgeous green eyes when he looks at Trevor. “I love you so fucking much.”
“I love you too, baby. And if you get on that red carpet and start feeling like you don’t belong there, you can just think about the fact that you have a star tattooed on your ass cheek.”
Skyler’s joyful laughter bursts out of him, and Trevor’s glad he could bring some levity here. But he wants Skyler to know how serious he is too.
“You’ve always been my star,” he says, rubbing his thumb up and down along the back of Skyler’s neck. “And you always will be.”
“Thank you.” Skyler leans over and kisses him, his tongue slipping briefly inside Trevor’s mouth before he pulls away.
Trevor takes his hand again. “Really though, I want you to remember one thing. No matter what happens tonight, I’ll be by your side the entire time.
And after the event is over, you’ll still be my husband, and I’ll still love you.
And then we’ll get to go home to where it’s only you and me, and nobody else’s opinions can touch us there. ”
Skyler gazes at him for a few moments, his eyes brimming with love. Then he asks, “How do you always know the perfect thing to say?”
“I think that’s just the magic of being with your soulmate.”
A goofy grin takes over Skyler’s face. “Because you and me, we’re a beautiful symphony. Lovestruck serenades, your heart sings to me.”
Trevor gives a fake groan. “And then you have to listen to your soulmate being cheesy and quoting his own song lyrics to you.”
“Yup,” Skyler says happily. “And it’s all I wanna hear for the rest of my life, the sounds of our sweet soulmate symphony.”
“Me too, baby,” Trevor tells him truthfully. “Me too.”
The rest of the limo ride is filled with kisses and private laughter. They’ll be facing the world tonight, and they’ll get to be themselves, get to show off their love. But this right here—who they are in the little moments—is what really matters.
Trevor steps out of the limo first to the shouts and the camera flashes.
The media circus is waiting for Skyler, but photographers are clearly not opposed to getting shots of him too.
Turning back to the limo, Trevor extends his hand to help Skyler out of it.
The shouts grow louder and more enthused as Skyler emerges, looking absolutely stunning in a long-sleeved, dark purple, suede jumpsuit.
He smiles broadly, effortlessly spinning around as his name is called out from different directions.
There’s no trace of the nerves he showed Trevor on the ride.
Hand-in-hand, they walk the red carpet, until someone in charge asks Skyler to step forward so the cameras can get a few shots of him alone.
But Trevor stays close waiting for him, and when they’re instructed to keep moving, Skyler reaches his hand back and Trevor takes it, stepping up to his side again.
Up front by the theater, Trevor is allowed to stay beside Skyler for more photos, and even for a few quick interviews. Skyler continues to grin like he doesn’t have a care in the world as he graciously answers the media’s questions. And the whole time, Trevor is there by his side. Like he promised.
Just like he should’ve been right from the beginning, if so many people hadn’t worked so hard to prevent that. At least now, finally, he can support his husband publicly and proudly. They don’t have to hide their love like it’s something shameful.
This is the way things were always meant to be.
After they’re dismissed to make room for the next celebrity, Trevor and Skyler head to the lounge for the pre-show cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and mingling.
Trevor chats with a few people, but mostly, he just stands back watching with awe and pride at the way Skyler can captivate anyone, simply by being himself.
It’s not like he didn’t already know Skyler could do that.
Even as a teenager, Skyler’s presence captivated Trevor immediately, didn’t it?
But it’s still an incredible thing to witness.
Especially in a setting like this, where he knows Skyler feels at least a little bit out of his comfort zone.
Where the majority of the guests are from the film industry, not the music industry.
Considering this is an animated film, Trevor didn’t expect the event to be so star-studded. He knows there’s a couple of big-name actors in the cast, but he’s surprised at all the other well-known actors not associated with the film who are here tonight.
Skyler introduces Trevor to his costar, Ryan Brinkley, who’s been working as a Broadway performer for the past few years.
This is his first film role. Trevor has only heard one song from The Prince’s Journey so far—a duet between Skyler and Ryan that the director sent to Skyler—but that was enough for him to gauge how talented of a singer Ryan is.
When he tells the man as much, Ryan blushes and casts his eyes downward.
“Thank you. But we all know who the star of this movie is. I swear I almost pissed myself when I heard I got cast alongside Skyler James.” He lifts his head and manages to send a weak smile Skyler’s way.
“Eighteen-year-old me definitely would have.”
Trevor can’t tell if Ryan’s admiration for Skyler is strictly on a professional level, or if there’s a bit of a crush lurking behind it too.
He wouldn’t be mad if there was—he couldn’t blame the guy—but he’d also like to prevent the conversation from veering in that direction before it gets awkward.
Skyler just laughs though. “And eighteen-year-old me probably would’ve pissed myself if I found out I’d be working with a Broadway star. I was a major theater kid before I ended up in Boys Will Be Boys.”
“I’m certainly not a star,” Ryan replies, shrugging one shoulder as if to downplay his talent. “The highest I’ve made it is fourth on the cast sheet.”
“I bet you’ll be landing some lead roles after this,” Skyler tells him. Then, gesturing around the room, he asks, “Unless you want to keep working in film instead of Broadway?”
Ryan shrugs again. “I think I’ll probably go back to Broadway, but my agent is going to try to get me more auditions for film roles too. I’d be down for anything as long as I get to sing.”
And here, Trevor steps in. “Have you ever considered singing on its own as an option?”
“What do you mean?” Ryan asks him with a slight downturn of his mouth.
Trevor pulls out his wallet, rifles through to find a business card, then hands it to him.
“I’m not sure if you know that I own a record label.
I can’t promise you anything. I’ve only heard one of your songs, but like I said, your voice is great.
If you’re interested in the idea of potentially making an album, we should talk more. ”
Ryan’s eyes go wide. “Wow, damn. Um. I mean, yeah. Maybe. I’ve never really thought about it, honestly. I’m afraid I’m not a songwriter.”
“Not a requirement,” Trevor assures him. While his preference is for working with artists who write at least some of their own music, he could easily work with ones who don’t. He’s already been hiring some very talented songwriters to help his artists, and he still enjoys writing himself.
And he hasn’t had the chance to help shape an artist in that way yet. To work with someone in finding the right genre of music, the right types of songs to highlight their voice, and to pair them with songwriters who will give them lyrics they connect with. It might be cool to try it.
“Well, I’ll definitely keep this in mind,” Ryan says, smiling shyly as he tucks the card into his back pocket. “Thank you again.”
After Ryan wanders off a minute later, Skyler turns to grin at Trevor, nudging him in the side with his elbow. “Look at you networking. That was hot. My super sexy, bigshot businessman label owner.”
Trevor snorts. “Is that what I am?”
“Mmhmm.” Skyler grabs his hand and raises it between them to kiss the back of it. “You were already super sexy before you started the label, of course. But watching you pass out your business card makes me wanna drag you off and find the bathroom.”
“And what would you plan on doing with me in there?” Trevor asks playfully.
“Oh, I can think of so many things.”
Trevor brings their hands up to his own mouth to give Skyler’s a kiss. “As fun as that sounds, I’d rather you not get kicked out of your first Hollywood premiere before the screening even starts.”
Skyler pretends to consider this. “I dunno. Might be worth it.”
“Behave,” Trevor warns him.
That makes Skyler groan quietly and duck his head into Trevor’s shoulder. “Don’t use that voice on me. It’s not going to help discourage me.”
Laughing, Trevor pats him on the back. “Come on. Let’s find some more people for you to charm the pants off of.”
“Still not helping,” Skyler mumbles, but he follows Trevor’s lead as they head over toward a small group of celebrities neither of them has met yet.
Pretty soon, someone makes an announcement directing everyone to head into the theater and take their seats.
An usher leads Skyler and Trevor to theirs, and as they get settled, it appears Skyler’s nerves have returned.
He starts fidgeting with his ring again, his knee bouncing in the dimly lit theater.
Trevor knows Skyler wouldn’t want anyone else to see him like this, so he quickly places his hand around the back of Skyler’s neck.
“Magic,” Skyler sighs out as he stills. And when Trevor removes his hand a few moments later, Skyler reaches for it, drawing it into his lap where he can trace over the tiny, tattooed S that sits in the space between Trevor’s thumb and index finger.
Trevor lets him keep playing with his hand as the director stands up in front of the screen and says a few words, thanking everyone for their hard work on the film. Then the man sits down in the front row, and a few moments later, the movie starts.
Seeing Skyler as an animated character is surreal.
Even though Skyler only provided the voice, it’s clear that the artists modeled the character’s look after Skyler.
Trevor joked a while ago, when Skyler first got the role, that he might end up attracted to a cartoon version of him.
And, well... he won’t say he’s actually attracted to the cartoon, but the character is gorgeous. Just like the man who inspired it.
The movie is just as good as he expected it to be. Not that children’s movies are his favorite, but the message is important. The representation matters. The prince’s character is unabashedly queer from the start, and the king and queen accept him fully, which is so refreshing to see.
Trevor’s not ashamed to admit he almost tears up at the emotional plotline. At the way the prince pursues the peasant boy, but the boy needs to learn how to embrace his own sexuality the way the prince has before he’s ready to face the kingdom as the prince’s love.
As he watches the movie, Trevor can’t help sneaking constant glances at Skyler, whose face is lit up with a combination of joy and awe the entire time. And that makes Trevor so happy. His baby deserves this.
By the time the movie ends, though, and they’ve made their way over to the afterparty, Trevor is sort of ready to be done socializing and just get home where he can relax.
But this is Skyler’s night, so he forces himself to perk up.
He fulfills his role of the doting husband without complaint—because that’s truly what he is—but still, he’s relieved when Skyler decides he’s had enough and is ready to go.
They’re both a little tipsy at this point, and if this were ten years ago, they might have started fooling around in the back of the limo on the way home.
Now, they’re too mature for that. Although that doesn’t stop Skyler from placing his hand obscenely high on Trevor’s thigh and teasing him with it for the entire ride.
But it’s okay. When they get home, Trevor will make him pay for that in a way they’ll both enjoy.