Almost Famous

By Ryan Bartlett

Chapter 14

Cameron wasn’t kidding when he said it would be like a talk show. When they checked in at the breakout room where the interview was being set up they found a full staff of production assistants running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Someone clipped a microphone to Wiley’s shirt, they were led down a short tunnel, and then they heard Kevin’s distinct voice shout, “Give it up for the guys from Reality Bites!”

They walked out onto the stage and were met by a roaring crowd. There must have been hundreds of them, but Wiley couldn’t be sure because he was blinded by the stage lights. Kevin hugged everyone, and as they took their seats Cameron leaned over and asked, “Doing ok?”

“I’m a little nervous,” Wiley replied.

“Just relax. You’ll adjust and it’ll be fun,” said Cameron as he took Wiley’s hand.

The gesture sent an approving “Awwww,” out from the girls in the audience.

“That is cute,” said Kevin once the audience calmed down. “We have a new addition to the Reality Bites gang. Welcome, Wiley.”

“Thanks,” said Wiley with a shy smile. So much for sitting quietly and looking pretty.

“You’ll have to forgive him. He’s the strong silent type,” said Bobby, clapping Wiley on the back.

“I can vouch for the strong part,” Kevin told the audience. “I hugged this guy at the hotel this morning, and let me just say, Cameron, girlfriend, you are one lucky lady.”

The audience laughed and Cameron squeezed Wiley’s hand before he replied, “Yes, I am.”

“Now on the video in which you introduced Wiley to your subscribers you said you met at Comic Con?” asked Kevin.

“That’s right. We were both there for different reasons, and when we got stuck in that elevator together, we just clicked. It was fate.” Cameron turned to Wiley and smiled.

“Adorable,” Kevin gushed. “And Wiley, this is your first ever Playlist Live?”

“That’s right, Kevin.”

“How are you finding it so far?”

“It’s incredible. Everyone has been so nice. I can’t believe the reactions we’re getting from people or how supportive they seem to be of me and Cameron,” said Wiley. “Even the girl who blew her nose on my shirt.”

“Say what?” asked Kevin.

“He met his first weeper,” Cameron explained.

“Oh, been there, done that, baby,” said Kevin. “So Bobby, we know what Cameron’s been up to the last few months. Any new loves in your life?”

That’s how the interview went. Kevin spent the hour just having a conversation with the guys as though the audience wasn’t even there. Wiley had been a little nervous when the questions first started coming, but he fell into the moment and found that he was enjoying himself. He was almost disappointed when the hour wound down and Kevin asked the final question.

“As we wrap things up today, there’s only one last thing I can think to ask, and I’m sure it’s on everyone’s mind. Wiley, is Cameron a good kisser?” asked Kevin.

“Ohhhh,” the audience murmured.

“I think so,” said Wiley. “But you tell me.”

He put his hand behind Cameron’s head and drew him close, then kissed him softly on the lips. The crowd roared and clapped, and when the guys pulled apart Cameron had a bewildered look on his face.

“Woof, be still my heart,” said Kevin, fanning himself dramatically. “Alright, guys! Thank you for coming in today. Everyone, the guys will be taking part in many of the panels and group discussions throughout the weekend. Be sure to say hi and above all, if you haven’t already, subscribe to Reality Bites and their individual channels!”

Just like that the interview was over and the guys were heading off stage.

“I can’t believe you did that,” Cameron exclaimed once they were back in the holding area.

“I can’t either,” said Wiley. “I don’t know what came over me. Are you mad?”

“Hell no,” said Cameron. “You have great instincts. The audience loved it.”

“Yeah, they really did, didn’t they?” Wiley smiled.

“I told you, babe, you’re a crowd pleaser.” Cameron hugged him and pecked his lips, but Wiley held him and let the kiss linger.

“Tucker, have you seen my motion sickness bag. I think I’m going to heave,” said Bobby.

The guys were still enjoying their lip lock but both of them raised their hands and flipped Bobby the bird.




The rest of the convention went smoothly. There were several panels and discussions, and while Wiley attended most of them he did duck out of a few to take pictures. On Saturday night there was a concert by the Demons of the Crossroads, a band that had been touring the mountain west when a fan recorded the performance of their song, Navigator, and uploaded it to YouTube. Since then Navigator had over twenty million hits and the band was being showcased throughout the convention.

Wiley got some great shots of the band during their performance and even ran into their road manager. They’d spoken briefly, exchanged business cards, and Wiley promised to send him copies of the pictures he’d taken. Cameron and Wiley slept in after the concert; there wasn’t much scheduled for Sunday other than a meet and greet, which didn’t start until eleven anyway.



The meet and greet was simply that, an opportunity for the fans to line up and meet their favorite YouTubers. It was kind of like a book signing; the content creators were lined up on the convention floor, and the fans filed past to shake hands and have pictures taken. Everything was going fine until the meet and greet began to wrap up.

Wiley, Cameron, Bobby and Tucker where all within a few feet of each other along the lines with ten other YouTuber’s. Wiley was talking to a pair of girls about tennis while they took their picture and Cameron was approached by an odd looking boy in his late teens. His shirt was a bit too tight, his glasses incredibly thick and his cheeks scared by acne. He was the typical computer geek, but that didn’t stop Cameron from greeting him with the same warm smile he greeted every other fan with.

“Hello, what’s your name?” asked Cameron as the boy stepped up to him.

“Hi, I’m Nathan.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Nathan,” said Cameron, shaking his hand. “Thank you so much for coming out today. Have you been a subscriber for long?”

“Yeah,” said Nathan, holding onto Cameron’s hand and stepping uncomfortably close. Cameron was used to this kind of behavior though; he wasn’t worried. “I’ve seen all of your videos, I think you’re great.”

“Thank you so much. You have no idea how much that means to me.”

“I’m from LA too,” said Nathan, still holding on to Cameron’s hand.

“Great! I love it there. It’s such a big change from Vermont,” Cameron gushed. “Shall we take a picture?”

“No, I mean, yeah, it’s great,” said Nathan nervously, his palms beginning to sweat as he mumbled, “Will you go out with me?”

“Excuse me?” asked Cameron, not quite hearing him.

“We could go out sometime, maybe dinner or something.”

“Oh, that’s sweet, but you’ve seen my videos. I’m dating the big guy over there,” said Cameron, nodding his head at Wiley.

“Yeah, but forget about him. I was here first.”

“What?” asked Cameron as he pulled his hand from Nathan’s sweaty grasp.

“I’ve loved you since I first saw you, and it’s not fair for you to just date some hot blond guy because he’s hot and blond without giving me a chance,” said Nathan as he reached out and yanked Cameron’s forearm.

“Ouch,” Cameron winced. “Nathan, I’m sorry but it doesn’t work like that, and you need to let go of my arm, right now.”

“But, it’s not fair!”

Wiley heard Nathan shout and when he looked over he could see that Cameron was in distress. He left the girls he was chatting with and walked over to Cameron, putting his arm around his shoulders.

“Is there a problem here?” asked Wiley.

“We’re talking, go away,” said Nathan.

“I think we’re done talking,” said Wiley as he looked down and saw Nathan pull on Cameron’s forearm again.

“I’m not finished yet. He needs to go out with me…”

Wiley reached down and grabbed Nathan’s thumb. He bent it back sharply until the pain forced Nathan to let go, then he shoved him back and placed his body between Cameron and the out of control fan. Yani would have been proud.

“You need to leave, now,” Wiley ordered.

“I said I wasn’t done yet,” said Nathan as he tried to push past him.

“And I said you are,” said Wiley, shoving him back.

People were watching the altercation intently and someone had gone to get help. Nathan tried coming at Wiley again but this time a pair of security guards grabbed him and dragged him off. The crowd applauded their efforts and Wiley turned back to his boyfriend. Cameron wrapped his arms around him and buried his face in his chest. There were cameras and iPhones out everywhere recording the situation and Wiley didn’t want some asshole posting a video of Cameron crying, so he held him tight and quickly got him behind a curtain.

“It’s ok,” said Wiley, when they were alone.

“I’m ok,” said Cameron. He wasn’t crying, but his voice trembled when he spoke.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m alright, just, fuck, I’m glad you were here.” Cameron sighed.

“What the hell happened?”

“I don’t know really. One minute we were talking and yeah he seemed a little obsessive, but then he asked me out. I said no and he got all grabby,” said Cameron.

“I heard him shout and I saw you were in trouble,” said Wiley.

“Yeah, my heart’s still pounding.”

“It’s alright,” said Wiley, hugging him close.

“That was so scary. Nothing like that’s ever happened to me before.”

“Really?”

“I’ve dealt with weirdoes, but none that’s ever grabbed at me like that. I’m so glad you were here,” Cameron reiterated.

“Me too,” said Wiley, kissing the top of his head.

“You guys ok?” asked Tucker, sticking his head through the curtain.

“Yeah, we just needed a minute,” said Wiley.

“The Playlist guys are pretty pissed about what happened,” said Tucker. “That guy upset a lot of fans. They’re shutting down the meet and greet and getting a golf cart to take us back down to the hotel.”

“Alright,” said Cameron. “Let’s go home, ok?”

“You bet,” said Wiley, giving him a final squeeze then taking his hand and leading him back out onto the concourse.

When they stepped from behind the curtains the remaining fans clapped and cheered. Cameron smiled and graciously thanked everyone who came up to offer their support, but he was glad once they made it out to the waiting golf cart. It was a quick trip to the hotel, where they packed their bags, hopped in the car and headed for home.

When they got back to Cameron’s apartment, Wiley parked the car and took Cameron inside for a nap. He was impressed with how Cameron held up after the incident with Nathan, but Wiley knew it had been stressful and that rest was the best medicine.

No one spotted the green Honda Civic that followed them all the way home.

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