Day two of VlogCon meant that Clark was going to be speaking on a diversity panel. Although public speaking wasn't his strongest suit, he recognized a lot of familiar names on the panel with him and he didn't feel so much pressure to be his best. Their personalities were all laid back, which in turn made him calm as well. Ruby was sleeping in today so he and Jenna met up an hour before it was time to be on stage and grabbed a cup of coffee. They sat at one of the small tables in the hotel's café.

"How excited are you?" she asked him. She stirred her cappuccino with a straw before putting the lid back on it.

"Kind of excited, kind of nervous. That's been my motto all day," he chuckled.

"Well, you have nothing to be nervous about. I think the best part of this convention is getting to talk about our experiences. You get to hear so many different stories about interactions with fans. And since I'll never know what it's like to be black and on YouDoo, it's important that I listen to some of the other panel members."

"I can't wait to hear what your experiences are," Clark admitted. Jenna more than likely had a lot of stories to tell. Not only was she Chinese, but she was also part of the LGBT community, just as Clark was.

"Likewise! I think it's really cool how fast YouDoo channels are growing. When I first started, it took me like, a year to get one hundred thousand views. And now newer vloggers are pulling those numbers like it's nothing. The amount of viewers on YouDoo now is unbelievable." Clark nodded in agreement. He'd seen a few faces around who had started their channel this year and had a following of half a million already. It was easy to be jealous of those numbers, but instead he encouraged those people to continue. It was an unspoken rule that vloggers had to support one another. Most of the time, at least.

"You know, I was wondering how I would ask you, but I figured the easiest way to do it is to just be up front. Would you want to make a video of some kind together? It can be like a two-parter or it can be the both of us in the same video. I'm really not picky, I would just love to work with you since I've been a fan for so many years."

"Oh my god, yes," she exclaimed. "I was going to ask you the same thing!"

"Really?" Clark was shocked that someone of her caliber wanted to create something with him. It was like a high end store creating a line of clothing with a shop on Ebay.

"Really! I would love to make something with you for your video."

"And we can come up with some relationship tips or something for yours!" he said.

"That's perfect! Here, I'll give you my number." She scribbled down her phone number on a pad of paper in her purse and tore it free. Clark folded it up and placed it in his wallet. "Whenever you get some free time back in California, hit me up and we'll put something together."

"Definitely," Clark said, smiling like an idiot. This was better than talking to the hottest guy in the world. His heart fluttered and he could barely keep his composure. He was finally getting to work with one of his biggest role models.

Once the two had finished their coffee and the hour was drawing to a close, they headed inside the convention center and searched for the proper room. It was quite easy to find. Clark and Jenna sat next to one another, Clark being at the end of the table. He looked around at the hundreds of faces staring back at him expectantly and he swallowed hard. Having never done a single fan meet-up or meet and greet back home, having so many people listen to him talk was intimidating. Jenna could sense his nerves and offered a reassure smile.

A woman in a black shirt came up to him and hooked something onto the collar of his shirt. He pulled back instinctively but laughed in embarrassment when he realized it was just a microphone so that he could be heard throughout the room. That same woman placed a YouDoo button on the table in front of each of the panel members. He picked it up and examined it before pinning it to his jacket. It was a lot heavier than he anticipated, but he adjusted it so that it sat more comfortably.

Gabrielle, the moderator, took a seat in one of the chairs a few feet away from the table and cleared her throat. The seconds were counting down until it was time, and she opened a compact mirror to check her makeup one last time. Someone backstage gave her a nod and she turned to the audience, a large smile on her face.

"Welcome to YouDoo's third annual VlogCon! Today, I'm joined with eight very recognizable faces. They range from sixteen to thirty-three, and collectively, they've accumulated nearly thirty million subscribers as of today! It is my honor to introduce you to our diversity panel. From the left, we have Allan Newcomb, Lashawn Harvey, Meredith Grey, Craig Winfrey, Antonia Barrow, Sun Yoon, Jenna DeBarge, and Clark St. Murphy! Let's give each of them a big hand for joining us today!"

Clark waved out to the audience and smiled bashfully. Hearing the audience cheer for him and the other eight panelists made his heart skip a beat. Never did he think he'd see so many people openly love him.

"They're something else, aren't they?" Gabrielle said, sliding the top notecard to the back of the pile. "I think we should just get right to it and start at the beginning. Allan, give us a little background about your YouDoo history. How did you get to be where you are today?"

Clark listened to each story intensely, enamored by all the variety of ways people found the site and used it to become so much bigger than they were before. When it was his turn, he made a nervous face and cleared his throat.

"Uh – well, I'd just like to first say that my story will never be as cool as Sun's," he said. The audience chuckled. "My story's pretty boring, actually. I first started filming videos when I was little. My dad's a director, so I grew up watching him create this awesome stories on screen. I decided really young that I wanted to do something similar. I think the first video I actually made was when I was around seventeen or so. I'd had someone at school bully me that day and I came home and just vented about it. I never intended to publish it, but when I showed my friend Ruby, she told me the world needed to see this kind of video. So, I took her advice and put it up on YouDoo.

"At first nothing really came of it. I got like, seventy views, and I called it quits. It wasn't until about a month later that I decided to make a video tutorial about how to turn a blanket into a cardigan for my friend in Kansas. That was my first video to get really big, I think. It was surreal how many people watched that. It was featured on the website for a long time, too. And it was literally just me cutting up a blanket and poking myself with sewing needles," he laughed. "From there, I just started making more things, talking about high school, how to handle bullying, all that kind of stuff. Life got really hard for me for a minute there, and YouDoo truly helped me get through some of the hardest times in my life. I'm so thankful for every one of you who's subscribed to my channel and shown me love. It means the world to me."

The audience filled the room with claps and cheers, and Clark swiped his eyes. Crying on stage was a bit too dramatic for him.

"That's amazing that you were able to reach so many people with your advice and all your DIY projects," Gabrielle grinned. She continued on with the questions for forty-five minutes, bouncing around between the panelists. Once her questions were done, she had one of the volunteers set up a microphone in the middle of the room for fan questions.

The first girl to step up had auburn pigtails and wore a Supernatural shirt. "Lashawn, how long does it take you to style your hair on any given day?" Lashawn's perfectly sculpted eyebrows went up and he leaned in close to the microphone.

"All day, hunty," he replied, laughing with the girl. Clark cracked a smile as well. Undoubtedly, the girl had wanted to hear his catchphrase. The next person to the microphone looked at Clark.

"Clark, I know you've talked a lot about the good things that have happened to you since you started your channel, but I was wondering, what are some of the downfalls? Did you ever get that stalker situation cleared up?"

"Uh..." Clark was caught off guard by the tail end of his question. "I – well, the only downside that I can think of is that I can never turn my brain off when it comes to videos. I'm always thinking and planning for the next one."

"And the stalker?" he asked.

"I'd rather not go into detail about that," Clark said quietly. The fan began to ask the question again, but one of the volunteers guided him away from the microphone. A teenage girl walked up next and greeted everyone on the panel.

"Hi, Clark, I just wanted to tell you that I love you so much and I'm so happy that we get to see you here today. My question is how scary it was when you found out someone was stalking you? Like, I know I'd be super terrified if—"

"Again," Clark said, trying not to sound annoyed, "I'd rather not go into detail. I'll happily take another question, though." When the girl stumbled over her words and changed her mind, Clark said, "Sorry," quietly. He felt like covering his face with a hand and looking somewhere else. Suddenly all of those eyes on him didn't feel as great. They wanted to know about his current situation, even if it meant making him uncomfortable. Clark was almost thankful to see a grown man come up to the podium. He had to be a fan of one of the older panelists.

"Clark," the familiar voice started, "I was wondering how you've been sleeping. Did you bring your favorite teddy bear with you? This one?" The man reached into his bag and pulled out Clark's favorite bear, Furface.

"That's... where'd you get that?"

"From your bedroom. I know that you always end up cuddling with him in the middle of the night, so I figured you might miss him out here."

"Uh, that's... that's sweet?" Gabrielle laughed nervously. One of the volunteers tried leading the man from the microphone, but he stayed put, pushing her away.

"I brought him because I love you, Clark. I told you on the phone when you were getting on your flight. I made you all of those pretty pictures. I love you, so so much. Do you love me back?" He laughed darkly and dropped the bear on the ground. With one hand, he snatched the microphone from the stand and walked straight up to the stage. Someone let out a piercing scream when the lights cut out, and soon a choir of terrified shrieks filled the room.

Over the cries of fear, Clark could hear his own voice, projected through the sound system. It took him only a moment to realize that the sound clips came from various videos of his, all spliced together to form one sentence that repeated on a loop.

"Hi guys – I'm Clark – I – love – him – he loves – me."

"Hi guys – I'm Clark – I – love – him – he loves – me."

"Hi guys – I'm Clark – I – love – him – he loves – me."

Clark shot up from his seat, blind as a bat. He could hear the chaos of the room around him. People used their cellphones as forms of light, albeit weak ones. Someone bumped into Clark and he fell from the stage, crashing down onto the floor. A sharp pain shot up his ankle and he stifled a sob of pain. He tried putting pressure on it only to wince and ease up.

"Nakota!" he screamed, crawling through the room on his hands and knees. Someone's shin crashed into his nose and he gasped, clutching his face in pain. "Nakota!"

"Clark!" It wasn't Nakota's voice. It was his. He carried the microphone with him, calling out Clark's name, laughing as he searched for him. A foot came crunching down on Clark's fingers and he finally let his tears fall, cupping his wounded hand tenderly. Panic festered in his stomach like disease, and the all-encompassing darkness pressed heavy on his body. Clark continued crawling through the madness, calling out for Nakota. He made it to the middle of the room, the aisle between both sides of chairs. His eyes had adjusted well enough to see just enough, and at the end of the aisle, he could make out the shape of a man.

It was him. The man turned around and his face was illuminated by the hundreds of phones being used as flashlights. He wore and eerie smile that flickered, disappearing with every passing person, only to return moments later. Clark watched him begin walking forward, stalking towards him. He pushed himself backwards and began crawling away from him. Someone grabbed him by the shoulder and yanked him up. Clark swung a fist into the person's gut.

"Stop, it's me," Nakota gasped, the wind knocked out of him.

"Sorry," Clark said, trying to balance on his twisted ankle. He looked back at the man still walking towards them.

"We have to go, right n—"

"Get down," Clark cried, grabbing Nakota's shirt and dropping to his knees. Nakota fell with him, and the two hit the floor just as a gun went off. 

Pandemonium. 

The nervous screams from before had evolved into blood-curdling howls. Before the man could shoot at them again, Clark and Nakota dove before the safety of row G. They scrambled through the seats, Clark's heart pounding in his ears. As they made a run for the door, a hole appeared in the metal. Clark stopped in his tracks and looked back at the man.

"Clark, you can't leave me. I'll always know exactly where you are, because I love you. And you love me. You even said you did," the man crooned into the microphone. Clark covered his ears, blocking out the sound of his voice in the speakers.

"Hi guys – I'm Clark – I – love – him – he loves – me."

Nakotadragged him outside and scooped him up with ease. He took off towards the back exit,shouldering through the door and booking it to his car.    

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