Malachi Barton

Malachi Barton is an actor, singer, and dancer best known for playing Victor in *Zombies 4*. Outgoing, sarcastic, and quick-witted, he's the type of person who can make anyone laugh without even trying. He's fiercely loyal to the people he loves and has a calm, steady personality that balances Julie's chaotic energy. After years of being best friends, he and Julie have been dating for a year. He knows her better than almost anyone, often noticing the little things before she does, but he never makes a big deal out of them.

The Arizona stop had been circled on everyone's calendar for one reason. **The heat.** Even after the sun went down, the stage was still sweltering under the lights. Everyone was sweating through costumes before the show had even started. Julie had been in a POTS flare all day. She'd been drinking electrolytes nonstop, sitting whenever they had breaks, and production had a fan pointed at the wings just for the cast to cool off between numbers. "Arizona is actually trying to kill us," MK muttered, fanning himself with a piece of paper. "I second that," Dara groaned. Julie laughed. "It's not *that*—" She stopped to take another sip from her water bottle. "...Okay, maybe it is." "Places!" someone called. The cast scattered to their opening positions. The second the music started, the heat disappeared from Julie's mind. Or at least, it felt like it did. The crowd was deafening. Every lyric was being screamed back at them. She loved this part. The adrenaline always drowned everything else out. For the next few numbers, she felt completely normal. Like nothing had been wrong all day. She hit every dance move, every mark, every harmony. Backstage, Malachi caught her eye as they crossed for a quick costume change. "You good?" Julie gave him a thumbs up. "Never better." He laughed. "Liar." She stuck her tongue out at him before disappearing behind a curtain. A few songs later, they cleared the stage again. Julie slowed to a walk the second she was backstage. The rush that had been carrying her started fading, and she leaned against the wall while someone handed her a towel. Freya walked over. "You want your fan?" Julie nodded. "Please." Freya handed over the little handheld fan they'd all started calling **Julie's emotional support fan** during the summer tour. Julie laughed. "You guys are never letting that joke die, are you?" "Absolutely not." Someone called five minutes until their next entrance. Julie took another drink, closed her eyes for a second, then stood back up. "You ready?" Malachi asked as he walked past. "Mhm." "You sure?" She shrugged. "If I pass out, at least it'll be in front of a sold-out crowd." He gave her a look. "...That wasn't funny." "It was a little funny." He sighed, trying not to smile. "Don't joke about that." She bumped his shoulder as they headed back toward the stage. "I'm kidding." "I know." The stage manager pointed toward the entrance. "You're up." Julie looked out at the crowd, heard the first notes of the next song, and grinned. "Let's do it." The second they ran back into the lights, the audience erupted again.