"End of beginning"

Real life

And just like that it was all over, nah I'm just messing with you.

Today was New Year's Eve,the rooftop of the West Hollywood loft felt like something out of a dream. a place where time slowed down, and everything shimmered. Lights floated above like stars caught in string, wrapped between heaters and low-hanging lanterns. Potted ferns lined the edges, half-decorative, half to block the winter chill. Music pulsed from a Bluetooth speaker someone had wedged behind a planter, muffled but loud enough to dance to.

Zia stood at the balcony's edge, fingers curled around a glass of apple cider garnished with a cinnamon stick, Harper's idea. Her velvet dress was deep navy, clinging and elegant, the kind of thing stylists usually helped her pick out. But tonight wasn't about stylists or red carpets or stage lighting.

Tonight was about people who knew her before the fame.

Behind her, the party stirred an ensemble of her real life: Leah with her dramatic story-telling hand gestures, Cami laughing so hard she had to lean on a couch, Bria, Aryan, and Nariah dancing in their socks to avoid slipping on the cold wood planks. Mason stood by the fire pit, roasting a marshmallow with absolutely no urgency, chatting casually with McKenna, who kept sneaking glances at her phone between sarcastic remarks.

Zia let her eyes close briefly. The air smelled like citrus and bonfires, and the breeze off the city made her feel awake in a way even filming never quite did.

"Are you going to do your dramatic balcony speech?" asked a familiar voice behind her. "Because I was promised something Oscar-worthy."

She didn't have to turn to know who it was.

"Only if you promise to cry on cue," she replied, already smiling.

Walker leaned beside her, his party hat barely staying on his head. He'd dressed like he wasn't trying, but somehow looked like he could be in a Calvin Klein ad—blonde hair tousled, black hoodie under a charcoal coat, his favorite boots laced loosely. His breath misted slightly in the cold air.

"I could cry right now," he said, giving her a sideways glance. "This cider's not even good."

Zia laughed softly and offered her glass. "Want a sip of mine? Harper added extra cinnamon. Very mature flavor."

He took a sip, made a face, then pretended to collapse dramatically against the balcony railing. "You're trying to kill me."

"You're still standing," she teased.

His voice softened. "Barely. I'm still recovering from missing you all week."

Zia raised an eyebrow. "You FaceTimed me every night."

"It's not the same," he said simply.

And somehow, that made her heart squeeze a little.

They stood in silence for a moment, overlooking the city lights stretching toward the horizon. Zia could see tiny flashes in the distance illegal fireworks already being tested before midnight. Something inside her chest felt both full and floaty.

"This year felt like a movie," she admitted quietly.

Walker looked at her. "Good movie or scary movie?"

"Both."

"Definitely had the rising-star montage," he said. "You were everywhere."

"Too everywhere sometimes."

He leaned on the railing beside her. "You know, I think you handled it better than most people I know. You never stopped being you. Even when you were flying city to city and people were asking who designed your shoes."

Zia chuckled. "They were mine, for the record. No stylist. I panic-bought them at a thrift store."

"And you still made the cover of Teen Vogue. That's power."

She looked at him, and her voice softened. "You always make me feel like I'm doing okay. Even when I'm not sure."

Walker met her gaze and gently touched her hand. "You are doing okay. You're doing better than okay."

Behind them, the music shifted to a nostalgic early-2000s track, and Harper's unmistakable voice rose above the beat.

"GROUP PHOTO IN FIVE! EVERYONE WHO WANTS TO BE ICONIC, GET OVER HERE!"

"Duty calls," Zia said with a grin, brushing her hand along his as she turned.

He stopped her gently by the fingers. "Hey... can I say something before we go back in?"

Zia looked up, surprised at the change in his tone.

"Of course."

Walker scratched behind his ear his nervous habit. "I know this year changed a lot. For both of us. And I know next year might be even crazier. But I just want you to know... no matter what changes, I'm here. Whether I'm filming in Canada or you're winning some insane award, I'm here. For all of it. For you."

Her breath caught. It wasn't grand or overly poetic but it was real, and that meant more than any pre-written love letter ever could.

"Thank you," she said softly. "You have no idea how much I needed to hear that."

Walker smiled, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "I kind of did."

They rejoined the group just in time for Harper to direct them all into an awkward cluster near the glowing outdoor fire pit. Cami, Aryan, and Leah were wearing oversized paper glasses that read 2025. Nariah and Bria had glitter on their cheeks. Mason, not to be outdone, had on a light-up bowtie he insisted was vintage. McKenna held up a sparkler, deadpan.

"Five minutes to midnight!" Harper shouted, checking the countdown on her phone. "We need confetti, we need angles, we need-"

"Less pressure!" Mason interrupted, already halfway through a bag of chips.

Laughter bubbled through the group like champagne. The energy was buzzing now, brighter, more electric. The moment was closing in.

As the final minute began, Zia instinctively found Walker's hand again. He squeezed it gently.

"Thirty seconds!" Harper yelled.

The group's voices started rising, overlapping in a mix of jokes, noise, and chaotic counting.

Zia turned to Walker, barely hearing it all. She looked at him not as the boy on red carpets, not as the rising actor, but just him. The guy who knew her. Who saw her.

"Fifteen seconds!"

Walker was already watching her, like he had been for minutes.

"Ten!"

Fireworks crackled faintly in the distance. Bria was screaming the numbers now, Mason was off by one, and Cami was filming it all sideways.

"Nine... Eight..."

The city stretched out around them. Sky blooming with color.

"Seven... Six... Five..."

Zia's heart thudded in rhythm with the countdown.

"Four... Three..."

Time slowed.

"Two..."

Walker leaned in.

"One, HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

The rooftop exploded into cheers, laughter, screams of celebration.

And in the middle of it all, Zia kissed him.

Fireworks burst behind them, casting golden light across their skin. Confetti drifted like snow. His hands cradled her face gently, her arms around his neck. It wasn't a rushed kiss, or a shy one, it was the kind of kiss that said: I'm here. I'm yours. We're in this together.

They pulled apart only when the world around them grew louder.

"Best kiss of 2025 already," Walker said, a little breathless.

Zia grinned. "Well, we set the bar pretty high."

Nearby, someone launched a mini firework from a bottle, and Harper screamed something about copyright laws. McKenna tossed a sparkler at Mason, who barely caught it. Leah and Bria were attempting to get a second group photo while everyone was moving.

And Zia? She looked around at her friends, her found family. She held onto Walker's hand. And for the first time in a long time, she wasn't thinking about where she had to be next, or who was watching, or whether she was doing enough.

For once, she was just here. Fully, completely, wonderfully here.

CLEM SPEAKS
Okay so I'm currently crying hard rn
Thank all of you guys SO much
I made this book in the summer last year now I'm finishing it in the summer this year
This one year has been amazing and I'm so glad I got to share it with so many people
Now this is the end of the book and I'm so grateful I got to share Zia's story with you all
and yes dw I am making more books, this chaotic?? Absolutely not.
This was the first book I ever made but it might be the best one
𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑘𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑜𝑛𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑣𝑜𝑡𝑒💕
-𝓒𝓵𝓮𝓶💕

THE ENDDD
or is it?