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It wasn’t often that Zoe thought about her highschool days. Well, alright, it wasn’t often that she thought about her highschool days other than her time spent with her friend group, still going strong after all this time, who could have guessed. No, the times Zoe thought about her time in highschool rarely involved memoires outside of sweaty cheer practices and weekend trips out of town with her squad.
They certainly didn’t involve her now-ex, a girl she hadn’t even bothered getting to know until her last year of school.
Gia.
The name still evoked emotions too strong and too muddled to name, after all this time.
They’d been an on-and-off thing for a while after their summer of love following their highschool graduation, usually meeting up whenever Gia was in town on breaks from college. Gia had gotten into an arts school in New York, while Zoe stayed in Cali, in a school not far from where she grew up. Gia would come down to visit her family, and more often than not, end up spending more time with Zoe than her parents in the process.
Zoe had hit her big break, during that time. It was always a dream of hers to be a popstar, and she was lucky enough to be given the opportunity. One minute she was cramming for exams and running late to lectures, then suddenly she was touring across the states, her face and stage name everywhere online.
Seeing Gia became harder around then, with all the shows and travel, sometimes going months without seeing each other. It was Gia who finally broke things off, just like she had the first time. Zoe wasn’t sure why she was so surprised. After all, Zoe was never around, always one paparazzi shot away from a scandal. It was for the best, she told herself.
Still, of all her moments with Gia, highschool was a time she rarely thought about. The stolen kisses, the late nights spent on the football field after dark, illuminated by the automatic lights of the field, the free periods spent in the art room Gia always threw pottery. The way Gia would hold her hand when no one was around, stroking Zoe’s knuckles with her thumb as she gave that smile that always made her stomach flop helplessly.
Zoe sat up in bed, where she sat with her thoughts wandering about someone it shouldn’t. She sighed, running a hand through her hair tiredly. She didn’t have time for this, she had choreography practice in a few hours for her new song, which she was set to debut at her next concert. She tried to ignore the fact that it was written about the very girl currently haunting her thoughts as she stood and walked to the kitchen, pouring herself a cold glass of water to help ease the sleep from her mind so she could think more clearly.
The cool water hit her lip, and she was hit with the memory of Gia splashing her as they waded into the ocean, sunscreen unevenly applied on her strong, slender arms. She set the glass down hard enough to make a thunk sound, filling the glass back to the top to take another sip, eyes screwed shut in concentration to keep her mind from replaying bittersweet memories at six in the fucking morning.
Her phone sounded from her room, walking back to notice a missed text from her manager asking her to call. She pocketed the device in her pocket, making herself a mental reminder to call him back once she was feeling more awake.
You’re always looking at your phone. Gia’s voice drifted into her ears, the ghost of her laugh still fresh in her ears after all this time. I’m only here for three days, can it wait, miss celebrity?
Zoe had laughed back, then, setting the phone aside to cuddle closer to Gia as they reclined in her bed, watching a cheesy romance movie on her laptop. Sorry, yeah, it can wait. You’re more important than my manager, anyway.
Zoe shook her head, as if the action could stop the memory in its tracks. She took a deep breath and pushed it out slowly, starting to get ready for the day. She didn’t have time to worry about her past love life, she had to get to the studio. She didn’t have to think about Gia, or any other girls, there. When she was Zolita, queer music icon and constantly trending celebrity, she didn’t have to think about anything but her music. She hurried to get dressed, lacing her shoes and grabbing her keys to head to the studio, blasting her radio so loud it finally quieted her thoughts as she drove.
- - - - -
Zolita ran through the same moves she’d been practicing with her backup dancers for weeks, letting her body take over with pure muscle memory, looking right at the camera pointed her way as her mouth moved along to lyrics she’d been waiting ages to share with her fans for months. The director called for a break, and Zolita nodded thankfully to an assistant as a cold drink was pressed into her sweaty hand, a curly straw sticking from the can to avoid smudging her meticulously applied lipstick.
Couture sent a photographer for the story they’re running. Said the woman who’d handed her the beverage, muttered into Zolita’s ear as she nodded before letting her head turn toward the room’s entrance.
Zoe froze, seeing the last person she’d expected to see standing in front of her, those same eyes she used to spend hours staring into now glancing over her costumed form with an amused smirk. She handed off her drink again without looking away from Gia’s face, watching the brunette’s smirk twitch into a smile at one corner as she raised her camera to snap a few shots of Zoe’s stunned expression.
“Hey there, miss celebrity.” Gia greeted softly as she moved the camera away for a moment, voice still as smooth and rich as she remembered.
Zolita blinked back into being professional, smiling at her ex politely. “Been a while.” She said back, hoping she didn’t sound as breathless as she felt. Judging by Gia’s snickers, she guessed she didn’t do a very good job.
Gia didn’t embarrass her with more small talk, waving her hand to gesture Zolita to go back to her routine just as the director called for everyone to take things from the beginning again, hearing the quiet clicks of Gia’s camera as she ran through the choreography made for the song she wrote about her.