Stevie smiled in as many different directions as she could as she sauntered down the blue carpet for the premiere of Little Women in New York. She was surprised that she hadn't gone blind from the sheer amount of flashes going off and as disoriented as she was, she had been ordered to wait on the carpet so that she could have a group picture with the entire cast.
"Stevie. Look this way." She heard, so she turned and flashed yet another smile, obeying every demand of the press. She was in an extremely fortunate position that she had a positive relationship with the paparazzi and she was careful not to disrupt that.
"Enough now, Stevie." Her publicist, Georgia, ordered. "Always leave them wanting more." Stevie nodded, coming to a halt at the end of the carpet. They stood awkwardly, waiting for the other cast members to have their moment.
"Stevie!" A photographer called out, causing her to turn her head to look at them out of habit. "Where's Jacob tonight?"
Stevie swallowed hard. She was aware of all of the cameras trained on her waiting for her reaction and also aware that she couldn't ignore the man without the risk of seeming rude as she had already acknowledged him. "Jacob?" She queried. "He's back in Brisbane for the holidays."
"Are you not going to be spending Christmas together?" Another photographer shouted.
This was getting out of hand. Stevie was extremely reluctant to have this impromptu interview on the side of the red carpet. "I'll be at the movies on Christmas Day watching Little Women." She fired back sarcastically, turning to face Georgia with an expression on her face that screamed 'help me.'
"Stevie!" Eliza called from the carpet and held her arm out, beckoning Stevie to join her. Stevie rushed over to her friend, ecstatic to be away from the pushy photographers with their invasive questions.
Slowly the pair were joined by the rest of the cast, first the sisters, then Laura, then the cast in its entirety. They smiled for a few group photos before peeling off and entering the building.
As Stevie walked inside of the theatre, she was met by Sonny and Iris at the door. "Hey!" She exclaimed in surprise. "I didn't know that you two were coming!"
"Yeah. Cause you didn't think to invite us." Sonny remarked, grabbing Stevie's head and wobbling it in his hands. "You dick."
"Sonny! My makeup!" Stevie swatted him away and wrapped her arms around Iris. "Why did you have to bring him?"
"Actually, Timmy invited both of us," Iris commented, readjusting Stevie's hair and makeup that had just been messed up slightly by her brother.
"Timmy!" Sonny shouted as Timothée walked through the doors behind them. They hugged for a quick moment before Timothée moved on to hug Iris. "Thanks for the invite."
"No problem!" He grinned, retreating from Iris and standing to the left of Stevie. "I knew Stevie would forget to. Let's be real, she doesn't have her life together in the slightest."
Stevie furrowed her eyebrows and pushed the boy away from her, secretly enjoying being the subject of his teasing. "I just figured you guys had better things to do."
"What could be better than this?" Iris shrugged. "I love Little Women and I love you. Do you think we can sit together?"
"I think we have to sit on the front row." Stevie rolled her eyes. "But I'm sure you guys can sit behind us?"
Iris nodded and the quartet walked into the screening room together. Timothée and Stevie slipping into adjacent seats on the front row and Sonny and Iris the same on the second.
...
The screening was a roaring success and as the cast stood before the room of applauding viewers, Stevie felt herself becoming emotional. Although she was the lead of Midsommar, which had been both critically and commercially acclaimed, Little Women was different. With the latter, she really felt as if she was really telling her own story. Her eyes started to water and she bit down hard on her bottom lip to stop it from wobbling.
Timothée caught her action from the corner of his eye and remembered it as an old habit of hers. He slipped his hand into hers and squeezed it lightly, letting her know that he was there and that she was okay. She looked at him and smiled gratefully.
The evening went on. The afterparty. They danced. They danced until their feet were sore and Stevie had to change into her sneakers. They danced until Timothée had to take his waistcoat off because he was getting too sweaty. They danced until Eliza had to sit down for a few moments because she felt like she was about to throw up. They danced until Sonny and Iris had to leave because she had class early the next morning. They danced until everyone left. Everyone except for them.
Maybe it was the overwhelming melancholy that Stevie was feeling following watching Little Women. Maybe it was because she was back in New York, hand in hand with Timothée and in the company of Sonny and Iris. She didn't know, but what she did know was that she yearned for a time foregone. She missed it. The feeling of being in love. She had loved Jacob, but she hadn't been in love with him. And therein lay the difference. The deciding factor. She knew what was missing.
She leaned in and kissed him. He kissed her back. Obviously. His hand wrapping around the back of her neck and his thumb stroking the edge of her jaw. She pulled away and they stared at each other for a few moments. Her eyelashes fluttered as she blinked slowly, thinking about what to do next.
"Can we go back to your place?"
...
this is lit the craziest thing but i was stalking talita irl and found out that her and lily rose are actually friends!!! how cute we stan
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