"You know, I sometimes think, how is anyone ever gonna come up with a book, or a painting, or a symphony, or a sculpture that can compete with a great city?"

~Midnight in Paris 

~~~~~~~~~

Kelsey sat pensively on Becca's couch, not wanting to wrinkle her dress, but she'd been sitting there for almost an hour.

She could hear Becca snap a few orders at her makeup artist every once in a while.

Kelsey had stayed the night at Becca's after Becca had promised not to have any parties the evening before the premiere.

Becca had insisted on doing Kelsey's makeup (because she was sure Kelsey's skill set wasn't up to movie premiere status. She had been right.).

Now it was Becca's turn to get dolled up, and it had almost been two hours.

Kelsey stood up and paced around the living room, clasping her nude-colored nails behind her back.

She stopped when she passed by the mirror, jolted by her appearance.

Thankfully, Becca had followed Kelsey's request of natural-looking makeup, but her skills far surpassed anything Kelsey could've done.

Her hair was tied into a loose chignon bun with wavy curls framing her face. It was a bit alarming, but Kelsey felt strangely comfortable.

The doorbell rang and Kelsey waited a moment, but Becca was preoccupied, so Kelsey answered it.

When she opened the door, Ethan stood there. He was dressed in a sleek black tux with his hair coiffed in the front. Kelsey could feel her cheeks warming.

He looked up at her with the softest eyes she'd ever seen, giving that smile that seemed to melt across his face. "I... hi..."

"Hey," she said with a nervous laugh, feeling a rush of self-consciousness.

Ethan walked up the doorstep and reached out, but pulled his hands back as if he were afraid to touch her.

"You okay?" Kelsey asked.

"I'm sorry," he breathed. "I just, you look so beautiful. I mean—not that you don't look beautiful all the time, I just—"

Kelsey silenced him with a tight hug. She released a shuddering sigh. "Please don't get used to it."

Ethan chuckled and rubbed his thumb against her back. "You're gonna be okay, Kelsey. After this, I promise you don't have to go to any more premieres unless you want to."

Kelsey rested her chin on his chest and looked up at him. "Really, really promise?"

"Yes."

Ethan leaned down to kiss her, but Becca's loud heels interrupted them.

They both turned to see Becca in a neon green dress. It was short and tight in front, with a ruffled bustle that drug the floor in the back. Her bodice was also green, and had a collar of black lace that stood up to her ears.

Her hair was gelled and slicked back into a mess of curls on top of her head. Her lips matched the color of her dress and her face was caked with enough makeup to paint a building.

"Wow," Kelsey and Ethan whispered in unison.

Becca spun around. "I know, I look amazing."

"You have more confidence than anyone I've ever met," Kelsey murmured.

"Maybe one day that'll be a good thing," Ethan added.

Becca scowled before shrugging a shoulder. "Whatever. My limo's here, so I'll see you losers on the other side."

Before she passed by, she squeezed Kelsey's arm and cast a severe glare at Ethan. "Take care of her."

Ethan nodded. "You got it."

"Hey, wait," Kelsey said, taking Becca's hand before she could go. She gave a meaningful smile before saying, "You don't need Mack to help you own that carpet."

Becca's face displayed genuine gratefulness for a moment before she put back on her airs. "Honey, I've owned the carpet since before Mack ever stepped foot on it!"

Kelsey snickered and rolled her eyes.

She watched as a sleek limousine drove away and was almost immediately replaced by a new one.

"That's our ride," Ethan said.

Kelsey's heart froze in her chest. Reality sunk down into her stomach like a prisoner tied to an ocean weight.

She swallowed hard before following Ethan outside and thanking the chauffeur who opened the door for her.

She slid into the black leather seat and looked around. "Dang."

There was a mini-fridge in the corner, as well as several wine glasses and a basket of fruit. A calming aura emitted from the trail of lights strung up above the windows.

"Pretty nice, huh?" Ethan asked.

Kelsey slid her hand into Ethan's. "How far away is it?"

"We're going to Grauman's Chinese Theater, so maybe ten minutes?"

"That's it?!" Kelsey squeaked.

"Hey." Ethan wrapped his arm around her. "Just relax. I'll take you through everything step-by-step."

The rest of the ride was filled with Ethan speaking in a low tone, going over everything she should expect.

It helped her feel better, but when she saw rows of people lining up along the street, screaming and waving posters, her stomach flipped over on itself.

"Ethan," she whispered, "I can't do it. I'm going to die. I'm literally gonna die."

"You're not gonna die." Ethan cupped her face in his hands. "Just breathe. Relax. Maybe have a little fun. I'll do all the talking, if you want."

"But what if I make a total idiot of myself?"

"How could you possibly do that? You're my Kelsey, and you're perfect to me in every way. If those stupid tabloids you're always worried about say otherwise, who cares?"

Kelsey nodded and kissed him as if she could somehow siphon out a dose of his courage into her own quaking nerves.

The limo came to a rolling stop and Kelsey peeked over Ethan's shoulder to see a long red carpet stretched out before them.

People were everywhere, hanging over the ropes that desperately tried to keep the crowd at bay. Security guards aided in the attempt as well, their watchful eyes skittering over every corner.

Celebrities and their guests strolled across the carpet, white teeth flashing with smiles.

The limo door was opened and Kelsey instinctively shrunk back.

"You ready?" Ethan asked.

Kelsey took his hand. "Just don't leave me."

"Never."

They slid across the seat and stepped out.

Kelsey felt a blast of cold air hit her bare arms and she shivered. She was overwhelmed by the noise that erupted when they—no, when Ethan—stepped out of the limo.

An ocean of people were screaming and waving and reaching out.

Kelsey had always known Ethan was famous, but it wasn't until that moment that she realized what the term meant.

By some miracle, Kelsey remembered to smile as the cameras started flashing.

Ethan placed his hand on the small of her back and gently guided her forward.

For half a second, Kelsey's feet refused to move, but she sucked in a breath and walked forward.

It seemed like millions of people were screaming Ethan's name, but Kelsey was startled to hear her own name being shouted as well.

Ethan had told her that they would walk a few feet, then veer to the left to sign a few autographs.

Right on cue, he was guiding her to one side, taking the pens that people offered and scribbling his name of their slips of paper, posters, or arms.

Kelsey watched wide-eyed as people of all ages were almost foaming at the mouth at the sight of a celebrity. Ethan was calm and looked as if he didn't hear all the chaos, he just smiled and nodded and said hello.

"Kelsey! Kelsey!"

Kelsey scanned the crowd to see a young woman waving a notepad at her. It took her a moment to process what was happening.

"Hi." Kelsey took the Sharpie that the girl was holding and signed her name.

"You're soooo lucky!"

"Um, thank you," Kelsey said.

She pulled away and met Ethan's eye, trying to offer what she hoped was a confident smile.

As they walked along at a steady pace, it got easier. Kelsey would hold Ethan's hand whenever she got overwhelmed, but got used to signing the things people waved at her.

"When my mom was with me," Ethan said, "someone asked her to sign their forehead."

Kelsey laughed. "Did she?"

"What else could she do?"

She finally caught sight of the end of the carpet.

Ethan made one more stop, where Kelsey spotted a young girl, who was maybe six or seven, dressed in a butterfly costume.

She met Kelsey's gaze before timidly offering a pink piece of paper to her.

Kelsey bent down, surprised at how much the noise level decreased below the tall adults.

"Hi there," she said, taking the slip of paper. "I really like your dress."

The girl beamed and buried her face into her mom's pants before taking back the autograph and hugging it to her chest.

Kelsey gave a real smile this time before being swept forward again.

She released a long sigh as soon as her feet left the carpet.

"You're doing amazing," Ethan said, grinning like a proud parent.

"Shut up," Kelsey muttered.

"Mr. Glenn, Miss Harris, if you'll please move over here," a man in a tuxedo said, motioning them towards a platform with an "A Summer in Paris" billboard behind it.

Two people that Kelsey didn't recognize were up there, standing in front of the white background with "A Summer in Paris" written a billion times in pink writing.

Kelsey closed her eyes and took a breath. Ethan had told her about this part. She was prepared.

But when the man called their name, she realized she was anything but prepared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She's finally at the premiere! 

~How do you think Kelsey's doing?

~What about Ethan?

~What do you predict will happen next?

~General thoughts?

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