"Make up or makeup?"

ZIA.THORNFIELDS
♫ Steve Lacy . Static

Liked by harps4L ,madelinemcgraw, daniellejalade and 452,878 others
@ZIA.THORNFIELDS party ready? @walker.scobell
25 minutes ago!

View comments?

@User35: oh she is MESSY.

@User5: ZIA OH MGY DAYsSdYyy.
[email protected]: are you tweaking?

@User7: IM PARTY READY!

@User6: TAGGING HIM...........?
[email protected]:🤗
reply-@user6: the shade goes CRAZGY

@daniellejalade:👀
[email protected]: 🏠🎊

@User3: watch them both go to the party and have an argument while being shut in the closet for seven minutes in heaven.
reply-@-CLEMSOLOS: okay well dang spoilers..

@User42: Zia and walker beef was NOT on my 2024 bingo card

@User682: i'm freaking out.

@walkersrealifegf: why are you so messy ewww
reply-@user5392: we have your ip💕

@User7: walker is definitely stressing out right now
reply-@user627: I can hear Zia's fans screaming 😭

@User992: GUYS SHE UNFOLLOWED BR*DY
reply-@user26: NOW MALACHI

@User12: I know Walker is ripping out his ginger locks.

comments on this post are limited!

IMESSAGES

August 28th
At 4:30 pm

ZIAAA💞
I'm outside

Cami
Kk
Read! At 4:33 pm

Cami
Why did your dad drop you off..
I thought you said he wasn't going to let you come

ZIAAA💞
I know where he's been going at midnight!🤗

Cami
oh-
girl where..

ZIAAA💞
Playing dress to impress in his office

Cami
Wait he's so real for that

ZIAAA💞
FRLZ

REAL LIFE

Real life

Zia had pulled up to Cammy's house to help her with setting up for the party and just being there in general for what they had planned for with Nariah and Harper.

As Zia enters Cammy's house, she is immediately greeted by the sounds of music and laughter. The living room is filled with colorful decorations and balloons, and there is a table in the corner with some snacks and refreshments. Her friends, Harper and Nariah, are already there and are busy setting up some additional decorations.

"Hey, you're finally here!" Nariah calls out, spotting Zia.

Zia smiles and walks over to them. "Sorry I'm late. I had to finish some things up before I could come."

Harper looks up from where she is hanging streamers on the wall. "No worries. We could use all the help we can get. This is a lot of work."

Zia nods and grabs a roll of streamers from the table. "So what still needs to be done?"

Nariah glances at her checklist. "We still need to finish hanging up the streamers and balloons, set up the games, and get everything ready for when the guests arrive."

Harper looks at her unused "now why the hell do you have a checklist Nariah?"

"I like to be prepared" Nariah responded back with a shrug

"When have you ever been prepared in your life" Harper said in a question like tone because that was VERY new to her that Nariah was being prepared.

"Does that matter?" Nariah asked getting back to hanging up the streamers and balloons.

The three of them got back to work, each taking on a different task. Zia and Harper continue to hang up streamers while Nariah sets up a couple of party games in the backyard. As they work, they chat and laugh together, excited for the party to start.

Eventually, the party preparations are done and the house looks festive and welcoming. Cammy emerges from the kitchen with a big smile on her face. "Everything looks great, guys! Thank you so much for helping me set up."

Zia smiles back at her. "No problem. It was fun."

Harper chimes in, "And just in time too. The first few guests should be arriving any minute now."

Nariah looks at the clock and exclaims, "Oh jimmy motherloving toaster strudel, you're right! We should probably get ready ourselves before they get here."

Zia turned and looked at Nariah who was two seconds away from laughing "girl what the hell?" she said rolling her eyes before heading up stairs to get ready

The rest of the girls head upstairs to Cammy's room to freshen up and change into party clothes. In the background, they can hear the guests starting to arrive downstairs.

As they get ready, the girls chat about their plans for the night, their excitement growing. Zia glances in the mirror and twirls a strand of hair with her finger, trying to decide if she looks presentable enough.

Harper catches her glance and smiles . "You look fine, Zia. And besides, you don't need to impress anyone."

Zia laughs, rolling her eyes. "That's easy for you to say. You always look perfect."

Nariah gives them both dirty looks "you guys are acting like your in love you weirdos" she said with a playful like tone

Zia laughs and throws a pillow at Nariah. "Shut up, we're not in love."

Harper, ever the instigator, grins. "But what if we were? You'd be the odd one out then."

Nariah rolls her eyes, but there's a smile on her face. "Yeah, yeah, keep dreaming whores. But seriously, we should get back downstairs before Cammy comes looking for us."

They all nod in agreement and finish getting ready. Once they're satisfied with their appearances, they head back downstairs to join the party.

As they enter the living room, they are greeted by the sight of their friends chatting and laughter filling the air. Some people are playing music and dancing while others are helping themselves to refreshments. Cammy spots them and waves them over.

"There you are!" she says, linking arms with all of them. "I was starting to think I'd have to send out a search party."

Zia laughs. "Sorry, we got a little distracted getting ready."

Harper gives a smile. "Distracted, huh? Can't imagine what that could've been about."

Nariah shoots Harper a look, but before she can respond, Cammy interrupts. "Well, no matter. The party's already kicked off well I guess, and Zia you have someone to look for"

Zia perks up, looking at Cammy curiously. "Someone to look for? What do you mean?"

"Are you dumb? Walker you slow ass" Nariah answered shaking her head at her

Zia rolls her eyes at Nariah. "I knew that, you chipmunk. I just didn't know what she meant by looking for him."

Harper laughs. "Looks like someone's a bit slow." she said shaking her head

"Trip and fall" Zia replied harshly rolling her eyes at them

"You first clumsy Humpty Dumpty" Nariah snapped back

"Okay I'm not dealing with you guys, where walker?" Zee asked

"He's over there with some of his friends, at least think they're his friends" Cammy said, pointing to a group of guys in the corner.

Zia followed her gaze and saw Walker, laughing and talking with some people she didn't recognize, how many people did cammy invite? Her stomach tightened a bit at the sight of him. She felt like her heart dropped like she had just seen a ghost.

"Are you ready for this?" Harper asked, as she walked over towards the two of them.

"Your not taylor swift Harper" Nariah answered

Zia took a deep breath and nodded. "As ready as I can be."
As they made their way through the crowd, Zia couldn't help but feel nervous.

She knew this was the night she had to confront Walker about their " sort of relationship". She had been feeling uncertain and frustrated with the lack of clarity between them, and she needed to know where they stood.

They finally reached the group where Walker was standing, and her heart skipped a beat when she saw him. He was wearing a shirt that fit him perfectly and his curly blonde hair was falling casually over his forehead.

He looked up and saw her, his bright smile that was once there, that was spread across his face had faded with a look of nervousness. "Hey," he greeted her, his voice cold.

"Hey," Zia replied, trying to keep her voice steady.
Around them, the conversations continued, but the air between them felt thick with tension.

"Listen. Can we talk? there's something's I wanna-" Zia said before she was cut off by Cammy. (we gonna find you cammy.)

"Okay everyone! Let's head into the other room and play some games" Cammy declared, and zia's heart sank at Cammy's words.

A part of her was relieved to have an excuse to put off the conversation with Walker, but another part of her was frustrated.

She didn't want to talk to him, not in front of all these people at least, even though zia knew it was apart of what they had discussed she really didn't want to anymore and instead just talk to him.

As the group made their way to the other room, Zia shot a quick glance at Walker, who was walking a few steps ahead of her. He seemed relaxed and nonchalant, as if the tension between them didn't bother him at all.

This only added to Zia's frustration Cammy led everyone into the next room, and Zia and Walker had walked awkwardly side by side, well for zia it appeared to be awkward.

The room was dimly lit, and a group of people were already sitting in a circle on the floor. As they all moved to the next room, Zia found herself sitting next to Walker, how you may ask? I don't have a clue. 🤷🏽‍♀️

⁂

While they sat next to each other often their thighs would accidentally touch and zia would get really awkward. She could feel her pulse racing at the closeness, and she tried to focus on the game being explained.

"Alright, everyone, listen up!" Nariah said, holding up a timer. "We're going to play a classic game, Seven Minutes in Heaven. I'm gonna set the timer, and whoever's turn it is will go into the pantry over there with a partner.

At the end of the seven minutes, everyone will come out and you can share what happened in there, or keep it to yourself. Ready?"

A murmur of excitement went through the group, and Zia felt her stomach twist. Of all the games, why did it have to be this one? She glanced over at Walker, who looked relaxed and maybe even a little amused. How could he be so calm? After everything that has happened? How could he not care?

"Who's going first?" Harper asked, standing beside Cammy and Nariah looking around the group.

Hands went up, and there was some debate about who should go first. Zia watched as people were chosen, some laughing, some looking nervous. She tried to keep her face neutral, even though she felt anything but that.

Finally, her name was called. "Zia, you're up next," Cammy said.

Zia's heart dropped, but she tried to keep her voice steady. "Okay, who's my partner?" Though she already knew the answer she was just praying they had changed their minds.

There was a brief pause, and then Cammy said, "Your partner's Walker."

That day zia had sworn she was going to go insane and attack cammy for saying it though she knew it was going to happen she.

And Inwardly, Zia cursed. Of course, it was going to be him It had to be.

She looked over at Walker, who looked equally surprised, but he recovered quickly and stood up, offering his hand.

Reluctantly, Zia took his hand, allowing him to lead her to the pantry. The door shut behind them, sealing them off from the rest of the group. The silence in the small, dark space was deafening.

Zia leaned against the wall to put some distance between her and Walker. Walker leaned against the opposite wall, his arms crossed over his chest, looking at her in the dim light.
"Well, here we are," he said, his voice echoing slightly off the shelves.

Zia looked at him annoyed " shut up that's so cringey" she said rolling her eyes

"Hey, I'm just trying to break the silence here," Walker said, a hint of a smile on his face. "Besides, you were the one who wanted to talk to me, remember?"

Zia bristled at his casual tone. "Yeah, I wanted to talk in private, not crammed in a pantry," she muttered, looking away.

Walker pushed away from the wall, moving closer to her. "Well, we're here now," he said, his voice low. "We might as well make the most of these seven minutes."

Zia tried to keep her cool, but his proximity was sending her heart racing. "What do you mean, make the most of it?" she asked, her voice coming out a little higher than expected. Walker leaned against the shelf next to her, his arm brushing against hers.

"Well, since we're in a closet... we could play truth or dare, or just talk," he said, his voice suggestive.

Zia's mind whirled with conflicting emotions. She was both irritated by his casual attitude and the fact that he was making light of their situation, and also... well, she couldn't deny that his proximity was kind of comforting,. "Fine," she said, trying to sound calm. "Truth or dare."

A grin tugged at the corner of Walker's mouth. "Truth," he said, his eyes holding her gaze.

Zia swallowed, her mind racing to think of a question. She wanted to ask him something that would give her some clarity about their relationship status, but she didn't want to seem too eager. "Umm..." she began, stalling for time. "Are you... seeing anyone else?" she said with a voice crack

The grin faded from Walker's face, replaced with a look of surprise and nervousness. "No, I'm not," he said, his voice more serious now. "Why do you ask?"

"I saw Amelies post, guys were looking, comfortable." Zia said bitterly

Walker looked confused for a moment, then comprehension dawned on his face. "Oh, that picture. You saw that?"
"Yeah, I did," Zia said, her tone frosty. "And you were looking pretty cozy with her."

Walker sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It's not what it looks like, I swear. Amelie's my friend, she's... going through some stuff right now, and I was just comforting her."

Zia raised an eyebrow. "So you were just 'comforting' her, huh? With your arm around her waist?" Walker looked uncomfortable. "Yeah, I guess it looks bad. But seriously, nothing happened between us. She was just upset and needed a friend."

Zia crossed her arms, disbelieving his sorry ass words "And you're the only one who could comfort her, right? No other friend she could've gone to?"

"Look, Zia, I get why you're upset, but trust me, there's nothing going on between me and Amelie," Walker said, his voice edged with irritation. "She just needed a friend, and I was there for her. Nothing more. Can't you trust me?" He said

"Trust you?" Zia snapped back. "That's rich, coming from you. You're the one who never wants to define our 'relationship', and you expect me to just blindly trust you now? And let alone the fact that you and Amelie blocked me." Walker winced at her words like they hurt him with a knife.

"About that... that was a dick move, I know," he admitted. "But Amelie was upset, and I wanted to make sure she was okay. And as for us... I'm sorry about being non-committal, but I thought you didn't want to be a thing."

"What gave you that idea?" Zia said, her voice rising. "The fact that I'm willing to wait around for you to make a decision, not knowing where we stand? That I'm constantly worried about where you are and what you're doing? Or the fact that you never want to take me to places where people might actually see us together?" Zia said practically yelling at this point looking for answers

"Jesus, Zia." Walker said in a lone voice "I'm sorry, okay? I know I've been shitty, but it's not because I don't care about you. It's just... complicated."

"Complicated how?" Zia shot back. "Because I'm tired of being the one who's always waiting around for you to decide if I'm worth your time or not. You act all casual and cool, and then you don't want anyone to know about us."

"Because I'm scared, okay?" Walker blurted out, the words surprising both of them. "I'm scared that if people know about us, if we make it official, I'm going to mess it up like I mess everything up. So I've been... trying to keep things to a minimum. Trying to keep you from getting too invested in me."

Zia was too shocked to speak for a moment (the woman was too stunned to speak😓) She hadn't expected that confession from him, and it caught her off guard. "You... you're scared of messing things up with me?" she finally managed to get out.

Walker slumped against the wall, looking defeated. "Yeah, I am. I like you, Zia. A lot more than I thought I would. And that scares me because I'm not used to feeling this way about someone. I'm used to keeping people at arm's length, not letting them get too close. But I can't seem to do that with you. And it's driving me crazy."

Zia stared at him, her anger fading a little in the face of his honesty, but not completely. "So let me get this straight. You like me, and you're scared because you've never felt this way about anyone before? So your solution to that is to keep me at a distance, not define our relationship, and give me every reason to be pissed at you?" She asked

"Well when you put it like that, it sounds stupid," Walker said, a wry smile on his face. "I know I've been an idiot, believe me. I just... I didn't know how to handle these feelings. I've never felt this way before, and it freaked me out. Can you blame me for trying to keep things, I don't know to the minimum?"

Zia grew more angry at how casual his words seemed. "I get that it's scary. But you could've talked to me about it, instead of just acting like a dick. I've been sitting here for weeks, no, months wondering what the hell we are, and you've just been treating me like some convenience when you're bored."

"I know, I know." Walker looked down at the floor, shame evident on his face. "You're right, I should have talked to you. I just... I didn't know how to put my feelings into words. I thought if we kept things casual, I could keep my distance and not get too emotionally invested. But it's bullshit, really. I'm sorry."

Zia took a deep breath, letting out a long sigh. "I don't just want to be some, talking stage thing for you, Walker. If that's what you want, then fine, we can end it here. But if you actually see a future with me, then you need to start acting like it. You need to talk to me, communicate with me. And you need to start treating me like someone you actually care about, instead of just some convenience."

Walker looked up at her, his eyes sincere. "I do care about you, Zia. A lot more than I've been showing. I just... I didn't know how to handle my feelings, and I messed up. Can you give me another chance? Let me show you that I can be the kind of guy you deserve?"

Zia thought for a moment, weighing her options. On one hand, she was still angry and hurt by his actions and words. But on the other hand, he was finally being honest with her, admitting his fears and insecurities. She wanted to believe him, but she was also scared. "I want to believe you, Walker. I really do. But I'm tired of getting my hopes up only to be let down again."

Walker nodded, understanding her reluctance. "I get it. I don't blame you for not wanting to get hurt again. But I swear, Zia, I'm being sincere. I'm done pretending and avoiding the issue. I like you, a lot. More than I ever thought I would. And I want to be with you, in a real, committed relationship. No more bullshit."

Zia looked at him, searching his eyes for any hint of dishonesty. She found only sincerity in his expression. "Okay," she said slowly. "I'm going to give you another chance. But I need you to prove to me that you're serious about this. I need you to be open and honest with me from now on. No more avoiding the issue or pretending like we're just friends in public. Understood?"

"Understood," Walker said, his face serious. "I'm done with the games, Zia. I'm all in. And I'll prove to you that I'm serious about this. I promise."

Zia hesitated for another moment, then stepped forward, closing the distance between them. She reached out and placed her hand on his chest, feeling his heart racing under her touch. "I hope you mean that," she said quietly.

Walker's eyes darkened as he looked down at her, her proximity sending his heartbeat into overdrive. "I do mean it," he said, his voice lowering to a murmur. "I've never been more serious about anything in my life."

Zia was suddenly aware of how close they were standing, the air between them crackling with tension. She could feel the heat radiating off his body, the rapid rise and fall of his chest. "You better," she whispered.

"I will," Walker muttered, his gaze locked on her lips. His hand came up, gently cupping her cheek. His thumb traced the curve of her jaw, sending shivers down her spine. He leaned in slowly, his lips hovering just millimeters from hers.

Though, before anything could happen the pantry door opened up revealing Nariah and E'maya "Time's up!" Nariah called out, peering into the pantry. Zia and Walker sprang apart, both flustered and caught off guard. Zia shot a glare at her, who grinned unrepentantly.

"Looks like you two had a productive conversation," E'maya said, her voice filled with amusement. Zia's cheeks burned with embarrassment, and Walker looked sheepish, rubbing the back of his neck.

Zia opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say anything, another partygoer appeared behind E'maya, riele. "Hey, who's up next?" She said

E'maya turned to answer, giving Zia and Walker a moment of reprieve.

"Saved by the bell," Walker muttered, a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

Zia shot him a glare, but there was no real heat or anger behind it, just annoyance.

E'maya turned back to them, a knowing look on her face. "Well, I'll see you both later," she said smiling at them before heading back to the crowd.

Zia and Walker were left alone in the pantry once again, the moment from before broken but the tension still lingering.

Walker broke the silence, clearing his throat. "Well, that was... awkward."

Zia huffed out a small laugh. "Yeah, just a bit. But I'm sure they're gonna gossip about us now."

Walker shrugged, a mischievous gleam in his eye. "Let them. At least it'll give everyone something to talk about."

Zia rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help but crack a smile. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Maybe a little," Walker admitted, his lips curving into a cocky grin.

And though everything seemed fine for now, they still had one problem, Amelie.

CLEM SPEAKS
HI BBYS
ITS MY BIRTHDAY
so I wanted to post a chapter today or the day after
I'm sosososo sorry for not updating!!!
I had a hard time writing this chapter 😓
I love you all so much!
thank you for 40k plus reads like woah
long ahh chapter
3000 plus words is insane
𝑇ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑘𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑜𝑛𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑣𝑜𝑡𝑒💕
-𝓒𝓵𝓮𝓶💕