As more time passed since Cat had started to withdraw from her high school friends. The noise of her celebrity life was back to its constantness, pulling her in every direction—magazine covers, studio meetings, endless promotional events, and the start of the new album. She had everything a person could want. But amidst all the glitz and glamour, she couldn't ignore the nagging emptiness that came with cutting ties from the people who knew her before the fame, before the chaos.

Cat kept herself busy, but it wasn't with the people she once considered her closest friends. The celebrities she was now rubbing elbows with were the ones she spent her time with—actors, influencers, producers—people who lived in the same whirlwind world she was learning to navigate. She could feel herself slipping away from her old life, and maybe that was for the best.

But still, the isolation from Jade, Tori, Andre, Robbie, and Beck started to feel like something she couldn't run away from anymore. Her past was calling her back, even as she tried to reinvent herself. She could only bury it for so long.

One evening, after yet another string of media events, Cat found herself sitting in her new home. It was as beautiful as it was vast—more space than she knew what to do with. The walls were starting to feel a little too large for her to fill. The house was all too perfect. There was no clutter, no chaos. Just silence.

It was then that she decided to reach out to Tori. The thought had been on her mind for days now, but she hadn't known how to break the silence, how to ask for forgiveness for disappearing. She sent a message to Tori, asking her to come over for an evening.

Tori replied almost immediately, and before long, Cat was sitting across from her old friend, watching her settle onto the couch, looking around the living room with curiosity. Tori couldn't help but stare around the room, taking in the sheer scale of everything. It was as if she was walking through a magazine spread, each detail meticulously arranged and flawless.

Cat noticed her friend's wide eyes, and it made her laugh a little, a warm but slightly awkward sound. "Yeah, I know. It's... a lot, right?" she said, rubbing the back of her neck. She felt the need to deflect, to make it seem less overwhelming than it felt to her, even though the whole thing still felt surreal.

Tori nodded, her gaze landing on the bright marble floors and the sleek furniture that seemed too perfect to touch. "This is insane. You literally own this?"

Cat nodded, still not quite used to the lavishness of it. "Yep, this is home now," she said, though the word didn't feel quite right yet. "Come on, let me show you around."

She led Tori through the house, her footsteps echoing in the large, open hallways. Tori followed, her mouth slightly open as she looked around, trying to take it all in.

"This is... this is crazy," Tori said, her voice filled with awe. "I mean, my room at home looks like it's straight out of a thrift store next to this."

Cat laughed, her smile a little more genuine now. "Yeah, well, it's too much space for one person. Honestly, I'm still trying to figure out how to fill it. I spent a ton of time making sure everything was perfect though."

"Honestly, I can't even picture myself living like this. It's like... a dream."

Cat smiled at her friend's wonderment. It was hard for her to understand sometimes just how different her life was now. She hadn't expected it to be this overwhelming when she'd moved in, but it was hard to ignore the fact that everything was so out of reach for people she used to know, even Tori.

They wandered into the next room, a space Cat had set aside for her sewing. Fabric rolls lined the shelves, and a beautiful antique sewing machine sat by the window. "This is my little haven," Cat said, motioning to the room. "I still like to do fashion stuff in my free time. I know I can't do it professionally anymore, but it's nice to have a place to work on my ideas."

Tori's eyes sparkled as she took in the room. "This is so you. I can totally see you creating your own line one day. You should do it."

Cat smiled at the thought. "I've thought about it. Maybe one day, when I'm ready. It's just... hard to keep my focus on it with everything else going on. But yeah, I'd love to one day."

They moved on through the house, Tori still walking in wide-eyed wonder. It was so far removed from her life—living with her parents in their modest home. There, she had a small room with just enough space for the basics: a bed, a desk, and her computer. Cat's world seemed like something out of a dream, like a life she could only visit but never quite inhabit.

"I can't believe you have two spare bedrooms," Tori said, laughing as they walked down the hallway toward the guest rooms. "Our spare room it still full of Trina's old stuff."

"You can stay whenever you want." Cat offered, her words admitting that the space felt empty to her, that sometimes it seemed so big and silent that it became suffocating.

"Oh I'd love to!" Tori squealed with joy. She often regretted not moving out for college- the fun she could have with her own space, so staying with Cat could be nice.

They ended the walkthrough in the backyard, where a pristine pool sparkled under the late afternoon sun, the water reflecting the clear sky above. Tori let out a low whistle as she leaned over the railing to take in the view. "This is... this is like a movie set," she said, turning to Cat with wide eyes. "It's like you're living in some Hollywood fantasy."

Cat couldn't help but laugh, the sound filled with a mix of awe and disbelief. "Sometimes it feels like I am."

The silence between them wasn't awkward anymore. Tori was still taking everything in, but Cat could tell her friend was happy for her. It was like they'd found a little bit of their old connection again, despite everything that had happened. Tori was still here, still her friend.

"I' so impressed with what you've done here Cat," Tori said with a grin, before glancing over at Cat. "Like you're only 20 this is... so much."

Cat smiled, nodding, feeling more at home in the moment than she had since she moved in. "Yeah," she said quietly. "I think I'm starting to get the hang of it all."

A little while later, Cat whipped up some pasta for the two of them to eat. "So, what's been going on with you?" Tori asked as she twirled the pasta around her fork. They'd talked about everything in Tori's life but not much in Cat's.

Cat smiled a little. "Same old, I guess. Just... doing the usual stuff. You know, more interviews, more parties. I've been working with some producers, a lot of movie talks lately too. I keep getting asked about film roles."

Tori raised her eyebrows, clearly impressed. "Wow, Jade would be jealous."

At the mention of Jade's name, a jolt ran through Cat's chest, an immediate wave of guilt flooding her. "How is she doing?" she asked, her voice quieter than she'd intended.

Tori hesitated for a moment before answering, as though carefully choosing her words. "She's doing good. She's working as a floorrunner on a talk show now. It's not exactly what she wants, but it's something. Her professor recommended her, so she couldn't turn it down."

Cat nodded, feeling a knot in her stomach loosen. "I'm glad she's okay. I just... I'm sorry for how everything ended. I didn't mean for it to be like that."

Tori's smile softened. "It's okay, Cat. It really is. We all understand. But I think Jade would be happy to hear from you again. She misses you."

Cat's heart ached at the thought of Jade missing her. She let out a deep breath. "I'll reach out soon. I just wanted to make sure she was okay before I did. I didn't want to make things more complicated."

"She's okay," Tori reassured her. "She really is. And I think you two could work things out if you wanted to."

Cat nodded, a quiet sense of hope flickering within her. "I will. I promise I'll get in touch. I just... needed to be sure."

Tori smiled, settling back into the couch with a sigh of relief. The weight in the air felt a little lighter now, and Cat knew that reconnecting with her old life—her old friends—was something she was ready for. Maybe not everything was lost.