Epilogue - Six Months Later
229 Words
*RILEY HARRINGTON'S POV*
Paris. Spring 2026.
I stood backstage at my own Voss show.
Not as a model this time.
As a designer.
Voss had given me a mentorship program after Milan. I’d spent six months learning, sketching, fighting for every seam. Tonight was my debut capsule: _Reclaimed_.
Dresses made for women who’d been told they were too much, too loud, too late.
Ethan was in the audience. He’d left fashion for a year after quitting Luxe. He came back for this.
“Ready?” Lena asked, handing me a glass of water.
I nodded.
The lights went up.
My models walked out. Women of every size, age, color. Women who looked like they’d survived something and come out stronger.
Because they had.
Because I had.
After the show, reporters swarmed.
“Riley, how does it feel to go from viral heartbreak to Vogue’s ‘Designer to Watch’?”
I laughed.
“It feels like proof,” I said. “Proof that the moment you stop begging to be loved right, you start becoming someone who can’t be ignored.”
That night, I got one more message.
From an unknown number.
I saw the show. You were right. I’m proud of you. —M_
I didn’t reply.
I didn’t need to.
I was already where I needed to be.
In front.
Not behind.
Not beside.
In front.
*THE END*
- Writer
