Under the reflection of Hollywood - Malachi Barton

chapter 1

Malachi Barton

My life has never been easy, even though at first glance it may seem completely different. Ever since I can remember, I've lived under the gaze of millions of eyes, carrying a name many people know: "the Disney boy." That label, which for some is a dream, became an invisible cage for me. Everyone expected me to be perfect, to smile even when I wanted to cry, to perform without making mistakes, to be that untouchable symbol of youth. But behind the cameras, behind the image, there's just a boy who wants to be himself. A boy who wants to make mistakes, who wants to scream, who wants to feel without fearing judgment.

I grew up on sets, on tours, at parties where sometimes I didn't even understand who I was among so many characters. Fame and success came quickly, but so did loneliness and pressure. I got used to pretending, to wearing masks, to hiding what I truly felt.

And it was in the middle of all that that I met them.

Isabel and Asher Pitt.

I was eight years old. I was on the set of a charity campaign, surrounded by rushed adults and blinding lights. And there they were: Isabel, with a presence that seemed to light up the entire room, and Asher, with that effortless smile that made anyone want to be his friend. They weren't like the other kids on set; they had a different energy, something that couldn't be faked or hidden.

Isabel had that quiet fire in her eyes, that kind of strength you feel when someone knows exactly who they are and isn't afraid to show it. Asher, with his contagious laughter and natural way of being, made me feel like I had found something real in a world that so often felt fake.

From that day on, our lives became connected far beyond filming and cameras. We shared moments, laughter, secrets... and a bond that nobody could ever break.

Isabel isn't just the eldest daughter of the Pitts or a fashion icon. She is an unstoppable force, a future businesswoman, a young woman who transformed everything she touched and who never settled for being just another Hollywood princess.

And even though I tried to hide it, I always knew she was more than just a friend.

Isabel Pitt

"Sometimes you have to break yourself apart in order to rebuild into someone who no longer depends on anyone else."

I wasn't born to be just a shadow. I wasn't born to stay in the background of someone else's story. Ever since I was little, I knew the world wanted to put me in a box: the perfect daughter, the heiress, the girl who smiles on the red carpet as if nothing exists behind the flashes. But I also knew that if I was going to carry this last name, I would do it my way. With a voice. With power. With footsteps that left a mark.

And yes, I grew up under the spotlight. But what nobody knows is how much it hurt to grow up beneath someone else's reflection.

At sixteen, I made the hardest decision of my life. I left. I went far away from Los Angeles, far from my comfort zone, far from him.

Malachi Barton.

My first love.
My greatest mistake.

We were inseparable, almost since childhood. The connection we had was something everyone noticed, but nobody dared to name. Not even us. We were young, proud, stupid. And I... I didn't know how to react when I watched him start dating one of my best friends: Freya Skye.