I’ll add, it’s only stupid not following your dreams, even if they lead you away from the important people in your life. It’s clear Zoe’s dream was stronger than her attraction to the MC, but it’s wrong to hold her to a standard of being loyal to him no matter what, cause that would make for a fake relationship where she tries to make him happy all the time and leads only to resentment further down the road.
It’s a shame Zoe didn’t fulfill her dream and now has little to show up for, but that doesn’t invalidate that she tried or the experience she gained.
She’s still the same person the MC loved and it doesn’t matter whether he loves her anymore or not. All that matters is that he still cares about her. Whether it leads to friendship or romance is gonna be up to us.
Bullshit! It is stupid to follow your dream if it's a stupid dream. Zoey had never surfed in her life, didn't know the first thing about it, had no idea how to make a living from it and promptly blew every dollar she had trying to follow it. It's like waking up one day and deciding you want to become an Olympic gymnist, despite the fact that you are 37 and a stranger to exercise.
That's not even mentioning that she thoughtlessly ran away from everybody in her life that cared for her.
You are both right and wrong.
Was it a stupid dream of Zoey's?
No, not actually. She is only 19 years old and relatively athletic. So her dream wasn't stupid.
Is it stupid not to follow your dreams?
No is not if you think beforehand about what you could lose and therefore give up or postpone a dream.
I think, as with many things, it depends on the right time. Of course, at the age of 37, the time is over, no question. But at 20 years old, the timing would have been perfect for Zoey. But at 19 years old, with “home blindness” and grief, the time was too early. Zoey just wanted to get away as quickly as possible and took the first possible opportunity to make her dream come true.
When would have been the right moment?
If only Zoey had waited another year. Zoey's family and friends, including the MC and Neil, would have supported and helped Zoey through her grief. With the help of the MC, Zoey could have completed her high school at home, together with the MC. The MC would then probably have gone to Miami with Zoey, where Zoey could have made her dream come true and the MC would have attended college there.
But none of that matters because you can't change the past, as the MC mentioned to Zoey in EP10. You can only learn from the past and live with it.
Is Zoey still the same person the MC loved?
No, she isn't anymore and it would be surprising if she were. Both Zoey and the MC realize that they have changed. Zoey now has tattoos and quite a few nipple piercings, she no longer smokes, drinks cocktails with umbrellas and has become a little softer. The MC has also changed. He now has a lot of friends, can have a lot of girls, now parties and drinks, confronts people and has at least one dream of his come true. The college.
But you can't change the past and this history is written. What will be the future tomorrow will be the past in two days. Each player has to find out for themselves how they want to deal with Zoey in the future. Yours truly will try to keep Zoey as a friend because she has been punished enough by her past. But there will be no romantic future together with my MC.