Dearest, You Said [McCartney]

Five

April 24 1963 - Wednesday

This morning went by without issue. My brothers were off to school, Mum was planning on relaxing at home, and Dad was off to work. Charlie showed up at noon, treating me to a session at a fellow photographer's studio, though it would just be us. He was set on adding to his portfolio today.

His fingers tapped on the steering wheel while he drove, humming to himself. I stared out the window at the passing buildings, people, and cars. Though we had a family chauffer, I didn't utilize his service all that often myself. Usually Mum was the one being driven. Charlie put an end to the silence of the ride.

"So, Paul McCartney, hm? One of those 'Beatles'?"

I shook my head at his questions, acting like an out-of-touch parent. "Yes, actually. No more to it. I don't want to kiss and tell."

"Oh? There's kissing?" He asked it to sound stupid, making me swat his arm. 

"Piss off." I groaned, crossing my arms and turning towards the window in faux displeasure. In no time, he braked to a stop in front of a block of flats. I gazed up at the brick building, nothing seemed very extraordinary about it. It was unassuming among the neighboring buildings.

"There's a studio in there?" I asked curiously.

"Oh yes, he had some work done in his flat to make it a studio. Grab your bag, the daylight is burning."

I shrugged, doing as he said and getting my heavy bag out of the boot. We moved all of our things up the stairs, entering a flat that was on the third story. Charlie took out his camera and assessed the studio. It appeared there was a bedroom and bathroom tucked away to the side, most of the apartment was open planned with a large portion dedicated to being the "studio" part. An ironed-out bedsheet acted as a backdrop, hanging from fixtures on the ceiling. Simple.

"Don't mind the sheet, he's got some more in different colors too. You can change in his room there, give me a minute to see what all he has here."

"Alright." I towed my bag to this bedroom. It was neat and tidy, resembling a hotel room instead of a place someone lived. The bed was made, there was no clutter over the bedside table or floor. The only personalization I saw was film rolls atop the small desk on the opposite wall to the bed. I had specific instructions to just do my own makeup and hair, and to pack a few outfits. I brought outfits I hadn't worn much yet and were still quite new, so he had something fresh to capture. I changed into the first one I brought, which I bought as a way to incorporate the trendy bright patterns into my wardrobe. It was yellow, with a bright flowery pattern of green, pink, and orange. Number 1 from a catalog page of fashionable yellowy dresses. I remember dog-earing it when flipping through the pages.

It had a simple tie to cinch the waist, forming an hourglass appearance. I went to the bathroom to look at how it fit, coming to the conclusion I should wear it more often. In fact, I thought, I'll wear this for the rest of the day after we're done. It was casual, but presentable, in case someone was going to be seeing me.