In the spotlight

32

Matteo Rodriguez

"What did I tell you?" My sister dragged me into her office by my right arm, and I couldn't do anything else but follow her inside.

"Didn't I tell you to stay still on your ass until the opening meeting?" Her green eyes flashed with anger and irritation. I decided that staying silent would be the better option right now, but I was way too stubborn to do so.

"Valentino's lead designer insisted that he should show me around in the office what the fuck was I supposed to do?" I couldn't even sit down for a minute before people started showing up around me. How could I refuse such an important person before my first fashion week?

"Great, we couldn't hide you, at least until the opening." Isabella slapped her hands on her outer thighs disapprovingly before slamming herself down on her office couch.

I was perfectly aware of the task she assigned to me before leaving me alone in the building. Stay away from people, sit down, and don't move anywhere. As soon as she disappeared behind the elevator doors, three different designers approached me, and Valentino happened to be the fastest.

"So, um, was she here?" I asked quietly after a few seconds of silence. She traced her eyes up at me with a very sour expression on her face. I felt my heart beating in my throat, waiting for her answer.

"She was." She nodded before clearing her throat and continuing. "But you ain't going to like what she said." My sister leaned back against her chair's backrest, turning her head towards the ceiling.

"Was it that bad?" I grimaced disappointedly. I expected her to hate me, but seeing Isabella's reaction, I knew that it was going to hurt more than expected.

"She said that if I make her do anything with you, she will give up on modeling and become a pilot instead."

So this is how we stand right now. I felt the familiar mixture of sadness and hopelessness take over my thoughts as my sister's words rang in my head. Obviously, as I said, I expected her to have some heavy feelings and grudges towards me, but knowing that she would rather give up her career than do anything with me was something I wasn't prepared for.

I looked up from the table in front of me, taking a peek at everyone in the room around me. Isabella was standing at one end of the oval table, under a huge flat-screen TV. All kinds of diagrams and images of dresses were projected behind her on the screen, occasionally switching and going to the next slide.

I continued towards the people sitting beside her, listening to everything she was saying, which sounded like an absolute foreign language to me. Girls and guys both attended this meeting, but only those who were bound to Dior will walk for them this week.

I didn't really recognize anybody. Since my arrival yesterday, I haven't done anything else but come out of one meeting and go straight to the next one. If everything aligns, I might have my first photoshoot today in the later hours, which is going to be a salvation after all this relentless talking about stuff I don't understand.

Shaved-headed guys with exceptionally sharp jawlines were sitting in sunglasses here and there, accompanied by taller girls in long dresses, watching Isabella's every move with cold eyes. Suddenly, I felt very uncomfortable. I had nothing to do with all these people around me or their profession. Most of the time, I didn't even know what to wear for another meeting.

I lowered my head once again when the color of blonde flashed before my eyes. I felt my heart fluttering in my chest, and my mouth suddenly turned very dry. I knew that I was not supposed to look at her in case she found out, but I couldn't hold myself back.