SCARLET MEETS MILA

50

Mila

I kiss Maisie goodnight in her new room. She struggled to sleep for hours after finding out about our new arrangement, but neither of us could be mad given our own excitement. Scarlet had the room painted pastel pink with floating shelves and her own little desk. It's beautiful, and somehow, exactly what Maisie has always wanted.

We set down on the cuddle couch and sigh, our tired bodies still dressed as if at work. Scarlet leans her head on my shoulder and fiddles with my skirt. "I'm glad she loves it."

"Me too." I chuckle. "I'd live in that room myself. It's incredible, Scar."

"Harlow helped." She smiles. "I'm not so hot on little girl trends."

"Well you both did an amazing job." I kiss the top of her head and inhale the sweet scent of her expensive shampoo. "I can't thank you guys enough."

"I have a question." She looks up at me and leans away. "You can say no. There's no pressure, but there's an upcoming campaign in June I'm pretty excited about."

"Go on?" I stir.

She looks down at her lap and swallows. "It's inspired by Pink Floral, and it represents the growth of women as parental figures." She looks up at me. "I was wondering if you would want to take another shot at fronting the line?"

I drop my jaw and stumble on my words. "Like, on the runway?" I try to clarify. "You want me to walk on the runway again?"

She nods, her brow furrowing. "I have another girl in mind if not. I just had this vision of you being up there a wearing this cute colour silk. I get that last time I-

"Yes, Scarlet." I smile. "I'd love to."

"What?" She laughs with a smirk. "Seriously?"

I press my lips together and shrug. "I mean I did pretty good last time, don't you think?" She nods quickly. "Besides, you asked me this time, it's different."

"Oh my god, yes!" She claps and throws her head back. "Thank you! I'll be draping and dressing you myself. I have so many ideas."

I watch her ramble for a good five minutes. I don't stop her, as for the first time in a while, she seems full of life and sprite. It's beautiful, the inside of her heart and mind. Watching it unfold before me is a blessing and I feel honoured she'd even ask me in the first place.

"I think it sounds great." I wink. "I do, however, have a note." She lifts her chin slightly. "Shouldn't you be running too? I mean, you're more a part of this than me? You're literally a prime example of making parenthood successful."

She shakes her head. "I run the show, not the stage." She giggles. "Thank you, though. I am more than happy to let you take the lead on this one. It will be amazing, and Maisie will finally get to see you run for real."

"She'll think I'm a celebrity all over again."

"You are." Scarlet winks. "I have had more than a fair share of sponsor offers." 

I blush. "I'll take it. It's not like I haven't got my fingers in a million pies right now."

"It's a good thing." She explains. "Being diverse in this industry will take you far. Not that I'd ever want to lose you to the freelance world, but you can literally be whatever you want. You're talented."

"Because of you." I huff. "Throwing me out on that stage would never have happened if it wasn't for you. And the whole designer thing was dead and buried until you gave me a shot."

She reaches for my thigh and squeezes. "You have always had it in you. Sometimes it takes a bossy bitch to help you see it."

Before I can respond, the buzzing of Scarlet's phone startles us both. She furrows her brow and pulls it into view. It's an unknown number that she hangs up on quickly. "Who's calling you at this time?" I laugh nervously.