milk teeth | ✓ finn wolfhard

²⁶

god, did she feel it.

the nerves tickling up her throat, threading a noose around her neck and suffocating every last second of life.

it never got easier, the events. there became a point where she had gotten so used to talking to people; it was never that that rattled her stomach. it was the ideas, her ideas. wondering if they would truly make it in such a ruthless environment every time. they did, typically, but that didnt make it any easier.

there was a lot on her mind. her daughters health, finns upcoming move and the look from jack that had still lingered in her head. but she forces herself to push it all aside, zipping her black dress up her back and pulling shear black tights up the length of her legs. she had much more important things to do that night than to dwell over what was, or wasnt, going on in her personal life.

there were a few staple places in violets life, she would like to consider the commodore one of them. so many distractions threatening her in the warehouse-like venue.

her heals tap into the concrete room, wiping her feet off on the mat to free it from the snow that fell violently outside. the inside had already been filled with colleagues and producers, some who really had no business being there; but most with that authority.

she had prepared for a long night, she knew they usually ended up that way. it was what she loved to do, but it was always stressful to do it on her own; not many people wanted to be friends with the ceo.

"felix! please tell me you grabbed my files." violet rushes up to the beloved photographer, for she had asked him earlier to swipe the files from her desk at work.

"of course i did, darling." he pulls the plastic folders from his bag, handing it over to her.

"you didnt happen to look at them, did you?"

"did you want me to?"

"well its just that" she opens the pages across her forearms, glancing at the pages that she could confidently recite on command.
"im not sure about it this time. ive been stressed lately with luna and some other personal stuff, i just dont know that it will meet the venders standards this ti-"

"miss cage, with all due respect; you always have great things to bring to these events and i have to set up your presentation area. good luck! you'll do great love."

she watches as felix runs off to what his job had asked him to do at every event like this. violet more nervous than ever.

she walks around to talk to others, distracting herself from what was to come. but it was inevitable and eventually, she was up on that set platform. papers spread out before her though she knew she didnt need them. every event held people to keep her company together, other ceos of other companies such as her old boss, maverick; people who take in her articles and designs for their own brands. it was a lot of pressure, always.

and she wasnt one to be afraid, timid or unsettled by a concept she constructed. but that evening, silence replaced the usual applauds and things felt, off.

she knew they wouldnt like it, truthfully she hated it herself. but the reality of standing up there was unbearable; like a comedian that doesnt receive laughter.

nevertheless she finishes, the embarrassment eating her alive as she desperately wanted to craw out the door on her hands and knees; and hide forever.

pulling herself together by the hems of her leather jacket, she swallows her pride and socializes the rest of the night away. what a miserable, awful feeling it was to fail at something; she wasnt used to it.

violet had stayed on the pure hope that her biggest investor would see the unusual mistake that had happened and keep their word to invest money into the long fashion line violet had been working on for months.

she knew that if she lost rue industries that she would have to spend months making up for money lost. and unfortunately for her, that was exactly what happened.

"miss cage?"

violet turns with a smile to the ceo of her biggest investor. hoping, praying.
"arthur! how are things?"

"i'll be honest violet, i dont know how to tell you this."

"look, i know that the concepts i showed today arent ready yet, theyre not complete. but they will be-"

"i came here under the impression that you were ready to sign and that id hand over the money today."

"arthur i just need another month and i promise you that i'll improve it."

"i know that you know what your doing violet, i know that youre good at you job. thats why it pains me to say this but i cant bring something like that into my company. im sorry, im out."

her heart drops to the pit of her stomach, eyes darting to her feet where they felt safe.
"i understand."

she watches him walk away, spoiling her evening even more so as the crowd disintegrates and the concrete room becomes still again.

as always, she was the last to leave. grabbing her jacket and pushing herself up onto the unused stage in her rather tight dress and heals.

gently, she pushes aside the heavy dark curtain to put herself backstage. eyes trailing down the empty back hallway and across from her to the metal back door of the building.

it was bizarre, sending jolts of pain to her body to stand in the exact spot where she had met that innocent, curly headed boy years and years ago.

it was a lot to wrap her head around, having such a tough evening. standing directly on the scene of what was supposed to be a life time love story, that only ever lasted a few years.

and in that silent, dark venue, with her coat pulled over herself tightly and her hands covering her face; violet cage cried.

not for long, practically not enough for the ghosts in the room to experience. but enough for her to mark it up as a shit day and call it quits.

she wipes the foggy grey smeared makeup from her face, sighs heavily, and pushes her way to the lit back parking lot of what once was.

1080 wc
you could consider this "part one" of this chapter if you really wanted to. next part is lots of finn do not worry