The Designer and the Model

Chapter 14 - side by side

Chapter 14

"-Charlotte you look stunning, the bangs and new prescription frames make you look really tidy. Well, all of you does, is this a Burberry coat?" Charlotte's mother tugged gruffly before Charlotte could answer, turning her around and checking the tag when Charlotte was too slow to think of which design it was. Her mother liked to criticize her physically now she couldn't tell her how much of a disappointment she was, Charlotte noticed the absence of her remarks about her intelligence now too. The physical remarks didn't hurt Charlotte as she didn't think badly of her own appearance, she had worked hard, and as a person that smoked a pack a day and didn't count her calories Charlotte didn't really feel her mother had feet to stand on with her comments on appearance.

Her father on the other hand made her happy to be home. The only opinion he pushed on her was that in the way of investment, he reminded her of the importance of a rainy day fund and Charlotte appreciated the genuine parental guidance.

"Are you sure you can't stay for dinner honey?" Her father asked and Charlotte grimaced apologizing that she had to go and that she had a fitting appointment to get to. Her father hugged her longer than she expected and it made her realize how much he really did miss her.

"Well get home safe Charlotte it was nice seeing you," the briefness of her mother's light embrace spelt out something Charlotte was already aware of but hugging her all the same she left for her taxi.

On the drive back to Manhattan Charlotte wished she could tell her parents about what had been on her mind ever since she landed back in New York. She wanted to tell them about Lucinda, about how she felt about her, about how interesting and incredible she thought she was.

But they weren't anything but employee and employer, nothing she thought about Lucinda really could do justice to tell her parents. Charlotte didn't even know if she would or could tell her parents even if they were together. As much as she loved her father he defiantly wasn't one to support that type of relationship, he was a traditional man, and her mother... Well, she already knew where she stood with her. Charlotte didn't feel good about it but she had accepted it for what it was. A good lesson Bethany had given her.

When Bethany had told Charlotte to just except that Lucinda would never care for her she thought she would try. But too much had happened to make the fire and hope Charlotte had for Lucinda to extinguish.

There had to be something... Charlotte thought.

-

Charlottes Point of View

By the time I got to my apartment, the sun had collapsed from the sky, leaving a purple bruised night waiting for me outside my bedroom window. Naked and stretching from an uncomfortably long Uber ride, I watched the thin clouds sway in the wind behind towering luminescent Manhattan buildings. A woman stared back at me from the bedroom window, watching from her billboard. Arms twisted, left hand softly caressing the right cheek and right hand outstretched to hide from her eye to her temple.

Tangling my arms I greeted her in a mimicking pose.

Alarm flaring an Alt-J tune behind me signaled to leave to go to my fitting. Extremely underdressed and short on time I threw underwear on under my large coat before rushing out the door with keys in my hand.

It was unnerving to see the workshop doors, usually needing to be buzzed in to enter was the norm but tonight the door hadn't latched closed. Pushing it open I glanced around expecting someone to be around but the staircase was empty. Turning back to the door I made sure to close it properly before traveling up the stairs that vibrated with bass from the music coming from the top story.