Unconditional Validation

Chapter 9

Once we sat down, everyone else proceeded to sit down at their respective tables. It always creeped me out that everyone knew when to sit down once the Blackwells were present, almost like a courtroom. The emcee walked up to the microphone with my executive director, Mariah Wagner. I'm glad I picked her for my executive director, she's been so helpful and understanding ever since we hired her. By we, I mean me and my parents, unfortunately.

"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Fall 2024 Blackwell collection drop!" Mariah announced with an ecstatic smile through the microphone.

There was cheering and clapping coming from everyone in the grand ballroom. I was anxious, yet excited that this was finally happening. Once the noise died down, Mariah continued speaking.

"I can tell that everyone here is excited to see this collection!" Mariah joked with a chuckle. Her comment got laughs from the audience.

I loved her sense of humor, it was great. You can always vibe with her in your presence at any time. My thoughts were interrupted by the waiter asking our table quietly for our drink orders. From what happened last night, I chose to stick with water.

"We're going to have models walk down the runway first. After that, the creator himself will say a few words and answer a couple of questions. Then, finally, you'll get to eat and be social as much as you want!" Mariah continued by reading off the itinerary that was secretly screened on the camera.

I heard some cheers from the audience about the last part of the schedule being mentioned. I chuckled to myself about it. Mariah grabbed the microphone and its stand and exited stage left so the runway could start. On cue, the music started and the models proceeded to head down the runway. This line was full of designs made for all shapes, sizes, and genders. Out of all the outfits I created this year, two of these stood out more than any others. For the first outfit I paired a mossy green cut off shoulder top, frayed acid washed blue jeans, boots almost like Doc Martens, a cream colored knee length cover up, and a cute little brown purse. The second one I fell in love with was this burnt orange button-up shirt with a floral pattern that is paired with mocha dress pants. There's also a cream colored belt and a pair of mocha slip-on dress shoes.

While the models were continuing to walk down the runway, I decided to secretly watch people from my seat. I looked around the room and saw many awestruck faces in the audience. With confidence I knew that this collection was going to be a hit with consumers. These feelings made the thoughts of last night vanish like they never happened. Everyone here is only here because they like my work, they like me. Maybe I didn't need to live the average teenage life after all. It was clear what I do has an impact on other people, focusing on that could be important. However, for the first time I felt like I was doing something for myself. I felt almost as if I was living a dream that I didn't want to end. Maybe this little hiccup would blow over and no one would even remember what happened. Everyone there was pretty intoxicated anyways so I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Ugh, what am I doing? I need to stay out of my own head and focus on tonight. I need to accept that what I'm doing right here right now is all I need to pay attention to. Taking a careful deep breath I cleared my head and watched as the models finished walking the runway. They all headed out for one more look at each outfit and a bow. Mariah motioned for me to head to the stage and stand with the models for one more bow before I made my speech. As I walked on stage I was so excited to be here and I could feel the butterflies of endurance in my stomach. Mariah handed me a microphone as the models headed off the stage and gestured that it was time to start my speech.

Deep breaths Tyler....you do this all the time, I told myself so I could calm down.

"Thank you all for coming out tonight and seeing my latest works of art!" I started and the crowd filled with applause. "This collection was one of the first one's I've made where I felt I could truly express who I am. Obviously all my creations represent me and the art I create, but this one felt different. I would spend hours upon hours making sure every little seam worked together just right. You guys know the story of Goldie Locks? Yeah, that's how I treated this work. There are no words to express how thankful I am for each and every one of you here tonight. You are seeing a part of me that I truly love."