"You have got to be kidding me..."
"What happened?"
"Asher, baby, please do tell what compiled you to do— that?! Sebastian's index finger points towards the kitchen which is now, thankfully, hidden from view behind the wall since we're hiding in the hall way.
"I- I have no idea what you're talking about..." he smiles one of those not-so-innocent smiles, looking up at the man with big eyes and twitching lips.
"Lying won't get you anywhere, Ash," Julian coaxes, standing behind Sebastian with a contrasting amused expression. His body almost completely covering my full view of Asher and the taller man's stare down.
"I had a dream..." he whispers, sighing in defeat. "No, more like a vision," my brows furrow as he shutters and I step to the side to get a better view of him.
"A dream?" I question, ignoring the flickering gaze coming from Sebastian.
He nods, keeping his eyes low and his fingers knotted. "Yeah, last night," he finally looks up and unexpectedly looks straight at me. "About you."
What? I try to resist the urge to pinch the side of my arm. — Am I dreaming?
"You were wearing that same outfit as the day of the Spring Runway Show and you were so... exhausted,"
Oh...
Asher looks back down and I sigh before glancing at the other two who have now turned their gazes to me. This whole investigation plus work thing is starting to take a toll after only a couple weeks. Ever since the dinner we had with Jas, everyone has been so on edge and it's been getting to us more than we'd like to admit.
"Jas!" I swing our door open, springing straight into her arms and she just about manages to catch me without letting us fall straight onto the pavement.
"It's good to know that I've been missed," she goes straight to pettiness.
I roll my eyes, releasing my hold to tap her on the shoulder. "I told you I've only been distancing myself for your safety, you don't even understand how much I miss your tea,"
"And here I thought my tea has been pretty decent," Asher peaks his head over Jas' shoulder, grinning with a cup of tea that I've been patiently waiting for all day.
"It is, but no one can beat Jas in that café, it's nothing personal," I joke, Asher walking up to give me a hug and a quick peck on the side of my neck.
"Can't argue with that," he rushes in to greet the others while I help Jas get settled in the living room.
Julian refused to let either of us help so the two of us could properly catch up after who knows how long. So, for tonight, our two other partners are his kitchen assitants.
"Aw, Jas, I'm so happy things are going well with you and Lucy!" I hop across the sofa to wrap my arms around her neck.
She hums and I pull back to notice her sudden frown. She was all blush and happy not even two seconds ago... "Jas? Things are going well, right?"
She vigorously nods her head, "almost perfect, actually,"
"But...?"
"But- I don't know how to..." she trails off, leaving me in suspense as per usual.
"Jas, come on, what's on your mind?"
Her eyes trace the lines of the carpet and for a moment I almost worry she won't tell me. I hope she can trust me with whatever's on mind, it doesn't feel right seeing her all down like this and not being able to help at all.
"I want to live together," she mumbles and if it weren't for my arms still being around her, I wouldn't have heard a word she said. I pull back even further, letting my hands fall off her shoulders and to her fidgeting hands on her lap.
"That's great, Jas!"
She shakes her head, "how do I even start a conversation like that?!"
I lean back even further, tilting my head back in thought. She's kinda right- How does one get into that kind of topic?
When Tyler and I moved in together, it was kind of just a given. We were together since high school and after already living together in college, it didn't even come into question whether or not we should keep sharing the same space after graduation.
Neither of us formally asked the other, we simply started looking at apartments and that was that.
Even now, the guys invited me into their home due to... those circumstances. So, I'm kind of at a loss when it comes to advice.
"Has the topic ever came up between you two?"
She mulls over it for a second, "Kind of, we were kind of joking around and started looking at pictures of our dream houses and decor— our styles blend together really well,"
"Well, there ya' go!" We keep the conversation going, giving her any tips I can, gladly welcoming the change of topic from my usual drama to help a friend of mine.
We ended up chatting away all evening only to suddenly realise the time and had a sleepover in the living room together. What we didn't expect after our all-nighter though, was for a sudden change of patterns in my own life of drama and theatrics.
A picture of us getting a snack and ice cream from a 24h corner shop in the middle of the night was taken of us and uploaded early in the morning. Throwing us all off completely.
This is the first ever photo posted of our private life at night time.
No pictures of us back at home, thankfully, but how do we know if they didn't take any and simply aren't posting them.
This feels more... personal. A warning.
'Keep your distance from those men.'
Tyler's words rings in my head. I just saw him the other day, no way this is a coincidence.
I need to speak with him.
"Asher... but why did you nearly destroy the kitchen because of your dream?" I ask.
He shrugs, "you looked so tired and just not like yourself, I thought a nice breakfast together to start the new week off would help?"
"Aww, Asher..." I see his lower lip begin to tremble, his knees barely keeping him up as the silence drags on. "Hey, hey, hey look at me please," my finger and thumb pinch his chin lightly to pull his gaze back up to me. His watery gaze shattering my heart to pieces in an instant.
He's worried about me.
"Asher, Sweets, I'm fine, I'm keeping up my promise not to work on the weekends and you guys are looking out for me which I'm so grateful for,"
"I- I know, it's just... seeing you like that broke me and I'm scared it'll actually happen if we can't figure this whole thing out soon!"
Like a reflex, an instinct, my arms go around him right in time as he starts falling to the floor. He pulls me with him and I let his sniffles and cries get muffled by my shirt. My eyes wandering over the wall behind him while I place kisses on his head. "Sweets, we're doing this together like we always do, we're okay,"
"I know, I know,"
"What do you need from me?"
He sniffles one more time before pulling his head away from my chest. "Food. I want to enjoy this breakfast together, all four of us,"
I nod quickly, but hesitate to pull him up to his feet. The reasoning for my hesitancy is clear to the other two still standing behind us now wrapped up in their own little embrace as well. The whole reason why we're all hiding away in their hallway right now.
The kitchen is in an absolutely disastrous state. And that's putting it lightly. "Asher, what exactly were you trying to make this morning anyway?" I try to ask casually, not wanting to hurt his feelings.
He shrugs, using his sleeves to wipe away the rest of his tears while I rub up and down the side of his exposed arms. "Typical breakfast stuff: Eggs, scrambled of course- bacon, freshly pressed orange juice..." I think back to what we stumbled into when we walked into the kitchen in a sleepy daze. The state of it waking me up faster than any tea ever could. I'm trying to remember all of the interesting ingredients that were splayed out along the entire countertop and I c an't for life of me figure out what he could've needed the fish for...
"Oh-" I pause my thinking to listen to the last part of his breakfast plan. "I tried to make some toast to," No way-
"J-Julian," I try to bite back my laughter, Julian already failing miserably. "Do you, um, think we could all help Asher clean up and make this breakfast together?" I hide my smile with the back of my hand, Asher's eyes quickly narrowing at us.
"Oh yeah, we'll definitely to work as a team for this one,"
"Hey!" He slaps us on the arm, but his amused smile gives away how he truly feels and it couldn't make me happier seeing them like this again. So carefree.
"Come on, we don't want to be late for work let's get started," Sebastian nudges us to the scene which we've been nonchalantly trying to avoid for as long as possible.
Before we can turn the corner, where I can already see piles of flour and sugar waiting to be cleaned up, Asher nudges me with his elbow; a humorous arched brow being shown my way. "What?"
"I think that was the first time you called either of us something other than our names,"
My face starts burning up, my hands failing to completely hide it. I was so caught up in the moment I just started calling him... Sweets. "I- It just kind of happened in the moment, I-"
He chuckles, hopping a bit as he reaches an arm around my shoulder, "I like it, you should call me that from now on!" Then he strolls off to help a glaring Sebastian and a slightly overwhelmed Julian who are both getting a head start on getting the sticky and burnt toast out of the toaster...
Ah, such a typical morning in this household.
"Due to the night time picture being taken, Noah, we decided to take this to a whole new level," Jennifer starts off as soon as I walk into the office.
"What do you mean?"
"We have no idea what they have up their sleeves, or if they have more private pictures stored secretly in their inventory, so from now, we're appointing a security guard to be with you,"
"Security?!"
Sarah rolls her eyes. "Jennifer almost appointed a whole team of security to look after you 24/7, I managed to narrow it down to one person,"
I shake my head. "Is that really necessary?" As if it were timed, they both cross their legs and stare me down silently. I get the message. "Okay, ma'am,"
There goes the last ounce of privacy we had left. "But what do you mean by 24/7?"
"Well, you'll technically have two who will be working in rotation: day shifts and night shifts,"
Basically, Gabriel and Vivienne, two security guards I know by face, are going to be looking after me until this situation is sorted. They're to be by my side at all times until further notice. At night, when we're in the comfort of our own home, one of them will be on-guard right outside the door.
Vivienne is one of the first guards Jennifer hired, I know that much. She's one of the best and is currently training a lot of new recruits today. I don't know much about this Gabriel person, though, but I remember seeing him interact with a suspicious person one day and he handled it in a pretty calm and professional manner from what I remember.
"I don't know..." I feel kind of bad to be taking time out of their lives for something that'll probably never amount to more than these pictures.
"Noah, it's their job, to protect the people who hired them, they gladly took on the job so let them do it with pride and just take it day-by-day," Jennifer reassures.
"Besides, this is only temporary, we'll have this figured out before you know it,"
Lucy wastes no time jumping straight into me as soon as I reach the studio and I twirl us around a couple times while we laugh hysterically. We end up tumbling to the floor, but hey, at least the floor here is clean. "I've missed you!"
I laugh again, "me too, how've you been?"
We catch up on anything and everything. My tongue is being extra careful not to spill anything regarding Jas' plans. She wants to ease the idea of the two of them moving in together at a steady pace and if I mention anything, it could ruin the whole thing. So, my mouth shall remain shut. Unless we're talking about the photoshoot, which we're doing right now.
"I can't believe it's already time for them to announce the official models and concept for the Autumn collection,"
"Tell me about it, I feel like September just started and we're already approaching October this weekend..." I lean back in my chair, waiting for Flora and her assistants to arrive with the other models circling around in their own little groups.
As if one cue, the sounds of heels clicking along the studio floor bring our attention to the entrance. The woman of the hour waltzing in with a bright orange dress with intricate detailing. She looks absolutely stunning...
"Good afternoon, everyone!" She greets, a clipboard being handed to her before the room goes dark so we can all see the projector behind her clearly. "As I'm sure you're all aware, it's time for some final announcements regarding the Autumn photoshoot,"
She spins, clicking a button on the remote in her hand with a wide grin, "welcome to the 'Rising Leaves' season!"
We turn our gaze up to the first drafts of all of the bright orange, red and brown outfits put on display. From gowns, to jumpsuits, crop tops and loungewear; the collection values versatility and comfort this year.
"As it is sweater weather, we did include more loungewear this year, as per the public's request, but we also have a bunch of casual and fancy wear as well," she flips through the slides and explains the vision for each and every single one of them. "We wanted to be as versatile as we possibly could, so there's a second part to the collection: the darker tones,"
The next few slides are my personal favorites and my heart is practically yearning to model those. Green hues, from dark emerald to light sage, golds, dark reds, purples and burnt orange blend together to create this beautiful picture of a cool, Autumn evening. I love it.
"We have carefully selected who will be modelling what, which will be up here on the board, but as for who will be showing off in this gown," she switches the slide to a jaw dropping dress with a large train that has patterned leaves on the edges. It has detachable sheer sleeves, a pattern of tiny little cranberries twists around the arm on said sleeves and the ruffle out slightly by the wrists. It's accentuates at the waist, but flares out at the hips so wonderfully, it's absolutely mesmerizing.
"Lucy, you'll be wearing this dress," she announces and I nearly shriek as I jump on her and cheer.
"Congratulations, this is amazing, Lucy!" My feet go in circles around her as her eyes begin to water with happy tears.
"Thank you so much, I won't let you down!"
"I have no doubt," she turns to the next slide, "one more thing: the ombre orange dress will be our showstopper for this year, but the darker toned outfits do get a stand-out outfit as well, which will be worn by none other than, Noah,"
Huh?
I really wasn't expecting that. With all that's been floating around of me lately on the internet, I was sure they'd want to keep me on the down low on things like these for this year. "You're one of our best models, Noah, we're not going to let some petty scandal stand in the way of our vision for this year, you fit the outfit and the way we imagine it to be portrayed perfectly,"
I finally look up at her words. The jumpsuit in the background bringing a gasp from me as I hold Lucy's hand. It's such an elegant shade of dark green, almost sleeveless if it weren't for the careful design of string-like sizes of fabric meant to weave around my arms like a spiderweb. The back connecting to the sleeves, creating the perfect imagery of a night out in the forest where the biggest of these eight legged creatures awaken for a night of hunting. Accents of golds and blacks shown throughout the waist and leg area has me shaking with excitement.
I'm so excited!
"Congratulation, my love!" Julian tucks me into him, taking a break from the book he's reading to hug me tightly. His lips peck my head and face all over, leaving me in a fit of giggles. "Are you excited?"
"That would be a huge understatement," I love all of the outfits, they did such a great job trying to put as many different styles into one collection as they could. I hope a lot of people will enjoy the different colors, there are so many things to choose from this year, way more than last year, I hope they'll love it as much as we do.
Unfortunately, I have to be the one to bring the mood back down. "Julian... can we talk?" His smile immediately drops and I almost regret not waiting at least until tomorrow to tell them, but I know we have to get this done as soon as possible.
"That sounds scary..." he pulls me with him to the living room where we plop down onto the sofa facing each other with crossed legs. Our hands quickly grab each another's in the small space between us and I think that's reassurance enough to calm him slightly as his usual calm smile reappears.
"I need to go talk to Tyler."