Cuffing Season

by Danielle Allen

  With a wave, I signaled the DJ to play Salt-N-Pepper again as I exited the runway platform to a round of applause.

  One minute later, the smooth, mid-tempo show music started playing. I looked from Haru to Jessica, everyone looked amazing from head to toe.

  They practiced the walk. They rehearsed how this goes. They know what they’re doing, I reminded myself silently. Remembering Luca’s words, my nerves settled, allowing me the calm to enjoy my moment.

  I let out a deep breath and gave a nod for the curtains to open. In a pair of white, high-waisted shorts with a sheer green shirt and a deconstructed green and blue blazer, Haru smiled, giving me a thumbs up. And when the beat changed, she walked onto the platform and posed to the sound of “oohs and ahhs” before making her way down the runway.

  As each model walked, I saw the same pleased look on their face when they returned. Fifteen minutes later, I walked the catwalk again with all twenty of them to a standing ovation. They left the stage, but I grabbed the microphone from the DJ.

  “Thank you all for being here! I hope you had a good time. I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank my mom and dad for loving me, supporting me, and buying me a sewing machine for my tenth birthday. I love you both so much. I’d like to thank all of my friends and family for sharing in this moment with me—in particular, Vanessa, my best friend who is more like a sister to me, and her husband, Derrick. Thank you to Mr. Lam and Mrs. Holliday for their guidance during this last stretch of my program. Thank you to everyone who helped with the show, but specifically, Kate, DJ Poison, and the incredible photographers, makeup artists, and hair dressers. Thank you to the media outlets and fashion bloggers who are here.” I took a deep breath. “And finally, thank you to all of you who got tickets and showed up tonight. You could’ve done anything else with your Saturday night, but you decided to be here for my show. I am truly humbled. Simply Serena officially opens for business January first, but you can begin preordering the items that you’ve seen here on November first. Check my website for details. Thank you!” As the applause thundered, I added, “Ten o’clock, after party at Savor!”

  With a wave, my first professional fashion show ended.

  After the models were out of their outfits, I placed them in garment bags and hung them on my portable rolling rack. I went out the back door to pack my car before going back in the building. I made a beeline to my parents, Vanessa and Derrick, and a few friends and family members that were seated in the front. After a quick exchange and a round of hugs, I had to go do an interview with bloggers and two members of the media that I had to convince to come to the show. I looked for Luca on my way, but I didn’t see him anywhere.

  The interview went well, and I got the sense that all of them truly enjoyed the collection. I stood in a classroom near the elevator bank with Akila, an art and culture writer from the Richland Times, a fashion writer from a regional magazine, and about twenty bloggers. They had questions and words of praise that really blew me away. By the time I took the last question and said goodbye, the only person left in the auditorium was the DJ, who was packing his equipment, and Kate, who was flirting with the DJ as he packed.

  After watching them interact for a second, I said goodbye to DJ Poison and waited for Kate out in the hall.

  “Sorry!” Kate apologized as she walked up to me. “The security guard said we could leave after Paul is finished packing up.”

  “DJ Poison’s name is Paul? I never would’ve guessed.” I smirked at her. “So, what’s up with you and DJ Poison—excuse me, you and Paul?”

  “I don’t know,” she giggled, covering her face. “He’s going to meet me at Savor, so we’ll see. Anyway, how did your meeting with the press go?”

  I could feel happiness radiating off me. “It went really well! I’m so excited.”

  “Your show was amazing. I’m serious. That’s what everyone was saying, too. From what you said in the beginning, from the song you chose to walk out to, oh my god! I thought you said you were walking out to Beyoncé and then all of a sudden, ah! Brilliant! It was absolutely brilliant, Serena!”

  “Thank you.” I grinned. “I can’t believe it’s done. I feel like it was a wedding. Months of preparation and attention to detail and then, from beginning to end, it was over in an hour. I’m exhausted, but…” I put my hands to my cheeks. “This was my dream come true.”

  “You honestly knocked it out of the park. This was a homerun, for sure. And not just with the clothes. You’ve always had impeccable taste. But what you said beforehand about not letting what other people say define you. That was perfect.”

  “Thank you, Kate.” I massaged my cheeks because they hurt from smiling so hard. “Tonight was truly something special.”

  “This is the last of it,” Paul informed us as he exited the auditorium. “Serena, thank you for hiring me. Kate, see you tonight.”

  I smiled at the man who had graciously DJed my event for a fraction of his usual cost. “Thanks, Paul!”

  “I need to go home and change, but I’ll text you,” Kate replied.

  “That’s cool.” He pushed the main door open with his back. “You look beautiful as is though.” And then he left.

  My eyebrows shot to the middle of my forehead as I stared at Kate. “Girl!”

  Her face was beet red. “Did that just happen?” She squealed.

  “I’ll wait around for the security guard. Go get ready for your date,” I told her as I gave her a hug.

  Squealing, she hugged me back. “Are you sure?”

  “You’ve done enough. You went above and beyond what Mr. Lam asked us to do as my assistant. Now, go! You have a fine ass man waiting to get a text from you.”

  Jumping up and down a bit, she squealed again. “I do! Thank you, Serena. I’m going to go home and—oh!” She stopped abruptly.

  I was about to respond when movement down the hall caught my attention.

  Right on time, I thought as the security guard appeared from the direction of the bathrooms.

  “We’re all done! The DJ got his stuff, so that should be it. We’re leaving,” I yelled out to him. I waited for him to wave before I turned my attention back to Kate. “Let’s go!”

  We walked out into the relatively warm October night and headed to the parking lot.

  “You needed to focus on putting on an excellent show—and you did. But now that it’s done, I have to tell you something,” she began slowly.

  “What’s up?”

  “The show was the most important thing, so I didn’t want to say anything when I found out because I wanted your head to be in the game.”

  I laughed. “Spit it out, Kate!” I was so high off life, I didn’t think anything could bring me down.

  “The um… Lost Boys.” She fiddled with her keys. “There was this really messed up podcast. I couldn’t listen to the whole thing this morning, because it was… I just… I don’t know if that’s even allowed. They didn’t say your name, but I just… I just wanted you to know it was out there. It’s… it’s bad. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  Fuck The Lost Boys.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Where are you?” Vanessa asked as soon as I picked up the phone.

  “I had to bring all of my stuff in and then I took a shower. I’m almost finished getting ready though.” I looked at the clock. “I’m going to be at least fifteen minutes late, but the VIP section is reserved for ten o’clock. Are you there already?”

  “I just got here. Derrick and a couple of his friends are inside at the bar.” She lowered her voice. “Trey’s on the way.”

  “If he thought I was too much for him before, you and I both know he thinks I’m too much for him now.” I let out a humorous laugh. “Honestly, I’m taking a break from men. I’m tired of their shit.”

  “What? You just got done with a break from men!”

  “That was a work break. I was unintentionally not dating because I was focused on work. This is a man break. I am intentionally not dating because
I’m focused on myself.”

  “What happened?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Serena, we’ve been best friends since we were little—”

  “Since we were seventeen, but continue,” I corrected her, trying not to smile.

  “We’ve been best friends forever, and I can tell that some shit happened. So, spill it.”

  “I’ll tell you when I get there.”

  “No, ma’am! You need to tell me now, so we can get it out of your system. When you arrive here, you need to be in a different mindset. This is a celebration for you. And you deserve to be celebrated. So, spill it.”

  I sighed. “First, I was backstage, and Marcus showed up—”

  “What did that spineless asshat want?”

  Hearing Vanessa snap put a smile on my face as I hit the speakerphone button. “Right?!” I eyed the dress I was going to wear as I pulled on my G-string. “He snuck backstage to apologize and to tell me that his girlfriend was having a hard time with the rumors and he didn’t want to make it worse for her by appearing with me in the campaign.”

  “He should’ve never slept with you when he knew he had a girlfriend in the first place.”

  “Exactly! That’s my point! I understand him doing what he feels like he needs to do to make sure his girlfriend is happy. I even understand to some degree where she may not feel comfortable with him working with me. And I’m not judging their open relationship. If that’s what they want, fine, whatever. But no one was open with me! I didn’t know about her at all, and I told him that I wasn’t sleeping with him again because he has a girlfriend. And he agreed to do the campaign, and she knew about what happened with us. I was the last to know!”

  “So, what’s her problem?”

  “Apparently because everyone is saying that we slept together and they’re looking at her with pity because she was allegedly cheated on.” I rolled my eyes as I rolled on my deodorant. “I just hate that the first man I decide to get back out there and destress with had a whole girlfriend he didn’t bother to mention.”

  “Why would they even come to the show if it was a problem?”

  “Exactly! Why were they there? It makes no sense!” I threw my arms up in the air. “So, that was annoying. But what took the cake was Luca.”

  “Yeah, I definitely saw him and wanted to ask you about it. I thought he was taking pictures of the stuff for your campaign. I didn’t realize he was taking pictures of the fashion show, too.”

  “I didn’t know he was doing that either!”

  “He’s not charging you, is he?” Vanessa asked quickly.

  I could imagine the facial expression she was making, and I laughed lightly. “He better not! I didn’t ask him to do that. But before that even happened, he also snuck backstage and—”

  “Where was security?” she interrupted. “Your parents and I were joking about sneaking back there to wish you luck and lo and behold, these motherfuckers were letting any and everybody back there!”

  “My thoughts exactly! Marcus said they let him in because he won the school a championship last season. And Luca said they let him back because they treated him like faculty.”

  “That’s still messed up that they let them back there. But sorry, please continue.”

  “Luca told me that he was treating me differently when his team got to the shoot because he was trying to protect me. He thought if we looked like something was going on, it was going to perpetuate the rumors about us, about me.” I swallowed hard. “He said he thinks there’s something between us, and he couldn’t leave town without letting me know that.”

  “Do you believe him?”

  I stopped putting lotion on my body and closed my eyes. The memory of the way he looked at me and the way he kissed me caused an increase in my heart rate. “I believe that he has feelings for me. I believe that there’s something real between us. And when he kissed me, the Earth shifted on its axis.”

  “Oh. My. God. Serena!” Vanessa squealed in delight. “I love this so much! But I know there’s a ‘but’ coming. I can feel it.”

  “He told me that he can’t shake me and that he feels this thing between us…as we’re tucked away behind a partition. So, he takes me out to his favorite restaurant which happens to be one of the hottest restaurants in town, so everyone sees us together. And then after the gossip starts swirling around that week, it changed. We had a moment, and then he treated me differently in front of his team. He claimed he was working and busy, so he didn’t talk to me for days afterward, and then he showed up here to tell me that he was different because he didn’t want anyone to think we were together. And then after I ignore him for a couple of days because I’m busy working, he shows up backstage to apologize and to tell me he has feelings for me.”

  “Holy shit!”

  “Yeah. And then he kissed me and gave me a pep talk and…” I sighed, remembering how it felt to have his hands on my face and his lips on mine. “All behind the safety of a partition.”

  “What did you say?”

  My eyes fluttered open. “I told him I didn’t date men who had to sneak around with me.”

  “And?”

  “And that’s it. I had to get back to work, and he apparently joined the photography pool.”

  “So, let me get this straight… he just showed up at the event to profess his love for you and then he decided to take pictures for you for free. That’s nice that—”

  My eyes flew open and I gasped.

  “—what?” Vanessa asked, quickly abandoning what she was saying.

  Anger and hurt shot through me as I realized what happened. “He probably wanted it to look like I hired him to be there instead of having anyone think we were together. Oh my...” I shook my head as I felt the tears stinging my eyes. “He seemed so sincere when he said everything else was white noise.”

  “I saw the way that man looked at you. The feelings have to be real. But if he can’t get over the fact that you were with men before him, fuck him.”

  “My thoughts exactly. But it is what it is. Like I said before, if he’s the type of man that would let what people are saying about me get in the way of what was happening between us, then he isn’t the man that I thought he was.” I eyed my dress again and then looked in the mirror. “You know what… I’m putting all of that behind me, and I’m celebrating tonight.”

  “Your drinks are on me tonight. And by me, I mean Derrick.”

  An unexpected laugh escaped me as my hurt threatened to dampen my spirits. “Thanks, Nessa.”

  “Now get your gorgeous ass down here so we can toast to a hell of an accomplishment. And who knows… Trey may surprise you.”

  Walking to my closet, I pulled out a new outfit. “You know what, I think I’m going to be the one full of surprises.” The corners of my mouth turned upward. “I’ll text you when I get there.”

  I was parked outside of Savor forty-five minutes later.

  After sending Vanessa a text message, I stepped out of my car in black thigh-high boots and pulled my denim shorts down. Grabbing my cropped leather jacket, I slipped it on over my white graphic t-shirt. I heard something drop and when I shifted to the left, I saw that it was an old pen top. The shorts stopped right where my ass met my thighs, so I knew bending down wouldn’t be an option.

  I’ll get that later, I assured myself.

  The temperature had dropped by ten o’clock. So, while I looked good as I walked toward the building, I knew the leather jacket would be coming off within ten minutes of arriving.

  “Hey! Love your boots,” the woman who checked my ID complimented as I entered the building.

  “Thanks!” I flashed her a bright smile. “Oh, and I’m on the VIP list. I reserved a section.”

  She looked at my ID again and then checked her handheld electronic device. “Ms. Brooks!” With her free hand, she passed me a bracelet. “Welcome to Savor. Your section is on the second floor, right behind the DJ booth.” She pressed a button on her headset. “B
en, Serena Brooks is on her way to you. She’s in Section A. Please show her the way. Thank you.” She looked at me. “You’re all set. Have a great time tonight!”

  I thanked her and headed toward the big black door as she collected the ID and payment from the people behind me. The music was muffled, but the beat pulsed through the walls. The door opened as I approached, and I couldn’t help but smile. The music was going, people were on the dance floor, and four members of security greeted me.

  “Ms. Brooks?” A big burly man with cute dimples questioned with a smirk.

  “Ben?” I returned.

  He chuckled. “Yes, ma’am. You can take these steps to your section or you could cross the dance floor and take the stairs by the DJ booth.” He pointed across the crowded room. “If you need an escort, let me know.”

  “I think I got it, but thanks, Ben.”

  I took the stairs and headed to my section. The position behind the DJ booth had the best vantage point. Twelve out of the twenty models, both photographers, most of the makeup artists and hairdressers, and two of my classmates were in the large section even though only half of the group were able to sit comfortably. As I looked around, I saw Kate and Paul slow dancing off-beat near the VIP bar. I saw several friends and classmates that I made small talk with, but I had my eye out for Vanessa.

  It had been fifteen minutes since I texted her and just as I was going to send another, the DJ started spinning our favorite song.

  Vanessa: I’m just seeing your text. The line for the bathroom was ridiculous. Our song is on! Meet me on the dance floor if you can.

  Serena: On my way!

  I took the stairs right next to my section, and I was only halfway down when I spotted her in a black dress that I’d made her last year.

  “Nessa!” I called out as I reached the floor.

  She couldn’t hear me over the music, but she must have felt me coming because she turned my way.