Etoile (The Mannequin Series) (18 page)

Twenty-four

“Oh my God, where were you? I totally called the police but, like, 911 doesn't work here!”

Elodie gave Lauren an exhausted smile as she walked into their dingy model apartment. The American teen circled her older French counterpart like a hungry shark, except that she probably wasn't hungry due to the alarming amounts of food that she consumed everyday.

“So, you're in the same dress from yesterday,” the young girl commented suggestively as she took a seat next to Elodie on the couch. “Did you have, like, a
fun
night? Where did you go? Where did you stay? Who did you stay with? Oh my God! Was it Tyler? Please tell me it was Tyler! No, wait! Don't! Please tell me it
wasn't
Tyler!”

None of the other girls seemed to be home, as a stampede did not ensue at the mere utterance of their idol's name. At the mention of Tyler, Elodie couldn't help but feel a pang shoot through her heart. Wanting to distract herself, she lit a cigarette and watched as the smoke billowed upwards in dramatic curls whenever she inhaled from it deeply.

Lauren's ponytail bobbed to and fro as she observed Elodie with expectant eyes. Even watching the peppy girl made Elodie want to collapse into a pile on the floor and succumb to the overwhelming fatigue that loomed over her. “Nothing,” she replied with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Nothing happened. Our friends came from London and left just now,” she fibbed nonchalantly. No need to position herself at the receiving end of Lauren's vengeful jealousy.

“Oh. My friend, Jessica, is based in London and she really hates it there. She says it's always really rainy and gloomy. I bet it's really sad. It's actually really funny because she's from a city called London in Canada, and the only way that I even know where it's near is because she told me that it's an hour from Toronto. But how can you hate London in Europe if you're from a tiny town in Canada?” Lauren began as she embarked on one of her word vomiting episodes. Elodie tuned the girl out, watching the teenager's mouth move at a hundred miles a minute and slowly nodding along at what seemed like appropriate points in the story.

As she faux-listened to the 15-year old's spiel, she began to really think about her situation. How had she gone from the girl that no one wanted to the one being pursued by two very attractive people? The issue at hand wasn't easy to deal with either, especially since she was unsure of her own feelings. It was undeniable that she was attracted to both men, albeit in completely different ways.

While James was cautious and responsible, Tyler was utterly reckless and impulsive. She felt safe with the handsome banker, but disconcertingly alive whenever she was near the gorgeous model. Though she had yet to experience intimacy with James, there was no hiding the fact that what she and Tyler shared was magnetic.

As Lauren's hands waved in the air excitedly, Elodie thought back on Tyler's sad smile from earlier that morning. Where had that even come from? She had been absolutely sure that he had just been fooling around with her up until now, chasing her as if it were some sort of game. He surely had a handful of girls that he juggled around as he wished, or so she had thought. How could she have known that he actually had feelings too?

Seeking distraction, Elodie promptly arose from her seat, saying to Lauren, “I should pack. I have to leave tonight for the shoot.”

“I'll totally help you,” Lauren replied eagerly as she shot up with her, scampering after Elodie into the bedroom. “I'm, like, so bored I could just die.”

“Where is everyone? Did your new flatmates arrive?” Elodie asked as she crouched on the floor and unzipped her suitcase.

Lauren nodded as she jumped onto the bed. “Yea, but those girls went to the agency today to get their schedules, or whatever. Two of them don't even speak English, so that should be
loads
of fun. Mira and Lana went to the salon and Klara went for a run or something really not fun like that. Anyway, I'm, like, so sad that you're leaving. I'm going to totally call you if I get to go to New York for Fashion Week in September, so you totally have to let me stay with you, okay? I'm going to put in a request with my booker in New York, and everything.”

Elodie couldn't help but look at the teenager and smile warmly. “Of course,” she told her as she rolled up one of her tee shirts and shoved it into the corner of her bag. She hated packing with a vengeance, and finished as quickly as she could. Once she was done, she locked her suitcase and leaned against the side of the bed, accepting the cigarette that Lauren handed to her.

“What time are you leaving?” Lauren asked as she lazily rolled over onto her back, her thick brown hair hanging off the side of the bed.

Exhaling a cloud of smoke, Elodie replied, “The driver is coming for me around five. What time is it?”

Lauren checked her phone and cried out, “It's already two. Oh my God, I only have three more hours with you!”

“Well, I have to shower, so make that two,” Elodie said with a laugh as she pushed herself up from the cold wooden floor. Lauren groaned loudly as Elodie dug through her purse for her phone, which was vibrating noisily. When she retrieved it, she was confused by what was on the screen.

“Hello?” she asked breathlessly. Even before he said anything, the prospect of hearing his voice made her feel tingly inside.

“Why did you call me so many times last night?” James asked, his voice covered by slight static.

Elodie felt her cheeks redden. “I did?”

“You called me thirteen times yesterday around 5 PM, and then sent a bunch of text messages in gibberish. I was in a meeting and my phone kept ringing nonstop, so I had to turn it off,” he told her. Unless her ears were playing tricks on her, she thought she could sense a hint of agitation in his voice.

Thirteen? “I am so sorry,” she managed to squeak out. She shut her eyes tightly and took a deep breath. “I must have had a bit too much to drink.”

He let out a sigh and she heard rustling in the background. Was he at work? “Yea, and then you didn't even pick up until now. I thought you were there for a photo shoot?”

“I am,” she mustered. “I just...”

She heard computer keys clicking and the sound of the printer. “Are you at work?” she asked in a surprised voice. It was 8 AM on a Sunday. He couldn't possibly still be working, right?

“Yea, I am,” he said bitterly. “I told you that I'm really busy right now, remember?”

A lump formed in her throat as she whispered back, “Yes, I remember.” Was he upset with her?

Elodie turned her head towards the window, avoiding Lauren's inquiring eyes. She swallowed hard, feeling very stupid for having drunk-called him so many times while he was busy pulling all-nighters.

James let out another sharp sigh as his voice softened slightly. “Look, let's just talk when you get back. I just wanted to make sure that nothing was wrong. Sorry, but I really have to get back to this project.”

“Oh, of course,” she replied, suddenly feeling very small and juvenile, as if she were a child being scolded by her father.

“I miss you,” she added in a tiny voice.

Click
.

Her face turned hot as she brought the phone into her lap. Had he heard her? Surely he hadn't? Elodie blinked furiously as she pretended to busy herself, reopening her suitcase for a change of clothes and lighting another cigarette.

“Who was that?” Lauren finally asked in a cautious voice, searching Elodie's face for any sign of emotion.

“Oh, just a friend,” Elodie chirped back nervously. “Anyway, I really must shower.”

Lauren gave her a big smile and nodded supportively, obliging the sad girl.

As Elodie stood still under the stream of burning hot water that trickled out of the grimy showerhead, she replayed the conversation in her head. Was James terribly upset? He had sounded extremely annoyed with her, but maybe it was because of the sheer amount of stress that he was under, or so she hoped. She mentally kicked herself as she angrily washed up, frustrated with how she had allowed herself to act like such a fool.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid,” she muttered to no one in particular as she climbed out of the shower stall and wrapped herself in a towel. Wiping away the fog that had formed on the mirror, she stared at her sad reflection. What was wrong with her?

Elodie blow dried her hair for as long as she could, as the loud noise helped to drown out her own thoughts. Afterwards, she slipped into an airy white Carven dress with short sheer sleeves, hoping that the beautiful garment would help to lift her mood. She then walked out into the living room, dropping her suitcase off next to the front door.

“Oh my God, you're actually leaving soon. This fucking sucks!” Lauren exclaimed as Klara, who was decked out in workout clothes, nodded next to her on the sofa. They were working their way through a fresh baguette and a jar of Nutella, and Klara had crumbs all over the front of her sports bra.

“I got you coffee,” Klara announced proudly, waving a much-needed cup of Starbucks in the air as Elodie gave her a look of utter adoration.

“Thank you so much,” she said as she took a seat on the floor next to the girls. After taking a big gulp of the lukewarm, bitter liquid, she let out a sigh of relief and slumped her shoulders in relaxation.

“Elodie said that we can totally stay with her if we get sent to New York for Fashion Week,” Lauren told Klara with a grin. “September is, like, way too far away.”

Klara nodded as she slathered another piece of baguette in the thick chocolatey spread. Elodie couldn't help but wince as she watched the young girl devour the mess in mere seconds. “Way too far.”

“So, do you hang out with Tyler in New York a lot?” Lauren asked with excited eyes as she turned to Elodie, causing the French girl to choke on her coffee.

“Um, sometimes,” Elodie told her with a frown. Why did she suddenly feel very, very sick?

“Oh my God, can we hang out with him when we go there? Please, can we? God, he's even more, like, totally cute in person than in pictures. And he's so, like, nice! Do you know if he's dating anyone? You must know, right? You guys seem, like, really close. He was dating Caroline Matheson before, right? God, I loved her British Vogue editorial with the elephants,” Lauren blurted out, trembling ever so slightly.

“What do you know about that?” Elodie asked curiously. So they
had
dated in the past?

“I think they shot it in Thailand, but they, like, glued all of these huge rhinestones or diamonds or whatever all over the baby elephants and had them, like, pose with her while she wore nothing but a Mongolian goat hair coat and, like, Harry Winston diamonds,” Lauren explained as a dreamy expression clouded her face.

“Not about that,” Klara said tiredly as she lit a cigarette. Elodie wanted to pet her on the head.

“Oh. Tyler and Caroline Matheson? I just know that they dated when they first started out because, like, my booker was talking about it with another booker and I was totally listening to the entire conversation. It was, like, a really big thing. That's why Tyler switched to Elle Models, just so he wouldn't have to bump into her at, like, agency events or at the office,” Lauren began as smoke billowed out past her rapidly moving lips. “But they, like, dated for a while and then Caroline cheated on him with all of these rich guys and some really famous casting director and then she was suddenly, like, really in demand. But I heard that she's really fake and that none of the other models really like her.”

Elodie nodded slowly as she processed the information. Now that she thought about it, Tyler didn't seem like such an arrogant bastard anymore.

“I was at a casting once and she walked in like she owned the place,” Klara added with a nod.

“Which she probably did,” Lauren said pointedly as she dropped her cigarette butt into a water bottle-cum-makeshift ashtray. The burning tip made a sizzling noise as it fell into the murky water.

At this, Elodie fought the urge to roll her eyes. Caroline Matheson, with her perfectly bouncy hair and blindingly white teeth, was suddenly a hundred times more unlikable.