More than Fashion

36

I tried to look sexy-cute and formed my hands into claws. “Rawr.”

He grinned as he handed me the bolt. “You think you’re ferocious, but when you do that, I just want to hug you.”

“Is that all you want to do?”

“Not even close.”

We were being ridiculous, but Nika and Derrick were staring, so it must have been working. Derrick rolled his eyes and walked out of the aisle, but Nika looked like she might stab me in the back with her scissors. Perfect.

I grabbed some zippers in the next aisle, but when I went to pay, I saw Nika blowing a kiss to Gavin—and carrying the same fabric as me. Oh, hell no. She was not getting my fabric and using my methods on my guy.

Wait, when had he become my guy?

Okay, scratch that last one. But the fabric was mine first, if nothing else.

“Seriously?” I said to her, as she got in line behind me. “You’re getting that one, too? I know you saw me grab it first.”

She shrugged. “Nothing says we can’t use the same fabric.”

I nearly growled I was so annoyed. I was even tempted to get different fabric, worried the judges would think I was copying her and not the other way around, or that they’d complain about two similar looks on the runway. But f**k it. That was the fabric I wanted, the one I’d picked out first, and I was going to hold my ground and get it even if Nika was going to be a pain in my ass. But if she copied my outfit, there’d be hell to pay.

Back in the design room, I scratched a note and left it on Gavin’s table. Helping Nika steal my fabric was not part of the plan.

He scowled when he saw it and quickly replied, dropping it in my lap as he walked past. She asked me for help. What was I supposed to do?

Stop being a gentleman for five minutes?

Never. And do I detect a hint of jealousy?

Ugh. He was impossible. I crumpled up his note, refusing to answer him.

The show was down to eight designers, which meant it was a lot easier for us all to talk to each other. Unfortunately, that also meant I could overhear other conversations in the design room. And the only gossip Jeff and his fan club wanted to talk about? How I got on the show.

“I can’t believe she never had to audition,” Derrick said, while he was draping something on his dress form.

“No wonder her looks are so costumey,” Nika added.

“This challenge should be perfect for her, then,” Jeff said. “How nice of the judges to go easy on her this time. Meanwhile, it will be a miracle if I can get this top on my model with her cleavage.”

“So unfair,” Derrick went on. “First Julie gets invited on the show, and now the judges practically guarantee she’ll win this one.”

I was tempted to pretend I didn’t hear them, to sulk silently and whine to Trina and Dawn in private later. But no, I was done with their bullshit. I stomped over to the other side of the workroom and waved my scissors at them. “You know, I can hear all of you.”

They each gave me innocent looks, and Nika said, “We weren’t—”

But I was just getting started. “No, I didn’t audition for the show, and I’m not going to apologize for being invited on it. But hey, I’m flattered you talk about me and my clothes so much, especially since I barely think about you three at all. And if you have something else to say? Next time say it to my face.”

Behind me, Trina started clapping, and soon the other designers joined in, including Gavin. Nika muttered, “Whatever,” while Derrick and Jeff busied themselves with their dress forms.

After I returned to my table, Gavin walked past and slipped me a note. Looks like you don’t need my help to get the producers’ attention. Still want to do this?

I looked up at him and nodded. I may have caused some drama, but I doubted it was enough to secure my spot on the show to the end.

When it was lunchtime, Gavin and I both volunteered for the first shift. I wasn’t sure how we would get to the kissing part, but that never seemed to be a problem for us. It was when we talked that he drove me crazy.

This shift also had Jeff and Derrick, but they took the table across the room. Gavin and I got our food from the buffet and sat down, but while Jeff loudly complained yet again about how large his model’s breasts were, we sat in silence. Jeff had to be the only guy who would complain about a girl’s boobs being too big.

Now that Gavin and I were supposed to kiss, I couldn’t think of anything to talk about, couldn’t stop thinking about him actually kissing me, and the fact that I was eating salad and probably had kale stuck in my teeth or tasted like garlic and oh god this whole thing suddenly seemed like a terrible idea.

“I want to hear about this Comic-Con contest,” he said, and I was grateful to him for breaking the awkward silence between us.

“This year I made costumes for me and my two roommates so we could enter the Masquerade.” I was about to say their names, but didn’t want to admit in front of Jeff and Derrick that Carla was one of them. “We decided to go with a Batman villain theme, but I wanted to do something different so I made punk rock outfits inspired by each character’s costume. My friend Maddie, the one I told you was on The Sound, was Harley Quinn, and…my other roommate was Catwoman. I was Poison Ivy.”

“I think I’m going to need to see photos of that.” He was stacking the mini coffee creamers into a pyramid again, but this time I wasn’t tempted to knock them over. Okay, maybe a tiny bit.