Floriography: Red Roses

Chapter 20

Louis looked down for a moment, feeling guilty.

“But honestly that's not what I saw yesterday, Manson. You walked in yesterday's show like it was, like magic to me. Can't you call that genius?”

Tracy sighed, and looked around, making sure there were not many people around. Tracy leaned towards Louis.

“When you were a kid, you must have been, acting like your idol, once or twice?” Tracy whispers. Louis just raised his eyebrows.

“That's what I did. In those moments I was sure that I was Gracy, not Tracy.” Tracy chuckled slightly as she leaned back against her stool.

“Because in the end my outer appearance is exactly the same as her, right? All I need to do is act like him.”

Louis leaned back on his bench. Something was stuck in his mind. Louis can't say this, but he can't stop looking at the photos he took of yesterday's fashion show, the photos of Tracy Manson on the runway and of course, the pictures of Tracy Manson on the runway, she has also paid hundreds of attention to the photos of Gracy, and what she saw in the fashion show yesterday, is definitely not Gracy. No. gabe. Louis could see the difference, but what was the difference? Louis could not explain.

“Is there anything else you want to ask, Troy? This matcha tiramissu keeps whispering my name, I have to start eating.” Tracy bit her lip. Louis gave a small laugh as he raised his hand to invite Tracy.

“Please.” His whisper.

Tracy gave a small laugh as she began to eat the snacks served to them.

“Then what brought you back to the world of modeling this time? I don't think it's just because Miss Naka is your best friend.”

Tracy snorted, wiping her lips before answering.

“You don't know Violetta yet. If he wanted something, it would be hard to resist. I also knew Violetta was a perfectionist, and from her first step, she had imagined ten steps after, and everything she imagined would always happen, because she was Violetta Nakajima, she said, for him if there is one thing that needs to be replaced from his shadow, it is not the same, he will return to the first step and repeat his work.”

Louis smiled, as if something was amusing from Tracy's words.

“So? But I mean Miss Naka is your best friend. I'm sure he knows the story about you and your brother but he's still forcing you to come to the show?”

Tracy shrugged her shoulders.

“Violetta professional. In his work for him personal problems can not be mixed with problems

job. Violetta used to be tolerant of me, but I don't like being unprofessional either. At least I'm an adult, I don't want to ruin my own work.”

“While a designer with a big name like Miss Naka will be able to get Gracy easily.” Louis muttered, loud enough until Tracy heard him.

“Oh, of course. But Violetta doesn't want.”

Louis grunting. “You sure?”

Tracy rolled her eyeballs and put her tablespoon on the side of the plate.

“If you're a photographer struggling in the modeling world you should know, Team Naka's first work, which gets that low rating.”

Louis frowned and thought for a while, but he could not remember. Team Naka always gets a lot of praise, although many of their works are controversial, but the ratings are low? Hardly ever. Tracy then decided to explain.

“Grace presents three dresses, Daisy Glory, Wisteria Mystery, and Rose n Tulip. And more than ten magazines rated the use of Gracy as a model of all three designs was a naive and stupid decision.”

Tracy shrugged her shoulders. “That's why Violetta chose her model more carefully. Not that she blamed Gracy, but that time Violetta used Gracy for social climbing alone, and not because Gracy fit the dress she wanted to present.”

Louis raised his eyebrows again, speechless. Tracy grinned.

“Why? Insinuated ya?”

Louis rolled his eyes and leaned back.

“Maybe. I don't know Manson, on the one hand I was really sure that the dress would be most suitable to be presented by Gracy, but on the other hand I also can't lie if I do think Gracy's name could carry my name up as well.”

Louis avoided Tracy's eyes during the conversation.

“No need to hesitate, I understand. This is your job, so I think having Gracy under your project will be a great opportunity for you. But learn from Violetta's case, I think it's also good if you climb slowly from below.”

Louis sighed, and grabbed his coffee which looked already cold.

“Maybe.” Whisper, then sip the coffee.

“But put it this way, Manson, let me explain a little about myself.” Louis moved an apple pie to

his plate, before returning to keep his cutlery on the side and propping up his chin with both hands clenched, looked at Tracy.

“You can say I am also a little bit similar to Miss Naka. Because from the beginning I've imagined Gracy wearing that dress—and it's true Jasper said that I don't have to ask Gracy for that not-so-big project, but I so can't imagine another model wearing that dress.” Louis took a breath. “I can't say I'm ambitious too, but a perfectionist maybe?”

Tracy just nodded her head trying to open her mind as widely as possible.

Louis sighed and threw his body onto the bench then rubbed his face. “I just want everything…. Perfect, you know that feeling? I mean... If you can reach the number one hundred why should you only take the number fifty?” Tracy wanted to answer, isn't that what she called ambitious? But there are other questions that he thinks are more important.

“And Gracy is that hundred?” Tracy raised her eyebrows. Rhetorical, but Tracy just wants to hear Louis

said it from his own mouth.

“In this case, yes.”

Tracy nodded.

your partner.” Tracy held up her sit-down poem, cleaning her mouth with her already cold Americana. “Gracy's observation has been messed up lately. Especially since his new album has just come out and he is still in promotion. She's also not active in her modeling agency so I can't say that Gracy is a hundred you can remember, the problem is not with you, but with Gracy. I do not lie when there are times when my e-mail has only been replied a month after it was sent.”

Louis nodded his head, as if he knew about it.

“Yeah, but I mean when manager Gracy even returned my phone and invited me to Japan, I thought he at least took me seriously.”

Tracy rolled her eyeballs. “Manager Gracy is stupid. He had only been in charge of Gracy for six months, and this was the first time he had been an artist manager as big as Gracy. Gracy said her agency didn't want to pay too much, so they chose this guy. I'm so sorry you got caught in that stupid fool's trap.”

Louis snorted, starting to eat the pie perched on his plate earlier. “You talk like you know him.”

“I almost got her trap too. He once picked up the phone from me and said that Gracy would be home in a week. And I just believe, cancel all kinds of events in the next week, and it turns out that Gracy only stopped here and there quickly in one day and then moved back.” Tracy shook her head.

“Too often origin by the way.” Just keep Tracy a little.

“Yeah, yeah come on, I've been in Japan too, I can't do anything.”

“Didn't you also go to Japan because Violetta invited?”

Louis quickly shook to while frowning. “No.” He wiped his mouth. “I called Jasper shortly after the promised time manager Gracy and after that Jasper sent me to Violetta.”

Tracy nodded. “Ooh. So, back to Gracy.”

“Hm? Why about Gracy?”

“Ya, then what about the replacement model?”

Louis shrugged, immediately severed his eye contact with Tracy and continued eating her.

“I don't know, I'll think slowly. Maybe I'll call some models for fittings, the best I'll take.”

Tracy took a breath. “Don't be too sad, can work with Violetta and Jasper in a time like this can also be considered a social climbing tool. Sometimes because we are too close to them both they feel like ordinary people, whereas—“ Tracy snorts a little, talking about it makes Tracy's heart beat faster, realize what he has done. “We just did a show in Shibuya, Louis. In a place commonly used by Fashion Week.”

Louis laughed a little.

“You have a point. That goes for you too?”

Tracy nodded. “Of course! I've been vacuuming from the model world for quite a long time. My last runway was still with Gracy, after which I entered the magazine more or less twice and already.” Tracy shrugged her shoulders. “Lost.”

“I was not a professional photographer at the time. I still take photos for hobbies. But you guys have been on TV and newspapers so of course I remember.” Louis finished his apple pie and picked up a piece of tiramisu.

“I've guessed you're a new photographer.” Tracy squinted her eyes.

Louis laughed loudly this time, his sweet dimples making Tracy smile. “I will admit that you are not wrong to say I am an amateur photographer, please forget everything that happened before. Me too..” Louis patted his forehead. “I also don't know what happened to me.”

“Yes, yes, we do this to forget everything. I honestly also don't want to have a bad relationship with anyone in the industry after Violetta took me as her journalist full time.”

“Oh yes?” Louis raised his eyebrows. “It looks like I will also be working at Jasper's place for some time. There is one wedding dress that he is designing for the wedding two months ahead, he wants to do a photoshoot first with the model before sending the dress, then the couple's pre-marital photos are also I handle.”

“So we'll be co-workers?” Tracy raised her eyebrows slightly in shock.

Louis shrugged his shoulders “Most likely so?” Louis laughed again. Tracy laughed.

“Good decision for a ceasefire. Please be good to me for the future.” Tracy slightly bowed playfully. Louis nervously nodded, realizing they were in Japan and lowered their heads with a small laugh.

“And vice versa.” Louis's reply was brief. This conversation relieved her heart, but little did Tracy

dispel his suspicions on this guy. Just like wild animals are always afraid of humans for no reason, that's what Tracy always feels for photographers and other industry workers.

“What made you decide to talk to me actually?” Tracy asked as soon as she sat back down. Realizing his question sounded too sudden, he added, “I mean if this conversation doesn't happen, you won't know if we'll be coworkers later?”

“Hm...” Louis is chin-backed, composing sentences in his head.

“Say I just got back to my senses, and whoever you are I feel there are some words I don't deserve to say to you. Especially after yesterday I mentioned about you and modeling, I mean right you said, I don't know you two personally, but I missed voicing my thoughts with words that—after I think back—too delve into someone's personal life and stereotype.” Louis laughed a little. “Because after seeing your performance on stage yesterday, I..”.

“Hm...” Louis's eyes suddenly stare at Tracy. Tracy frowned and tilted her head, guessing what the man in front of her was thinking.

“Ah, it's hard to say. Perhaps you could say, I am a person who has difficulty believing in words, I believe more in what I see. And what I saw on stage yesterday left a pretty big impression on me.” Louis finally made a sound. Tracy refrained from rolling her eyes. These compliments upset him.

“Ok, if we want to discuss ‘runway memorable’—“ Tracy make quotes with her fingers. “We change the topic only. What will you do when you get home? I seem to want to stop by Violetta's office first to finish the article she wants, just returned home.”

Louis seemed to want to question the change of topic but he pulled back and decided to

following the plot Tracy made.

“I also want to directly meet Jasper and give him the choices of Gracy's replacement model, as well as call him on the spot. Because if my models refuse, I need a few days to find a replacement.” Louis glanced at the clock on his phone, and it made Tracy also peek at the numbers on the digital screen. Tracy was wide-eyed, right, from earlier he had not checked his phone—which is always installed in silent mode.

Tracy frantically opens her phone, and sees one missed call from Violetta. Tracy quickly opened her mailbox. Ten minutes they'll leave.

“We'd better get down.”

Tracy lifted her face from the phone and saw Louis who was also checking his phone. Tracy nodded.

“Good idea.”