I stood in front of the shop that Lucian had given me with a twitching smile on my face. Are you serious? I eyed the giant store in the centre of the mall with wide eyes. I checked the text I had gotten from Lucian after Alicia arrived: 'Alicia will take you to the shop that was mentioned in the contract. The furnishings are already provided and it's already been staffed. All of these expenses, as well as the rental for the shop, has been added to your loan. Good luck with your work! ~ Your Devoted Hubby' Underneath the text was a long string of numbers. This was the current loan cost?! You have to be kidding me!
I tossed the amount to the back of my mind and unlocked the shop doors. I'll worry about paying it back when we actually start making a profit. The store was decorated extravagantly with a simple white, grey, and cream colour scheme and reserved modern furniture. It had an undeniable aura of class and charisma. I have to admit, it looks amazing. Empty clothing racks littered the tiled floor. Mirrors were conveniently placed next to all the ready-to-wear racks. I should've known that a prolific member of the fashion industry would know exactly what to do to get the most sales.
There was a set of stairs at the very back of the store right next to the storage room. I walked up them curiously. When I reached the top, I realised it was an actually an office space! This was great because I hadn't rented one out yet. It was fairly small but perfect for a company that was just starting out.
Once I was done inspecting everything, I returned to Alicia who was waiting patiently by the door. "Done?" She asked drily. I nodded, telling her that we'll all meet on Wednesday to discuss how we're going to start. I texted the other two on the team to notify them. I could barely contain my giddiness. This is it, I'm finally going to become a real designer!
_(┐「ε:)_♡ And a skip~
When Wednesday finally rolled around, I met with Emory, Quinn, and Alicia in the office. Quinn and I discussed having the ready-to-wear designs start being put in production soon so we could open by next Friday with a full stock. Emory presented the designs he had chosen and pointed out the mistakes on the intentionally flawed ones. As expected, he couldn't resist correcting them. Perfect.
Alicia showed me the website that she had set up. Sadly, no designs were posted yet but they would be soon. She also sent out a Chirp that announced our up-and-coming grand opening on her person Chirper. Of course, no name was mentioned yet because we simply didn't have one. Everything was falling perfectly in place. We continued to discuss until finally, we had reached our final problem.
"Now, what should our name be?" I asked. Everyone at the table immediately starting arguing. I shut them up forcefully and told them each to write down their names on a piece of paper. When each one was finally passed to me, I read them aloud. "So we have Oleander, Heaven's Gate Designs, and Elite. Or should I say the poisonous flower, the cult, and the socks? C'mon is this the best you all have?"
Quinn turned to me with an affronted gaze. "Well, what do you have?" I froze and realised that I hadn't actually thought of anything. I just stayed silent. Emory then asked, "What do you think our name should sound like? Should it end in something like Couture or Designs, or should it just be one word?" Now, this I actually had an answer to.
"It should be a one-word, easy to pronounce and spell name. Also, there needs to be an epic feel to it. I want people to feel inspired when they hear it!" We all fell into thought before Quinn piped up again. "How about we just call it Epic?" I shook my head instantaneously. "That's way too cheesy."
Alicia then said, "What about Legend?" I said no again. It just didn't have that feel I was wanting... When Emory suggested Chronicle, I realised the perfect name. "Guys, what word is synonymous to epic, legend, and chronicle?" Alicia caught my meaning immediately and so did Emory. "Saga!" They both said at once. I pulled out my phone and opened up my browser.
"Saga: a long story of heroic achievement/any narrative or legend of heroic exploits. It's perfect! We want to be the heroes of the fashion industry and dominate it for many years to come." I took a look at all their faces before breaking out into a grin. "Most importantly though, it sounds cool as hell." That gained me the cheers I had been hoping for.
I told Alicia to update the website and create a social media account under our name. I also made sure she started publicizing accordingly. Then, I turned to Quinn and instructed her to get a sign made for the store and to send the ready-made designs the Emory had chosen off to get put into production. Emory already knew to continue working through the designs he had been given, so I just waved him off while telling him to ask me if he had any questions.
Looking out the window, I noticed that the sun had started to set. I decided to head home and cook a big meal for my baby in celebration of my new success.
_(┐「ε:)_♡ And a skip~
Once Blair had left, Emory turned to Quinn with a nervous look. "You didn't tell her about our history, did you?" Quinn stiffened at the question. "Of course I didn't, why would I? I didn't even know you worked here until tonight." She looked like she was on the verge of tears.
Emory ignored her expression and simply said, "Good. Don't ever tell her about what happened between us back then. If you do…" He trailed off threateningly. She shuddered. "Here are the approved ready-to-wear designs. I'll get the edited ones to you once I'm done with them." Emory handed her a folder and she took it with shaky hands. She was careful not to touch his fingers and practically ripped the folder away from him in nervousness.
He walked out of the office leisurely, not even aware that Quinn had burst into tears when he turned his back. But she knew that he wouldn't care even if he had seen them. Not after how much pain she had caused him before.