9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Sage

" C an someone give me a rundown of the changes?" I look around the room as Annet touches up my hair.

"What changes?" Angie looks around the room, and I can see her annoyance growing when no one answers her. She hates last-minute changes, and while I'm fine with adapting to them, she's ready to fire people.

Today's our runway show for Vincent and nothing can go wrong, so I understand her worry, but everything's going to be fine… I hope.

"It's–"

"So help me God, Sage, if you say it's fine."

I laugh softly, and she sends me a glare, but a second later, she's smiling when I stick my tongue out at her.

"What changes?" Her tone is a lot softer now, and I smile in the mirror.

"Nothing big. Royal is stuck in Chicago, so they want me to take her place."

"They want you to model her outfits along with your three outfits?" She looks like she's having a stroke, and I let out a sigh, but before I can say anything, she goes on. "Absolutely not. Why didn't they run this by me?"

"Because they knew you'd say no." When I roll my eyes, she points at me and tells me to watch it. I laugh at how motherly she is. "Angie, I already agreed and–"

"Of course you did." She looks up at the ceiling. "Of course she did!"

"Ang, she was supposed to model twice in the middle, and I'm opening the show, so–"

"Sage, three outfits are already pushing it. Everyone else modeling one to two pieces and–"

"And Mr. Moore directly asked me to model all five pieces. How the heck was I supposed to say no to the designer himself?"

Angie goes still, and she watches me as my words sink in. I know it's because she didn't know that last part, but I was pretty shocked myself. Vincent freaking Moore was just here ten minutes ago, and he was going bananas over Royal not being able to come. We have backup models for this, but he was adamant that I wear the two outfits Royal was supposed to wear and said he could have them tailored before the show tonight.

"What?"

I laugh softly at Angie's face.

"Mr. Moore is here ? I thought we wouldn't see him until his event tonight?"

"Me too, but he drove down here when he heard about the flights being delayed." I shrug, and Angie still looks dumbfounded, but I don't blame her. I was trying to contain myself when he walked in here.

"Okay, fine." Angie lets out a breath, and it looks like she was holding it the minute I brought up Vincent's name. "So we need all hands on deck. This is the most outfits you're modeling in the shortest time frame, but–"

"We can make it work." I glance in the mirror at my outfit team. "Right?"

"Of course." They agree with various noises of agreement, too focused on making sure I have all of my jewelry pieces for each outfit, and I'm only a tad bit nervous, but I have faith in them. Switching outfits with such little time is an outfit malfunction waiting to happen, but after all of the years we've been working together, I really do have faith in them.

By the time my hair is ready, it's time for the meeting, but just as I stand, my door flies open.

"Mr. Moore came to see you?!" Florence, the CEO of Magic Model, storms in, and her tone causes a shift in the air. Rather than being nervous about the show, I'm now nervous about her potential rage. "What did he want? What did he say? What did you do ?" Her eyes narrow on me.

My brows furrow at Florence's last question, and when I glance at the door, the rest of The Core Eight, along with a few other models who are supposed to be at our meeting, are standing at the door.

I tell them they can come in, and they do.

"Hello?!"

I turn back to Florence, and when I tell her everything, her jaw is on the floor, along with everyone else.

"This," she points at me. "This is why you're my favorite."

I burst into a laugh when she pulls me in for a hug. She starts giving my team orders, and the whole meeting turns into her making sure tonight runs smoothly for Mr. Moore.

By the time we're getting ready for the event, my team seems nervous, so I turn to them before we leave.

"Hey,"

They all pause what they're doing and turn to me.

"You guys seem stressed, and it's going to stress me out, so let's please shake the nerves off."

They all say they will and apologize, and I laugh at how scared they still seem.

"Okay, listen, let's just forget everything, okay? First, forget everything Florence was saying about you guys not having room to mess up." While that was true, and they really can't mess up tonight, I don't want that pressure on them. "She was just nervous, but I know you guys know what you're doing. You guys are also my team, not hers. We'll do things the way we always do them, so please toss the ridiculous checklist she made; it's confusing me, and Angie already made one."

My team nods, and my outfit crew laughs as they throw away the paper Florence gave them.

"Second, let's act like Mr. Moore wasn't just in here. It's a regular Magic Model show. We own the stage and building; it's about us." Our shows always run perfectly because everyone is most comfortable, so we just need to act like it's our show. They glance at each other before turning back to me, and after a few seconds, I get nods in return.

"Another thing, and I mean this very humbly, but while he's Vincent Moore, he asked for us. If he wanted his team to do my hair and makeup and dress me, he would've told them to do so. You're all worthy of the job you have, so please act like it." I give them all a pointed look, and I can see the last few nerves leave as they stand straighter.

"Okay, good. Let's do one more check and go."

I take a seat as Angie runs through the routine checklist, and my team makes sure everything is in order.

When I get the green light that we're good to go, I rush to stand up, but my blood suddenly runs cold, and dark stars flood my vision. I fall back into my seat and take a drink of water, just waiting for the cold feeling to pass as it usually does.

Figures I'm a bit light-headed since I didn't eat all day today… or last night. I'm getting hungry, but I'll have my one meal tonight and stick to Helena's meal plan.

When the feeling passes, I stand a bit slower and ask one of my girls to grab me a juice. Annet gets it for me before walking me out to the limo, where I meet Helena and Mel.

"Are you nervous?" Mel teases, pushing my knee playfully.

"Honestly, not as nervous as I think I should be. I am hungry, though," I admit with a sheepish grin when my stomach growls.

"Do you stress eat? Because same–"

"You shouldn't."

We both turn to Helena, but she doesn't glance up from her phone. "Don't eat before the show, Sage," she cautions.

"Why?" Mel asks for me, and Helena sends her the rudest side-eye. I send her a look to be nice, but she ignores me, looking back down at her phone.

"They're tailoring two new outfits for you as we speak. That's way too last minute and the last thing you want is to not fit in it. Eat after the show."

I don't say anything and lean back in my seat. I look back over at Helena and study her frame. She's in a gold dress that makes her look stunning, especially with her blonde curls. My eyes stay on her flat stomach and the rest of her thin figure.

I know I'm bigger than she is, and I don't think that makes her any better or prettier than me, but… she doesn't need designers tailoring outfits for her.

When I look over at Mel, she's already watching me with a sympathetic look. I give her a bright smile and shake my head, silently telling her not to say anything about Helena's attitude. I'm nervous enough as it is with the show, and I know Helena doesn't really like Mel for whatever reason; I don't need the stress of them arguing.

I look down at Mel's frame, and she looks really good even though she mentioned her stress eating. Maybe it's okay if I have a small snack before the show? I let out a sigh at my conflicted thoughts and push them away entirely because I need to be in a good mood for tonight.

I see the paparazzi lights flashing from a distance as we pull into the main entrance. Mel's eyes are glued to the window, and I reach for her hand. She's only ever modeled with us at Magic Model shows, so this is her first big event, which means it's probably the first time she's had to face this much paparazzi.

"I remember how nervous I was when I first had to encounter this much paparazzi." I feel the nerves bubbling in my stomach at the reminder, and Mel asks me when that was as she keeps her eyes out the window. "It was the night they announced us as The Core Eight. I didn't get out of the car until my twin came to walk me out." I laugh at the memory, and Mel turns to me, her brows pulled together.

"I remembered that night!" Mel's face lights up. "I watched the whole show at home; you didn't look nervous at all. That was actually the day I added working with you to my vision board." She adds that last part sheepishly, a blush coming to her cheeks.

"I was terrified." I laugh as I admit it. "Your vision board is your reality now; stand proud because you should be." I squeeze her hand and give her a small tip. "If they know your name, they're all going to call you. Don't look for who's trying to get your attention. Either look forward and walk or glance between all of them."

She nods as I go on.

"If they don't know your name, they will after tonight. Don't cover your face from the flash, you're new so don't hide."

"Right." She nods again.

I give Mel a smile, and she returns it.

"You're fine."

She repeats after me before the driver opens the door for us, and Helena steps out. I follow after her, and there's somehow more flash.

Helena walks ahead, but I hold a hand out, and the minute Mel takes it, I can tell everyone is shocked because it's normally just Helena and me.

"Who is that with Sage Loana?"

"Sage, over here!"

"Who's the girl in red?"

"You look beautiful, Sage Loana!"

"I love the dress, Sage!"

I smile and wave at all of the cameras but don't stop like I usually would. I love talking to paparazzi, but more cars are going to start pulling up, and I'd hate to have a traffic build-up at the door.

As we step into the hall, Mel lets out a breath. "Wow, I think I'm blind."

I burst into a laugh and assure her she'll get used to it. I keep my hand in hers as we walk in, and as people walk up to greet me, I introduce them to Mel.

I glance around the room and notice a few Magic Models mingling with the designers who were invited. Most times the models would be in the back, but Mr. Moore wanted us to show face so his guests could see us since there were rumors that he wouldn't be able to get all of us here, and technically, he didn't, but that's because of an issue with the airline, not because Florence denied him.

"There's a lot of designers here," Mel mumbles to me, and when I follow her eyes, they're on Colette Dubios, the face of Paris in the designer industry.

"Yeah," I take in her stunning pearl dress before reminding myself not to stare for too long.

"I know being a Moore Girl is every model's dream, but when I work with her , I think I can say I finally made it," Mel mumbles, and I squeeze her hand to pull her away from staring. "How come people are making a big deal about us being here when it's Vincent's show?"

I almost think she's joking until I remember she's still new to Magic. "It's pretty hard to get every Magic Model to walk in your show. Florence likes to say we're untouchable and exclusively her girls, which is true. We don't model in shows she doesn't sign off on to keep up that image, and maybe it's just because he's Vincent Moore, but he got all of us."

"Why was that again? I mean, I'm not complaining. I'll model for him every hour of the day in my most uncomfortable heels, but he has the best models in the world."

"He said with this new line, he wants new girls to model them, but," I lean into her and smile when I notice people are watching. "Don't say anything, but Angie said this was his way of scoping out which models he wants to sign as Moore Girls." She only told me, and I don't know if it's true, but I told The Eight.

Mel's eyes widen, and when I squeeze her hand and force a smile, she changes her face. I walk over to Nin when I see she isn't talking to anyone, and the look of relief on her face tells me she's grateful for having someone to talk to.

Everyone is loving Mel and I feel my excitement buzzing off of my cells. She didn't get a lot of attention with her last company, so I'm happy for her. She's going to kill it tonight, and if I could let her model one of my pieces just to get her out in the spotlight one extra time, I would.

After more mingling, Mel walks over with two plates full of small appetizers that she snagged from a passing waiter. I almost refuse her offer, but my stomach grumbles, so I decide to take it, and I feel the energy return to me after eating with her.

"They were all screaming for Sage." Mel shoves me playfully.

"Yeah, paparazzi always do that; they freaking love her."

I laugh at Nin but then bring a hand to my stomach because my dress feels tight. I take in a deep breath but immediately stop because my dress definitely feels tighter.

"You okay?" Nin studies me, concern clear on her face.

"Yeah." I smile at the girls, then turn when someone grabs my arm.

"The new outfits are ready," Angie says quietly. "Let's do a quick try-on to make sure we're good."

I nod, but when I glance down at myself, I tell her, "Let me use the bathroom–"

"Sage, it'll be quick, just–"

"I'll be quicker." I rush off to the bathroom before she can stop me.

Locking the door behind me, I bend down to check for feet under the stalls and let out a sigh of relief when they are empty. I turna faucet on before walking into the last stall. I take a deep breath, and when I feel my dress tighten around my waist, I don't think twice and lean over the toilet before forcing two fingers down my throat.

Everything I ate came up after three tries. My dress doesn't feel like it's about to pop anymore, but I make myself throw up one more time for good measure.

I blink my watery eyes before I ruin my makeup. When I'm done, I flush and wash my hands. I glance at myself in the mirror and turn to the side. Running a hand down my stomach, I turn my head to the side and chew on my lip.

My brain seems to pick apart every other part of myself. The way my big thighs rub together instead of having a thigh gap like a few of the other girls. I turn my head to the other side as I take in my arms next.

I felt gorgeous in this dress before, but now–

Someone knocks on the door and I jump out of my head. I eat a gum before unlocking the door and my jaw drops.

"Sage mother fucking Loana Hale !"

I let out a squeal before pulling in Vlaire for a tight hug. "I didn't know you were going to be here! You usually let me know. We could've hung out before this!" I know she's acquainted with Vincent, considering her mom, the icon herself, modeled for Vincent's mom before the Moore company was passed to Vincent, but she always calls me when she's in the States.

"I wasn't going to come." She shakes her head softly, and I pick up on her somber tone, although she voices her words with a smile. "Vincent just reminds me too much of my mom." When she smiles this time, I pick up on how forced it is.

I pull her in for another hug, and her arms come around me. "I'm so sorry again for your loss, Vlaire. If it all becomes too much for you, you know you can come backstage with me. No one will dare say anything to you." I pull away and kiss her cheek gently. While it's been a little over a year since her mom passed, I can't imagine ever getting over a loss like that, especially with the constant reminders.

"Thank you, Sage. Mam?e would've loved you. I hate that you never got to meet her. " She takes both of my hands and holds them out as she studies me from head to toe. I feel uncomfortable under her unwavering gaze after a beat, but she watches me like–

"Beautiful." She shakes her head. "Ugh, I love you. I literally only flew here for you." She beams, her heavy Brazilian accent weighing on her words.

I feel my face flush and laugh as I thank her.

"Is it true you're modeling five pieces?" She sort of whispers as she leans in.

"My agent is going to murder me if I confirm or deny, so I'm going to slowly walk away." I nod yes, and she squeals as I rush off with a laugh.

I hold my breath the entire time I try on the two new outfits, and they thankfully fit. I'm sure it wasn't too hard to adjust them since Royal and I are closest in size among The Eight.

The new pieces are practically shining on their hangers. One is a diamond corset dress with a fluffy short-cut shirt. The other is a dress, and the way it flows gives the illusion of fire—did I mention they are gorgeous?!

As I'm slipping out of the dress, all of the girls start trickling in, and just like that, the show is starting. We touch up my hair and makeup once I'm in my first outfit. I'm opening the show, so the second the cue song plays, I'm walking out on stage.

I see a few scattered flashes, but I shut out the room and its distractions, keeping my focus on my picked-out point at the back of the room and walking the way we rehearsed.

I notice Mr. Moore at the end of the stage. His face is stone cold as he watches me and the rest of the girls. I look back up and stop to pose. A few people take pictures, and I hear comments on my dress before I turn and walk back down.

I pass Helena on my way back up the stage. We both stop at the same spot, like rehearsed, and walk around each other before posing. I'm sure the ends of our dresses look amazing as they chase each other. More cameras are out now, and we give them a few seconds before continuing.

I step behindthe curtain and am swept away to change. Everyone works quickly on me. Two people work on my jewelry. One works my dress off, and another helps me out of my shoes.

It took me a very long time to get comfortable with being naked in front of my team, but after a lot of trust-building activities and long speeches, I barely notice. Mainly because they're so focused on the task at hand, and I know they're barely looking at me more than they need to.

I'm trying to put on the headpiece that goes with my outfit, but Trey takes it from me and says he'll do it as someone is tying the back of my corset.

The headpiece looks like a necklace, and a few diamonds fall on my forehead; it completes the look perfectly.

I'm back on stage a few minutes after I'm ready, and we honestly did that a lot faster than I thought we could.

I notice a few confused looks when people see me back on stage so soon. A few people look down at the program and whispers are being shared. I glance at Mr. Moore and he looks proud that he shocked everyone.

The rest of the show flows heavenly, to quote Angie's dramatic words, but she's not wrong.

"You are killing it!" Mel comes around to me with the brightest smile.

"Thank you, thank you."

I blow her a kiss before walking back out. I'm on autopilot by the time I'm changing out of my second-to-last outfit.

Everyone wishes me good luck as I walk out in the closing dress. My eyes land on Vincent as I walk down the runway, and I almost falter when he cracks a small smile.

I pose at the end of the stage, and on my way back, every single person stands to applaud. I've never heard an audience so loud, and the second I'm backstage, I'm literally squealing.

"Oh, em gee!!" I collect my team in a group hugand congratulate them on our success before thanking them for making sure everything ran so smoothly. I was so damn nervous something would go wrong with the amount of pieces in such a short period of time, but it was perfect .

"Where's Sage Loana?"

I go still at the sound of Vincent's deep voice resounding through the dressing room. He only just finished his speech, but I thought he was still on stage, so when I turn to see him watching me, I don't move an inch for a beat.

"Mr. Moore." I smile up at him, and the entire room feels thick as he watches me with his usual glare.

"You did amazing. Thank you again for modeling all of those extra pieces." His thick accent drips from his words as his dark eyes bore into mine.

"Thank you for the opportunity." I feel my smile widen, and he gives me a single nod before walking out. I turn to everyone else in the room, and they're just as shocked as I am.

"I don't think Vincent Moore has ever thanked or even complimented a model before." Florence studies me like I just appeared from thin air.

I feel someone grab my arm, and I turn to find Angie smirking at me. "He loved you out there."

I laugh softly at her. "That's not what he said, he–"

"He may well have."

I feel a flutter of butterflies in my stomach at her words.

"I told you this may as well have been an audition. He's going to be watching you now."

"You think so?!"

Angie nods, and I feel my nerves heighten. It would be a dream come true if I were a Moore Girl. Of course, I love modeling for Magic Model, but I want to be at the top of my career. I'm already there in the States with Florence, but Vincent Moore would take me to an international level .

Before I can make sense of what doors may have opened for me tonight, someone is barging in.

"YOU KILLED IT!" A loud voice fills the entire backstage.

I break into a laugh at how loud August is. He makes his way over to me and pulls me in for a tight hug. I pull away from him, and the second I do, my other brother is lifting me with a spin. He's done this since we were kids, and I have no idea how he's still able to pick me up and spin us.

"You really did kill it, Sage. Everyone is talking about you out there," Sire says once he puts me down.

"Thank you, guys!" I squeal in excitement, simply because they're here, and hug them both again. I knew they'd come for the runway show, but I didn't see them in the crowd.

"Sorry, do you guys have passes?"

I pull away and turn to a woman wearing a headset and holding a clipboard.

"They're my brothers, it's–"

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Ms. Loana. I didn't know–" She looks between August and me, and before she can ask, August speaks up.

"Yes, we're twins," he says with a soft laugh and she looks between the two of us, taking in our nearly identical features.

"Right." She looks between all three of us now. "I'm sorry again and–"

"It's okay, really."

She apologizes again before rushing off.

I let out a laugh and the boys turn to me. "Are you mean to these people or something? Why was she so sorry?" Sire teases, and I playfully shove him.

"I am not mean to anyone!" I don't know why people get so flustered when they make mistakes around me; I'm nice to all of my staff.

August starts talking about everything he loved about the show, and when Sire tells me he was on the edge of his seat out there, I know he isn't exaggerating.

When I look back over at Sire he's watching me with a smile. "I think this was your best show yet."

I feel my excitement growing as I grab his hand to contain myself. "Thank you, bonus bro. I thought so, too!"

I get lost in another conversation with my brothers, and all of my nerves from earlier never return. I think the world could be ending, and my brothers could somehow make me feel better.