While waiting for the repcement, Cyrielle continued to do her job.

  “The outfit is so beautiful, I’m not sure it fits me !”

  “Of course it does. I chose you specifically because you match it. It will look good because you are wearing it.”

  Her thoughtless words, which carried nothing but facts, had a big effect on the models. Some cried when they saw themselves in the mirror, others gained self confidence, and a few learned to love their bodies thanks to the garments highlighting their features. The collection focused on formal wear and didn’t expose a lot of skin, but it still carried an alluring and elegant air, making the models look both seductive and noble. Even the professionals, who were used to walking on the runway, admired the clothes.

  The models came from all kinds of backgrounds, with all sorts of sizes and colors, but the unity came from the outfits themselves, and the energy they carried. It really looked like the same collection, but the variety of the people wearing the clothes made it appear quite casual, as if you could see real people wearing those high fashion clothes. It wasn’t a collection created to make a statement, but something to be actually used.

  After an hour, the second choice for outfit 9 finally arrived and was guided to the fitting room. It was an androgynous person, looking the opposite of the model who was guided outside.

  “Oh, you are here ? Nébuleuse, right ? I was waiting for you. It’s a change in model so there is quite a lot of work to fit the outfit to you. Let’s start right away.”

  While Cyrielle was helping the model dress up, and pinning the fabric to mark the new seam lines, Nébuleuse was looking at her awkwardly.

  “I’m grateful you called, but I honestly don’t understand why you even chose me. I mean… You know, right ? Your collection is described as female clothing…”

  The designer didn’t stop working, but still responded with kindness.

  “I understand what you are thinking about. I read in your portfolio that you are nonbinary, but because the clothes are feminine doesn’t mean only female presenting people have to wear them. If you fit the energy I’m going for, then it’s good enough.”

  Indeed, Nébuleuse had the same kind of cold and seductive aura as the model who was kicked out earlier, and with a few adjustments and a lot of pinned fabric, the outfit suited them just as well. Satisfied, Cyrielle took a step back to admire her work.

  “I think it’s perfect. It would look even better with a bit of makeup, but even without it you look stelr. Want to see ?”

  She pointed to the mirror on the side, and Nébuleuse slowly walked towards it. They weren’t expecting a lot, or maybe would it look good but not fit them. The puffy skirt at the bottom seemed way to feminine. But when they arrived in front of the mirror, they gasped.

  “Wait… No, how…”

  Julie smiled. She liked the pure amazement on the model’s face, but more than that, she was already thinking that this part of the video would be a real highlight.

  The puffy skirt might have looked girly, but paired with the corseted top and the flowy short shirt with squared shoulders, it was a look that didn’t define a specific gender, only flowyness. It was an outfit that seemed to symbolize the cold wind, and that feeling was amplified by the light blue color and Nébuleuse’s aura.

  “It’s just perfect, I love it !”

  Cyrielle broke into a satisfied smile.

  “That’s all I wanted to hear. Now, let’s get you out of it, I have more work to do. Be sure to be free for the first of October.”

  Meanwhile, an angry model was making phone calls to all her connections.

  “Yes, that’s what I’m telling you ! That girl is so high and mighty, she dared to kick me out ! No, of course I was polite. I guess she hates the professionals from the industry, it’s probably the reason why she didn’t come to your party st month. I would be grateful if you could tell your friends to not engage with her, we can’t have a no-name disrespect us. Thanks !”

  She selected another number and continued.

  “Hello, am I talking to the editor-in-chief for Daily news ? I am Margot Robert, we met each other st year. Yes, I’m good and you ? Haha, yes. Well, I have an interesting piece of news for you…”

  The woman was determined to take Cyrielle down.

  ***

  When the night fell, the Internet was filled with eye-catching articles.

  {Mademoiselle Cyrielle kicks out Margot Robert, is it arrogance ?}

  {Refusing to integrate in the fashion industry, Mademoiselle Cyrielle makes a bold move}

  {Mademoiselle Cyrielle is looking down on french models}

  Each minute, the titles were becoming more and more exaggerated, to the point of being defamation. The horseboys were in turmoil.

  -She simply took Margot out of her runway, why are the articles so outrageous ?

  -Margot Robert always had a reputation for being rude and arrogant, it shouldn’t come as a suprise

  ?fr fr our angel isn’t the type to take any bullshit and disrespect, look at what she did when people were harassing Coline !

  ?I’m sure she is just jealous and she asked the reporters to go crazy

  -People are turning their backs on our angel, we must fight back

  ?No, don’t be aggressive ! If you react violently, the responsibility will fall back on Mademoiselle Cyrielle !

  ??Yes, let’s keep our cool. Angel-Minet hasn’t responded yet, let’s calm down

  Contrary to the chaos online, Julie and Cyrielle were sitting peacefully in the van, going home after an entire day of fitting. The CEO was looking at her phone with a smile.

  “She really did it. Seriously, how dumb can she be ? Did she survive in the entertainment industry by using her brain or her body ?”

  Cyrielle waved her hand to dismiss Julie’s words.

  “Don’t be disrespectful. She obviously had a lot of bad feelings towards me from the start.”

  Her friend raised an eyebrow.

  “Are you going to let it be ?”

  The elegant woman broke into a smile.

  “Of course not. I already prepared something. By the way, can you get her footage out by tomorrow ?”

  Julie nodded.

  “Yes, it’s easy to do. But what did you prepare ?”

  Cyrielle tapped on her phone for a while, and finally held it to Julie’s face. On it was a new Instantgram post. It featured a photo of Nébuleuse in the outfit, with a picture of the design. It was undeniable that the model was bringing the drawing to life. And on the third slide, there was one st photo. Julie widened her eyes.

  “When did you take it ? I didn’t even see you with the phone in hand !”

  “I know how to be discreet. How does it look ? Did I do a good job ?”

  Julie burst out ughing.

  “Yes, you did ! Oh my gosh, this is hirious ! With the footage that will come out tomorrow, this woman’s career is ruined !”

  The st photo was showing the red haired model with a disgusted look, the outfit in front of her, screaming at Cyrielle. The caption for those three images read ‘Who wore it better ?’, it was a heavy blow to the rude woman.

  Of course, with the flow of articles never ending, the public was on the lookout for Angel-Minet’s reaction, and it didn’t take two minutes for the first comments to appear.

  -Is it for real ? Margot disliked the outfit ? But it’s perfect !

  -A sneak peak of the collection ? I wasn’t hoping for so much, thanks angel ?

  -Why is Margot screaming at the designer ?

  ?probably mad cuz it doesn’t show boobs

  ??fr she only wears sexy outfits mdrrr

  -Who is the new model ? She is mesmerizing !

  ?I searched for a bit, and found their Instantgram page ! It’s @nebul_euze (nonbinary folk, so it’s ‘they’)

  ??No way, a nonbinary model for a female runway ???? I want to go see that in person !

  -Why did she send her portfolio if she was going to be rude ? I swear, she’s such an unlikable woman

  -The press lied again, it wasn’t Mademoiselle Cyrielle who was being arrogant xptdr

  It wasn’t a surprise that public opinion started to shift. The articles doubled, trying to state that the picture of Margot was taken out of context, but already a few media outlets had changed sides and were criticizing the model. The situation finally flipped the next morning, when a video was leaked on Bluebird. It was footage from the fitting room. Of course, it wasn’t really leaked, Julie had posted it on ‘Angel’s horseboys’ and deleted it after ten minutes, saying it was an ‘unfortunate mistake’. But the moderators and the administrator of the fan group were smart, they had understood the CEO’s intentions and started circuting the video on every website they could.

  It was damning and hard to watch. You could see Cyrielle having a happy conversation and a good time with a model during their fitting, and then call for the next one. The person who entered the room was Margot Robert. She didn’t answer the designer’s greeting, ignoring her, which showed a stark contrast with the previous model. And then, when the outfit was brought to her and she started screaming, saying Cyrielle was a bad designer, all hell broke loose.

  -Am I dreaming ? She didn’t say what I think she did, right ?

  ?I must be dreaming too

  ??+1

  -What the hell ????? I would have killed to wear that outfit, how can she say it’s bad ????

  ?I know, right !

  -Did she just say Mademoiselle Cyrielle was a bad designer ?

  ?Yes, that b did

  By noon, the articles had completely shifted their narrative.

  {The dark side of Margot Robert}

  {Insulting designers and demanding revealing clothes, Margot Robert and her terrible attitude}

  {The rumors of Margot Robert’s foul mouth proved true by viral video}

  {‘The idol of french youth’ Mademoiselle Cyrielle, screamed at by famous model Margot Robert}

  {[Margot Robert] Industry insider says : ‘She is a nightmare to work with’}

  {Margot Robert apologize on Instantgram ‘I wasn’t in my right mind, I support Mademoiselle Cyrielle’s decision of changing the model’}

  And while all of that was unfolding, Cyrielle was enjoying a peaceful lunch in her quiet apartment.