Beautiful People - Chapter 4: Chapter 4

For a moment Vera wanted to sink straight through the floor. Carmen fucking Juarez stared at her vacantly, and Vera felt ridiculous for thinking this had ever been a good idea. She never should have got on that plane. She never should have responded to Carmen's DM. What had made her believe she could do this?
But then she saw the twitch at the corner of Carmen's perfectly kissable lips, the twinkle in her warm eyes. A hesitant grin curved her lips in return.
"You're fucking with me," she said with more confidence than she felt.
Carmen burst out in a cascade of cackling giggles. Vera was almost surprised she didn't clap her hands together with glee. "Oh my God, you should've seen your face."
Vera couldn't help chuckling too, even though she wouldn't have found that very funny even back in junior high when pranks were the ultimate form of humour. "Bitch," she said, because being the focus of Carmen's attention made her feel like she'd finished a whole bottle of wine by herself and her brain wasn't quite connecting to her mouth to string together words.
Carmen looked absolutely delighted. "Oh my God, Vera. I'm so glad you're here!" Bouncing across the wide, sunny kitchen, she swept Vera up into a hug as though they were long-lost friends rather than total strangers. Surprised, Vera reflexively squeezed her back. Fine strands of her wavy hair fell across Vera's face. It smelled faintly of citrus. She was embarrassingly aware that Carmen wasn't wearing a bra.
"Why'd you come early?" Before Vera could correct her--Sharise's assistant was the one who arranged everything and who had clearly failed to communicate--Carmen added, "It doesn't matter. Love the haircut. Super cute."
Vera was surprised she didn't have a heart attack right there. She still didn't understand how Carmen even knew who she was, let alone comprehend the fact that she was standing in her kitchen being hugged by her. Fourteen-year-old Vera would have screamed for a year if she knew this would ever happen. If this was a dream, she would be happy to never wake up.
"You're actually so adorable," Carmen said, pulling back to grin down at her. She set her palm on the top of Vera's head as though to measure her, then ruffled her hair. "You're so tiny. I totally didn't realize from your videos. You're like a little porcelain doll I could put up on my shelf and keep forever."
"Ew. That might be the creepiest way anyone's ever made fun of my height," Vera said. She found she was grinning, too, even though normally she hated short jokes.
Carmen laughed again, sweet golden laughter like a creek bubbling over smooth stones, and Vera thought that making Carmen fucking Juarez laugh was probably the most amazing thing she had ever done in her life.
"You're the cutest," Carmen said. "And younger than I thought. Seriously. Like I would believe you if you said you were seventeen."
"I'm only six months younger than you," Vera said, then regretted it when she realized knowing Carmen's birthday was basically the epitome of embarrassing fangirling.
"Oh my God, you're a baby," Carmen said, eyes sparkling. "Sharise, she's a baby."
"That would make you a baby, too," Sharise said.
Caught in the spell of Carmen's disarming familiarity, Vera hadn't realized Sharise had followed Carmen back into the kitchen. Seeing her leaning against the far counter, watching them with an unsettling expression on her face, popped the shining bubble of inexplicable intimacy. She straightened her shoulders.
"If I'm a baby, does that make you my grandma?" Carmen asked, prancing across the kitchen to the fridge. "Hey," she said to Sharise as she palmed a bottle of water. "Did you know Vera said I could wear a paper bag and it would be fashion?"
"You mentioned it once or twice." Sharise crossed her arms over the curve of her stomach.
Vera gripped her purse strap and didn't mention that she was pretty sure she had said garbage, not paper.
"She clearly has great taste." Carmen nudged the fridge shut again with her hip. "And she hates the projects you've been getting me as much as I do."
Sharise sighed. "I can't help that you've got such a reputation for being difficult-"
"Yeah, if I was a sweet little good girl people might actually send scripts to me first instead of to Marina Taylor. I know. As if you haven't told me that enough times." Carmen made a face. Bouncing her bottle of water in one palm, she plucked a banana off the counter and wandered off down the hallway, still talking. "It's not my fault directors get confused when I actually have ideas about how I wanna play my role."
Vera didn't hesitate to hurry after Carmen. Behind her, Sharise sighed loudly but followed. Carmen led them into a spacious living room with huge floor-to-ceiling windows framing a view of the glimmering pool. Settling gracefully onto the tan leather couch, she set the water bottle onto the raw wood coffee table before sinking her perfect crimson nails into the banana.
She was saying, "Nobody calls Jared Day a diva when he shows up four hours late to set 'cause he partied too hard the night before. Are you gonna sit down? You're making me nervous."
The last part was directed at Vera, who started, having become more than a little distracted by the way the afternoon sunlight caught like flakes of gold between Carmen's long charcoal eyelashes.
Sharise had already enthroned herself in the armchair with the uncomfortably upright back, so Vera perched on the edge of a white padded thing that may have been a seat or a footrest, she wasn't entirely sure. Her feet ached as her weight came off them. She wriggled her pinched toes in an attempt to get the blood circulating again.
Eyes on the phone in her one hand, Carmen took a bite of the banana, then set the rest of the fruit on the coffee table. Behind her on the wall hung an enormous painting, a bold yellow-and-blue nude like the ones in the hallway except that this one was a likeness of Carmen herself. Vera recognized this part of the house. Carmen liked to take selfies here.
"So," Vera said, drawing the word out. She bounced one heel gently against the floor.
"What's the plan, Carmen?" Sharise prompted. "Keep in mind Vera hasn't signed the NDA yet."
Rolling her eyes, Carmen didn't look up. "God, I don't care about the fucking NDA. She can sign it later."
"What are you doing today, then?"
"If we're done with your stuff, I'm going to the gym," Carmen said. "And tonight I'm going with Troy to that fundraiser Marina's putting on. What's it for again? School lunches?"
"Menstrual products for disadvantaged kids," Sharise supplied.
"Right. Tampons for tiny tramps." Carmen giggled, still looking at her phone.
Vera folded her fists on her knees. It was strange being in the same room as Carmen but not being the centre of her attention, like the sun was out but she stood in the cool shadow of a cloud. "Can we get started now, then? I have some ideas, but I can't really-"
Carmen finally put down her phone beside her on the couch. "You mean the style stuff? I don't have time to think about any of that today. You were supposed to get here tomorrow. Let's start then."
Vera deflated. She had been buzzing about this for days. She hadn't been so excited about something since she first applied to design school, but clearly she was alone in her eagerness. It was obvious Carmen had barely even thought about her since they had spoken. She shouldn't have been surprised. "What am I supposed to do today, then?"
"Go check out your hotel or see the city or something," Carmen said, waving a hand in a graceful dismissal.
"I still need to figure out where she's going to stay," Sharise said.
Placing a palm against one cheek and tilting her head, Carmen said, "Didn't you book her a hotel?"
Sharise stared at her, unamused. "No. My assistant should have done it, but I think your cousin likes your parties more than she likes working."
Suddenly Vera realized what bothered her so much about Sharise. She was just like Ivy, from her relentless practicality right down to that tone that said she knew everything while everyone else knew nothing.
Carmen smiled, perfect lips bowing in a small, secret way. "Oops. I guess you'd better do it now, then. Unless you want Vera to stay with you. I don't mind."
Sharise pinched the bridge of her nose between two nails. Heaving herself to her feet, she stalked back down the hall to the kitchen. Carmen took a sip of water.
"I guess I don't have to go to the gym yet. You wanna see my closet?" she said offhandedly.
Vera gasped, all other concerns knocked from her mind. "I think those words just gave me an orgasm."
Carmen laughed in delight. "I like you," she said, hopping to her feet. Leaving the banana on the coffee table, she led the way.
Carmen's closet wasn't actually a closet. It was two whole bedrooms, each bigger than Vera's apartment. One was lined with racks and drawers all full to bursting with clothes in a rainbow of fabrics and textures. The other held accessories: shelves full of shoes, racks of belts and scarves and hairpieces and purses, glittering jewelry overflowing from boxes. Vera stared at it all with her mouth hanging open like an idiot. She probably had stars in her eyes. Carmen watched her with amusement.
"Don't faint on me," she teased.
Like someone in a dream, Vera wafted in amongst racks of shirts and skirts and pants and dresses, lingering her fingers reverently along the folds. The textures against her skin made her shiver in delight: buttery silk, coarse wool, soft fuzz, cold leather. "You own all of this gloriousness and you still have such terrible fashion sense," she said in disbelief.
"Bitch." Carmen laughed. "Half this stuff people just send me and I don't know what to do with it. Where am I gonna wear a pair of wide-legged sheer pants?"
"Where aren't you gonna wear a pair of wide-legged sheer pants?" Vera's eyes snagged on a grey sequined jumpsuit that shimmered like chainmail in the afternoon sun still drifting through the window.
"The idea makes me shudder."
"That's why I'm here," Vera said distractedly. "To turn shudders into joy."
Carmen giggled. "You're right. It's a good thing I've got you."
Vera barely noticed when Carmen left. She was pushing aside hangers, drinking in the sight of so many luxe pieces. In all her research, she had seen photos of Carmen wearing only a handful of these: a slinky green dress, a pair of leather pants, a plunging grey top. There was a black bustier and jeans that would never work on anyone else and the awful pink satin dress from the premiere of Never Enough Smiles. She wondered if she could convince Carmen to let her burn that thing.
Pulling out her phone, Vera started snapping photos and saving notes along with each, already imagining the plethora of incredible looks she could create with such a rich resource to pull from.
The sunlight had aged to a dark gold by the time Sharise appeared in the doorway, pushing her long hair back over her shoulder.
"Jasper's gone with Carmen. I'll take you to your hotel, Vera."
Startled her out of her reverie, it took Vera a moment to comprehend the offer. She was suddenly aware she was utterly exhausted. It had been a long, bizarre day and her feet hurt and she really wanted to take a long hot shower and process it all. She didn't argue.
Sharise's car was parked on the narrow street. It was tiny, and Vera's suitcases barely squeezed in. Only one fit in the trunk and the other had to go in the back seat. Vera herself was more than comfortable in the front seat.
As she started the car, Sharise said, "I put the NDA in the outside pocket of your suitcase. You should sign it tonight."
Vera snorted and rolled down her window. Warm air gusted in. It smelled dusty and ripe.
Sharise arched one delicate brow at her. "If you don't sign it-"
"I don't work with Carmen, yeah, I heard you the first time." Vera shook her head.
Accelerating down the narrow street, Sharise flicked a look at her. "If you really have good intentions then I don't see why you have a problem with it."
"I don't have a problem with it," Vera said, adjusting her purse over her shoulder. "I'll sign it tonight, whatever. I just don't understand why you've got such a problem with me."
"I've worked with Carmen for six years. I know your type," Sharise said shortly, coasting to a rolling stop before she turned onto the next street.
Eyebrows shooting up into her hair, Vera laughed. "My type?"
Sharise pursed her lips. "People like you are the reason no one takes her seriously," she said, heat in her tone. "Always obsessing over her looks. She's a talented actor. She doesn't need to sell her body, she just needs people to care more about her skills than what she looks like."
Vera glared at Sharise. Her toes were throbbing with pain, and she was completely sapped, and Carmen hadn't even remembered she was arriving today. She didn't have any patience for this bullshit. "Fashion isn't selling her body. It's fun. And it's the one major advantage she has over guys like Troy fucking Dicks. People like me didn't make the system. I'm sorry you're bitter you can't take advantage of it, but that doesn't mean people like Carmen shouldn't."
Sharise's face went still as stone. "I can't take advantage of it. You mean because I'm fat," she said in an icy tone.
"Fat is just a descriptor, not a value-"
"I'll decide when I've been insulted, thanks."
Vera scoffed. She would have told Sharise that she was still pretty, even if she was fat, but that resemblance to Ivy was so uncanny right now that she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"If Carmen wants to work with you, I can't stop her." Sharise gripped the steering wheel like she was trying to throttle it. "Just keep your focus on the clothes and don't start telling her she needs to lose weight or some bullshit like that. Got it?"
Vera shifted uncomfortably and looked away out the open window. Emerald leaves rustled as they zipped by. "As long as you stop acting like I'm some kinda criminal out to get her."
Sharise flexed her fingers. "Fine."
"Fine," Vera muttered.
She had a bad feeling this was going to be a very long month.