Inspiration for a Dress

Scarlett's POV

It's been seven days since I spoke to Klaus, and since then my life has gone to hell, a little. I had to rush to finish a few orders and had to work beyond my regular hours. Some machines broke down, which took three days to replace, causing a delay I could barely afford. One of the stores at the mall had a big sale on wedding dresses, which they needed as soon as possible, so I needed to restock and also design a whole new collection.

As if that wasn't enough, there I was invited to attend a new red-carpet event and discovered that Liam and Klaus would also be there. This would be the perfect opportunity for us to announce that Liam and I were dating. Despite the rumors already spreading, we haven't made any official statements yet. This also meant that my dress needed to be absolutely perfect. I put Alicia's issues aside but asked John and Roman to monitor it very closely, and to let me know the moment any problems arose.

"DAMN!" I screamed as I threw my glass against the wall, looking at the mannequin disparagingly while the fabric wouldn't stay where I placed it. This caught the attention of all the girls who worked for me and surprised them as they’ve seen me lose control like this before. I put it down to being overly stressed, I haven’t had sex for a week, I haven’t been able to go to the gym to work out or train, and things just seemed to not want to work out the way I wanted them to.

I looked around at the pile of fabrics on the other side of the studio. I had already cut several pieces in varying, but nothing was coming together to fit what I envisioned. I wanted something ethereal but also sexy. Something unlike any other collection that has ever been seen. I wanted to look like a queen from a magical kingdom, but at the same time give the impression of strength and that fairies can be sexy.

Making the dress a reality was extremely challenging. I haven't even been able to finalise a drawn model. I have designed several dresses on paper, just to discard them and tore up many others, not to mention all the ruined fabric lying at my feet.

I looked at the fabrics, but none of them interested me. Absolutely none of them caught my attention. Neither by color nor texture, not even my lace and shiny fabrics appealed to me.

"Shit... Shit... Damn it!" I started murmuring, feeling my irritation grow even more. "There's nothing here!"

It was a very stupid thing to say seeing as I had at least 100 options to choose from, but none of them were what I wanted or inspired me. I ran my hand through my hair, frustrated beyond thinking straight.

I took a deep breath, turned around, grabbed my bag, passed by Jasmine and Roman, and headed toward the exit. If I couldn't find anything here, I needed to find something to inspire me elsewhere.

Roman and Jasmine followed me as I walked to the car.

"Let's visit a few fabric stores," I informed them and got into the back seat. Jasmine got into the second car, and Roman got into the driver's seat.

I took my phone and started looking for images hoping to find some inspiration, but I had already gone through most of them.

"Miss, try looking at AI-generated image websites," Roman said, and I smiled.

"Thank you!" I exclaimed. It was the first time that I had smiled in days.

This could really help me. I quickly looked up a few programs to see what they could come up with and indeed found several ideas. I couldn't draw anything quickly myself, but it still wasn't what I was looking for.

I took a deep breath and looked out the window, seeing that we had arrived at one of the stores. Roman found a place to park in the internal parking lot and we went inside to browse the fabrics for what I had in mind. I really needed some inspiration.

Jasmine followed a little distance behind us, and as I started walking down the aisles, looking at the fabrics, a saleswomen tried to approach us, but Jasmine and Roman quickly explained that I was looking for inspiration.

I stopped in the middle of one of the sections and took a deep breath, then went back to looking on my phone, searching for inspiration, until I came across images with black and more "dark" dresses as they called them, and I immediately felt attracted.

"If I can't be an ethereal queen..." I immediately left the section of colored fabrics but stopped as soon as I glimpsed a shiny, golden fabric. "That one. Please get me some similar fabrics." I pointed to the shiny, gold fabric and then also looked at some bright red colors. I selected a few others, together with some lace.

I then headed for the darker tones in black, dark gray, dark silver, and separated the ones I wanted. I didn’t know how much I would be spending, but I knew that, even if I don't use the fabrics for my own dress, I would be able to use them for other designs later on.

I then went to the support materials section and bought several models, especially of the types that I could shape with heating. Then I stopped to see that there was The store also had a section of thinner tubes that I could put LED lights into.

"Perfect!" I exclaimed excitedly.

The fabrics would be delivered directly to the studio, ensuring that they would be delivered as soon as possible, asking them to include the support materials, which I was taking now.

Jasmine and Roman insisted on carrying all the items purchased, which were not being delivered, and as soon as I got into the car, I grabbed my stylus pen and started drawing the new dress I had in mind. I wasn't worried about the value of the purchases. Not for this dress.

As soon as we arrived at the studio, I ripped everything off the mannequin I had previously tried on it, asked for assistance to clear my workbench, and soon the support materials were placed on my table.

It would have to be a very rushed job, but now that I knew exactly what I wanted, it would be easier and worth so much more. I asked two of the girls to come and help me start preparing the materials.

...

Three days later of working practically day and night on the dresses and suits, they were finally ready. I made sure that no one told Liam what our clothes would look like, but we I knew for a fact that we would definitely be attracting a lot of attention.

It went without saying that I also prepared something for Klaus. Whether I wanted it to be or not, he was still a part of it. He was my Master and Owner, no matter what people will said, the three of us remained a match.

I smiled looking at my artwork. The entire studio was silent, looking at the same thing that I was looking at. The air was still; absolute awe reflected on each person’s features. No one could believe what we had made.

"Heavens! Just when I thought that you couldn't outdo yourself!" One of the girls exclaimed.

"It's beautiful and terrifying all in one!"

"The Queen and her Kings."

The invitation made no mention of the event having any specific theme, but I created my own and it was simply sensational. My dress had a golden part right between the breasts that glowed and pulsed like a living and beating heart. The support lines could be compared to the bones of an exoskeleton. They were black, with a semi-transparent fabric. Underneath the skirt, I had inserted a red fabric, which also glowed.

If someone previously told me that I could combine a Xenomorph (Alien, 8th Passenger) into a divine dress, I wouldn't have believed it myself. But it was real and right in front of me. Liam's suit consisted of several layers. The shirt was black with the top part fashioned in red and gold tones. It also sported a structure that glowed, as though it were blood coursing through someone’s veins. The overcoat had structured golden tips while the legs of the slacks were made from black and red fabric.

Klaus' outfit was a bit more conventional being manufactured in a dark red and black tone. The supporting parts were created in gold. It matched his strict personality perfectly.

"Tomorrow will be the day to present this wonder!" I said excitedly. "Everyone deserves a break. And a bonus!"

"You're crazy! No one would create something like this for a red-carpet event!" Roman said, looking at me as if I had grown three heads.

"I know. But I'm not just anyone!" I commented, laughing.

I finally felt the exhaustion of the last days catching up with me and took a deep breath.

"Guard this studio. I don't want to hear anything about things being stolen, burned, flooded, or Santa Claus appearing out of nowhere." I warned Roman seriously.

"Don't worry, that has already been taken care of." Roman replied, and I nodded. "Let’s go home and rest then, shall we?!!"