Work Text:
Miki Saionji looked up from her phone to the building in front of her, a simple building like any other in Shibuya, then took a deep breath. She could do it. She was cool, everything was going to be perfect. There was no need to worry about anything.
She entered the building and proceeded to the third floor, then towards the office which bore a sign with “Gatto Nero” written on it. She froze in front of the door, her hand hovering a few inches from it, hesitating to knock. After a few seconds, she gathered her strength, composed herself, and then, as she was about to knock, the door swung open.
“Yes, Eri, I’ll be right ba- Oh.”
The person standing in front of Miki was a young woman with short brown hair, brown eyes and glasses. She was wearing a green cardigan above what could only be described as a “comfy outfit”, a baggy white dress that fell to her knees with dark pants underneath. Um… that wasn’t exactly the type of clothes Miki had seen on their website, but it suited her.
The woman adjusted her glasses and studied Miki with an expert gaze. “Oh, you must be our new model! Miki Saionji, right?” she asked, and Miki nodded silently. “Um, it’s nice to meet you! I’m Gatto Nero’s seamstress, Shiki Misaki. Please come in,” she continued, taking a step back to allow Miki to step inside. As soon as Miki did, she left quickly, slipping in the corridor and closing the door behind her.
Miki found herself in a pretty normal office, with two office desks, a central table, multiple chairs and many plants here and there. Another young woman was studying some papers and taping nervously her pen against the central table, her long red hair partly hiding her face, but as soon as the door closed, she looked up and, noticing Miki, gave up what she was doing immediately to greet her. “Welcome, Miki! I was waiting for you. I’m Gatto Nero’s designer, but please, call me Eri,” she introduced herself.
Without waiting for Miki to answer, Eri walked to a door on the right side of the office and pushed it open, revealing another room with plenty of clothes displayed across the room, mirrors, a changing room on the left and a space for the photo shoot on the right. Miki took some prudent steps after Eri, amazed. She had never been in such a room, in fact, since the only shootings she had done were unofficial ones, done either in her own room or in one of her friend’s. She knew it was nothing compared to the kind of places her best friend Honoka must be going, but… it was one step towards her dream.
Eri showed her a couple of outfits that had been previously selected for Miki to wear. “So, what do you think?” she asked.
“It’s perfect! Thank you,” Miki answered, trying her best not to look too excited. The outfits really looked good, and she was certain they’d look even better on her. She couldn’t wait to start the photo shoot.
"Great! The bathroom is this way," Eri pointed towards another door next to the changing room, "and call me if you need anything. Remember to start with the first outfit, k'? We really need to get this one done today."
Miki nodded and proceeded to the bathroom where she quickly changed clothes. Eri sure looked in a hurry… or maybe that was just how she was, trying to get things done efficiently without wasting any time. Miki liked working around people like that. Less talk, more action. She was a girl of a few words- after all, an outfit could speak volumes about someone.
She got out of the bathroom and found Eri talking animatedly with Gatto Nero’s seamstress- how did she introduce herself again? Oh, right, Shiki Misaki- but they both stopped as soon as they heard the door and turned to Miki. “Oh, Shiki, the outfit is perfect!” Eri beamed.
Her colleague didn’t seem to share that enthusiasm. She frowned and took a few steps towards Miki for a closer look. “No, it’s not! Here, I need to fix the hood and the shoulders. It doesn't fit at all.”
Immediately, she took out of her purse some clips, a needle and a thread and started her work on Miki’s outfit, who could only stand there, frozen. The seamstress made it sound so obvious that the outfit didn’t fit, so why Miki hadn’t noticed it at all? That was so unprofessional of her. Surely Honoka would have noticed, right? But… Miki glanced at Eri, who looked as surprised as she was. Hm. Maybe Shiki was just pushy about the details?
After a few seconds, Eri spoke, having overcome her surprise. “Tell me, Miki… um, can I call you that?” Miki nodded. “Cool. So, Miki, do you have a dream?”
Ah, small talk. Well, at least the answer to this question couldn’t be more easy for Miki. “Yes,” she answered immediately. “My dream is to become a famous model, like my friend Honoka.”
Eri raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “Oh, you’re friends with Honoka?”
“Yes, she’s the one who told me that you were looking for a model. You know her?”
“Of course! Who wouldn’t? She already got herself a name in the world of fashion. Plus, she’s really talented! Ah, I hope she gets available for a next photo shoot… that would help our brand a lot, and-” Eri got suddenly interrupted by someone knocking on the door. She immediately dropped the conversation and went to open it.
Miki didn’t listen to what was said. The earlier words of the designer only kept ringing in her head- of course they would have prefered to get Honoka instead of her as a model. Her friend was so much more talented than her, and-
“Please don’t move,” the seamstress suddenly said, holding the needle between her teeth as she was taking measures on the right shoulder. Miki straightened herself, noticing only at this moment that her shoulders had slumped, following her disappointed thoughts.
Silence lingered for a few seconds as Eri had left the room and closed the door behind her. “You know… Eri didn’t mean that,” Shiki said.
“Didn’t mean what?”
The seamstress stood in front of her to look at her work, and seemed satisfied with herself. “We’re very glad you’re here. Honoka may have more experience in modelling, but those threads suit you. More than they would have suited her.” She then turned around and headed to the door to call back Eri.
Miki had no idea how she managed to grab exactly what was bothering her, but she was very thankful for the kind words Shiki had just given her.
She really needed those.
The seamstress returned a few minutes later with a photographer and someone else in tow. “Eri’s busy, we’ll start without her,” she said. “But first, your make-up!”
Oh, so the other person was their make-up artist. Honestly, Miki could have guessed from the perfect make-up on their face, expertfully made so that it enhanced their features while all the same remaining discreet and professional. They guided her towards a chair and started their word. Miki wondered for a second if maybe it was better to settle in the bathroom, but they seemed to know what they were doing, so she remained still and followed the instructions given- close her eyes, turn slightly her head, don’t speak… Before she knew it, a mirror was held in front of her so she could admire the result.
She was impressed. As someone quite skilled with make-up herself, she could see that the work done by the make-up artist was very good. Eye-catching enough so that people would spare a glance at the pictures, but not too much so it still looked quite natural.
She caught the gaze of Shiki who was silently observing her and saw her smile when the seamstress seemed to settle on being satisfied with Miki’s global attire. “Seems good to me. Ready for the photo shoot, Miki?” she asked.
“Of course!”
They all took their designated places around the room. The photographer in front of Miki, Shiki next to him and a few other people that Miki didn’t know. One of them was fixing the lights as Shiki gave her some global instructions about the vibe she wanted the pictures to have. “This is going to be our first official collection, to launch our shop in 104. Eri insisted on the collection being, uh, how did she say it again? Oh, right, a breeze of novelty in Shibuya’s fashion. We don’t need fancy poses or anything, just… show confidence in you and your fashion style.”
“Got it,” Miki answered before the photographer informed them that everything was ready.
The photo shoot went smoothly… at first. Focused on the photographer and her poses, Miki didn’t think about sparing a glance to Shiki. Maybe she should have, because at some point the seamstress ordered sharply to stop and everyone turned to her, startled. She grabbed the photographer’s camera and looked over the last ones taken, before letting out a very audible sigh.
Miki froze. What had she done wrong? Maybe the last pose wasn’t good… her gaze may have been misdirected? Or was it her hint of a smile? But simple things like these would have been easy to fix immediately… Shiki wouldn’t have needed to completely stop the photo shoot, right?
Miki did her best to hide her anxiety while waiting for the seamstress to speak, but she couldn’t hold it any longer. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
Shiki looked up from the camera to her. “You look pretty, Miki, but not happy.”
“But isn’t that what a model is supposed to do?” Miki questioned, confused. “Looking pretty, I mean. The Prince doesn’t always look happy in his pictures but they always have a lot of success!”
The seamstress took a few steps towards her. “That’s… different. It’s his thing and people like it. What we want to do with Gatto Nero… it’s not the same. Do you… do you know why Eri and I decided to make clothes?”
Miki shook her head negatively, and Shiki went to sit next to her. “It has always been our dream, to create our own brand, our own clothes. But there’s more than that- we want to make people happy with our creations,” She explained. “That’s why we’re doing all of this. To make people happy by wearing our clothes.”
She paused, and Miki realised she was hanging onto her every word. She waited, patiently, for the seamstress to start speaking again. “We love Shibuya, and we want to show everyone how happy we are to live there. Share our love of life, prove to people that they have a place there, that everyone does. Shibuya is a battleground of thoughts and values, but that’s what makes it great! Because every person, in the end, can find their place there while still being themselves, and even grow from clashing with the others. They can find themselves.”
Saying that she was blown away by such philosophy would have been an understatement, as Miki was left speechless by Shiki’s words.
Glancing around, she looked more carefully at the people around them. People smiling, chatting with each other. The photographer was discussing with the makeup artist, exchanging ideas. They agreed to meet up for coffee later. Miki noticed the makeup artist’s phone case being decorated with a Mr Mew as they pulled it out to text something. The light tech turned around to look at the clothes collection, and Miki noticed the name of the brand written on his outfit. He said something that Miki didn’t catch to the photographer, pointing at a hat, and the photographer answered something along the lines of “I’ll get it for you”, causing the light tech to blush, embarrassed.
They were happy. All of them. And they looked like they had found their place, here, working with Gatto Nero.
Miki wondered. Did she find hers?
What was she even looking for?
Shiki spoke again, and Miki’s attention got drawn to her once again. “And… I know it’s not much, but… I hope that with these clothes, we can share a little bit of these ideas with the world. After all… they call it a fashion statement for a reason, right?” The seamstress gave her a little smile.
“Yeah…” Miki managed.
Shiki clapped her hands. “Now, Miki… Let me ask you one simple question. Are you happy modelling these clothes?”
That was actually what Miki was wondering about. She should be- that had always been her dream! She knew she looked good. She knew the clothes looked good. And she knew it looked perfect on her. But… something felt off.
“We can always change the outfit, you know. Eri won’t mind, I promise,” the seamstress proposed.
Miki’s gaze fell down on her outfit, a cute black Mr Mew hoodie. It was great, but… that… wasn’t really her, was it? It was like… something was missing. Something… like…
She looked up to Shiki with a newfound energy. “Actually, I think I saw some crossed thighs in the collection earlier…”
Immediately, the seamstress’ eyes lit up. “They’d totally fit you!” she beamed. “Be right back,” she assured before running out of the room.
The other’s gaze followed her, confused, before falling on Miki with a silent question, which was answered quickly by Shiki coming back into the room, the thread Miki mentioned in her arms. She gave it to her and Miki went to the bathroom to put them on.
She looked at her now completed outfit in the mirror. She had been right, it had been missing something for it to truly fit her. Not just her body, but also her personality, her style. Shiki’s speech reminded her- clothes shouldn’t only be worn because they look pretty. They should embrace the person’s heart and mind as well.
Miki opened the door back to the photo shoot room and Shiki greeted her with a bright smile. “So, how do you feel now?” the seamstress asked.
Miki didn’t hesitate a single second before giving her answer.
“Happier.”
Her friend’s voice buzzed out of the phone. “So, how did the modelling go?”
“It was great, really! Thanks for the info, Honoka.”
“Anything for you, Miki! You know, I have this other offer that you could-”
“No, thanks. I’m fine, actually.”
“Uh? But… I didn’t even say anything about it!”
“No need. I’m giving up on modelling.”
“You what??”
“You heard me. I found something else.”
“But, Miki, that was your dream!”
“Well, things change, you know…”
“Okay… but what happened?”
Miki looked up to the Gatto Nero sign displayed on the 104 building.
“I met someone.”