Stand up, Lucy!

Frank stood far away from Lucy, silently observing her for the past several minutes. His face went on and off from discovering something ghastly off of Lucy's face.

For the past week, she exhibited complicated behavior, which Frank kept under control, not letting it trouble her work-life. However, today appears to be a new dimension of the young model as Lucy is more silent than usual. She is not getting disturbed randomly or being wildly crazy, but dumbly benumbed.

Her quietness tested her manager, Frank. However, it was not the only thing Frank found it strange in Lucy's demeanor. The model seems to be wearing thick makeup, especially today.

As he kept an unwavering eye on her to be on alert at all times, a fellow model who sat next to Lucy approached for a friendly chat. But the deadened response from Lucy gets misread by the fellow French model. She considered Lucy's attitude to be barbarous despite not knowing her. Frank, who attended from afar, immediately meddled between the two to settle before things go awry.

He called Lucy to outside, found a non-crowded place with only passing by people, to resort to her for a small chat.

"Are you alright?" Frank asked.

Lucy quietly nodded.

"You could smile a little more and be social," Frank suggested softly without making it sound aggressive.

"I'm sorry," Lucy apologized even though it wasn't necessarily a mistake.

Her reserved attitude scared Frank, but he was willing to encourage her out of it.

"You are wearing a lot of makeup today? D- Did something happen?"

Frank's question threw the young model out of her bubble, and she touched her cheek to check if the makeup got undone. She saw Frank and saw him expecting for an answer.

"No- Nothing happened. I- I ate too generously last night and-"

"Ah-" Frank did not want to stress her, and so he ended it abruptly.

"Alright, let's go-" he added to leave.

Lucy caught the hem of his shirt and signaled for him.

"What?" the manager yelped from the pull.

"Can I step out of this?" Lucy said, almost on the verge of tearing down.

Frank, astounded from hearing her say, for a second, he felt everything suspend, and the busy sounds of people crossing brought him back to the place they were visiting right now.

"What? Do you want to leave now? From this-" he raised his voice.

"I don't think I could be myself-"

"Stop it, Lucy!" he raged again.

Lucy obeyed and returned to absolute silence.

"Are you listening to yourself right now? We are standing inside one of the international luxury fashion houses, and you, a young and growing model, got selected to open for their new collection. We are not here to pose for products or take pictures. It is a golden opportunity that fresh models rarely get the chance to participate. You got this, and now you want to leave. Give me a good reason to back up your words," Frank roared, much to attract attention.

Lucy stayed still, refusing to speak or so. She did not have any reasonable excuses to defend her request. However, the lacking liveliness in her face is enough for her manager to apprehend the sprawling situation.

By now, a few of them noticed the crumbling model and her manager, suspecting their tales to their engagement.

Sensing the growing stares, Frank eased the watchers and assured them that nothing wrong was going on as he helped Lucy to move away from the spot. They soon found themselves far from the waiting room and took seats in the lounge area.

Now seated in peace and no more glancing they received, Frank loosened his shirt button to respire. As he did, he noticed Lucy still had her face facing downwards. Something sorrowful surfacing her beautiful features and made it appear rather gloomy.

"So, you want to give up on this project or your entire modeling career?" he said, a little stern his voice sounded.

"Look at me," he called.

Lucy lifted her head, slight to his sight, and she managed to hold her gaze for a few seconds.

"Crying and running away can only be temporary resorts, Lucy. I know that I'm only your manager, and I have to maintain that line strictly. However, as someone elder to you in age and experience, let me tell you: If you give in to your sorrows and struggles, it is only going to hurt you more. Now, what can you do during these times is to stand up! Take a little step and move forward. Whatever the reason that made you give up in life, fight it. You are a growing model, and I don't have to point this out, but you faced many hardships to enter this industry and earned yourself a name now. I don't wish for it to disappear without having achieved anything. Personal life can suck at times, and during those moments, you focus on work and do what you are passionate about, instead of hiding and opting failures."

"I have no more to say to you. If you are still the same Lucy I met the first time, then stand up, else we can leave this place. You will lose this chance, and the name you strived to earn will soon disappear. Later, when you start to regret and try to enter the game again, it will be much worse. You are, by nature, a disciplined talent, but the one thing I want you to learn is to master being professional. Modeling is not just about being pretty. It takes extreme dedication to mark yourself amongst the crowd. I decided to be your manager because I saw the light in you, a strict self-management girl, but in recent times, you are slowly losing it. I am not blaming anyone, but simply pointing it out to you. You can succumb to different things that entice you for both temporary and permanent. However, if you wish to reach your goal, then you can never let your sentiments interfere in your profession."

Frank stood, gearing up to return soon.

"Sometimes, rather than running away, indulge yourself in your work more. After all, this is your dream, correct? If it is, let's walk into that room right now. Even after all this talk, if you still wish to give up, I can make that happen as well. However, I will be leaving you too. I am not planning to manage a fallen. The one I admired to work with is a charming, energetic, and daring to be herself, Lucy. It's time you make your decision. The fitting would start soon," he ended and waited for Lucy to make up her mind.

All of what Frank said were true to the disheartened Lucy. Her romance life with Lillian Grey began to slump since last night, and she knew it to her heart. When Lucy chose to visit her distanced girlfriend, she hoped to confront Lillian for ignoring her calls and messages, making sure to mend the gap that separated the two. However, Jenna's appearance, Lillian's laid-back attitude in telling Lucy to stay for dinner, the subdued anger Lucy kept running away from, all of it caused the young model to lose her composure, letting the mind wander to its fantasy.

Lucy ended up saying hurtful things to Jenna. She never knew about Jenna's grandmother or that the burial took place earlier that day. Knowing how those words escaped from her mouth without her consent made Lucy despise herself. No longer did Lillian's slap stung her, but the weight of her action towards Jenna sent the model to despair. She couldn't forgive herself for spouting such nonsense.

Thus, triggering her to quit things she deserved. Right when she was willing to surrender to her oppression, Frank stepped in to stir her feelings. His words of facts helped Lucy to revalue her thoughts.

She had two choices in front of her, and they were: whether to fall apart or stand to fight!

Lucy chose to fight. She acknowledged her mistake, attending herself to apologize to Jenna properly for her disgraceful behavior. And, with Lillian Grey, she let fate accompany her for the rest.

Lucy stood up from her seat. Frank signaled the way, and she walked a little brisker, taking the first step towards the future.

***

Lillian waits, waits, and waited till an hour passed. Soon, a canned soda drink accompanied her fleeting time as she watched the building with a wary gaze.

The lavish architecture is where Lucy is currently at, her fitting session with a fashion powerhouse adds as an accomplishment to her career. Nevertheless, it wasn't the reason, Lillian Grey was waiting for hours by now. Ever since slapping her, Lillian could never forgive herself. She was anticipating to meet Lucy and apologize sincerely before inviting her to settle their arguments.