Chapter 670: I Messed Up

[Chapter 670: I Messed Up]

The moment Diane Kruger lost her high heel, a jolt ran through her mind, and she felt as if all the air had been sucked out of her. The sudden sensation of falling almost made her collapse on the runway.

I messed up?

I messed up!

I messed up... I messed up... I messed up...

That soul-crushing thought surged through Diane Kruger's mind countless times. She thought she heard the audience's mocking laughter below, but no one shouted "stop." The lights continued to shift, the music played on, and the artificial snow in the venue fell in a flurry. So, after a moment's hesitation, she lifted her bare left foot and pressed on, her months of grueling training finally paying off. Even though she had lost one high heel, Diane Kruger quickly regained her balance and swaggered down the runway with her trademark confidence.

As the heel fell, some people in the audience couldn't help but show a glee of misfortune on their faces. Yet, when Diane Kruger steadied herself, many of them felt a twinge of disappointment: Why didn't she fall?

However, as Diane Kruger confidently walked to the end of the runway, the mood in the audience gradually shifted. Everyone began to reflect on how they would handle such a sudden situation, and they all knew the answer was a resounding "no" in comparison to what this girl was managing.

Those who remained strong in adversity easily earned people's instinctive respect, and soon the feelings of schadenfreude were replaced by admiration. Thus, when Diane Kruger began her turn, spontaneous applause slowly erupted in the venue. The ovation reached a crescendo as she completed her walk, nearly drowning out the music at the end.

Basically following her rigorous training instincts, Diane Kruger didn't even notice the change in the audience's mood. She forced herself to walk to the finish line, and just as she slipped behind the backstage entrance, certain the cameras would no longer catch her, the last of her strength suddenly drained away. Tears streamed down her face as she collapsed softly on the steps leading to the backstage exit.

...

Apart from Eric, who was in the control room, there were three large screens backstage showing the situation in the hall. When they saw Diane Kruger's heel drop, the backstage coordinator quickly alerted everyone via intercom within mere seconds. Diane was still on the runway, and already backstage was in a flurry.

In the control room, noticing the heel drop, Eric's heart sank. A once flawless show was now marred by an unexpected incident, and it was impossible not to feel anger.

But the moment had passed, and Eric knew that being angry wouldn't do any good. As he watched Diane quickly regain her composure and the audience's response shift, his furrowed brows began to relax. He absentmindedly rubbed the intercom he held and thought for a moment before he pressed the button to control all communication channels, speaking firmly, "This is Eric Williams. Everyone take your roles, carry on without panic. Nicole, get your assistant to bring that high heel to me, immediately."

Setting down the intercom, Eric glanced at the monitor, observing the scene as it returned to normalcy. He issued a few quick instructions to an attendant sitting in front of the screens and then briskly exited the control room.

As he stepped out, Emily and Edward Razek approached him.

Feeling equally concerned, Emily urgently said, "Eric, I just asked Donnie in logistics about redoing this theme. The artificial snow won't last for the full four minutes. It'll take at least half an hour to reassemble. What should we do?"

Recalling what he'd just witnessed, Eric replied as he walked, "No need for a re-shoot. Have Tina come over; we need to discuss this."

Emily was taken aback. "What? No re-shoot? But..."

"Don't worry, Emily. I have some good ideas."

As they spoke, they reached the connecting entrance to the main area. The Victoria's Secret Angels who finished their tasks returned from the front, their faces displaying almost unanimous feelings of relief. Diane Kruger had already sat down on the steps. When she saw Eric, her slender frame tensed slightly, and the tears she couldn't stop flowed down again. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Williams. I messed up. It wasn't intentional. I don't know why that high heel... why it just fell off."

Eric sighed softly. Although he already had a plan in mind, the show hadn't reached the perfection he wanted. Seeing Diane still adorned with the heavy angel wings, he signaled to two staff members, saying, "Help Diane take off her wings. And where's that high heel?"

Upon hearing Eric wanted to remove her precious angel wings, Diane's expression grew even more sorrowful, but she didn't dare say anything. After messing up something so important, even if there were re-shoots, she'd have no part in it.

The wings were soon taken off. Without them, Diane appeared even more fragile, and coupled with her heartbreak, anyone couldn't help but feel a wave of sympathy.

Nicole, who was responsible for photography at the front, quickly had an assistant bring over the high heel. Eric instructed that it be placed in a clear plastic bag. Sitting beside the still crying girl, Eric gently placed his hand around her.

Feeling Eric's act, Diane stiffened for a moment but soon leaned against him. In that instant, she found an unexplainable sense of solace, gradually stopping her sobbing.

Seeing this scene, the girl who had come with Eric couldn't help but pout, and the surrounding onlookers shared glances that reflected confusion. But before they could express any jealousy, they were drawn to what Eric did next -- a few even gasped.

Because Eric was inspecting the high heel through the plastic bag.

The final theme continued, with music still playing, but in that small area by the backstage entrance, a rare silence fell as Eric scrutinized the shoe.

Why was Eric checking that high heel?!

Keen observers noticed that the front of the silver high heel in the clear plastic bag was attached with a broken strap, severed into two pieces. A thought blazed in everyone's minds -- someone had sabotaged Diane Kruger's shoe to make her trip.

Such underhanded maneuvers were fairly common in the fashion industry. Models had indeed pushed one another off balance on the runway before. But no one had expected that someone would dare do such a thing at Eric's big show.

When most people saw Eric's grave expression, they grew tense, but Emily stepped forward without hesitation, taking the high heel from him and examining it closely. "Eric, it looks like the break might be natural?"

Eric also suspected the strap's fracture could be from natural wear but found the timing coincidental. The shoe had only been worn during final dress rehearsals, and those runs had gone without issue; now it had broken off so suddenly -- it seemed too suspicious.

Surveying the upper management in the Victoria's Secret project team and the staff peeking nearby, Eric thought for a moment and then handed the plastic bagged shoe back to Emily. "Contact the FBI to perform a trace analysis on that strap. We need to confirm if it was an accidental break. If it was an accident, fine. Also, don't forget to collect fingerprints from the shoe."

After thinking it over, he removed the other shoe from Diane's foot, also putting it into a plastic bag and handing it to Emily. "And this one too -- see if there was interference."

"I'll handle it right away, and I'll try to get the results by tomorrow." Emily's face turned serious as she took the high heels. "I won't participate in the after-party; will you handle the hosting?"

The group watched anxiously as Emily hurried away with the high heels, their hearts filled with a stormy premonition. Eric had just said, if it was an accident, that would be it, but he hadn't mentioned what would happen if it wasn't. They all knew well that if someone were indeed sabotaging things, Eric wouldn't let it go easily.

Once Emily left, Eric waved to those nearby. "The final theme is about to wrap up. Everyone should prepare for the curtain call; no need to linger here."

The crew returned to their posts, and Eric turned to Diane, still resting against him. "Can you go back on stage? You performed so beautifully today, and it would be a shame not to be there during the finale."

Though Diane Kruger understood that the earlier runway incident wasn't her fault, the exhaustion from the immense shock she felt was hard to shake off. Taking a few deep breaths, she still felt weak, lacking the strength to rise.

Eric reassuringly patted her shoulder and told Edward Razek, "Edward, have that rock band play another song. Delay the curtain call by five minutes."

Edward nodded and spoke quickly into the intercom before walking towards the stage.

Eric looked at Diane and asked, "Do you want something to eat? It might help."

"Okay," Diane softly nodded, surprised that Eric would postpone the entire show just for her, causing her cheeks to flush.

Looking to the twins beside her, Eric said, "Natasha, come help Diane to the break area."

The twins started to move but were stopped by Drew extending her arm.

Sniffling, the girl tugged the twins along, leaving only a comment about "You handle it yourself."

Eric chuckled, shaking his head. The girl hadn't been jealous in a while, and Eric almost forgot how women could be jealous.

Glancing at Diane, who looked like a delicate kitten beside him, Eric shrugged and picked her up. Under the surprised eyes of the backstage crew, he carried her towards the break area.

It was only when he set her down in a chair that Diane, blushing like a blossoming rose, whispered, "Thank you, Mr. Williams."

Eric retrieved a stack of chocolates from a nearby table and held them out to her with a smile, "No need to mention it; it's quite comfortable to hold."

His teasing remark only made Diane's cheeks warmer, but she bravely whispered back, "If... if you want, you can... anytime..."

Before she could finish her stammering sentence, Diane paused when she noticed a staff member busy rushing over with a few pairs of high heels.

...

The front stage performance quickly concluded, and with Eric's comfort, Diane gradually regained her strength. Forty supermodels joined together on stage, completing this grand fashion event with a perfect finale.

Though a small hiccup had occurred during, for most attendees, the Victoria's Secret Show left them immensely satisfied. The subsequent after-party at the Gramercy Hotel on Lexington Avenue thrilled the fortunate guests.

...

However, while many partied exuberantly at the celebration, Eric and all the main coordinators of the Victoria's Secret Show had unknowingly slipped out early, gathering in the conference room at Yahoo's headquarters in New York.

Standing before a whiteboard in the conference room, Eric attached a newly printed large photo.

Emily, Edward Razek, and invited Yahoo editor Tina Brown glanced at the picture, which showed a close-up of the Victoria's Secret runway. They could still discern the venue's lights and the audience, undeniably captured during the live event. Most notably was the striking silver high heel that had been left behind at the center of the runway.

Eric stood by quietly, allowing everyone in the conference room to appreciate the image for a moment before asking, "So, what does everyone think when they see this photo?"

What else could it be but the shocking moment from tonight's Victoria's Secret Show?

Emily thought back; she had been beside a large screen backstage, experiencing the entire ordeal of Diane Kruger's shoe fall, and it had truly made her break out in a cold sweat.

The other project leads in attendance shared similar feelings, some still puzzled why Eric wouldn't re-shoot the final theme. After half a year of meticulous preparation, a shoe fell off -- it seemed terribly unfortunate.

As an observer, Tina Brown's perspective differed from Emily and the others. She contemplated the photo Eric posted for a moment, and then tentatively spoke the word, "Cinderella?"

"Exactly," Eric replied, nodding appreciatively. "It is Cinderella."

With Eric and Tina Brown sharing their views, everyone else in the conference room began to comprehend.

The photo of the silver high heel, glittering on the luminous runway, resembled the crystal shoe Cinderella had lost in fairytales.

Seeing that everyone had grasped the concept, Eric continued, "I reviewed all the footage of Diane's performance after her shoe dropped, and honestly, her performance didn't waver much from earlier. I believe that in the post-editing, the presentation shown to the audience will still be stunning. Moreover, this falling heel incident can become a clever marketing angle."

At this point, Eric quickly grabbed a marker and wrote a phrase on the whiteboard, saying, "So, besides our predetermined marketing strategies, we'll add an impromptu promotion line, which we'll code-name the 'Cinderella Incident.'"

*****

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