Illia loved the spotlight. She loved everything to do with people. The charity work, the work-work, lunches, dinners, celebrity parties. And the people, oh the people! So glamorous, and so many of them were kinder than she'd have imagined they would have been.
One such man, Dorian Crawford, was one Illy knew well. It wasn't the first time she'd modeled under Crown's Agency; the last had been on her trip to Egypt (which was a lovely place and she'd have totally recommended it to anyone). Promotional work was a truly beautiful thing mixing beauty and people into one mutually beneficial situation.
As it were, Illia was promoting Dorian's new energy drink. Something both flavorful and energizing. She had, of course, tried the drink and Illy had to say that it was better than any other energy drink she'd ever tried. Congratulations to him. Was there nothing this man couldn't do?
The woman was prettied up to be both sexually appealing and downright adorably approachable. It was something Illia was proficient at. The outfit she wore was high on the thigh, revealing her legs and adding extra perk to her rear. It was all one piece with only a thin white strap over her right shoulder holding it all up.
Dorian was off to the side, behind the photographer, leaning on a podium with his cheek in his hand. This wasn't the first time Illia worked for Crown, but this was the first time he'd gotten to work with her up close past casual meetings. She was very dazzling. Oh, in appearance, of course, but also demeanor. She was... very delicate, like a doll, but warmer. Kind. He watched her with a dazed expression, chest heavy, face flushed.
Oh. What the fuck? Was he crushing? Dorian heard the photographer say "that's great, Illia, let's take a break" and it snapped Dorian out of his daze. There were alarmed exclamation marks over his head. He gotta... He gotta... Dorian bolted out of the room at full speed like a terrified rodent, almost tripping on wires, and ran out of the building. His heart was going to explode. Was it because of love, or was it because his cardio was getting bad? He bent over to catch his breath. Sighing, he went back inside.
Everyone was starting at him. He blushed. "What? Was I the only one that heard that crashing?"
Well, it wasn't all a lie. Dorian was crushing, crashing straight first into a wall. They shook their heads, gave him a weird look, and went about their day. Good. He couldn't stand being under all that heat.
Dorian casually headed to his office and tried to look for a suitable gift. Fuck! What did Illia like? Dorian dumped all of his drawer contents on the floor. Oh! There was a cute, small box of strawberry coated chocolates, from one of his fans in Europe. Would Illia like this?
He pumped himself up in front of the mirror. "You got this, tiger. It's just a cute girl. You eat pussy for breakfast. Remember."
Dorian walked out.
Dorian walked back in.
Fuck, fuck, fuck, he couldn't do it. He could! He slapped his cheeks. Stop being a fucking baby! He walked back to the studio, looking for Illia, and approached her, leaning casually against a wall. "Good job on the... photoshoot earlier. Heard you're gonna test a few more outfits. Do you... want a snack?" He offered the chocolates.
Oh. What the fuck? Was he crushing? Dorian heard the photographer say "that's great, Illia, let's take a break" and it snapped Dorian out of his daze. There were alarmed exclamation marks over his head. He gotta... He gotta... Dorian bolted out of the room at full speed like a terrified rodent, almost tripping on wires, and ran out of the building. His heart was going to explode. Was it because of love, or was it because his cardio was getting bad? He bent over to catch his breath. Sighing, he went back inside.
Everyone was starting at him. He blushed. "What? Was I the only one that heard that crashing?"
Well, it wasn't all a lie. Dorian was crushing, crashing straight first into a wall. They shook their heads, gave him a weird look, and went about their day. Good. He couldn't stand being under all that heat.
Dorian casually headed to his office and tried to look for a suitable gift. Fuck! What did Illia like? Dorian dumped all of his drawer contents on the floor. Oh! There was a cute, small box of strawberry coated chocolates, from one of his fans in Europe. Would Illia like this?
He pumped himself up in front of the mirror. "You got this, tiger. It's just a cute girl. You eat pussy for breakfast. Remember."
Dorian walked out.
Dorian walked back in.
Fuck, fuck, fuck, he couldn't do it. He could! He slapped his cheeks. Stop being a fucking baby! He walked back to the studio, looking for Illia, and approached her, leaning casually against a wall. "Good job on the... photoshoot earlier. Heard you're gonna test a few more outfits. Do you... want a snack?" He offered the chocolates.
Illia had spoken to Dorian extensively, but she wondered if that behavior was typical? It was hard to tell; people tended to turn a blind eye to strange celebrity behavior (everyone but the press did, at least.) So When Dorian darted out of the room like a bat out of Hell, at first, Illy wondered if he had gotten an urgent call. He came back in talking about crashes and, well, no one made a big fuss over it.
Illy busied herself speaking to people and drinking a bottle of water. There was a snack table, as there usually was at these things, but models didn't actually use them (only the amateurs did, sometimes). In the normie world, it was less common, but on Manta Carlos, where some people never gained weight, more models took advantage of the free food. Illy envied them.
It was during a brief moment of reprieve that Dorian slid up beside Illia, leaning against the wall and, in turn, close to her. She smiled pleasantly and made a light affirmative sound when he mentioned she'd be trying on more outfits. "Yeah, I have another hour and a half."
When he presented the strawberry coated chocolates, Illia's smile grew in radiance. "Oh, gosh, that's so sweet. Thank you. I'd love one." Despite her usual confidence, Illy's heart was beating entirely too much. Part of her wanted to sink into the wall and disappear, while another part of her wanted to suck up all of Dorian's attention.
Gently, Illia took the box and opened it to try one of the strawberries. It was melt-in-your-mouth-and-make-you-all=weak-kneed good, but she didn't want to eat in front of people, especially not something like chocolate covered strawberries in a professional setting while she was feeling many many unprofessional things. Mentally, she was coming up with several scenarios that were chocolate or strawberry related, and none of them were the least bit appropriate here.
"You mentioned having heard something crash earlier?" she said to keep herself on distracted from the many intrusive thoughts she was experiencing. "I hope everything was okay when you went to check it out?"
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