This isn't what it looks like... Yeah, it's a new story, but it's purely only going to be about 4 or 5 very long chapters and I promise that because the document is super long that I was writing, so I had to break it up into chapters. I couldn't get this idea out of my head and I had to post it. I know I haven't updated my other stories in months, but I've been really busy with school and I'm sorry for that. My winter break starts this week, though, so I promise I can update my other stories next week since the chapters are already mostly written.

Anyway, I edited this the best I could and I hope you all like it.

Enjoy! :)

A Fashion Disaster: Part 1

Lelouch was never sure why he worked in the fashion business. Sure, his mother was had been a former model, but he had never thought that back in high school that he'd be running a clothing boutique for a living. He thought he would've gone into a career dealing with science, politics, math, or even a CEO if he wanted to.

If someone had told him ten years ago that'd he'd be a famous fashion designer while also running a local boutique, he would have laughed right in their face.

Seventeen year old Lelouch; the Lelouch who played chess for a living, gambled illegally, got straight A's and B's with one fail (Yes, he failed physical education. His best friend, Suzaku, laughed in his face for it.) when he constantly skipped class, and the same Lelouch who absolutely loathed anything dealing with the fashion world.

The fashion world was an absolute disaster of stress, problematic beings, disappointment, heartbreak, and tragedy.

It's actually the reason why his mother had almost retired from modeling when he was younger. She was never around much, but he never forgot how tired, stressed, and sick she would look every time she returned from a fashion show or a photoshoot. At one point, his mother had suffered from a terrible case of anorexia. He remembers her constantly skipping meals, vomiting up her meals when she thought no one was looking, and exercising for hours on the daily; she ended up with extreme weight loss, constant fatigue, and dehydration.

Thankfully, as much of a bastard as he was (When you have five older half-siblings and three younger half-sisters, you can see your father as nothing more than an absolute bastard.), his father had reluctantly admitted his mother into a rehabilitation hospital for people with anorexia.

He and his younger siblings, Nunnally and Rolo, didn't see their mother for almost two years after that, but when she came back, she looked better, healthier, and happier, and he could feel nothing but relief that she was the happy womance that he grew up with once again.

As much as he had hated fashion, he always found himself taking hours to put together outfits, making sure Suzaku never left the house looking like a hobo (Lelouch had lost count of the many times he had to drag Suzaku back into the house because he insisted on wearing that ugly, worn out jacket with that tacky gray shirt under it), and mindlessly drawing clothes designs in his notebooks.

Once he had graduated from Ashford Academy, he wasn't quite sure what he wanted to do after. His mother, famous and all, suggested he try out modeling with her. The conversation didn't last long:

"Lelouch, you don't even take after your… Father." She scrunched up her nose. Even she knew he was a bastard of some sorts. "You take after me; raven hair, great skin, a nice figure ("The hell?!" Lelouch had cried out.), and all the looks to go with it. You'd become a great model in no time, especially if you start out modeling with me."

"Modeling sounds absolutely atrocious." He replied with much disdain.

"That hurts me more than you think, dear."

Hesitantly, Lelouch applied for an art school and decided to major in fashion design (Suzaku thought Lelouch's pride and ego would surely get in the way). Before he knew it, he had graduated from art school and had started up his own fashion business.

And that was four years ago.

In those four years, he quickly made a name for himself among the people of both the homeland Britannia, Japan (the place he had actually grew up in despite being a full Britannian), and in many other places in the world. He had created friends and he had created enemies, but the only important thing was that he had created a name for himself along the way, and he was going to keep his name in the fashion world, even in death.

Just… The one thing that turned him off in the fashion world… And the one thing he hated… He hated nothing more than having to deal with models. Especially snobby, stuck-up ones who gave him a difficult time; mostly the ones his mother suggested he hire.

"Lily, you have one more time before I kick your ass out of this room and have someone else model my line for show!"

They really made his undignified side come out.

Constantly.

"Oh, give me a damn break, Lamperouge! You're nothing but an egoistic, bossy, psycho of a fashion designer!"

Egoistic? Yes.

Bossy? Admittedly, yes.

But a psycho? Absolutely not.

"Well, I wouldn't be if you stopped constantly being late for your fittings! This is a whole line you have to model! We can't afford to lose time over this!"

"I have other things to do!"

"You're job is modeling! What else do you do?!"

"At least I do modeling on my own accord and not because my mommy has the entire fashion world wrapped around her finger, so I got everything handed to me on a silver platter!"

"Excuse me?!"

Oh, she was testing his patience today.

"You heard me!"

"Well, guess what?! You're out of a damn job now because you're fired!"

"Fine! No one wants to model for a lanky ass pretty boy like you, anyway!" With that, Lily had stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her to let Lelouch know she definitely wasn't returning to work for him.

Around the room, his employees had watched silently from the side, but they never intervened. No one ever dared to intervene in a situation where he was angry unless they were all looking to be fired. Or… If every single one of them hadn't feared him anyway.

That was another thing.

He was a very difficult person to approach, and if you had not known him for years, being nice was the last thing you were going to get.

("Lelouch, you can't keep doing this." Suzaku once told him.

"And why not?"

"Because you're an asshole.")

"Lelouch… That was the fourth model this month already…" Shirley, his personal assistant, told him with a disappointed sigh. "The show is in a month and we can't keep finding new models like this. How are we going to find another model in this size in that time?"

The raven haired designer dumped himself in a chair nearby and groaned in frustration. "Just…. Find someone! I don't care whether it's a man or woman! Just bring me someone! I'm done working with prickly, stuck-up, snobbish, annoying models!"

"Lelouch?"

"What it is, Shirley?" he snapped.

Today was not his day.

"Not to be rude, but maybe you never get along with your models is because you're just like them; egoistic, prideful, and stubborn."

Lelouch glared deeply at the orange haired woman, but she remained unfazed. It was a look she was very much use to. "Are you also looking to be fired and go find a job elsewhere? Because trust me, if you do, I can make sure you never find one."

Shirley just shrugged. "You wouldn't do so if someone asked. You're incompetent without me. I'm just telling you the truth rather than lie to your face like everyone else would."

All the employees let out awkward coughs.

"Lie to me instead, then."

"Lelouch."

"Ugh! I'm going out. Don't try to contact me. In fact, no one-" His voice rose and he glared at every single person present in the room. "-try to call me and if you do, you're all out of a damn job."

Shirley rubbed the bridge of her nose tiredly. "Have a nice evening, Lelouch."

The raven haired man didn't answer.

He left work in a foul mood way too often.

It was starting to become tiring for him.


Lelouch was never intentionally trying to be mean… His models just always thought they were better or hand the upper hand when it came to modeling for him as did a lot of models had with the designers they worked with, so they thought they could get away with anything, but not with Lelouch Lamperouge.

When you worked for Lelouch Lamperouge, you were going to sit and listen to him, whether you liked it or not.

Lelouch fixed the hat and sunglasses among his face as he let out an extremely tired sigh. He decided that he might as well scan the crowd for the women and men in the busy streets while he was out, but none of them were good enough for his line.

What was he doing anyway?

He couldn't just grab some random, unprofessional being off the streets of Shinjuku. He couldn't teach them how to model in a month's time. They wouldn't even look like a rookie. That'd be slaughter. Then again… He was Lelouch Lamperouge and Lelouch Lamperouge was going to make anything possible no matter how impossible it looked.

He sipped at his coffee (his third one in a row, he needed it), placed it back on the table and dropped his head into his hand with the most frustrated groan he had let out all day. He saw people in the street turn their head to him in confusion, but he was sitting outside of a cafe and it wasn't his fault they could see him.

"I take it your emergency really wasn't an emergency?" a voice asked him.

Lelouch put his head back up and looked into green eyes. "Suzaku, I'm going to murder every single one of those models. That's the fourth one I've lost in less than a month already. A month! All because they're unwilling to cooperate with me!"

Suzaku rolled his eyes and sat down in the chair in front of his best friend. "Next time, unless it's actually an emergency, don't call me to come listen to you whine."

"And were you doing anything else important?"

"Lelouch, I have a job. I'm not available at your every beck and call." Suzaku had to tell his best friend this almost all the time because it was an habit he had. "And I have a wife, if you don't remember. You were at the wedding, and you were in it."

"I'm sure my sister doesn't mind."

"Oh, no." Suzaku snorted as he waved a waitress over. "Your sister minds a lot. As I also would, she'd like for you to stop calling me at four am in the morning. She won't tell you because she's too nice."

"Yeah, yeah," Lelouch mumbled. "She's a model, isn't she? I'm sure she's not around that much that she's with you."

"Lelouch."

"What?"

"I'm her husband and she only sees me maybe a few times a month. Be considerate."Suzaku sighed, immediately taking a sip of the coffee the waitress had put down for him. Being with Lelouch was headache inducing. "Euphy is tired of you."

Lelouch shrugged. "But you still come."

"I've literally told you no so many times and to figure things out yourself," Suzaku shot back.

Lelouch rose an eyebrow.

The brown haired man let out an annoyed groan. "You're such a drama queen that you sound highly convincing," was all Suzaku thought was worth saying to his best friend. "Besides that, what did you call me here for? I have to go back to work in an hour."

"What do you do even do all day designing build-" the raven haired man stopped in the middle of his sentence when his best friend gave him an unimpressed look. He cleared his throat. "I mean, I called you here because I don't know who's going to be my model for my new line. If I keep losing them, at this rate, I'll have to be out of the show."

"I know Euphy currently isn't doing anything. Did you ask her?"

"Euphemia is too small for my line," Lelouch answered. "I would have to make too many alterations to the clothing."

"Hey, Lelouch?"

Uh-oh.

It was that voice Suzaku had when he was going to say something that made sense.

"When you find a new model, have you ever thought about treating them nicely?" Suzaku asked him, and the look of horrification on his best friend's almost made Suzaku snort into his coffee. It was really too much to ask of him.

"Be nice? Have you lost it?"

Suzaku put his coffee back down, leaned against the table, and put his chin in his hand. "And what has being an asshole done for you with your last four models, Lelouch? Tell me. Be honest."

Lelouch refused to admit that maybe - just maybe - he was part of the reason he always ended up losing his models. He tried to keep his anger in check, but christ… Some of those models were just asking for him to blow up at them. At least he didn't make a model go running in tears this time…

"Okay, so maybe… Maybe I could be a little nicer…" the fashion designer hesitantly admitted, barely pinching his thumb and index finger together.

Suzaku smiled.

Lelouch gagged.

"And I expect you to keep it that way, Lelouch. You have a successful business, but you could ruin it with your reputation and Marianne won't save you from that," Suzaku explained to him.

"I know, but… but..." Lelouch trailed off in his sentence at the sight of a woman walking towards the cafe, his eyes following as she walked in and the cafe door closing behind her.

"Uh, Lelouch? Are you okay?" Suzaku asked in concern.

"Suzaku."

"What is it?"

"I think I just found my new model."

Suzaku blinked. "Wait, what? Lelouch-"

The raven haired fashion designer had already left his seat and dashed into the cafe, leaving his best friend to sit there in confusion by himself.

His model (well, not his new model yet) was standing there at the counter ordering a drink along with a muffin it seemed. Her clothing consisted of a red t-shirt and dark blue jeans with tennis shoes. She had long, green hair done in a high ponytail, glowing golden eyes, and porcelain skin. She was the perfect size for his line and… And he worked in the modeling world, but it was like he had never seen such a beautiful woman before.

His heart skipped a beat.

She was perfect.

(Albeit she was a little on the short side it seemed; about 5'4, but that wasn't anything he couldn't fix with high heels.)

Lelouch walked up to her and let out a deep breath. He tapped her on the shoulder and the woman turned around, looking at him with a risen eyebrow. She was even prettier up close and Lelouch found his face turning red.

Snapping out of it, Lelouch gave the green haired woman a professional smile and bowed slightly while removing the shades on his face. "If it isn't too much, I would like for you to be my model."

The woman stared at him for a full ten seconds before she snorted loudly. "Please. Either you're trying to ask me out on a date by using the worst line in history that I have ever heard, or you claim you're a scouting company, but you're actually trying to kidnap me."

Maybe this was going to be a bit more difficult than he thought.

Lelouch's face fell flat. "I'm no trying to ask you out on a date or kidnap you. I'm asking you to be my model."

"So a random man sees me and suddenly decides that he wants me to be his model?" This time the green haired woman glared fiercely at him. "I don't believe a word you're saying. Now instead of failing at whatever you're trying to do, I want you to leave me the hell alone."

"Can you just hear me out?" Lelouch asked her.

"I think I've heard enough from you. No random person just comes up to someone and asks them to be a model."

"Actually, that's very common."

"What?"

"Listen, I need to quickly find a new model. My other model quit (more like he fired her), and I have an upcoming show in a month. I can't afford to lose anymore models and you're the perfect person I need for my spring line up. You're a little on the short si-"

Lelouch didn't finish his sentence because a large hand had clamped over his mouth, and he groaned in frustration once again. Damn Suzaku to hell.

"Lelouch, we just talked about this outside." Suzaku said through grit teeth while smiling at the woman.

The green haired woman crossed her arms and cast her glare onto Suzaku now. "Who are you and what the hell do you two want?"

Lelouch removed Suzaku's hand from around his mouth with a hard push. "I said I want you to be my model for my upcoming spring lineup. You'd be perfect."

She still scoffed in disbelief, the distrust showing in her eyes. "As if I'd do anything for someone other than maybe Marianne Lamperouge."

Suzaku saw Lelouch's frown turn into a smirk and dragged a hand down his face tiredly. Lelouch had plenty of shame, but when it came to just exposing himself to the public eye for his own benefit, he had no issue. This wasn't his first time doing this.

God.

And when he snapped his fingers, it meant Lelouch remembered his relation to the world famous model. He never did half of the time. His smirk widened. "I might not be her, but I am her son."

For the second time that day, the green haired woman stared at Lelouch for a full ten seconds before letting out the loudest sound, causing people in the cafe to look over at them. "You? Marianne Lamperouge's son? Isn't he too prideful and egoistic for us all to walk out on the street to scout a model? Someone who's never modeled before at that?"

Ouch.

That hurt.

"I am not."

"Oh, he's really going on with this?" the woman looked at Suzaku. "Is he your friend? I feel sorry for you."

Suzaku let out a pleading noise. "Lelouch, no. Stop whatever you're thinking."

But he didn't listen.

"You don't believe me?" A smirk found its way on the fashion designer's face. He pulled off his sunglasses, removed his hat, and walked up to the counter. Smiling at the barista, he said, "I would like to order a white chocolate mocha."

The barista's eyes widened and she suddenly ran through the doors that led to the supplies. She came back with a man (who he assumed to be her manager) and pointed a finger his way. The manager's eyes widened and he sputtered out, "M-Mr. Lamperouge, i-it's on the house! Y-You don't have to pay for a thing!"

"You have got to be fucking kidding me…" he heard his not-yet-model mumble from behind him.

"Lelouch? You mean Lelouch Lamperouge?" a female customer asked out of curiosity.

Lelouch turned around and gave her a charming smile. "Hello, my dear lady."

The female customer let out an indescribable sound and blushed darkly.

"Oh my god, are you giving out autographs?" another female customer asked.

"Kaitlin!" her friend cried.

Successfully causing his intended commotion, Lelouch turned back to his green haired model with the widest of smirks. "Believe me now?"

"You're the hugest asshole."

"It's my brand."

"I'm not even pretty."

"I take it you don't look in the mirror."

"I work in a bakery."

"You can still keep your job."

"I eat pizza all day."

"Not a problem I can't fix."

"I hate you."

"As does half of the people I know."

Ignoring the prideful smirk present upon his face, the woman, eyes narrowed and voice firm, asked, "What's in it for me if I do this for you?"

"A paycheck worth more than your entire being."

"Am I not too poor for you?" the green haired woman asked an hour later in Lelouch's boutique, which was obviously in a much higher class part of town. It made her feel out of place. "And just so you know, which you obviously didn't bother to ask on our way here, I've never modeled before. Ever."

"You're poor, but I could deal with it. Not any worse than my younger brother marrying an irrelevant singer," Lelouch shrugged as he dug through his desk drawers for a folder. He took out a thin, purple folder and closed the draw back, locking it with the keys around his neck.

"And that's-"

"Rolo Lamperouge. He married my best friend's younger cousin three years ago, and she's an up and coming singer, but still irrelevant to the public eye," Lelouch explained while shoving the folder in her hand.

"Kaguya Sumeragi, you mean? She entered the top 20 with just her debut single."

"Has she had a number 1?" Lelouch asked and the woman only rolled her eyes in response. "In that case, she's irrelevant and he could do better."

"The media doesn't lie when they say you're an asshole, do they?"

"When it comes to me, they're never far from the truth." He shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "What's your name?"

She smirked at her new employer. "I could be a famous serial killer and you're just asking for my name?"

"Don't answer my question with a question."

The woman rolled her eyes and opened the folder; it was a contract and forms to fill out. "You just have contracts on hand? In your boutique?"

The fashion designer shrugged as he took a seat down at his desk. "You'll never know when you need them."

"Like today?"

"What is your name?"

"Won't you find out when I sign all this?"

"Name."

The woman rolled her eyes. "My name is Cera. Cera Li."

"Cera Li?"

"I'm Britannian-Chinese, which is something you would've found out if you had let me fill out everything first."

Lelouch gave her a flat look.

She ignored it by adding, "By the way, I prefer to be called C.C."

"Something wrong with Cera?"

"It's a name you have no rights to yet." C.C. chuckled before looking back down at her papers to fill out. "I'm to be here for a month only?"

"That's all I need you for unless you'd like to be here longer? You'll get paid much more." Lelouch stood up from the desk and peeked over her shoulder. "You're only twenty-two?"

He seemed surprised.

"I'll be twenty-three in December," C.C. answered. She turned to Lelouch's face, who visibly blush once he realized their faces were four inches apart. "Is that a problem for you?"

"N-No," Lelouch stammered, turning his head back down at her paper.

Maybe he could be cute.

"I didn't introduce myself formally," Lelouch started, standing up straight and fixing his light black sweater. "I am Lelouch Lamperouge."

"I heard."

With a roll of his purple eyes, he continued, "And you will be my new model. I'll introduce you to my company and store employees in two days. Also, you'll be introduced to my head assistant, Shirley and a few others. Clear?"

C.C. gave him a small nod, not looking away from the papers in her lap. "I'm required to always be here?"

"Unless you go to school or something, we can work out hours."

"I work at a bakery."

Lelouch turned his nose up slightly. "In that case, they won't miss you."

"I can't just give my job up. Until I get paid for doing this modeling thing, I'll still need a job to fund myself," C.C. told him.

"You poor people are so difficult to deal with," Lelouch muttered under his breath.

C.C. scoffed. "Maybe don't pick up random models off the street then? What do you think?"

As expected, he ignored her and said, "You better be glad I'm desperate and in need."

"Mommy couldn't get a new model for you?" Cera smirked mischievously, not fazed by the glare that had been sent her way.

"I am inclined to ignore that, you witch," Lelouch sneered.

"You're calling your models witches now?" She gave him a mock look of hurt. "How rude of you."

"It's better than having called you a bitch, don't you think?" Lelouch smirked.

"Then, would you prefer bastard or warlock? I feel like you could be both, though. A bastard warlock, don't you think? It fits well." C.C. smirked back at him.

Instead of getting annoyed like she expected, an impressed look crossed Lelouch's face. "You're different, aren't you?"

"Not really." The green haired woman smiled at him slightly. "I'm not just going to let you get to me, and I'm going to make up for all those poor models you tortured in their time here before you either fired them, or they quit."

"Of course," Lelouch scoffed, leaning against his desk.

"Your friend is cute, by the way," she mentioned offhandedly.

"He's married."

"How unfortunate."

"Cera."

She waved him off. "I don't go after taken men, Lelouch."

"My other models surely haven't cared."

"Speaking of your other models, have you tried to get to know them?"

Lelouch rose an eyebrow. "For what?"

"So you won't fire them or make them quit every single time." C.C. told him. "If you get to know the people who work for you, how do you expect to get along with them, neh?"

The raven haired fashion designer gave her a long stare before letting out a loud sound of disbelief. "How about no?" he finally answered.

C.C. honestly couldn't believe her new boss. Sure, she liked to avoid interacting with people as much as she could, but when you're a famous fashion designer known for being an ass, rude, and stuck-up as much as you're known for your clothing line, you had to at least bound to attempt to fix that.

The green haired woman stood up and placed her papers next to Lelouch on his desk, leaning in close to his face where he was standing with a smirk. "Let's just hope the same thing doesn't happen with me then, hmm? Prove the world that you can keep a model for more than a month, perhaps?"

She was voluntarily extending her contract.

Lelouch returned her challenging smirk, leaning in also. They were so close he could feel her breath. "Nothing is impossible for me to prove to the world."

And that's it. I don't have much to say except that I hope you all liked it.

Read and Review.