Feeling Sexy & Free…
(Stuart/Winsdor/Hanover/Dobry).
Reed's designer debut. Derek gets made up. Julian shows everyone why he's a star. Logan gets an unwanted text message. Everyone else have fun.
Kurt hands Derek and Logan a disposable razor each with the explicit instruction to, "Shave it."
A hand shoots up to caresses his face.
"All of it?" he tries to bargain.
"All. of. it. Smooth. That includes below your neck." Kurt adds almost offhandedly. Ones head snaps up alarmed and the other looks like he's about to bolt.
Kurt blocks the door. "Shave it all, or I will come in there and do it myself!"
TEXT: [Kitty sure likes to bite…did u know that? ;-) ]
Note: Really, this is just an excuse to have our favorite boys and the girls do a runway show. ^_^ Recommended listening, any Freemason remix of popular songs. Gets the heart pumping.
Feeling Sexy & Free…
They walk into something akin to a warzone. There is flurry of activity everywhere. But amidst all this fevered rush they find Reed sitting at one of the long tables breathing into a paper bag. Kurt is pacing in front of him.
"Hey! How's it going?" Blaine asks cheerily. With him, are the usual suspects of Windsor boys. They and a contingent of other Dalton & Dobry kids are in town to support Reed as he debuts his first clothing line; Baby van Kamp. A mid to high end teen/young adult prêt-à-porter line that will be carried by higher end department stores. Kurt is there as a friend, an assistant and a partner. He did have a big hand in helping Reed with the designs and materials.
The curious Windsor boys on the other hand arrived early to check out the ongoings backstage; and the models. "Oh thank God you're here." Kurt rushes to Blaine and pulls him into a hug. "It's in-sane! Remember we said we wanted 'real' kids to show the clothes? Well half the 'kids' went out last night to an oyster bar and got sick from food poisoning!" Kurt is nearly in tears. "We don't have enough models, the choreography needs to be changed, and we'll have to cut out some pieces, and…" Kurt's rant is muffled by Blaine's shoulders. Windsor crowds around Reed and Kurt to comfort them and throw around unhelpful suggestions.
Logan and Derek stand off to the side. They came separately, but arrived the same time as the Windsor's. They are there to see Julian, who has been roped in to increase publicity and appeal to the affluent teen demographic.
An assistant throws an ensemble onto the table and rushes off. The table is covered with pieces from the line. Every item has a visible van Kamp signature embroidered or printed in a bold contrasting colour than that of the background. It does not matter if it is blazer or a t-shirt, pants, shoes, even accessories; there is at least one tiny signature placed inconspicuously on the cuff, collar, hemline, etc. The materials for a ready-to-wear line, were of quality. One could tell, a great deal of detail and attention was invested in it.
A good looking man with silver hair and tanned skin walks up to the coterie of friends that surround Reed, he is speaking on the phone a little exasperated, "What do you mean they're all booked?...Okay,okay …fine. Just get us those boys and girls by noon. I don't care if you have to pull them off the streets!" He snaps phone shut in a suitably dramatic fashion.
Derek recognizes the man from the show he swears he doesn't watch. Mr. Jay Manuel in the flesh; toned body, flawless skin and all. He's here at the request of Hilde van Kamp. Adult supervision they were told.
Mr. J looks around and his eyes land on the merry troupe. "Who are they?" looking at Reed, the hand holding the phone making a sweeping gesture. "Um…My friends from school. They're just here to watch and support me. I promise they won't get in the way." Reed is quick to explain.
His demeanor changes immediately. "Hmmm…" Jay appraises them critically with narrowed eyes. It is very unsettling, kind of like Kurt when hasn't had his morning coffee; only add to that a lifetime of experience appraising people on a professional basis. Even the Twins stopped fidgeting.
Kurt is the first to catch on. He lets go of Blaine, "Oh my God!" clapping hopefully. "They'll work right? Right?" Logan and Derek steal a look at each other, not sure what is going on.
Jay is silent for another few nerve wrecking moments. "Yes they just might. Follow me." He claps his hands loudly twice. The sound startles everyone like the cracking of a whip. Kurt and Reed leap to their feet, rounding everyone up. Reed ends up physically pulling Logan and Derek off the bench. He is surprisingly strong for a boy his size. Then again, it is his show at stake.
By the time they finish fitting the models for their pieces and learning the runway choreography (and in some cases, how to walk a runway), it is close to 3pm. Reinforcements had arrived earlier in the day in the form of more Dalton and Dobry kids; paged through the intricate network of teen calling list. They managed to get enough kids within the hour of calling.
Time to start hair and makeup. The girls are not a problem even if their makeup and hair takes longer. It is the boys that require more attention and cajoling. A few balk at the mention of makeup; and many squirm at the suggestion waxing any part of their body.
Derek happens to be one of the more vociferous ones. Kurt has them cornered in the men's room. He hands Derek and Logan a disposable razor each with the explicit instruction to, "Shave it."
A hand shoots up to caresses his face. There comes a time in every boy's life when he notices the peach fuzz on his face darken into something more manly. For some this is also the first time in his life when he thinks he can grow a beard. For Derek, that time is now. His efforts so far impress no one.
"All of it?" Derek tries to bargain.
"All. of. it. Smooth. That includes below your neck." Kurt adds almost offhandedly. Logan's head snaps up alarmed and Derek looks like he's about to bolt.
Kurt blocks the door. "Shave it all, or I will come in there and do it myself!" the diva snaps at him. Derek is cowed and retreats into the bathroom.
The duo shaves in awkward silence removing what little sprouts of facial and body hair they have. They are like adolescent male lions, just growing a mane. It is neither here nor there. Derek has more developed and darker facial hair so it takes him longer to achieve the required look. Logan has already stripped down and starting on the sparse hairs on his chest.
"How smooth is 'smooth'?" Logan wonders if he has to do the part under the belly button.
Derek cuts himself on the neck when the blades nick a blemish. "Ouch! Fuck." He grabs a paper towel to blot the blood.
"Quit stalling D" Logan teases.
"What do you want from me? I'm bleeding!" Derek indignantly defends himself.
"Well you better stop it before we go on. Kurt will throw a fit if you stain the clothes-…."
Derek's face lights up a thousand watts, he snaps his fingers. "That's it!"
He yanks the men's room door open. Mindless of the fact that Logan is practically only in his underwear.
"Ooww! I cut myself! Face is ruined! Can't go on! Wouldn't want to ruin the clothes! Oh gosh darn it..." He loudly declares. Derek strides out purposefully, fully intent on running. He has barely taken two steps when Kurt slides in front of him arms crossed, large makeup brushes in his hand. He crooks one perfect eyebrow and stare him down. Derek gulps, debating the wisdom of arguing his case with the surprisingly formidable Alice.
Logan has had enough of the drama. Also he would like to have his best friend returned in one piece so he grabs Derek by the collar and pulls him back into the bathroom. "Just do what they want. Faster we get this over with, the faster they'll leave us alone."
They have been shaved, tweezed, waxed and moisturized. Derek is miserable, still smarting from the pain of having his eyebrows waxed. He likes looking at models, but decides he doesn't like being one of them. They are getting their nails done. Apparently Derek's calloused rowing hands, cracked cuticles and ragged nails offends the manicurist so she is now filing furiously. Logan sits next to him, faring better. He is not one to neglect his personal grooming so he can enjoy the pampering.
Logan spies Julian sitting on a stool across the room. He is having his makeup done. The makeup artist taking her time to cover up the fading scars on his neck while another is patting concealer under his eyes. A hair stylist is pulling on his hair with a comb and dryer. Julian just sits quietly amidst the chaos, a complete professional. When their eyes meet, Julian gives him a teasing smile earning the ire of the makeup artist trying to brush on lipgloss. Logan bites his bottom lip, though he can't help but smile back. It is ridiculous how happy he is.
"Aww… You are so adorable when you're in love. Like a harmless little puppy following him around. Waggly tail and all." Derek teases mercilessly. And out of pure disregard for his personal safety, he reaches over and pinches Logan on the cheek.
Shockingly all he gets for that is a subdued, "I will not dignify that it with a response."
"You just did." Derek counters. Peeved, Logan leans towards Derek's manicurist and whispers, "Have you seen his toes? He has to wear flip-flops later."
"Dude! Not cool."
Off to the side of the prep area backstage is a wall of glass mirrors. Raucous laughter emanates from the boys crowded around them.
Charlie, Justin, the Twins and Blaine, have just finished with their makeup. The theme is natural so they look pretty much like themselves, only cleaned up and highly polished. Artful shading accentuates their features so the bright lights don't wash them out. Artful shading also includes highlighting their muscles and much to their delight, abs.
The boys are taking pictures of each other. Horsing around, flexing newly defined abs in front of the mirrors. Props for the show included a small roomful of toys and the boys have commandeered some of them to pose with. A number of plastic shields and swords are found among the toys leading the boys into a variety of 300! poses including various iterations of ".SPARTA!" before collapsing into laugher at their reflections.
Dwight materializes among them, "Um…you guys realize that's a two way mirror?"
Everyone freezes. Blaine pauses mid pose, sword held high, his foot hovering above Ethan's chest; looking for all intents like he is about to smite the wicked out of the twin.
In the cool dimness of the control room, the only sound heard is the steady hum and beep of equipment. The stage manager, sound manager and their assistants watch with mouths agape. "Are they high?"
Song: There's nothing - Sean Kingston ft Juelz Santana & The DEY
Sandcastle Disco – Solange Knowles
T-Minus 0 seconds. The cue is given to kill the house lights leaving only lights for the runway. Models start coming out in day wear, strutting around the band set up in the center of the stage before proceeding to the runway.
The Twins are dressed identically in jeans, printed Ts and checkered shirts over them. Only their colour schemes differ. They flank the girls Merril & Kathrine also dressed identically but different styling. Kathrine has the shirt tied to show off her midriff.
Denim transitions to chinos for the boys and sundresses for the girls. The Amazonian Sara is in a full length gossamer sundress. An enormous woven wide brimmed hat artfully perched on her head. Bracelets and bangles punch up the ensemble. She is all sass and confidence. With her stature, healthy athletic build and golden sunkissed completion, she is the very embodiment of a goddess. She glows.
Charlie and Logan; among the tallest boys are set after her, coming up behind. The boys are in polo shirts and chinos. Charlie carries a polo mallet and has on knee high riding boots. Logan is in loafers and a light coloured cotton blazer.
On their walk back, Julian appears. He is in a light blue button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a vest goes over it and on the bottom he has on a pair of dark purple cotton pants. He struts in his casual relaxed manner cotton blazer slung over one shoulder; aviator sunglasses completes the look.
As they pass, Julian makes a show of checking Sara out, pulling down his aviators, head following her as she walks by before ginning back at the cameras. Logan the last of the three, cuffs him lightly on the arm as he passes and gives him a 'I'm watching you' hand gesture. The flashing cameras nearly blind them all.
More models, more pieces are shown and they come to next set.
Derek and Casey come out in beachwear. Casey has her hair in a half braid with flowers in her hair. She's wearing a marbled patterned bikini in candy colours visible under a semi transparent shift. Derek is topless, the marbled patterned board shorts hangs low on his hips, showing off a tanned sculpted upper body to devastating effect. At the end of the runway, they stop. He does a couple of cheesy Hercules poses for the cameras. Casey pretends to fawn, large doe eyes wide, lashes fluttering, and glossy apple red lips shaped in a perfect 'O'.
Next is Sydney accompanied by Justin. Justin is also in marbled patterned board shorts, but a different colour. Sydney is in a 50s inspired one piece also in the same pattern. With sharp features and piercing blue eyes she is classically beautiful. She carries herself with a frosty air of superiority not unlike the late Katharine Hepburn. When it's their turn, Justin performs a magic trick; pulling a bouquet of flowers out of the scarf he's pulled off Sydney's neck. She is unimpressed. Taking back the scarf and leaving him standing alone with the bouquet. The audience gives a chorus of sympathetic 'awww's.
Song: This City – Patrick Stump (ft Lupe Fiasco)
Shawty Get Loose (Remix) – Lil' Mama (ft T-Pain & Chris Brown)
~Urbanwear~
Wes, David and Blaine are in jeans and fitting sweats matched with embellished hoodies and nothing under them. They explode onto the runway on roller blades and skateboards weaving around each other before breaking dramatically at the end of runway. Blaine stomps on the skateboard, making it flip up and he catches it. Wes and David flank him arms crossed. All three have their game face on before dissolving into smiles.
Song: Digital Love – Daft Punk
Cookie Jar – Gym Class Heroes ft. The dream
~Lounge or sleepwear. Theme is a child's slumber party~
Nick and Jeff are in patterned cotton pajamas bottoms and soft undershirts. Nick has a red blanket tied around his shoulders and a toy shield and axe in his hands. Jeff has on a plastic crown and a sword. They bash each other with the toys as they gallop down the runway.
The Twins and Dwight are next, running out toting nerf guns. The open robes they are wearing flaring nicely behind them like trench coats. Evan crouches down midway letting Dwight use his back as a step to launch himself into the air. He fires a volley of shots over the heads of everyone before hitting the ground neatly tucking and rolling to a stand.
Backstage, an assistant shoves an enormous stuffed teddy at Logan who stares at it skeptically. Is she for real? Julian behind him sees his hesitation, grabs the teddy and launches himself out onto the runway.
They watch the live feed of the show on the big screen backstage. Julian saunters down the catwalk carrying the bear hitched on his hip like how one would carry a toddler. His face is schooled to the most adorable boyish I-just-woke-up look. The pajama top he's wearing is unbuttoned, showing off toned chest and abs. Logan curses under his breath. Don't look at him! Don't' think about the soft teddy against smooth skin. Silk pajamas won't hide anything! Logan mentally warns himself.
When Julian reaches the end of the runway he unexpectedly shifts the stuffed toy bringing it up to his mouth, biting its ear and letting it hang while giving the cameras his patented naughty scrunched up face. The cameras go –WILD- like a lightning storm. He lets go of the bear and catches it before it drops to the ground. Then hugging it like its hurt, he strokes the bitten ear and pouts childishly. It melts into a smile and he struts back dragging the toy by its leg behind him.
One walk; 4 faces. He is a photographer's dream. Those 30 seconds alone would probably be one of the most used moments of the entire show. And the metallic blue grey silk pajamas will likely sell out. Pity the teddy was just a prop.
Song: Ring the alarm – Beyonce (Freemason remix)
Mesmerized – Faith Evans (Freemason Remix)
~Formalwear segment~
The music is a little trippy but the beat sets the rhythm for the models to walk to. Boys come out with hair parted sideways looking very dapper in jackets and tuxes like stars from a bygone era. Girls are styled the same; along the lines of Veronica Lake, Rita Hayworth and Bette Davis.
There is something about that tall blonde boy. Long legs looking wonderful in dress pants. His long strides the very picture of unassuming confidence. He stands out with that aloof grace that separates him from the common folk. Mr Jay sneaks a look at Hilde who is watching critically.
Logan is almost at the end of the runway when he straightens the open jacket he's wearing and makes a show of buttoning it up. Long fingers adjust the knotted tie at his throat then slides down his chest to smooth down the front of his suit. He pauses turning a little sideways to adjust the shirt cuffs showing off the diamante cuff links. When he is done, he looks up and scowls magnificently at the cameras as he turns to leave, with his face being the last part of him to turn away. Absolutely –perfect-. He has one of those faces that translate the expression perfectly. From the face to the body language, he radiates a dangerous rich badboy! vibe.
The gentle arch of Hilde's eyebrow says it all. Jay anticipates there will be plenty of calls asking about the blonde rouge after this.
Song: Domino – Jessie J
~Finale or 'anything goes' ; creative mixing and matching and plenty of embellishments~
The stage is cleared of all models. Music dies down to a repetitive beat of house music to build anticipation. The lights shrink, until there is only a single spotlight trained on the center of the stage.
The strum of an electric guitar rings loud and clear. A lithe brunette boy comes sliding out into the spotlight from the wings, back to the audience. Wearing white socks, yellow shorts and untucked button down shirt. Eyes fashionably shielded by shades. An homage to Tom Crusie in Risky Business.
He turns around, microphone in hand.
I'm feeling sexy and free!
Like glitter's raining on me [Shiny confetti falls on cue from above]
You're like a shot of pure gold
I think I'm bout to explode
I can taste the tension like a cloud of smoke in the air
Now I'm breathing like I'm running cause you're taking me there
Don't you know...you spin me out of control
Julian skips-struts down the runway. Behind, boys and girls start skipping out. The lights go up. He tosses the mic to Blaine who takes over singing.
Rock my world until the sunlight!
Make this dream the best I've ever known
Dirty dancing in the moonlight
Take me down like I'm a domino
Everyone is on stage now, dancing to the music.
You got me losing my mind
My heart beats out of time [chest pump, pushing his shoulders back thrusting his chest out]
I'm seeing Hollywood stars [Julian jumps to the foreground, big Hollywood grin, jerking his chin up]
You strum me like a guitar
I can taste the tension like a cloud of smoke in the air
Now I'm breathing like I'm running cause you're taking me there
Don't you know...you spin me out of control [Charlie twirls Hope around, her circle skirt flares out gracefully]
Ooh ooh ooh ooh
We can do this all night
Damn this love is skin tight
Baby come on
Finally a small strawberry blonde boy emerges on stage. With him on a leash is a huge lumbering St Bernard wearing one of the scarves from the collection. On the other side of the dog is Kurt holding on to the Coco's collar to keep her from running off the stage. The three make their bows and waves. Blaine sidles up to Kurt while singing the last verses of the song. Everyone else have a blast going crazy on stage while confetti cannons go off, making it rain glitter.
Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right
Ooh baby baby dancing in the moonlight
Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right
Ooh baby baby dancing in the moonlight
Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right
Ooh baby baby dancing in the moonlight
Ooh baby baby got me feeling so right
Ooh baby baby Ooh ooh ooh ooh
Rock my world until the sunlight
Make this dream the best I've ever known
Dirty dancing in the moonlight
Take me down like I'm a domino
Every second is a highlight
When we touch don't ever let me go
Dirty dancing in the moonlight
Take me down like I'm a domino!
~Backstage. Post show~
Everyone is still buzzed from the high of the show. Left and right kids are changing out of costume or just hanging around. There is news of an after party hosted by Hilde at a private venue. Excitement is palpable. There will be major industry players attending and for aspiring models this is the time to rub shoulders.
Julian is trying to track down his street clothes that he unwisely left on a movable rack somewhere. Meantime he hands Logan his backpack so it won't get lost. Logan feels the bag vibrate incessantly and it is annoying him. He doesn't think twice and rummages through the bag until he finds the phone. Every few seconds it goes off, beeping notifications of texts, missed calls, facebook and tweet alerts. Judging from the previews they are mostly congratulatory messages from friends and colleagues. Logan is just about to flip the silencer switch when the phone chimes. Text preview shows it is from none other than-…Sebastian Smythe. Logan scowls for real this time. The message reads:
[Kitty sure likes to bite…did u know that? ;-) ]
Logan feels like someone flipped a switch and he has gone from 0 to 60 in a blink of an eye. He seethes. Why that bastard son of a bitch…! The text is obviously for him, but sent to Julian's phone, which means the sender knows Logan has it. His head snaps up and he scans the area for the sneaky hyena. He doesn't find him.
Logan taps the delete button angrily before shoving the phone back into the bag. It continues to vibrate and beep. But Logan no longer notices. The text is burned into is mind. He knows Sebastian is pushing his buttons. Up till now Logan has been uncharacteristically patient, taking time transitioning his relationship with Julian into a romantic one and doing his best to ignore Smythe's increasingly audacious goading. But this has gone too far and for much too long. Something is going to give and Logan fears it is his temper.
No it won't do any good; losing his temper. He has to play this one differently. The wheels in his head spinning in high gear. He sees Julian coming up to him wearing his street clothes and a beaming smile. He needs a plan. Failure is not an option this time.
=====END====
Author's note: Wow! You made it this far into this sorry excuse of a fic. Thanks!
As you might have realized, I know nothing about fashion and I've never been to an actual live runway show. So if you think the clothes are atrocious and that I've deviated too far from reality…..well; you may reject my reality and substitute your own. :P