Chapter 7
It wasn't a dream. She had won a ticket to Vienna; she was going to visit the Belvedere and listen to Mozart at the Musikverein; she was going to live in an exquisite villa. It was all real, and for a moment she thought she would live it. But what had come after was a nightmare—there was news of elimination, she had met a cheshire cat, there was talk of the one and then...She had regained consciousness on her four-poster bed.
"Hino-san! I'm so glad you're ok! She just fainted and..." Ayu was talking to a doctor and another staff member with a headset. "I'm so glad you're ok!" Ayu said again.
"Hai," Kaho said.
"She'll be fine," said the Doctor, who smiled at Kaho. "You'll be able to make it to the show."
The doctor had given Kaho time to rest and Ayu promised to be back with a make-up artist. They had just left her room when an odd feeling had begun to settle at the pit of her stomach. She sprang from the bed and paced on the floor.
"What am I going to do?"
She had to escape and fly back to Japan, but how was she going to do it? There had to be some way she could avert this catastrophe! What had she done?
You might be it. Or he might be it for you.
Kaho bit her lip. This was her fault; she had let herself get taken in. She should have known there was a catch. Oh, why hadn't that receptionist with the blue bangs explained things to her!
Duress, coercion? So that's what she meant. She probably thought I knew...
Why had she eavesdropped in those girls' conversation? Why had she been at the water garden at the time? She shouldn't have accepted the ticket. She shouldn't have gone ahead of herself. She should have stood by her first decision. She shouldn't have boarded the plane.
The camera crew...
What were her parents going to say if they saw her on television? How was she supposed to explain? How will her father cope? Her friends, the students and teachers...how was she going to face them? How will they know that it had been a misunderstanding? She wasn't interested in...whoever it was she was supposed to meet. This nameless, faceless person was going to decide if she should stay in Vienna.
What if...
What if she was sent home after this elimination? She won't set foot in the Musikverein...There won't be a trip to the Riesenrad. She thought of all the places she had seen during the limousine ride to the villa—they made a movie reel in her head.
No, Kaho! You have to think about going home...
She had stopped pacing and plopped into one of the upholstered chairs. She wasn't on television yet, so no one apart from Tsuchiura and her family knew she was abroad. But…there was one other person to think about...
If he finds out...
It would be in the off chance that he had watched via satellite on a TV with access to Japanese networks. Even if he found out how she had got her ticket and landed in Vienna, she had no way of knowing his reaction. She would be embarrassed but at least she wouldn't know to what extent.
She had to laugh at herself. There was no way he would know. This was an incident that would never reach him. And if it did, she knew him well enough to know what he would say: "This has got nothing to do with me."
She closed her eyes and sighed. If only she could wait out the elimination night in her room. She wanted only a day, at least one day to tour Vienna. She might not see everything but she would have gone somewhere. She still wanted to take pictures.
Who is this person?
Who was supposed to determine her fate at the eliminations?
"What would I have to do to stay?"
"Be honest."
How was she supposed to be honest and not embarrass herself in front of him...If she told the truth, he would kick her out. She would be sent home in time to watch a replay of her humiliation courtesy of her brother who had taped it for posterity.
No! I can't think of sabotaging myself! Not intentionally or unintentionally!
She would hide her face forever if anyone found out that the reason she was in Vienna was because she 'hadn't read the fine print'. And now she was going to make an unexpected TV debut! How was she supposed to cope?
Calm down Kaho, no one knows yet. You can still save face.
Did her fate depend on how she would behave? If she gets eliminated tonight, she would head straight for damage control in Japan. If she gets to stay but is eliminated eventually, she would still have a reputation to restore and an interrogation to endure when she gets home. But if she survives past the first elimination, she would have her time in Vienna to cherish, to comfort her and relieve her of the aches and pains that would inevitably come with having to explain herself to her family and other people whose faces she couldn't yet think of but who would also want an explanation.
So, I have to make a good impression...
What if this person ends up liking her?
All the way? What are the odds Kahoko?
The girl she had met at the foyer had perfect skin and hair. She couldn't beat the combination. And if the rest of the girls were model types, then...she wasn't going to stay for long.
But I at least have to survive this one elimination!
She gripped the armrest, got up from her chair and checked her face in the mirror.
You have to do this Kahoko! You have to survive this night!
...
Ayu returned to Kaho's room with a make-up artist in tow. She re-introduced herself as the stylist to a wide-eyed Kaho who watched her open the large armoire near the balcony's glass doors. Kaho had at least thirty new outfits.
"How did you find out about my measurements?" Kaho asked, running her fingers over what seemed to her an excess of choices.
"Magic I guess," Ayu answered. "It was up to designer. These are just a few of the pieces that are available."
"Eh? There's more?"
"Just the tip of the iceberg."
She had no idea how anyone could produce this many clothes for one person...let alone 23...
"What about the other girls?"
"Each girl is matched to her own designer," Ayu explained. "Your stylist, that's me and your make-up artist…" Ayu tipped her head in the direction of their other companion who curtsied, "…were also matched to you."
"Oui, oui" said the make-up artist, who wore dark eyeliner and a black beret. "Bonjour Miss Hino, I am Michelle. Ayu and I are under your care, as you are also in ours..."
"Yuzuki," Ayu shook her head. She whispered in Kaho's ear, "She's French today but her real name's Yuzuki."
What if this designer had Lili's sense of style? Kaho closed her eyes tight before pulling out a random item from the armoire.
"Uwaa, isn't this dress romantic?" Ayu said. "It's pink ruffled chiffon with an empire waist. Light and airy...What do you think it says Yuzuki?
"You don't need wings to look like an angel," Yuzuki replied.
"It's um...sweet," Kaho said. "Do you think I'll look ok in it?"
"Of course you will, but for this evening...maybe...something more dramatic? How about silk..."
Ayu pulled out a red dress with a sweetheart neckline, black underlay and on-seam pockets. Kaho had to step back. The dress was above the knee, not too short. But...
"This one, this one says memorable! Imagine the ad for this dress…black and gray like an old photograph. The only color will be red, just the red of your lips and the red of this dress!"
"It's a perfume ad!" Yuzuki said. "You can say," and she added in a very French accent, "Remember Me..."
But, Ayu and Yuzuki's enthusiasm for it made her hesitate. This is a little...crazy.
Ayu wagged her finger in front of Kaho's face. "Remember, you should have an image of yourself in mind. Make it big and dramatic!" She patted the dress, "This will help with that."
"I don't know. Maybe the chiffon dress first..."
"This one first," replied Ayu as she placed the dress in Kaho's hands. "You'll look great in it!"
Yuzuki added, "Hurry Ms. Hino, so I can do your make-up!"
Kaho sighed. She had to stick around. She had to be memorable. At least for a little while...
I guess big and dramatic is the way to go...
She tried on the dress, to which Yuzuki's reaction was: "C'est magnifique!" But before Kaho could say merci, Yuzuki surprised her by pushing her into a chair.
"Only an hour before the big reveal, so let's make you win this!"
"Win?"
She didn't want to go that far. She couldn't imagine going that far!
"Yes," said Ayu. "You're our bet and we're the team that will help you win!"
"Eh?"
They had given her their loyalty. It was almost as if they had pledged their allegiance. She had a support group/fashion squad that had taken away some of the stress of being in—it was more about what was happening to her than where she was—unfamiliar territory.
"Thank you guys," she said. "Um, you can call me Kahoko or Kaho by the way..."
Her fashion army exchanged wide grins. "Miss Kahoko," Yuzuki said, "if this doesn't work, I will personally shoot cupid's arrows at him."
"It'll maybe hurt just a little," said Ayu.
Kaho laughed nervously. I hope I won't need those arrows...
