[ she’s lost count, or how many drinks she’s had— she’d taken them whenever offered, partial to the shot glasses with sugared rims, and colored alcohol. at first it was because she was nervous, coming to an industry event like this, with models who have already established themselves ( are beautiful on almost another level ) and being expected to hold her own. and then it was because of lapis, who is stunning in the multicolored lights. the drinks make her braver, bolder, make everything warm and diffused around the edges.

she finishes her latest drink, this one is more sour than sweet and burns on the way down, and places the empty glass on the bar counter. suddenly, her head feels heavy, she feels warm and tired— and it would be easy enough to find one of the more secluded rooms in the club and a couch to rest on, just for a minute. but that would mean leaving lapis, which she doesn’t want to do. because it feels good, having lapis’s eyes on her, the attention making her flush which she hopes isn’t too visible with the way the overhead lights are pulsating.

she smiles, raises a hand to twirl at the end of one of her pigtails, and hopes the gesture doesn’t read nerves. ] You know, it’s kind of funny. Looking at you in magazines, I’d almost convinced myself that you weren’t real. After all, no one real could look that perfect, right?

[ the words are too honest, and not what she means to say at all. she wants to seem cool, aloof, untouchable like the other models here are. but… ] You look perfect now. It’s actually… kind of frustrating. [ she laughs lightly, ] I wonder how long it’ll take me to get to your level.