Home Fanfics Go Back
Maya reported for her first day of work at HANA in the Ginza district of Tokyo much earlier than necessary, so she idled half the morning away in a nearby coffee shop. Once the appropriate time was close, she sent a confirmation text to Karen, gathered her things, and walked to the fashion brand’s headquarters.
She wore tan paperbag shorts and a lavender sleeveless turtleneck, with a white denim jacket layered over it. She wore camel ankle boots on her feet. She carried her things in a simple white leather shoulder bag. She figured they’d want to see her figure and possibly make her change outfits, so she didn’t bother her usual long skirts or flowing blouses. Her hair was in her usual half ponytail and she had applied light makeup to fill in her brows, enlarge her eyes, and color her lips slightly.
She walked into the lobby and followed Karen’s instructions to receive a visitor’s badge from the security desk. Then she took the elevator up to the 14th floor and was greeted by a girl named Tsuyuzaki Mahiru who was flipping through something on a tablet as she sat on a bench in the hallway. She introduced herself as the events coordinator who planned the runway shows for HANA.
“I’m sorry,” bowed Maya, “I hope I didn’t make you wait long.”
“Not at all,” said Mahiru, “It’s wonderful to meet you. Let’s get you settled in, and then we’re just waiting for the other model to arrive and then we’ll call Kaoruko down.” She led Maya to a meeting room down the hall where there was a breakfast spread along with assorted beverages. “I’ll take your jacket,” offered Mahiru, and Maya handed it over, though she would have preferred to keep it on. She knew at this meeting she was a product, and she needed to sell that product.
“Please have some coffee, and try whatever you like!” offered Mahiru, “We love to eat here.”
No sooner had they sat down along one side of the table than voices could be heard coming from down the hall. “Karen, Hikari, is that you two?” called Mahiru, in a voice that made Maya laugh. It sounded like she was chiding small children.
There was no reply, but after a moment, a face appeared in the doorway, and a leg dramatically curved around the doorframe. “I am here, my love,” said Karen, blushing as she saw Maya. Hikari appeared beside her, escorting the Saijou Claudine. Maya felt her heart skip a beat seeing her so close. She was older, certainly, but even more beautiful than Maya remembered.
“Ah, I think introductions are needed!” Mahiru cleared her throat. “I think you’ve all met me by now, but my name is Tsuyuzaki Mahiru, and I am the events coordinator for this company.”
“I am Tendo Maya. I am a new model for this company.”
“I am Kagura Hikari, a fashion designer here.”
“Aijou Karen, I’m HANA’s intern!”
“I am Saijou Claudine. I was also just hired as a model here. Nice to meet you.”
Maya watched as Claudine carefully took off her sweater, handing it to Karen to hang with Maya’s jacket, and she took the seat beside Maya. Perhaps she understood that the people at this meeting would want to gaze at them as a pair. Maya wasn’t sure what to say to Claudine. For one thing, she was someone Maya had long looked up to, and for another, Maya knew one of her own weaknesses was small talk and making friends. She watched as Claudine carefully poured herself a cup of coffee and picked some fruit from a tray onto a smaller plate, a contrast to Maya’s rather large plate of breakfast. Fortunately, she was saved by more people entering the meeting room.
Maya met the catalogue layout director, several fashion designers, several photographers, many other people she couldn’t remember the names or positions of, and then finally, HANA’s creative director herself: Hanayagi Kaoruko, along with her assistant, Isurugi Futaba. Kaoruko’s presence dominated the meeting and suddenly everyone was seated and only the quiet sounds of sipping and chewing could be heard. Maya had met Kaoruko once or twice before when their families interacted, but now that she was Kaoruko’s employee, she felt like she was starting fresh, and kept every formality.
“Alright, Mahiru, Hikari, let’s see what you’ve brought us.” Kaoruko brought the meeting to attention.
Hikari stood. “This is Saijou Claudine-san, and Tendo Maya-san,” she said, gesturing to them each in turn. Claudine stood when she was introduced, so Maya did the same.
“Please, come forward,” said Kaoruko, her tone kind. “Saijou-han, if you could introduce yourself?”
Posture perfect, Claudine walked to the front of the room. This allowed Maya to finally look at her properly. It was easier when Claudine’s gaze was on the other people in the meeting. She was wearing a sky blue halter dress, and white espadrilles. Her hair was tied up in a loose bun with face-framing pieces. She wasn’t quite as tall as Maya, which was surprising, as Maya had expected her to be taller from seeing her work from just before she retired. She was slender, with feminine curves and striking features, most notably her eyes which were the color of garnets. Maya bit her lip as she stared at Claudine’s face properly for the first time. She was beautiful.
“Good morning,” said Claudine, with poise and confidence, “My name is Saijou Claudine. I modeled professionally from age 7 to age 17, but I had retired until this year. My interests… well, I don’t really have many, but I guess I enjoy reading and travelling to the coast. I plan to work hard, so let’s all get along and make this year a success.” She bowed deeply, smiling politely, and returned to her seat.
“Thank you, and now, ah, Tendo Maya-han?”
Maya straightened out any creases in her outfit as she stood and walked to the front of the room. She could feel Claudine’s eyes on her, but this only seemed to fire her up more. I have to do better, she thought. I have to reach the top.
“Good morning. My name is Tendo Maya. Although this is my first time modeling professionally, I trained under Seisho Modeling Training Center for a year, and received top marks. You may recognize my name as I am the daughter of Tendo Yuko, currently director of Sarazashi , the kimono company. I hold an undergraduate degree from the University of Tokyo in Edo-era literature and arts, and I hope to use this knowledge in representing the traditional Japanese aspects of your clothing line. Let’s work hard together.” She bowed, holding it a moment longer than Claudine’s, and then returned to her seat.
Maya couldn’t read Claudine’s gaze as she returned to her seat. It was not the admiration that most of the rest of the staff held. Was it jealousy? Determination? Anger? She was never good at subtext, and in an instant Claudine extinguished the fire in her eyes, returning to the untouched breakfast on her plate. Probably for the better, Maya told herself. The less attachments here, the better.
“Would you mind each trying on one of our fall outfit prototypes?” asked Hikari.
They nodded their assent and were ushered into the next room to change. Maya turned away, not yet comfortable enough to change facing Saijou Claudine. Once they were both clothed, a tailor came by and pinned some of the clothes to fit their body-lines more flatteringly, and then they were allowed back in the main room. Maya wore a cream colored cocktail dress with a heather gray blazer over it, and Claudine wore a charcoal shift dress heavily embroidered with small pearl beads. Maya balanced carefully on the white heeled sandals she was given, and Claudine walked easily in the black suede ankle boots.
They walked back in to the various ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ of the meeting attendees, and stood in a casual pose that showed off the lines of each garment.
“You know,” said Junna, who Maya learned was in charge of the print layouts, “When I first saw you both, I thought Tendo-san would really capture the ‘black’ concept, and Saijou-san would really embody ‘white’, but I agree with this look. This is good.”
Kaoruko spoke next. “Hikari and Mahiru never fail me. Karen, too. I think I may have to hire her on full time once her internship ends. What do you think, Nana-han?”
Claudine shifted to show a different angle of the dress, so Maya moved to accommodate. It was almost instinct to move with Claudine. She wondered if this was what it was like to work with all professional models.
“I think it will be very easy to shoot with Tendo-san and Saijou-san. They work off of each other well. And the photos, well… I can already tell they’re going to be our best- probably ever.”
“Thank you, Tendo-han, Saijou-han. You can take a seat for now,” said Kaoruko. They sat back down beside Mahiru and Hikari, still wearing the sample clothes. Maya was amused listening to snippets of conversation around the room.
“Look at Saijou-san’s hair! It’s completely natural.
“Tendo-san’s eyes are fascinating. I could fall in love.”
“I remember when Saijou-san was this tall and she did that shoot with all those puppies! I still have clippings from that!”
“So it’s true you’ve never worked before?” asked Claudine, addressing Maya now.
“It’s true. Like I said, I have training and I have accompanied my mother to work, but this is my first contract.”
Claudine nodded. “You have good sense, you’ll do alright.”
Maya knew this was the kind of interaction that got her in trouble, the kind of interaction that caused potential friends to start avoiding her, or bullying to begin. And yet, she couldn’t help herself. “Unfortunately, doing alright is not good enough for me. In everything I do, I strive to reach the top.”
Maya watched as Claudine looked upset for a moment, but seemed to swallow it down. “If that’s what you want, you should seize it,” she said. “Just be careful what you give up to get what you wish for.”
“And what do you want?” she asked, suddenly curious about what drove Saijou Claudine out of retirement, to work on a contract with her of all people.
Mahiru returned then. “Sorry to interrupt, but we have some other orientation matters to address. Shall we go?”
“Yes, of course. We should get out of these clothes before we ruin them as well,” said Claudine, standing and putting an end to any conversation she had begun with Maya.
Mahiru took them through the process of getting security badges, took them on a tour of the company, and introduced them to the company’s lawyer, who spent some time going through some finer points of the contract. Mahiru explained that although her title was ‘events coordinator’, she was in charge of their orientation as they didn’t have runway shows for some time, and she would be the one coordinating their longer shoots, their travel schedules, and some of their day to day schedules.
“You can call me Mahiru-san or just Mahiru, there’s no need to be so formal now that we’ll be working together every day,” she told them, after Maya called her Tsuyuzaki-san one too many times. “You’ll want to get passports as soon as possible if you don’t have them already. The expense will be reimbursed by the company if you submit receipts.”
“Mahiru, don’t you think it’s time to stop for lunch?” asked the photographer, Daiba Nana, as they passed her in the hallway. Mahiru checked her watch, gasping at the time.
“Oh wow! I didn’t realize! Of course! Please, take an hour and get something to eat! The cafeteria on the second floor is open, or there’s plenty of restaurants in walking distance. We can meet back on the seventh floor at three.”
Maya turned towards the elevator, unsure if she was supposed to eat with Claudine or not. She figured it was simpler if she figured out lunch for herself, at least on the first day. She was surprised when she heard Claudine’s voice behind her. “Hey! Where are you going to eat?” she asked.
Maya shrugged. “I hadn’t thought about it. Are you asking because you’d like to eat together?”
Claudine looked taken aback by Maya’s response. She supposed that in status, or in experience, Claudine highly outranked her, so it was strange that she was essentially forcing Claudine to ask her to lunch. But she wasn’t the one who wanted company. No, never in her life had Maya asked for company when eating. And in return, very few times had company been offered.
“I… I just figured we would go together, is all,” said Claudine. “It doesn’t particularly matter.”
“Fine with me. Where should we go?” This kind of social interaction was easy for Maya. This was the kind of encounter where she could float along, guided by the clues Claudine was giving her. Let Claudine do as she pleased and Maya would follow along. It made no difference to her. There was little to prove at lunch, after all.
“Here,” Claudine said firmly.
Maya nodded, acquiescing easily. She wondered if the food here was any good, if Claudine had heard from the staff that there was something worth eating here. She pushed the elevator button and they rode to the second floor.
Claudine didn’t order anything special at the cafeteria, however. In fact, she didn’t order much at all. She picked up a miso soup, a side of steamed vegetables, another side of pickled vegetables, and a yogurt. Maya, who would be absolutely useless during her evening workout without a proper lunch, ordered the daily special of baked salmon, along with rice, the vegetable side, and a small dish of fruit.
They picked a table by the window and sat quietly eating, though Maya could hear other staff beginning to notice them.
“Say, are those the new models?” “Look, it’s her! Saijou Claudine!” “That one isn’t eating like a model.”
Claudine turned to the window, trying to look toward the horizon despite the low altitude. “Which way are we facing?” she asked quietly.
“North,” said Maya.
Claudine nodded, turning back to her lunch. “Even if it was South, I doubt we could see the water anyway.”
Maya remembered Claudine’s strange ‘hobby’ from her introduction. She had years and years of achievements and qualifications, it was a strange thing to mention personal interests at a professional meeting, and even then, to have them be as strange as Claudine’s. “No, I doubt you could see the water from Ginza.” Then, because Claudine picking at the small plate of vegetables was irritating her, she continued. “You’re still going to be hungry with only that much,” she said.
“I’m on a diet,” she said softly, but there was a hint of irritation in her voice. “I wasn’t exactly planning to take this job, so I’m not in my ideal condition, if you must know.”
Now Maya’s curiosity was piqued once again. If Claudine hadn’t been planning on taking this job, there was something that pulled her from retirement back into the industry, directly into Maya’s orbit. But the miffed silence Claudine emitted as she finished her meal told Maya now was not the time to pry.
“You could join me in the evenings, if you’d like. I do a workout every night. They’re fairly intense.” Maya wasn’t sure why she offered. She enjoyed her detachment. She enjoyed the freedom to drift here and there, it was the freedom to spread her wings and seek greater heights, to find the elusive Top. Having bonds, attachments and the like only weighed her down and kept her from rising as high as she could. Having Claudine at her workouts would most likely slow down her progress. Claudine wouldn’t have the same stamina. Claudine wouldn’t have the same strength. And yet… she had already offered, she couldn’t take it back. She held the bite of food in her mouth, hoping Claudine would refuse.
“Give me your number.”
“What?”
“Your cell phone number, you have one, right?”
“Oh. Sure.” Maya took Claudine’s proffered cell phone and input her own number into the contacts. As she pressed ‘ok’, she noticed a stunning lack of contacts. The scroll bar indicated there was likely less than twenty total. Was she as isolated as Maya?
“Are you finished?” asked Claudine. Maya nodded, handing back the phone. It was not the latest model, she noted. “I’ll think about it, and text you. I still need to get used to working here first,” she said, finishing the last of her meal.
They met Mahiru again, and were taken to a small studio to have their headshots taken for the company profile. A makeup artist ushered them aside into a small dressing room, and Maya watched as she first deftly touched up Claudine’s makeup, and then sat Maya down to adjust her’s.
Claudine sat first in front of the company-standard sakura-pink backdrop. It was Daiba Nana behind the camera, and Maya stood behind her, observing. “Whatever expression you’d like, Saijou-san,” said Nana. “This is your profile for our website and printed materials, so it needs to meet our formatting standards, but you can make an expression that suits your preference.”
Claudine nodded, taking a deep breath. She smiled brightly for a moment, but it seemed to be a warm-up of sorts and her face relaxed again after a moment. In the end, her face settled in a more serious, pensive look that was a far cry from the Saijou Claudine of most people’s memories, but Maya found it stunning. Claudine’s eyes seemed to bore right through the camera, seeking something that Maya knew nothing about.
“Those look wonderful, Saijou-san. You can come monitor if you’d like. I bet your fans will be surprised when they see this new style… in a really good way!” Nana smiled warmly, ushering Maya into Claudine’s vacated seat. Where Claudine had sat at a strong angle, Maya sat almost straight on, facing the camera like a challenge to overcome. She let the stylist adjust her hair so it hung just so, sleek and straight around her shoulders. She thought about leaving her expression serious, but decided instead to grin just slightly, her expression indicating that a grand plan was falling into place piece by piece as she designed. And truly, it was.
“Tendo-san, you’re a natural!” Nana beamed, after snapping several pictures. “You can come check as well.” Maya stood and checked Nana’s small monitor, pointing out her favorite shots in the short series. Once finished, they were ushered by Mahiru back upstairs.
“Mahiru-san, I was wondering what time our schedule ends today. I’m supposed to meet with a real estate agent this evening,” Claudine said.
“Oh! Of course! I’m sure you won’t want to make that commute longer than you have to! This next piece is the last thing on the agenda, so we should be finished by five. We can be flexible tomorrow if you want to look at some places, we don’t really need to get started until noon. Just text me.”
“I appreciate that. I’ll certainly let you know.”
Maya wondered where Claudine was commuting from. She wondered a lot of things about Claudine, if she was honest… more things than she had wondered about anyone in quite some time.
The last thing they had to do was get their measurements taken for some of their initial shoots. This took place in a small design studio, currently used by an older staff member who only worked mornings. According to Mahiru, this was normally done by an intern or a junior design staff member, but Hikari insisted that they always got something wrong, so she decided to do it herself, and allowed Karen to come along. And so, for her last task of the day, Maya was made to strip down to her underwear, but this time she was paraded in front of Claudine, Karen, and Hikari, with Hikari dragging a measuring tape here and there, dictating numbers rapidly to Karen.
Maya could feel Claudine’s gaze on her, but she couldn’t say she hated the feeling. She was proud of her figure, she worked hard on it daily. Right now, it was her livelihood. And Claudine might seem docile, but Maya could tell she was competitive. Good, she thought, so am I. Claudine hadn’t been Japan’s top child and teen model for nothing, she knew. There was still a fire in her somewhere.
They shifted roles, and Maya slipped back into her street clothes as Claudine stripped down to her undergarments. Maya attempted to look away under some false guise of politeness or possibly chivalry, but found it impossible in the end. The small room and the allure of Saijou Claudine standing before her in a bra and panties was too much.
Maya’s first thought was ’impossible!’ It was impossible that the girl standing before her hadn’t been paying attention to her diet or working out for the past five years. Her figure was too good. Her second thought was that Saijou Claudine was truly no longer the little girl who modeled children’s Christmas dresses or sold amusement park tickets any longer. Of course there had been hints of that right before she retired. She had attended some events in evening gowns as a 17 year old beginning to resemble an adult. But now, at 23, the difference was immense. And as quickly as it had begun, it was over, and Claudine was putting on her dress and her sweater, hugging it close.
Futaba entered then, asking to speak with Claudine. Maya decided to wait until she was finished, lest she get chided again for leaving Claudine behind. Hikari and Karen said goodbye and went back to the design studio to finish their work for the day, and Maya wandered around the studio, biding her time. She didn’t bother to check her phone, she knew there were no notifications.
A magazine on the desk in the corner caught her eye. Well, more specifically, Claudine’s face caught her eye. It was a trashy celebrity magazine, a tabloid really, but Claudine was on the cover. She flipped to the page the ‘article’ was on, and there were pictures of Claudine with another girl, looking distressed as they tried to avoid the photographer on the busy streets of Harajuku. All at once, Maya realized why Claudine didn’t want to go out for lunch. She glanced at the text that accompanied the photos: French-Japanese model Saijou Claudine spotted in Harajuku with ‘Siegfeld’ fashion house designer, and former model Tsuruhime Yachiyo. Saijou hasn’t taken work in five years- is this a sign she will join with the Edel Agency, who Siegfeld is long-term partners with? Notoriously tight-lipped, Saijou was not available for comment, nor was Tsuruhime. We did speak to a representative of the Edel Agency who said they would ‘absolutely consider’ adding Saijou to their roster ‘if she decided to return to actively modeling’. The mystery of her retirement remains, and her fans remain heartbroken over their abandonment…
Maya put the magazine back as she heard the door slide open. Claudine returned, evidently surprised to see Maya still in the room. Claudine picked up her purse from the chair she had left it on and turned back towards the exit. “I’m leaving,” she said. “Are you coming?”
“I’m coming,” confirmed Maya. Suddenly she was worried about Claudine traveling home. She knew it was unrealistic, but she imagined her leaving a real estate agent after dark and some aggressive reporter trying to corner her as she tried to get on the train. It wasn’t as if she could disguise herself well, even with a mask, with her eyes and hair…. “Say, Saijou-san, do you have anyone to go to the real estate agent with?”
Claudine looked at her curiously. “It’s only a meeting in his office, it’s not a dangerous encounter,” she said, but Maya saw the way her mind was whirring, the way that she clutched the strap of her bag a little tighter as they exited the elevator.
“Of course, but by the time you leave, it will be dark,” she said. “I don’t mind, if you want me to go with you. I’ll walk you to the station after.” Once again, Maya couldn’t believe herself. This girl, who she had only met this morning, was making her say incredible things. But despite Maya’s philosophies, she wasn’t heartless. If she came to work the next day to see some awful tabloid photos of Claudine, or worse, if someone had actually harassed Claudine on the way home from her trip, and Maya hadn’t been there, she would be sick with guilt.
Claudine put on her mask when they were in the lobby, unclipping her ID badge and tucking it in her purse. “You have your workout to do, I can’t impose,” she said. The look in her eyes told Maya otherwise.
“I’ll run home from the station,” she joked. “In any case, I was thinking of moving closer to Ginza myself. I’ll listen in on your meeting,” she said.
That was enough to convince Claudine, and she nodded. They walked north, just under ten minutes, to the very border of Ginza, to a modern looking rental agency. Claudine rang the bell and was let in by a woman in a well-tailored suit. Once she confirmed her appointment, she was led to the second floor into the office of an older gentleman, and Maya and Claudine both introduced themselves. If he was surprised by Maya’s appearance, he didn’t let it show, perhaps happy that he could potentially get two tenants out of one meeting.
“Now, Saijou-san, I understand you are looking for an apartment that has excellent security, is close to Ginza or close to a connecting station… anything else?”
Claudine thought for a moment. “I would like… a non-smoking floor, a balcony even if it’s small, and… it’s probably impossible, but I’d like to be able to see some water.”
“Alright, I have a couple properties that come to mind. Not directly in Ginza, of course, but the train ride would be short. Now the price would be a little higher…”
“Ah. How much? I know all my stipulations are not going to be cheap, but I do have a budget.”
The agent showed Claudine various properties, most meeting all her requirements, but all seemed to be out of her personal budget. Maya was unsure why, their salary was plenty to afford the apartments she was looking at. But Maya could understand not wanting to spend a lot on an apartment from a practical sense - they would hardly be home to enjoy it some days. So, once again, for the nth time that day, she did something she hardly ever does, and created a potential for another attachment she did not need. It seemed that more and more she was just sinking hooks into Saijou Claudine.
“If I may, Saijou-san… we are going to be working together for a year, and I’m not particular about where I live. If you didn’t mind a roommate, perhaps we could pick one of these and split the rent in half?”
Half the rent made these apartments quite affordable, and they did meet all of Claudine’s stipulations. The agent looked pleased enough as well. He might not make two sales, but at least he would seal the deal with Claudine this way. Both of them looked at Claudine for approval. “Ah… well, I don’t have a problem with that,” she said. “Please don’t feel obligated, though.”
“Not at all. I told you I was planning to move too. I’ll save some money on rent this way. And honestly, I don’t have many things,” Maya said.
The next morning, they toured two apartments and picked their favorite. Maya was surprised when a young man stopped them as they were leaving the second, bowing with a smile in front of Claudine. “Saijou Claudine! I… it’s an honor to meet you! I hope to see more work from you someday!” he said. Maya was surprised to feel Claudine grab for her hand, clutching it rather tightly behind her back and out of sight of the fan.
“Thank you,” said Claudine graciously. “I appreciate your support after all this time.”
“I will always support you!” he vowed, bowing again as he left.
Claudine released her hand without a word, their real estate agent muttering something about understanding her concerns about security.
Claudine’s hand had made Maya feel like she was being pulled slowly, dangerously, irrevocably back to earth, but at the same time, she didn’t hate it.