The hum of the busy streets seemed far away as he flagged down a taxi, his mind was consumed by the never-ending pursuit of the perfect model. The cab rolled to a stop, and just as he reached for the door, a voice behind him made him jump.
"Excuse me sir, mind if I share the ride?" asked a woman, her face partially obscured by a cascade of blueprint-filled canisters. She was the same woman he'd noticed hurrying past Chester's apartment.
"Sure, hop in" Cam said, his voice tinged with curiosity.
'"Oh, thank you so much" The woman said as she slid into the taxi, her canisters momentarily covering her face. Cam caught a glimpse of her eyes, a mix of determination and fatigue.
"Long day?"he asked, trying to break the ice.
She gave a weary, slightly awkward smile. "Architectural plates. Tonight is my deadline, and I need to get there on time."
As the taxi merged into the flow of traffic, Cam couldn't help but bring up his earlier frustration. "You know, I'm a designer too, but today has been a bit of a downer. Can't seem to find the right model for the gala"
The woman shifted, revealing a thoughtful expression. "The gala?" she asked.
"Yeah. What? Don't I look like a high end, gala worthy fashion designer to you?" Cameron teased with a playful smile, causing the woman's face to flush red as she hurriedly defended herself, dropping a few of her canisters in the process. Flustered, she struggled to explain herself, stumbling over her words.
"Ha, I - I'm so sorry, th-thats not what a-a I meant, I, I, just -"
Cameron let out a small, awkward laugh, guilt creeping in from the joke he'd made. He couldn't help but run his fingers through his hair, trying to manage both his embarrassment and the awkward atmosphere he had created.
"Calm down miss, I was just kidding." Cameron said. The woman sighed a breath of relief, and she smiled awkwardly to Cameron. Silence filled inside the taxi.
Cameron screamed internally, picturing himself banging his head repeatedly against the taxi window. He turned his head toward the passing view, away from the woman, feeling the rush of blood heating his face, especially his ears, which were now glowing red. He squeezed his eyes shut, his lips pressed firmly together, and the corners of his mouth slowly turned downward. He just wanted to jump out of the moving vehicle with how awkward the atmosphere is.
"What about -"the woman tried to say something
"Huh?" Cameron Interrupted
"What about actors? Influencers?" she asked.
Cameron gave her a confused look, which made her blush again and he quickly realized what she was asking about.
"Ahh, you're talking about the model." Cam said and the woman nodded.
"Well we've looked and searched for days now."
The woman began rattling off names of actors, one after another. But with each suggestion, Cam kept shaking his head with an awkward smile, slightly annoyed but doing his best to hide it with a smile. "She's definitely just naming actors she's seen on TV," he thought. "They're not even models. No way they could pull off a runway walk."
Eventually, she ran out of ideas and gave up and just kept quiet and looked at the view from the taxi window. An awkward silence filled the cramped space once more, even prompting the taxi driver to fake a cough.
Suddenly, loud music broke the tension, it was the woman's ringtone. When she saw the name on the screen, hesitation clouded her expression. She let out a sigh and thought to herself, "Oh my god, why now?"
With an embarrassed look on her face, she answers the call. "Mom? No, mom, I won't late. YES, MOM- mom, I'm inside the taxi,- "
As the woman talks on the phone, Cam grew irritated by the conversation between the woman and her mother He was about to say something when he saw her scratching the back of her ear while talking.
The world seemed to quiet itself in awe of her presence. Her almond-shaped hazel eyes sparkled with a mix of intelligence and intrigue, framed by long, dark lashes that held the secrets of countless untold tales.
Her medium tan skin glowed with a natural warmth, complemented by a subtle rose blush that accentuated her high cheekbones. Chestnut waves framed her face, each strand flowing elegantly, as the streetlights streaming through the taxi windows highlighted her soft, lustrous hair.
Despite the clear signs of exhaustion, there was something captivating about her weariness. Her tired eyes and messy elegance painted the picture of a sleepless night faced with grace. Cam found beauty in her fatigue, a beauty that went deeper than surface appeal and revealed a quiet strength in the midst of exhaustion.
He stared, unable to look away. And then it hit him. This woman, exhausted and radiant in the glow of city lights, was her. The model he'd been chasing in sketches and dreams. His thoughts raced.
"It's her. Wait...what? Her? Hell nah. What am I thinking? I'm just tired. What am I thinking? I'm just tired."
He was still in denial and kept convincing himself in his mind.
"No, absolutely not. This is exhaustion talking. She's a stranger. A stressed-out architecture student. Not a model. Not the one. Stop romanticizing her cheekbones. No way she can be the one. Get it out of your system, Cameron. Only the best for Luc. Yes. Enough of this joke."
Cameron was still locked on her face, mesmerized by every detail, and didn't notice that the woman had already put down her phone. He didn't even hear her apologizing for the noise.
All he could think about was that this woman might be the model he had been searching for. She waved her hand in front of his face, snapping him out of his thoughts.
That's when Cameron seized the moment. He knew it made no sense. He didn't even know her name. But something deeper than logic moved his hand as he reached for hers, and asked:
"Would you be interested in being my Model for the Gala?"