He Called Her His Muse

My boyfriend, Wallace Vance, was the most ruthless designer in the fashion industry. He showed no mercy, not even to me, his exclusive runway model.

When my weight went over by less than half a pound, he kicked me straight off the runway.

Alice, this is business, not a game, he said coldly. I wont give you special treatment just because youre my girlfriend.

I respected his work ethic. Or at least, I tried to.

Until today. I had to leave the gym early because of a sudden dizzy spell from low blood sugar.

When I walked into our apartment, I saw Juliet, my curvy best friend, trying on Wallaces brand-new couture gown.

Wallace was looking at her with a look of pure adorationa look he had never given me.

I spent months designing this collection specifically for your body, Wallace cooed, his voice dripping with sweetness. Youre going to be the most unique star in the modeling world.

Juliet pouted, wrapping her arms around his neck. But Wallace, Im so much bigger than Alice. Ill look like a joke next to her.

Alice has the standard runway body, but you? Youre my real muse, Wallace whispered, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. She doesnt even compare to you.

A cold sweat broke out over my skin. My hands shook as I unlocked my phone and sent two texts to my dad.

[Dad, I agree to the arranged marriage with Leo Sterling.]

[Also, pull all James Group funding from Wallaces fashion brand. Effective immediately.]

After sending the texts, my head was still spinning.

I stumbled toward the kitchen, desperate for a piece of chocolate to stop the trembling in my hands.

Just then, Wallace and Juliet walked out of the dressing room, laughing and whispering.

The moment Wallace saw the chocolate in my hand, his smile vanished.

Alice, youre supposed to be at the gym right now, he snapped.

Ill let the laziness slide this once. But chocolate? High-sugar junk food?

Where is your self-control?

I stared at the tiny piece of chocolate in my palm, completely stunned.

The man standing in front of me, screaming at me over a bite of chocolate, felt like a total stranger.

I remembered when we first graduated.

He had absolutely nothing back then. He did freelance sketching to pay the bills.

He worked until his wrists were swollen just to make a few thousand dollars, and he spent every single penny of it on me.

He used to buy me snacks and desserts, never caring about carbs or calories.

He loved buying me pretty dresses and would always tell me how beautiful I looked.

He never cared if I fit into a sample size.

Now, with my heart racing from the hypoglycemia, I asked him quietly,

You can let Juliet model your couture, but I need your permission just to eat a piece of chocolate when my blood sugar crashes?

Wallace noticed my hands shaking. For a split second, guilt flashed across his face.

He grabbed a glass of orange juice from the counter and handed it to me.

If youre having a medical issue, of course you can eat. I didn't mean it like that.

But Juliets eyes immediately welled up with tears. She bit her lip, looking incredibly hurt.

Alice, if youre mad at me, I wont wear the dresses. Ill take them off right now.

I know my body isn't as perfect as yours. Im not a professional like you.

Wallace panicked instantly. No, Juliet! Dont say that!

Alice is too skinny. Its unhealthy. You look perfect just the way you are.

And besides, this collection was made for your curves. No one else can pull it off.

He turned back to me, his eyes full of annoyance.

Alice, if you really care about Juliet as a friend, stop comparing yourself to her. Its pathetic.

She has something you dont. Shes not like those cookie-cutter runway models.

Without waiting for my reply, he grabbed Juliets wrist.

Come on, Juliet. Ignore her. Let me take you out to that seafood place you wanted to try.

The front door slammed shut.

So, he knew being too skinny was unhealthy.

So, all his strict rules were just a lie.

All of Wallaces professionalism and high standards disappeared the second Juliet was the one on the table.

My eyes burned with tears.

I tilted my head back, forcing them down.

My phone buzzed. It was a message from my dad.

[Alice, Im so glad youve finally come to your senses! Leo is going to be thrilled. The engagement party is set for two days from now. Is that too soon for you?]

I replied instantly: [No. Two days is perfect.]

While packing my bags, I found two sets of design sketches on Wallaces desk.

One was my wedding dress. There was only one draft.

The lines were messy, the design completely basic and plain.

The other set was Juliets bridesmaid dress.

There were over a dozen detailed sketches. He had redesigned the embroidery on the hem nine times.

The cut of the dress was specifically tailored to hide Juliets insecurities and highlight her best features.

It was gorgeous. In fact, it looked far more like a luxury wedding gown than my own dress did.

A few weeks ago, I had asked him, Dont you think my wedding dress is a bit too simple?

He had replied, You look best in simple things.

I had been stupid enough to take it as a compliment.

He just didnt care enough to put any effort into me.

My phone rang. It was the wedding planner.

Hi, Alice. Im the coordinator for your wedding with Wallace. I just wanted to double-check one detail with you.

Are we absolutely sure about replacing all the fresh lily of the valley with yarn crochet flowers? Artificial flowers might look a bit cheap on camera.

The tear I had been holding back finally rolled down my cheek.

Juliet was highly allergic to flower pollen. He had planned this down to the very last detail.

Without even consulting me, he had ruined the lily of the valley theme I had been dreaming of for years.

I wiped my face.

Its fine. Just do whatever Wallace requested.

After all, this wedding wasn't really mine anyway.

Whatever they did had nothing to do with me anymore.

Shortly after I hung up, Wallace came home. He was holding a box from my favorite bakery.

Hey, Alice. Still feeling dizzy? I brought you your favorite lemon tart.

His tone was casual, as if nothing had happened. This was his usual way of sweeping things under the rug.

When I didnt answer, he pulled me to the dining table.

Even if youre mad at me, you need to eat. It breaks my heart when youre sick.

I stared at him, seeing a shadow of the boy he used to be.

He used to care about me more than anyone.

When I lost my appetite, hea guy who hated the smell of greasewould look up recipes and spend hours in the kitchen trying to make something Id eat.

When my medical checkup came back with bad results, he would grill the doctor about every single metric until the doctor had to tell him to calm down.

But everything changed the moment Juliet moved to our city.

At first, Wallace criticized her. He said she had no business trying to be a model if she couldn't manage her weight.

But slowly, he started saying things like, Curvy girls actually have a lot of charm.

They both loved bold, avant-garde styles. They shared the same creative vision.

Later, he told me that Juliet was like his soulmate, his ultimate muse.

The memories tasted bitter, making the sweet tart on the table look disgusting.

I reached for the spoon.

But before I could touch it, Wallace suddenly stood up, knocking the lemon tart right onto my lap.

The sticky cream and pastry soiled my clothes, leaving me in a complete mess.

Without even looking at me, he grabbed a shopping bag from the closet and rushed toward the door.

An emergency came up at the studio. I have to go.

Ill buy you another dessert next time.

I quietly cleaned the sticky cream off my clothes.

Just then, my phone chimed with a Snapchat notification. It was Juliets public story.

The caption read: [I just mentioned wanting a vintage silk dress, and someone brought it to me instantly~]

The comments were already piling up.

[Juliets curves look amazing in that slip dress! So gorgeous and cute!]

[This photo has Wallaces signature lighting. Wait, isn't Wallace getting married soon? Is Juliet the bride?!]

[Has to be! Wallace is so strict with models, but he always makes an exception for Juliet!]

I tapped on the photo. I recognized the slip dress immediately.

The shimmering silk, the delicate hand-pressed patterns.

It was identical to the most precious dress in my collection.

I ran to my closet and dug to the very bottom. The box was empty.

I drove straight to Wallaces studio.

On the way there, memories of my mother sewing that dress while she was dying of cancer kept flashing in my mind.

When I was little, I hated wearing the same clothes as other kids.

So, every year for my birthday, my mom would make me a custom dress.

Until my seventeenth birthday.

That year, she started working on the silk slip dress months in advancefrom her hospital bed.

Between chemotherapy sessions, she would sew stitch by stitch.

She finished it the day before she passed away.

It was the last birthday gift she ever gave me.

I only wore it on my birthday, and only for half a day, because I was so afraid of ruining it.

I pushed open the studio door.

Wallace, who usually kept a professional distance from female models, had his arms wrapped around Juliet from behind, adjusting the tape measure around her waist.

They looked incredibly intimate.

Seeing me enter, Wallaces face darkened, as if I had ruined their fun.

Give me my dress back, I said, my voice cold.

He knew the story behind that dress. He knew exactly what it meant to me.

But looking at him, all I saw in his eyes was his adoration for Juliet.

He paused for a few seconds, his tone growing arrogant.

Alice, honestly, this dress looks much better on Juliet. Dont you think?

Youre too skinny. You cant fill it out. But Juliet has real curves. It fits her perfectly.

My whole body began to shake with rage.

So just because it fits her, you think you can steal it?

Take it off right now, or Im calling the police!

Wallace looked at me as if I had lost my mind. He immediately stepped in front of Juliet, shielding her.

I was so angry that I rushed forward to grab the dress.

In the scuffle, a pair of heavy fabric shears fell off the cutting table, plunging straight into the top of my foot.

Pain exploded through my body as blood began to pour onto the floor.

The shears had gone deep.

I leaned down and pulled them out, causing a fresh gush of deep red blood to soak my shoe.

Juliet started sobbing loudly.

Wallace, does Alice hate me that much?

I know Im not as skinny as a real model, but Im trying so hard...

Compared to the bloody hole in my foot, Juliets fake tears obviously hurt Wallace much more.

He glared at me, his patience entirely gone.

Alice! Do you have to make her cry to be satisfied? Apologize to Juliet right now!

Me? Apologize?

The physical pain in my foot was excruciating, but it was nothing compared to the hollow feeling in my chest.

Juliet grabbed Wallaces arm, acting like the bigger person.

Wallace, don't argue with her. You've been working so hard lately.

Alice, Ill take the dress off right now. Please stop making a scene.

Her words only made Wallaces heart ache for her more.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and looked at me with disgust.

Since Juliet is willing to be the bigger person, Ill let this go.

But youre going to walk down to that bakery and buy Juliets favorite blueberry cheesecake to apologize. Otherwise, youre never getting this dress back.

He was doing it again. Making me "apologize" for things that weren't my fault.

If I ate a little extra for dinner, he made me run ten miles to "apologize."

If I drank too much water and looked bloated in the morning, he made me take a freezing ice bath to "apologize."

I looked at him, and any remaining love I had for this man completely died.

Only the desperate urge to escape was left.

Fine, I said quietly.

Wallace was stunned. He hadn't expected me to give in so easily.

He let out a sigh of relief.

Im glad youre finally starting to be reasonable. Go on then. When you get back, well talk about the wedding details.

At the mention of the flowerless wedding, I let out a dry laugh.

There won't be a wedding. Once I get my dress back, we are completely finished.

Wallace assumed I was just being dramatic. He was already busy wiping Juliets tears with a tissue.

I limped out of the studio, ignoring the pain in my foot, and hailed a taxi on the street.

I didn't expect the ride to be a nightmare.

The driver was driving erratically, slamming on the horn and speeding down the road.

He was gritting his teeth, muttering and ranting about how his wife had cheated on him.

Realizing something was terribly wrong, I grabbed my phone and spammed Wallace on Snapchat.

[Wallace, my driver is acting crazy. Call the police for me.]

[Hes mentally unstable. Im in danger.]

[Please, see this message and call the police!]

We were about a mile away from the bakery when the driver suddenly turned to me, his eyes bloodshot.

I heard this bakery is great. Do you like cake too?

My heart was in my throat. I tried to keep my voice steady.

Im just picking it up for someone else. Ive never had it.

Just then, my phone rang. It was Wallace.

Under the drivers suspicious gaze, I trembling clicked accept.

But it wasn't Wallaces voice. It was Juliets mocking tone.

Alice, stop spamming Wallace to get his attention.

Hes busy using the fabric from your mothers dress to design a new piece for me.

And whats with this fake emergency? Do you really think Wallace has time for your drama right now?

Why dont you just go die and see if he actually cares?

My back was soaked in cold sweat.

Before I could scream for help, Juliet hung up the phone.

The driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror, his expression turning cold and sinister.

I was going to give you a chance because you looked so pretty going to get cake.

But it turns out youre just like me. Unloved. Pathetic.

Why dont we just die together?

With a wild laugh, he yanked the steering wheel, crashing the car straight through the bridge railing.

No!

I reached forward to stop him, but it was too late.

The car plummeted off the bridge, crashing into the freezing river below.

The violent impact shattered my bones, and my body went numb.

Before I lost consciousness, all I could feel was the biting cold of the water.

Meanwhile, back at the studio, Wallaces assistant rushed into his office.

Wallace, we have a massive problem.

The James Groupour biggest investorjust pulled all their funding. We don't have enough capital to launch the new collection!

Wallace rubbed his temples, frustrated.

Alice was the one who secured that investment. Ill call her and see whats going on.

But before he could dial, a breaking news alert popped up on his laptop screen.

[Local Tragedy: A taxi driver went on a suicidal rampage today. The driver died on impact, but a female passenger was pulled from the river with severe injuries. She is currently in critical condition at General Hospital.]

A sudden wave of dread washed over Wallace. He opened Snapchat.

The moment he saw the chat history, his blood ran cold.

The screen was filled with desperate SOS messages from Alice.

Juliet came up behind him, whining.

Wallace, Alice was just playing a prank earlier, pretending she was in danger. I already called and chewed her out.

Just ignore her. Hey, do you think Alice has any other vintage dresses I could borrow? Like that silk one...

Wallace turned on her, his face pale with fury.

Shut the hell up! he roared. All you care about is stealing her things!

Do you realize you might have just killed her?!

He grabbed his car keys and drove like a maniac to the hospital.

When he burst through the door of the ICU wing, he froze.

Standing outside my room was a man he never expected to see.

Wallace stuttered, M-Mr. James? What are you doing here?