Here We Are Again

Emma walked into the makeshift dressing room of the set. She was excited to be modeling for Burberry again but a bit nervous to see George after their awkward goodbye last summer. She walked quickly to the women’s side of the tent, trying not to look around and see George before she had to. She attempted to walk back outside unnoticed once she was in her outfit, but she accidentally ran into someone. She gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.

"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed. She tried to keep her face neutral when she saw that it was George that she had almost knocked down. He smiled at her and she tentatively returned the gesture.

"Don't worry about it. So, how have you been?"

"Um, good. Good. And you? How have you been?" She felt like hiding and not coming out until he left, but she couldn't just run away when he was trying to talk to her.

"Alright, I guess," he looked at her from under his lashes. I miss you, he thought. Here she was, right in front of him, but he wasn't sure if she still wanted him. She seemed nervous and more shy than usual.

She cleared her throat and looked down at her hands. She toyed with one of her rings before looking up at him. She had barely opened her mouth to admit that she had missed him when the photographer's assistant came to usher them out to the set. He walked beside her, occasionally sneaking glances only to see her focused straight ahead of her every time he looked. He tried to not let it affect him, but he still felt slightly disappointed when he hadn't even managed to catch her eyes before they arrived on set, a splendid, Eden-like garden with a kiosk and an adorned walkway. The photographer clapped to get the models' attention.

"This is the spring campaign ladies and gentlemen. And you know what that means; love is in the air," he smiled indulgently at the mostly unfazed young people. Emma grew nervous once he began to pair them up, blushing and fighting an unwanted smile when he put her and George together. He walked toward them and smiled again.

"You two are going to be my featured couple. Your looks complement each other perfectly. Come this way." He led them to an ancient-looking willow tree and positioned them against the trunk. This was a new photographer, so instead of having them look intensely into the camera, he had them look intensely at each other. Emma tried to focus, but she couldn't quite tame the light blush that stained her cheeks. She had her left hand tangled in George's hair and her body turned slightly to her right so that the camera could capture the beautiful, floor length dress she had on. George's left arm was around her waist and his body was also turned so that the camera would capture his pastel-colored outfit. Their faces were turned toward each other though, Emma looking up at him without smiling and him looking intently down at her - they looked like a couple so engrossed in each other that they didn't bother to notice the world around them. His hand twitched and he half smiled, on his left side, of course. She couldn't help but smile fully back at him. Several clicking noises ensued and she quickly schooled her face.

"No, no. Smile, girl. You're in love. You too, boy. You are in love!" Emma blushed deeply but obliged the photographer and smiled timidly at George. When she saw his genuine smile, hers grew. Another ten minutes at the tree and they were ordered to change into their second outfits. Emma came out wearing a light blue cardigan and a creamy colored cotton dress that ended just above the knee. She gave one final tug to the strappy silver wedges she wore. George came up behind her wearing a darker blue cardigan, a white v-neck and red and shorts in the trademark Burberry plaid. He was barefoot. She laughed a bit and he smiled at her.

"The grass is nice and soft, as it should be," he said jokingly. He offered her his arm and they walked to a nearby bench, where the photographer's assistant was setting up the equipment while the photographer (Mark was his name, they had learned while dressing) was setting up a blanket that matched George's shorts with a simple picnic basket some meters away. He instructed the models to sit on the bench and gave Emma a straw hat that he decided she should wear. It had a wide brim with a navy ribbon and a red carnation. He once again positioned them in some kind of embrace. Her hand was on his shoulder and his arm around her waist. Her face was half obscured in shadow because of the hat, and after a few clicks, Mark adjusted it so that her face was in broad daylight. He moved her face closer to George's then took some more pictures. Three hours passed with seven more outfits, locations, and positions: dresses, shorts, capris, on the plaid blanket, in the midst of flowers, up a tree, on the grass, him reaching for her face, her stretching her hands towards his, looking at the camera, each other or their surroundings. Their breaks were fewer than they were used to since they were Mark's "star models", but they were enjoying themselves. It was almost as if they had never left each other. After their ninth outfit they were given two hours of break time which they spent together.