Cyrielle was sitting with Julie in a small conference room. They were in Femme Frenchie’s building, waiting for Bernadette Dupuit. This month’s issue had just come out in the morning, and already a lot of pces were out of stock. In fact, people were lining up in front of the stores to have a chance to buy Femme Frenchie. It was Cyrielle’s effect, after so many issues had shaken up the Internet, and her knowledge of general culture was revealed. Now, at noon, a trend had started online. Content creators were taking pictures of them with the magazine they managed to secure, which in turn made their followers want to do the same. It was chaos.

  However, Cyrielle didn’t care that much. She was deep in thoughts, thinking about her riding experience the day prior. More precisely, about the people who had pestered her for hours. Coline wanted to do a horse riding photoshoot with Cyrielle, and the instructor had tried to persuade her to do a test for the national team, in order to participate in the Olympics of Paris in 2024. It had been a stressful day, and Cyrielle had to repeat several times that horse riding was a hobby, and to talk to her manager, before they finally left her alone.

  But Julie, totally unaware of her thoughts, was drawing her own conclusion.

  ‘It was not the first time she asked people to talk to me instead of her… Is she afraid to talk to people ? No, if it was the case she wouldn’t have revealed her skills. Maybe… Is she trying to raise her value ? A simple photoshoot on horse back, or becoming a professional rider only known by the equestrian nerds, none of this suits her. She is aiming for something much bigger. Yes, I must be right ! She is finally revealing her ambition ! Don't worry, baby, I understood loud and clear. I’ll make sure you shine brighter than anyone else !’

  At this moment, Bernadette Dupuit entered the room. She looked exhausted, her face gaunt, and she probably lost a few kilos. With her usual stoic face, Cyrielle asked in a neutral tone :

  “Are you alright ? You seem tired.”

  She was genuinely concerned.

  ‘She wanted to help me, but if it makes her this tired, I don’t want it ! She is the same age as my mom, it’s sad to see her like that !’

  But Bernadette, already neck deep in the misunderstanding, misread the situation.

  “No, I’m perfectly fine ! It’s an honor for me to help you ! It’s just a bit hectic with this month’s issue being sold out everywhere, so we have to contact the printer and… well, it’s not important.”

  She put a stack of paper on the table.

  “These are all the offers you received. I already sorted it out and threw away all the ones made by people with a bad reputation. The most important offers, those who will really help your career, are at the top. Oh, in this process I had to tell people I was your fashion agent, so that they would contact me directly instead of going to your side. I hope it doesn’t annoy you !”

  Cyrielle was impressed.

  ‘You did that much for me ? You shouldn’t have, what about your health ? Oh, but I’m really grateful.’

  She gnced at Julie, who gave her a discreet thumbs up under the table. The situation was perfect.

  Bernadette was looking at Cyrielle with shaky eyes. Now that she had done that much, despite her already busy schedule, it should be alright to go straight to the point, right ?

  “I did all of that without being paid because I like you, of course, and I believe in your success, but… If you could do something in return, I would be grateful. It’s not something bad or complicated, I swear ! Simply… Showing the magazine on your MyTube channel once in a while, or prioritizing schedules involving Femme Frenchie in the future…”

  Cyrielle lifted her gaze to meet Bernadette’s eyes. She was nodding inwardly.

  ‘It’s not something difficult, and considering all the efforts you are making for my career in the fashion industry, that seems reasonable.’

  But to Bernadette, that gaze weighed a few tons. She felt as if she was being crushed by Cyrielle.

  ‘Am I asking too much ? I know, it’s not fair for me to ask that of you ! Prioritizing our magazine, when your growing pace is that fast ? You’ll probably break into the entirety of Europe in less than three years, being tied down to a lesser known french magazine is stupid ! I know all of that, but I really need you for my career !’

  She tried to take a deep breath, but Bernadette was shaking. Before Cyrielle could open her mouth to ask her if she was alright, the editor-in-chief shouted.

  “I will buy you an office for Angel-Minet in Paris !”

  Julie and Cyrielle looked at her, dumbfounded. But Bernadette, seeing the emotionless face of Cyrielle, was panicking even more.

  “And a parisian apartment ! An office, an apartment, and being your fashion agent, I really can’t do any more than that !”

  Julie gnced at Cyrielle, who still had a stoic face.

  ‘Did she calcute all of this ? I was short sighted, I didn’t even think of negotiating for permanent lodging ! I must step my game up, Cyrielle needs someone reliable by her side.’

  She adjusted her colr and smiled at Bernadette.

  “We accept that offer. We are very grateful that you think about us that much ! Please, send us any inquiries and I will fit them into Mademoiselle Cyrielle’s schedule.”

  Bernadette rexed suddenly, like a defted balloon.

  “Thank you very much ! Concerning the office, I was thinking…”

  Julie and Bernadette started having a very serious conversation. Cyrielle, looking at them, was lost in a daze.

  ‘What just happened ?’

  ***

  Buying an apartment doesn’t happen overnight, even if you have enough money, so Julie and Cyrielle needed to go back to Bordeaux. As usual, Cyrielle was looking at the ndscape through the window and Julie was working on her ptop, thanks to the free WiFi on the train.

  “We finally received the MyTube paycheck for February, along with your fee for the designing gig. We are starting to gather a nice sum in our bank accounts, and Bernadette must be the same, I’m sure she takes a commission as an agent for your modeling offers. I guess this much money is nothing to you, but with those funds I will finally be able to hire assistants when we’ll have the office !”

  She was wrong, the money in her bank account meant a lot for Cyrielle. Since she was too busy with her hellish schedule to spend a single cent, it kept piling up, and reached a point where Cyrielle had never had this much savings. She wasn’t a millionaire by any means, but she had enough to live comfortably at Julie’s pce without working, for at least three years. And she was about to receive a parisian apartment on top of that.

  ‘I’ll have to live with Julie since we both need to stay in the same city at all times, and she doesn’t have her own lodgings, but surely it will be at least a two room apartment since Bernadette is buying, right ?’

  Cyrielle was very excited. Having her own home was a dream come true, and she could even use her ‘Home and Attire design’ freely, changing the interior decor how she wanted, and creating outfits without any restrictions on space. With the money she had, she could even buy a mannequin and professional sewing equipment, right ?

  “What type of apartment and office will we receive, according to you ?”

  She was too happy to keep quiet about it, even if it didn't show on her face. Julie stopped tapping for a second.

  “Hmm… Considering that she is making an investment based on your potential success and the benefits you will bring her… I think that she will buy a small building for the office, either a new industrial one, or an old two story shop. It won’t be too te to sell it when we become successful and grow bigger, so that seems about right. And for your apartment, I’m guessing she will invest a million euros, so that should make it a three room apartment in the center of Paris ? Something like that.”

  Julie returned to her work, but Cyrielle was stunned.

  ‘Three rooms ? Are you kidding me ?! No, Julie must be wrong, there is no way the very first apartment I own will be a three room one in the center of Paris !’

  She wasn’t wrong, though. At the same time, Bernadette Dupuit was reviewing the papers handed to her by her exhausted assistant.

  “Boss, is it necessary to go so far ? I don’t think it’s worth it…”

  But the editor-in-chief simply ughed and showed him her phone.

  “Not worth it ? Why don’t you look at that and think again ?”

  On the screen, an article was dispyed.

  {Femme Frenchie sells 200,000 issues in one week, who is the mysterious Mademoiselle Cyrielle ?}

  The assistant widened his eyes.

  “Is this real ?”

  Bernadette shrugged.

  “Of course it is. And it’s not only the paper version, our website’s servers almost crashed a few times because of all the traffic on the online version. Same for our MyTube channel, it blew up because of the making of and Mademoiselle Cyrielle’s interview. Now, what do you think ? Should I do my best to foster a good retionship with this person, the one who can make your sary grow twice its size ?”

  The assistant nodded enthusiastically.

  “If we can really reach those numbers, two or three million is nothing.”

  “That’s what I’m saying. The work as a fashion agent is a lot to take alone, but the result is showing. We booked her for the cover with a ridiculously cheap fee, so now, it’s time to show our sincerity.”

  She looked again at the stack of paper.

  “I was just thinking that three rooms is quite small for an artist. Should we add a fourth one for an atelier ?”

  AmbreaTaddy