Stories from New York #3 (14 page)

“More?” Tally said.

“Quincy has a live appearance booked on
Letterman
, and she’s going to have to rush off to get there in time. She’s not going to be able to stick around for your questions right now, but she offered a compromise that I think you guys are going to like. Quincy’s got a few hours free tomorrow, and when we’re done here, she’d like all of you to go with her for a limousine tour of Manhattan. Think you’d like to do that?”

Like to?

“Yes!” all four of us said at the same time.

Mrs. Scanlon laughed. “Thought so,” she said. “Okay, sit tight, and I’ll come and get you when it’s time to go.”

It didn’t seem possible, but our trip seemed to just keep getting better and BETTER.

The four of us stood in the corner, trying to stay out of the way. Helvetica, Garamond, and the gray-haired woman from the photo shoot were standing shoulder to shoulder, staring at a backlit wall where rows of photographs of Quincy had been stuck on display like X-rays.

“The morning is half gone already. Let’s speed this up. What’s going on here, Georgia?” Helvetica asked, pointing at a photograph of Quincy wearing a long green gown and blowing bubbles through a little plastic ring. “And why this color?”

Helvetica was wearing loose-fitting pants and a silk shirt of deep green, or rather, as we had learned on our way up in the elevator, Brasilia Viridian.

“I’ve juxtaposed the Halston gown, which is obviously a look more suited for an older woman, with the pink bubble ring. I wanted to capture the
essence of a child playing dress-up. An actress taking on a part but remaining authentic to herself. The bubbles she’s blowing are her hopes, her playfulness. I love it,” Georgia said.

“It’s not working,” Helvetica said briskly, and Garamond reached over and pulled the picture down.

“Okay, next is the Chanel,” Garamond said, pointing to a picture of Quincy in an elegant pink suit, holding a dog.

“Why is she in Chanel to start with?” Helvetica asked. “She’s eighteen years old. Why not a more youthful designer? It’s not her.”

“Her manager was pushing a classic look for some of the shots,” Georgia said. “She doesn’t want Quincy to be typecast as the sci-fi sidekick—she wants more directors to consider her for serious features.”

My feet were killing me, but there was nowhere for me to sit. There wasn’t even anything to lean against. I shifted from one foot to another as quietly as I could. Garamond had let us know we couldn’t take photographs or video during this meeting, so I was taking as many notes as I could. But I had to hold my pad out in the air in front of me to write, and my arms were starting to hurt.

“Not our problem. First of all the manager is her mother,” Helvetica said. “She has no idea what she’s doing. Quincy needs to get herself a
professional manager now that her career has taken off. Anyway, Georgia, you’re the creative director. I want to know what you think. Why am I looking at this picture?”

“Quincy is very young and fresh-faced, but she’s also got a classic profile,” Georgia said. “In some of these pictures she looks like a real classic beauty. Jackie O., Audrey Hepburn. But the pink is playful, girlish. I think it works.”

“I don’t. Lose it,” Helvetica commanded. Garamond pulled the picture down, and Georgia sighed quietly.

I nudged Ivy, who gave me a look that said “Aren’t you glad you don’t work for her?”

“Moving on,” Helvetica said. “This is an eight-page spread, and we’ve still got too many looks. What is going on with this Violetta thing? Why are three of Quincy’s looks by the same designer?”

“Quincy specifically requested to wear Violetta,” Garamond said.

“Fine, so we keep one, maybe two. Why three?”

“Well, I was envisioning that as the signature look,” Georgia said, pulling her gray curly hair into a ponytail, then letting it spring free again. “That’s why I want to use one of the Violetta shots for the cover.”

“You’re going to have to do a better job than that talking me into it,” Helvetica said. “I know Quincy likes the look. I like her in it. But as a cover statement,
what are you trying to do? Who is going to respond to this?”

“Me,” Miko murmured.

Helvetica whirled around, and the entire world seemed to stand still. “What? Please, one of you said something, and I’d like to hear it,” Helvetica said.

Miko glanced at Garamond, who nodded, though he looked nervous. Georgia seemed happy to be out of the hot seat for the moment.

“Well, I was thinking about who’s going to buy this issue, and why,” Miko said. “At breakfast, Ivy’s mom was explaining to us about the…what was the word, Ivy?”

“Demographics,” Ivy said. “Thinking in advance about what age group you’re going to most appeal to and whether they are mostly male or female. How much money they spend. Things like that.”

“Right, so with Quincy Vanderstan on your cover, you already know her fan base is pretty young, with not all that much money,” Miko explained. “Quincy has been on a bunch of covers recently. You see her face everywhere. So just the fact that she’s on
City Nation
’s cover might not convince me to buy
this
particular magazine. But Quincy wearing Violetta, now that really catches my eye. For the people who are into fashion, they’re going to recognize the steampunk look and want to see more. But even for
people who don’t know it, there’s so much going on with this look. It’s really young and edgy, but it also has this element of history in it that catches your attention, and then all the tech details make it look futuristic. So somebody who likes Quincy might not necessarily buy this magazine when she’s in so many other ones right now. But a magazine like
City Nation
putting Quincy in this look, that is definitely something I’m going to spend my money on because I feel like I’m going to get a serious fashion experience, too, not just a
Life & Style
type interview with some pretty pictures. I can’t speak for your older readers, but I can tell you how girls my age would respond.”

Miko finished, and there was a long silence. Helvetica was looking thoughtfully at Miko. Georgia looked surprised, and Garamond was nervously rolling up his tie, then letting it unroll.

“Miko’s hit on something key here,” Helvetica said. “Not just because of her very good assessment of the Violetta look, but because she’s given me an interesting perspective on why a young person might choose to buy this particular issue, this particular cover. Of all our readers, the youngest ones are the most likely to choose the Internet over buying a printed magazine. We need to be consistently coming up with ways to get them back and cultivate new readers. Okay, I’m convinced. We’ll keep all three
Violetta looks and use one for the cover.”

Garamond nodded and made a note. He acted very casual, like this was all no big deal, but when Helvetica leaned forward to get a better look at the picture Georgia had chosen for the cover, he turned around and blew a kiss at Miko.

I gave her an admiring glance. I had felt pretty certain the four of us would hold our own at
City Nation
, and we had. But Miko had gone far beyond that. She seemed to be thinking and contributing on a professional level.
She could really do this
, I thought.
She could be another Garamond. Maybe even another Helvetica. She was
THAT
good.

“And I like this one for the cover because its irreverent,” Georgia was saying. “The way Quincy’s kicking one foot in the air and the dog’s tongue is coming out just a little like it’s going to kiss her. The top hat is very severe, but the energy is giddy.”

Helvetica stared at the picture for several moments. Garamond and Georgia both seemed to be holding their breath.

“Yes,” Helvetica said. “I love it. Okay, we’re done. Garamond, I’ll need to see the layout by three.”

She started to leave, then came partway back in the door and looked at the four of us.

“Oh. This is your last meeting with us, isn’t it?” she asked.

“Yes,” Ivy said. “You’ve been so incredibly generous. You can’t imagine what this experience has meant to us. I know we’re here because my mom asked, but—”

“You’re here because your mother showed me your magazine,” Helvetica corrected. “Believe me, if I opened up
City Nation
every time one of my people asked, I’d be overrun. I like the way you girls think, and
4 Girls
speaks for itself. Miko has just given me some absolutely professional input, and I understand we are going with an idea Tally suggested in an editorial meeting. I think we benefited just as much from having you here as you did. You’re welcome any time, all of you. Good luck.”

“Thank you,” I said in unison with Tally.

“Thank you
so
much,” Miko added.

Helvetica nodded and swept off, the sound of her heels clacking on the floor echoing in the hallway.

“I still liked the Halston,” Georgia said, sounding weary and heading for the door. “I’ll be in my office, Garamond. Nice meeting you girls.”

“What a morning,” Garamond declared. “Let me walk out with you. Where is your mother meeting you?”

“We have to go back to the interns’ office to get our coats,” Ivy said.

“Then let me escort you to the elevator,” Garamond
said. “It’s probably the only fun I’ll have all day. I’ve gotten used to you all now. What am I going to do without you? I could lose another movie star, and who will save me next time?”

“Oh, call us,” Tally said. “We can save you over the phone!”

“I just might do that,” Garamond said, chuckling. “Oh, I wish your mother still worked here full-time, Ivy. I really miss having her around.”

“She still comes in once a week,” Ivy said. “Plus, you could always come up and visit us.”

“Oh, I hate leaving the city,” Garamond said as we approached the elevator. “But for the Scanlons, I will consider it.”

I reached out to push the up button, but Garamond gestured for me to wait.

“Darlings, you are all amazing, but Miko you really are a fashion miracle,” Garamond said. “I want you to think about something. There are several summer internships at
City Nation
. One of them is in the design department. If you want it, it’s yours. I know you’re not local, so you’d have to figure something out. But don’t say no—don’t say anything right now. The competition for a
City Nation
summer internship is cutthroat. It’s a major opportunity. If you’re serious about getting into design, Miko, then find a way to make it work. You’re good enough, no
question, but so are a thousand other girls. E-mail me, and I’ll tell you more about it.”

He pushed the button. The elevator must have already been there because the doors opened immediately.

“And here we are. Have a safe trip home, girls. Remember, Miko, I want to hear from you. Good-bye, darlings!”

“Good-bye,” I said, sad to see Garamond disappear as the doors slid shut. I was really starting to like him.

“Miko,” Ivy said, grabbing her by both arms. “You do realize how huge this is, right? Garamond’s serious. People would kill for a summer internship in design.”

“My head is spinning,” Miko said. “I don’t know what to think. My parents want me to audition for a violin program this summer at the Music Conservatory. I don’t know how I could possibly convince them to let me do this.”

“My mom could talk to them,” Ivy said. “She could show them what a once-in-a-lifetime chance this is.”

“Would she do that?” Miko asked.

“Are you kidding? Of course she would,” Ivy told her. “It can’t hurt to try, right? You never know what could happen.”

Whit and Dakota were both sitting at their desks
talking to each other when we got to the interns’ office. Whit stood up as we came in.

“Oh, good, I didn’t miss you!” he said. “I’m due on thirty-four to help with the filing, but I was hoping I’d get to see you guys before you took off.”

“We just helped pick the cover!” Tally exclaimed.

“Oh, please,” Dakota said. “You’re here for three days, and already you think you’re doing Georgia’s job? Get over yourselves.”

I wanted to be nice to Dakota, but I hated the way she always tried to put us down—even after Ivy helped her stay at the photo shoot. I felt a surge of competitiveness myself.

“Garamond offered the summer design internship to Miko,” I said.

Dakota’s mouth dropped.

“Whoa,” Whit said. “Congratulations! That’s major.”

“I don’t know if I can do it,” Miko said. “It would be really complicated. But I’m going to try my hardest to work it out.”

“I’m going for the editorial internship,” Dakota announced. “That’s the
really
important one.”

“You should go for that, too, Ivy,” Whit said. “It would be great to have you around this summer.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Whit,” Dakota said, looking angry.

“What?” Whit asked, looking confused. “Why does that have to mean I don’t think you’d be great for it, too? You’re both my friends, Dakota.”

“Whatever,” Dakota said, getting up. “I’m going to go get a soda.” She darted out the door.

“Don’t mind her,” Whit said. “You know how she gets when she’s feeling insecure.”