Black Label [EN]: Chapter 186

186. For You (3)

Jae-seung, just waking up, turned his head toward the window.

Judging by the bright sunlight, it felt like morning had long passed.

Normally, he would have gotten out of bed without hesitation, but today was different.

Instead of getting up right away, he groaned, “Ugh…,” and hugged the soft, fluffy blanket he’d been under all night.

How long had it been since he’d woken up so close to noon? He couldn’t even remember. Just as he was burying his face in the blanket, he heard Ashlyn’s voice from beyond the door.

“Are you awake?”

Ashlyn asked softly, peeking her head in.

“Why are you sleeping in?”

“I guess I relaxed.”

“Well. Should I make you a cup of coffee?”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

Ashlyn started humming and walked to the living room, and Jae-seung followed her out of the bedroom.

The spacious penthouse was quiet. The only sounds were Ashlyn’s soft humming and the mechanical whir of the espresso machine.

Jae-seung sat down at the table and watched Ashlyn, who was making coffee in her underwear.

Ashlyn must not have been awake for long either, as her eyes were still half-closed.

Perhaps it was thanks to the sunlight streaming through the window, but her tousled golden hair seemed even brighter and more beautiful.

Soon, Ashlyn noticed Jae-seung’s gaze and smiled faintly before asking, “Why?”

“No reason.”

“What do you mean, no reason?”

Jae-seung sat down at the table and replied, “I just think natural light suits you better than stage lighting.”

“What’s with you all of a sudden?”

Ashlyn frowned slightly as she asked, but she didn’t seem to dislike the sudden compliment.

Soon, Ashlyn swept a strand of hair behind her ear and handed him the warm coffee she had just made.

“Be careful, it’s still hot.”

“Thanks, I’ll enjoy it.”

“How about brunch?”

“Sounds good.”

The pouring sunshine, the warmth of the afternoon, the fragrant coffee, the sound of her beloved humming, and the smell of bacon and bread sizzling and browning.

It was the calm after the storm. Unfortunately, in just a few days, he would be caught up in another storm called business.

First, he had to board a plane to Korea tomorrow to dedicate himself to the final preparations for Wallflower’s first world stage, which was just around the corner.

And then?

One thing leads to another. Whether he successfully completed Paris Fashion Week or not, there would definitely be a pile of documents to review on his desk.

Jae-seung, lost in thought, suddenly spoke to Ashlyn. “I’m going to take a real break after I finish everything.”

“Is there anything you want to do?”

“Let’s go to an island together.”

Ashlyn turned to Jae-seung and asked, “Island?” Jae-seung nodded.

“Chairman Ardo owns an island in the Mediterranean.”

“Goodness, he owns an island, not just a private property?”

“Yeah. Actually, I was invited there.”

“Am I allowed to go too…?”

“Of course.”

Ashlyn stood there dumbfounded with wide eyes, as if she couldn’t believe it, so Jae-seung tilted his head slightly and said playfully, “I should buy one too, shouldn’t I?”

“Buy what?”

“An island.”

“Are you serious?”

“It might be a little difficult right now…”

Jae-seung trailed off, shrugged, and added, “But I don’t think it will take that long.”

Every time he solved a problem, his life changed little by little.

There was a time when he had to diligently calculate even when buying groceries, but now?

Whether it was groceries, clothes, or a car, he could buy anything he wanted without considering cost-effectiveness at all.

The number of digits in his bank account had changed. He was more worried about taxes than his salary. And his tax accountant nagged him more.

Even though he was steadily spending what he used to think was an astronomical amount, the accountant always said that his spending was too low and rattled off various alternatives.

Wasn’t all of this a change that had come about in just a few short years?

But what if a few more years passed from this point?

By then, buying an island might not be that difficult.

Soon, Ashlyn, who had been standing there blankly, smiled brightly and wrapped her arms around Jae-seung’s neck.

“I don’t know why, but I feel like everything you say will come true.”

“Me too.”

Jae-seung replied affectionately and immediately kissed Ashlyn on the lips. Just as they were exchanging glances,

Vibration sound.

Vibration sound.

The vibration started. As if they had made a promise, they quickly turned their heads toward the sound.

After a moment of silence,

“Oh my god.”

Jae-seung muttered and jumped up from his seat, rushing to the sofa.

Only then did the events of last night, when he returned to the penthouse after the small after-party, begin to surface in his memory.

Thinking that he didn’t want to be forced to open his eyes because of his cell phone, he had thrown his smartphone, which he had put in his pants pocket, on the sofa and went straight to the bedroom.

“I’m crazy, I knew it was too peaceful…”

Jae-seung muttered, stuck his hand between the sofa cushions, and picked up his constantly vibrating smartphone. Then he immediately checked the caller.

[Chairman Wertheimer]

As soon as Jae-seung pressed the receive button, an excited voice came from the receiver.

“Lee, why couldn’t I reach you…?”

“I’m sorry, well, actually…”

“The reason doesn’t matter. I’ve reached you now.”

Chairman Wertheimer, speaking generously, continued with a slightly trembling voice. “I have two amazing news items. I’ll start with the first. According to the group’s internal analysis, this season is expected to be the best in Chanel’s history.”

“Yes? What does that mean…?”

“You’ll understand when you hear the second news. Damn it, I can’t believe it. The printed T-shirts released in Act 3 of the collection have sold out in half a day!”

* * *

It is rare for products from premium brands such as Chanel to sell out.

Not only does a single T-shirt cost hundreds of thousands of won [Korean currency, approximately hundreds of US dollars], but the production volume itself is incomparable to that of other brands.

‘But, sold out…?’

As soon as he finished the call with Chairman Wertheimer, Jae-seung ran to the study and workspace inside the penthouse.

He bit his fingernails and waited impatiently for the iMac PC to turn on.

Click, click-

As soon as the internet window appeared, he diligently moved the mouse to find reports related to the collection.

[Critic Phil Adore says, “I decided not to write a review about Chanel’s F/W [Fall/Winter] season because I thought it was a highly complete work of art that cannot be easily evaluated.”]

[Chanel, becoming the standard of innovation? Some F/W season products sold out in half a day.]

[Chanel Group insider, “According to internal analysis, this year will be Chanel’s best ever,” repeatedly emphasized.]

[We’ll just show you the results, as we’ve always done. Chairman Wertheimer refutes rumors of discord with Karl Lagerfeld.]

Click, click-

[Chanel’s F/W season successfully concluded. What will be the next move of ‘Lee’s brand, Wallflower?’]

[Full of praise, other premium brands have no choice but to hold their breath thanks to Chanel’s F/W season.]

[LVMH Group Chairman Ardo expresses his opinion on new designer Lee at an official press conference. “The brand he touches becomes the best in a year. Some industry officials already call him ‘Kingmaker’.”]

[Special Column: About the ‘Retro Fever’ that Chanel will bring. Reinterpretation of Coco Chanel and early Chanel.]

[Karl Lagerfeld & Lee Duo. About the artistic narcissism of two geniuses.]

Click, click…….

Jae-seung, who had been blankly checking related reports, let out a hollow laugh. The buzz wasn’t just overseas.

After roughly skimming through the articles posted on overseas websites and the columns of famous critics, he immediately began to browse domestic internet news pages and fashion-related web communities.

-Anyone seen the Chanel collection video? The product, directing, and composition are all perfect…….

-Chanel headquarters? Hall of Fame? Anyway, I think I saw an article saying that a statue of designer Lee Jae-seung will be erected in one of the two places, is it true?

-Probably true? Premium brands have a tradition of erecting statues of people who have greatly contributed to the brand’s development.

-Does that make sense? Please refrain from wishful thinking. Still, about a third of that is designer Lee Jae-seung’s work, so the royalties must be no joke…….

Jae-seung, staring at the community’s reactions as if he would be sucked into the monitor, widened his eyes.

There were also many articles related to his close friend, ‘Youngguk’, in Korea.

[Who is ‘JUS.KUS’, a composer in his early 20s who dominated Billboard with Wiz Khalifa, a domestic hip-hop artist?]

[Designer Lee Jae-seung and domestic hip-hop artist JUS.KUS. About the friendship of new artists who are opening new horizons in the art world.]

[Domestic hip-hop artist JUS.KUS is constantly being contacted by major agencies such as Kanye West’s agency, ‘Dead Jam’.]

Emotions that are difficult to express easily swirled in his heart.

What should he say? If there are ups and downs in life, now was the best time for his best friend and him to be experiencing the best time of their lives…….

Just as Jae-seung was immersed in emotion,

Ashlyn carefully opened the door to the study and came in, speaking softly. “Lee, are you busy?”

“No, not yet. But I think I’ll have to go out soon. Why?”

“Actually, we have a guest…”

“A guest?”

Ashlyn nodded and handed him a business card and an envelope that she was holding tightly. It was the business card of a lawyer from a large law firm.

As Jae-seung looked at the business card and muttered, “A lawyer?” Ashlyn nodded. “Yes. He said he was Karl Lagerfeld’s lawyer and asked me to check the documents and contact the number on the business card…”

“Did he pass away?”

“Yes. He just gave me the business card and envelope and left right away.”

Jae-seung began to examine the envelope. On the outside, a short phrase was written in familiar handwriting.

-For You.

Jae-seung’s hand, tearing open the envelope, became more frantic with each passing second.