Black Label [EN]: Chapter 87

Black Label 87

88. Mirage

“See? I told you everyone would be eagerly waiting,” Alexander said, placing a hand on Jaesung’s shoulder.

Jaesung, as if still processing the reality, slowly surveyed the faces in the room, a faint smile gracing his lips.

Everyone was beaming, applauding enthusiastically.

The smartly dressed old man at the very front smiled broadly and spoke.

“Lee, it’s a real honor to meet you. I’m Theo, currently in charge of Alexander King’s management.”

“Ah, yes. Nice to meet you, too.”

Jaesung replied politely, immediately sharing a brief hug with him.

Alexander King, who had been quietly observing, added in a gentle tone, “Theo is a truly excellent manager. The numbers prove it. Since he took over, the brand’s value has been steadily increasing.”

Theo winked and replied, “You flatter me.”

Just from their interaction, one could easily grasp the positive atmosphere surrounding the brand.

Theo then stepped forward and began a brief introduction of Jaesung.

“As you all know, this is designer Jaesung Lee, who will be overseeing the design for this Spring/Summer (S/S) season as Creative Director.”

After speaking, Theo looked at Jaesung and asked in a low voice, “Um, what’s the best way to address you?”

“Please, just call me Lee.”

Theo nodded a few times, seemingly satisfied, and continued his explanation.

“Lee is a talented designer who leads the brand Wall Flower. He’s also a member of the same ‘*RA (The Real Artist)’ crew as Alexander.”

From various places, soft exclamations of “Oh…” echoed, making Jaesung’s face flush slightly.

He felt this way because he didn’t believe his membership in the crew was solely due to his own skills.

It was merely a temporary arrangement Alexander had made to shield him during the conflict with the association.

There were only two reasons he was able to join.

The first was the unwavering support of Alexander, who held a significant position within the crew, and the second was that he met the core membership requirement of being aligned with the ‘Parsons faction’.

In any case, he couldn’t take full credit, as it wasn’t an achievement based purely on his own merit.

As soon as Theo finished his introduction, a formal introduction to the atelier staff began.

“I’m Michelle. I’m currently in charge of the atelier. You can call me ‘Lee’ without any formality, right?”

“Of course. Nice to meet you, Michelle.”

The middle-aged woman who introduced herself as Michelle was a seasoned tailor with 26 years of experience.

According to Theo, Michelle handled most of the highly complex sewing tasks.

This was because she possessed the most outstanding skills among the atelier’s tailors.

Jaesung then began to greet each of the thirty or so tailors, one by one, with a hug.

As he was busily exchanging greetings, he was soon left with only the last tailor.

Finally.

“I’m Kyle. It’s a real honor to meet you.”

The last tailor had a youthful face, with an impression that leaned more towards ‘boy’ than ‘young man’.

Jaesung shared a brief hug with him and then cautiously asked, “Kyle, it’s really nice to meet you. Excuse me, but how old are you?”

“I’m nineteen this year.”

Jaesung let out an “Oh…” of surprise. Considering the American age system, he was the same age as Jaesung.

Landing a job at the atelier of a premium brand at such a young age was incredibly rare.

Jaesung guessed that Kyle possessed exceptional sewing skills and talent.

“Kyle, that’s really amazing. I know that the entrance exam for the atelier of a premium brand is quite difficult….”

“No, I was just lucky.”

“I believe luck can only take you so far without skills to back it up. I believe you can become a truly famous Meister [master craftsman] someday.”

Kyle blushed shyly and expressed his gratitude.

Because it wasn’t just a casual remark, Jaesung even added, “I mean it,” in a serious tone.

Once the greetings with the tailors were concluded, CEO Theo spoke again in a kind tone.

“Anyway, everyone is looking forward to Lee’s performance. We anticipate a significant ripple effect when the legacy of the Alexander King brand merges with Lee’s unique identity.”

Jaesung smiled brightly and gave the answer he had practiced a few times in front of the mirror before leaving the apartment.

“I will do everything in my power to live up to your trust and expectations. Really, no matter what.”

He answered as concisely as possible, fearing he wouldn’t be able to hide his trembling if he spoke at length.

How could he not tremble when standing before the biggest opportunity of his life?

Of course, he wasn’t just trembling. He also felt a strange sense of anticipation.

At that moment, Theo, who was staring intently at Jaesung’s eyes, reached out to shake his hand and said, “You’re so reliable. Lee is the first person who hasn’t trembled while talking about their feelings about being appointed as Creative Director.”

“No, I’m just trying not to show it.”

“Haha! I look forward to working with you. If you need any help, please feel free to tell me anytime.”

“Yes, I look forward to working with you too.”

Jaesung answered confidently and shook Theo’s hand firmly.

For better or worse, it seemed like a pretty good first meeting.

* * *

After the brief greeting, Jaesung headed to a lounge bar in a nearby hotel with Alexander.

“Lee, do you like the apartment?” Alexander asked, picking up a beer glass. Jaesung smiled faintly and replied, “Of course, it’s a place I’d want to live in forever, isn’t it?”

“I’m glad. What about the car?”

“I was surprised that there were two keys.”

“That means you liked it?”

“Of course. Of course.”

“I was worried because I didn’t know your taste, but I’m glad.”

After answering briefly, he added again, “If you need anything, just tell me.”

Then, a conversation worth a few bottles of beer took place.

Most of it revolved around the products to be released in the upcoming S/S season. Jaesung’s vision was simple.

He wanted to infuse his strength, minimalism, into the core of Alexander King, which embodies both the freedom of New York street style and luxury.

Even though he only shared this rough idea, Alexander seemed quite satisfied.

They also discussed Jaesung’s future schedule.

“First of all, I think I need to complete the admission process and prepare for the spring semester of Parsons School before it starts.”

In addition to various preparations for settling into life in the United States, he also had to prepare for the new season of Wall Flower simultaneously.

Reviewing, correcting, and supplementing the design team’s diagrams was all he had to do, but it was clear that this was also a rather demanding schedule.

Alexander nodded a few times and began to explain.

“Once the spring semester starts, the company will send an official letter directly to Parsons. That part can be resolved without any difficulty. Anyway, once the full-fledged S/S season preparation begins, you will have to work at the headquarters.”

As time passed, the number of empty bottles on the bar table gradually increased.

Was it because today’s leisurely drinking party was rare? Alexander just kept drinking beer without a break.

Both of them were slowly starting to feel drunk.

Their cheeks were flushed, and their clear eyes were gradually becoming hazy.

This was evidence that the drinking party was progressing.

At that time, Alexander, prefacing his words with, “Shall I tell you an interesting story?” began to reveal many behind-the-scenes stories of the fashion world that he knew.

From the secret private lives of famous designers to betrayals between designers, sexual preferences, and even shocking secrets known only to a select few in the industry.

Alexander, struggling to speak clearly with his tongue twisted by the alcohol, said with hazy eyes, “You have to keep this secret. I’m telling you because I trust you, Lee.”

“Of course, thank you.”

Jaesung, who answered in a relatively clear tone, smiled bitterly.

He didn’t feel particularly good about glimpsing the darker side of the famous designers he admired.

The fantasy he held was shattered, and his admiration and respect were reduced to dust.

At that time, Alexander asked in a rather serious tone, “Lee, what do you think is the reason why I suddenly told you these stories?”

“I don’t know?”

“It’s because I don’t want you to get hurt.”
Hurt? As Jaesung looked at him with a puzzled expression, Alexander shrugged his shoulders and continued, “Lee may be similar… I had a longing for the fashion world since I was 12 years old. I respected and loved many designers. I even dreamed of meeting ‘Marc Jacobs’ or ‘Karl Lagerfeld’ instead of having wet dreams.”

“That was a great passion. I can’t imagine Alexander at the age of 12.”

Anyway, the current Alexander is famous for being close to all the designers he listed earlier.

Among them, he was especially known to be very close to ‘Marc Jacobs’.

Designer Alexander King’s debut stage was at Marc Jacobs’ brand.

Thanks to this, the past he was recounting in a calm tone seemed even more impressive.

In a way, it could be seen as a recollection from someone who has achieved their dream.

“Anyway, to tell you how I feel after stepping into this world, it was all just a ‘mirage’.”

“Mirage?”

“Yes. Whatever fantasy you have, Lee, it’s just a mirage. This place will be much worse than that.”

After speaking, Alexander took a few more gulps of beer, wiped his mouth, and said, “This place is no different from other businesses; it’s a jungle driven by numbers. There is no favor that doesn’t bring profit, and there is no friendship that doesn’t bring profit.”

“Then what about the favor Alexander gave last time?”

He was referring to the Korea Fashion Designer Association case that Alexander had helped with.

Alexander smiled awkwardly and replied, “It wasn’t solely a choice for profit, but I think it was still a factor.”

After a moment of silence, Alexander sighed and continued, “The reason I signed Lee up for the ‘RA Crew’ wasn’t just for protection. It was a choice that benefited my brand at the same time as it benefited Lee.”

“Um, what do you mean….”

“After all, by associating with the ‘RA’ crew, I can reduce the probability of failure for this S/S season, even if only slightly.”

“Ah….”

Two designers belonging to the world-renowned designer crew, ‘RA’, are preparing for a new season in collaboration?

It’s a narrative that would excite fashion enthusiasts and serve as excellent marketing material.

Also, although it wasn’t the primary intention, the premium brand ‘Alexander King’ had already benefited considerably.

Wasn’t the brand name ‘Alexander King’ reported several times on Korean public broadcasting news due to this association incident?

Considering that it was reported in various fashion magazines, it was clearly a much better choice than a clumsy promotion.

Alexander smiled awkwardly and continued in a gentle tone, “Of course, I was always going to recommend Lee as a new member of the RA Crew. However, it would have been a few years later… that is, after Lee had built up a lot of brilliant achievements.”

“I see. I think it was an excellent choice. In the fashion world, it’s more important to avoid failure than to achieve ten successes, right? Anyway, thanks to you, I learned one thing.”

He was so caught up in gratitude that he failed to consider the underlying motivations. This was a clear mistake. Jaesung smacked his lips once and immediately drank a few gulps of beer.

The beer, which had tasted sweet until just now, suddenly felt like a bitter penalty drink.

Jaesung began to stare intently at Alexander King.

He pretended to be cold and calculating, but the fact that he kindly explained this in detail revealed that Alexander wasn’t a completely heartless person.

To be more precise, he seemed to be the type who developed calculation skills for survival.

Jaesung smiled and answered sincerely, “Thank you. Still, I will repay the help Alexander gave me this time with a favor that doesn’t bring profit.”

Just as Alexander was staring intently at Jaesung’s eyes in surprise, Jaesung added with a faint smile, “Because we’re friends.”

Alexander sighed and added in a sincere tone, “It’s a word I’ve wanted to hear several times over the past few years. I’ve heard it a few times, but most of them were lies.”

“I see.”

“I hope that word is sincere.”

After speaking, Alexander struggled to continue with his tongue twisted. “In fact, I’m sick of businesses that masquerade as friendships. To be honest, it feels disgusting.”

“It must have been really hard.”

“I think I’m really lucky to have met Lee. At least so far. Anyway, there are no eternal friends here. There are no eternal enemies either. You shouldn’t trust anyone.”

Jaesung looked at Alexander and asked, “Even Alexander?”

After a moment of silence.

“Yes. Even me.”

After answering with a confident tone, he said, “I’m sleepy,” and lay down on the bar table.

Jaesung drank the remaining beer in his glass and looked at him.

Mirage.

That was the word Alexander used to describe the fashion world he saw with his own eyes.

What word will I use to describe the fashion world in the future?

Anyway, he had inadvertently glimpsed the shadow in Alexander’s heart.

Although he couldn’t know exactly, he sensed that there must be a past event that left a significant scar on him.

He also decided that he would have to uncover it little by little over time.

After Alexander fell asleep on the bar table, Jaesung immediately called Elisa.

Elisa answered the phone quickly and immediately said she would send his executive secretary.

While waiting for the executive secretary to arrive, Jaesung suddenly muttered, “Ah, that’s right.”

He suddenly recalled the diagram he had picked up from the trash can in the atelier hallway.

‘Um? Kyle?’

As soon as he unfolded the neatly folded diagram, the name ‘Kyle’ written in one corner caught his eye. It was the name of the young tailor he had met at the atelier.

Jaesung began to examine the diagram with a serious expression.