Redeeming The Golden Ticket To Life

[POV Pierro]

"Pierro!"

"Pierro!"

"Pierro, are you with me in here? Pierro!"

"What?" 

I finally snapped out of my daze.

"Where are you lost these days? After your last visit, I always find you sketching the same design over and over again. Tell me honestly, have you run dry of inspiration?" the women in front of me did not let go.

I sighed.

"I tink I tink I found my moose."

"What? Are you sure? I looked up this dress design," I looked at her, "please do not hate me, I wanted to see for myself, what made you so obsessed? So I searched it and I found that it was a dress worn by CEO Hu's Wife of the Hu Corporation."

"you rrreal-ly walk de extrrra mile, ooh"

"Come on, Pierro, I give you that dress is really cool, but we have a deadline to work with. We have to get designing our new line for Annual Haute Couture Fashion Week. We have under a week to get our designs ready. 

Pierro, work with me here, will you?"

The woman in front of me is my granddaughter, as well as the manager of my fashion house.

She is a proud Italian woman, with olive hairs and pale blue eyes. She takes mostly after her mother but she inherited her father's height. She is 5'8'' tall with heels that's way over 6'.

"Loocy dearrr-a, tis time either I ave to worrrk with de same designoi of tat drrres-s-a, orrr I wil-l ave to sit out of tis Fashion Week-a. I cano't look past er-a. oi fashion sense as oon-wit-tingly inflooenced me."

"Are you serious?" she asked with some determination.

"Sì"

"Fine, tell me where to book your tickets for, we will fly down to your muse right now."

There was no hesitation in her manners, once she decides on something, she will walk forward unhesitant. I really like her conviction as well as her strong character. Thus for the last five years, I asked the little girl to manage the fashion house.

As she walked out of the room, I looked at my drawing pad.

There was a rough sketch of the dress worn by Mrs Hu, that night.

The more I look at the sketch, the more I am overwhelmed by the ingenuity of it. I find it as a beautiful puzzle whose answers are beheld by Mrs Hu, the mysterious designer.

After coming back from Country C, I always find myself getting caught in my blind side by that girl's passion for design and fashion.

I am so looking forward to this visit. 

****

Airport, Capital City, Country C-

"Grandpa, we are here, so from here, where do we go?"

"I ave de ad-drrres-s with me, let oos get a cab-a, firrrst-a."

She swiftly called a cab for us.

We settled in, as the driver asked us, "Where to Sir?"

"We want to go to The Residency Area, towards the East of the city."

The driver looked at me, "Are you sure, you have to go to The Residency Area?"

"Yes, any problem?" I asked the driver.

"No problem, but I can't drive you inside. Only to the outside gate. It is a private property with military standard security. Once we reach there, call your friend to verify your identity, before you even try to walk in."

"Why all the shenanigans? Are we entering a secret lair or what?" Lucy joked light-heartedly.

I quickly clench my fist around her wrist, to warn her.

She looked at me and then simply looked outside the cab's window taking in the cityscape.

We drove for over an hour or so, as we moved towards the East of the city, we discovered that they are to be slowly getting deserted and dominated by the mountains and green landscape.

There were more trees and the city was left far behind. The roads looked empty as practically there was no traffic or cars to be seen on the road.

It was like we were moving more to a nature reserve than a residential area, where people live!

The cab slowed down, I looked outside the window and was greeted by a high wall with steel gates and ample security to rival a military base.

As the cab pulled over, a uniform guard walked towards it.

He came closer and knocked on the window at the back. I looked around. He knocked again.

I lowered the windshield.

"Hello, are you Sir Pierro?" the guard asked. 

I was taken by surprise, How did he know who I am?

"Yes, that's me," I answered.

"Good, good. Madame is waiting for you inside. A car is here to take you to your destination, Sir Pierro. Please follow me," he said and pointed towards an SUV parked right on the other side of the gate.

"Where are we?" Lucy asked me in a hushed voice.

"We are right where we are supposed to be. Follow me closely and do not speak a word until I say so," I advised her. Knowing her temperament, it is best to do early damage control as much as possible.

We paid the cab driver and climbed into the other car. The car moved deep into the Residential Area.

After about fifteen minutes, we stopped in front of a villa. Outside the gate, a gentle girl in pastel green colour maxi dress, with hairs tied up in a messy knot, and wild tresses of hair running loose from the knot and playing with the breeze, was standing in wait. As the car came to a stop, she approached the car.

"Ciao Pierro! è molto tempo che non ci si vede. Come stai? Prima di tutto, lascia che ti chieda scusa per tutti gli imbrogli che hai passato. Per favore scusa mio marito, mi tratta come una fragile bambola di vetro, che sparirà nel nulla in qualsiasi momento. Quindi tutti questi livelli extra di protezione," she apologised.

(Hello Pierro! long time no see. How are you? First and foremost, let me apologise to you for the whole shenanigans you went through. Please excuse my husband, he treats me like a fragile glass doll, who will disappear in a thin air anytime. So all these extra layers of protection.)

"Mio bellissimo angelo, sei scusato di tutte le accuse. Conosco il CEO Hu da molto tempo e so quanto possa essere possessivo quell'uomo per te!" I replied.

(My beautiful angel, you are excused of all charges. I have known CEO Hu for a long time and I know how possessive that man can be for you!)

"Please come in," she welcomed us into her home.

"Ms Bai Chang, per favore, in contra mia nipote Lucy. È la manager della mia casa di moda e il mio attuale capo," I introduced Lucy to her, while I cracked a few jokes to make the atmosphere relaxed.

(please meet my granddaughter Lucy. She is the manager of my fashion house as well as my current boss.)

"Welcome Lucy, please make yourself comfortable," she directed us to a parlour and invited us to take a rest.

"Sir Pierro, you are a busy man. How did you make time to fly down and look for this housewife? Don't you have a Fashion Week to attend in a week?" She cut right to the point.

"Ms Bai Chang, I guess I require your help to even put out a design for the upcoming event," I admitted to her honestly.

"Why sir? What happened?" she asked.

The girl sitting across from me looked so exact and beautiful. As I got to look at her closely, I realised that she is wearing a self-designed dress. The dress looks simple but it is most often difficult to reach simplicity. She is truly my muse. I didn't go wrong with it.

"Ms Bai Chang, scusa la mia digressione ma sento che sei la mia Musa e non riesco a pensare ad altro se non al tuo design e ai vestiti che hai fatto e indossato, l'ultima volta che ti ho incontrato," I stated to her clearly.

(excuse my digression but I feel you are my Muse and I can't think of anything other than your design and the clothes you made and wore, the last time I met you.)

"I understand, immagino che tu abbia un programma serrato. Non sprecherò il tuo tempo. Lascia che ti accompagni nel mio studio e possiamo lavorare insieme. Sorprendiamo il mondo con dei bellissimi pezzi," she answered unhesitantly.

(I guess you are on a tight schedule. I will not waste your time. Let me walk you to my studio and we can get to work together. Let us surprise the world with some beautiful pieces.)

"I like you, Ms Shui. You are my type of gal. let us have a pleasant and successful collaboration," Lucy spoke as she offered her hand to Mrs Hu as they shook to establish a collaboration.

"Fine, as we have put the groundwork let me take you to the studio without any further delays," Bai Chang turned and walked ahead of us as she directed us to her studio to get down to real work.