Luisa

Luisa always wanted to be good at what she does. And why shouldn’t she be good at what she does, Luisa often thought. Luisa didn’t care for those things in life that people who live a bit slower get to enjoy, they weren’t for her. She was proud to say that fashion was in her blood, after all she was Italian. To go even further, despite her Southern name, she was from Milan; a city one could argue is the fashion capital of the world.

Luisa took on the position of assistant to fashion designer at one of London’s top fashion chains, Top Shop. Luisa would have much preferred assistant fashion designer and this is how she would introduce herself to people that would never find out that it was actually assistant to fashion designer. The job involved Luisa attending clothes markets, such as the ones held near Brick Lane, and taking photos of the best outfits that she could spot. She even thought fashion researcher might be a better title.

Luisa would identify people at the market by the clothes that they wore. Luisa spoke to a pink t-shirt in men sizes at one market concerning the colours typically assigned to a gender. Luisa laughed at a joke concerning the market crowds made by wool beanie on another day. Once as Luisa went over the photos, she struggled to remember the names and faces that belonged to the pictured clothe items but soon gave up and dismissed the thought, it was after all, fashion that she had in her blood.

Luisa wasn’t expecting for things to change when they suddenly did and she was caught unprepared. From across the market she noticed a black leather jacket on broad shoulders. Luisa wondered where the broad shoulders had come from and tried to correct herself to only notice the leather jacket. Moments passed until Luisa again noticed a black leather jacket on broad shoulders with a handsome face, perhaps even handsome and friendly.

Luisa thought about other things such as buttons and stitching and when the leather jacket came nearby, she asked if she could take a photo in her usual politie manner. Proud that it was now only a leather jacket, Luisa snapped away happily, sure that the fashion designer she assisted to would be pleased with her.

Luisa returned to the lab and developed the photos, forgetting about all the things that people that live slower enjoy. As the photographs started to show, Luisa came to the realization that all the photos of the leather jacket we’re instead of a handsome and friendly face. And she remembered that the face’s name was Alan.