C A R E E R: Intern @ Elle Magazine
N E I G H B O R H O O D: The Arts District
A E S T H E T I C ☆ Color coordinated closets, stilettos on the concrete, little white lies, the glossy pages of a magazine, shifty eyes and trusting no one, coffee runs, solemn goodbyes, pastel sweaters and messy buns ☆
P L A Y E D B Y: Charlotte (She/her) | 23 | GMT
Velvet silk, Cartier diamonds and purebred stallions were the starter pack for a Park Avenue Princess. Born in the concrete jungle that she would have loved to have called her kingdom, Lucy learned quickly she could get all the things that she wanted without ever having to work for it. Spoiled by her parents, the girl grew up self-indulged and determined to always have finery at her fingertips. Watching her mother walk around in the finest designs, Lucy developed a penchant for fashion which would grow throughout her life. Vivian Crawford was a lady of leisure, who bathed in champagne and left red kiss marks on her husband’s cheek. To Lucy, she was more in an instructor than a maternal figure, each night she was given a lesson rather than a bedtime story. It moulded her into the woman that she would one day become.
The pearl of her father’s world, Lucy could do no wrong. Showered in his affections and given gifts daily, she was a modern day princess living in her gilded castle. Sitting on old stone steps devouring french macaroons and giggling with her best friends, it was hard to imagine that her life could be anything but luxurious. Her nose turned up at street vendors and beggars, they were bugs to be squashed beneath her designer flats. Before Lucy even turned thirteen, her words were honeyed and her intentions masked. The girl did not realise how much she would need those traits in the future. It came with an abrupt knock at the door and the sound of her father shouting from his office. Officers holding handcuffs escorted the man away, accusing words of embezzlement and fraud being thrown at David Crawford. She had sat at the top of the staircase in their townhouse, clenching her merino wool sweater in her hands.
Childhood friends were quick to turn their back on her, shoving her from their circle as soon as the scandal hit. And her mother, whose entire fortune came from the Crawford side of the family was left penniless. When her mother said that there was nothing left, Lucy wore her finest black dress to symbolize the mourning of her wealth. To her, each garment that she wore was an expression of herself and as she spend her years watching Sex and the City and all other high fashion dramas, she knew the impact that style could have. They moved in with her grandparents in California, a cramped space with gaudy furnishings. If it were Lucy, she would have burned every item in the house and restarted from scratch. As she lay in the single bed with broken springs, the former heiress knew that she needed to get herself out of the hovel.
Walking around California, she held her head up as though she were still on the Upper East Side wearing big labels and setting trends. People laughed at her aspirations, said that she did not have what it takes. When they weren’t looking she made sure to hit them where it hurt, their high school reputation. Had it not been for her own bite, the public school she went to would’ve eaten her alive. Lucy was not one for shrinking away in the shadows and the popular girls were getting on her nerves. So, when poor Alexis Bloor was not looking, her boyfriend was stolen right from under her feet. A rumour was started about Alexis and before too long, Lucy had cemented her place within the high school as Queen Bee, with a quarterback boyfriend beside her.
The longest essay she ever wrote was for magazine internship applications, and she got one of her classmates to write most of it for her. It was what she wanted to do more than anything in the world, she wanted to touch fine fabrics again and dress the rich and famous. But, she wanted the quickest and easiest route there. To gain minimal recognition and keep her enthusiasm alive, Lucy styled outfits and posted them on instagram. With her one hundred thousand followers, she received enough likes to know that she was onto something. It may not be the notoriety that she was looking for, but it was a start. Weekends were spent working as a retail assistant at Burberry, only because it looked good on her resume and she got a staff discount.
When she walked into the interview wearing her Burberry dress, Lucy felt invincible. That is until she glanced around and saw all the well put together competition. She kept on pushing, narrowing her eyes at every person who dared to stand in her way and silently vowed to ruin them if they thought they had a shot. The competition continued to whittle down, Lucy tugging at the hems of fabric and spilling coffee, accusing others of not having integrity, she did absolutely everything that she could to make sure that the finish line was in sight. Poor Celene ought to have seen it coming, Lucy had given subtle hints along the way that the only winner was going to be her. It had been a frustration all along to see how at ease the other woman was, the calibre of taste was impressive and it was a rivalry that she needed to end. So when Vivian slipped class a pills into her daughter’s bag, Lucy was sure to make sure they ended up on exactly the right person. It was done during an offering of well-wishes, encouragement from one applicant to another…pure fakery.
Heading through the glass doors every morning with the Elle logo above her head, Lucy finally felt like she was on the right path. It didn’t matter how many people that she had stepped on to get where she was, she cared about no other, it was only her that truly counted. It was truly a wonder that she had any friends at all since she was consumed by herself, but occasionally she did listen to others. She wasn’t all bad, was she? Lucy knew that those intern hopefuls certainly thought that she was, but it was her manolo’s that click clacked against the floor every morning and not theirs. If only her daddy could see her now. Too bad he was paying for his crimes, yet she vowed to never get caught in her own.
Tenacious, manipulative, conniving.
Passionate, idealistic, imaginative.
Some may assume that Lucy is exceptionally sweet, others may think that she’s more cunning than a snake. People see what she wants them to see: the fashionista, the hard worker, but never the liar…not until it’s too late. From growing up in New York, Lucy learned to have a sharpness to her words and determination in her veins. The luxury of her upbringing meant that she was self indulgent, caring so little for anyone else and yet being so concerned with her own welfare. It was lonely way to live her life and it made her closed off when she moved to L.A, her nose was upturned and she thought everyone beneath her. Lucy wants the world to bow to her commands, that all her dreams should come true and nothing stand in her way. For those few that she does let close, Lucy will never trust them implicitly. Secrets are fun, so long as she never shares her own. In the world of business she’s dedicated, but quick to avoid long routes. Up until she started interning at Elle, every other job she had felt like a chore. Even working at Burberry was tiresome, although it gave her the benefits of a fifty percent discount. Forward thinking, Lucy is always looking for that next step and dreams of a bright future. She imagines herself on film sets, or a tv show like Dynasty or Riverdale, something with longevity and the ability to get her name in lights. Her determination far surpasses her work ethic, but fortunately she’s passionate about fashion and that is something that makes her get up every day
HELENA MAXWELL (friend; unknowingly being used by Helena)
