Make it work

[anatural]

WHO: Korra & Chekov
WHAT: For this challenge, Chekov has been assigned the one model NO designer wants.

[It feels like more and more, Korra has to remind herself she's not a quitter.

When she first got the job as a model on Project Runway, she'd thought This is it. After years of being relegated to the sidelines, she was finally going to prove the nay-sayers wrong. In retrospect, she can't believe how naive she was. Being a model on Project Runway proved nothing; it just meant there were more people telling her You'll never make it as a model. Your boobs are too big. You look like a man. You're too emotional. She lives in a totally different zipcode from the flat-chested ghostly-pale waifs who are her fellow models.

That's why you're here, she reminds herself. Represent.

She repeats that mantra to herself like a prayer as she waits for Tim Gunn to introduce her to her designer.]

Comments

[candothat]

[This is it. It's the first challenge, the first time meeting the models, and Pavel Chekov's first chance to prove that he belongs here.

The Russian is excited in spite of the air of nervousness among the other designers. No one thinks that he, a seventeen year-old with no fashion background and the youngest contestant to appear on Project Runway, is a threat. His peers have written him off as a novelty thrown into the mix to boost ratings. He's eager to show them that he did not leave Saint Petersburg for New York City only to fail immediately.

Tim Gunn—as debonair in person as Pavel had imagined, if shorter—is assigning models to the designers at what appears to be random. The other contestants are awaiting their assignments nervously, likely hoping to work with one that suits their aesthetic. Chekov isn't worried; all of the girls are lovely and all of them are here because they are talented. He doesn't pay that much attention to the models until Tim waves one of them towards him. Pavel, you will be working with Korra for the duration of this competition.

She doesn't look like a model so much as an Amazon. Her shoulders and hips are broad, her features aren't delicate in the least, and she has to be the bustiest model of all time.

Chekov is uncomfortably aware of the other designers. Some of them shoot him pitying looks; a couple snort, perhaps amused by his ill luck. Designers are accustomed to working with the thin, flat-chested girls that usually walk the runway. Women with fuller figures are much more difficult to design for. More attention has to be paid to the body's natural contours, and fitting clothes properly can be nightmarish. Maybe she was assigned to him as a joke. Why not pair up the unlikeliest designer with the unlikeliest model? Surely the combination will lead to the kind of train wreck that makes for good television.

Anyone hoping for a train wreck is going to be disappointed because Chekov is undaunted. He might have to alter his plans—the structured, neatly tailored outfits that he tends to favor simply won't be possible with her figure and the time constraints—but one more challenge isn't going to stop him. The Russian ignores his fellow designers and smiles at his model.]

I'm Pavel Andreievich Chekov, hello. [He holds out a hand to her to shake, feeling slightly self-conscious. Several of the other designers have made comments about his age, lack of experience, and ridiculous accent, and he isn't eager to have yet another person say something snide.] I look forward to working with you, Korra.

[anatural]

In Soviet Russia, I look forward to working with you too — I mean, I look forward to working with you here too. [Korra flinches — God why do I let my mouth get away from me?!] I'm sorry; that came out wrong.

[She always does this when she gets nervous. It's one of the reasons she was drawn to modeling, actually — models don't have to talk much, not the way actresses or advocates or other public figures have to. It seemed like a great way to be an advocate for the things she believes in without too much risk of running her mouth. How little she knew.]

[candothat]

[The Soviet Russia joke is cringe-worthy. It's not the first time he's heard something along those lines recently, either, so he's quick to mask a wince with a smile (but maybe not quite quick enough). He was really hoping that he would establish a good rapport with his model. This didn't start out as planned.]

Is fine. [No, it's. Stupid English.] Ah—what is your modeling experience?

[anatural]

[Not quite quick enough, no, and Korra is ready to kick herself again.]

I was here last season. [After a moment, she admits reluctantly —] Ah, my designer got eliminated pretty quickly.

[candothat]

Still, you have more experience being a model here than I have being a designer here. [He's trying so hard to put a positive spin on this.]

I would like us to work well together. Is there anything that I can do to ensure that this happens?

[anatural]

Don't forget these guys. [Korra taps her arm muscles with an abashed grin. Designers hate altering their designs for her sizable bust, but it's actually her muscles that really drive them nuts. Korra can't count how many dress designs had their sleeves completely removed because the designer hadn't accounted for her muscles.]