Carrying A Cardboard Box - First Time
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of my story, just the plot. I'm playing with them and throwing them in different situations in life. AH.
BPOV
Tuesday, May 12 8:10 ante meridian.
Ugh. Why are you bailing on me, dear Blackberry? I need to tell my secretary to hold on a meeting for me. It's actually about a company wanting me to seal a deal with them. You know, like teaming up? It's kinda important to me, dear one.
I sighed, feeling completely hopeless. It's in the Summer of 2010, and I, Isabella Swan, the President of the Swan Group of Companies, is supposed to sign the partnership contract with the Cullen Corps. I am only here because my father, Charlie Swan, is currently at the hospital, being monitored because of his bad case of a heart illness. So, I am the one taking these things up. I am supposed to be the kid who works hard, and believe me or not, I am only 24 years old. I'm only meant to start at a low job if I were a normal kid, but no, I am the kid of the owner of the world-known company.
I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel, waiting for the traffic light to go green. I looked to my side and saw a man on the sidewalk. He looked filthy, he must had not showered for days. From what I could see, he had bronze coloured hair, and he seems pretty tall on how high he is while he's sitting, plus, I could also determine it because of his legs, which are pretty long. He seemed to look left and right, as if someone might catch him. He stopped and clutched a thing beside him. Oh, a cardboard box? I was confused. What would he do with it? But my eyes were driven out of that when I saw his fingers start to do something. It was like, his fingers are playing an instrument of some sort? A piano, perhaps? Then, after he taps the ground, he seemed to get a small paper beside him, plus a pencil and he wrote something down. Composing something? I highly doubt it. How could he compose something, if he hasn't heard it, which I'm sure of since he's tapping the concrete.
BEEP BEEP!
I heard the cars behind me horn out. I didn't notice that the light had turned green. I shook myself out of my thoughts and stepped on the gas pedal. I zoomed as fast as I could and drove towards my office. Even though I tried to shake myself out of those thoughts, it keeps on coming back. Added to that, are the questions that I wanted to be answered, but pretty sure it won't be.
Then a though came into my mind. The streets of New York had always been rowdy, always having street fights and other vile things. I don't want him to be killed or harmed. I consider him as an acquaintance now, even though we haven't officially met. Plus, he looks...innocent.
I closed my eyes a bit and opened them again. I passed by Burger King and after a few blocks, I'm at the huge tower which contains the whole Swan Group of Companies. I shut off the engine and threw the car keys in my bag. I almost ran out of the car, because it was already 8:15. I am so late. I locked the doors and headed towards the elevator. It was about to close, but I shouted for them to wait. Someone held the door and I thanked him. I told him I was on the top floor.
"Of course." He replied.
I waited, as the elevator music played. I tapped my shoe on the base of the elevator and waited impatiently for it to arrive on my floor.
DING!
I thanked him and ran out of the elevator. I met with my secretary on the front desk, panting.
"Jennie, are they there?" I asked her, even though I know what her answer was.
"Yes, Miss Swan. Now go!" She urged and pushed me towards the conference room. As I was approaching the door, I smoothened out my business clothes, fixed my hair and chin held up high, I went in the conference room. I smiled at the representing members of the Cullen Corps before sitting down on my chair. I proceeded with my apologies.
"I apologize for making you wait, respected members of the Cullen Corps. You see, I was trying to get a hold of Jennie, my secretary, but unfortunately, my Blackberry had decided to sleep and rushing here." I finished it, looking at them. All of them held smiles on their faces.
"It's not a big deal, Miss Swan. I am sure that this is not a regular occurrence, for everyone in your company has been telling us how responsible you are, for a young lady." The CEO of the Cullen Corps said. He was a male, looking like he was only at his 30's but I knew better. He was actually 46, turning 47 this September 6. Well, that's what they told me. He was dressed in a tuxedo, looking very clean. Opposite of the man I saw on the sidewalk. Isabella! I scolded myself. This is not the right time, nor place to have this kind of thinking. An office is only for business thoughts, always supposed to be business related.
"So, shall we start discussing?" I suggested. Way to go, Swan.
"Oh, yes. Here is our plan for the 2011.." Carlisle explained. He told me about what types of people were going to be there, how we are going to attract them and so on. I was trying to listen while he was trying to explain that to him, but I can't listen to him fully. A part of my mind somehow got into the topic of the man on the sidewalk. I can't believe how much he interest me. Isabella! For the second time now, get your mind in the business. I sighed quietly and tried to focus on the task at hand. I heard Carlisle Cullen explore more in detail about this upcoming joint project. I took some notes in my head about it, until he finished it.
"Well, Miss Swan, does this make you want to sign the contract?" He teased lightly. I smiled at him and held out my hand. He gave it to me and I took a pen from my pen holder. I took the cap off of my Limited Edition Mystery Masterpiece pen that I got from my dear friend, Jasper for my 21st birthday. You must think that he's crazy for giving me a pen, out of all things to give. Actually, this pen cost him 730,000 dollars. And that is crazy.
So, I re-read the contract, like what I'm supposed to do and looked for my name. I signed my signature over the line and capped my pen. I put it back and gave Carlisle back the contract. His face broke out into a beaming smile and he went beside his wife, Esme Cullen.
"I thank you, Miss Swan. I feel so honoured being in a partnership with your company." He said politely and gave me a smile.
"My pleasure, Carlisle. But now, I must head out. I have a lot of things to assess and whatnot. I apologize though, for not being able to freely talk with you and your wonderful wife." I complimented. They appreciated it and I head out. I went into my office, the largest one in the entire building. This office is actually my father's, but he gave me permission to use it. I sat down on the chair and started organizing the papers in front of me. I really don't like my secretary doing this for me. I feel like I'm slaving her, so here I am, trying to organize them. I put them in stack, based on how much they were important. Now, nice and clean.
I pressed the button for the intercom. I heard a voice speak through it.
"Yes, Miss Swan?" Jennie asked.
"Jennie, come here and report to me." I told her and shut the intercom. She knew what report means. It means that she should report the progress of the company, stocks, employees and lastly, my hectic schedule. I heard a knock and I clicked the button for the door lock. When she closed the door, I put it on lock again. I don't want disturbances.
"Well, Miss Swan, the company has been gaining more and more attention worldwide. Fierce, our fashion line is being bought by most teenagers nowadays, according to the survey that was conducted by the Fashion department. Reife, the extension of Fierce, is the most popular adult clothing store. The department suggests that we should create more outlets, since the managers of each outlet are saying that the store is always full, making the shoppers hard to choose. Next, our food business. All of them are doing good, except for Omega. Omega needs more bistros. Oh, our Technology department. They said that the shippers of the products we are reselling were demanding some sort of addition to their fees. They are holding back the stuff that we need to put now on our stores." I put my hand up, telling her to hold it. She smiled at me, understanding the sign.
Since when do the shippers hold back things? Ugh. They're making my life a lot harder. I dialled the number of the port where we were supposed to receive the appliances and gadgets we ordered. As I dialled, I asked Jennie what she had next. She told me about the progress of our upcoming Auto Show to showcase the newest Lioness cars we have; yes, we do create cars. We do not import them. Then, the Jewels department had reported that the sales were going down, and was being attracted by our current top competitor, Tiffany & Co. I need to find a way to market our-
"Hello?" I heard someone on the phone say.
"Ah, yes, this is Isabella Swan, President of the Swan Group of Companies. I would just like to know, if Jinxstar ship number four-three-seven is still there?" I inquired.
"Oh yes, Miss Swan. Would you like me to transfer the call to one of our porters there?"
"Sure."
Beep. Then, some weird song started playing. I motioned for Jennie to resume her reports.
"Okay, so the hospitals we have around New York has been receiving way too much patients. It's not a bad thing for the hospitals though, it's bringing us more mon- I mean, income." She cringed. She knew that I didn't like hearing the word money. It makes me feel like I'm such a money-whore. I mean, if she says, "it's bringing us more money" I feel like she's saying, "It's making you guys richer and you it's possible for you to not work and still live a very comfortable life."
"Hello? Miss Swan?" I heard a person in the phone say. I held up my finger, letting Jennie know that I'm talking to someone.
"Yes, Isabella Swan here. I just need to check about the shipping that my company should be receiving?"
"Ah, yes. It had caused quite a bit of a problem here. You see, the shippers had demanded extra 1000 dollars. Or else they wouldn't let your men get the stuff that you need." He informed me.
"Ah, okay. That is the problem. I'll put you on hold for a while, is that okay? I need to make an important phone call, and I'll be back." I compromised and he hummed in agreement. I pressed the 'hold' button and made another call. I skimmed through the list of numbers 'til I saw what I needed. I dialled the numbers and it rang.
"President's office of Solar Technologies, how may I help you?" I heard his secretary say her line.
"Bravo, Leah." I said, teasing her.
"Isabella Swan? You need to talk to Ja-I mean the president?" She slipped.
"Yes Leah. I would mention your little slip-up to Jacob." I said teasingly.
"HEY! Don't tell him, Bella!" She whined. I giggled quietly. I love making her whine.
"Just kidding. Transfer the call to him now, I need to speak to him urgently." I said and transformed my voice back to business type.
"Yes, Miss Swan." She said and I heard her press a button. I could hear the phone being picked up.
"Jacob Black speaking."
"Jake! You're Goddamn shippers are demanding an extra payment for the appliances and other gadgets!" I whined.
"Not again.." He whined. That happened 3 times prior to this one. I don't know which companies, but all I know is that happened 3 times already.
"Don't you like, pay them the right amount or something? They're always asking for more." I told him. I could feel him roll his eyes on me through the phone.
"Bella, you know I always pay them the right amount. Maybe even more. I think they're getting greedy. I should fire them."
I wanted to say, "Sure Jake. Tell me you'd fire them. Then when it happens again, you'll tell me because they begged on their knees and told him that they had a family to feed and give shelter, or else they'd end up on the streets. Yeah, sure. Go, fire them."
"Sure, I guess. Ugh, I'm getting sidetracked again. I'll tell them to give it or you'll fire them. I'm busy. 'kay, BYE!" I said and ended the call. I pressed the 'hold' button again to talk to the porter.
"Uh, hey. Do you mind lending your phone to one of the shippers? I need to speak with them." I asked him.
"No, not at all, Miss Swan. Here." I heard some shuffling of the phone and then a gruff voice answered.
"Miss Swan?"
"Yes, sir. I'm relaying a message from your boss here. He said that he would fire you if you don't give us our shipments. I highly suggest giving our shipments to us, and you talk to your boss."
He laughed nervously. "Ahaha..okay, Miss Swan. I'll..uh, give it to your men, now. Ha..ha. Nice talking to you, Bye!" I heard him say and the call was cut. How rude, I thought to myself as I put down the phone. I nodded at Jennie, letting her know that she could now continue reporting to me.
"Golden Rise, our condominium has built new condominium towers, 3 in California, 5 in Los Angeles, 1 in Nevada and 2 in Texas. We made sure that all of those will be bought, if you must know, Miss Swan. Remember, early this year, the party that we held for the opening of your hotel here in New York? Your father also instructed us to talk to some businessmen there, to entice them to buy our condominiums. A lot has confirmed and some of them introduced our condos to other businessmen around the country, so the condos will be bought."
"MoveForward Records has been recruiting new singers. We had them records some songs and we'll give them to the radio stations. We will also let out the songs in the internet and check how many downloads we've got. Oh! The music stores under the MoveForward Records is still in the rage, if that's how they call it now, and the albums of our star singers are being bought so many times. So, our sales there are going up. Lastly, MidnightDawn Publishing has been reproducing a lot of copies of your book, Miss Swan, because of the demand. Other than that, everything's great. That's all."
I nodded, looking straight ahead, staring at nothing. So far, all of the companies have been consistent, except for the jewellery. I need to ask the designers in that department as I would like to call it, to give me more designs. As far as I know, the designs have been redundant. We need a change. I think, we should go for simplicity, yet elegant, or truly grandeur.
"Schedule."
"Today, May 12, you have lunch with your father, 12 o'clock to one. You also have an appointment with Mr. Jenks, the acting president of the jewellery company. 3 o'clock to 5 o'clock. Then, you have the rest of the day free, Miss Swan. May 13, Wednesday up to May 15, Friday, clear. May 16, Saturday, you are going to be in the launching of the new outlet of SwanTech. It's just here in New York, don't worry. That would be half a day. After that, your father arranged a ball for no particular reason for you. He emailed that to me this morning. That is all." She said. I smiled and dismissed her. I pressed the button again to unlock the door. She went out and closed it.
I sighed, letting my body fall back on the chair. I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples. It's a good thing I have 3 days free. It's rare to have free days, since my father was admitted to the hospital. I spun my chair around and stopped when it's facing the glass wall. I opened my eyes and gazed at the busy roads of New York. Lots of cars, people crossing the roads and..
Hey! It's the man I saw earlier!
He was walking down the sidewalk, being avoided by the people. He was still carrying his box and he looked like he was searching for..food. He looked at one restaurant longingly and headed for the trash cans nearby. I don't know why, but I suddenly had the urge to go run down. As fast as I can run in my heels, I ran down the building. I stopped and turned left, where the walking escalator, that was supposed to be only used by carts being delivered up here whenever the elevator was unavailable. I pressed the button, and it moved. I ran while it was moving, giving me shorter distances to run through. I reached the ground floor, panting and rushed out of the double doors.
I looked left and right, searching for the guy. I saw him heading to one of those green bins and I ran. I crossed the road, not caring whether I was jaywalking, or I might get run over by a car. I was breathing heavily and I am sweating bullets right now. I was getting about 1 meter away from my destination when..
Crack!
I suddenly started to fall. I closed my eyes and hugged my upper body, bracing for the impact. But, it never came. Instead, I felt two strong arms hold my body, preventing me to fall. And those arms are smelly. I peeked using my left eye and saw that it was the man I saw on the road. But something was different. Like, he was a different person. He had emerald green eyes that shone so bright against the sun, a long, straight nose, full pink lips and strong jaw. He had unruly bronze hair, as well. I stared at him for what seems like forever, when he cleared his throat. Damn, he stinks.
I stood up and brushed myself. I'm not going to lie. Even though he looks totally perfect, except his clothes and the dirt on his body, he is stinky. But, (emphasizing the word 'but') you can still smell an undertone of like a pine-y and husky smell.
I noticed something. I feel like my body's not balanced. I looked down and saw what made me fall. The heel on my right shoe was cracked. I sighed and picked up the cracked heel. I stomped on the my left shoe and heard a cracking noise. Here, I broke the other one just so it would be balanced. I heard a melodious chuckle. Then, I remembered why I was here.
"C'mon." I simply said and grab his hands. My, they were soft. I started tugging on it, but he wouldn't budge. I looked at him and saw he was looking at me weirdly.
"What do you need from me, my lady?" He asked me. Woah, he sounds so...old. No, I don't mean his voice. I mean, the way he talks sounds so old. I decided to match his question with an old sounding answer.
"Why, dear sir, I am going to feed both of us. We are going to eat, even though it's only 10 in the morning. So, c'mon." I said and tugged on his hand again. His eyes darkened.
"I do not need pity." He said, in a deep voice, sounding insulted. Oh, shit.
"I..uh..no..I mean- Uh, I'm sorry." I stuttered and sighed in defeat. He caught me. But I wouldn't really call it pity, you know. It's more of a help than pity. I do feel kinda sorry for him, he lives on the streets. And God knows how much my heart breaks every time a see a person living on the streets, looking lost in this world, hopeless.
He stared at me blankly and his grip on his cardboard box got a lot tighter. His whole body was tense and he was somewhat shaking. He closed his eyes and he pinched the bridge of his nose using his free hand. He started pacing back and forth, back and forth. He did that for quite some time, too. I thought the ground beneath him would collapse from his walking.
"Leave. Now." He commanded. I feel slightly insulted, but I deserved it. I mean, I pitied him, if that's what he calls giving help. I turned back and started to head back to the building when I felt someone hold me back. I was spun around, my chocolate locks flying wildly across my face. A hand made its way to my face, separating the bundles of hair that had come to my face.
I heard him sigh and he let go of my hand.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be mean, it was- I mean, I got offended from some reason and- No, what I want to say is that I didn't mean to push you away or anything. You didn't have to go here and offer me food, I can find some food in the-" I placed my finger on his soft, pink lips, making him stop mid-sentence.
"I know." I whispered silently. I gazed into his eyes and he did the same with mine. I felt like something pass between us, but I don't know what it is. It's like my eyes and his eyes are conveying messages through eye contact. I can only guess what my eyes are saying. It probably says that I understand what he meant and he need not to be sorry, because when I look into his eyes, it shows regret and hope. Hope?
"Could we start over? Hello, I am Edward Cu- Masen. Edward Masen." He said and offered his hand. I took notice that he stumbled over his words when he said his surname. I wanted to ask him why he stumbled over saying his last name, but I didn't want to give him the impression that I was some nosy person.
"Isabella Swan. Nice to meet you, Edward Masen." I said and shook his hand. I smiled at him, grateful that he gave me a chance after the misunderstanding.
I noticed that while we were shaking hands, my hand seemed to fit with his perfectly. Like my hand was made just to fit his hand. And no, I did not feel a jolt of electricity when I shook hands with him. That's just way too fictional. But, instead of a jolt of electricity, I felt warmth spreading in me. No, it did not come from him, but I think he was the cause of it. I felt so warm inside.
I felt my pager beep in my pocket. I took it out and I saw a message. I hurriedly opened it and read it.
Lunch with Mr. Swan, twelve to one. ~Jennie.
I looked at my watch that is on my left wrist. Crap! It's already 11:30!
"I'm sorry Edward, but I have an appointment with my father. I guess I'll catch you sometime?"
"Sure, I guess. I mean, if we ever encounter each other on the streets of New York, that is."
I nodded at him and gave him a wave goodbye. He smiled in return and I turned around, walking towards my workplace. If we encounter each other?
I have a feeling it wouldn't be an if.
I feel just like a live wire
I've been thrilled through and through
Since i first met you
The stars that shine at night
Seem so more clear and bright
The world seems fresh and sweet
My life seems more complete
The Robins - Since I First Met You
Author's Note:
It would take me a week or two to get the next chapter done and uploaded. No promises. I mean, I have another story with me and I'm just a new writer here. I made this one, since I couldn't get this idea out of my head. I soon started typing, then I made this. This thing was almost unconsciously made. So, yeah. I'm typing up the next chapter, but I won't be able to finish it today. Last day of school tomorrow! I need to sleep early. :)
I need some online gaming time too. XD
Leave me reviews. I'm not usually this demanding, but I need to have at least, 10? or something. Gives me inspiration and it makes me now that people are actually reading my stories and giving time to spare me some lovely reviews. OHYAH, include your name there and if you were lucky, I might include you in my story, because the truth is, people, I need names. I don't want to put John Smith or something, not that it's bad, it's just wayyyyy too common. The point is, leave me a review with your name.
Who read the whole A/N?
Tata. :)
xx, Allison Emma.