Chapter One
The Interview
I'm shaking, I can't help it, I just feel so nervous. I've been waiting for this interview for weeks, and now that I finally have it, I find myself trying to come up with ways to escape. I stumble as I walk into the spacious office building, and I have to catch myself by placing my hand on a large marble statue.
"Please do not touch, Ms. Sakura." The voice is cold and high pitched; I look up into the bitter green eyes of a young woman, no older than me, behind a large oak desk. She flips through a stack of paper in front of her.
"You're here to meet with Mr. Hyuga, right?" she asks, in her cold, impersonal voice. I smile and nod, trying to look agreeable, she rolls her eyes.
"Sit over there please." She says, motioning to an uncomfortable looking leather chair, situated behind a tiny, elegant coffee table. I do as I'm told, and restlessly tap my fingers on the polished wood of the table, it's cold and smooth under my fingers, I smile.
"Would you like something to drink Ms. Sakura?" asks the bitter woman behind the desk. I nod
"Coffee would be nice." The woman nods, and disappears into a small room behind her desk, emerging moments later with a tray.
She places it in front of me with stiff formality and doesn't return my smile when I thank her. Perhaps I should talk to Mr. Hyuga about the attitude of his employees. I smile to myself as I pour cream into my coffee, thinking how wonderful it would be if Mr. Hyuga immediately took a liking to me, how I might rise from a lowly intern to a vice president in no time. I bit my lip to keep from giggling.
The office door swung open as I sipped delicately at my coffee (now more sugar than actual coffee) and straightened my back, trying to look professional, and feminine, and like the kind of girl that Mr. Hyuga would like to hire.
"You'll pay for this, you son of a bitch!" I jumped, and looked at the door.
The man standing there, his hands clinched into fists, shaking with undisguised rage, is rather handsome. His blue-black hair is standing up all over the place, reminiscent of porcupine quills, and his gray eyes are narrowed into predatory slits. A tiny star shaped scar, or maybe it's a tattoo, sits high up on his cheek. Yes, he's handsome, but he's nothing in comparison to the man leaning nonchalantly in the doorway.
Mr. Hyuga.
His eyes are red, but cold somehow, and gleaming with wicked amusement. He is having fun at this man's expense. His full lips are pressed into a hard line, his back is straight, and his long, slender hands hang idly at his sides. He's fit, but not overly muscular, and he fairly takes one's breath away.
"I'm sure I will Mr. Andou. Ms. Shouda, can you please show Mr. Andou to the door?" His voice is polite and distant, but under that is a note of cruel amusement. Becoming familiar with him will not be as easy as I thought.
The woman, Ms. Shouda, rises to her feet, her eyes alight with admiration, her attitude doing a complete 180. She smiles lightly at Mr. Andou.
"This way please." She chirps, leading him to the door, her hips swaying alluringly. Mr. Hyuga doesn't even glance at her, I feel a smile tug at my lips, but smother it when I feel Mr. Hyuga's eyes on me.
"Ms. Sakura I presume?" his eyes, still relentlessly cold, travel down my body, making me feel very young, and over exposed. I nod, and get to my feet, clasping my hands in front of me, and reminding myself not to twiddle my thumbs. He nods his head towards his office, and I follow him in, forgetting my still half-full coffee on the table behind me.
He takes his place behind a large, intimidating oak desk, and motions me to sit down in a plush, maroon chair in front of him. I do as I'm bidden, and am relieved to find that it is much more comfortable than the leather chair out in the lobby. He studies me for a moment, unnervingly, tapping his long slender fingers on his desk.
"What made you want to apply for this, Ms. Sakura?" he asked, his eyes bored and cool. I swallowed, and offered what I hoped was a confident smile.
"I'm interested in Alice Publishing, I have been since I was small, my Grandfather's book was published through your company, and he's always spoken kindly of you…er, I suppose it was your father, they got along well, though I never met him." I say, my gaze drops to my hands; I clasp them and unclasp them in my lap.
"Is your Grandfather Sakura Itsuki?" Mr. Hyuga asks, surprise passes through his eyes, but only briefly. I nod, smiling gently and meeting his eyes with renewed confidence.
"You are Sakura Mikan then, yes?" he asks. It's my turn to look surprised, I nod.
"My father told me about you." He says by way of explanation, shrugging his broad shoulders.
"Seems like this was fate then." I say with a smile. He looks at me dourly.
"I don't believe in anything so meaningless as fate." My mouth goes dry.