3 The First Impressions
Once your heart starts to mingle with the affairs of your mind, expect the unexpected.
Natsuki went straight to her table and then she eyed Shizuru who was busy greeting the other people in Natsuki's department. She saw Shizuru smiling at everyone and easily making friends. Natsuki's brows furrowed.
"Viola-san, time is gold in my department," Natsuki called out. Shizuru heard her name and she walked briskly yet gracefully towards Natsuki's table. "Take a seat."
"I didn't expect this turn of events but it's not bad at all," Shizuru thought while looking at Natsuki. She couldn't help but smile. Just a few hours ago, she was looking at the girl's picture and now she's right in front of her. Her investigative mind started doing its old habit.
"I think she's about my age. I'm taller than her with the heels that I'm wearing. Well-defined jaws. Beautiful skin. Very formal. Cute nose. Intense forest green eyes," Shizuru's thoughts went on until she heard Natsuki coughed. It seems that she's done reading the entire resume.
"I need a report to be accomplished before 11:00 am tomorrow. I'll present the report on the executive meeting by 1:30 pm. That desk will be yours," Natsuki said while pointing at a table a few steps away from her own. "All the files that you need are already downloaded on the computer that you would be using. Reports in the past years are filed on the shelves to your right. I expect you to work during work hours and not chat idly with your office mates. You can now start. I want to see if your doing things properly by before 5:00 pm."
Shizuru looked at her watch. It's 11:00 am. "Okay, I'll start now. Where can I get tea?"
"Tea?" Natsuki asked, confused by the question coming from a secretary.
"Yes, I can work better if I have tea around," Shizuru replied with a straight face. Shizuru saw that there was a fridge in Natsuki's office and a water dispenser.
"Is she serious?" Natsuki thought, "I'm the boss here. She's not supposed to demand for things. Besides, it's her first day." Natsuki glared at Shizuru. She thought that by glaring, the woman might just take back her request for tea.
"Is there something on my face?" Shizuru asked. Natsuki was taken aback and she touched her temples as a response.
"No, it's perfect," Natsuki absent-mindedly replied almost in a whisper. Shizuru heard her clearly and smiled. "I only have coke in the fridge. I don't have tea."
"I'll just ask the other employees if they have tea and then I'll immediately start with this report," Shizuru declared. She then stood up and went to the cubicle of the middle-aged woman who talked to her a while ago. The woman, who introduced herself as Maria, offered her a box of tea bags and she beamed. Natsuki watched her from afar. Soon Shizuru was walking back towards her own table. Natsuki tried to distract herself by reading the papers on her table but no matter what she did, she couldn't stop herself from looking at her new secretary.
"Honey-colored hair. Taller than me because of her pointed shoes. Flawless-skin. Smart-looking," Natsuki thought. "She talks to me as if I'm not her boss. I know there's something about her... That's it! She doesn't look like a secretary! She doesn't fit the profile," Natsuki stood up abruptly as if she discovered something.
Shizuru took hot water from the dispenser unaware of what Natsuki was doing. She was confident that she could finish the report because all the data and the information are gathered. All she needs is to organize the information. She's been a Kaichou during her school days and making reports is something that she has mastered. She placed the cup with the tea bag on the countertop beside the fridge. Soon her thoughts wandered to the article that she needs to accomplish in two months time. "What shall I write about? Hmm. Maybe I could humor Haruka by writing something like Executives ought to be pretty" Shizuru giggled. She was about to taste the tea when…
"Viola-san!"
Shizuru may seem calm most of the time but she's someone who gets easily startled especially when she's too focused on thinking about something. Upon hearing her name, she mechanically turned around and her tea spilled on the sleek suit of the person behind her.
"Aw! Aw! Hot!" Natsuki jumped. She felt the hot tea on her top and she quickly removed her stained vest leaving her button up shirt. She slightly pulled the damp cloth to avoid contact from the skin on her chest. She lowered her head on her chest and blew puffs of air on her wet skin.
"I'm so sorry Kuga-san!" Shizuru said with a really sorry face. Her eyes were suddenly wet and without thinking she wiped the tea above Natsuki's chest with her hanky. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Natsuki began to blush. She felt the blood spreading on the skin below her neck and up to her cheeks. It was not because of the hot tea that spilled on her skin. It was because of the dragging cold fingers of Shizuru as the secretary tries her best to wipe off the tea.
Natsuki took a step back. She wanted to curse but Shizuru's face prevented her from doing so. Her brain tells her to fire Shizuru at once but when she opened her mouth nothing came out. She then went straight to the wash room and cursed as soon as she managed to turn her back from Shizuru.
"Now I made her mad," Shizuru said to herself. "She'll fire me once she gets cleaned up." Shizuru called the janitor to wipe the floor.
"What happened?" Maria asked as soon as Shizuru walked out of the office.
"I accidentally spilled hot tea on Kuga-san," Shizuru said. Those who heard her wore a shocked expression and soon a series of questions were thrown at her.
"Did she fire you?"
"Did she throw something at you?"
"Did she say you're dumb or stupid?"
Shizuru didn't know who to answer so she just said, "She just went to the wash room."
"Really? No tantrums?" Maria asked, "Now that's a first."
"I better get back. For all we know, she might fire me."
The janitor finished wiping the floor and Shizuru thanked her. Natsuki's not back yet. Shizuru made another cup of tea which she brought to her table. She sipped tea to calm herself and then she went to the shelves and took out some reports accomplished in the past months. She looked at the direction of the wash room but still Natsuki isn't coming out. Shizuru remembered that she has an ointment for burns on her bag. She took it out and placed it on Natsuki's table and then she began to work on the report.
A few more minutes passed and Natsuki finally came out of the wash room. She went directly to the fridge passing on front of Shizuru's table. Natsuki took out a coke-in-can and pulled the tab. Natsuki downed the soda and threw the can cruelly on the trash can beside the fridge. She has to show that she's mad. No one messes with Kuga Natsuki. She has to give Shizuru a good talking or else she might get the wrong idea that her boss is a softie. Natsuki readied herself as she walked toward Shizuru's table.
"Kanin na Kuga-san. Before you fire me, at least let me help you with your report so you would have something to present tomorrow in the executive meeting," Shizuru said apologetically. Her eyes pleading and she wore a pout.
"Natsuki, since when did your senses became too particular to the details of a person's appearance?" Natsuki said to herself. She couldn't yell at her secretary. The tea was spilled on her and yet she feels like she would appear like the devil if she hauls over the coals to Shizuru. Natsuki found it difficult to deal with a person who is just too nice.
"I-I was just going to say be careful next time," Natsuki replied passively. Shizuru blinked. She watched the forest green eyes roll on one side as if avoiding her gaze. She stopped on working for a while to gauge Natsuki's temper.
"I'm sorry. I just get easily startled so I'll have to ask you not to startle me next time," Shizuru replied almost inaudibly. She wasn't sure if it's okay to answer back.
"I'll take note of that," Natsuki said as she sat back on her chair to attend to her paper works. She noticed that there was an ointment on her table. "What could this be?" she mumbled. As if on cue, Shizuru noticed that Natsuki was wondering about the ointment that she suddenly found on her table. Shizuru stopped from working. She stood up and walked around her table to talk to Natsuki.
"That's an ointment for burns," Shizuru explained as she eyed the skin below Natsuki's neck, that's where she accidentally spilled her tea. "It feels cool on the skin. It's yours."
"Uhm, t-thanks," Natsuki replied, not knowing what to say, "I'll use it then." Natsuki turned the cap of the small tube and squirted some on her index finger. She then began applying the ointment on the skin below her clavicle. Shizuru was amused at Natsuki's rough manner of applying ointment as if she was removing dirt. Shizuru giggled and Natsuki raised her brow at her.
"Here, let me," Shizuru said as she took a step closer to her boss's table and in the blink of an eye she was standing in front of her sitting boss. There was at least a foot that separates them and yet both of them felt awkward. Shizuru decided to ignore the change in atmosphere. She reminded herself that she just wants to help her boss. Shizuru took the ointment from Natsuki's fingers and thankfully her boss doesn't seem to be against her administering first aid. Natsuki sighed heavily. And then Shizuru began to smoothly apply the ointment on red areas below Natsuki's neck.
Natsuki felt the gentle, circular movement of Shizuru's index finger. Shizuru was focused on doing her job unaware of the effect of her closeness to the seemingly passive Natsuki. The door unexpectedly opened at that moment and Natsuki almost jumped to her feet. Reito saw that Shizuru was standing too closely in front of Natsuki. His eyes narrowed but he tried to smile to hide his suspicion.