Disclaimer: I do not own Hana Yori Dango, so please don't sue me.
A/N: I'm back! This chapter is dedicated to my first reviewers namely: Toinks, coral_bluz, and piglet. My heartfelt thanks for your encouraging comments. May your tribe increase and I hope you support this fic to the end! ^_^
CHAPTER 2 - HANDSOME BUT OBNOXIOUS COFFEE GUY
A week later, I was busy at my desk attending to my backlog of paperwork when I received a phone call from Rui. "Hey you," I greeted cheerfully. "What's up?"
"Tsukasa arrived from the States yesterday. We're all meeting up tonight so you girls can meet him, remember?"
"Oh yeah. Are we meeting at the usual place?"
"Nah. Soujiro and Akira wanna check out this new club uptown called 'Ambrosia.' You know it?"
"I've read about it. Newest place to go to see and be seen."
"Shizuka and I can fetch you from work if you want."
"No, don't. I still have a ton of paperwork to catch up on so I might be a little late. Don't worry, I'll take a cab and find it."
"Okay. But don't be too late okay?"
"I won't."
=========
It was already dark out when I left my place of work. Thankfully I was able to hail a cab at once. Unfortunately we got stuck in the Friday night traffic so I was running very late when I finally got uptown. Before proceeding to Ambrosia, I stopped by a nearby Starbucks to get myself an iced mocha java for a much-needed caffeine boost. I was running towards the club as fast as my high-heeled shoes would allow me when I collided against someone coming from the opposite direction. In seeming slow-motion I watched as the plastic cup of my iced mocha java flew into the air , its contents splashing all over the place. I got up as gracefully as I possibly could from the pavement and sighed in relief when I saw that my clothes were dry and coffee-free. But the sigh of relief turned into a horrified gasp when I saw the guy I collided with was still flat on his butt on the ground, a light brown stain swiftly spreading on his white button-down shirt. His look of confusion slowly turned into one of red- faced anger when he saw the culprit of the disaster he was now in --- me. "What the hell?!!! Do you always run without looking where you're going?!!"
"I'm terribly sorry, please forgive me, it was an accident!" I sputtered as I offered him my hand to help him off the ground.
He ignored my hand and got up by himself. When he had drawn himself to his full height (he was tall, almost a full head taller than me, even if I was already wearing heels), I fished for my hankie in my bag and tried to dab some of the coffee off his shirt although I knew my efforts were useless. Despite the awkward situation, I couldn't help but notice how handsome he was. His longish curly hair was cut stylishly to frame his tan face. I found myself drawn to his expressive eyes, eyes which were now fiery in anger. Although he had a reckless air about him, he had a commanding presence because of his impressive height and well-toned body. I was still apologizing profusely when he brushed my hand off his shirt and said frostily, "Be thankful your coffee was cold or else you'd have a lawsuit on your hands."
With that he coldly turned away and strode across the street. "I said I was sorry!" I shouted to his retreating back. Still shaken by the encounter, I took several deep breaths then made my way to Ambrosia to meet my friends.
The place was packed with the Friday night crowd but I managed to find them in a secluded booth far from the noisy dance floor after several minutes.
"Late as usual," Soujiro drawled as they made some room for me in the booth.
I made my apologies and was about to tell them the story of my encounter with Handsome But Obnoxious Coffee Guy when I remembered the reason we were meeting tonight. "Where's Tsukasa? I thought he'd be here?"
Akira made a face. "He got tired of waiting for you, that's why he left."
My face fell upon hearing this. "Oh. Too bad. I wanted so much to meet him."
Shizuka reached over to pinch Akira playfully in the arm. "Don't listen to him. He's just kidding you. Tsukasa went to get a cup of coffee at Starbucks. The jetlag was starting to make him sleepy."
At the mention of Starbucks my pulse rate quickened as I was reminded of the fiasco earlier.
"So," I whispered conspiratorially to Shizuka, "is he cute?"
."Very. A certified hottie!" she winked at me.
Rui nudged her and asked, "What are you two whispering about?"
"Nothing," we said at the same time, then giggled.
"How long does it take to get a cup of coffee? Soujiro, call his cell phone and ask him where the hell he is. Tell him there's a babe waiting to meet him here." Akira flashed me a hundred-watt smile.
Soujiro made the call and hung up with a puzzled expression on his face. "He said he's on his way back. Said something about having to buy a shirt at the Gap store a few blocks down before they closed for the night.."
Shizuka was asking me something about work so I wasn't able to catch what Soujiro said.
Several minutes later Soujiro stood up. "Yo Tsukasa! Finally! Hey man, I can't believe you changed your shirt just because I told you there's a babe waiting to meet you! This is Tsukushi. Tsukushi, meet our friend Tsukasa."
I rose from my seat and turned around to meet the new arrival. The smile on my face transformed into a grimace of horror as I found myself face to face with my Handsome But Obnoxious Coffee Guy.
His expression of dismay equaled mine as we pointed to each other and gasped in unison, "You?!!!"
A/N: I'm back! This chapter is dedicated to my first reviewers namely: Toinks, coral_bluz, and piglet. My heartfelt thanks for your encouraging comments. May your tribe increase and I hope you support this fic to the end! ^_^
CHAPTER 2 - HANDSOME BUT OBNOXIOUS COFFEE GUY
A week later, I was busy at my desk attending to my backlog of paperwork when I received a phone call from Rui. "Hey you," I greeted cheerfully. "What's up?"
"Tsukasa arrived from the States yesterday. We're all meeting up tonight so you girls can meet him, remember?"
"Oh yeah. Are we meeting at the usual place?"
"Nah. Soujiro and Akira wanna check out this new club uptown called 'Ambrosia.' You know it?"
"I've read about it. Newest place to go to see and be seen."
"Shizuka and I can fetch you from work if you want."
"No, don't. I still have a ton of paperwork to catch up on so I might be a little late. Don't worry, I'll take a cab and find it."
"Okay. But don't be too late okay?"
"I won't."
=========
It was already dark out when I left my place of work. Thankfully I was able to hail a cab at once. Unfortunately we got stuck in the Friday night traffic so I was running very late when I finally got uptown. Before proceeding to Ambrosia, I stopped by a nearby Starbucks to get myself an iced mocha java for a much-needed caffeine boost. I was running towards the club as fast as my high-heeled shoes would allow me when I collided against someone coming from the opposite direction. In seeming slow-motion I watched as the plastic cup of my iced mocha java flew into the air , its contents splashing all over the place. I got up as gracefully as I possibly could from the pavement and sighed in relief when I saw that my clothes were dry and coffee-free. But the sigh of relief turned into a horrified gasp when I saw the guy I collided with was still flat on his butt on the ground, a light brown stain swiftly spreading on his white button-down shirt. His look of confusion slowly turned into one of red- faced anger when he saw the culprit of the disaster he was now in --- me. "What the hell?!!! Do you always run without looking where you're going?!!"
"I'm terribly sorry, please forgive me, it was an accident!" I sputtered as I offered him my hand to help him off the ground.
He ignored my hand and got up by himself. When he had drawn himself to his full height (he was tall, almost a full head taller than me, even if I was already wearing heels), I fished for my hankie in my bag and tried to dab some of the coffee off his shirt although I knew my efforts were useless. Despite the awkward situation, I couldn't help but notice how handsome he was. His longish curly hair was cut stylishly to frame his tan face. I found myself drawn to his expressive eyes, eyes which were now fiery in anger. Although he had a reckless air about him, he had a commanding presence because of his impressive height and well-toned body. I was still apologizing profusely when he brushed my hand off his shirt and said frostily, "Be thankful your coffee was cold or else you'd have a lawsuit on your hands."
With that he coldly turned away and strode across the street. "I said I was sorry!" I shouted to his retreating back. Still shaken by the encounter, I took several deep breaths then made my way to Ambrosia to meet my friends.
The place was packed with the Friday night crowd but I managed to find them in a secluded booth far from the noisy dance floor after several minutes.
"Late as usual," Soujiro drawled as they made some room for me in the booth.
I made my apologies and was about to tell them the story of my encounter with Handsome But Obnoxious Coffee Guy when I remembered the reason we were meeting tonight. "Where's Tsukasa? I thought he'd be here?"
Akira made a face. "He got tired of waiting for you, that's why he left."
My face fell upon hearing this. "Oh. Too bad. I wanted so much to meet him."
Shizuka reached over to pinch Akira playfully in the arm. "Don't listen to him. He's just kidding you. Tsukasa went to get a cup of coffee at Starbucks. The jetlag was starting to make him sleepy."
At the mention of Starbucks my pulse rate quickened as I was reminded of the fiasco earlier.
"So," I whispered conspiratorially to Shizuka, "is he cute?"
."Very. A certified hottie!" she winked at me.
Rui nudged her and asked, "What are you two whispering about?"
"Nothing," we said at the same time, then giggled.
"How long does it take to get a cup of coffee? Soujiro, call his cell phone and ask him where the hell he is. Tell him there's a babe waiting to meet him here." Akira flashed me a hundred-watt smile.
Soujiro made the call and hung up with a puzzled expression on his face. "He said he's on his way back. Said something about having to buy a shirt at the Gap store a few blocks down before they closed for the night.."
Shizuka was asking me something about work so I wasn't able to catch what Soujiro said.
Several minutes later Soujiro stood up. "Yo Tsukasa! Finally! Hey man, I can't believe you changed your shirt just because I told you there's a babe waiting to meet you! This is Tsukushi. Tsukushi, meet our friend Tsukasa."
I rose from my seat and turned around to meet the new arrival. The smile on my face transformed into a grimace of horror as I found myself face to face with my Handsome But Obnoxious Coffee Guy.
His expression of dismay equaled mine as we pointed to each other and gasped in unison, "You?!!!"