With a pair of binoculars held to her eyes, Carly still had to squint and focus to catch sight of a zooming line on the racetrack.
The King of Duel zipped the racetrack with no effort, in fact, he had his opponent pinned and locked down in a lose-lose game since they got onto the track.
His opponent was just glad that it was just a practice duel. Even so, he knew he was no match for the infamous Jack Atlas. This was just for Jack to test-run for Jack, to test certain recalibrations he had made for The Pheonix Whirlwind.
Carly had tagged along like she had for the last few days, to observe Jack in his natural element. She stood on the highest level of the stadium, in a hallway where there were big glass windows for her to watch.
Life Points – 0, read on the jumbotron, indicating the loss of the opponent, but the victory of Jack.
She smiled to herself at seeing that displayed, it didn't matter if it was just for training, she felt proud for some reason.
The Girl put away her binoculars in her tanned faux leather messenger bag, so she could pull out the DSLR Nikon Camera that Jack had gotten for her. She looked through the optical finder with one eye to find him.
Jack had just parked his dual runner at the finish line to get out and shake the opponent's hand. The two men nodded in respect and understanding to each other before the latter left the stadium.
With his opponent's departure, Jack took off his helmet to catch some of the breeze through his hair. Feeling a little unsettled, he wondered to himself when he would find a more worthy opponent. That duel was simply too easy. It didn't feel like practice at all.
He scoffed almost frustratingly at the empty path in front of him, deciding to figure it out later. Maybe he can reach out to his manager to communicate that he would like a more worthy list of opponents.
After that thought, he remembered that a certain someone had come along with him to practice. He looked above toward his left to catch a glimpse in the distance where he found Carly watching him with a camera in her hands.
There she stood in her high-heeled boots that gave her a few inches in height. Adorned on her were dark grey fitted jeans and an extra-small, but still loose on her, long-sleeved black and white baseball tee.
They stared at each other even though they could barely see each other. Jack turned to the stadium entrance to find her.
Not too long had passed when the elevator doors to the hallway where Carly had stood watching him from the windows.
She met him halfway down the hall, "Impressive, Mr. Atlas."
Jack smirked, his arrogance was apparent, "Understatement." He looked at the camera in her hands, "I take it that you were able to get some good shots."
"I would believe so.. But I wouldn't really know until I can get home and upload them on the computer."
Side by side, they entered the elevator. Carly glanced to her side at him, "Do you need to do anything else today, Mr. Atlas?"
The Man shook his head, "I have people for anything I need."
It was exactly what she wanted to hear. She was eager to type up her notes about the practice match and take a closer look at the photos she took of the race on the laptop.
It had been a week since Carly moved in with Jack. During the initial days, time passed by slowly and fraught with tension, yet they had learned to make it work in that just seven days.
For her, she knew that he had grown accustomed to having his way- regardless of what it may be. However, his requests were admittedly not too difficult. The most she had to contend with was that for every meal, he wanted to make sure she ate something.
That was a struggle at first, but he begrudgingly understood that she wouldn't be able to eat much; therefore, he never forced her to finish her meals. That was something she could work with.
Other than that, Jack was barely even home most of the time. In fact, they were both barely home most of the time. Between training and press conferences, interviews, autographs, they were always together but occupied with something. Carly would simply watch in the distance at whatever Jack needed to do during the day, then they would both go home with each other.
As for Jack? Well besides the obvious sexual tension, he was secretly enjoying having Carly around again. Plenty of times, did he remember when she would follow him everywhere he went. He didn't exactly like it then, but he was reveling in it now.
At one point during the week, he even contemplated to himself..was it because he had felt lonely all along.
Sure, the fame, the constant press, and conquests, were all great. It was everything that someone like him would have ever wanted, yet he was just content sitting in the living room of his apartment while he watched the news and Carly cooking dinner for them in the kitchen.
As much as Jack realized this, he still tried his best to not show his true feelings and desires. He was a man that naturally attracted danger, and she would put herself in harm's way to be dedicated to him.
Those were even his thoughts now as he walked next to her to his car to head home. As happy as he was to be going home with Carly and that they were going to spend the rest of the evening near each other, he still had to work hard to hide his true feelings.
"Will you be working out when we get home?" Carly questioned softly, it was barely heard.
Jack concentrated on the road that he was speeding on, "I did this morning before you woke up."
"You..seem to like working out early in the morning.."
The whites of his fingers began to show as he gripped the steering wheel, feeling a little uneasy to her inference, "Only when I can't sleep."
Carly glanced at his profile, "You haven't been sleeping well, it seems like. Did you have a bad dream again?"
Jack clenched his jaw, "I don't see why that would be any of your concern." His eyes tightened at the road in front of him, "If you are planning to write it in the article, I would re-think that."
She shook her head lightly, "I'm not that type of reporter."
"And I'm supposed to trust your word on that?"
"You should trust me by now..There are things that I've noticed already, but I will not mention to anyone."
Thankfully, they were pulling into the parking garage to park the car when he held his eyes toward her, "Impossible. There's nothing that I have done that would be considered scandalous."
Again, Carly softly shook her head, "Not scandalous, but small details that people would like to know simply because they are infatuated with you."
"Such as?"
"You like to watch the news after you've had dinner with dim or no lights at all. At times you'll even turn it on in the bedroom when you're about to fall asleep because you are most likely accustomed to falling asleep with some sort of noise."
It didn't surprise Jack that she knew that, her bedroom was right next to his so she must have heard the TV. Jack made a mental note to keep the volume low going forward. "Anything else?" He was being sarcastic, regardless of knowing that she knew more.
The Girl continued, "You also have some soreness or pain in your left shoulder from lifting too heavy during your work outs. You often try to rotate it to stretch it out."
The King stayed quiet; he didn't really know how to comment on that.
"You don't like to use it, but sometimes you will take over the counter medicine to ease out the aching soreness. When it gets bad, you have to use a roller for the kn-"
"That's enough." Jack interrupted firmly, eyes glaring at her, "You don't need to know these things to write the article. You're wasting the effort in evaluating the wrong details."
The tone of his voice intimidated Carly to the point where she had to break eye contact. She looked down and gripped her DSLR camera in her hands.
Jack began to feel a little guilty pull at his heartstrings. He came off harsher than he had wanted. Clearing his throat shortly before declaring, "Let's go home."
Carly nodded and got out of the car with him. In her mind, she began to think about his critique about noticing the unimportant details about him. She started to wonder why it is exactly she did notice such things about him anyway. Was it the innate trait of being a reporter?
They got into the apartment quietly and made their way to the kitchen. Jack gently tossed the keys onto the kitchen counter before heading to the refrigerator to get a bottle of water.
"I will get started on dinner while you rest." He heard Carly say to him softly as he chugged the bottle of water.
"You know the deal." The King reminded her as he watched her put down the camera in her hands onto the counter before making her way closer to the refrigerator.
"I will have to eat too."
"And that I-"
"And that you don't care if I finish it, but as long I eat." It was this time she interjected, which actually made him want to chuckle at how well she knew of him already, but he kept his usual indifferent demeanor.
"Then don't make me sound like a broken record." Jack complained before placing the water bottle onto the counter, and then disappearing from the kitchen.
Carly sighed discreetly to herself as she tried to ignore his remark. After pulling out her cellphone from her back pocket to place nearby on the counter, she continued to pull out the vegetables from the refrigerator, followed by the pasta from one of the cabinets. She set everything on the counter so she could slice and chop them on the chopping board.
She had expected that he would be in his bedroom or somewhere else in the apartment to avoid her, but not too much time passed by when Jack came back with his laptop tucked underneath his arm. He had also taken off his white racing jacket to display his muscled arms with a black tank top.
It was then that she suspected he would register himself on the sofa in the living room to get some work done, but he didn't. Instead, he placed himself on the kitchen stool across the way from her mise en place.
The King opened the laptop right when she pulled out the board for the vegetables.
This was new, and Carly didn't know how to feel about it. It seemed like they were spending a lot of time together for the sake of work, and now at home as well.
It didn't bother her too much, or made her feel uncomfortable, but more so intrigued. Why did he choose to stay in the kitchen with her?
Carly kept quiet but could see from every sneaky glance that Jack was busy typing away on his laptop. She started to become busy too when she started peeling the carrots.
Jack was in the middle of answering an email to his manager for the next big duel when he noticed Carly's phone light up with a notification. He looked to the cellphone to his side, yet dared not read what had showed up.
"You should check your mobile." He let her know, eyes back on the laptop.
Carly looked up from the cutting board toward her cellular device that was near Jack. Her hands were a little dirty from the carrot peels, "…Would you mind helping me take a look?"
His eyes finally glanced up to her, "It appears as though privacy means little to you."
She looked him in the eye, hoping that he believed her when she explained, "I have nothing to hide from you."
For whatever reason, Jack liked the sound of that. Something about the way she said it, and how genuine she appeared with those words triggered further attraction-if that was even possible.
The King reached a hand toward his right to fetch the mobile phone from its place to read what the alert was about.
"It's a notification from your pharmacy. They're reminding you that your refill for something is ready to be picked up tomorrow."
"My eye drops." Carly went on to ask, "Do we have anything planned tomorrow?"
Jack looked back to his laptop as he spoke, "Other than practice, I have a Kaiba Corp. banquet for us to attend. We can stop by the pharmacy after practice."
"I can go by myself after we get home. You should use the time to get ready for the banquet…"
He sighed; slightly irritated. Must she always argue with him? "And what of you? Wouldn't you need the time to get ready for the banquet as well? You are my plus one."
She blushed at his 'plus one' comment, "I'm your reporter…I don't think I will be too close around you. If anything, I can be afar."
"The hell you will." The King of Duel closed his laptop before narrowing his eyes at The Girl, "Are you implying that you have a problem with being seen with me?"
Carly gently denied that, "That's not it. I don't want people to misunderstand what we are…"
"If anyone asks, we can explain it to them." Jack straightened his posture and overlapped his arms over his chest, "This isn't a physics problem that needs to take ten genius scientists to figure out."
"I don't want to embarrass you." She admitted while looking down to her hands that were clutching the knife and carrot, "I don't have anything suitable to wear."
His counter was quick, "That's not possible. I made sure you had evening gowns when selecting your wardrobe." Jack got up from his seat to move around the kitchen island. He gently pried the knife and carrot from her hands, "Go boil the water for the pasta. I'll help, so we can finish dinner and you can go pick out a dress."
"You should rest, it shouldn't take long for me to finish cooking."
"It will take a long time for you to finish eating and stop stalling." Jack argued back as he began to start peeling the carrot.
What else could Carly do when he was being so persistent..yet attentive.
XXX
This is…indeed a challenge…..
The Reporter pondered as she looked at the line of evening gowns that Jack had prepared for her in her walk-in closet.
She did admit that he had a great expensive taste. All the evening gowns appeared to be of the name brand and all very extravagant. Unfortunately, she just didn't have such experience in choosing one for herself to wear, after all she wasn't exactly accustomed to having to attend fancy events.
Her apprehension began to build as she looked at the gowns. The last thing she wanted was to look like a fool next to Jack Atlas at an event where plenty of photographers would be standing by.
Looking around at the walk-in closet, she started to get a migraine after glancing at the row of heels she needed to pick out to go with the gown. Even Jack had that ready for her.
In fact, she knew that every day would be a little bit of a struggle with all the clothes that were in the closet. The casual clothes that he had bought for her were on one end, the coats, gowns, and even nightwear for bedtime were all about the sides of the closet as well.
Carly breathed out as she closed her eyes, hoping that would help the pending headache.
She was so distracted that she didn't notice Jack had entered her walk-in closet as well.
He looked at her figure from the back while she stared at her gowns, concluding that she was having a dilemma in selecting a proper one.
"As a woman, shouldn't this be easy?"
That started Carly enough that she whipped around at the sound of his teasing voice. At the sight of him, she became shy. Her hand came to the side of her neck, holding it there as a nervous instinct. "Did you need me from something, Mr. Atlas?"
"I'm here to let you know that I plan on getting practice in earlier tomorrow at 6:30 in the morning, so be ready." The King of Duel looked past her to the row of evening gowns.
He stepped forward, then reached a hand past her to pick out the navy-blue evening gown by its' hanger.
It seemed like Jack had neglected that when he stepped forward, he brought himself closer to Carly. She, on the end, did notice their proximity now. They were close enough that she could smell his cologne.
Finally, he took a step back to hold up the deep navy-blue gown beside her figure. His eyes glanced at the gown first, and then back at her, "This one is befitting, I suppose."
Carly took it from his hand hesitantly, "Do I really have to attend the banquet with you?"
"It is expected that you will." Jack went on after another glance at the gown, "Besides, other important duelists and celebrities will be in attendance. You can build your contacts."
She shook her head, "That's not important to me. I rather not spoil your reputation."
Is she really worried about that…? "The likes of you wouldn't be able to do that." Jack grimaced before continuing, "My reputation is well built, even if you wanted to, it would take an army."
He turned to leave, but not before saying, "Try it on. I will be waiting outside."
Carly waited until Jack closed the closet door behind him when she fully acknowledged the earthquake happening with her emotions.
Try it on? Why would she need to try it on for him…? Did he want to make waves and poke fun at how lanky she would look in such an elegant gown?
Regardless though, she knew that he could wait on the other side of the door all night if he had to, and that was only a matter of principle. Jack always had his expectations met.
Slowly, she shed the clothes she was wearing and slipped on the dress. The dress was form-fitting, but not too tight where it was difficult to move around with. In fact, it was made of deep blue silk, so it felt very nice against the skin.
The straps were thin and crossed at the back but haltered in the front. Her back was bare as it shaped oval down to the arch of her back. The front drooped into a heart shaped neckline, revealing enough clavicle and neck. The top half of the dress also hugged her upper frame beautifully, while the bottom flowed in descending waves until it reached the floor.
It was a bit long; however, that was nothing a pair of heels couldn't fix. The Girl didn't have a mirror in the walk-in closet, so she had no clue to what she looked like. All she knew was that it did fit well and it was comfortable.
Inhaling deeply for a moment, she mustered up the courage to open the closet doors. Jack was ready for her, at least that was what he thought.
He sat at her computer desk, arms crossed, and leg over his knee, waiting stoically. The closet doors opened to one of the most captivating sights he had ever laid his eyes upon.
She appeared absolutely stunning in the dress that he picked out for her, he was sure that she stole the breath right out of him. Regardless of anything else she would wear going forward, this was the dress that would hold a special place in his heart.
If she looked this enchanting, and she was not entirely made up as she would be the following night, then he was in dire trouble.
His eyes couldn't blink as he watched her flow towards him.
He stood up from the computer chair just as she stopped in front of him. His demeanor appeared indifferent; he was determined to not let her appealing looks get the better of him. He was the one in control.
Bashfully, Carly grasped her arm loosely, waiting for him to say something, anything.
Jack peered down her figure and then back to her face, giving her a one over… "Approved."
Her eyes evaded, "I'm not sure if I can pull this off."
Her humility was, while endearing, also irritated Jack. She was ignorant of just how gorgeous she clearly was.
"Let's have a closer look then." He took her hand in his, held it high to spin her around slowly which really was detrimental to his urges, but he held his cool at the end of the spin, "You're fine. There is no reason to be this anxious."
It seemed like she didn't believe him.
With the hand that still held onto hers, he pulled her to the full-length mirror that was in the corner of the room.
Jack stood behind her as he presented her in front of it. He noticed that her eyes did not point at her reflection but stubbornly kept downwards. His hands held onto her forearms gently, "Have a look."
Finally, Carly lifted her eyes to her reflection and she herself was appalled at her appearance. If she didn't know any better, that wasn't her in the mirror.
"Stay still." Jack commanded, and then left to her closet to retrieve a necklace from her jewelry drawer.
Again, he appeared behind her. With the lightest touch, he placed the necklace over her neck and secured it into place. His hands then brushed all her hair towards the back, "Presentable."
Carly starred at the sapphire gem on the white gold chain around her neck. Her eyes then drifted to his reflection in the mirror, "Thank you for helping me."
Jack nodded, aloof, "Get some rest. Seems like we have a long day ahead tomorrow.".
XXX