Chapter 1 :There Goes My Secrets
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Don't own Naruto. Never had and never will.
I stared at the man in front of me with my jaws hanging wide open. He was drenched in coffee that was once had been mine and a scowl on his face. His Armani suit was now the color of brown instead of a pristine white its once was.
My fingers were still wrapped around the white china cup. I dropped the cup onto the top of the table and stood up as quickly as my legs allowed. It's not that I didn't want to help in ten minutes ago. No, that wasn't the reason at all. I was inside this meeting room as a presenter of the top fashion/jewelry Empire in the world, and that was hours ago. If I had spilled coffee on him as soon as I walked into this room, I would have been more responsive. But, because my butt was glued to the darn chair for hours, I couldn't exactly get up without rubbing my tush in front of all these important people. That would downgrade my credibility as well as my professionalism.
"Sir, I'm so sorry." I blurted out quickly as I pressed some napkins on the front of his damp shirt. He wasn't as nice as I first thought he was. Now, his scowl was directly aimed my way.
"I think you've done enough, Miss." he gritted out as he took the napkins away from my fingers and start to wipe himself. I wanted to tell him that it was an accident. I didn't mean to throw the liquid on him when he puts his hand on my shoulder to gain my attention. Normally, I wouldn't freak out, but after seeing some mystery medical movies, it was an automatic reflex that I simply had to defend myself against the attacker. Then again, how was I supposed to explain to him that I was daydreaming instead of paying attention to the meeting?
I nixed that idea of mine.
"I could pay for the dry cleaning if you don't mind." I offered with a version of my personal Marylin Monroe smile. It didn't worked on him since he shot me a final glare as he stalked out of the room with people trailing after him.
"So, does that mean the meeting is over?" I asked no one in particular. My answer was the loud sound of the door slamming echoed throughout the quiet room.
My boss is so not going to be impressed.
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I managed to check out of the hotel and avoided calls from Philip, my boss all at the same day. As I raised my hand to hail a cab, I sighed loudly. First, I'm in London, one of the major city in the world and I have no time to go sightseeing. Second, that totally gorgeous waiter at the bar last night gave me his phone number but I didn't called him. Third, I have to fly back to New York.
Alone.
Solo.
So I told my boss that I love flying. It's not a complete lie. In fact, it was half truth. I love to fly...just not on planes where escapes were not possible since there's no where to escape through, except the door which happens to be up in the air. I used to love flying. Used to being the key word. But after watching the movie Snakes on the Plane and Red Eye, it gives me the creeps every times a plane passed by. I was so desperate this afternoon that I tried to miss my flight on purpose, since I have been through the worst experience flying here alone three days ago. I had held onto the poor boy's hands while covering my eyes with the blanket provided by the staff. I still remembered the looks and fingers pointing that little creep...I mean that little boy gave me. If I had enough courage, I would have made some comment to his mother. Instead, I just bite my lips and told myself to suck it up.
Now here I am at one of the posh airport in London, about to board my flight back to the Big Apple. I would be so happy to be back home. I just need to get through a couple of hours or so on that forbidden plane which can crash or burn or...I slapped myself lightly. I need to stop watching horror films. Just a couple of hours, just a couple of hours and that is it.
I totally convinced myself.
Only my feet didn't move from the spot one bit.
I need something to calm me down before I hyperventilate. Something to calm my nerves down a bit so I won't be too jumpy. My eyes spotted a small establishment near the corner.
Aha! A bar. My lucky day. I pulled myself the opposite direction as my Gucci black heels clicking nicely against the shiny marbled floor. My black pencil skirts fit my form perfectly as well as my silk blouse which glided over my skin smoothly. It was money well spent.
The place was quiet and had a nice atmosphere to it. It seemed to high class. This is not the first time I've been to places like this. My best friend is one of the wanted supermodel in the whole country, Ino Yamanaka, and she's always on the top invitation lists for the hottest night clubs and stuff. I get dragged along also as her best friend, so I always get samples from some of the famous designers such as clothes, shoes and handbags. I received this gorgeous Prada heels that just had to be made for me and me alone.
Anyway, I went toward and empty chair and ordered a glass of wine. It was the only sensible drink to order since I really was looking forward to a bottle of Corona instead, but Ino always nagged me that a true lady would never drink anything with more than ten percent alcohol. I really wanted to point out to her once that when we went to the opening of the famous opening party for the new line of Dior perfume, she'd chucked down five glasses of Jack Daniel and got totally wasted in the next two hours. She's woke up the following morning with a bad hang over and had no memory of the previous night event.
The waiter nodded before giving me a wink. I was taken back but I gave him a smile that said I may be interested but not desperate. I wouldn't dare giving anyone my Marilyn Monroe since this horrid morning. God, speaking of this morning, I hope that...man wouldn't tell my uptight in the ass boss because I know that he wouldn't be laughing with me. More along the line of growling or hissing. Reminds me of a PMS lion. Wait, does female carnivore get period? I'm not an expert but if anyone asks, I'll just say it's a figure of speech.
Yes, that's it.
The tiny sound of glass placing against the shiny counter top had me looking at the waiter. He returned with that same smile on his face still. That's it. He must be interested in me. Although I knew that waiter had to be polite, a part of their job description, but this is...different. My mind went to the thought of having a one night stand with him and then left before he wakes up, thus lead to the part when he discovers that I had used him to get back at my ex.
Wait, that sounded a lot like some chick flick I watched last week.
Besides, that won't happened because, one: I've never had sex before. I've never even had my first kiss yet. Okay, so I was exaggerating about the never been kiss situation; but it was my high school prom and my date was a total pig. He just slapped his lips against mine and I pushed him away, thus lead to the both of us falling into the decorative fountain, got laughed at and kicked out of the party. Way to remember my last year of high school.
Second, I don't have an ex-boyfriend. The only one that come close was my neighbor's son, Nathaniel Spanol. He was the first boy ever to talk to me and I replied without stuttering. I had hoped that we would be more than just friend. Apparently, this bitchy, slutty cheerleader and him hooked up and now she's his fiancee. I'm not mad over the whole thing or anything. It's just that having someone that I used to like is engaged and I'm still single. Okay, maybe I am a little mad...and jealous since she got a diamond the size of a polar ice cap on her finger.
I'm blaming that time of the month for my unstable emotions.
I glanced at my watch and groan. Thirty bloody minutes left until I have to board that deathtrap people called plane. Sure it's convenient for traveling but also for death. People went down without their body being discovered, no family member would able to identify the body thus lead to no burial and my spirit will be wondering the planet earth until the end of time. Wait...that was the movie "Ghost" with Demi Moore and the other actor who I did not recall the name. Though he was hot.
I thumped the glass on the polished counter top and dropped a generous amount of tip. The waiter smile widened, he gave a salute despite the reddening of his cheeks. He look like he wanted to say something but decide against it.
Weird.
I walked out of the bar, hand digging into my Louis Vuitton bag to get my bloody Blackberry. I groaned as my boss's number flashes on the screen. I was so caught up that I didn't bother to zip my bag and soon, everything in my bag fell onto the floor with a loud thump against the quiet atmosphere of the bar. I tried to retain my composure by taking in a deep breath and bend down to retrieve my stuff. I knocked my head into a solid chin and fell back flat on my bottom with a loud groan.
"Are you okay, miss?" came a smooth voice.
I wanted to blast at the darn man that I'm not okay. I looked up at him and smothered my gasp. He was even hotter than Antonio Sabato Jr., the current man of my dream. The man who stood in front of me had a dark, cloudy onyx eyes that captivated me in an instant, a straight nose, full lips and an oval face with a strong jaws line. His messy/spiky hair was attractive yet untamed. He was dressed in sleek black Hugo Boss suit with a white dressed shirt underneath down to his fine leather Italian shoes. I saw the same suit in one of 2008 catalog. Whoever this man is, he must be loaded.
"T-thank you." I stammered out and I felt myself flushed when he took a hold of pink covered pads. I was pretty sure that pads would never be seen if it's in my bag. Now, I really wished I had used tampons instead. He gave me a questioning glance before handing the little package to me with a nod. I can feel my face flaming up now. God, who did I pissed off today? Oh right, that guy, Hilter...something. I've already forgotten his first name, and I've met him this morning.
"No problem." his tone was smooth and silky despite the hard core of his appearance. I relaxed a bit and smiled naturally and he returned it with a small one. In fact, it was so small that I have to lean in just a little closer to his face to be able to see it. The scent of his Hugo Boss aftershave hit me in waves. His lips were twitching upward in amusement. I know because my boss almost had the same twitching lips thing, except his version was more sadistic.
"All right then. Thanks again." I said walking around him.
"Wait, miss?" he said suddenly. I slowly came to a stop. Oh my god. This has always been one of my fantasy. A beautiful looking rich guy and me, the fashion icon of the whole Uchiha Empire got together. He's going to ask for my phone number and asked me out on a date in an expensive posh restaurant with cello playing in the background, glowing chandelier and sparkling champagne .
I just knew it.
It's like instinct.
Women's instinct.
"Yes?" I said turning around to face him once more. The same twitching of his lips were still evident on his face.
"Your blouse is unbuttoned." he said while nodding towards the front of my blouse.
My eyes widened as my fingers flew up to check the buttons. I looked down with horror expression on my face, the one I used to tell my colleagues that I've encountered dead animals while driving to work every time I was late to work. The two pearl buttons were in fact unbuttoned, leaving people with the view of my pale pink Victoria Secrets bra. I quickly buttoned my blouse and practically flew from the bar. Now I knew the real reason why the waiter had smiled at me. God, I must have presented an appearance of a hooker rather than a respective employee of the biggest fashion empire in the world.
This is not my day. Everyone is out to get me. I knew I should have just stayed in bed today.
I just knew it.
Well, on the bright side, I'll never encounter that handsome stranger again.
Ever.
With that thought in mind, I straightened myself and walked straight and proud toward the check in line, my Louis Vuitton bag swishing back and forth perfectly.
From this moment on, nothing will ever freak me out again.
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I. Was. Wrong.
The moment my feet stepped on the plane, nausea and fear gripped my body. I forced myself to take every step all the way to my seat. One foot in front of an other. That's it. Almost there. I spotted E12. Great, window seat. Just what I needed. A view of the plane lifting off the ground and crashing into another plane on air. God. if I survived through this, I'll never tell my mother to stop thinking about my marital status again.
I dropped myself into the seat with a relief sigh. It was certainly a long walk. I glanced at the entrance door and my seat. It was a mere bloody five feet. Why did it felt like I've just walked five miles. Well, whatever. The most important thing was that I no longer move from this death chair until the plane landed in New York. Safely.
I hope.
People started filling in the empty seat. I looked around me hopefully, wishing badly that someone I knew is here right here, at this moment. I glanced around, my eyes landed on an old couple a couple of rows away who were arguing about ducks and geese. I mean, weren't they almost the same anyway?
Not that I care or anything.
Next, a loud cry erupted and I saw a boy, about three or four, opening his mouth widely and scratching at the woman next to him. She look like she wanted to stuff the kid with pillows instead of comforting the poor child. I noticed that the kid was pointing at something underneath the chair. My eyes caught a bright reflecting light.
Ah. His toy.
Of course. It made perfect sense. Why else would a kid cry if it's not his toys he's missing? I mean, why would kids cry except when they're hungry and needed to go potty or something. Didn't the woman know anything about parenthood?
"Your mother should have came with you instead. Being a nanny sucks." the woman muttered under her breath as she stuffed a pacifier inside his mouth.
The kid spitted the pacifier out of his mouth and cried. I swear that his crying is increasing and it's getting on my nerve. Couldn't stand it any longer, I unbuckled my seat belt, which I had strapped in safely and tightly around my waist as soon as I planted my tush on the soft seat, and got up. I bend down to retrieved the toy and noticed something.
A pair of black Italian leather shoes stepped in front of me and turned right. I slowly reached underneath the chair, ignoring the stylish shoes. My fingers moving restlessly, trying to find the blasted toy. Aha! My fingers touch a solid object and I pulled it out with a triumph grin. My grin soon turned into a scowl as I tugged the plastic toy over and over again, but it didn't budge. Giving it one final, hard tug, I winced as part of the arm came loose. I dangled the body part in front of the kid and he happily took it from me.
Okay! Go me! Even though I didn't exactly got the whole thing, it's the effort that count, right?
A second later, that effort came straight at my head and than bounce onto the floor. Again. The woman gave me a shrugged and I smiled tightly.
"Enjoy your flight." I managed to say and then walked back to my seat. My feet felt shaky as I make my way back. Is the damn plane moving?
No, this can not be right. I'm not safely tucked in my seat. I might slipped or fall or...something.
Gripping the back of a chair, I muttered an 'Excuse me' to the guy who sat in the isle seat. He politely got up with a 'Sure.'
I glanced at him and then my attention went to the window for a millisecond before reverting back to his face.
Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn.
It's the nice guy who helped me earlier. And the one who told me about my...problem.
I saw a quirk of his upper lips twitching coupled with a surprising raised of brows as I continue to stare at him. My face flushed scarlet red as I smuggled my way through the tiny space. Why didn't whoever designed the plane make the spaces bigger?
I caught a whiff of his scent and inhaled it. Still nice.
"T-thank you." I mumbled, then dropped to my seat. My hand once more seek out the seatbelt and yanked it hard across my waist. This is it. I'm not moving from this seat ever again.
"Thank you for choosing Continental Airline. We will be departing London soon, so please buckled your seatbelt. Please turned off any electronic devices until further noticed. Have a nice flight." the intercom voice was cut off from my head as I gripped the armrest tightly. I can feel the plane running along the runway of the airport. The humming sound of the plane engine buzzed in my ears and I squeezed my eyes shut tightly. The images of flames erupted in my mind and I shivered.
Oh My God. The plane is lifting off the ground. I refreshed my grip in time the plane gave a slight bump. My stomach lurched as my hand held onto something else. Are we on air yet? God, I'm going to die...Die.
"We are safely on air." came the voice from the intercom. I gave a sigh of relief as the seatbelt sign went off. I tried wiggling in my seat to get more comfortable. The plane was steady enough.
I took out my latest mystery novel and turned to the folded page. The Sinner, by Tess Gerritsen is simply addicting. It was scary and the tension in the book was amazing. I thought to myself that maybe I should have become like Dr. Maura Isles, the pathologist instead, but the idea of poking and prodding into someone's dead body wasn't appealing at all.
So I read the book, occasionally spend a quick minute or so to check my cell phone. Philip's number flashed on the screen along with the twenty-two missed call. God, I'm so going to get it when I got back to work. Anyway, I'm almost home. Three hours passed by quickly enough. I stole a glance at the mysterious guy next to me. He was so absorbed into his laptop so much with a thin scowl on his face. He still looked handsome. With or without the frown. Seriously, how did one do it to look attractive? Did he practiced it in the mirror everyday to perfected that look without the benefit of the mirror now? I sure did that a lot in high school when all of the other girls were so into cute pouts and stuff. Peer pressure, I tell you. I didn't want to be left out.
Anyway, Am I just nervous with anticipation or the plane is...shaking?
Oh God. I knew it. I just knew it!
"We're experiencing some air turbulent at this moment. Please buckle up your seatbelt and remained in your seat until further notice." the voice from the com blasted out.
The passengers hurriedly placed their seatbelt back on. I can hear some old lady in the back seat gabbing loudly that this was the closest thing she came to compare to ski riding down the slope of New Zealand. Is she nuts? Her husband was currently clasping his fingers together while muttering ' Oh great Lord Jesus, hail Mary full of grace, bring me to heaven."
The fuck???
The plane shook once again and I let out a low shriek.
We're going to die. We're not going to make it to land alive.
We're going to die!
I'm going to die!
I'm going to die!
"Excuse me?" the guy next to me questioned, his face rid of any horror.
I glanced at him with panic in my eyes. "We're going to die." I shrieked out.
"I don't think so. The captain just said that we're experiencing a slight turbulent. It'll be gone in a minute." he replied calmly.
I glared at him. "Well, of course. They're not going to say, 'That's it folks. You're all goners."
The corner of his lips quirked and I can see amusement rose in the depth of his eyes.
"This is hardly a laughing matter. You kno---?" I was cut off when the plane lurched unexpectedly. I was thrown back in my seat, my breath was knocked out of me, my whole life... Well, my whole twenty three years of life.
I can't die yet. I'm too young and too pretty and too...everything. The plane lurched once more and I cried out.
"Miss, are you okay?" the man next to me asked. His expression shown a little worry.
"Yes." I whispered out. My grips tightened and I closed my eyes tightly. "I hate wearing G-string." I blurted out.
He gave me a strange look before nodding slowly. "I'm sure they're...uncomfortable." he said after a while.
"I've never done anything to make my parents proud." I said.
"I'm sure that's not true." the man said kindly.
"It is true. Since my cousin did everything better than me, I was constantly compared to her. It drives me to the brink of committing suicide." I said, then I slapped myself. What am I doing? But I can't stop.
"...My boss is a complete asshole. Through and through. When I first started working, he sent me to pick up his dry cleaning and I was so mad that I stick a chewed gum on one of his expensive suits..."
"...I took a cooking course thinking that I could be one of those chef on TV and makes millions, but after I burned down the school kitchen, I was kicked out immediately..."
"...I have no idea what AWOL means, or what it stands for..."
"...I told everyone that I lost virginity when I was at my high school prom, but truthfully, I'm still a twenty-three year old virgin with no boyfriend..."
"...I used the excuse of seeing dead or wounded animal on the street every time I'm late for work..."
"...My friend, Yana and I have this secret code that we use like ' Can you help me organize the files?', that means we usually go out for a cup of nice coffee and have celebrity gossips..."
"...I was so desperate to get the job that I even faked a grade on my application..."
"... Ami, stupid show off who think she knows everything about evolution. It drives me up the wall."
"...One guy who's crazy about Emily Dickenson works, and I was so desperate to go out with him that I told him my favorite Emily's work was Romeo and Juliet. He looked at me strangely before muttering something under his breath and left..."
"...I drown in the kid's pool because I don't know how to swim..."
"...Coffee at work was absolute poison, so a couple of my workers and I usually sneak out to Starbuck..."
"...my Aunt left me with her pet Penny the parrot before went off to Europe and I completely forgot to feed it and the poor thing died. I replaced it with another one before my Aunt came back, and she swore that her parrot was a female."
"...I was so mad that I glued his seat when he expected me to stay late to finished up the work."
"...made me this awful crochet shirt that had the biggest hole ever and expect me to wear it. I threw it into the on coming traffic and told her that someone robbed me."
"Excused me, miss?" came a voice.
"Huh?" I answered dumbly. My eyes placed on one of the hostess.
"We've landed." she said with a smile.
I looked at her dazedly. "We've landed? on the ground?"
Her smile remained in place. "Yes miss."
My mouth gaped opened to stare at the guy next to me. My face flushed bright red as I remembered every little secrets I once had to him. I even told him about my G-string problems.
"Oh god." I moaned out.
"Are you okay, Miss---?" he asked.
"Sakura." I mumbled out my name as my fingers struggled with the seatbelt. I turned to look at him with a smile that I managed to summon at the moment. "You should have stopped me. I'm sorry." I apologized with a calmer tone now.
"Kind of hard. You were on a roll." he replied with that quirk lips again.
My face was totally hot with humiliation. "Yes, well, th---thanks for listening." I stammered out as I stood up. I can feel my shaky legs trying to withstand the sudden movement and the next second, I crashed into the handsome stranger, my head against his muscular chest.
And what a nice chest it was.
"You sure you're okay?" he asked with a grimaced, his arms were still around my waist. Those grueling hours spent at the gym was definitely worth it now.
"Yes. I'll be fine." I said with a pinked cheeks. God, this would be so romantic if this stranger wouldn't know every little secrets I have ever had.
"Thanks again." I said as I peeled my body away from his. Grabbing my purse, I left the spot without a backward glance, rushing out the door with an unbelievable speed I didn't realized I possessed.
I need a whole day at the spa for going through this torture. The black onyx eyes flashes in my head and I groaned.
Fuck the day spa.
I need a whole entire week spa.
A/N::::So???????
The original storyline belonged to Sophie Kinsella who wrote, "Can you keep a secrets?''
So yeah, I'm so poor I don't even own the story plot. LOL.