In the Igarashi Group, Igarashi Aoi sat behind her desk, looking intently at the box of sakura mochi wrapped daintily on the table.
She pulled the pink ribbon away, then she gently lifted the lid up to reveal six pink glutinous rice balls.
She smiled, reminiscing her childhood.
_
Aoi, being a unisex name, provided her with a group of friends who thought she was a boy when she was just a kid. Along with the buzz cut she used to flaunt, to the dismay of her grandmother, Igarashi Aoi was thought of as the future boss of their clan.
To the disappointment of their neighbors who had daughters,she was transformed into a beautiful young lady come high school.
They started eying her elder brother instead, but despite being a young adult back then, they suspected that he was either asexual or gay.
Due to multiple men trying to win her favor, she developed a snobbish attitude and would tend to converse straight-to-the-point, especially when it comes to business. She never liked small talks and would mercilessly cut off ties with anyone who had other intentions.
When her father made her come for negotiations overseas, she was hesitant at first, but agreed immediately when it coincided with the scheduled miai* setup by her grandmother.
Upon arrival to City S, they went to the hotel they booked. She had a separate room of her own.
When she was walking to find her door, a seemingly drunk man was desperately opening a door but his keycard seemed like it does not work for some reason.
She planned to walk past him. However, it turned out that she cannot do so, because the door he was trying to open was hers!
Looking closely, the man with a red face turned out to be really handsome. His dark eyes, tall nose and chiseled clean face was very attractive from when she looked up to him who was leaning using his forehead on her door.
"Uhm...excuse me..." she uttered, with a hint of irritation as the stench of alcohol went into her nostrils.
The man turned around to face her. As he did, before she could say or do anything, he collapsed on her. Since he was much larger than she was, their bodies fell on the carpeted floor.
Igarashi Aoi winced in pain. No matter how hard she tapped him or how loud her voice in getting his attention, he did not move to free her.
She stopped struggling when he mumbled something that she had a hard time understanding.
At that time, she had just learned a conversational version of the language in City S. It was hard for her to decipher mumblings of a local.
Finally, his voice became louder, as if he was calling out to someone. "Xiaoyu...Xiaoyu!" He was sobbing.
Igarashi Aoi felt bad for him, but due to her personality, being pinned down like that made her extremely mad. She gritted her teeth, and pushed him away with all her might.
As she broke free from him, she hurriedly opened her door and locked it, not caring whether the man outside was dead or barely alive.
She decided to let him be because she does not even know him. She put down her bag and decided to take a shower. She could still smell the alcohol stench on her which was transferred during the encounter. She showered for more than 30 minutes, vigorously scrubbing her skin then letting harsh flow of water on her body.
She went out and dried her hair in front of the vanity. As she looked at herself, she wondered if the man was still at her doorstep.
If he died and the family would suspect foul play, her fingerprints and maybe some DNA, including hair, could be found on him. She was a foreigner on her first day of visit in City S. Getting involved in such a scandal would definitely be ugly!
After contemplating for some time, she went out to check.
Alas, he was still there, looking dead!
Igarashi Aoi tapped on his back vigorously. "Sir! Sir, wake up! Can't you hear me?"
Still no response. Though she told herself that it was an obviously bad idea, she mustered all her strength to help him up. She took his arm over her shoulders and supported his upper body with her arms. After struggling for some time, she managed to get him into the room and on the sofa.
Panting and shaking her head, she frowned at him. She took an extra blanket and placed it over him.
As she did, the close distance made her appreciate his features once more. If he was not a drunkard, she would have been totally interested. It was indeed an honor to pique her interest, because no person had done that. Even her spitz at home had better chances of getting her attention than most men.
He opened his eyes and looked at her as if dazed. "Xiaoyu..."
Before she could avoid him, he held the back of her head.
Her eyes widened and her mouth was gaping. She froze there, few inches away from him.
Feeling no resistance, he pulled her into a passionate kiss.
The snobbish woman who was allergic to marriage topics had not kissed a guy, ever.
Her eyes would have popped out if possible, her brows turning into unruly curves.
She struggled to free her facr from his, but he used his other arm to grab her by the waist and kissed her deeply.
As he pried her lips open and his tongue ventured into her senses, she lost her will to struggle, taking in all the sensations she felt.
When his hand went up to cup her breast, she woke up from the fantasy that she never had before. She pushed him down and landed a hard slap on his cheek. Her expression was a mixture of hatred and disgust.
She went into the bedroom and shut the door, heaving a sigh of relief while clutching her shirt around the chest area. Her heartbeats were banging her ears.
She decided to lie in bed and closed her eyes. However, she was not sure whether it was the new environment or the kiss, but something kept her awake all night.