Shutter ➳ CITRUS

Four - Job Offer

Mei's POV

I sat behind my desk in my office, nursing a serious migraine. It's a shit day at work and the pressure of today's building up on me. One of the articles is supposed to be published this week and I have a discrepancy in the fact-checking department. They got one date wrong. Jesus, now they have to pull out the issues already printed.

Everybody had been hauled in the newsroom and got another fucking lecture from Sho I've heard at least 9 times already. Are you fucking kidding me? One person fucks up and everyone got reprimanded. Garth, the guy who made the mistake, was apologizing profusely the whole morning. It took all my willpower not to snap at him and tell him to shut the fuck up. Committing an error on your details is the worse a journalist could do. You might as well quit and write fiction if you can't get your fucking facts straight.

I leaned back on my chair, rubbing at my temples. It had been two hours since we're called in the conference room, I've edited two articles from the interns since then. Garth's stupidity, articles peppered with unnecessary commas, and no coffee this morning added up to the stubborn pounding in my head.

It's been a week since Suzuran and Himeko's wedding. They're still on their honeymoon in Brazil and I went back to my old routine of going to work at 10 AM, editing, copy-reading, writing, dealing with writers. Boring stuff.

I haven't seen Yuzu since that night. Yuzu Okogi. Blonde hair, piercing green eyes, and harmonious husky voice. That's been pretty much what's going through my head the past six days.

After talking to Norman, Yuzu followed Ryuu and me to the bar where we already downed two shots of vodka each. Yuzu had a couple of shots before Ryuu led her to the dance floor for a dance, followed by Norman later. None for me I'm afraid.

We spent the night chatting, drinking, laughing at Ryuu's ridiculousness. Just having fun. Fun. Huh, I haven't done that for a while. But with the presence of that blonde-haired girl, there's no other way but to have fun.

In the short amount of time, I spent with her, I learned that Yuzu's a warm person, basically the opposite of me. It was refreshing to see how she listens attentively to Norman's ramblings or how she puts up with Ryuu's indecency. She's carefree and up to everything thrown her way. So when Ryuu found out that she's into girls and started asking some uncomfortable questions, she didn't get pissed at him, answering the less lewd stuff.

"So Yuzzy, girls are better than boys huh?" he asked on his fourth shot of vodka. I was on my fourth too, Yuzu on her second.

Yuzu smirked, taking her time to answer the question. I waited silently for her response. "I've been with two guys my entire life. Twice is enough thank you," she simply said.

"I could attempt to change your opinion on that, what you say?" Ryuu asked, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

I was ready to slap him over the head for taking it too far but Yuzu just laughed. "Sorry Ryuu, you're handsome and all but just not my type."

"Ah, but when you change your mind, call Ryuuyu alright?" he asked rather hopefully.

"You got it. But not in this lifetime I'm afraid."

Yuzu's passion for her work. When she talks about it, there's a glow in her eyes similar to when other talks about their significant other. It makes me jealous in a way. What the fuck, jealous? Get a grip, Mei.

By the end of the night, I knew she had charmed Ryuu and Norman. Well yeah, admittedly, me too. Yes, Jesus why does she have to be so irresistible? She did not get thrown off by my snarky remarks. She used it to be more endearing instead, answering me with humor without skipping a beat.