Sleepless Nights

Prologue (Part 1)

Okay, deep breaths. You've been waiting on this day for months, Silvia. Keep it together. No squealing when you see famous people. No gawking, I hear they hate it when you do that. Make sure you're not grinning like a moron the entire time, either. Finally, make sure to brag to Fuko later in explicit detail. She's gonna hate me for it, but holy hell I don't care! I'm so excited! Ahh!

"We sure lucked out today, huh Arrow? This is the first legal casino to open up in the city, and we get to join the pre-opening party as well. I think this is the perfect first assignment, don't you agree?"

I smiled up at my boss, confidence practically radiating off me. "Definitely!" I nodded in agreement.

This all felt like a dream. Here I was, newly accepted into a popular fashion magazine's editorial department not but a few days prior. I had been a fan of the company for years, just yearning for an opportunity to work for them one day. Low and behold, That dream became reality after months of working up the nerve to finally apply. Despite knowing how difficult the work would get, I was fully prepared for any challenges that might come my way. On the other hand, I didn't expect to be thrown into the journalism world so soon. Like my boss had mentioned, we were covering the story of the first legal casino's grand opening. That was a pretty major event, so what was a rookie like me doing here? Not that I was complaining or anything. I was very honored, just... terribly nervous.

The chief editor -also known as Jinnai Atsushi, but everyone back at the office calls him Chief- was surveying the area with a happy grin on his face. He looked pretty excited to be here too regardless of his experienced years working in the business. His grey eyes were shining brightly under the fancy chandelier lights. Chief was an older gentleman, ten years apart from my young adult age of twenty-five, but was pretty childlike compared to most people I knew. My co-workers back at Cinderella headquarters warned me about his strict attitude when deadlines approached, but was otherwise a friendly guy.

"Alright!" He suddenly clapped his hands together, bringing me out of my thoughts. "Time to get in there and get covering, noobie!"

Noobie?

"Wait Chief, I don't think I --Waah!" In the spur of the moment, Chief roughly pushed me forward, launching me into a crowd of celebrities that made more money in a day than I ever could in a year. I stumbled for a second so I wouldn't bump into anyone and make a bigger fool of myself. When I collected my composure I turned around to shoot Chief a small glare. In return he made a shooing motion with his hands, signaling me to go out and get an interview with someone of importance. The problem with that was there was already a million hungry investigators surrounding some poor guy, barking questions and blinding him with camera flashes. How am I suppose to get in there? I need a big stick to hit people with or something. Shoo! Move it! I need a story just as badly as you do!

"Mr. Kitaoji! Who did you bring to accompany you to the party?" one of the reporters demanded in a loud voice. The large group began to move with the celebrity as he began walking and talking, nearly crushing me in the process as I tried to unsuccessfully worm my way in. I felt my anxiety skyrocket as I continued to elbow past the tunnel-visioned reporters. Please don't start hyperventilating right now. Happy thoughts, happy thoughts.

"Our next movie will be set in this casino..."

Deep breaths, Sil. And happy thoughts! Don't forget those!

"Is it true that you wish to follow in your mother's footsteps?"

Happy thoughts! "Excuse me!" I said, exasperated. I continued pushing past bodies in a desperate attempt to find an exit. I didn't even care about getting the interview anymore, I just didn't want to suffocate. Somewhere within the crowd I heard Chief yell my name. "What?" I called back, my voice drowning within the endless shouting surrounding me. He sounded close. Did he get sucked up in the human tidal wave too?