Colours of the Snow | Yuki Ishikawa

2

2020. August 23. 3 PM

"Hi, Ms. Erinne Hernandez. I'm your head team manager, Luigi Moretti. Nice to meet you, and congratulations on successfully coming out of quarantine," my head manager greeted me.

I have to admit, I wasn't in the right headspace when I left quarantine. Even though I enjoy staying at home, I felt a bit lost with nothing to do except for laptop, TV, and food. I couldn't even play the piano since there wasn't one in the room.

The quarantine even forced me to exercise out of boredom.

"And I'm Sylvana Rizzo, the operations manager for the team," Mr. Luigi's female companion introduced herself.

Mr. Luigi personally picked me up from my quarantine hotel because he would be my head manager.

I greeted them back, "Nice to meet you, Sir Moretti and Ma'am Rizzo." I extended my hand for a handshake.

"Oh no, no need to be so formal. Just call us Mr. Luigi and Ms. Sylvana. Nice to meet you, Erinne," Ms. Sylvana said with a smile.

I nodded and smiled in agreement."You can call me Eri." I replied.

I was still a bit nervous, but I had to put on a brave face. Being a project manager, I often feel anxious when talking to new people. I prefer texting over calling and only contact suppliers when absolutely necessary. If possible, I try to coordinate everything through messaging.

We rode into a parked sedan. Mr. Luigi took the driver's seat, Ms. Sylvana sat in the front passenger seat, and I settled into the back row.

"You're an architect, right?" Mr. Luigi asked as he started driving.

"Yes, sir," I replied.

"Are you okay with stepping away from your field? It's not something you'll be utilizing in your current role," he asked curiously.

"It's actually an opportunity for me to explore different areas, and it adds to my overall experience. I've had previous project management experience, so I'm not entirely new to it," I explained.

"That's great. I think you'll do well," Mr Luigi replied.

"I agree. Erinne's credentials make her a perfect fit for the job. It won't be easy, but I have complete confidence in you," Ms. Sylvana inserted.

"Thank you, but please don't expect too much from me. I'm still a newbie here," I replied with a shy smile.

Expectations.

"Don't worry, we've got your back," Mr. Luigi assured me. I let out a sigh of relief. As long as they didn't have high expectations, I knew I could handle it.

I wasn't sure where we were headed, but earlier they informed me that I would be meeting the team's board members and sponsor. After that, there would be a formal dinner party to introduce the whole team.

We had only been on the road for a few minutes when we stopped at a hotel. I observed to see if I should also get out of the car. Mr. Luigi and Ms. Sylvana started unbuckling their seatbelts.

"Please wait here, we'll pick someone up," Mr. Luigi informed me.

The car was parked on the side of the driveway, and they went inside the lobby. I wasn't sure what was happening, so I scrolled through my phone while waiting. After a while, the trunk of the sedan opened, and they placed something inside. I couldn't see clearly due to the tinted windows, so I patiently waited for them to return.

Mr. Luigi and Ms. Sylvana got back into the car, and then someone opened the door to the back row where I was seated.

It was Yuki.

He seemed just as surprised as I was when he opened the door. We locked eyes in surprise. Even with his mask on, I knew it was Yuki.

"Come on in, Yuki. Take a seat," Mr. Luigi invited him.

That's when we both snapped back to reality. I wasn't sure what to say to him. Should I pretend I forgot about our conversation two weeks ago? But since he didn't say anything, I decided to keep quiet too.

Yuki entered the car and sat next to me, with us on opposite ends of the back row. We stole glances at each other, both seemingly wanting to exchange greetings. But neither of us uttered a word. In the end, I smiled and gave a small bow, and he did the same.

Noticing the awkward silence in the back, Mr. Luigi introduced us. "Oh, Eri, meet Yuki, our player. Yuki, this is Erinne, our new assistant manager."

I was totally surprised when I discovered Yuki's true identity. All I knew before starting my new job as an assistant team manager for the Power Volley Milano volleyball club was that I would be working with the staff and players of the team. Since I had only glanced at the list of team members once, I was still not familiar with them. My main focus was on understanding my responsibilities and the team's management operations.

Yuki and I exchanged smiles after a brief introduction.

"Yuki is also new here as he will be playing in Milano for the first time this season," Ms. Sylvana mentioned.

"Hope you both have a great time here in Milano," Mr. Luigi added.

We both bowed in gratitude, and then the three of them started conversing in Italian, which I couldn't understand.

With nothing else to do, I turned to the internet to find out more about Yuki.I half-listened to their conversation, and I was amazed by Yuki's ability to speak Italian and English fluently—a true multilingual.

"Maybe you guys should take off your masks so you can see each other's faces," teased Ms. Sylvana.

During my online interview, I had already seen the faces of my two managers, but Yuki's face was still a mystery to me.Yuki removed his mask and I followed suit. And then, I saw his face.

He's cute.

We simply nodded at each other, laughing at the awkwardness, and put our masks back on. 

I found Yuki attractive. Having gone to a Chinese school, I was accustomed to his features, which were no different from theirs.Yes, I had a thing for Chinito men, as I used to be easily attracted to them. However, everything changed in college when I was exposed to different types of people in the UP community. My first boyfriend during my senior year was the complete opposite. He was tall, dark, and handsome. But after two years of dating, we broke up because he was just plain stupid—end of story.

After some Google searching, I finally discovered who Yuki Ishikawa was.

Yuki Ishikawa
Japanese volleyball national team.
Player number 14
The Ace of Japanese Volleyball.

 It wasn't apparent from his demeanor because he seemed so simple. But if Nishida was the rising star of Japanese volleyball, then what could be said about Ishikawa?

Unbelievable. The same Yuki was sitting right beside me.

My trance was broken when I heard Yuki softly laughing, and I realized he was laughing at me. He saw what was on my phone!

"Sorry! I didn't know you were Ishikawa-san," I defended myself.

"It's alright. I don't really expect people to know me," he chuckled.He was soft-spoken and even more modest than me.

"You better familiarize yourself with Ishikawa, Eri. He's an up-and-coming star player. He's got all the skills. Amazing kid," Mr. Luigi said.

Yuki blushed and laughed shyly, bowing in gratitude. It was so adorable to see him embarrassed by the compliment.

"Yes, I'll definitely do more research on him and all our players," I said, chuckling.

"Yuki and Eri, we'll head to the venue first for Yuki's press conference and official contract signing. Eri, you'll also have an interview there," Mr. Luigi instructed.

We both nodded.

Although I was nervous about meeting my sponsor, the excitement of entering a new environment overshadowed it.As we drove further, we engaged in some more small talk. They switched back to English so I could understand, but I only actively participated in the conversation when answering their questions.


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