Innocent Attraction: Chapter 2

Title: Innocent Attraction
Author: Roshni
Rating: G
Pairings: Yusuke/Roshni
Word Count: 1,647
Disclaimer: I do not own Yusuke. This is a work of fiction. This was written for fun. No profit is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Words to know:
Moshi-Moshi = hello on phone.
otou-san = father
nii-chan = older brother
arigatou = thank you


The next day Yusuke walked into the bakery coiled as tight as a rope. He had a meeting in an hour. This seemed like the only place where he could relax and ready himself to listen to excuses as to why his company should delve into electronics and bottle designs. If he didn’t relax, he knew he would chew out the presenters today.

He had made no progress with the reports. They were driving him mad. He didn’t know who to trust or not trust. He knew there was someone or a few people working from the inside and probably high in position. He ordered coffee and went to sit down in his corner. A few minutes later, coffee, a plate of donuts and another slice of strawberry cake were placed in front of him.

He looked up to see Roshni sitting across from him.

“What’s wrong Yamamoto-san?”

“Nothing is wrong?” He looked at the slice of cake suspiciously. “Is it going to be as salty as yesterday’s slice?”

Roshni looked at him outraged and embarrassed. Outraged at the fact he would mention it and embarrassed because it was her fault for not noticing that she was pouring in salt.

“I made sure it was the sugar bottle today.” Roshni said irritated.

Yusuke hesitantly took a bite of the slice. “It’s better than yesterday’s slice but it could be better.” He stated after swallowing the first bite.

“You don’t have to be so nice. I can take it.”

“It’s a bit dingy, not as fluff or light as the cakes in this bakery or any other cake I’ve tasted.” Yusuke finished only to see Roshni writing in her notepad.

“What are you writing?” He asked curiously.

“The points you are making, so I can improve on them for tomorrow’s cake.” Roshni replied without looking up. For a few minutes there is no sound except the scratching of Roshni’s pen on the paper.

Yusuke relaxed back and enjoyed his donuts and coffee. A blissful expression filled his face as he took the first sip of coffee. “You can’t make cakes but you make the best coffee I’ve ever had. Can you make me another cup for me to take with me?” He requested thinking of the upcoming meeting and wincing.

“I bet you drink about half a gallon of coffee a day. It’s not good for you.” Roshni admonished him without looking up.

“Is that a no?” Yusuke asked surprised at her refusal. “I can get someone else to make it.” He stated.

“Did I say no?” Roshni asked irritated. “I bet you would spit out if anyone else made it. You are so picky. I would not hear the end of it.” Roshni murmured. A few customers entered the store and Roshni hurried to the counter.

Forty minutes later, Yusuke walked back into his office cradling the cup of coffee.

The electronics meeting went fine. However, the next meeting wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be. Well it wasn’t that bad until Hirioki-san took the mike for his presentation. From there it went downhill. All the designs seemed to blur into one. He was starting to question his venture into beauty products. He could handle the designs from buildings and stores. But Designs for bottles...He was at a loss. He couldn’t wait until he could walk out of there. For now, he put a smile on his face and focused on the present speaker. The design looked mildly interesting. The colours were horrible.

Two hours, a few headaches and arguments later, the decision was made to go with the simple yet alluring design and logo. There was going to be more work done later and another presentation a week later. He walked out of the conference room and took the stairs to his office two floors up. He walked into the waiting room thanking Ishi-san for making no more appointments today. She was not at her desk. He walked into his office and straight to the window.

This was another one of his sanctuaries. He had designed it himself; the room and the pieces of furniture in it. It presented a very relaxed yet sleek air. The office was very spacious, the side facing the city was a mirror wall; one where you can look outside and clearly see everything. In front of the glass wall was a big silver desk in the shape of a wavy parallelogram and a black chair. To the left there was a smaller silver desk and two black chairs placed on the other side of it. On the right side of the room there is a black desk on which is a small refrigerator, a microwave and a coffee machine. If you move further towards the door there are is a silver couch with a coffee table right in front of it. In the centre of room there was a small table surrounded by a small black couch and two chairs, which gives the office a look of comfort and sophistication. It was also very bright and airy because of the windows he had installed on the other two sides.

He was lost in his thoughts perched on the window, when Ishi-san walked in. The look on her face had his stomach twisting unpleasantly.

“Tomorrow you have to visit the university. They have the profiles of the students ready. You have to choose five of their best students in business, accounting, marketing and finance to become interns here.” She reminded him. She was in her forties. There were locks of grey mixed in with the brown. Her face was kind though. There was a glow about her that hadn’t been there before. She looked radiant.

“Yes, I remember. What time am I supposed to be there?” He asked returning to gazing at the scenery.

“You have to be there at 9 a.m. sharp.” She told him sternly.

“Yes ma’am.” He replied turning to look at her. He could see there was something else she wanted to say but was fighting with herself whether to tell him or not. “Is there something else?” he asked quietly.

“I am pregnant.” She blurted out. He was shocked for a moment but recovered fast. “Congratulation. I am happy for you and your husband.” He smiled at her.

She thanked him. “Yamamoto-san, I would like to take a while off. I will wait until the interns start. I discussed it with my husband. I would like to stay at home and raise my child for two three years at least. You can choose one of the interns to take my place.” She told him gently.

“I understand. There will always be space for you here.” He told her. “Thank You for everything you have done Ishi-san.”

After she left, he couldn’t help but feel lost. He first bought the company and remembered how bad it was. She had been with him every step of the way, even when he was just an intern and starting here. Now the only person he was sure he could trust was leaving.

The ringing of the phone interrupted his self-pity session. He looked at the number a smile spread on his face.

“Moshi-Moshi.” He stated.

“Don’t be late Yusuke nii-chan. Otou-san told me to call you and remind you.” His 7 year old niece reminded him in a fit of giggles.

“I won’t forget Hotaru-chan.” Shreiking laughter was the only response he got.

At 5 p.m. He was ringing the doorbell of his best friend’s house. The door opened and he was tackled by two forms. Hotaru smiled at him and moved back. He looked down to see 3 year old Haru trying to climb up his leg. He smiled down at her and picked her up. He kissed her on the cheek and walked in. She looked as cute as a button wearing frog night suit. Hotaru was wearing her princess pyjamas. Ariki had asked her him to babysit the girls tonight so he could go out with his girlfriend. Their mother had died due to complications in Haru’s birth. The evening flew by with him playing doll with the girls.

The next morning at 9 a.m. he was at the university’s conference room looking through their business students records. Their test scores and resume’s impressed him. However, one name jumped out at him from the computer records. Arai Roshni. She was in the top 3 consistently until six months ago. Since then she disappear from the records with no sign of graduating. He asked the director about her only to learn she had taken some time off. He went back to his office having decided on the five that would be interning at Mirage. He just hoped they passed the interview with the gruelling committee.

During his break he walked into the bakery only to see it empty. He continued to walk up to the counter and was greeted by Roshni’s smiling face. “Join me at the table.” He ordered. She looked at him surprised at his tone.

Five minutes later she placed a slice of cake and coffee in front of him. She slipped into the seat across from him. He picked up the slice and took a bite. To his surprise it was better than yesterdays.

“What is a person who can’t bake doing working in a bakery?” He asked.

“Trying to pay the bills.” She replied calmly raising her eyebrows at his interest.

He scoffed in response. “Fine. Let me rephrase. What is one of the top three students in business at Tokyo’s business university doing working in a small bakery?”

She looked at him in the eye and contemplated his question. “Running away or trying to find the courage to face what happened.” She finally replied with sadness laced in her tone. This was the first time in six months she had acknowledged what had happened. First time she admitted that it happened.

Chapter 3