Rina looked nervously at Jo as she shifted from her sitting position. Arashi and Johnny was already an hour and thirty minutes late and the rumors about Jo hating late comers are definitely NOT a rumor. As a matter of fact, Jo's face serves as a testimony on how real that fact is. She’s positively upset as of the moment. "Um… Jo..." Rina started only to receive a reply from Jo by raising her right eyebrow. "Why don't you take a coffee or something to... Erm... Calm down?" At her suggestion, Jo simply nodded and stood up, leaving the area. 'Ugh… I prefer her to shout at me rather than keep quiet. It’s like she’ll go off any minute now.' Rina thought as she took her mobile phone for God knows how many times and dialed Johnny’s number.
About 30 minutes or so away from Liason, Johnny picked up his phone and immediately fell into several fits of apologies. "I'm so sorry, Rina! The traffic is really bad and..." He stopped in midsentence and lowered his head in defeat. "Jo's quite irritated, neh?" He asked then gave another affirming reply. "Please do tell her we're sorry..." And he hanged up the phone. He looked at Arashi who are sleeping in their seats. 'They're exhausted... I sure hope this meeting will go well.' He thought. Ten more minutes passed and Johnny finally gave into the urge. He leaned over his seat to talk to their ever-trusted 65-year-old driver. "James, can't we go a bit faster?" He asked only to get a shocked look from the old man.
"We're already speeding up, Mr. Kitagawa. If we raise our speed more, it’ll be dangerous!" was the man’s reply as Johnny took in the slow pace of the car and the slow passing motion as he watch the trees go by. James shook his head. "People now-a-days... Always in a hurry..." He then clucked his tongue then resumed on with his 'safe' driving, leaving Johnny in a pool of nerves and anxiety on how Jo will react on this.
Thirty minutes passed as Jo walked along the hallways of the building. She got some of the booklets she might use as study materials. She’s currently doing a quick run-through of the possible themes that will best fit Arashi and Sakura's requirements. Her eyes landed on the nearest vending machine. 'Good thing there's something here that can calm me down...' She thought as she stopped in front of the machine and deposit several changes. 'If only I knew that it will end up like this, I wouldn't have declined the meeting I'll be having with Miata Incorporated...' She thought as she forcefully placed in the last coin, causing the machine to sway a bit from the force. She was referring to her other job as part time photographer. She was hired by Miata to take photos for their newest paper ad; a new mobile product and a female model.
She chose her favorite drink; a canned coffee latte. She plucked the top off and started sipping the cold beverage. 'I know Arashi is busy and I can understand if they came in late for 45 minutes.. But… HECK! An hour and a half?!' She took another sip of her coffee before stopping by the window, glancing at the building’s view outside. The garden outside was pretty calming for Jo. Deciding that Rina will call her if Arashi and Johnny would arrive, she leaned back on the wall and continued to glance outside of the window as she sipped her coffee.
Arashi finally arrived at the premises and was literally running like their lives depend on it to the elevator. "This is so embarrassing!" Ohno complained as he stopped inside the elevator, panting since they ran from the 5th basement car park, deciding not to wait for the elevator. "We're late and tired and sweaty..."
Johnny made a hand movement which indicated that they should stop complaining since there's nothing more they can. They're already late. He pressed 5th floor and waited impatiently as the elevator door opened once more. As soon as they stepped out, they fixed themselves and arranged their messy demeanor. Johnny lead the way as Arashi followed.
Being the observant one, Jun's eyes darted from one hall to another, as if trying to memorize the way to take in case this Jo-person turns out to be the type who’ll eat people alive. He was about to turn on the last corner when his eye caught on something, or rather, a certain someone. Jun was known for his attitude of liking things which he finds amusing, beautiful or cute. He stopped dead on his tracks as he saw the figure leaning by the window, looking outside.
The girl was wearing a simple white t-shirt and dark blue jeans. On her feet are leather flat strap-on slippers and her hair fell over her left shoulder. There was nothing special with the way the girl dress but it seems like there was something in her which made Jun want to stay for a while. Since she was standing by the wall, Jun can only see her side. He cannot clearly see her face since her hair was covering it. He peered but remained at the corner, hiding by the wall. She was carrying booklets of sorts as she drank from her canned beverage. As if the heavens heard his plea, the girl raised her right hand and moved the hair which was obscuring her face and placed it over her right shoulder. Jun blinked as he saw her face.
The soft light from the lamp above flattered her complexion. Her physique was normal for her age. Not too slim but definitely not fat. If Jun would have his way, he would gather his courage, get closer to her and pinch her cheeks. 'Eh?' Jun thought. 'What the heck was that?' He asked himself as he shook his head to clear his thoughts. He looked at her as she raised the can to her lips and drained the liquid inside the can. Afterwards, she quickly detached herself from the wall and threw the can into the bin. Jun was caught by surprise as she quickly turned around. Good thing though he was able to hide out of sight as she did so. She then passed him unnoticed, tucking the booklets close to her as she did so. "Whew.." He mumbled to himself as he released the breath he didn't realized he was holding.
"Maybe you can and maybe you can't… She's quite cute, right?"
Jun nodded absent-mindedly. "Yeah... She's really cute and..." He was cut short as he realized that he was finally speaking with someone. He quickly turned around to see Aiba grinning like an idiot at him. "You! You saw it?!" Jun asked, pointing at Aiba, who in turn, continued to grin and nodded.
"E-very-thing..." He slowly replied, implying that he had been there for quite some time now. "I never thought MatsuJun would do something like that... OUCH!" Aiba was cut in mid-sentence as Jun gave him a sounding bop on the head. "Baka! That hurts!" He demanded as he rubbed on the aching spot.
Jun gave him a deadly glare. "Tell that to others and I'll do something a lot worse than that..." He threatened Aiba, receiving a frown from the older member. He then blinked as he noticed something he should realize beforehand. "What are you doing here anyway?" He asked him.
"Idiot… The others went ahead… I was going to borrow your phone and saw that you're not behind us so, I went back to find you." He explained. "Then I saw you here, drooling..." He stopped mid-sentence as he saw Jun's glare. To cover it up, he coughed. "Anyway... Come on. Johnny's gonna get into a fit if we don't get to the studio on time."
It took them less than a minute and Johnny greeted them with a glare. "Come on." He simply said as he knocked three times and opened the door. A guy in early twenties greeted him. "Ah… We're so sorry we're late." He simply implied as he walked in and signaled Arashi to follow. They did what they were told to do. The studio was typical. From the looks of the place, it seems like it was the receiving area since it had magazines, photo decorations, couches and a flat screen TV to entertain guests. As all Arashi members got in, Jun's eyes landed on the woman he saw before. Aiba smiled at this and whistled the tune of 'Happiness'. True enough, he was elbowed on the stomach by Jun who heard this. She was looking into the booklets she had before and looked up as soon as Johnny came in. "I'm Johnny. I've already talked to your secretary about our arrival." He continued as he reached for the hand of the guy in front of him (who happened to look strangely unsure of what's happening).
As Johnny was talking, Jun noticed that the girl blinked cutely. She looked at the exchange between the two people. A woman with multi-colored hair appeared into the room and saw the whole exchange. "Ahh..." Johnny started as he took the woman's hand into a vigorous shake. "And you must be Rina. You are as charming as you voice suggested." He crooned. "I was introducing myself to Jo here." He started, indicating the person who he shook hands before. "And of course, this is Arashi." He introduced as the boys gave a polite bow. As soon as Jun straightened up, he caught the amused smile the girl gave. It was as if the whole scene was too interesting for her to take in.
Rina looked around, now looking as unsure as the guy before. Her eyes once again landed on the figure of the girl standing behind the person Johnny presumed as Jo. The girl simply shrugged and returned her attention to the booklet she was looking. She was scanning at the pages but for Arashi, she was just doing it for the sake of doing something. It was quite obvious that she listening to the conversation since her eyes held a glint of amusement and the corner of her lips started to move a wee bit upwards. "Um... That's real good to hear and we are very glad that we finally able to meet but..." Rina was stopped by Johnny once more.
"I know we have a lot of things to talk about but I cannot help but marvel on these photos here. You, Jo." Indicating again on the guy in front of him. "Really have eyes for nature..." Johnny then took a booklet from the girl's hand and smiled. "Ah... 'Chocolat'! Haruka gave me a copy of these and my boys are definitely awed by your works!" He added before placing the book once more into the pile the girl had. "Oh, you're the trainee right? Rina did mention that they have a trainee in their office." Johnny started and he was a bit shocked to find the girl turning her back at him, shoulders shaking as she braced her hand over the desk nearest to her. Her shoulders were moving slightly as she raised her right hand to cover her mouth. Johnny, not wanting to be pissed at such small act, decided to continue the conversation. He gave a cough to clear his throat then continued the conversation. "Um... I hope the tasks they give you are not difficult. What’s you're name again?" Johnny asked and to the surprise of the whole group, the girl suddenly laughed. She was laughing uncontrollably, holding her stomach in the process. "Did I said something funny?" Johnny asked, a bit irritated at the action of the trainee, who in turn, if possible, laughed even harder.
Rina was caught in the middle. She was trying to decide on what to do. One, calm Johnny who looks like he was about to throw a fit or, calm the trainee who was laughing like there's no tomorrow. At the same moment, Makoto arrived into the room, carrying a folder. He stopped midway as he saw Arashi then beamed at them, giving a polite bow, which Arashi returned. It was obvious that he was restraining himself from jumping at them. The manner he looked at them made Nino hide behind Sho. He walked past them with such poise but his face held a look of surprise at the scene which greeted him. He shook it off and walked towards Rina, giving her a piece of paper. "These are the invitations for the wedding party next week." He simply said then moved towards the Jo-person after having Rina acknowledge the invitation. "I've been looking all over for you, Jo!" He demanded as he opened the folder. "You forgot to sign this one. Good thing I saw it before I head to Narita!" He added. "Tomi, hold this for me." He simply instructed the guy whom Johnny presumed as Jo and gave him a certain pile of documents. He then continued to stride until he was in front of the laughing trainee. "Now, will you sign this for me, JO?" He asked impatiently as he pushed the documents in front of the presumed trainee. "And why the heck are you laughing?!" The question caused Jo to fall into more hysterical laughter.
"EEEHHH?!?!" Arashi and Johnny asked in unison.
Jo continued her laugh for a second more before composing herself. "I think you do have met Rina." She started, nodding at the woman who Johnny correctly assumed as Jo's personal secretary. Rina smiled and gave a small bow of acknowledgment.
"This person here…" Placing a hand over Makoto's back. "Is Liason's fashion coordinator and graphic designer. Makoto Fumisaka. Mako for short." The person gave a girly like wave to Arashi which made Nino shiver visibly and it's not from delight. "As you can surmise, he's a she so, take my advice and do stay away unless you wanted to get harassed." At this, Mako gave hard nudge on the side then frowned. Arashi smiled at the action, seeing that the two of them are close that they can even joke in such manner in front of clients.
"The person Mr. Kitagawa talked to was Tomi Kobayashi, Liason's trainee and…" She gave a small bow and smiled. "I'm Josephine Anne Sashika. Some people call me JA but I prefer to be called as Jo. Don't let my name fool you. Though I think it's too late for apologies." She explained, laughing a bit as she recalled their expressions. "Welcome to Liason!" She greeted and gave another polite bow.
"WHAAAA.." Johnny commented and Arashi was stunned into silence. "I... I... I can't... They... They said... You're too young!" Johnny said. The only thing Jo can comprehend was the last sentence. At this scene, Jun was the first one to recover from it and laughed. Soon enough, the others followed suite.
"You looked really young for a professional. The Jo Sashika we were expecting was a guy with glaring eyes and bad temper." Jun admitted, receiving a nudge from Ohno. Jun then realized what he said is very unbecoming for an Arashi member. Realizing his mistake, he took an apologetic bow then bit his lower lip. "Sorry... I have this habit of telling people what I think..."
Jo smiled at this and shook her head. "It's quite alright. Well, in some way or another, what you said are true." She admitted. "I do tend to get easily irritated and I'm very frank so no need to worry on what I may think. I'm a very open person." She assured them. "But on the young professional thing... I think you guys became a professional earlier than I am so no need to be surprised." She complimented them. "But… Really… Your expressions are priceless… If I only had my camera with me, I would've captured that moment!" At her retort, they all laughed. Rina and Tomi relieved that Jo was able to regain her light mood.
When they all had their laughter in control, Jo smiled. "I have to admit I was positively pissed from the fact that you made us wait for two hours." She stopped as she saw Johnny and Arashi's face fell. "But all’s forgotten since you got me into this really great mood." She admitted. "I hope we all can work together without any problems." She then looked at Jun. She was a bit surprised that he was not simply looking at her but merely staring. She brushed her thoughts off, thinking that he was just surprised from the fact that Jo was actually a girl. She gave him a small smile which he returned good natured manner. "Shall we get started?" She finally asked them as she opened the door to the office's conference room.
