ROSE
“Where the hell were you?” Those electrifying blue eyes glared at me. “And–.” A hand clamped half his face as his brows furrowed in horror. “And what the hell is that smell?”
Shit water. A special concoction made by an extraordinary team of professional stylists. That’s right. Instead of perfecting their concepts of style for their artistes, they perfected their recipe for dirty water—the stench is stronger and more powerful; it doesn’t come off even after multiple washes, which was what I had been doing in the past hour since Rum called.
But standing before him, I find myself stumped.
I can’t tell him the truth. I don’t want him to think that I’m full of excuses. I’m having a fresh clean start with my next favourite person on Earth.
He stood.
And all movement and sound halted.
“Did you hear what I said?” His voice was soft, yet low and threatening.
I couldn’t look away. A chilling fear was creeping up my back. “Y-Yes…M-Mr.—.”
“THEN ANSWER ME!” he roared.
Terror seized my heart. The heat of tears swarmed to the back of my eyes. I didn’t even dare to blink. I just stared at him.
Violent wrath crossed those beautiful features, crushing the charming face into the menacing one of a bully. He tilted his head innocently and asked gruffly, “Still not talking?”
He grabbed something off the vanity table and hurled it at me.
Gasps of shock punched the air as I winced away in reflex, shutting my eyes tight, when the thing whizzed past my ear like an angry bullet.
SMASH!! CLANK!!
Something tiny struck my feet, and I hopped aside. The scream of fear in my throat. Then, shivering, I peeped through half-opened eyelids and saw the hair curler at my feet, its plug yanked off from the socket.
“TALK!!”
My hand jerked down and my head shot up, and I faced the seething superstar directly. “Yes!” Instinctively, I bowed to a ninety-degrees angle and shouted like a soldier, “I am late because I was taking a shower!”
“What!” Rum shouted incredulously. “Why the fuck are you taking a shower—?” His brows raised in bewilderment. “Are you freeloading off the company?!”
I jolted upright in astonishment. “No!” My hands waved frantically. “I-I….” I glanced at Tessa who moved her thumb along her neck to signal a death threat and then stiffened in fear.
“WHAT IS IT THEN? Goddamn it! You’re wasting my fucking time!”
I lifted my chin and shouted, “I tripped into a puddle of shit on my way here!”
“Jesus Christ!” Rum backed away, holding a finger to his nose. New gasps and some giggles erupted into the air, scalding my face with sheer embarrassment.
I trudged on with my explanation. I owe it to the world’s best singer, songwriter. “T-Then, you called. A-And I had to meet you. So I rushed through everything. I-I did my best. But the smell….” My voice trailed off into the sniggers in the background.
I gripped tightly to summon the courage and promised in a firm tone, “It will come off, I promise! Mr. Rum, you’ll have the best assistant from now on, I guarantee you that! You won’t regret choosing me!”
Laughter exploded behind him.
More anger flushed across his face. He stormed towards me, grabbed my wrist and yanked me out of the studio.
*****
I hit the wall hard and winced in pain.
“LISTEN HERE, Dirty Rosey.”
My eyes flew open and I stared at those magnetic blue eyes drilling through mine ruthlessly.
No… not him too. He’s my kind Rum. There must have been a misunderstanding.
“I didn’t choose you—I just took the last name in the list and it happened to be you,” he growled menacingly. “So if you go around telling everyone that I chose you, I’ll snip off an inch of your pathetic hair. You got that into your miserable head?”
I nodded profusely.
“ANSWER ME!” His warm, minty breath blasted at me.
“Yes!” I squealed.
Finally, his shoulders relaxed. But his hands were still in tight fists pressed against the wall on each side of my head, caging me.
“Do you know who I am?” He suddenly asked.
I knitted my brows slightly. “Y-Yes….”
“ARGH!” He slammed a fist on the wall and pushed himself away in a painful groan.
With the huge gap between us, I thought I could finally breathe when he turned around and in two strides, he was back right in front of me.
“You are not going to tell anyone,” he snarled.
“T-Tell what?”
His head tilted in puzzlement. “Wait. Don’t you know who I am?”
I was getting vexed. Idol or not, I felt as though I was talking to Annie number two.
Of course, I know who you are! Who doesn’t??
I drew in a sharp breath and replied as patiently as I could, “You’re Rum—international superstar. You started out as a model at the age of seventeen and took the fashion world by storm. You were booked for every show. Then, you turned to acting. And you won awards right from the first gig. And then you moved on to singing and songwriting. You released an album, which gone platinum. Following that you went on a world tour, debuted in a movie, and clinched endorsements. You did all of that in a year….”
Rum chuckled dryly. “I see you did your homework.”
I smiled brightly. “I’m a fan of your work!”
“Eew.” His face crushed with disgust. “Don’t. Don’t smile like that. It’s revolting.”
Instantly, I pulled into a dead expression. “Yes, Sir!”
“So that’s all you knew about me?” His eyes narrowed suspiciously.
I mimicked his expression. “What else should I know about you?” He looked as though I had just called him an idiot, so I immediately added in a timid voice, “I know everything about you that’s on the internet—that’s all! I swear!”
“Fine.” He finally moved away from me. “You get to stay as my assistant.”
“Thank you, Mr. Rum! You won’t regret it!”
He swung back, furious. “I ALREADY DO! SO STOP SAYING THAT!”
“Yes, Sir!” I stood in rigid attention.
The stunning figure in a large, bright white shirt and midnight blue pants pointed a warning finger at me and muttered in a grave tone, “You don’t leave my sight, but I can leave yours. And when I do, you call until I answer.”
“If you don’t answer—.”
“CALL UNTIL I ANSWER!” He thundered.
“Y-Yes!”
“Now, where was I… Ah!” His fierce glare was back. His voice lowered into a threatening decibel. “Don’t you ever interrupt me when I’m talking. Wait for your fucking turn to speak. And should you have questions, I don’t want to hear them. They are none of my fucking business. You got that.”
I nodded furiously. “Yes!”
“And put on some goddamn perfume!” His finger shot up to his nose and he cringed with repulsion. “And wear some make-up, for God’s sake! You’re scaring away my creativity! If I can’t write a thing, I’m gonna beat the shit out of you!”
“Got it!” I huffed. Perfume, make-up, stay silent. I can do all that. I’m going to stay in this job no matter what. I have nowhere else to go. And I’m never going back to Annie’s!
“Thirty minutes. That’s all I’m giving you, Dirty Rosey.”
“Wait, Mr. Rum–.” He swung back in fury and I hiccuped to swallow my surprise.
“Didn’t I say that I don’t want to hear your stupid questions?”
“But what if it’s code red and you’re away?”
Rum eyed me curiously. Then, he inhaled deeply and exhaled. “Send me a text. Code Red. And I’ll know.”
He strode out of the conference room and slammed the door behind him.
I finally succumbed to my jelly feet and collapsed to the floor. Tears streamed down my face. Those bitches ruined my first meeting with Rum. It was supposed to be perfect. But it was not.
I sniffed and pulled myself up. Forcing a smile, I exhaled to summon the strength to pull through the day. I should count my blessings—I’m officially Rum’s assistant! I made it!
*****
I scrambled to an empty dressing room. I blow dried my hair and braided it once more, then applied a little gloss tint on my plump lips. I put on my specs and then checked my reflection in the mirror to make sure that my hair and attire was at least neat and tidy. Lastly, I took a deodorant stick (there weren’t any perfume bottles lying around and I don’t have one), tested the scent (it smelled of fresh blossoms), and then applied it to the ends of my hair, my wrists and behind my earlobe.
When I returned to the studio, Rum was already in the midst of his photoshoot for a magazine cover.
The staff was crowding around the equipment and the black backdrop, standing by for any impromptu adjustments. It was quiet except for the photographer’s gentle instructions and the snapping sounds of the camera.
After a few flashes, the photographer paused to check the shots while the stylist rushed forward for a retouch.
And then Rum pointed a finger at me and curled it towards him.
He needs something. What do you need? I asked him with my eyes.
“ARE YOU AN IDIOT?” Rum barked at me. “MY MORNING DRINK! WHERE THE FUCK IS IT?” His beautiful eyes narrowed with frustration.
“S-Sorry, Mr. Rum! I-I’ll go get it right away.” I cowered away from the mocking giggles and dashed to the studio’s exit.
Once the door closed behind me, I whipped out my phone and started making notes.
Rum did say that he won’t listen to any of my questions. So I have to find out all the answers on my own. I can do this! Wish me luck!
ROSECarefully, I picked up my iPad and the impatient phone and turned towards the exit of the office. I thought to answer the call once I’m outside, but it stopped buzzing. So I moved cautiously towards the elevator, when it arrived just as I halted to push the button for it. The doors opened and my handsome Alpha King appeared, worried as hell. ‘Why didn’t you answer my call?’ he demanded.I rolled my eyes. ‘Because I’m getting through a door with this.’ I pointed at my huge belly. He was about to carry me like a bride when I slapped his hands away. ‘Stop it!’ I hissed. ‘You want everyone to know?!’ ‘Wheelchair. If you ever missed my call again.’ He stepped aside for me to enter the metal carrier. ‘Alright, alright…’ I chuckled. ‘So how was it?’ He asked, glancing at my iPad. ‘Did she approve it?’ ‘No.’ I sighed. ‘It’s too extravagant. The actress specifically asked for more grounded styles. She wants people to relate more to acting than her beauty.’ And Keithen scoffed. ‘Goo
ROSEI rolled myself onto him, loving the way my skin rubbed against his, feeling his warmth and heartbeat against mine, as well as the vibrations of his chuckle. He swept the sticky damp strands off my face, hooking some around my ears, then combed the rest to the back of my head with his fingers, and all the time, I had my eyes closed, savouring the moment. And he chuckled some more. ‘You want another round?’ he whispered. My eyes burst open, and his arms squeezed my bare waist as he laughed. ‘I’m hurt, cub. You look like a car was about to hit you.’ I shifted closer to his face—my breasts scraping his hard chest, and he grunted a little—and kissed him on the mouth hard, delivering all my passion, all my apologies. Immediately, his mouth opened and he shifted to push me forward, so that his tongue could dive in a little more, consuming me breathless. Just as the familiar desires stirred inside me, I pulled back, tore my lips from his and captured his face with both hands, tryi
ROSEI’m a werewolf, aren’t I? Okay, not entirely. Just half wolf, half human. But that still counts, right? There’s still some wolf inside me to make this work! This has to work! Concentrate. Focus, Rose. Think of the gate. I could be at the beach, or the back alley. Does it relocate to the same place twice? Or does it choose a new place each time? ‘Rose, are you having a headache?’ asked Joy. I opened my eyes and evaluated my best friend for a while. Then, I made up my mind. ‘Joy.’ I grabbed her shoulders. ‘I’m about to tell you something that nothing in Science can ever explain.’ ‘O…kay?’ I could see the wheels of her mind churning to come up with the plausible reason for my sudden strange behaviour. ‘Is it Harry Potter kinda something?’ I nodded firmly. And she mouthed ‘O’, with a knowing gaze. But behind that gaze, I still caught her disbelief. ‘It’s alright to not believe me. Just promise me that you won’t tell a living soul.’ I was staring at her so hard, I could almost
RICHARDA video showing Richard in his midnight blue shirt with his arm stretched across the desk. The files shifted and a sketch of a female figurine in a puffed up flowy gown with petals in her hair and on her lashes and lips. Richard was flabbergasted. He turned back to the CEO, his mind churning furiously to come up with the best excuse to save his ass. ‘When Rose brought me that design, I thought to myself: this is something that ambitious Annie would use. It’s extravagant and flamboyant. Wouldn’t it be nice to distract her with this, so my precious gem can focus on levelling up her skills? She can’t be stuck in the B.A.D. crap all the time.’ Richard felt deflated. His world was crashing down into dust. ‘Y-You set me up.’ The CEO laughed heartily. ‘You flatter yourself too much, Richard. Set ups are for my equals. This is just a test. But you scored full marks.’ The young rising star slammed his palms on the desk and glared at the CEO—the woman who had previously doted on hi
ROSE‘... the winner of this styling face off is—.’ The emcee’s eyes rolled left to right repeatedly as he read the card. His brows knitted as a mutter of disbelief spilled from his mouth, ‘Annie from B.A.D.’ My insides sank to the deepest parts of my spirit. ‘YES!’ Annie shrieked out victoriously. With a smugful grin, she cast a look of condemnation in my way. ‘I told you she’s a fake! She can’t style at all! Extraordinary—ha!’ That was… … unexpected. I thought I had a good chance. I really did read Miss Jewel’s comments wrongly. ‘Oh! The main judge has something to say!’ The emcee shoved Annie aside to make way for the retired supermodel, Jinda Avengelistford, who gracefully took the centrestage at an astounding height of six feet. ‘Based on the styling standards, Miss Annie has met every single one.’ She turned to the head of B.A.D.’s styling team and flashed a warm smile. ‘It was exciting—your unexpected. There is still a difference between professional and personal styling.
KEITHEN ’CUT!’ The director’s frown was as clear as the blue sky outside. I could tell that he’s been trying to hold it in. But the shit’s about to explode. ‘Rum.’ He forced a smile. ‘Are you sure you’re not unwell?’ I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve said this: ‘I’m fine.’ ‘Then what’s the problem?!’ The older guy grabbed his hair, about to go crazy. I stared at the line of the script that was shoved into my view. Instantly, the clog in my throat grew real. As real as the reality I’m about to face in an hour’s time. ‘Maybe Rum’s upset that this is all going to end for him soon.’ I looked up and a pair of kind eyes smiled back at me. Sherry patted my shoulder as that sweet smile turned into a sympathetic one. ‘I bet he misses all this. Don’t you, boss?’ I chuckled dryly and looked down again. ‘I’m not your boss, Sher. I’ve said it many times.’ That’s it. No matter how hard you try. You can’t fight reality. You just can’t. You can stay hidden around her. It won’t ma