Step 1 - Business
The warm rays of the sun still extend over the city, though, it already announces a beautiful sunset over the skyline of Tokyo. The white clouds in the sky will be covered with soft tones of yellow, orange and red, to pink and purple until they will turn from a soft blue into white again. The sight is a dream. Every single time, she is enchanted by the sight. With a sigh, the young woman turns away from this breathtaking view and lies back on the couch.
Working as a rental girlfriend also involves certain risks. It has already happened often, that a client has turned out to be a fanatical stalker. In order to avoid this risk, the young ladies always use a pseudonym under which they work. The young Haruno should also use one of those pseudonyms, but she works for the agency „Sakura-Hoshi”, because of that her name „Sakura” already seems like a pseudonym. Especially since one of her colleagues has the pseudonym „Hoshi”.
In addition to the pseudonym, meetings are always taking place outside. The fact that a client picks up his rented girlfriend from their front door is fundamentally avoided and if a hotel room was to be booked, the private data is largely kept secret.
That’s why she’s not in her apartment preparing for the corporate party, but in one of the Haruno Empire’s smaller conference rooms. Her brother seems to trust Sasuke Uchiha, otherwise he would hardly have given him her contact details. She also feels a little better about the fact, that the Uchiha won’t pick her up from her apartment. His cold stile and pervasive looks made her shiver a few times the previous week, despite the warm temperatures outside.
Sighing, the Haruno lets herself sink to the couch. Putting her right leg over her left, she picks up the pages in front of her once more. Sasuke send her some important informations per e-mail, such as his birthday, a few of his hobbies And the way of how they got to know each other. An amateur golf tournament. Sakura smiles gently. The last time she took part in an amateur golf tournament, she injured one of the other participants, with her golf bat, on his forehead. She still can remember the digested face of the then 18 years young man. His dark eyes had looked at her in surprise, while from the wound, produced by the thug, a small amount of blood trickled out from under his black hair. A little shocked, the pinkette gazes at the documents in her hand, as she gives herself a facepalm. The young man at that time was none other than Sasuke Uchiha. „Something like this really can only happen to me!” She groans and puts the notes back on the coffee table. Sighing, she gets up again and turns to the window. She glances at the clock. The celebration, to which she should accompany the Uchiha, is the opening of the Tokiwa-Towers. Two towers which have been build by the software-company Tokiwa. The celebration should start at 9 pm. Since these towers are located at Nishitama, they will take two hours to arrive there, even if the Haruno empire is located on the outskirts of Shinjuku.
Slowly she should get ready, after all, she shouldn’t make her client unnecessarily wait. Once again, Sakura turns her eyes away from the skyline and turns to the couch. In a small bag are all of her make-up, jewelry’s and other accessories. She had put the evening dress over the couch, so it won’t get any wrinkles. The green-eyed woman sinks down onto the couch and spreads out her needed stuff, in order to begin with her face.
About an hour later she slips into her silver strappy sandals, which are decorated with rhinestones and puts all the other stuff back into her little bags. A glance to the back makes her smile. In summer it’s always bright so long and the sunset is so beautiful and picturesque. On days like these, when the sky gets tenderly clouded, the sunset sometimes lasts for hours. Slowly she turns away and takes her make-up kit, just as the two bags with the clothes in which she came here, into her right hand. With her left hand she catches the long material of her dress, so it won’t drag over the ground and get dirty. Silently and untouched, as if she never had set a foot into this room, she exits from it and uses the elevator, down to her car in the parking house. Only a few cars were still here, between them her red Mazda 6. Humming, she puts her belongings into the trunk of her car, takes her handbag into her hand and puts her most important belongings, like Smartphone and money, into it. As that was done, she goes back to the entrance of the building in order to go over the paved path and wait for her client at the road. The long material of her dress still collected into her left hand.
A few minutes later a limousine stops in front of her and the Uchiha gets out. With an undefinable gaze. He looks her shortly over, as he comes closer. His bow tie hanging loosely around his neck. ,,Good evening.” She greets him with a soft smile. His fingers brushing once through his dark hair as he comes to a halt in front of her. ,,Hello. Ready?” He immediately inquires and leads her to the limousine, after she gave him a nod. They silently sit next to each other and his eyes wander over her once more, as he gazes at her. When she looks at him, Sasuke wants to avert his gaze, but stops when he notices how she lifts her hands to his neck where she ties up his bow tie and plunks a little on it. With a smile she averts her gaze again and looks out and a moment later he does the same. His lips escapes a silent sigh. He, as one of the owners of the Uchiha corporation, has some duties to fulfill, make important decisions and represent his company on such celebrations. His father founded this company as an university graduate and during his time as the president of the company he expanded the number of his employees from 10 to around 4000. Alone 2500 of these employees are working in the central. In addition there are also a few branches and production halls distributed over the country, in which also around 100 to 200 people are employed.
The Uchiha corporation is one of the leading companies in their industry. His father has already withdrawn and the owners post has been split to him and his brother. While his brother, Itachi, is responsible for the technology and the associated departments, the creative departments, from development to design and designing plans, are under his leadership. His father spends his day in one of the offices and takes care of other things, that his post as the board member brings with it.
To be honest, he personally doesn’t like such celebrations at all. Always this profusely nice greetings and this ongoing conversations about the companies. He really has no nerve to deal with those people over and over again instead of enjoying his well deserved closing time at home.
Once again he sighs silently, as the car comes to a halt and he can already see all the reporters of the newspapers. One more reason why he can’t stand this celebrations. The reporters always gather around, since the most known stars, politicians and other important personalities arrive here. He looks briefly at the young Haruno beside him, which looks calmly at the crowd. After all, as Ryosuke Haruno’s sister, she is used to such things.
Sasuke closes his eyes for a brief moment, as the door gets opened and the camera flashes start. He gets out of the car and holds out his hand to the Haruno, in order to help her out as well. The moment she stands in front of the limousine, she lets go of the fabric, which she had held onto all this time and the dress shows itself in all its glory.
Felt-three hours later, they finally enter the foyer, where they are greeted by employees. "Good evening. The celebration takes place upstairs on the 70th floor.” explains a woman and bows slightly. Another woman also indicates the bow and leads her to the elevator. The Uchiha nods in silence and follows the lady with the Haruno to the elevator. Inside, a man is already waiting and presses the button for the 70th floor, when they stand inside. Bored, the black haired man looks at the elevator doors as he perceives a movement next to him and looks at Sakura, who has turned and looks out through the glass walls of the elevator towards the sunset. The corner of his mouth twitches in amusement at this childlike enthusiasm for the sunshine at dusk. His eyes continue to slide to the dress that suits her extremely well. The green satin fabric accentuates the eyes of the pinkette and makes them stand out even more.
A tone sounds through the elevator and indicates that they have reached the desired floor. The young Haruno turns back to him and he offers her his arm. She smiles lightly at him and puts her hand on the inside of his offered arm. He also smiles slightly and finally leads her out of the elevator, immediately noticing the looks that lie on him and his companion. It doesn't really surprise him, after all he is a young single, the managing director of a company and one of the most popular bachelors in the whole country. If not the most sought-after bachelor, badly. But the Haruno in this dress is also a real feast for the eyes. They walk silently through the crowd of guests when he already finds what he is looking for. His parents and older brother, who were immediately heading for him, apparently have been waiting. "Sasuke. Nice to see you!” His mother comes up to him with a bright smile to hug him. "Hello mum, you look good." He smiles back gently as he kisses his mother on the cheek and lets her go. "Who did you bring with you there, Sasuke?" Comes the voice of his father, who looks at the pink haired woman. "This is Haruno Sakura." Sasuke introduces the young woman at his side. The Haruno smiles politely and then bows, “Good evening. I am pleased to meet you."
Mrs. Uchiha starts to smile before she also bows, “We are also pleased. I am Mikoto, this is my husband Fugaku and my eldest son Itachi.” One after the other, the black haired woman points to her strictly acting husband and son. "The sister of Haruno Ryosuke. Nice to meet you." Fugaku Uchiha seems a little surprised when he shakes his hand with her in business. “Is your brother here too?" The pinkette shakes her head at his question, smiling. "No, the Tokiwa Group and the Haruno Empire have no business relationships yet. That's why my brother was not invited.”, she explains kindly. Fugaku nods understanding. “Tell Sasuke, how did you actually get to know each other?" Itachi asks and looks grinning at the two of them. "Well, that was ...", the black-haired man begins. “That was 7 years ago. We both took part in an amateur golf tournament for charity and I accidentally hit my golf club against his head and injured him as a result.”, the young Haruno laughs a bit embarrassed when she tells them of her little misfortune. "And a few weeks ago we finally ran into each other again, while shopping, that was as far as I can remember." The green eyed woman completes her explanation and smiles at Sasuke, who looks at her in surprise before clearing his throat. "That's exactly how it was." He nods and looks annoyed at his brother. Because Itachi uses every opportunity he can get, to annoy his little brother.
The next moment the lights go out a spotlight is directed to the stage, where a gentleman appears and introduces himself as the director of the Tokiwa Group. He briefly greets everyone and thanks for the numerous guests. He tells something about the company and the two towers before he leaves the stage with applause.
When the applause has died down and the lights illuminate the hall again, the youngest of the four black heads sighs. "I'm going to get a drink first. Should I bring you something too?”, the Uchiha asks his companion. "I'll come with you.", she offers instead and smiles as she follows him to the bar.
"I had completely forgotten the story of that time.”, the Uchiha breaks the silence between the two of them. Sakura nods with a smile. "I felt the same way, I remembered it earlier when I looked through the informations." Sasuke nods understandingly and stops with her at the bar and names his drink to the barkeeper. “And what do you want?“, Sasuke asks and turns to the Haruno. "Strawberry Daiquirri please." Sakura smiles at the barkeeper, then looks around the crowd. "Sasuke Uchiha." It sounds from the side and the Haruno looks around. "Neji Hyuga, as always, accompanied by Tenten Ama.", the black haired man comments and greets Neji with a handshake, while Tenten gives him a friendly kiss left and right. "Are you here alone again?", Neji’s companion explores with a broad smile. "No. Today I am in company.” The dark eyed man negates and points to the Haruno. "Wow, now I understand why all the girls are whispering. You put everyone else in the shade with your dress.” The Ama girl, in her light blue floor-length dress with rhinestones on her chest, compliments her with a smile. "Well, a Haruno knows how to market themself.”, a small smile lies on the lips of the youngest Uchiha as he says this, which makes the pinkette blush a little. "What? You are related to Ryosuke Haruno?”, the brown eyed woman asks in astonishment. "Yes, my name is Haruno Sakura, Ryosuke Haruno is my big brother." The pinkette bows politely as she introduces herself. "I am Ama Tenten and this is Hyuga Neji." The brown haired woman too introduces herself and her companion. "Your drinks.”, suddenly a voice sounds from the bar and the bartender places the ordered drinks on the counter. "Thank you.", it comes coolly from the Uchiha while he takes the glasses and passes the Strawberry Daiquirri on to his companion. "Okay. We'll see each other later,”, says the black-haired man and leads his companion back to his parents.
"Are those two a couple? They look very cute together.”, the pinkette asks and looks back at the two of them. When she turns back to the front, she bumps into one of the waiters, on whom she bounces off like a rubber ball because of his size and stumbles back. Strong arms surround her, while a male chest prevents her from falling. The waiter in front of her apologizes with a bow and continues on his way. “They have been best friends since the sandpit. Actually, everyone is just waiting for the two to finally confess their love.”, the Uchiha explains, while she is lying in his arms and leaning against his chest because of the small collision. "I'm sorry.", the young woman mumbles softly and straightens up again. She looks a little red around her nose, as he places one arm on her back and points in one direction with the other hand. The green eyed woman nods and lets him lead her to his parents. "I have to clarify something over there. In the meanwhile you can stay here.”, explains the youngest Uchiha, pointing to an important looking man. The Haruno nods understanding at him and turns towards his parents instead.
"Sakura the dress is truly a dream!” Mikoto beams towards her. The addressed woman smiles sheepishly and takes a quick look at her dress. It looks as if two layers of the same-colored green chiffon fabric have been placed over a simple cocktail dress that reaches to the middle of the thigh and is strapless. Around the upper body, the fabric is neatly gathered and is held by a pattern of rhinestones, which goes from the middle of her chest to her left hip. The rest of the chiffon fabric falls from the end of the rhinestones to the floor like a curtain, where it ends after a short tail. "Thank you very much, but I still don't look as graceful as you!" The Haruno returns the compliment with a smile. Because she thinks Ms. Uchiha also has a dream of a dress. The older woman's navy blue dress looks like a fine chiffon fabric has been sewn over a simple strapless floor-length dress, which lies down to her neck, conjures short sleeves and lies behind her shoulder blades at the back, the fabric is gathered up and 6 beautiful silver clips holding it up on her upper body before hanging loosely from there to the floor. "Thank you very much, but you are definitely the star tonight." Mikoto smiles lovingly at her.
"What do you do for a living, mrs. Haruno?", Fugaku asks, who is standing next to his wife. “I am currently studying industrial design. I will graduate next year.”, the pink haired woman smiles and brushes through her curls, which she has put together on her right side. "Oh, aren't you studying anything marketing-related?" Mr. Uchiha seems a little surprised. "No. Right from the start, my brother was much more interested in the advertising industry than I was. He supports me in going my own way.”, Sakura explains with a smile. Mr. Uchiha nods while his wife smiles at her. "Ah, Keizo. Nice to see you!“ Suddenly it comes from Fugaku, who walks towards a man and happily shakes his hand.
The pink haired girl stands silently next to Mikoto and over time also empties her drink. She looks at the crowd and then finally looks behind her. The wall has built in large panoramic windows again and again and exposes the view of Mount Fuji. The Haruno enthusiastically approaches one of the panoramic windows and looks into the sunset, which immerses the Fuji in a soft orange-yellow and the sky seems to be blue and purple. "Such a picturesque sight, isn't it?" Mikoto stands next to Sakura and smiles as she looks at Mount Fuji. "Yes." The Haruno nods with a smile and then looks back into the crowd. She immediately hands over an empty glass to one of the passing waiters. Sighing silently, she smiles slightly melancholy at the sight of Mount Fuji.
When she looks back at her client's mother, she sees her start to sway and finally stagger a few steps back into the arms of the Haruno, which she has reached for. Sakura gently but firmly holds the black haired woman who is holding her head with her right hand. "Everything okay?" She asks a little worried. But Mikoto just smiles and waves it off. "Yes, yes. Just a hint of migraine. Thank you, Sakura.” She explains to the pinkette and smiles gratefully at her as she straightens up again. "Are you all right mom?" Sasuke suddenly appears next to them and looks at his mother with concern. "Mikoto!" Fugaku also comes to a standstill next to the two, as does Itachi after a few seconds. Concern is in everyone's eyes while eyeing the woman and Mr. Uchiha putting an arm around his wife. "Everything is fine. It's just my migraine.” Mikoto smiles at the men and then lets Fugaku take her away. Itachi also mingles with the crowd again. In silence, the Haruno looks at her client and sees how he looks after his mother with a sad and concerned look.
