The Bodyguard

CH 17

Ciel's POV

After that whole fiasco me and Flor are then escorted by security towards my car. We get in and drive off. My anger has somewhat subsided, but I can't help but feel indignant. If she had just apologized, or better yet nothing at all and just moved along this drama could have been avoided. I'm not one to involve myself in drama or start it, but sometimes you end up caught in the middle of it. I just hope IT can get a handle on this because the last thing I need is to have to do a press conference on this situation. Fucking pathetic, Security needs to get a fucking grip.

At this point I'm going to have to replace the head of security and the manager because I can't stand incompetence. "OMG CIEL. I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT HAPPENED?! LIKE WTF IS WRONG WITH HER?" Flor says annoyed. "Me neither. Honestly, I didn't expect it to go there, but she really pissed me off". She laughed, "No shit. Girl, I swear I've never seen you so pissed. For a second there I thought you were going to beat the shit out of her. Remind me to never get on your bad side. Anyways ... let's move on. So OMG girl how have you been? Like we need to catch up. It feels like I haven't seen you in forever. Tell me everything. Since I left Harvard, we didn't get to hang out as much".

"Well after doing those internships I eventually graduated, and as soon as I graduated my grandfather came calling. I promise not even a week later I was already back here. I'm the COO of Gianni Enterprises. I'm getting ready to take over. Lord knows when the old man is going to retire, but he already has one foot out the door". I sighed in frustration. I really didn't want to come back, I didn't want to be part of this fucking business, but the old man gave me no choice. It was this or never seeing Kai again, and I wasn't going to let that happen. But of course Flor doesn't need to know this part. "Damn. That's crazy. I was so shocked when you told me you're a Gianni like WTF. Your family is one of the richest families in Europe. I still can't belive you worked two internships while studying".

"Being a Gianni isn't something I like to advertise. Trying to separate myself from the Gianni name, and then having the old man pay for Uni doesn't really add up y'know?". She laughed. "Well when you put it that way ... it makes sense. I mean I kinda get it. Remember my parents basically cut me off when I dropped out of Harvard and pursued my dream of being a designer. I was as good as dead to them". She sighed. Both of Flors parents were lawyers. They both graduated summa cum laude, Harvard Law. Her parents wanted her to be a lawyer just like them so when she called them to announce she was dropping law and going to Parsons to be a designer her parents were infuriated.

I was there when she called them, and her parents basically gave her an ultimatum; graduate summa cum laude or never speak to them again. She chose the latter. That same day she went to the deans office and dropped out, and worked for a year to save up for tuition to attend Parsons. A year later she was interning for some of the biggest fashion houses like Dior and Chanel. "So your parents talk to you?" I asked. "Ha. As if. Nah. I'm pretty sure I'm out of their lives for good. I talked to my sister Shana tho. Well sometimes ... my parents prohibited her from talking to me. Say that I'm a 'bad influence and will corrupt her'. Can you believe that?! Omg girl my poor sister is a junior in high school, and I'm pretty sure they're driving her insane with getting into Harvard" she huffed. Clearly very upset.

I only met Shana and her parent's once, move-in-day freshmen year at the dorms. At first I admit I was jealous my roommate had family or people who showed up for her, but now I know it was all a facade. Her parents only wanted to control her. "Oh yes, if you couldn't tell I also changed my last name. From now on my name is Florentine Cruz. In honor of my grandmother and my Mexican heritage. I may not talk to my mom, but granny will always have a special place in my heart. She was the only one who believed in me" she sighed. I could tell she was about to tear up so I quickly changed the subject, I don't know how to deal with people when they're crying.

"That's good. So anyways how long have you been in Paradizo" I asked nonchalantly. She let out a sniffle, "Well for about a year now. Honestly, I never thought my brand would take off this quick. When I graduated Parsons I had a artist block. I was so confused, and then I just designed for fun and for other brands. Then a dress I designed went viral. After that I was swarmed with requests to make dresses for celebrities and rich women. After that, I quit working for Dior, and started Florentine. People really liked my designs, and that first year we did 3 fashion shows. In Milan, Paris, and New York" she said beaming with pride.

"So basically, you're killing it and now you have you're own atelier store front in my Paradizo" I said. "Basically. Yeah. It's been a crazy ride, but it was worth it. I'm happy doing what I love now" she smiled.

Glad one of us is at least living their dreams out. Truth be told, Ciel never really had a dream. Well ... one that mattered to her now. She sure as hell didn't want to be a business woman. It's just what she was good at, and what was expected of her. Truth is, she was blackmailed by her grandfather to go to Harvard. If she didn't abide she couldn't see Kai. It was Kai, in order to get Ciel to comply that old man will always use Kai. No matter how much she hated this family and didn't want to be a part of it she was always compelled to return to it. Kai was the only good thing that was left in her life, and besides... she didn't really have anything she wanted to do with her life ... anymore.

Yeah. That dream is long dead ... Like her.

They then arrived to the Gianni manor and were escorted inside by a team of maids and security.

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A/N: small update for y'all. 😉