𝐑 𝐔 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄?¹ - juan soto

3.

lyra excitedly straightened her pencil skirt as she hurried to his office. she was invited for yet another meeting, this time one on one with her and james johnson, the yankees pr director. she wasn't thrilled—scratch that, she was suspicious.

what did this man want with her alone? lyra also wasn't keep on becoming too tight with the organization. her editor insisted she go and see this through. curiosity, her persistent achilles heel, won out. she agreed. begrudgingly.

as she pushed the heavy door open, the first thing she saw was him. her stomach dropped.

juan soto.

he lounged in a chair like he owned the place, and the sight of him sparked an immediate wave of irritation. lyra had spent weeks studying on this man, unearthing every irritating detail about his ego, his bravado, and his over-the-top personality. seeing him in the flesh again was almost too much, especially after their recent run in.

juan's head snapped up, his casual demeanor shifting into something sharper. his dark eyes narrowed. "what are you doing here?" his tone wasn't just confused; it was accusatory.

lyra folded her arms, meeting his glare with her own. "i should be asking you the same thing, soto."

before juan could shoot back, james breezed into the office, all smiles and that faux-friendly tone he always used for damage control. "ms. larosa! mr. soto! just the two people i wanted to see. apologies for the delay. let's get started."

lyra's frustration simmered. why hadn't james warned her that he would be here? gritting her teeth, she slid her reading glasses on and sat across from juan, who now looked just as annoyed as she felt.

james wasted no time, "so, ms. larosa, it has come to my attention that you have started on a follow up article about mr. soto, am i correct?"

her body stiffened. he wasn't supposed to know that... at least not yet.

"yes, that's true," she admitted reluctantly.

he smiled, oozing corporate charm, "us at the yankees organization want to make sure that you have a fair depiction of our athlete and know the whole picture, so we have a plan." lyra raised an eyebrow. james ignored her, "we want you to shadow mr. soto for a month on and off the field to get a well rounded perspective."

lyra froze, her mind racing. a month?! with him? across the table, juan soto let out a loud, disbelieving laugh.

"wait, wait," juan said, leaning forward. "james, you want me to babysit her for a month while she finds new ways to twist my words? are you serious?"

her lips tugged into smug smile, "if you're worried, maybe it's because you do have something to hide."

lyra wasn't necessarily keen on the idea either. she feared that too much contact with soto could possibly warp her better judgment. but, it definitely could give her more material outside of interviews and what other people's tips. she felt torn.

juan glared at james, ignoring her, "really, james? you want her to have this much access?"

she scoffed, "i could've gotten it if i wanted it at any time. you're lucky your boss is gonna give it to me nicely—"

james interrupted, "enough, both of you. this is not optional."

the room went silent for a moment. maybe he forgot, but she wasn't his employee. if anything she was his boss. at any moment, she could research and make another juan soto article based on second hand sources, adding another blemish to his star's reputation. she rolled her eyes, "james, i don't work here. i can do what i want."