A Lifetime of You

Ch. 2 ~ Recipe for Disaster

Ric caught her as her full weight dropped to his arms, the delicious vanilla scent of her hair filling his senses unwittingly, her head snuggling perfectly onto the crook of his neck. Frowning at this unexpected sensation, he shook it off, cursing inwardly.

This girl has been nothing but trouble to him ever since he saw her inside the cinema. Although he must admit, he was amused at the way she handled the other girl -- she really did kiss sloppily -- but the know-it-all attitude slightly annoyed him. And it annoys him that he is annoyed, because it takes almost nothing from any girl to affect him other than the usual physical, sexual attraction. This stoic, impassive attitude of his infuriates many people, including his big sister. It, however, makes him more attractive to women who clamor for his attention.

Now, this. . . "people reader" girl drops to his arms like an unwanted hot potato.

This girl is a nuisance! What is he to do now? He can't very well leave her in this condition. He knew the rational humane act is for him to take her to the hospital, what with her conveniently collapsing in his arms. Never mind that she's as light as a feather and that she smells like his favorite cupcake. And that she has this ridiculously long eyelashes and a ravishing, full mouth.

The manager and two security guards, with a nurse, hurriedly went over to him, fuzzing over the new dilemma brought about by Nikka. Good-naturedly, Mr. Manager told Ric, "Mr. Russo, let us take care of this situation, we'll take her to the hospital, you don't need to come."

Ric raised his brows. "You know me?"

"Of course, of course, sir. How can we not recognize our country's pride, a champion car racer? We don't want you to be bothered by this unfortunate incident. You don't need unnecessary publicity, too."

The last sentence came out as some sort of a reproof. Ric's women escapades has been notoriously all over social media and the world news ever since he won three years in a row at the Formula One World Championship, more commonly known as the Monaco Grand Prix. But if he noticed the rebuke, he didn't make it known, his poker face revealing nothing.

Just then, Ric's phone rang. The manager graciously got Nikka out of his arms, carrying her inside the office with the help of the guards, with Ric following him.

Seeing that it's his big sister, Ric answered the call immediately, his words, "Hey, big sis, where are. . ." cut out by his sister's screams:

"Ric, you bastard, get out of that cinema NOW! You have a video on YouTube making out with a girl! The press is on their way there!"

Finding his sister's hurtful screams funny rather than irksome, he calmly responded, "Fine. Text me where to meet you instead."

He then turned on the manager, gave him some money and told him, "Make sure the girl is brought to a hospital immediately."

"Yes, yes, of course, Mr. Russo."

As Ric started to walk away, he heard the nurse say, "I think this girl just had a heart attack, we have to move quickly."

"Heart attack?" It stopped him in his tracks, his guilt bearing down on him. He made to turn back to the girl lying on the couch, but the guard pushed him to the direction of the fire exit, saying, "Sir, the press is coming towards the cinema's entrance. You can go out through the fire exit."

He had no choice but to let the guard guide him through dark passageways and private doors until he was thankfully outside. Still laden with guilt, he told the guard to make sure the girl gets immediate medical attention. Then he flagged a taxi to meet his furious big sister.