My First Kiss

10. The Adulthood & The Childhood

*Noel*

He stayed with Felicia. He was too scared to think of a different life. As he sat across from her at the table in that fancy restaurant, his heart was pacing at an unnaturally fast pace. He stared at the confusion clouding her eyes as she searched for an answer amidst his own gaze. Deep down, Noel wanted to end things, but that wasn't what his agent would want. Not what his managers or his fans would want. He had never been the Noel Michaels without Felicia. They were the 'it' couple, and even as he stared at her with his uneven breath, he submitted to the anxiety and said nothing. 

"We are always followed around by paparazzi, and sometimes that does dent our relationship." Noel just said, tapping his fingers on the table. Felicia's look turned into one of sympathy as she reached over and comfortingly squeezed his hand. Noel looked outside, at the hives of people snapping pictures of them, and he turned back to Felicia with a small smile. 

"I know babe, I know." she said gently. The rest of their meal was blanketed with silence, one that made his chest feel heavy. He wandered if Felicia knew what he was thinking, as every so often, she glanced up from her meal and at him. He felt guilty, as he recalled the way Samantha used to make him feel, when he was a young teenage boy. That feeling still swirled within him to this day, at 25 years old. Yet, somehow, he knew that Felicia, his current girlfriend, didn't even make him feel an ounce of that. 

*Sam*

I spent longer in front of the mirror than usual the next Monday morning, which would come to be my official first day at this BrightlyEvents company. It had been quite a long time since I'd had to make a new first impression in a place of work, so that morning , I practiced smiling in the mirror. It definitely looked ridiculous, which was highlighted by howling laughter that erupted from Cassidy when she barged into my room that morning. 

"Oh my fuck, chillax Samantha!" she exclaimed, coming up behind me and rubbing my shoulders enthusiastically. Frowning at her through the mirror, I flipped her off before grabbing a comb to drag through my hair again. 

"It's my first day today, I need to be perfect!" I sighed in frustration, rechecking if my eyeliner was even. In the mirror, it appeared that my right eye had a sightly longer wing, but, knowing me, trying to fix the situation would only make things worse. I even pulled together a heap f money to purchase a brand new attire for this job -- a salmon-coloured pantsuit. 

I left the house extra early, knowing that would allow for me arrive perfectly early to the venue and dodge the peak hour traffic. My heart was racing, both from excitement and nerves as I stepped into the looming and pristine office building of my new workplace. As soon as I entered through the glass doors, there was a ding, and the receptionist whipped her head up and looked at me. 

"Hi! I'm Samantha Holland, this is my first day here!" I chimed, possibly too enthusiastically and with a maniacal smile on my face, jutting out my hand. The woman apprehensively took my hand and shook it, before typing in my details.

"Right, Ms Jameel, your boss, will be down shortly. Please take a seat." The receptionist indicated, pointing towards the white cushioned sofas that were placed all over the lobby. Nodding, I took a seat, tucked my hair back behind my ear, and took note of the surroundings. There were images of celebrities and concerts and well-known events strewn all over the walls, portraying the accolades of events this company had helped manage. It was all intimidating and exciting at the same time, and my gaze was captured by a particular image of Beyonce that I saw, which made my heart skip a beat. As I was tapping my bag anxiously and looking around, the sound of a clearing throat drew my attention. 

The woman was tall and sturdy, with big hips and broad shoulder, as she stood there with the most warming smile on her face. Her hair was jet black, cut right to her chin to cup her olive-toned face with prestige.