Be Careful What You Wish For (PUBLISHED)

(11) - Showtime

“This is a disaster! It’s never going to work!” Ana hissed worriedly.

“Yes it will,” Ken tried to assure her.

It was the evening of their first public appearance together. Ken and Ana were sitting at the back of a car, on their way to Shinjuku, where the launch was going to be held.

Takashi sat with the driver in front, mopping his head with a handkerchief despite the cool temperature. He was as worried as Ana, if not, even more so. If she didn’t go through with this or if she fumbled, all was lost. When Ken had told him that he had found Ana, Takashi could not have been more pleased. He readily suggested that the Suntory launch was the perfect way opportunity for the press and Ken’s colleagues to meet his new girlfriend. Plus, it was a fairly soft event for her to start on. However, after almost an hour of listening to the two of them bicker in the backseat was setting his teeth on edge. Ken and his dates were usually quiet when they were on their way to an event. But then again, most of his dates had been either models or actresses, and they had been used to the pressures of public life. Takashi privately wondered whether Ana was really up to the challenge and he mentally berated himself for having suggested that Ken go after her in the first place. He glanced at the rearview mirror and saw that the girl was staring resentfully at Ken as he looked out the window. Takashi looked at his watch. They were arriving in ten minutes. They better make up their minds fast, he thought.

Ana stared at Ken as she leaned back in her seat, in spite of his nonchalant attitude, she knew he was worried. He slouched in his seat, but even his relaxed pose could not dim the force of his presence. In formal black and white togs, Ken looked dazzling, every inch the star. When Ana saw him, she instantly went into panic-mode—she wasn’t prepared for this! She was a researcher who led a quiet and peaceful life—or so she had been before she met Ken. She sighed as she pondered fate’s quirky sense of humor in bringing two such different personalities together.

Ken turned to look at her when she sighed. To her surprise, he took hold of her hand and smiled at her, “I know you’re nervous Ana,” he said, “but try to think of this as one of your presentations before a panel. It can’t be very different from that.”

It was way different from that, Ana wanted to scream. When she gave a talk or a presentation, it was about work she had done, and she had all the facts and information at her fingertips. But now she was getting ready to spout a bunch of lies.

On top of that, she was very worried about how she looked. Ana thought all her flaws were magnified simply by standing next to Ken. Late this afternoon, Ken had sent people to her house to help her get ready. Kaye and Tessa had watched attentively as she was being made up and fussed over by the hair and makeup artists, while Jon watched videos in Tessa’s room. Even though Jon, Kaye, and Tessa assured her that she looked spectacular, she still felt uneasy. She was worried about a zillion and one things—that she was wearing too much makeup, that she would make a fool of herself, that she would say the wrong thing, and that she would trip when she walked in her new 3-inch heels.

Ken recognized the glazed look of panic in her eyes and tried to reassure her, “Relax,” he said as he rubbed her hand, “you look beautiful, you’ll definitely blow them away.” Wanting to distract her, he continued, “Your dress looks really nice.”

As he had predicted, her expression went from worried to belligerent in less than a minute. “Ha! You would say so, since you bought it,” she shot back. However, as she smoothed the fabric over her lap, she shyly peeked up at Ken and said, “Thank you for this ensemble, it was really too much …”

“Do you really like it?” he asked.

“I love it,” she said, “you have good taste.”

He smiled, “Then enough talk of paying me back and enjoy the gift.” He squeezed her hand, it seemed small and fragile when held between his own, “We’re partners in this Ana, right?”