[COMPLETED]
(Book #1 of 'The Clever Series')
There couldn't be two people more different than each other, but there couldn't be two people more alike, as well.
Perceptive eyes that notice everything.
Battle of wits, with intense romance.
But what...
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It was a busy midweek morning, and Ren was barely able to tolerate the raging headache that consumed her patience. She had gone to bed on time the previous night. All of her assignments had been submitted. Her dissertation topic was approved by her mentor faculty. The possibility of hangover didn't exist as well since she did not consume alcohol more than a few times in the year, and the last sake she had was months ago at a gathering with her classmates. Yet, she had a violent headache with no plausible causes.
The cars and bicycles whizzing past the cafe where she sat at, reminded her that life must move on, reminding her of the things she had to get done for the day. Her sunglasses were successfully barring the bright sunlight that streamed in through the windows, but that barely making the whole situation tolerable. So, she breathed in and out, as deeply as she could, trying to internally relax her body, mind and spirit.
After a few deep breaths, the tantalising smell of the espresso with a hint of cinnamon wafted through her nasal passages, and her glands salivated at the thought of the the only possible cure to the unexpected tension radiating throughout her cranium.
She thanked the waiter profusely, mixing half a sachet of brown sugar in her espresso and blew a little heat off of the steaming cup of coffee as she took her ritualistic little sip, which she would swirl around her mouth, letting her taste receptors completely soak in the buzz that could only be brought out by freshly roasted coffee beans, before gulping it and letting out a satisfied sigh. The headache seemed to then recede a little, and she deduced that maybe it were the mid-week blues that got her feeling this pain in her head. She took a larger sip, hoping for more of the throb to abate, until her now calmer and more idle thoughts transversed to a place that she knew wouldn't be appropriate, if she were to maintain her current peace of mind.
But before she could consciously stop herself, her eyes fluttered shut as bittersweet memories of him swept her up like strong undercurrents, tasting just like her shot of espresso. His love for piping hot katsudon, his stupidly smug smirk, his intense analytical gaze, his confidence, his gait, his passionate kisses, his love for his brother's onigiri, his blonde hair...
She took in, what seemed like a throat-constricting breath, and many more memories of him washed up, resurfacing from the dark recesses of her mind; his unrealistic expectations, his bouts of envy, and his tunnel-vision that would trample upon the feelings of most people who cared about him, including herself. She felt her eyes jolt open as she felt herself being washed back onto the shores of reality like some unnecessary, unneeded trash.
Never could she have imagined how different things would turn out to be for the both of them. Clearly they underestimated how time, distance and miscommunication would eventually tear them apart, leaving no threads strong enough to weave them back together.
And like every jilted person in love, in solitary moments like these, when she wasn't occupied by her work, when she didn't have her friends and loved ones to remind her that she was satisfied in her life, and when she wasn't distracted enough by anything else, she would let herself imagine, dissect, analyse, rationalise, and then re-imagine all of their shared memories, piling up on the mountain of hurt and love she had built over time.
It was an unfinished, abandoned chapter and that nagging feeling of tying up loose ends always remained, even though they both had gone their separate ways which was mutually decided. There were too many fights. There were too many ways they made-up with each other, every time they fought, exhausting the list, left with no more options. There were too many times when the both of them didn't reign in their unusual temperamental outbursts. There were too many times they got the chance to dam it up later, but not without first facing the consequences of not having it done before the damage was inflicted. Yet, after a point, the bickering stopped making any sense, and their feelings stopped mattering to them, both having grown numb to the parts of their hearts that had been subjected to too many loops of bruising and healing.
She didn't know what he had been upto since they broke up four years ago, and since both of them actively avoided each other if their homecoming trips to Hyogo clashed, all she knew, was that he still played volleyball. That's it.
At first, it seemed reasonable to be deprived of any news about him, because that allowed her ample space to move on. But that reasoning turned out to be a double-edged sword, that Ren had no choice but to live with. The downside of this lack of presence would often show up when the echos of his memories in their past would waltz back into her occasionally torpid mind, making her relive the good and the bad of that relationship, all over again.
The tingle of the bell near the cafe door rang, pulling her out of her rumination, and a familiar, favourite raven-haired bedhead boy sauntered up to her.
That's right.
She was in her second year doing MBA, and now it was the time for campus placements and offers. All she was focused on was getting a good job that would bolster her ambitions and polish her talents.
"Ren-chan, were you thinking about him again? I feel wounded here, especially since we were supposed to meet now, and you should be thinking about me," he drawled, clutching his chest and sporting a mock pout, his golden cat-like sharp gaze showing her how accurately he deduced her state of mind.
She smirked at him, thanking the gods she had him in her university days, ever since her bachelors studies.
"Aww, and should I kiss away the pain?" she cooed.
"You'll be in grave danger, Ren-chan, if I seriously take you up the offer, out here in public, and at this time of the day."
She chuckled, sobering at the thought that he would actually do that, if she let him.
"Shut up and walk me to my destination, you super -late drama queen. My campus interview starts in half an hour in D-block, and I can't afford to be unpunctual. Go grab your coffee to go. We should leave now, and you can explain your unfathomably stupid reason for being late, on the way."
"Your wish is my command, my lady. I, too, happen to have an interview scheduled in F-block. I'll drop you on the way, since I've always been this kind."
She snorted at the blatant lie, and waited around the exit while he placed his order at the counter.
Assistant business manager.
She felt lucky that she got calls from multiple places, but this was the organisation that she had a really good gut feeling about. Her friends and family believed so too, but most importantly, the ever astute ebony-headed smart-ass of a person that was now taking long, lazy strides towards her, also believed that she would get the best possible offer from this organisations than the others.
Well then Renny, it's time to believe in strong gut feelings, and let the talent do the work!
