Chapter 1
“Ivan, here’s the interior design and structure blue print you wanted. This thing gave me a one helluva headache.” Lena grumpily muttered before placing two rolled up construction paper on the mahogany bureau. “Why thank you, Miss Katina. And just in time for the early morning meeting with your father too.”
The man who was called Ivan Shapavalov was in his mid forties with graying chocolate hair, and an aging cracking voice. But no matter how much he had gotten older, his trouble some mischievous youthful features remained.
Dipping his tea cup into his lips, he took a brief sip of his coffee before reaching out for the rolled up hard papers. Inscrolling one of them with one hand and holding his tea cup in the other he smiled.
“Quite impressive Miss Katina. Where did you gather the infos?” He asked, looking up from the parchment was lines and designs. His eyes shone of wonder and pride as he put on a thin smile. But Lena just shrugged, looking away with a timid smile gracing her lips. Ivan gave a kind chuckle. “Very well. Well I must be off, your father and I am meeting with the new architect.” He said resignedly, getting up from his seat and collecting the two tied up papers.
A new architect? Lena flashed him a curious look before picking up his tea cup and saucer from his bureau to clean it up. Ivan winked at her in a thanking gesture.
“Ivan, what was wrong with our old architect?” Lena tried to make it sound like it wasn’t big of a deal, and trying to hide the fact that she was very curious. But no one could fool Ivan. Well at Lena at least couldn’t fool Ivan. He had seen the girl grow right before his eyes and he knew her inside and out.
Tucking in the two rolled papers under his under arm he checked himself over, and tugging at his tie. “He uhh… Well your father suggested something more fresh. Something youthful, and something new and modern. He said we’ve been working with the same architect for too long.” Ivan said without any thinking, brushing off some dust on his suit. He turned to face Lena and held out his hand that clearly said, “Well how do I look?”
“You look perfect Ivan.” Lena said, hiding her grin.
“Why thank you. And I happen to agree with your father. The new architect… I’ve heard a lot about her. She’s really something.”
“It’s a woman?”
“Yes… her name… What was it? Ahh yes, Yulia Moldova? No, Voldova? Wait it’s coming to me… Ahh yes, Yulia Volkova.” Ivan and Lena headed for Ivan’s office’s entrance. Ivan politely opened the door for the red head and she curtly bowed her head in thanks.
*****
It was finally lunch break and Lena was dying to have some quiet time by herself. She was still a little bit hunched up from the morning fatigue as she made her way towards the nearest soft drink vending machine.
Rummaging through her pockets and rolling five coins in, she pressed a button and the clunks and thuds of the drink falling down to the little hatch was heard. She reached in and pulled out the can of coke.
Ahh Coca-Cola. You genius devils you. She loved coke. It was her favorite soft drink against any other ones. She didn’t know whether its caffeine she craved or the fizziness. Or the burp afterwards. She snickered.
Popping the can open, she raised her can to take a gulp. Something in her line of vision made her stop.
A brunette woman with electrocuted hair and a marvelous tan was staring at her from across he floor. She was almost making a hole through Lena with those clashing ocean blue eyes, that mysterious ghost of a smile on her face.
It was the hobo woman. A feral looking hobo woman. But she wasn’t a hobo anymore. She was wearing a fitting suit with a clean black tie that hung loosely around her neck. Then as if she had a determined purpose, she started heading towards her.
Lena visibly gulped as the brunette drew near her.
Step. Step. Step. Oh god she was doomed!! What was the brunette going to say?!
The ex-hobo woman was just inches away from the red head’s spot. She slowly raised her hand, and Lena squeezed her eyes shut.
But the brunette just snatched the coke can from Lena’s grasp and finished the whole can in mere few gulps in seconds. Almost mimicking Lena as she had before, she handed back the empty can.
Lena opened her eyes and rattled the empty can in her hand. Was this her idea of a joke? She thought, blinking madly at the brunette. But before Lena could begin to say anything, the brunette opened her mouth and vented out a loud horrifying belch right into Lena’s face.
Lena’s jaw slackened at what the woman before her just did. And she saw that the brunette was clearly trying to fight off the laughs, trying desperately to keep a cool face.
Then the brunette raised her open hand in the direction of Lena’s free hand. “I never had the pleasure of meeting you, Miss Katina. My name is Yulia Volkova.” Still in semi shock, Lena weakly gripped on to Yulia’s hand and hesitantly shook their hands.
“You- You’re the new architect?” Lena stumbled across her words, her eyes fluttering about in frenzied thoughts in her head.
“Fraid’ so. Looks like I’m gonna see more of you from now on. I swear, if you weren’t cute like you are, I would’ve have killed myself. No one wants to spend ten year staring at the same ugly face every morning.” Yulia said that in the most casual tone, making it sound like the most obvious thing one could say.
Lena harshly snatched her hand away from Yulia’s held grasp and rolled her eyes. Never judge a book by its covers. Volkova was actually unimaginably beautiful, but her insides were crap. Lena crossed her arm and started to walk away, only leaving Yulia with a dirty look.
“Hold it Red Ridin’ Hood.” The brunette grabbed Lena’s shoulder, and whirled her around to face her. Lena’s face was at dismay of what Yulia had just called her and had done.
“What do you want? You got your revenge.” Lena snapped, waving Yulia’s touch away.
“What do I want? How ‘bout a date?” Yulia replied sheepishly, an infectious smile breaking on her face. She was revealing her pearly white teeth and the smile wrinkles deepened at the corners of her nose.
That smile made Lena snicker, then making herself regret it. Realizing her smile was the most contagious goofy one ever, she quickly diverted her gaze to somewhere else.
“How about ‘No’?” Lena responded with temporary anger in her voice.
“Fine. A drink maybe?”
“How can you be so sure that I’m in to women?” Lena asked, her head cocking to the side.
“I’m not.” Yulia replied, mimicking Lena and cocking her head to the side also.
“Are you mocking me?” Lena snapped upright, now her shoulders tense of nervousness.
“Maybe I am. So… How about that drink?”
There was a long moment of silence where Lena was glaring at Volkova, and Volkova was smiling her wide smile, smacking on her mint gum which Lena could whiff with a deep inhale of breath. Damn that confidence, Lena thought. Then she thought of squashing that little ego of her’s. A smile of her own came up on her face.
“Only one glass of beer and that’s all I’m giving you.” Lena said determined and rigid. Yulia laughed out loud, starting to check her watch and walking away.
“Sure!” She yelled back at Lena before running to the next hall and turning a corner.
“Sure?! Was that some kind of degradation?!” Lena yelled back and was surprised to see Yulia poke her head back at the corner.
“It wasn’t any form of insult hon, only a promise.” Yulia replied with lively gleam in her eyes. And with a wink, she was off again. “I’ll call ya Red!”
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