Chapter 137
AU: The Heiress and The Bodyguard Part 3
Being young, Lin Lin found it difficult to adjust to her first night in a new place. Despite chatting plenty over dinner, she continued to pester Wakako with random conversations before bed.
“You only had three bowls of noodles tonight. Won’t you be too hungry to sleep?”
Usually she’d eat five or six bowls!
“I’m fine.”
“Hey, hey!” Lin Lin suddenly stared excitedly at her phone. “I just looked up news about this conglomerate. There are tons of reports about Miss Miki.”
Wakako, who was already half-asleep, immediately perked up at the mention of Miss Miki.
“What does it say?”
“Well…” Lin Lin skimmed through the articles. “She’s led the company through tons of business projects—don’t ask me to explain the details—and oh! She publicly stated she’s never getting married!”
Wakako’s ears pricked up.
Lin Lin sent her a link.
It was a video of a press conference from a year ago, where Miki answered reporters’ questions as the face of the company.
One question was about the recent rumors surrounding her marriage, whether there was any truth to them, and if she planned to merge with another conglomerate.
The question was clearly an off-the-cuff slip from a careless reporter. The other executives’ expressions shifted, and they were about to intervene when Miss Miki spoke, “The rumors are false.”
The reporter pressed on, “So, what kind of man would capture your interest?”
The question was cut short as security escorted the reporter away.
To everyone’s surprise, Miki didn’t seem offended. Instead, she smiled—a calm, poised expression that the camera zoomed in on, capturing her face in exquisite detail, right down to the elegant neckline of her white dress.
Wakako stared, mesmerized by those soft red lips.
In the video, Miki replied calmly, “No one, of any kind, interests me. Please stop worrying about my marriage prospects.”
Her tone was indifferent, yet coming from her, it seemed perfectly natural.
The video ended with Miki looking down at her notes. Wakako stared at the screen, long after the video finished.
Finally, Lin Lin’s voice came hesitantly, “You’re not… sad, are you?”
“A bit,” Wakako said glumly. “But it makes sense.”
Miss Miki was young, beautiful, incredibly wealthy, and a brilliant businesswoman. Of course, she had high standards.
Was there anyone in the world who really deserved her?
Rewinding the video, Wakako suddenly noticed something, her voice rising excitedly:
“Wait… She said no man interests her. But I’m not a man. I’m a woman!”
Lin Lin: …
“Are you seriously buying into the idea that Miki is into women, or that I’m the president?”
Wakako, clinging to a fragile sense of hope, felt it shatter at those words. She pulled the blanket over her head and turned off her phone.
Ughhh.
Before falling asleep, she confirmed their schedule with Lin Lin: “We’re leaving at eight tomorrow for the conglomerate headquarters. We’ll be accompanying Miss Miki to a meeting. Expect a full day of work.”
“In maid uniforms?” Lin Lin asked
“They provided suits.”
Lin Lin grimaced: “…That’s even worse than the maid uniform. At least we don’t look like bodyguards in these.”
Bodyguards.
Waaah! ╥﹏╥
Wakako buried her face in her pillow, mourning her already doomed crush.
Right… How could a lowly bodyguard ever dream of someone like her…
***
The conglomerate’s headquarters was a towering skyscraper, over thirty stories tall, and easily mistaken for a local landmark.
As specially hired bodyguards, they had one unique privilege – riding in the same car as Miki.
They could have woken up at 7:00 am to prepare, but a little after 6:00 am, Lin Lin was woken by the sound of her Shijie getting up.
Thinking she had overslept, she opened her eyes to find Wakako putting on makeup.
Lin Lin: ??!
This had to be a dream. She’d just go back to sleep.
But when her alarm went off at 7:00 am, she realized it wasn’t a dream. Her Shijie was actually wearing makeup.
And due to her inexperience, it was a disaster.
Looking at the deathly shade of barbie pink lipstick, Lin Lin froze: “Where did you even get that makeup…?”
“I borrowed it from the maid next door…”
Lin Lin was speechless, “Those makeup shades are made for foreigners—they’re not going to match your skin tone!”
“I didn’t know!” Wakako panicked, “But we’re going to be in the same car as Miss Miki… It’s the first time she’ll see me! Ahhh, what do I do?!”
For the first time in her life, Wakako scrutinized her own reflection, trembling as she fumbled with the unfamiliar tools. All because she wanted to make a better impression on Miss Miki.
But her hands were so clumsy…
“Let me handle it,” Lin Lin sighed. “Good thing I learned a bit of makeup from Siruo Shijie. I’m not great, but it’ll be better than… this.”
Her clumsy shijie was really a handful.
What would she do without me?
…
At 8:00 am sharp, Miss Miki and her assistant entered the car through the rear door.
Wakako and Lin Lin had been waiting for a while.
The driver started the car and headed towards the headquarters.
As the car moved, Wakako could have turned her head to steal glances at Miss Miki, but she only had the courage to peek at her reflection in the rearview mirror, which offered a faint view of Miki’s profile.
Behind her, the assistant was reviewing documents, but Miki interrupted her, “That revenue is recorded for this year, not last year.”
“I’m sorry!” The assistant hurriedly made corrections, nearly breaking into a cold sweat.
“Don’t make such basic mistakes again.”
“Yes… My apologies, Miss.”
Wakako, of course, remained silent, listening with a faint blush creeping up her cheeks. Her thoughts began to wander.
— Miss Miki looks so beautiful even when she’s scolding someone.
— No, that wasn’t really scolding, she’s so gentle…
— If I were the assistant, I’d probably get scolded by Miss Miki all the time…
— But then I’d get to the ice-queen’s face every day, just thinking about it makes me so happy, waaah… Miss Miki, you can yell me until I cry and I won’t say anything!
Lost in her daydream, Wakako noticed Miki suddenly lift her gaze in the mirror, her sharp eyes locking onto hers.
Thinking she’d been caught staring, Wakako quickly lowered her head guiltily.
The assistant gathered their thoughts and continued reporting, but noticed their boss’s expression changing oddly. Worried they’d made another mistake, they quickly stopped to check: “Miss, is something wrong?”
Miki looked down, concealing her strange expression.
It was impossible to ignore the loud, chaotic thoughts coming from the dimpled girl in front of her.
Yesterday, she wanted to marry her. Today, she wanted to be scolded to tears.
Miki deeply questioned her understanding of the world. Had things evolved beyond her comprehension?
“It’s nothing.” Unable to focus on the report anyway, she changed the subject. “We’ll continue at the office. Where’s breakfast?”
The assistant quickly produced a prepared meal.
Miss Miki had a small appetite and a busy schedule, so breakfast was always a perfunctory affair.
The mansion’s staff had prepared toast with egg, lettuce, avocado… and special sauce. The aroma quickly filled the enclosed car.
Wakako clutched her stomach, trying to suppress a growl.
The conglomerate was paying them handsomely; they wouldn’t be stingy with food. Of course, they had their own breakfast.
But… Wakako was too embarrassed to admit her appetite was much larger than others’. Lin Lin could get by with one sandwich; she needed five to feel even remotely satisfied.
Having skipped a proper dinner last night, her hunger was unbearable.
— Hold it in, Wakako! Your stomach absolutely cannot growl in front of Miss Miki! She’ll definitely hate you!
— But it smells so good… just one bite… so hungry… okay I admit it, I just eat a lot, what can I do? QAQ
— Is there more in the assistant’s bag…? I can smell it… I want to eat eat eat eat eat…
The assistant noticed Miss Miki stop just as she was about to bite into her toast.
“Is something wrong?” she asked nervously. The heiress’ health was the top priority.
After a moment, Miss Miki said softly, “Is there any breakfast left?”
“Yes.” They always prepared extra, just in case.
“Give it to Wakako.”
In the front seat, Wakako, who had been eavesdropping, turned around in surprise, her eyes meeting Miki’s.
Had she… heard it correctly?
Did Miss Miki say her name?
The assistant pulled out another breakfast, looking confused: “Who’s Wakako?”
She wasn’t familiar with the bodyguards’ names.
Miki studied the dimpled girl, watching a blush creeping across her cheeks. . Only Miki could hear the deafening thump of the other girl’s heart.
“This is Wakako,” Miki said with a smile.
