Post by Lindsey on Jun 4, 2007 20:25:57 GMT -5
I hope you guys like this chapter--don't be intimidated by the length--it's a lot of dialogue so it only seems like it's long, but hopefully it'll move fast.
---------------------------------
Grace clicked off the television in her apartment bedroom, allowing the darkness and silence to swallow her up. All night she’d been trying her hardest not to think about the afternoon’s events—about Apolo. His presence there had completely caught her off guard and she’d been mortified in front of someone she admired.
I can’t seem to do anything right, she thought silently, slipping underneath her bedcovers and pulling them over her head. Maybe Seattle just isn’t the place for a girl like me.
* * *
“Oh, Graaaaace!” Lisa called to her as she made her way into the newsroom the next morning.
“Hey, Lisa,” Grace said, trying her best to cover the discouragement that still hung over her from the night before.
“You’ll never guess who I got an interview with!” Lisa blurted out as soon as Grace reached her desk.
Grace had a feeling she did. “Apolo Anton Ohno.”
Lisa looked dejected. “How did you know?”
“I saw him at a coffee shop yesterday, meeting with Elizabeth somebody or other at the Star.”
Lisa’s face fell even further. “You’re kidding. She’s gonna scoop us.”
“Don’t worry. She looked like a ditz. You’re a much better writer.”
Lisa slumped back down into her chair. “I was getting all excited, too. Oh well, that’s the business.” Her phone rang and she perked right up again, talking animatedly to whoever had called her.
Grace laughed and got up from her desk to go talk to her editor.
“Hi, Mark,” she greeted the news editor with a smile. “Do you have anything interesting for me today?”
Mark looked up at her. “I’ll get back to you on that, Grace. We’ve got some issues to take care of with the embezzlement scandal, so just work on whatever you’ve got for today.” He paused. “Oh, and if you could just do the news briefs from the AP Wire, that’d be awesome.”
Grace tried not to look pained. “Sure thing, Mark.” Writing up news briefs from the Associated Press—summarizing stories other people had already written—was stuff she’d done as an intern. She was quite capable of writing deadline material. Why couldn’t anyone see that?
* * *
Grace turned the TV on mute as she picked up her ringing cell phone. Lisa? Grace was puzzled as she saw her friend’s name appear on the caller ID. She’s supposed to be at her interview with Apolo.
“Hello?”
“Grace, I was just in a car accident!” Lisa’s voice on the other end of the line sounded frantic.
“Oh my goodness, Lisa—are you okay?”
“I’m okay, I think—they’re coming with an ambulance now—this guy just rear-ended me out of nowhere—Grace, you have to help me.”
Grace could hear the sirens in the background. “Help you? How?”
“I’m supposed to be meeting with Apolo, remember? I need you to go and tell him I won’t be coming. Try to set something up for me tomorrow afternoon sometime,” Lisa was talking fast.
“Wait—what? Why don’t you just call him?”
“I just have some press agent’s contact number, and I can’t get through. It’s just ringing busy. Anyways, Grace, please, please, please help me out. I can’t blow this interview. Do this for me, won’t you?”
“Okay, I guess so,” Grace agreed, wondering why Lisa had called her, of all people. “What’s the restaurant?”
“P.F. Chang’s. I was supposed to meet him at 7, so try to get there as soon as you can, okay? Hey, I gotta go now. They’re trying to cart me off,” Lisa said. “Thanks a million, girl.”
“Don’t mention it,” Grace sighed.
Before she knew it, she was standing outside of P.F. Chang’s, trying to see through the glass windows. Apolo was nowhere to be seen. She took a deep breath and pushed her way through the revolving door.
“Hi, I’m here to meet Mr. Ohno,” she told the hostess.
“You lucky girl,” the hostess smirked at her. “But I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes right now anyway.”
Grace frowned. “Why’s that?”
“He’s been waiting for over a half an hour. You know if I had a date with that young man—”
“It’s not a date,” Grace shook her head. “But I don’t want to keep him waiting any longer, if you don’t mind.”
Grace’s searching eyes found Apolo before he noticed her and the hostess coming towards him in the very back of the restaurant. The sight of him made butterflies appear in her stomach. She hoped he wouldn’t remember her as the girl who’d tripped over a stool in front of him, but something told her that was exactly what he’d connect her with. Looking at him from afar, she couldn’t help but admire the dressy black shirt he was wearing and the way his dark brown hair was styled. A lock of brown hair had fallen over one eye as he leaned forward, apparently doodling on a paper napkin.
“Mr. Ohno?”
Apolo looked up as the two of them approached. He stood up suddenly, staring at Grace with a stunned expression. “You?” he blurted.
The hostess was giving Grace the eye. “I believe you now that this wasn’t a date!” she laughed as she left the two of them together.
“I’m sorry,” Apolo apologized and motioned for her to sit down. “I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just that I was surprised—“
Grace remained standing. “I’m not here to interview you, if that’s what you’re thinking. You were supposed to be meeting with my friend, Lisa.”
“Oh,” Apolo said, but wrinkled his forehead. “So why isn’t she here?”
“She was in a car accident, but she’s okay. She couldn’t get ahold of your press agent to get in contact with you, so she sent me to tell you that she won’t be coming tonight. She has time tomorrow afternoon for another appointment if you’re available during that time.” Grace recited the lines she’d unintentionally memorized on the taxi ride over.
“Well, you just answered all my questions,” Apolo said, cracking a smile. “I do have some time tomorrow, in fact. Can we make it for 3:30?”
“I’m sure that will be fine,” Grace said, unnerved by his comment. “I’m sorry you had to wait so long. I hope your evening isn’t spoiled.”
“It’s not.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” The professionalism in Grace’s voice made her response sound empty. Frustrated with herself, she stuck out her hand awkwardly. “I’d better be going now.”
He stood and shook her hand, saying nothing and just looking at her.
Why is he looking at me like that? She turned to go away and then realized he was still holding her hand. She hesitated and then looked back at him, his brown eyes meeting hers with that same expression he’d given her when he’d gathered her up off the floor the day before.
“Tell me, Grace,” he spoke quietly. “Why do you keep running off right as soon as we start a conversation? Are you afraid of me?”
He remembered my name. Grace couldn’t tear herself away from his gaze. “I’m not afraid of you.”
He dropped her hand. “Then why don’t you sit down and have dinner with me?”
“I already had dinner.”
“Have dessert.”
“I already had that, too.”
“Have coffee.”
“Why?”
“Because you intrigue me. I’ve never met anyone who was so anxious to say good-bye to me, anyway.”
Grace couldn’t think of anything to say.
“Plus, I don’t want to eat dinner by myself. It was bad enough sitting here for a half-hour trying to make people believe I wasn’t going to get stood up by my dinner date. I don’t want them to watch her arrive and then leave right away,” Apolo laughed and ran his fingers through his hair.
Grace found herself sitting down against her will and ordering a small appetizer. “I’ve got to get up early in the morning,” she explained. “No coffee for me in the evening.”
“So you’re a reporter, too?”
“Yeah, right. That’s just what my official job title is. I’m still writing stuff nobody ever reads.”
“What, you’re no good? I find that hard to believe.”
“It’s not that I’m not good. I’m just inexperienced and unfamiliar with Seattle people, politics, and persuasions. But it seems like no one’s giving me a chance to get that experience, either. It’s kind of discouraging,” Grace said, unable to believe she was telling him all this. Just a moment ago, she’d felt so uncomfortable, but now that she was sitting across from him, watching him trace the edge of his water glass with his finger, she felt perfectly at ease. He wasn’t as intimidating as she’d thought, after all.
“What about you? How does it feel to be back in Seattle?”
“Now that sounds like an interview question,” Apolo said, pretending to frown. “You’re not going to publish this, are you?”
Grace laughed. “Of course not. This is strictly off the record.”
----------------
Please tell me what you girls think. It's harder than I thought to portray Apolo! He's just so indescribably wonderful in real life, it's so difficult to paint a picture of him in person.
---------------------------------
Grace clicked off the television in her apartment bedroom, allowing the darkness and silence to swallow her up. All night she’d been trying her hardest not to think about the afternoon’s events—about Apolo. His presence there had completely caught her off guard and she’d been mortified in front of someone she admired.
I can’t seem to do anything right, she thought silently, slipping underneath her bedcovers and pulling them over her head. Maybe Seattle just isn’t the place for a girl like me.
* * *
“Oh, Graaaaace!” Lisa called to her as she made her way into the newsroom the next morning.
“Hey, Lisa,” Grace said, trying her best to cover the discouragement that still hung over her from the night before.
“You’ll never guess who I got an interview with!” Lisa blurted out as soon as Grace reached her desk.
Grace had a feeling she did. “Apolo Anton Ohno.”
Lisa looked dejected. “How did you know?”
“I saw him at a coffee shop yesterday, meeting with Elizabeth somebody or other at the Star.”
Lisa’s face fell even further. “You’re kidding. She’s gonna scoop us.”
“Don’t worry. She looked like a ditz. You’re a much better writer.”
Lisa slumped back down into her chair. “I was getting all excited, too. Oh well, that’s the business.” Her phone rang and she perked right up again, talking animatedly to whoever had called her.
Grace laughed and got up from her desk to go talk to her editor.
“Hi, Mark,” she greeted the news editor with a smile. “Do you have anything interesting for me today?”
Mark looked up at her. “I’ll get back to you on that, Grace. We’ve got some issues to take care of with the embezzlement scandal, so just work on whatever you’ve got for today.” He paused. “Oh, and if you could just do the news briefs from the AP Wire, that’d be awesome.”
Grace tried not to look pained. “Sure thing, Mark.” Writing up news briefs from the Associated Press—summarizing stories other people had already written—was stuff she’d done as an intern. She was quite capable of writing deadline material. Why couldn’t anyone see that?
* * *
Grace turned the TV on mute as she picked up her ringing cell phone. Lisa? Grace was puzzled as she saw her friend’s name appear on the caller ID. She’s supposed to be at her interview with Apolo.
“Hello?”
“Grace, I was just in a car accident!” Lisa’s voice on the other end of the line sounded frantic.
“Oh my goodness, Lisa—are you okay?”
“I’m okay, I think—they’re coming with an ambulance now—this guy just rear-ended me out of nowhere—Grace, you have to help me.”
Grace could hear the sirens in the background. “Help you? How?”
“I’m supposed to be meeting with Apolo, remember? I need you to go and tell him I won’t be coming. Try to set something up for me tomorrow afternoon sometime,” Lisa was talking fast.
“Wait—what? Why don’t you just call him?”
“I just have some press agent’s contact number, and I can’t get through. It’s just ringing busy. Anyways, Grace, please, please, please help me out. I can’t blow this interview. Do this for me, won’t you?”
“Okay, I guess so,” Grace agreed, wondering why Lisa had called her, of all people. “What’s the restaurant?”
“P.F. Chang’s. I was supposed to meet him at 7, so try to get there as soon as you can, okay? Hey, I gotta go now. They’re trying to cart me off,” Lisa said. “Thanks a million, girl.”
“Don’t mention it,” Grace sighed.
Before she knew it, she was standing outside of P.F. Chang’s, trying to see through the glass windows. Apolo was nowhere to be seen. She took a deep breath and pushed her way through the revolving door.
“Hi, I’m here to meet Mr. Ohno,” she told the hostess.
“You lucky girl,” the hostess smirked at her. “But I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes right now anyway.”
Grace frowned. “Why’s that?”
“He’s been waiting for over a half an hour. You know if I had a date with that young man—”
“It’s not a date,” Grace shook her head. “But I don’t want to keep him waiting any longer, if you don’t mind.”
Grace’s searching eyes found Apolo before he noticed her and the hostess coming towards him in the very back of the restaurant. The sight of him made butterflies appear in her stomach. She hoped he wouldn’t remember her as the girl who’d tripped over a stool in front of him, but something told her that was exactly what he’d connect her with. Looking at him from afar, she couldn’t help but admire the dressy black shirt he was wearing and the way his dark brown hair was styled. A lock of brown hair had fallen over one eye as he leaned forward, apparently doodling on a paper napkin.
“Mr. Ohno?”
Apolo looked up as the two of them approached. He stood up suddenly, staring at Grace with a stunned expression. “You?” he blurted.
The hostess was giving Grace the eye. “I believe you now that this wasn’t a date!” she laughed as she left the two of them together.
“I’m sorry,” Apolo apologized and motioned for her to sit down. “I didn’t mean to be rude. It’s just that I was surprised—“
Grace remained standing. “I’m not here to interview you, if that’s what you’re thinking. You were supposed to be meeting with my friend, Lisa.”
“Oh,” Apolo said, but wrinkled his forehead. “So why isn’t she here?”
“She was in a car accident, but she’s okay. She couldn’t get ahold of your press agent to get in contact with you, so she sent me to tell you that she won’t be coming tonight. She has time tomorrow afternoon for another appointment if you’re available during that time.” Grace recited the lines she’d unintentionally memorized on the taxi ride over.
“Well, you just answered all my questions,” Apolo said, cracking a smile. “I do have some time tomorrow, in fact. Can we make it for 3:30?”
“I’m sure that will be fine,” Grace said, unnerved by his comment. “I’m sorry you had to wait so long. I hope your evening isn’t spoiled.”
“It’s not.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” The professionalism in Grace’s voice made her response sound empty. Frustrated with herself, she stuck out her hand awkwardly. “I’d better be going now.”
He stood and shook her hand, saying nothing and just looking at her.
Why is he looking at me like that? She turned to go away and then realized he was still holding her hand. She hesitated and then looked back at him, his brown eyes meeting hers with that same expression he’d given her when he’d gathered her up off the floor the day before.
“Tell me, Grace,” he spoke quietly. “Why do you keep running off right as soon as we start a conversation? Are you afraid of me?”
He remembered my name. Grace couldn’t tear herself away from his gaze. “I’m not afraid of you.”
He dropped her hand. “Then why don’t you sit down and have dinner with me?”
“I already had dinner.”
“Have dessert.”
“I already had that, too.”
“Have coffee.”
“Why?”
“Because you intrigue me. I’ve never met anyone who was so anxious to say good-bye to me, anyway.”
Grace couldn’t think of anything to say.
“Plus, I don’t want to eat dinner by myself. It was bad enough sitting here for a half-hour trying to make people believe I wasn’t going to get stood up by my dinner date. I don’t want them to watch her arrive and then leave right away,” Apolo laughed and ran his fingers through his hair.
Grace found herself sitting down against her will and ordering a small appetizer. “I’ve got to get up early in the morning,” she explained. “No coffee for me in the evening.”
“So you’re a reporter, too?”
“Yeah, right. That’s just what my official job title is. I’m still writing stuff nobody ever reads.”
“What, you’re no good? I find that hard to believe.”
“It’s not that I’m not good. I’m just inexperienced and unfamiliar with Seattle people, politics, and persuasions. But it seems like no one’s giving me a chance to get that experience, either. It’s kind of discouraging,” Grace said, unable to believe she was telling him all this. Just a moment ago, she’d felt so uncomfortable, but now that she was sitting across from him, watching him trace the edge of his water glass with his finger, she felt perfectly at ease. He wasn’t as intimidating as she’d thought, after all.
“What about you? How does it feel to be back in Seattle?”
“Now that sounds like an interview question,” Apolo said, pretending to frown. “You’re not going to publish this, are you?”
Grace laughed. “Of course not. This is strictly off the record.”
----------------
Please tell me what you girls think. It's harder than I thought to portray Apolo! He's just so indescribably wonderful in real life, it's so difficult to paint a picture of him in person.
