Gold Heights Condominium.
"These people are so evil!" Dominic Chua huffed angrily as he read the online comments on his mobile phone. "This is slander! Boss, let's sue the crap out of them!"
Iris blew over the steaming cup of vintage narcissus tea and inhaled its aroma. After taking a sip, she sighed at the exquisite flavour.
"Boss, how can you be so calm?! I'm so upset! How can they slander you like this?!"
"Come, have a cup of tea. It tastes wonderful."
"Boss, I don't want tea! What are we going to do? You just cleaned up the old posts from your accounts and the next second, people are saying you're pregnant and shit! What the fuck is wrong with these people?!"
"Dom, why are you so upset? They're talking about me, not you."
"Of course I'm upset! You're my boss! How can they say bad things to my boss? Unforgivable! I want to fight them!"
Iris chuckled. She enjoyed another sip of tea.
"You're such a good person. You treat all of us who work for you very well. I can't forgive these people spouting bullshit about you!"
Iris gently set down the tea cup on the table beside her. Then she leaned her head on her hand and looked at her angry assistant. "I was not always like this. Dom, were you not aware of my bad reputation before working for me?"
Dom frowned. "I had people warn me. They said that you're…you know…"
"That I'm a bitch?"
"Well, something like that." He waved a dismissive hand. "I'll only believe what I see with my own eyes. And what I'm seeing in front of me is the greatest boss in the whole wide world."
"That's because you only met the me now. It's true that I was a bitch before. My bad reputation is to be expected. No need to be upset."
"Then just show them the you now," he said.
"I'm planning to. But suing them is not the answer. Calm down, Dom, and have a cup. It's great tea."
"Fine," Dom mumbled. A maid stepped forward and poured a fresh cup of hot tea for him.
His phone rang.
Dom picked it up. "Hello?...Yes, this is Dominic Chua, Miss Iris Long's assistant…Please wait a moment." He turned to Iris, handed the phone to her, and whispered. "Boss, it's Mr. JJ."
"Alright. Thank you, Dom." She placed the phone on her ear. "Hello, Mr. JJ. This is Iris Long speaking."
A man's voice spoke. "I listened to the two tracks you sent me."
"And?"
"Do you have more?"
"Of course."
"How many?"
"Enough for a cohesive album."
"…"
Iris sipped tea while she waited patiently.
"Are you really the one who composed these songs?"
"Yes."
"…They're very…different from your usual style."
"Indeed."
"You won't explain more, huh."
"I want my music to do the talking this time." She took another sip. "Mr. JJ, what do you honestly think about what I sent you?"
"Hmmm…they're good. No, they're actually really great. Hai, fine. They're amazing! The best demo tapes that I've listened to recently. So soulful that my chest hurt listening to them. I could feel the loneliness and pain. But that's the problem. I find it hard to believe that you composed them."
"But I did compose those songs."
"Hai. I really like these songs. I love them! I can't wait to work on them, polish them until they become even more amazing in their final versions. I want to work with these songs, but I'm not sure I want to work with you."
Iris narrowed her eyes, but her voice was calm. "What do you mean, Mr. JJ?"
"You're not exactly very popular right now. I'm sure you've seen what they're saying about you on the internet recently, right? And you've been gone for so long, too. Plus this type of music…you're going to completely change your style? Your image? Hah! It's not gonna be that easy, you know that. It's gonna be a big gamble, not only for you but also for me, if—and that's only IF—I decide to sign you as my artist. Hai. You're in a difficult position. I'm not sure if I want to take this big gamble with you. But it's true that I really like these songs…."
"What are you trying to say, Mr. JJ?"
The man on the other line cleared his throat. "Your songs are beautiful. If you're willing, I can take you as a composer and then—"
"No. Mr. JJ, these songs are mine. I composed them so that I can sing them. And I know that I'm the one who can sing them best. I refuse to let other singers sing these songs. After I sing these songs and release them, then we can talk about me composing music for other singers. I have no problem with collaborations."
The man sighed heavily.
Iris sipped tea, and then glanced at her assistant.
Dom was listening to the phone conversation, and when he heard what Mr. JJ wanted, his expression looked even angrier than when he read the online comments earlier.
She gestured for him to drink his tea. Dom harrumphed and drank a mouthful until he sputtered and teared up after getting scalded. The maid rushed in and helped clean his mess.
"Miss Long, I want to meet with you in person," Mr. JJ finally spoke.
"Sure."
"Are you free tomorrow?"
"Yes."
"Then how about we meet at this place…."
Iris committed the time and place Mr. JJ mentioned to her memory. The two said their goodbyes and hung up.
The next day.
A restaurant inside a five-star hotel.
Lunch time.
The tables and chairs covered in pristine white cloths looked like clouds floating over a carpet of lava. Tall stalks of yellow calla lilies were simply yet artfully arranged in transparent glass vases at the centre of the tables. Golden chandeliers casted soft light throughout the restaurant, complementing the gold and red walls.
Jiong Jun sat at a table by the windows, sipping a glass of dry martini. He looked at his watch. Two minutes before the agreed time. He was already feeling impatient.
The girl better not be late. He, a famous and award-winning music producer, was giving the time and effort to meet her personally. She should be grateful and arrive on time.
One minute left.
He once again looked at the entrance. He saw the maître d' greet an elegant young woman.
The two spoke for a few seconds. The maître d' glanced at Jiong Jun, and began leading the young woman to his direction.
Jiong Jun subconsciously straightened, sitting tall and puffing his chest out while he observed the woman walking closer to his table.
She was tall. Not model tall, but taller than the average height of Chinese women. Great hourglass body, but a little bit on the thin side.
She was wearing a black, long-sleeved wrap dress with bright pink lotus flowers print. The V-neck provided just a tiny glimpse of full cleavage. A waist tie accentuated her tiny waist, while the rest of the dress hugged her hips and flowed past her knees.
A simple yet elegant black high heels added to her height. Her long, straight, silky black hair framed a small face. Big, mirrored aviator sunglasses covered her eyes but could not cover her beauty.
Jiong Jun gasped inwardly and narrowed his eyes, as the maître d' led the beautiful woman to his table. The woman stopped in front of him.
"Mr. JJ. I hope you didn't wait long." It was the same lovely voice as the one he talked to on the phone yesterday.
"Miss Iris Long?" He frowned, a bit taken aback.
The woman nodded and held out a hand.
He blinked, looking at her pale white hand. No rings. No colourful nail polish. Just a simple clear French manicure.
After a few seconds, he finally regained his senses and stood up to shake her offered hand.
"Miss Long, wow! I didn't recognize you! You look...different!"
She just smiled at him, her expression half-covered by her big sunglasses.
The maître d' pulled a seat for Iris and waited for the two of them to sit down. He took their orders and left. In the meantime, hot herbal tea blend was delivered to Iris.
Jiong Jun, or more known as JJ in the music industry, watched the beautiful young woman sitting across him as she blew over her steaming cup and sipped tea. Her actions were delicate and elegant. They were very natural and not contrived at all.
He was shocked. The young woman sitting in front of him was not the one who he expected to meet today. He found it difficult to match this young woman to the image of Iris Long in his head.
"Be honest. Are you Iris Long's twin sister?"
A sweet, light chuckle. "Of course not, Mr. JJ. I am Iris Long and I don't have a twin sister."
"No way." He leaned back, shaking his head.
She just smiled, continuing to sip her tea.
Their food arrived and they began eating while chatting about the weather and other harmless topics. Finally, the atmosphere turned serious after they finished their meals.
"Alright. Let's talk business." JJ leaned back on his seat.
Iris nodded.
"You already know that I love the demo tapes you sent me. But I'm not convinced by you because of your bad reputation, and you won't agree to have my other singers sing them. I invited you here today because I initially planned on persuading you to hand over your songs and release them as the composer."
Her eyes narrowed a little, an imperceptible sharp look glinting on them, hidden behind her sunglasses. Only her lips pressing together into a straight line showed her reaction.
Big THANK YOU to EpitomeofSomething for giving me my webnovel's first power stones. And even gave 3 in one go at that. You will forever be recorded in my history book. And of course to all of those who also voted for this webnovel with power stones, thank you very much from the bottom of my heart. I'm actually surprised that I even received power stones already when I only published for a few days. Wow. Please do leave a rating and a review next time.
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