Early that morning, when sister Jin came back to the company, she heard that Wing was complaining about something. Jin was responsible for the cleaning and she left in a hurry yesterday, forgetting to close the windows. The pantry was left uncleaned, filled with dead leaves from outside, leaving the pantry dirty and wet.

She asked for leave and returned to her hometown. The typhoon was so strong that those who worked by the sea were having a hard time. Three fishing boats sank in the Xisha sea in Yang River and dozens of fishermen were missing. Her family was safe and sound, but their house was partly destroyed by the debris flow. It cost her the whole-year-salary to rebuild the house.

The Raccoon-related rain band caused gales and heavy rain in Southern China and more than 70 millimeters of rainfall was reported in major parts of Hong Kong. Due to the heavy rain, the observatory issued special report on flooding in the New Territories and warning of landslides at 6:54 and 7:10 respectively. Strong wind No. 3 signal was issued. On Star Ridge Road in Western Mount, a huge tree collapsed, but luckily no one got injured.

She was having a sandwich while listening to the news. Suddenly, her phone rang and she answered it. It was a man’s voice, and he was calling for Miss Chen. She recognized it immediately.

His voice was hesitant. What he said could not completely convey what he thought.

He said that he wanted to have an audition.

A feeling of excitement rippled her peaceful mind. But in a calm voice she replied that there were a large number of applicants so there might not be extra time.

The man acknowledged with just a single word of disappointment but continued asking her when he could come.

She told him that it might not until next week. “But it seems that someone has canceled an appointment tomorrow morning. I will check and rearrange it for you. Just give me a moment.”

With the receiver still in her hand, she sat there in a daze for half a minute. And then she told him that there was an audition from 10:00 to 10:30, so he could come at that time.

She asked him to provide some personal information such as his name and ID card number.

“Anish Singh”, he answered appreciatively.

She tried to repeat the name, which was a little hard for her to pronounce.

The man explained that it was his family name.

“Well, Mr. Singh, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

 

“Gee.” Wing made a very strange sound from behind.

“Vivian, you are born to have this job, bragging without thinking.”

She sneered and said, “Far behind you.”

Wing, the sales manager of the company, who could make at least one deal every week, was called “The Tricky Master”.

Lulu came over and put a piece of Ferrero Rocher on her desk.

Wing laughed out and said, “It’s worth celebrating.” This was the first client since Vivian started working here. He called for casting so early in the morning. He was such a professional fool.

When Mr. Singh showed up, she was still quite surprised.

He stood at the doorway and looked at her, showing no intention of approaching.

His hair was covered with thick wax and combed backwards, just like Marlon Brando in Godfather, and even his black suit, the dark and slightly gloomy face were quite alike.

She picked up the internal telephone when it rang. It was Lulu calling. Lulu whispered, "Vivian, you’ve got to make the most of this opportunity. The Armani suit he’s wearing has just been newly released in April in Milan.”

She could see that too. This was a tall and handsome man with a well-fitted suit. However, in his eyes, there was a sense of formality and dullness hidden behind, as there was in the past.

Having been frozen for a moment, she adjusted a suitable facial expression.

 

At the same time, Wing stood up, walking towards him with a radiant smile, and shook his hand.

He withdrew a little bit while his hand was stiffly swayed by Wing’s shaking, yet still looking at her as if he was seeking for rescue.

She walked towards him and asked him to have a seat.

Then, she took out a form from the drawer and handed him a pen.

Even though it was just a routine to register, he filled the form out very carefully: name, telephone number, and bank account. His handwriting had a natural but proper style. When filling out the address, he hesitated a while, wrote down an address located Cambridge Road, Kowloon Tong.

“I don’t know my measurements”, he said.

“That’s fine. You can leave it to me after the stylists takes your measurements.”

She rose from the seat to make a copy. At that moment, his finger tip coincidentally touched her waist while unintentionally raising his hand. Both of them startled for a second, and then split immediately just like being electrified. He didn’t say sorry; however, a gentle smile lingered on his lips.

When she came back, the table was overwhelmed by eye-catching advertisements from newspaper and magazines, which were the so-called “glorious achievements” credited to the talents of the company.

As a business manager, Wing was explaining to him the advertising copy which had been applied to various people for 9 months.

Indifferently leaning on the door of the photocopying room, she saw everything was happening while having a cup of coffee.

 

Being nervous, he was sweating under the spotlight.

The light outlined his body shape into a strange figure on the white screen. He looked like being at a memorial service with solemn, with anxiety in his eyes.

    “Relax, man”, said the cameraman.

Vivian understood that it would be a shock to those new to the studio to see the shooting equipment in such a vast space.

She had already learned the nature of this company. She once supposed that as a stage property, this studio would draw too much attention.

Wing thought Vivian not understand it. No part of the procedure could be taken slightly in our line.

Singh’s black face turned into a little pale after he had stuttered and got introduced to the camera. The wax melting under the high temperature, his curled hair drooped and covered his forehead.

He looked a little fragile, and even the angle of his jaw was invisible.

It was a soliloquy in Macbeth that should be performed. The old king’s daughter was leaving him.

Singh was scrupulously reading the lines without giving any serious thought, no enmity, no despair. However, Vivian felt a faint fear in his dull voice.

The cameraman frowned because Singh’s eyes were wandering and looking around. But when he caught Vivian’s eyes, he finally settled down. She clenched her fist to cheer him up.

 

The last part was to pose for a group of photo.

She began to be distracted, wondering how to persuade him to stay. Her "stereotypes" of Southeast Asians changed. He had no innate talent for acting. His self-confidence may also have been crushed by his own performance. He would give up at any time. She needed a new excuse.

The scenery was displaced by coconut trees shadow, near the outline of private yachts. What he wanted to convey was the coveted and enjoyable feeling by the seaside.          

Then a line.

He took off his suit and put it on his shoulder. He stood still without any movements. What surprised her was that although his look was still monotonous, it was replaced by a kind of peace, becoming natural and quiet. It seemed that he was born for this virtual environment.

Life, as it ought to be. He uttered the last line.

His lips moved with understatement.

At that moment, in her mind, he was a sexy man.

She put his personal data into the computer.

She was conscious of his gaze and turned her face. His eyes dodged.

He asked gently, “Would you take me on?”

She laughed to herself, and then said to him, “Keep in touch, and we will inform you as soon as possible if there is any message.”

On her way back home, the sky was full of haze, but it did not rain.

The wind blew on and off but not as strong as expected. This year's typhoon signals were issued early，and canceled very soon. But the city appeared to be bleak.

The Minibus heading to Yuen Long suddenly bumped into roadblocks because of celestial landslides to be renovated. Looking at other cars ahead driving steadily while he needed a detour, a feeling of discontent came across the driver’s mind and dirty words were uttered right away from his mouth.

“Damn you! Everyone is in a hurry to go home for dinner, while you set up roadblock right on my way. Go to hell!”

A passenger persuaded him, “Forget it, there are more than two hundred flights delay at the airport today, at least we are lucky to be going home.”