Chapter 103 Déjà Vu
Fernando Garcia looked at the young woman in front of him thoughtfully. She was wearing a professional outfit, a beige suit and she had light makeup on. Her lips were coated with a thin layer of transparent lip gloss, making them appear fuller and more attractive. Her eyes were the bluest he had ever seen, shining like sapphires. Her beautiful blonde hair was tied into a neat bun. Overall, she was of exquisite beauty and had a very elegant sense of fashion. Fernando couldn't help but fantasize about how alluring it would be to have her hair down and cascading down her shoulders.
He quickly pursed his lips and tried his hardest to dismiss this naughty idea. But as he kept staring at her, he suddenly realized that this woman's appearance reminded him of someone: his sister, Sofia. Sofia, the eldest daughter of the Garcia family generation, was born in New York and followed her mother to Europe at an early age to study. She excelled and became a student at Norton Public School. After high school, she applied to Cambridge University. So far, everything had gone according to plan, and by the time she received her degree, she would heed the family's call to return to Los Angeles and take over the family estate, which would have happened if she hadn't fallen in love with a human whilst studying in college.
The image of that human was vague to Fernando. He didn't even know his name, nor did he know much about his identity or family background, and he couldn't understand why Sophia had fallen in love with a human. After all, they are weaker and inferior to their kind. After Sofia had disobeyed her father's order to return to America for the hundredth time and insisted on staying in England to live with the human, drastic measures were taken; the couple was sadly put to death by her father. When she died, there was no funeral and no tombstone for her but Fernando had secretly erected one for his dearest sister under the pseudonym: Ilana. Since then, his father had forbidden everyone to ever mention her name again. Gradually, the name Sofia disappeared from people's memory, and no one talked about her nor remembered her. It was as if she had never existed in this world.
"Uh, Mr-Mr. Garcia? May I ask how I can be of help?" Bella spoke, her soft voice breaking his prolonged reverie. He realized that he had been staring at the woman for a long time and chided himself. Now, that was what he would consider very rude behavior. He smiled slightly and lowered his head in a slightly apologetic manner, "Excuse me, may I ask how I should address you?"
"Oh, you can just call me Bella," she said with a wide smile.
"Miss Bella, it's a pleasure to meet you," Fernando extended his right hand in a gentlemanly fashion.
Bella shook his hand firmly, "Hello, Mr. Garcia. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"May I ask if the president has a moment right now?" Fernando asked.
"Yes, sir. The president is in his office right now. Could you please wait though? I'll have to ask if it's convenient for him to see you at the moment," she replied politely.
"Of course, Miss Bella. Please, go right ahead," he said, knowing all too well the procedure.
"Thank you, sir," replied Bella before turning around to make her way to the president's office. She knocked two times on the door, and it was a gentle knock. When the president granted her permission to come in, she quickly informed him of the identity of the visitor, Mr. Fernando Garcia. Bella noticed that upon hearing the name Garcia, the president appeared to be flustered, albeit for a brief moment, but soon managed to regain his calm demeanor.
"Miss Bella, could you please inform our guest that I am not available for a meeting today and ask him to come back on another day," he spoke but his tone was very cold. It was as if he harbored a particular dislike for the visitor. But Bella didn't think twice and simply replied, "Okay," with a nod. She then left the president's office and walked to the reception desk.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Garcia. Our president is not available to receive you today. I can however check his schedule and let you know when he can receive you," she said calmly. She opened her laptop and flipped through the president's schedule, "Would the morning after be convenient for you?"
"Of course, Miss. I'm always available," the corners of Fernando's mouth rose slightly.
Bella's fingers crackled as she tapped the schedule on the keyboard, then looked up and said to Fernando, "Okay then, the day after tomorrow at ten o'clock in the morning. I take it that you'll be on time? she asked with a smile.
"Well, of course, Miss Bella. Thank you for your assistance," Fernando said tenderly as he gazed into Bella's azure blue eyes.
His tone contained some kind of emotion she couldn't understand, which puzzled her, and for a few short seconds her reason and curiosity fought fiercely, but in the end, curiosity prevailed.
"Mr. Garcia, may I ask if we've met before?" Bella gathered enough courage to ask in a voice that only the two of them could hear. She knew that digging into personal matters with a guest was a big no-no in the workplace.
"I can't say we have," Fernando smiled and shook his head. He then said, "But you remind me of my sister; you have similar appearances, even your voices sound the same, soft and melodious."
He took out his wallet from his suit pocket, which contained a picture of him and Sofia tucked inside. It was a beautiful picture of Sofia smiling brightly and whoever took that picture surely deserved credit. He looked at it briefly before showing it to Bella. Bella stared at the woman in the photo for a long time and was struck at the striking resemblance between the woman and herself, from the shape of her face to the amplitude of the corners of her mouth rising when she smiled. What was more shocking was that they looked alike, yet they were total strangers.
"Oh my God, I have no words! It's just...unbelievable. What a coincidence! How is that even possible?" she exclaimed from the bottom of her heart.
"That's why I felt familiar at first sight when I saw you. I miss my sister; she's gone far away and we haven't seen each other for a long time," Fernando murmured, his eyes beginning to grow darker as if his thoughts had drifted to a distant place. "I'm so happy to see you, really happy."
"Likewise. Allow me to say that I'm touched by the affection you have for your sister," Bella said sincerely. "I have a sister too, but our relationship is... how should I put it... well, suffice to say that it's not your typical sibling relationship. I must say, I envy you. Your sister must be very nice."
"Yes, Sophia is the best sister in the world. She is gentle, kind and patient. All the words in the world are not enough to describe how good she is," Fernando said with a gentle smile. "Oh, I'm sorry, Miss Bella, I got a little sentimental there and took up too much of your time." He smiled sheepishly before adding, "You should know that I'm not usually like that."
"Oh, no, sir, it's okay. I understand," Bella reassured him with a smile.
"Here's the deal," Fernando took a business card out of his pocket and handed it to Bella, "Take this, it has my contact information on it. If you ever need any help, I'll be more than glad to help."
Bella took the card with both hands and thanked him sincerely, "Thank you, Mr. Garcia, that is very kind of you."
After saying goodbye to each other, Fernando finally left. Looking at his distant back, Bella murmured to herself, "What a pleasant young man! No wonder he's well-liked!"