You, Hitomi Uharu, were feeling a little overwhelmed at the moment.
Losing your parents at fifteen was a terrible blow, but an unknown benefactor had kept you in good stead. After all this time, you learned that the benefactor in question was your Mum's brother, your Uncle Iori.
Unfortunately, before you ever had a chance to meet him in person, he too had passed on.
From the writings he'd left you, you learned that your Mum's branch of the family had been rather wealthy, and her family most certainly did not approve of her marriage to a commoner. She'd been cut off, but Iori had ignored the will of his father and helped his sister out whenever and however he could. After the accident that claimed your parent's lives, he'd paid to keep you afloat while fighting to become your legal guardian, a fight made more difficult by your grandfather's lawyers.
Iori had been diagnosed with cancer and died less then a month ago. This might have been the end of the story, except for one thing; he'd named you sole beneficiary.
Iori had diversified from the main family and become quite successful in his own right, and no matter how bitter your grandfather was, even his legal staff couldn't block Iori's last will and testament. He had, quite simply, given you a multi-million dollar shipping company as a final parting gift, as well as the mansion you now found yourself in, its (rather unusual) staff, and a spot in Hideki Academy, one of the most prestigious schools in the country.
The board would operate the company in your stead until you came of age, and Iori had given only a single instruction:
"Hitomi, I wish I could have been more in your life then a mere name on a cheque, but such is not the path Fate wrote for us. I never married, and never had any children of own. My work was my life, and that I leave to you, my unknown darling. I ask only one thing, and that is that you keep the company. Maintain and expand it as you see fit. I've no doubt that you'll do splendidly, my dear. You may feel small now, but with time and effort, you shall grow into your role. Your parents and I will watch over you."
You'd shed a few tears over that final missive.
And so here you were, now 17 years old, having lived in the manor for the last few weeks. School would be back in session on Monday, and your story picks up on the Saturday before...
******
You were sitting at your make-up table in your bedroom, dressed in a loose fitting nightie. Your stomach was in knots as your nerves were completely on edge. With school starting on Monday, you would be heading out to the mall for your uniform. Sai, your tailor, had been very put out when he learned that his creations wouldn't be worn on campus, but the academy had a very strict uniform policy, necessitating a trip to pick a few up.
Quite frankly, you were scared beyond words. In a relatively short amount of time, you went from losing everything to being a millionaire heiress, and once done with college, you'd be the head of the one of the largest import/export companies in the country. Actually, scared didn't quite do the feeling justice.
"I don't think I can do this."
You weren't left to your thoughts for very long, and you turned towards your bedroom door as the massive walnut entryway creaked open. Keichi, your young head butler, entered without warning. Always a punctual man, you checked your cell phone on your desk, and sure enough, it was 7:01 am exactly. His sense for time and lack of sense for personal space was the primary reason you were wearing the nightie, as the man had had no qualms walking in when you were in a state of undress.
It had taken far longer then you cared to think about to convince him you could dress yourself.
He was accompanied by Ryuujin, your personal chef. Neither man was given to excessive words, but Ryuujin was certainly the more talkative of the two. His appearance was certainly fearsome. His arms were like tree trunks, and his well developed pecs stretched his white uniform to its limits. A large scar ran down his face, bisecting his left eyebrow and running down, stopping a few centimeters past his lower lip. He had so far refused to say anything on the scar, not that you'd had the nerve to ask anyway.
Ryuujin was pushing the cart that undoubtedly contained your breakfast, and as the two came close, Ryuujin let out a wide, pleasant smile. Keichi couldn't have been any further from his unlikely compatriot if he tried. Cool, aloof, and distant, he came within a few paces, and gave a small bow with his right hand held across his chest.
"Your breakfast is served, Master."
The skinny, black haired young man stood straight as Ryuujin lifted the silver lid off the platter. Your eyes widened and you let out a small gasp at the spread before you. "That's way too much food!" you thought as you eyed the massive spread before you. French toast, pancakes, scrambled eggs, waffles, muffins, cinnamon buns and more, all were served on the large silver platter. The fact that you could make out the edge of a second cart in the hallway made you wonder just how much food Ryuujin had prepared.
That had been one thing that had stood out since you moved in here, and that was just how much food was always present at mealtimes. Your chef always made far more then any person could ever eat, and he definitely seemed to favor sweet foods and pastries, as these featured heavily at every meal. Your staff refused to eat at the same time as you did, which had made you very self conscious initially. But it had smelled so good and tasted even better, and you'd managed to overcome that hump for the most part.
Still, having people standing around watching you eat remained an unusual sensation, and there was always so much. Ryuujin always said it was to make sure that "Little Miss" never went hungry, and that you didn't have to eat more then you wanted. It still conspired to be an uncomfortable prospect, and you often caught yourself wondering if it was rude not to at least sample each dish, or if eating so little of such a big meal was also rude.
"Ryuujin, I've said before that you don't need to make so much."
The Chinese chef smiled, "Apologizes, Little Miss. Once more, I seem to have gotten carried away. Simply enjoy what you need, and I shall deal with the rest."
You bit your lower lip apprehensively. Your meals had been so opulent since you came here that you were worried about getting fat. But it all smelled so good, you were somewhat hungry despite your nerves, and it would be very rude to accept nothing after Ryuujin did all this work. What do you do?
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