But My Smile Stays On // O-ren & Gretchen
@perfectingdecay
The hotel bar was aglow in soft white and violet light. There were not many people occupying it. O-ren’s business meeting had just concluded, and Go go was slurping an iced coffee she had ordered with noisy relish. Sophie was already setting up the plans that had been discussed, her fingers typed with rapt attention on her blackberry.
O-ren sat up straight in her seat, taking in the room silently. Given the setting and occasion she had opted for the white kimono with a pink obi belt. It was an overly formal choice perhaps. But O-ren had not gained respect by presenting anything other than a perfect outward appearance...and also, by not killing every person who suggested she was not worthy of that respect.
Sophie’s phone rang and she answered it with an exasperated tone. With a nod she excused herself to the lobby. Go go pushed her glass away and looked over at her employer.
“Are you ready to go?” Her tone was sullen, like that of a bored child.
O-ren did not look over at her, something had caught her eye. “No.” She replied quietly. “Go and bring the car around and wait, take Sophie with you.” Go go frowned. “I cannot leave you here.”
O-ren turned her head very slowly to look at her youngest employee. Already Go go knew she had presumed too much. She gave an obedient nod, followed by a slight eye roll and strode out of the bar. Two men in business suits allowed their gaze to linger on her as she passed, but luckily for them she was not looking.
The thing that had caught O-ren’s eye was a woman at the bar. Tall, red hair. There was a certain impeccably turned out quality about her that made her stand out from everyone else around her. She was, in a curious way, hyper real. The man she had been sitting with had just departed. From their lack of baggage they looked to be staying in the hotel.
The Queen of the Tokyo underworld got to her feet, and walked the length of the bar with short elegant steps. Just as she passed the woman on her right the red silk fan which had been tucked into the obi of her kimono slipped out, and fell with a strategic click at the woman’s feet, but O-ren kept walking, apparently none the wiser.
