Outdoor Perils

After the success of the first campaign, many other brands also got interested and wished to collaborate. The employees were given a 25 percent raise to appreciate their hard work.

The idea of the campaign was to promote local brands internationally with the help of an international icon. Daniel was internationally known for his perfect face and well-built body. He was the first celebrity in the country to model for international brands like Louis Viton and Fendi. Because of his popularity, he charged a lot, making him a millionaire before turning 30. He also owned a clothing brand for men which became extremely popular. Nobody could understand why a successful celebrity like him would work with a local company promoting local brands while getting less than half of what he normally charged.

He would always be surrounded by journalists or paparazzi. After the completion of the first campaign, one of them asked the same question to him. He replied:

"I want my own country's businesses to grow and would be ready to play my part in helping them succeed."

The department selected many beautiful places for the shoot. The management would then filter them out and choose four budget-friendly locations that fitted the theme. One of them was a beautiful orchard full of different colored flowers. It was located far away from the city. It was deserted. Only the gardener lived there. Nobody knew its owner. It was featured in many movies and TV shows. That orchard was selected for the theme, 'Colors of Nature'.

Sia's routine became tough. She had to reach the location before the manager and assist her coworkers in preparing for the shoot. During the whole shoot process, Daniel seemed interested in her but she would always ignore him. Everybody was excited about the shoot at the orchard because it was the last day according to what the employees were told.

Sia was done preparing for the shoot with her coworkers so she started to wander around. Daniel came for the shoot. Now, there was no need for her to be around. She had to work before the shoot and after the shoot was completed. She had time to take a break during it. There were lines of the same colored flowers, making the orchard look unique and the most beautiful of all the sceneries she had experienced. As she stared at the yellow-colored tulips, she had a vision.

She saw a young girl, about 4 years old walking with a man, probably her father. She had a doll in one hand and was holding his hand with the other. The man was wearing a black coat and black pants. There were three more people, dressed in black, following him. The girl stopped and sat down to lovingly touch the yellow-colored tulips. The man patted her head and she looked up with a smile. He lifted her up and started walking. She kissed his cheek. The girl said:

"Papa, I want to play here."

"Baby! This area is not safe. We'll play somewhere else."

The girl started to convince him and he replied:

"Okay! But just for a few minutes."

"Okay!", replied the girl lovingly.

He put the girl down and she started running between the flower lines. She was enjoying herself. Soon, her father realized that she had gone too far.

" Ainn! Come back baby!"

But the girl ran and was soon out of sight.

"AINN!"

"AAAAAIIIIIIIN!"

"Sia? Sia? Wakeup!"

Sia was lost when Lisa brought her to her senses.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah."

She replied while rubbing her face.

"Why were you staring at the tulips?"

"O....Nothing."

She stood up and went to the location where Daniel was continuously changing his poses. She could not let go of the vision she had. Who is this Ainn? What does it have to do with her? She does not know any girl of that name.

Daniel was continuously looking at her changed expressions. She was lost in her thoughts. He would intentionally pose such that he faced her to avoid any problems again. He was expecting her to thank him for removing the news from the Internet. It was easy to understand that it was none other than him who would have been able to do this in a day.

"Is she that dumb to not understand?", he thought.

The weather was hot so, everybody was having an electric or a hand fan. Sia was sweating. She requested the manager for leave. They were out of the city so, there was no bus that could take her back. Nat was not present there and Lisa got a call about her relative's death so she went earlier than her.

"We would go after packing everything. But, there is no transport to take you back.", said Elaine.

"I'll ask others."

"Everybody would go on their time. But you can ask."

Right when she was asking everyone to give her a lift, Daniel intervened.

"Excuse me?"

"Yes?"

"I heard that you need a lift."

"So?"

"I am going back. So, I can give you a ride."

"No thanks."

The answer was quick. She did not want to face another controversy. But, there was no other way. She had to take a lift from him as he was the only one going at that time. As soon as he turned around, she said:

"Okay! I'll go."

Daniel smiled and turned around to look at her. His black BMW stopped and a man came from the front seat to open the back door. Both of them got in the car.

On their way, she was looking outside the window, completely ignoring Daniel whereas he was staring at her. There was a complete silence. The only thing anybody could hear of was the gust of wind. After a while, he broke silence.

"So, where do you live?"

She told him the address while looking outside. But soon remembered that her dad would ask her about him if he caught her getting out of his car. So, she turned her head and said:

"Excuse me."

"No need to be formal."

Daniel said lovingly. His attitude was enough to be mesmerized. But, she was not in the mood. She told him to take her to the colony's gate. She wanted to walk to her house.

"You don't want us to know your house's location, right?"

"I have already told you the location. I just don't want my family to misunderstand."

They dropped her to the colony's gate and she went in herself.

It was Daniel's charms which mesmerize others. But in this case, he was the one who got mesmerized. By whom? The woman who insulted him infront of everyone? No one could think of it.

Sia reached home. Nobody was home. She checked her phone and saw an unseen message from her mother. They had gone to a relative's house. Mostly, they ask her to accompany them but they thought that they would be home before her, so they went without worrying about her. She was so tired that she went straight to her room, took off her shoes and went to sleep. When she woke up, she washed her face and went downstairs to eat. She was putting her favourite white rice with chicken saute in the oven when she received a text message from the management. They had planned an outdoor shoot. The shoot was in Japan.

"Japan!!"

Sia read while taking a sip of orange juice. All the on site employees were asked to submit their passports within 5 working days to start the process. The company would take care of all the costs including food and accomodation. It was a golden opportunity. But, there was a problem. There was no way her parents would allow her to go. They had never ever let her to go outside the city without them. It was very difficult for her to convince them for letting her go on the local photoshoots. It would be impossible now. She wanted to avail this opportunity but she had to make a failed attempt of convincing her parents. Her mother helped her alot so, she would give her permission knowing how beneficial it would be for her career. The main problem was whether her father would be convinced or not.