New Teammate

"Are you guys ready!?" a husky voice of a middle-aged man sounded.

"Yeah!" several voices of males as well as females could be heard at the same time.

They were seated on a multi-seat luxurious maroon-colored sofa. A round wooden table was placed right after them and an empty single-seat sofa across them could also be seen.

The middle-aged guy who was named Derek kept looking at the screen of a camera suddenly shouted, "Start!"

Right after his instruction, a guy clapped a clapperboard and several other guys with cameras and lights began their work.

"Today's a special day. A very special day for our team and I'm really excited about it," one of the girls said smilingly while looking at the camera.

She was wearing a half-sleeved black top paired with skin-tight stretchable denim jeans. Her stature seemed average.

She had a ravishing face with a fair complexion having almost no unnecessary fat. She had dark, chin-length ragged short hair on both sides of her face and a full fringe that reached her eyebrows. Her short hair added much more charm to her appearance.

"That's right! Not only Celia but I'm excited about this too. We were not told about anything before. Mike told us yesterday that someone new might be coming to our team. Apart from that, we are still very clueless," the other girl chimed in who was seated right beside Celia.

Her stature appeared somewhat taller than Celia's.

She had tousled and textured blonde hair styled up, as casual as her whole being seemed to portray, from the denim jacket, red tank top, and jeans, to the way she leaned back on her seat while crossing her legs. She could easily be mistaken for a fashion model. In simpler terms, she was a drop-dead gorgeous beauty having all the desired proportions in every part a man wants.

Mike who was sitting beside Alexandra in a black t-shirt and jeans glanced at her and smiled,

"Yes! That's what I have been told. Even I don't have any clue Alex. 6 months prior to this when we welcomed Celia I thought this was it. There won't be any new members now. At least for a year or so but I was wrong and here we are."

"Okay! Just end the suspense guys! It's killing me now. Who's the new teammate? Don't you have anything to say Paul?" another guy with a beanie and an olive green pullover couldn't help but voice out his curiosity.

"What? I don't know what to say. Have some patience, Nick. Okay?" answered back the rightmost seated guy who had spectacles on and wore a white graphic t-shirt.

"Okay! Everyone, please wait a little more. Although I'm curious too. But there's a saying, right? Fruit of patience is always sweet," said the leftmost seated girl.

She wore black-rimmed rounded spectacles and a plain maroon-colored top with navy blue jeans. Her auburn hair which reached down to her waist combined with her pale neutral skin made her seem alluring in every aspect. Her oval-shaped face as delicious as an apple with comely brown eyes enhanced her attractiveness to another level.

"Veronica is right! Look here he is..." Mike let out after looking at the entrance door of the room.

All of a sudden, the door of the room opened and someone entered. He was wearing a gray sweatshirt along with black jeans and sneakers.

As for his physical features, he had a 5 or 6-day stubble french beard combined with his medium-length black hairs which were styled a bit messy in such a manner that gave him a sophisticated yet rough kind of look. His stature was average. He wasn't bulky at all, in fact, this person had a lean body with a defined chest and abdomen.

Amazed and nonplussed by his appearance everyone seated on the sofa looked at him with the eyes of anticipation and curiosity.

The newcomer came and our blondie girl Alex stood up from her seat followed by other members, she reached out with her hand towards the newcomer,

"Hey! I'm Alexandra Jones! People close to me call me Alex. You can call me Alex too!" Alex smiled brightly after shaking hands with their new teammate. The latter gave her a faint smile.

"I'm Mike Edwards! The leader of this team. Nice to meet you and welcome to our team!" Mike who was right beside Alex welcomed the guy in front of him who nodded in acknowledgment with a still faint smile.

"Nick Wilson here!" Next, Nick shook his hands with him and showed almost no interest. To his surprise, the new fellow also didn't spare him a second glance which displeased him even more.

"Paul Smith here brother. Welcome to the team!" the one with the white graphic tee shook hands with him for which the latter thanked him.

"I'm Veronica Hughes! You look great in that outfit. Nice to meet you. Also, welcome to our team!" Veronica held the guys' hand who responded with a nod.

The last person right beside Veronica was Celia who seemed to be dazzled and kept gazing at the guy in front of her with glittering eyes,

"Ahh! Right! I'm Celia Williams! Thank you for coming here! And nice to meet you...and... and yeah... Welcome to the team," Lastly, Celia who appeared a bit nervous also shook hands with the newcomer.

"Everyone! Nice to meet you all! Thank you for the invitation, Mister George! I'm Felix! Just call me with that name. From now on, I'll be in your care," said Felix after gazing at the camera and then at the people standing in front of him.

They couldn't help but smile after hearing his response except for Nick. As they sat at their respective seats, Derek yelled, "Cut!!!!"

"Okay! Now just keep it casual, short but it must also seem a bit professional. Got that? We don't have much time. You all have to go to the destination too right?" he added.

"Yes Sir! We know but Felix said he was invited here by Mister George. Is it true? If your Father has invited him then he must be very skilled. Am I right?" asked Mike. He wasn't the only one who had this question in his mind.

"Yes yes! Father invited him when he was traveling to India a few months ago. It won't be a stretch to say that he was captivated by his skills hahaha! And here we have Felix right by our side," Derek voiced out in a proud manner while mentioning how Felix was invited here.

"Ohh! Interesting... Interesting... Felix boi. You have piqued my interest now. fufu~" Alex winked flirtatiously at him.

Veronica wearing her elegant smile chimed in, "Right! I'm expecting great things from you, Felix."

Paul too couldn't help himself as he praised, "Mister George rarely visits our studio and now you are here who were actually invited by him personally. I'm gonna say it. I'm a bit, jealous brother."

"What's so surprising about it? If he's invited here then he must prove it by showing his skills. Hope he will stand up to his expectation," Nick scoffed.

Nobody was impressed by his remark at all but still, they let it slide.

"I believe in you, Senior Felix. Don't think too much. I believe you'll be superb during the tour," Celia who was quiet until now, consoled him.

"Hmph!!" yet, her gesture only displeased Nick even more.

"Senior Felix?? Haha! Miss Celia, looks like you misunderstood something. I'm the youngest one here. I'm only 23," Felix enunciated while pointing at himself.

"Ehh????" not only Celia but everyone present except Derek was surprised by his age. He was just 23? Really? Then what the hell is he doing in here? These were exactly Nick's thoughts.

Embarrassed by her previous remark of calling a 'junior' her 'senior', Celia kept looking here and there with her face lowered which soon turned red.

"Wait! What??? This guy here is just 23? Even Celia whom we considered as the youngest is 25," said Nick.

*Smack*

He didn't even get to conclude his sentence when Alex hit him on his head, "Huh? Don't you know? You should never talk about a woman's age. That's the number one rule. Is that clear?"

"You!!!!! Who gave you the right to hit me? You're the same age as me. 28. Then, why did you..."

*Smack*

"You scum! Didn't I teach you just now to never talk about a woman's age? And now you not only disclosed Celia's but mine too!? Come here!! I'll teach you how to behave like a gentleman."

"What? Sit down, you old nanny. What's there in age? It's just the number..."

"You dare call me an old nanny? Come here, you peasant..."

"Brother Nick! *Smiles* This is the last time I'll ignore your comment," all of a sudden Veronica who was quiet until now, warned in such a manner that left everyone tongue-tied.

After looking at Veronica who was smiling yet not smiling, Nick's body shuddered. He was very familiar with that smile. Not only Nick but everyone present over there was familiar with Veronica's smile, even Derek was. There was something about that smile that always gave an ominous feeling.

'Fuck! She's scary! I'll keep that in my mind,' Felix who was sitting there listening to his new teammates, made a sticky note in his mind.

Right after that, everything went silent. Subsequently, Mike ended the silence, "Ahem!! So!??... Where do you belong to Felix?"

"Wait! Are we asking such questions now?" questioned Derek, still seated behind the camera.

"Is there something wrong Sir?"

"No! No! Mike, If it's that then I want to include this part too. As I said before, Remember!? Short, casual yet professional. Okay?"

"Okay!"

Thereafter, he shouted again, "Start!"

Again the guy popped out of nowhere surprising Felix and clapped the clapperboard and shooting began,

"So? Felix? Where do you belong to?" Mike began his questioning again.

"I'm from India!"

"India? Does that mean you're an Indian brother? Cause you look like one..." exclaimed Paul.

"That I am..."

"Wow!!!! I never thought our team will have an Indian too. I always wanted to visit India. Never got the chance though. Well, maybe in the future!?" Alex winked. She liked the fact that finally, someone in their team was not a white person.

"So? Are you ready for the investigation Felix?" asked Mike.

"I am! Leader."

"Haha! Just call me Mike."

"You sure dude? He's 23 and you are 32. Are you sure!?" after what he just blurted out, Nick again realized his mistake and got a vicious glare from Mike. However, for Nick Mike's glare was still far better than Veronica's ominous smile any day.

"Cut!!" At Derek's instruction, the camera stopped recording.

"Alright! Time for an individual session. Starting with Mike. Everyone else, please leave!" he instructed.