Arabella (ALEX TURNER)

1 - kind on the eyes

Alex and Matt, two of my new clients, sat on a couch with their legs crossed in the TV studio, looking nervous as hell. 

"Cominciamo a trasmettere la programma in due minuti!" I was saying, getting everybody ready to broadcast the show in two minutes. It was a big day--we finally had the Arctic Monkeys to perform live, and on an Italian channel, no less. It was my big break. "Rapidamente!"

I was really focused on getting the show set up, but was also listening in on my client's conversation. First thing I did when they arrived in the studio was to give them a translator, so we haven't even had our first conversation. 

Unfortunately, the translator I had to hire was my ex. 

"What did she say?" Alex glanced to the translator, Leo, and then to me. He ran a hand through his hair. It was kept to a length just below his ears, and most of it fell in front of his eyes. His skin was a little flushed. 

"We're starting soon," Leo said, shrugging. His English wasn't perfect and you could hear his accent clear as day, but he still spoke it well. 

I was shouting something to the host on set when I could feel Alex's stare on me, his face getting a little more red the longer he stared. "Er--what's her name?"

Leo laughed. "Mia. She's hired to promote your band."

"Hey, Al, quick tip," Matt said, folding his hands across his knee, "take a quick picture of her instead of staring, for god's sake. It'll last longer."

Alex's eyes snapped open. "M'not staring. Don't say that so loud..."

Matt lightly punched Alex's shoulder. "Mate, nobody except for our lovely translator knows English." He gestured to everybody in the room running around. "Nobody understands what we're saying."

I suppressed a smile. He really didn't know I could understand them perfectly. 

"Really?" Alex took another faithful glance towards me, biting the tip of his thumb. 

"Yeah. So we can talk about this new crush of yours. I haven't seen you check out something so hard since you had your library card renewed."

Alex laughed, almost as if he had butterflies in his stomach. "Come on. You can't tell me she isn't... like, beautiful?"

"Ah, ya got a thing for the Italians?" Matt leaned back in the couch, waggling his brows. 

"Bugger off. I'm just saying... the obvious." He swallowed, watching me pull my brown hair to the side to sign some waiver. "Wow."

I bit my lip so I didn't laugh, and then finished signing the paper. The flattery was overwhelming. He'd die if he knew I could understand everything. 

Matt snorted. "So when's the wedding?"

"Aw, can we talk about something else, Matt? Like the song we're playing for the show."

"Nah, this is way too fun. Knowing you, you've prob'ly got your whole life planned out with her already. You have a terrible habit of over-romanticizing girls, mate."

Alex snapped out of his daydream. "I do not."

"In un minuto!" I shouted at the cameramen. 

"Fine," Matt sighed. "Have you pictured what she's like in bed, then?"

Is this all guys think about? I glanced over at them. This had to be good. 

Alex ran his hands over his face, blushing. "You have no filter."

Matt's jaw dropped. "Bloody hell, you haven't denied it! And a filter doesn't matter. Leo's the only one who understands us, isn't that right, Leo?"

Leo smiled knowingly, lying to him. "That's right."

Alex let out a breath. 

"So relax," Matt said, swinging his arm over his friend's shoulder. "You don't need a filter here."

Alex shook his head, looking sheepishly at the floor. "I'm parched. Could I have some water?"

Leo licked his lips and nodded to me. "Mia, lui ha voglia di l'acqua."

"Capito," I said--understood. 

"Don't ask her!" Alex sat up on the couch, blinking quickly. "I don't want to bother--"

"It's no bother," Leo said, "her job ends as soon as the show begins. She has time."

I flashed Alex a quick smile before I went across the studio to grab a bottle. He was fixing his hair by the time I got back, and the show started. The band would be playing halfway through the program, so we had a short break. 

"Uh, Leo?" Alex whispered. "What's the word for thanks?"

"Grazie," he smiled. 

When I wandered back over to the couch, I took a deep breath and handed the water bottle to Alex. He took it tentatively, his chest rising and falling quite fast. "Er, grat-see-eh."

The pronunciation was so bad I burst into laughter and immediately felt bad for it. He looked so cute for trying to say the word. I cleared my throat, speaking English fluently. "No problem. Also it's nice to meet you guys, I'm looking forward to help promote the band."

When Alex heard perfect english from my mouth, the colour drained from his face. Realization flooded his eyes, and a bit of panic set in. "I didn't know you spoke--"

"Yeah. I do. I heard everything." A smile played on my lips as I dropped my voice to a whisper. "Oh, and I'm probably better in bed than what you've imagined."

Alex almost choked. 

"You're on in thirty minutes," I called out, walking away from him. 

The studio lights buzzed. I think I heard Alex say he wanted to flee the country. Matt was laughing so hard he was almost in tears by the time I left. 

They were going to be one of my most interesting clients, for sure.

A/N: Hey! This story is a new idea of mine, let me know if you think I should continue it or not? I love to hear any thoughts or suggestions or even if you liked it. Thanks!