I have to say, as I was walking into the room, these women looked like they were sizing me up. And there was just no warmth in their eyes, even though their words were polite. I couldn't see that in their gesture, in their language.
Every time they asked me a question, I could practically see them hoping that I would make a fool of myself. Hoping I would mess up this interview. It almost looked like they didn't want me to get hired...
After the interview was done, I actually felt very proud of myself. Because I really thought I was going to make a Fool of myself, but then I found out that I could hold my own.
Even though I was not good with confrontations, I tried everything to get out of it. Actually, I think I did good, although I kind of took too long to answer a question or didn't have an answer to a question thrown at me. My summarization of the whole interview was 'not bad.'
I didn't know if all the women in this office were so stuck up, which I hoped they were not. Just imagine working with these people every day, and even knowing that Juliette is Cesar's secretary makes me shudder. If I'm going to be his PA, she and I are going to be in interaction like every day, mostly, all the time.
After the interview was done, the HR said, "Okay, we are done with the first round of your interview. Thank you for coming in."
First round? You mean there's another round of interviews? I thought to myself but said nothing. I just kept a smile on my face as I nodded.
"We will call you if we think that you're able to fill the position. If you don't get a phone call in two weeks' time, just consider yourself unworthy of this position."
Unworthy? What a choice of words.
I stood up and smiled as I said, "Thank you. Hoping to hear back from you soon."
All I got was a tight smile as I got out of the door. I went towards the elevators and waited for an elevator to come, but none came. That was until Juliette came behind me and said,
"You can't access the elevators without your ID card."
"Oh, I see...' Surprise or maybe I should have guessed it.
"Yes, you're not a staff, so that's why you Can't Access the elevator."
And then she used her ID card to press it on the door, and the elevator opened, and we both got in. Neither of us said anything, just like we did when we came upstairs, until we reached the lobby where I got off, and Juliet just gave me that tight smile. I gave her a tight smile, too.
She wasn't getting off. I got off, and then I said goodbye to the receptionist and walked out of the company.
As I had already vacated the Blackwell company premises, I wondered what should I do. Should I go back home to the Blackwell estate? It was too early. My mom was full of questions, and I was really not in the mood to start answering all the questions she'd throw towards me, so I told myself to think of something to do, and I settled on having brunch.
When I was done, I really had nothing else to do. I didn't really have friends in the city or anywhere else. The few ones I had before I dropped out of the university, I lost when I dropped out.
But when I came back to college again, I was more focused on getting good grades and getting that degree while also fighting a healthy amount of ghosts in my past. So, hanging out with people who were only interested in drinking music and having fun wasn't on my list.
So I didn't really have anybody close.
Maybe it's time I started talking to Leanna again. Maybe I can try to rekindle some kind of friendship from back then. She was the only person who had called me a few times throughout the years, wanting to know why I dropped out, and asking if she could help in any way. She would call me on my birthday, and in the end, after two consecutive years, I had to call her on her birthday and wish her happy birthday too.
But we didn't really talk about our life, we didn't talk about much other than greetings and best wishes. I didn't even know if she was in the city, but I think that's something.
So I decided to give Leanna a phone call. The moment she picks up, I can hear a lot of music in the background, which catches me off guard. She's probably not even in the country, not even in the continent, somewhere where right now was probably nighttime.
"Hello?" she picks up.
"Casey, is that you? Oh my God, you called me when it's not my birthday."
I started laughing with her.
"This is such a surprise," she continues. "I'm always expecting your call on my birthday, but it's not my birthday. Is it my birthday? I don't know..."
But she was laughing a bit, and it seemed like she may have had a few drinks.
I said, "It's not your birthday, I just... I don't know. I just wanted to say hi. I wanted to say hi."
She was answered this as if I was a kid, and she was, I don't know, the older kid, the older sister.
"That's so nice. Oh my God, you called me. I can't believe it. Are you okay? Are you in trouble? Is that why you called me? Did you need my help?"
She was saying this, her voice getting softer. And just above a whisper. And I found myself laughing.
Leanna was such a good person, she was such a good... I don't know if I can call her friend, but she was a roommate friend.....
"No," I told her quickly after I finished laughing. "I'm okay, I'm fine. I was just in the city, and I don't know, I thought maybe I could see you."
"Oh, that's very nice, Casey. But you see, I'm not in the city right now."
"Oh, sorry, I should have known," I say. "You probably don't even live here anymore."
"No, no, no, no, no," she says. "I do live there. It's just that my boyfriend brought me here. I'm in Paris right now. And guess what? He just proposed."
Oh, I can't help it. I'm happy for her. She was such a good person. Happy, lovely person. And she was so lively and lovely. I'm sure she's going to have a great family. And when she becomes a mom, she's going to be a really good mom. She's a great person. So I'm not surprised someone fell in love with her enough to want to keep her.
"Congratulations," I tell her. "Oh, my God, I'm so happy for you. I would hug you if you were close."
She laughs. "Yeah, I know. Thanks. I'm in Paris right now. We've been on this beautiful vacation. It was a last-minute thing, but he was so convincing. So we came here and guess what? He proposed."
"Oh, my God. That is so romantic... I'm so happy for you."
"Yes! And don't worry, we will be back on Friday and we're going to have an engagement party and you are invited. I repeat, you are invited. If you do not come to my engagement party, I am never talking to you again."
"Of course, I'm going to be there. Tell me when and where I should be."
"Of course, I'll put you on the invite. So, are you back in the city right now?"
"Yeah, just came back."
"That's so nice. Oh, my God. I can't wait to see you. I have a lot of things to say. So—"
And then I heard someone murmuring in her ears. She giggled.
Oh, I think that's her boyfriend, I thought to myself, so I said,
"Okay, so I think you're busy. I'll just talk to you when you get back."
"Okay, goodbye," she said, distractedly. But I couldn't blame her. She's all the fun—and I just got myself smiling.
Leanna's engaged. And I just got invited to an engagement party.
The first party that wasn't a family obligation in a long time.
I finally found that my mood is in high spirits different from how I left the Blackwell company. I decided to just go back home—no! The Blackwell estate. I didn't want to stay there. But I actually had to.
I had nowhere to go. I didn't have a job, I couldn't afford an apartment. And I also wanted to be close to Victor. My mom didn't want me to be on my own either. So here I was, finding myself staying at the Blackwell estate with my mom, my soon-to-be stepfather, and my little guy.