Chapter6:The interview
677 Words
One week later
Crystal stood outside a building that scraped the sky.
Laurent Fashion. The name alone meant money, power, dreams. Somewhere inside, Emily was waiting.
Crystal adjusted her glasses. Tugged her plainest dress. Made sure every inch of her was invisible.
She walked in.
The lobby was glass and chrome, full of beautiful people carrying expensive bags. They glanced at Crystal—cheap shoes, thrift-store dress, thick glasses—and looked away.
Invisible. Good.
Emily met her at the elevator. Took one look at her and frowned.
"Crystal. I thought we agreed no more hiding?" She gestured at the dress, the glasses. "Why are you still wearing those awful clothes?"
Crystal looked down. "Old habits."
Emily sighed. "Well, no time to fix it now. Mrs. Higgins is the hiring manager. She's... difficult. Just smile and nod and let me do the talking."
The elevator rose.
The interview
Mrs. Higgins sat behind her desk like a queen surveying garbage. Sharp-faced. Eyes that assessed and dismissed in the same glance.
Emily smiled brightly. "Mrs. Higgins, this is my friend Crystal. She's wonderful, very hardworking—"
"I remember." Higgins's eyes dragged over Crystal. The plain dress. The ugly glasses. "Receptionist. Temp. Minimum wage. Don't expect anything more."
Crystal nodded. "Thank you. I'll work hard."
Higgins snorted. "They all say that." She shuffled papers. "Start Monday. Don't be late."
They were dismissed.
Monday morning
The reception desk sat in the lobby—glass and chrome, phones ringing constantly. Crystal answered calls.
"Laurent Fashion, how may I direct your call?"
Over and over. Eight hours. No one said her name.
The other receptionists worked nearby—Chloe, Margot, and Jenna. Young. Pretty. They spoke around her like she wasn't there.
"What's with the new girl?"
"Temp. Minimum wage. Don't bother learning her name."
They giggled.
Crystal answered another call.
Day two
Chloe walked past and "accidentally" knocked coffee onto Crystal's organized papers.
"Oh no," Chloe said, not sorry at all. "How clumsy of me."
She walked away. Crystal cleaned the mess. Said nothing.
Day three
Crystal's lunch was missing from the fridge.
Margot walked in, saw her searching, and smiled sweetly. "Oh, was that your sad little sandwich? I thought it was garbage. Threw it out."
Crystal stared at her.
"Maybe bring something better tomorrow." Margot examined her nails. "Oh wait. Minimum wage. Right."
She laughed and left.
Crystal didn't eat that day.
Day four
Jenna handed Crystal a stack of files so high she couldn't see over it.
"These need filing. By floor. Alphabetical. Don't mess up."
It took six hours. Jenna glanced at them and shrugged. "Took you long enough."
Crystal's hands trembled. She said nothing.
Day five
Chloe cornered her in the break room.
"How'd a nothing like you end up friends with someone who actually matters?"
Crystal said nothing.
Chloe stepped closer. "Someone like you doesn't belong here. Those glasses are hideous. That dress looks like garbage. You're embarrassing to look at."
Crystal stayed silent.
Chloe smiled. "Good. You know your place. Temps come and go. You're nothing. You'll do nothing. In a few weeks, no one will remember you existed."
She walked out.
Crystal stood alone.
You're nothing. You'll do nothing.
Same words. Different faces. Always the same.
That night
Crystal sat on Emily's couch, staring at nothing.
Emily watched her carefully. "Bad day?"
Crystal didn't answer.
Emily sat beside her. "Crystal. Talk to me."
"The usual." Crystal's voice was hollow. "Coffee spilled. Lunch thrown out. Chloe telling me I'm nothing."
Emily's face darkened. "Those—"
"It doesn't matter. I'm used to it."
She grabbed Crystal's bag, pulled out the worn sketchbook. Opened it.
Emily looked up. Her eyes were shining.
"Crystal. These are incredible."
Crystal looked away. "They're just—"
"No." Emily grabbed her hands. "They're not just anything. They're you. The real you. The one you've been hiding."
Crystal stared at the sketches. Her sketches. Her dreams. Buried so long she'd almost forgotten.
"What am I supposed to do with them?" she whispered.
Emily smiled slowly. "I have an idea."
- Writer
