The Assistant

Chapter 3 - Getting the Job

I was the only candidate to be called back.

What does that mean?

What happened to all the other super confident, mega qualified candidates?

It was really confusing, but I didn't have time to understand it all.

I had to get to the meeting with Mr. Watson.

...

I knocked softly on the door.

"Come in."

As I got inside the room, the whole place was just the same.

Everything perfect.

But there was one difference:

Mr. Watson.

His demeanor was totally different from our previous encounter.

The scary and intimidating Mr. Watson was gone, and there was a nice and smiling old man sitting in his place.

What is happening here?

I was still processing the idea, when he broke the silence.

"Hello, Mr. Smith!" he said grinning.

I kept staring at him for a while.

"Oh.. Hi, Mr. Watson." I managed, still confused.

"I bet you're thinking that there's something wrong here." he told, confidently, quite enjoying my reaction there.

"Yeah.. I'm a little confused." I answered frankly.

"It may sound like a mistake, but we have really chosen you to work here."

"Oh..." was my only response to the fact that I was selected from all the other highly qualified candidates at the Interview.

"When we opened the Internship Program, we were planning to train the interns for them to be the future employees at the Company." he said.

"I see..."

"But when I interviewed you, I saw how eager you were to work here, then I had another idea: why not train someone from zero?"

"So, you selected me because I have no experience?"

"Yes. But, please, don't take it personally. Having no experience is not exactly a bad thing. It means you'll learn everything from the best."

"I am very honored to be able to work here."

I really was very grateful for the vote of confidence that they were giving me.

"Thank you very much for the opportunity!!"

"We selected five more interns to work at different sectors of the Company, but your case is different. That's why you were called back here, since the other interns will start next month."

"You'll be working alongside with us: me and Robert here." He added, pointing to his right side.

That's when I realized that there was another person in the room. There was a middle aged man that nodded in my direction.

I nodded back, realizing he was Mr. Watson's Personal Assistant.

So I'll be Mr. Watson's Personal Assistant's Assistant. What an honor!

I was happily jumping inside my mind, trying really hard, and almost failing, to be serious and not freak out right there.

That's when he dropped another question.

"I want you to answer me another thing."

"Yes...?"

"And I want you to be honest with me." He said very serious.

"Okay.."

It was too good to be true... There's always a catch... Hope I don't mess everything up...

After a few seconds of suspense, which felt like hours for me...

"Were you afraid of me during the interview?" Mr. Watson dropped the question.

I was very surprised by this one. Wasn't expecting this kind of question. I really thought he was going to roast me.

During the interview Mr. Watson was merciless, just like all the media said.

He kept shooting me questions and testing my limits under pressure, and then I got heated, which made me unburden my desperation at the interview.

"Hmm..." I started.

Should I tell him the truth, that I was super scared of him, or should I tell that it was a good experience for me?

"I was a little surprised at the interview, since it was my first one. I didn't know what to expect..." I tried to answer the question in the most neutral tone possible.

"Come on, kiddo, you can tell us the truth." Mr. Watson said grinning.

"Okay..."

Here it goes...

"You really scared the hell out of me..." I blurted out.

I tried analyzing his reaction, which was serious, for a while, then Mr. Watson was laughing very hard, and now Mr. Robert too.

I just stayed there smiling, and blushing, a little embarrassed.

"Taylor, my dear.. That was my acting skills. Something that I had developed in order to keep my employees on the line and get results in my meetings."

"I see..."

"It comes in handy.. But you have to promise that this remains between the three of us."

So now I was part of this secret that Mr. Watson is a very nice and funny man, and the whole reputation of him being a merciless entrepreneur was an act.

I really didn't know how to react to that.

They really trusted me with this, so I had to ensure that I wont tell anyone about it.

"Oh.. Of course!! I won't tell a soul!" I guaranteed.

"I believe you. I am a good judge of character, and since the interview I felt that you had a great sense of the right and wrong. So, I expect you to keep that in mind, and if you ever feel like there's something wrong, please tell us, after the meetings, of course".

I nodded, trying to keep a composed face.

"And you don't have to force being serious. It'll come naturally in some occasions." he added.

I could only smiled at him, already mentoring me.

I still have a lot to learn from them, especially from Mr. Watson...