CHAPTER 2:
1155 Words
He raised his eyebrow. “Is there anything wrong with my face, Ms. Martinez?” His question brought me back to reality. I leaned away as soon as I noticed that I had been staring at him for a long time.
A quiver fell in my stomach. Wishing the ground eats me right now. “No, Sir, I… I was thinking, what should I answer with your question,” I said as I talked too fast. “Yeah, that’s it,” I add as I nod.
My future boss wants me to talk about something off-topic. And come to think of it; he may want me to feel relaxed before we start the interview. I am overwhelmed because he is a very considerate person.
Mr. Harrington leaned back; he exposed his neck as he lifted his chin. “Okay, if you have nothing to share with me about what happened this morning, tell me about your backstory.”
A nervous smile appears on my lips as I blink. I sputtered and struggled to find the right words leading my mouth to open and then close. At the same time, I am pressing my right fist against my thigh. When I try to glance around for a rescue, it's like time has stopped or slowed. I want to retreat from the conversation but know I can’t.
“Um…” I don’t want anyone to know about my past, but I'll allow it for once if I want to move forward. I lean forward again, with a hand on my knee, then show my smile when I look at Mr. Harrington. “My parents died in a plane crash, so now I’m alone. I need to work to support myself, so I’m applying for the secretary position, Sir.”
A nervous smile doesn’t leave my lips as I break eye contact with Mr. Harrington. I can feel the heat on my face because I know he is still looking at me. There is silence between us. There is also an inner voice in my head crying because I spilled the beans I should keep forever.
He breaks the silence by clearing his throat and holding my curriculum vitae again. Will he now ask me questions about the field of work I am applying to? But when I looked at Mr. Harrington, I sensed something different with him now. He had a stooped posture, an empty stare, and a slack expression. Does he remember something painful because of my backstory?
“That explains why you’re applying for a job even though your undergraduate,” he said. He scanned my resume again. “Are you planning to study while working?” he asked again as his gaze shifted to me.
My eyes move to take in the surroundings, but the rest of my body is still. My mind went blank as if my brain had stopped working. I clench and unclench my fist when the adrenaline shoots through my system.
“I understand your situation. Your parents die while you’re still studying. Now that no one can support you anymore, you need to look for a source of income to finance yourself and your studies.” He put the paper his holding down and put his arms on his table again. “But I’m sorry, I can’t hire you as my secretary.”
A painful tightness in my throat as I bit down my bottom lip. Even though I know this might happen, I’m still shocked and in disbelief. I lower my head as my chin starts to tremble. But I pinch my lips tight to keep them from shaking; I don’t want Mr. Harrington to see me affect that much.
“I don’t need a specific degree for the position. Yet, having a background in secretarial studies is an advantage. It may increase your chances of getting hired. And, I prefer candidates with prior experience in this role,” Mr. Harrington explains.
I don’t know why he’s telling me that because I no longer care. If he wants me to accept the rejection right now, I’ll give it to him. I lift my head again and make eye contact with him with a smile. According to some articles, getting rejected on your first application is normal. You can always try again in another company.
I stand up and face him as I speak. “I understand, Sir. And I thank you for giving me this opportunity to see you at least. It's an honor to meet the CEO of Harrington Aviation Services in person.”
Another smile flashed on my lips before I turned back to him to leave the room. But after one step, Mr. Harrington speaks again, making me stay still. “Are you not curious why the CEO interviewed the applicants himself?”
My mouth falls open as I remain still for an extended time, not wishing to interrupt the surreal moment. Of course, I am inquisitive. From the start, I knew Mr. Harrington had the reason. I had a hunch that he did that to get to know the person he wanted to be, his secretary. But after he said that he was looking for someone with experience, I knew he had another motive for doing such.
As I waited for him to speak again, I decided to look back. Mr. Harrington is smiling as if expecting me to look at him again. Does he know how curious I am?
“To tell you the truth, I am a very busy person. I don’t have time for my personal life. But we can say that there are some cases that unexpected scenarios happen. I gained another responsibility aside from being the CEO of this company.”
I raised my eyebrows as I couldn’t follow what he was saying. He shifted his gaze to his table and opened a drawer. I furrowed when I saw him get something. Then I released it when I noticed it was a picture of a little girl.
“That responsibility… is to take care of my daughter.”
He let me see the same sadness I saw earlier on his face while he stared at the photo of his daughter. I don’t know how he lost his secretary, and I am not curious about it. But what I want to know is what’s with the dull eyes he had right now. Whenever his doing that, I have this feeling that I want to come closer to him to pat his shoulder, but I don’t know why.
“So, Ms. Raeliana Martinez. I can’t accept you as my secretary, but I want you to be my daughter’s nanny.”
I’m in the middle of wondering why Mr. Harrington looks so sad. But when I heard what he said, my body froze as my eyes widened and my mouth fell open.
“What?!” I refuse to believe what he said.
- Writer
