Interview

“Yeah, are you going upstairs or what?”

I understood what he was trying to say finally and without even thinking, because I made them wait a lot already, I went to the elevator in long steps, just in time to hear Anton grunting. I faced the door as they do, next to Matt Alonzo, and tried not to panic too much.

The doors closed. I was standing there half shocked half dumbfounded, Matt talked again.

“Which floor? Ms...”

“Wonderland, I am going to the twentieth floor please.”

“What a coincidence, we are going there too.” he said. Of course you are.

“Isn’t it a wonderful coincidence indeed brother?” He said mockingly and he lightly hit his shoulder to his brother as if encouraging him to join the conversation.

“It’s not a coincidence, it’s a failure.” he said grunting again.

“What does this mean now?” Matt asked.

“It is obvious that Ms. Wonderful is here for the interview, otherwise she wouldn't be going to the twentieth floor. And it is obvious again she was late. So, she has started failing without even starting yet.” he said.

Oh god! Oh god! On my first day of work, my boss tagged me as a failure, and I didn’t even put a foot in the office yet. I was so deep in shit that I didn’t even get angry at the fact that he said my name wrong. He didn’t look up from his phone for even a second while talking. Maybe that was a good thing. He didn't know my face and apparently does not know my actual name. So maybe I was still safe? Right?

“Oh come now, don’t be so dramatic. Even if it’s true, it's her first day. Everything can go wrong on the first day of a job. It does not define the capacity of an employee.”

Matt’s words were like a glass of water in the Sahara desert, it made my heart fill with hope and ease. So, maybe there were good people in here, starting from one of their CEOs, and maybe I still had a chance to get a job here.

But Anton grunted again and said;

“You say that because you are always late everywhere. And, the assistant that I would choose can never be late. Punctuality is too important for me.”

I felt like someone was twisting my guts. I knew I had no right to feel angry because he was right. No one would like to have an assistant like that. But, I wasn’t late, just people were so rude, they didn’t even hold the elevator for me. But of course I wasn’t planning to pile excuses on my first day of job, I just stayed in silence and looked at my stilettos. I was one hundred percent sure my face was red now from the embarrassment I felt, it was always turning crimson whenever I was embarrassed. Freaking traitor cheeks!

I tried to cool my face by pressing the back of my hand to my cheeks. It wasn’t working I was sure. But at least it was hiding my reddened face partially.

I felt a pair of eyes on me. When I turned my face, I saw Matt was examining me intently. When our eyes met, he smiled. Ahh, my heart! He had dimples. Fucking gorgeous pits next to his plump lips were like daggers. But not to kill of course, just to torture. I knew it was an unfair world we live in, but that was too much god! You cannot make a man, too handsome, too rich and too successful all at the same time. This is outrageous.

But here, he was standing next to me in an elevator, his expensive musk and iris perfume was filling my lungs and he was smiling at me like a devil about to take his prey’s soul in return. Well I could give mine, no worries.

I felt the blood have been pumped to my cheeks even harder. Freaking cheeks!

His smile grew bigger and talked;

“Don’t be embarrassed my darling, he is a grumpy old man.”

Anton grunt indeed. “I am only two years older than you,” he said.

“See, grumpy and old.” Matt smiled again. I couldn’t help myself and smiled back at him. I knew this could be interpreted as I was agreeing with his oldness and grumpiness about Anton Alonzo, but he was so genuine and I couldn’t fight with the urge to agree with him for anything. If he would suggest that the earth was flat with this smile, I could chip in the idea that it is also on a bull’s horns.

Without noticing, we were on the twentieth floor already. A small ping voice let us know that we arrived, and the steel doors of the elevator opened. We step out from the elevator, three of us together. Matt turned his face to me and said:

“It was nice to meet you Ms. Wonderland. You are going that way, - he pointed at my back - and we are going this way - he pointed his back-. I guess we will see you in ten minutes. Keep calm and do your best.” he winked at me and turned back to follow his brother, who was almost in the half way of the corridor now.

I looked after him just for a second more, then I turned my direction and went to a meeting room where there was a sign on the door indicating the interview was going to be held there.

I knocked on the door and I opened it after five seconds. There was a big U shaped table in the middle of a huge conference room. The wall of the room which looked out was fully glass and a breathtaking New York view was displayed. There were four candidates sitting at one of the long sides of the U table and facing a woman standing before a board. I apologized for being late in a small voice and joined the candidates on the table.

Woman, around thirties, fair, plump and looking fierce, cleared her throat.

“What were we saying? Yes, I am Olivia Grant, head of the HR department. In five minutes, our executives and CEOs will be here. They have prepared their own questions. I don’t know how many questions will be asked or what is the content of those. I only know that everyone has prepared specific questions to determine which assistant will work for them.”

Silence followed her words.

“I need you to understand that, you have already been hired. It’s not an interview to decide your staying or leaving. It’s to be decided which department you will be in. We have four open places as personal assistants and one in the HR office. So, four out of five will be selected as personal assistants to executives and the one remaining will work in HR.

Perfect, I thought. So I was going to be an HR then. I was sure no right minded manager would want me as assistant, and not definitely CEOs after seeing me late.

Then the door swung open and two short men, puffy and bald headed, had been seen from the door.

“Oh! Welcome.” the woman said.

“We were waiting for you. Please have a seat.”

The puffy men have placed themselves on the opposite side of the table from us. They were facing us. One of them was bald, the other was at the edge of balding. They were looking attentively from one to the other of us. Then, CEOs came.

As soon as Matt and Anton had been seen at the door, the room suffocated in silence. Like all the air has been sucked out of it. They slowly walked to the shorter end of the U shaped table and sat facing the woman. Matt sat to the side next to me. And winked at me again, as he was sitting.

The door was closed by a guard staying in the corridor and Olivia cleared her throat again.

“Ihm, welcome all of you. I am happy to see all of you here today,”

No answer, everyone stared at her in silence.

“I know all of you are so busy, so I am keeping it short. I will only witness the process here. So please feel free to start anytime you want. I thought, it would be better to ask Mr. Parker and Mr. Jones to start their questions first, then our CEOs Mr. Alonzo and Mr. Alonzo can ask their questions. But for picking, I will give our CEOs the option to choose first. If you gentlemen do not have any objection?”

Mr. Parker and Mr. Jones grunted an unwilling no, under their breaths.

“Excellent!” Ms. Olivia chirped. “Let’s start.”

Mr. Parker cleared his throat and shuffled the papers in front of him as if to start.

“I want to go first.” Matt cut in. Anton Alonzo rolled his eyes and said;

“Of course you are.” in a small voice that only Matt could hear, and me because I was sitting in the closest seat to them.

“Please, go ahead Mr. Alonzo” said Olivia. Apparently, they have no choice but to let CEOs do whatever they want.

“I want to ask a question to Ms. Wonderland.”

I was too busy to read the room and inspect every face in the room, so I wasn’t expecting a direct question to me so soon. I looked at his face open-mouthed. And waited to hear the question.

“Are you single?” he asked.