3

"And with that the board meeting is concluded." Daniel said to the members of the board at the table while closing the files before him as he heard several sighs coming from his staff.

Sighs of relief.

It sure was a long and boring meeting.

"Rose." He called.

"Yes sir." A woman sitting on the third chair to the left answered, "What would you want me to do sir?"

"I want you to reach out to Greter's hub and find out if their proposal is ready?" He stood up from his seat, " Make it snappy." He added.

"Yes sir." Rose said.

"The rest of you are dismissed."

Every person at the table stood up at his statement and proceeded to exit the boardroom in an orderly manner admits chatting and incessant murmurs.

                Daniel rolled his eyes at their attitude and waited for them to all leave the boardroom before he followed suite and went to his office.

It wasn't  long before he got there and had assumed his position of his magnificent soft leather seat.

He sank  into it, leaning his head backwards and he let out a peaceful sigh at the ease the seat provided.

His eyes flickered to the long glass windows as he stared into the city skyline getting lost in his thoughts.

            Months had passed since he had seen that rude lady and he was glad.

After his last encounter with her, he made sure never to cross paths with her again.

He moved to a new place, got his coffee at a different place and took routes that were distinct from where he had seen her.

All his measures to avoid her worked.

He was free.

No more bad mornings.

No more bad days.

He broke free from his thoughts and stood up from the seat before proceeding to grab his office files and wallet.

Daniel scanned the office to make sure he didn't forget anything.

He nodded in satisfaction once done and headed out  the door to his next meeting.

          

               Red sat at the table with a forlorn look. Her head bent low. Her hands with dirty nails twirling the coffee with a spoon in the white mug cup placed in front of her.

She raised the cup to her lips and took a sip of the contents in it. The bitterness hitting her taste buds forcing her to spew out the liquid.

"That's terrible!" She shuddered speaking to herself.

"So, why should we give you a job?" The woman in front of her at the other side of the table asked accessing Red with disgust.

"Cause I need one and you need secretary." Red stated to the woman as she looked at her hair wondering if it was bleached blonde or natural.

"I mean give me a reasonable answer why you think you should be the best candidate for the job." The woman explained with a frustrated sigh.

She adjusted her glasses, gazing at Red intently.

"I just gave you an answer." Red shrugged, "If you can't make something reasonable out of what I just said then you obviously do not deserve to have me here."

"What insolence?!" The woman exclaimed shocked at Red's reply.

"So...uhhh." Red tapped her fingers on the table, "You gonna give me the job or not?" She asked with all her mustered confidence.

"Get out!" The woman thundered, "Get out of my office now!!

"Okay miss." Red nodded standing up, 'Your coffee tasted bad anyway." She turned her back and walked out of the office not waiting for the woman's reply.

She strode out of the office not too elegantly and angry wondering why no one had hired her.

Red had been looking for a job for days.

Why she suddenly wanted a job was out of the ordinary and unknown to her even.

She had gotten tired of picking pockets over time as she was recently unsuccessful most of the time.

So she decided she needed a job if she wanted to survive as her petty thieving wasn't paying off too well anymore.

          Red walked down the streets with her hands in her pants pockets. It was evening now. The cool breeze blowing through the trees with leaves rustling producing a calming sound.

She walked for some time before spotting a bench and taking a seat on it.

Her hands were removed from her pocket now and were  neatly folded across her laps while she stared into space dwelling in her thoughts.

She really needed to get a job but with little to no qualifications no one would hire her.

She sniffed and rubbed her palms over her face.

She was lost on what to do, where to go and how to go about looking for a job.

She wanted a high class job, a secretary or a receptionist of which she knew she had no qualifications for.

The only jobs she could get were less paying manual jobs like cleaning, waitressing and laundry services but Red wasn't interested. She didn't want them.

She wanted to get the admirable  jobs, huge paying and classy jobs.

She got broken away from her thoughts by the sudden honking of cars which she had been distant from.

          Red stood up from the bench wiping her bottoms like some imaginary dust got on it.

She put her hands back in her pockets and began trekking down the road with her head hung low, whistling with every step she took as she continued her thoughts.

She didn't want to falter because she got rejected. The rejection didn't down her spirits one bit.

She was gonna try again tomorrow.

                 

"No! No! No! Hell no!" Those were the words Red heard the following week.

A bunch of No's with doors being slammed in her face.

The last rejection was the worse.

"You say you were a thief or are a thief?" The white haired lady asked her pulling her glasses down to her nose as if it would help her see Red more clearly.

"Yes ma." Red nodded with a smile.

"Are or were?" The lady asked.

"Uhhmm..." She hummed for a moment as if in subtle thought, "A bit of both actually."

"And you want to work for me as a cashier?" The woman's brows furrowed as she leaned back in her seat.

"Yes, isn't it obvious?" Red grunted, "That's why I am here."

"Of what guarantee are you giving me that you wouldn't steal my money?"

"Cause I am trying to change." She twirled her hair while she answered.

"And..."

"Look lady." She tapped her index finger on the table, "Just give me the job. I am not promising not to steal your money and even if I do." She raised the same finger at the woman in a comical way, "It wouldn't be all of it. I am not a wicked person to steal all your money and..."

"Security!" The lady screamed.

"B...u...t ma'am." Red stammered.

She didn't get to finished her statement.

She saw herself being lifted from the chair by two heavyweight ladies, walked out of the office and thrown out of the building in a non graceful manner.

           Red stood up with a sigh and picked up her purse which had fallen to the ground before dusting her clothes with her palms.

She was about to step away from the premises of the building when she saw a white flyer pinned to a pole.

She walked there out of curiosity and tore of the paper.

'PERSONAL ASSISTANT NEEDED URGENTLY'

She smiled as she read through the paper. The interview was slated for the next Monday and there was a cooperate  dress code to follow.

She folded the paper and put it in her purse.

She was going over to the company on Monday to try and she was going to make sure she got the job.

She smiled once more to herself before skipping happily down the street journeying her way home.