Job hunting

"Wait...what am I even doing?" I asked myself, slowing down by the side of the road. I wasn't going to stump into any random commercial building and ask for a job, was I?

I pulled out my phone from my down jacket and scrolled through it. Certainly, there were a few job listings I could find online. I was lucky! The number of job listings that popped into my screen were very encouraging. A softcopy of my CV was already in my phone and I sent them as attachments. It didn't take long for a few replies requesting my presence for an interview. This was going to be a piece of cake after all!
~

"We're really sorry miss Shapman, but you aren't qualified for the job." The interviewer said.

"What?" I asked in awe. That was definitely not true. I had met every single requirement on the list.

"We're really sorry." She apologised again, but I could see that she was already waiting for me to leave.

"It's fine." I replied politely and rose to my feet, "Thank you for giving me your time."

My spirit felt a little discouraged as I returned to the car. "Cheer up, Mélie. You still have other interviews to go to." I told myself and that gave me some sort of assurance and boosted my confidence.

"Of course", I puffed a breath. This was just the first. I still had 7 more interviews ahead of me.
~

"I've gone through your CV and I must confess, Mélie Shapman, that you are Penthouse material!" The interviewer at Penthouse Publishing remarked and a wide grin was plastered on my face. This was the 7th interview with all the other companies giving one reason or another of why they could not hire me. One interviewer even went as far as saying it was a mistake and the company wasn't hiring. However when I walked out of her office, there were a dozen other people still waiting to be interviewed.

"Thank you sir, thank you very much." I beamed, happily.

"No, miss Shapman, you don't have to thank me." He was saying. A knock on the door interrupted him, "Come in."

A lady dressed in corporate clothes walked into the office and flashed me a look. Then she turned her attention on Mister Berkley, her boss and the man who was interviewing me and whispered into his ear. He nodded and stared at me.

"That will be all, thanks." Mister Berkley said a lot and she flashed me another look before walking out of the office. This left me very uncomfortable. Why was she staring at me like that?

"Miss Shapman." Mister Berkley called, dragging my attention back on him. He was looking more serious than before his bearer of news walked in.

"Yes, mister Berkley."

"I'm afraid my company cannot hire you any more."

"Why?"

He paused and looked at me keenly. Then he sighed, "Your last job was at StancInk, am I right?"

"Yes." I replied. But what did my last job had to do with anything?

I was soon to find my answer, "You were sacked from StancInk for mismanagement and misuse of funds, Mélie Shapman, and I'm afraid our company cannot entertain such a person."

"What?!" "What do you mean mismanagement and misuse of funds, mister Berkley?!"

Where did he get such information from? This was definitely wrong!

"I'm afraid you can't work here, miss Shapman."

"Mister Berkley, listen to me…"

"I'm afraid there's nothing you can say to convince me, miss Shapman." He cut in. By now, all forms of excitement had disappeared from my face and from my voice and I was in a state of confusion.

"Mister Berkley, I don't know where you got such information from but none of it is true." I tried to explain myself, however, mister Berkley looked disinterested with continuing the conversation.

"I was fired by my boss because I refused to spend a night with a business partner!" I said. He looked at me, as if in shock but his face quickly returned to normal.

"You don't say, miss Shapman."

"I'm not lying, sir!"

He was starting to lose his patience, "Miss Shapman, I would really appreciate it if you'd leave my office now. Our work here is done."

I stared at him, stupefied by what just happened and how things had changed so quickly. Slowly, I rose to my feet, "Thank you, sir." I said.

"Oh, you are most welcome, Miss Shapman." He said with a fake smile and I walked out of his office.

Once in my car, I grumbled and poured out my frustration on the steering wheel. This had to be the worst job hunt of my life! I drew out my phone and made one last attempt for the day. The phone rang in my ear, "Hello, Trisha."

"Oh, hey Mélie. What's up?"

"I'm looking for a job, Trish, I don't know if your company is hiring."

"Job? What happened to your job at StancInk?"

I puffed a breath. I hadn't told her of my being fired from StancInk, "It's a long story, Trish. I got fired."

"Woah. When? I had no idea you weren't working there anymore. What happened?"

"I'll tell you all about it some other time, Trish. For now, I really need a job and all the interviews I've gone for haven't really been good."

"I'm really sorry, Mélie, but I don't know of any available job vacancies you could try." She replied and I grumbled in final defeat.

"It's fine. Talk later then."

The line went dead and I dropped my phone on the passenger seat. What was I supposed to do next, to return to the mansion?

I really hope Damien Jaeger will not be home when I return because I am certainly sure that my failure will make his heart dance with joy. Giving a final sigh, I ignited the car engine and took off into the road- to return home to the mansion.