Adrastos

Chapter 19

Cathy never had formal clothes except for the uniform provided by her previous work. Today was her interview, and boy was she having a wardrobe malfunction. She never had formal clothes except for the uniform provided by her previous work. She frowned at the pink and white stripes of that attire. Cathy knew she had to return it one of the days, but out of spite, she kept it. She did whatever it took to keep that job, tossing her dignity into the trash. For what? A shitty job with a shit pay that didn't even cover rent! Never mind that.

Today was a new day, a fresh start. Cathy cringed as she grabbed her navy blue poker-dot shirt. It was the least, no scratch that, it was the best she had. After buttoning the shirt, she leaped over a pile of clothes that she created.

"where did I leave my pants," she mumbled as she scanned the room. It was not on the bed where she thought it was but was hanging in the bathroom, thankfully ironed. Cathy hopped into her formal black pants that she bought the day before. A flashback of her wasting money on pants was daunting. She took a deep breath and reminded herself that it was to make sure she got the job and wasn't a waste.

After a quick makeup and last-minute check, she was good to go. At a bus stop, Cathy waited for the bus. She shivered while hugging herself, reasoning that her orange jacket doesn't go with what she had. The bus should arrive in 5 minutes and by the route it takes, she should arrive early. It was an important interview, one that could make or break her life. An opportunity that she couldn't squander.

The bus arrived as predicted. Cathy sat behind the bus driver and stared out the window, practicing what to say. By the time the bus stopped at its designated location. Cathy was confident that she'd nail the interview. She cringed at the thought, "not literally," she mumbled to herself, and after a sigh, she whispered to herself, "never again."

The Monroes company was a few blocks from the bus stop. As planned, Cathy was early, so she was in no rush. Her stomach growled as she passed a local food stall. Those corn dogs smell so delicious but knowing she didn't have a dime left, she continued walking ahead with an empty stomach and a heavy heart. There was no sign of Tobias nor Kyle upon her arrival. So Cathy went straight to the Russian-looking female who sat behind a marble desk by the entrance. The secretary wore a pricey charcoal suit jacket and a white shirt.

"I'm here for Kyle Monroe."

"Mam. Your name, please," Laura arches her eyebrow and peers through her lenses, causing Cathy to feel self-conscious. Has she dressed appropriately?

"Oh, Cathy... Hastie and yours?"

"and what business do you have with Mr. Monroe?"

"I'm here for an interview, I guess," Cathy answered, pretending that the woman didn't intermediate her.

Laura was instructed to make an appointment yesterday but made a human error. So she insisted Cathy wait as she fixed the issue. To make things worse, Kyle was not there to interview her, so someone from HR had to take care of it. Laura was working under pressure being short staff. There's only so much that four secretaries can do.

Bored and worried, she took her resume and scanned it for mistakes. Cathy was a graduate with no other certificates and degrees to her name. It was noon when they gave her a visiting pass as they directed her into a board room on the third floor, a spacious glass wall meeting room with a glamorous table surrounded by white chairs. Cathy sat down. One person was interviewing her, a bald mid-forties man who wore an elegant grey suit that costs triple her rent, no a year's worth of rent. He eyed her resume unfazed, "Cathy Hastie?"

She jerked forward, hearing her name as she tried to keep her body uptight. "yes, that's me," she managed to say, taking a breather while putting her customer service voice on, "yes, how can I help you, " there, that sounded confident.