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VALENTINA WAS VIBRATING with energy. Good and bad. During her interview at the Hawkins Pool for the role of a lifeguard, she was shocked when they hired her on the spot. Her resume wasn't that impressive: babysitter, homecoming princess three years and running, prom queen, three-time science fair winner, and Hawkins High swim team captain.
She wore Steve's hoodie to the interview. The one she still hadn't given back since last November. It took four washes to get the smell out, it wasn't as soft as the first time she pulled it over her head, and Steve's essence had long since been erased from it. But it still had his role as team captain on it from freshman year. Valentina didn't have much else going for her, and she needed this job. It was only the third place that responded to her application, and the other interview she had didn't go so well. The third interview was scheduled right after this one.
Steve didn't know that Valentina kept that hoodie. She threw out the pants because they'd been drenched in mud and Upside Down goop around the ankles and were past saving. He assumed she threw out the sweatshirt with it. She never mentioned it. So, technically, she never lied.
She was hiding it from him, though. Which is why after her interview at the pool, Valentina was left shivering in the red one-piece swimsuit they'd given her. In her hands was an outfit to change into for her next interview, but there wasn't enough time to change before Steve arrived—assuming he was on time. Valentina threw the gray hoodie into her locker, the one they allowed her to write her name on and told her she could store her stuff in between shifts.
She was ecstatic. Cold and wet, but ecstatic. She finally had a job! She could help her mom out, and at the very least take her own wants, splurges, and shopping addictions off her mom's list of worries.
So, Valentina stood outside the Hawkins pool, arms wrapped around her stomach with a pair of jeans and a polo shirt tucked underneath. She debated skipping her interview at the cafe. She already had the job at the pool, and it paid decently. But she figured it wouldn't hurt to have both options. And if she happened to get both jobs, then she'd just have some extra cash.
Also, if Steve got his job at the mall, the two could see each other way more often.
Just as Valentina smiled to herself at the thought of the boy, the sound of his car pulling up brought her out of her thoughts. Valentina checked the clock in the check-in booth behind her, noticing that he was one minute late, and scrambled to jump into the backseat of his car.
"Hey- What are you doing?" he asked, smile dimming once he noticed she wasn't sitting up front next to him.
"Drive!" Valentina shouted at him. Steve's eyes widened, and he did as she said. "You're late."
He looked at the time on his dashboard. "By one minute."
"Being late to an interview is a really bad look, Steve."
