Japanese Blossom and Vanilla Brown Sugar

A Few Months Later...

          Kotomi took a deep breath and stood up with a smile as her name was called. As she walked into an impeccably clean office she glanced over the man who would be interviewing her...and hopefully after that, giving her a job. 

         "Have a seat," he took a seat at the desk and adjusted his tie. "So, what's your name again?" 

         "Kotomi. Kotomi Nakata." She reached to shake his hand, and noticed that the desk seemed to be the only messy part of the room, and boy, it looked as if a hurricane had gone across it. The sparkling walls and fluffy carpet only seemed to show how much more dust and crumbs sat on the piles of paper. 

           He must have noticed her looking, because he chuckled slightly and apologized for the mess. "It's the only part of the room I don't let the cleaning ladies touch. Confidentiality and all." 

          "Of course." She smiled brushed her hair behind her ears, hoping to look  a little more put together. 

          "I like it better in the front." 

          She paused. "Sorry?" 

          "Your hair," he gestured vaguely while pulling a sheaf of paper from his drawer. "It looks better in front of your ears." Not sure how to respond, Kotomi stayed silent. Her interview looked up and flashed a grin. "So, Kotomi, you're applying for which position? Accountant, right?" 

          "Actually no, secretary..." 

           "Oh yeah, of course. I just guessed you were good with math, sorry." He laughed again and scanned the rest of her resume. 

           "Well, I am, but why would you guess that?" She tried to keep her voice even and polite, if not a little confused. 

           "Just the..." he motioned towards her eyes slightly. "Oh, nothing." Laughing again, "Let's move on. Why do you think you deserve this job?" 

           "Um, just because, um..." She glanced down at some notes she had in her lap. "Oh, well, I'm great at talking on the phone for one. I'm always happy to help customers and I've had some work experience behind a desk before." 

            "And you're multilingual, yes?" He folded his hands on his desk and rested his chin on his fingertips. 

           "Yes, I am. I speak fluently in Japanese and know a little bit of Mandarin." Koto smiled softly again, remembering she needed to look approachable. 

           He sighed gently. "Wonderful. I love that blouse on you." 

           "Excuse me?" 

           "Miss Nakata, you seem very open and comfortable to talk with. You are beautiful, intelligent and exotic. Exactly what this company-" 

           Kotomi cut him off sharply. "Exotic? And what exactly do you mean by that?" 

           "You're asian." 

           "So? You know, if the world were a village of 100 people 57 of them would be asian. Really, you're the 'exotic' one here." 

            He nodded placatingly. "See, this is exactly what I mean! We would love to have someone with your wit and charm on our team." Ignoring her other comments he continued. "Our position is open and I am ready to have you start next Monday, but first we need to discuss pay and benefits. I can offer you sixteen dollars and fifty cents an hour." 

           "May I ask how much you pay your male employees?" Kotomi's mouth was set in a straight line. 

           "Certainly. Our male employees on average make about eighteen dollars, twenty five cents an hour. But don't worry, secretaries don't have to concern themselves with the pay of their coworkers. We'll have some boys in accounting take good care of it like they've been trained." He smiled and offered his hand. 

            "Why are your female employees paid less, exactly?" 

            "Oh, I'm not sexist! It's just that the men work harder, so they deserve more." 

            "How do you know they work harder? And if that were the case, wouldn't it be based on position and not gender?" Kotomi pressed angrily. 

             "Women are just not as equipped to deal with the stresses of an office workplace. So we let the men deal with the important stuff. In fact, the only reason I'm hiring a chick for our secretary is so that people see a pretty face when they come in!" He was becoming very exasperated now. "Do you want this job or not? With a resume like this you know you won't get any better offers." Trying to calm himself he added, "Don't be such a prude, it's just a little flirting every once in awhile and you'll be able to have some cash until you get married and can retire." 

              Kotomi stood up. "Absolutely not. I will not accept a position under anyone who is so incredibly sexist, racist and rude. Thank you for showing me what not to look for in an interview. You may destroy my resume, and don't contact me again." 

             Before he could respond she stalked out of the office and rushed down the stairs. Half running across the parking lot she felt herself starting to cry. 

          She sat in her little, beat up secondhand and cried her eyes out.