The Beast

T W E N T Y T W O : G H O S T O F T H E P A S T

Jessie looked at the time and sighed. She had a job interview in forty five minutes and she was still stuck in traffic. She knew that with big cities came a lot of traffic, but she preferred their traffic to the overwhelming curiosity of those in the small towns.

She had not eaten anything anyways. She hadn't wanted to be late and now her stomach was paying for her lack of insight. She sighed and opened her bag and looked in it. Maybe she was going to be lucky and find a snack or something in it.

A few seconds later, she was eating the chocolate bar she had found and was praying it would keep her till the end of the interview. God forbid she fainted or something because of hunger of all things.

Thirty minutes later, Jessie had finally reached. It was a big publishing company and she had hoping to get the editing position. It would be awesome doing what she loved.

And it was also going to be a distraction. She had not moved on from Theo. But she really wanted to. Living in the past was not something she wanted to keep doing. She was tired of constantly thinking of him. And constantly moping about.

She got into the building and walked straight to the front desk. There was really pretty blonde behind it and she reminded Jessie of Pattie.

"Good morning," Jessie said, as soon as she reached the desk.

"Good morning ma'am. How may I help you?" the woman asked with a warm smile.

"I'm here for the interview. For the editor position," Jessie said in a shy voice. She was still a bit cautious of people. And she didn't want to seem friendly, or too bitchy.

"Oh okay. What's your name?" the lady asked, opening something on the computer in front of her.

"Jessica Rabbit."

The woman looked up at Jessie, a bit shocked at the name but did not make any other comment. Just clicked on her mouse a few times and typed something.

A few seconds later, she took out a badge with INTERVIEW written on it. Jessie took it with her free hand and looked inquisitively at the woman.

"Go to the fifth floor. Wait in the lounge. You'll be called when your interview is to start," the lady said and Jessie smiled.

She said a quick thank you then walked towards the elevator. Thankfully, it was not crowded. Just a really attractive woman in it.

"Good morning," Jessie muttered loud enough to hear. The woman spared her a look then turned back to her smartphone. Jessie raised her brows but didn't bother saying anything. How rude.

Luckily enough, the elevator didn't make a lot for stops and soon, Jessie found herself in the lounge the lady at the front desk had been talking about.

There were other people there. Looking much more professional and of qualifications could show on people's faces, Jessie was sure they would all be much more qualified than her.

Besides, with her flaming red hair and wild curls, she stood out like a sore thumb. The other people present had either straightened or perfectly coiffed hair.

She swallowed nervously and took a seat a bit far from the rest of the people there. She hadn't come to make friends. That was the last thing she wanted. Maybe she needed it. But she didn't want it.

As soon as she sat, someone walked from the office towards the elevator. It was a man and he looked awfully familiar. Jessie squinted a bit to make out who he was.

When she realized who it was, she let out a loud gasp. It was Theo! His hair was shorter and his beard trimmer but he was the one.

Jessie turned her head immediately, praying he didn't recognize her. Or even see her. Yes, she had been pining over him for a when but to actually talk to him would be a nerve wracking experience. And she didn't want it.

After a few minutes, she turned again and luckily, Theo was no longer there. She breathed out a sigh of relief. She wanted to be in the best possible state of mind for this interview and meeting Theo was not going to help.

Jessie got lost in her thoughts, but making sure to keep an open ear for when her name was called out. She did not want to miss this opportunity of a lifetime simply because she had been a bit absent-minded.

Jessie grew bored after a while so decided to start watching the other people who had come for the job. As she said before, they were so professional and Jessie almost felt out of place.

But she was working on her insecurities, so she banished that stupid thought away from her mind. She kept on watching them. And it seemed all of them were attractive Caucasians.

She had seen an Asian girl but that was just about it. Jessie hoped her qualifications were going to overshadow whatever racial prejudices the person who was going to interview her had.

Some moments later, Jessie heard her name being called. She shook then picked up her stuff and walked into the office she had seen the others walk into. But not before knocking.

When she heard a come in, she opened the door and shot a silent prayer up for this to go well.

"Sit," the man said curtly and Jessie swallowed but obeyed his command.

She sat and handed him her documents when he stretched out his hard. The man's face was completely inexpressive and unreadable. There was nothing that made he was pleased or disappointed by what he saw.

After a while, he looked up at her and Jessie managed not to let the trepidation she was feeling show up on her face.

"So, it says on your resumé you have some experience in writing. How long?"

Jessie took about five seconds to process the question, before giving an answer. "I have been writing professionally for about four years now sir."

He hummed in reply and Jessie took it as an opportunity to look at his name plate. It said Kevin Sanders, Editor in Chief.

"That's really interesting. So what do you think you would be able to bring to our team that others would not?" the man, Kevin Sanders asked.

This was the question Jessie had been waiting for so she got into it fluidly. "With all due respect sir, I think I possess experience that some of the others probably do not. I have been in freelancing for about five years, written on contract for about three and been an editor for about a year. My experience, both with the technical and practical part of the job would be a great advantage and addition to the team."

Jessie took in a deep breath after saying this and stared at the man. There was a glint in his eyes that made her think he was impressed, but his emotionless face gave nothing away.

"Thank you for your time, Ms. Rabbit. We'll give you a call," was all Mr. Sander said and Jessie picked up her stuff to leave.

As soon as she stood, the same man from earlier, Theo, got in. At first, he did not spare a glance at Jessie. But then he did a double take.

"Jessie?" He asked and Jessie went out, pretending not to hear him, her heart beating a million miles an hour.

She got out and let out a sigh of relief. Then made her way to the elevator. She was praying that Theo was not in this place permanently. Because if she got the job, they were going to butt heads every time.

Yes, confronting the past was the best way to forget about it. But Jessie wasn't quite ready. And she wasn't sure she'd ever be.

***

Word count: 1320 words

Hey guys. Long time. Omg, I've completely abandoned y'all and I'm so sorry for that. Hopefully the next update will be next week.

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