The House Sitter

A new beginning

Leaving Liverpool was the hardest thing Alice has ever had to do. There was a connection she had built to this city since she arrived at university. At 18 she thought nothing could surprise her, but navigating the world of studying, dating and trying to keep financially afloat taught her a lesson in life. You can tread water all your life, struggling under the surface or you can float effortlessly, letting life take you where it needs you to be. This is how she found herself at 26 moving back to her home city starting all over again. The events of the last 8 years make Alice cringe at the thoughts of her naivety, who can know everything about the world at 18 years old.

"You're lost in thought this morning" said Amy, Alice's new roommate. Snapping out of her thoughts Alice replies "It's been a strange few weeks getting used to life back here again. I need to decide where I want my path to go from here". Amy laughs and says "not every morning needs to start with a deep questioning of life and paths to take. How about we start with breakfast and maybe a job hunt? My friend told me about this website people use for house sitting it might be good for you to have a look". She passes Alice her phone to show her what the website is like. "That might be good to keep me going for now. Plus some of these houses look amazing would be nice to live there for a while and be paid for it!" Alice keeps scrolling through the website and asks Amy "can you send me the link so I can keep looking while you're at work?". Once she leaves for work Alice takes some time to explore the website enjoying imagining her life in all of the beautiful houses. She can't help but think back to her house in Liverpool and how different her situation could be if she had stayed behind. Not wishing to dwell on it much longer she keeps scrolling through before finding a listing which catches her eye. She quickly applies before heading out for a jog around the park.

"Find anything job worthy today?" Amy asks returning from work later that night. "Actually I did apply for this one listing today" Alice explains "there wasn't a lot of information just that the owner wishes to remain unknown until the post is filled". Amy's face turns to excitement "ooohhh that must mean it's someone famous then! I wonder who it could be? Remember me in a few years when you're rubbing shoulders with celebrities" Alice hadn't really thought about it she was more interested in the huge library shown in the pictures of the house. "I mean it doesn't really matter who it is I won't be seeing much of them anyway. The advert says the house sitter is needed for when the owner is away often for months at a time. So I can't see me strutting down a red carpet in my lifetime!" This just makes Amy more enthusiastic "A red carpet! So you have thought about it! Please tell me as soon as you hear back I can't wait to find out who it is" Alice rolls her eyes with a smile "trust me Amy, you will be the first to know"

A few days later and Alice is having coffee and reading her book in her local cafe. She is reading her book so doesn't notice the email come through at first from the agency. Eventually she picks up her phone and a smile widens across her face.

Dear Miss Taylor
We would like to invite you for a formal interview at the address below at 10am tomorrow morning . Please read the documents below regarding the job role and salary. Bring any questions you may have about anything outlined to your interview.

Regards,
Toby

"Omggg tomorrow! That's so exciting! So do you think they will tell you who it is when you are there?" Amy can't hold her enthusiasm in much longer. "I don't think so, the documents say you will meet the owner once you are successful so unless they tell me the job is mine on the spot I will have to disappoint you" Alice hasn't wanted something this much in a while she needs this break to keep her going. She has to keep everything crossed it will go well at the interview tomorrow. "I should get an early night Amy, big day tomorrow. Good night" Amy hugs Alice tight "sleep well, try to take it out of your mind and get some rest" Alice gives her a small smile and gets into bed, her thoughts whir around her head but she eventually drifts off to sleep.