Impostor

Chapter 3

The room was long and bright. I climbed the last few steps and looked down at Michael. He was climbing the ladder with my black heels in his left hand. I looked around the room, trying to find the next clues. We were the first people to make it up the ladder. The room looked like a modern office. A black desk stood near a floor-to-ceiling window, casting a gorgeous view of the city. On the desk was a landline telephone with a bright green cactus in a black pot to its right. The desk was clear of any paperwork.

The wall to the right of the desk had at least five doors. All the doors had different colors and the ever-present picture was in the middle. Michael soon joined me and handed me my high heels. I decided to just carry them instead of taking them off after completing each room. He looked around the room and gave me a dimpled smile. "This is so much fun." He said with what seemed to be excitement. I gave a little giggle and nodded my head, walking over to a couch in the shape of a 'z'. The couch was odd. It was only large enough to seat at least two people.

"Do you like it?" He asked standing behind me and staring at the couch over my shoulder. "I guess...It's just odd. It looks out of place here." I look at him to gauge his reaction. He frowned looking at the couch then back at me. "Why would you say that? It's black like the rest of the décor." I look back at the couch and then back at him. "The shape is impractical. No businessman would get a zed-shaped couch in his office." His frown deepened as he looked at the couch. "Never mind." I say and turn around as another trap door opens to reveal the middle-aged man. He gets up and turns to help an old lady through the trap door.

Just as the old lady stands up, another trap door opens and reveals two other participants. After all the participants were in the room, an intercom screeched before the familiar voice of the receptionist filled the room. "Congratulations, you have made it to the second round of your interview. You will find the keys to each door in the office. Only two people can enter each door. The remaining two will be sent home. As you have probably figured out by now, the keys are hidden strategically. I will warn you that each room will only start if all the spots have been filled. You'll have to wait for the other applicants before you can continue to the next room. Good luck."

The voice faded with finality and the middle-aged man pointed at a camera and shouted in outrage. "What kind of interview is this? This is all a waste of time!" he walked over to the desk and sat down in the office chair. He got red in his face with pent-up anger and pounded his fist on the desk. "That's quite the temper, sir." Michael said with a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth. The man looked up at him in pure rage and got up. "Do you think this is a game? Some of us need this job! I need this job!" The man shouted and pointed a finger right in Michael's face.

It looked serious, so I walked up to them and stepped in between the two men. "We all need this job, Mr...." He looked down at me with his angry eyes. "Will Patterson." He answered and it sounded like he was starting to calm down. "Well, Mr. Patterson, we are all just as shocked and angry about this interview as you are. We are just trying to stay positive and professional." I tried to soothe him. He nodded and turned around to start searching for the first key.

"Can I call you superwoman from now on?" Michael teased as he bumped his shoulder with mine. I smiled at his playful manner and walked over to the couch. "You can call me Goldilocks if you help me move this couch." I said and moved to the one side of the couch while he took the other. "Where are we moving it to, Goldilocks?" he asked while picking up his side of the couch and moving a few steps away from the wall. "Just out of the way." I look down at where the couch was just moments before and on the plush black carpet laid the golden key with a little tag on. "Teamwork is the dream work." Michael read over my shoulder.

"Nice. People are going to start thinking that we're cheating." He said and looked pointedly at Mr. Patterson who was getting more agitated with each passing minute. "Let's help them look for a key then." I started making my way over to them and smiled at the old lady. "Hello miss, what is your name?" I ask politely. She smiles kindly and takes one of my hands. "You can call me Sandy." She smiled and looked over at Will. "I want to help you look for a key." I say and move behind the desk to check the drawers. "That's awfully kind of you." She says and looks back to the plant and telephone. The plant was also an odd thing to put on the desk. I lifted the pot and found another key with a tag. "There is only one growth strategy: Work hard." Sandy read and looked over at Will.

"Let's go, Goldilocks." Michael ushered me to the door with a zed as its picture. He unlocked the door and put his hand on the small of my back, gently pushing me inside. The gesture felt so familiar and butterflies started to flutter in my stomach at the contact. I looked at him in confusion as he locked the door behind us. "What was that all about?" I ask and look at him with my brows furrowed. "People saw you help Will and Sandy and they want some of that. We can't help everyone. We're competing for the same job and they will do anything to ensure that they get the job." He says and looks around the room.

I just nod my head and turn to inspect the room. It was small and a little dark for my taste. The room looked like a little storage room. There were a few chocolate bars on the shelves and a pack of twelve drinks of water resting next to the neatly stacked shelves. "Do you think we're allowed to eat some of that?" I ask and turn to Michael. "Knock yourself out." He shrugged and walked over to eat one of the chocolates. "What if this is a test?" I ask looking at him unwrapping a chocolate and shoving it into his mouth. "Then I just failed." He said with a mouth full of chocolate.

Will and Sandy soon joined us and we cleared half the shelf of chocolates and emptied a few water bottles. Waiting for the rest of the applicants was torture. They must've been struggling, because the TV in the storage room lit up and blinded me. "Congratulations, you have made it to the third round of your interview. Unfortunately, you cannot continue until all ten of you are present. Please enjoy some refreshments while you wait. On the top shelf, you will find twelve name tags. Please find and pin your name to your shirt before you continue to the next round. The wait will depend entirely on the applicants who still need to clear their second round of the interview. Please be patient and good luck with your next round." The TV blacked out as soon as the receptionist stopped talking and we were shrouded in darkness once more.

My eyes had started to adjust to the dark by the time another team made it into the room. Will, Sandy, Michael, and I were all seated on the floor with our backs to the wall, getting to know each other better. Will has a wife and three children that he has to take care of. Sandy was recently widowed and all her children left the country, looking for greener grass. Michael remained suspiciously quiet and just when I was about to call him out on his strange behavior, the other team arrived.

We kept our distance from the other teams and this seemed to create tension between all of us. They were watching us with hostile glares and they kept to themselves on the other side of the room. We were just waiting for one more team before we could escape this dark room and they couldn't arrive soon enough. After waiting for at least an hour, they finally stumbled into the dark room. The TV unexpectedly blinded me again before the receptionist started talking again.

"Congratulations, you have all finally made it to round three of your interview. Please remember to pin your name to your shirt before starting to look for a way out of the storage closet. Also, remember to stay hydrated. You all know what to do by now. Good luck." She said before darkness once more enveloped the room. This time I was smart enough to inspect the room while the TV was on and I saw a small door next to one of the shelves. I grabbed Michael's hand and pulled him in the direction of the door. I whispered for him to get down on his knees and crawl after me to which he made a lame joke. I rolled my eyes and felt for the door before opening it and crawling through.

My eyes burned as soon as we entered the next escape room and I heard Michael groan as he threw his arm over his face to shield his eyes from the bright light. I squinted my eyes to inspect the room and my heart nearly burst out of my chest with joy at what I saw.