Cali Boy

BOOK PREVIEW: Chapter 2

In all of my twenty-three years of living, I had never interviewed for a job. At least, I never remembered having to. My childhood was a blur, but I do remember working at a frozen yogurt place that was ran by dad for a little bit. The point is, I had no experience being in a professional workplace and I had no idea what I was doing.

The address that was sent to me this morning was in New York City. I took a cab around 8:30 and arrived at 9:35am. New York traffic was a bitch, but at least I made it early. I tipped the driver with a five-dollar bill I had left in my purse before stepping out onto the sidewalk in the black knee length dress I had chosen. It was one of the only interview appropriate clothes I owned. Making my way through the crowd of people, I slipped through the glass revolving doors and walked into a large building with black sparkling floors. The décor was beautiful, and I immediately thought of Tye and her designs. The furniture was sleek and black, but the art work and oddly shaped decorations made the room look retro and welcoming.

My heels clicked across the floor until I reached the front desk. I noticed there was only one woman working it and she looked in her early thirties. She was petite with glasses and her blonde hair was pulled into a tight bun. She smiled when she realized I was staring.

"You must be Alicia." I recognized the voice immediately to be the one that was on the phone. "I'm Raina, but you probably already knew that." I nodded my head.

"I did actually."

"Good." She got up from her desk and walked around until she stood in front of me. "I'll walk you to the elevators. The floor is thirty-nine. There you will be directed with more instructions." She walked me through a hallway on the left side of the building until we reached the room with one elevator. She pressed the button on the side then turned to me. "I hope you find the answers you're looking for." Her statement took me back, but she disappeared before I could ask her what she meant. I stepped on the elevator, pressed the floor number, and waited to come to a stop. The more I stood there, the more suspicious I got. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.

The elevator halted and a high-pitched ding signaled it was time for me to leave. A dark-skinned man greeted me and introduced himself as Stanley before leading me past two black ten feet doors. The doors led to a corridor and we walked past each room until we reached the end of the hallway. This has got to be the weirdest interview I've ever been to, I thought to myself. After unlocking the door with a key, he ushered me in to the room and shut it behind me. The room was much bigger than I had imagined it would be. The walls were glass, and you could see over the entire New York city through them. The desk in front was a dark brown color and had two matching chairs in front of it as well a large leather chair behind it. The chair was turned around, and I figured the person that was interviewing me hadn't realized I walked in.

"Alicia Brown," the voice startled me. I watched as the chair turned and a gray-haired man that looked in his fifties looked up at me. "Take a seat please." I did as he said. He analyzed me for a few moments, which caused my nervousness to increase. How did interviews work? Was I supposed to speak up first?

"I'm very interested-"

"Do you know why you're here Alicia?" he interrupted.

"For an interview sir." He laughed so loudly it startled me.

"Look at you. I can barely recognize you. They did a good job." I gave him a baffled look. What was this man talking about? And why wasn't he asking me any interview questions? I sat up so I could get a better view of his desk. It was empty, neither my resume or cover letter was there. You're not stupid. Something else is going on here. "You don't recognize me, do you?"