"Wow, we did it!", my best friend Luna exclaimed.
"We actually did.", I agreed as I took another look at my University of Rome Master's Degree in English Language and Literature.
I was very proud of both of us but it also felt like something was being taken away from us. The carefree school days were now over. It was time to become our own people. It was the ending of one huge chapter of our lives but deep down I knew this was also a new beginning.
"Okay, we have a week to move out of our dorms.", I took a deep breath.
"Yes! God, we are going to have our own place!", Luna was excited.
"It's not like we had to share our dorm with anyone else before.", I said smiling.
"True, but we are free from school now, and free from dorm rules. Hehe.", she explained.
"Mhm.", I said half excited and half scared.
But as I remembered our degrees a wave of happiness washed over me once again. We started jumping around yelling and singing.
The day was sunny and warm since it was the beginning of June. Rome was crowded with traffic and that didn't even bother me like it would under normal circumstances. I accomplished something today. I was content.
When we got to our room after being stuck in traffic for 2 hours, I called my sister on a video call. She immediately picked up and my parents were with her.
"You can say hello to the master professor of English Language and Literature.", I proudly said.
"Congratulations honey!", my mom screamed.
"Bravo darling!", dad added.
"Ooh, congratulations sis! It's finally time for you to start financing me.", Sonya was joking like we always used to.
"Hey, you can greet 2 master professors of English!", Luna was pretending to be angry.
They all congratulated her as well.
"When are you coming home?", mom asked.
"Hmm... I don't know, it shouldn't take long.", I hesitated.
The reality was that Luna and I have been considering staying in Italy at least for a while. We didn't plan on immediately returning home because we genuinely liked it here. We liked everything about this country so we were about to look for jobs to apply for.
Luna and I decided to take a few days for ourselves and celebrations. We needed a break.
"We miss you. It's so boring without you in the house.", Sonya moaned.
They hadn't seen me often in the last 2 years. Italy was a day away by bus and I didn't have the money for a plane to go back and forth all the time. It wasn't like when I was at my bachelor studies in the city that was 2 and a half hours away from my hometown. Back then I was able to come every weekend. Now, I came only for holidays and spring break.
"I know you do. I promise I will come as soon as I sort everything out here.", I said and we hang up.
Luna called her family as well and after that, we just threw ourselves in our beds and had a nap which lasted the whole day.
When we woke up, it was time for dinner after which we were going to a club to celebrate our degrees. Luna wanted some noodles so we made some and then got ready.
I decided to wear a tight, red, silk dress, a pair of black high heel sandals, and a black purse. Luna went for jean shorts, fishnets, black lace bralette, and a black leather jacket. As for the shoes, she picked a pair of black, high heel boots. We put on some glam makeup and went out to meet some other friends, two of whom had cars so we won't have to take a bus. I got us some alcohol to drink in the car before we arrive. It was vodka, unfortunately. I hated it but it worked the fastest. So we all drank, except the drivers, and put on some music making the party start before the actual party. We were taking shots and drinking them in one draught so that when we arrived, we were all kind of tipsy. The line in front of the club was long but it was moving fast. We bought our tickets and the security guys put bracelets on our wrists so we would be able to go outside and get back in without having to pay for the entrance again. Inside the club, the people were still arriving so we were able to find 2 free tables. The night was wild and I knew I was going to regret it in the morning. We danced as crazy and drank our asses off. Our time was filled with loud laughs, spinning rooms, and tripping everywhere. Even the two people who drove us got wasted so when the night ended some of us got back by bus and some decided to walk. The dorms were around 45 minutes away and Luna, Marco, Sarah, and I started walking hoping it would sober us up a little bit. Luna and I stopped for a moment to take our heels off when a poster taped on the bus stop caught my eye. I took a closer look and saw it was a job opportunity.
"Look Luna! They are looking for an English language translator that would correct the lyrics for certain Italian band".
"Ooh, mysterious!", Luna laughed.
"I have an idea! Let's apply!", I suddenly thought.
"I think I'm gonna pass. I'm not really into that. You love music. It's worth a try.", Luna encouraged me.
Despite us both being drunk we somehow managed to fill in the online application while joking constantly. Marco and Sarah were already gone once we finished so we returned alone.
The next morning I was awoken by my phone ringing. My head started hurting instantly. I put my pillow over it and tried to ignore the ringing. Then, Luna took my phone and picked up.
"Hello! Yes, this is her phone. Oh, I will get her in a moment. Please wait.", I heard her saying.
Then I felt her hands moving me to wake me up.
"Get up Bianca! They're calling for a job!", she whispered.
"What job?", I mumbled.
"The one we applied you for last night!"
"Shit!", I said sitting up.
Luna gave me my phone and I put it on my ear trying to sound as collected as I could.
"Hello! Yes, this is her. Yes, I did apply. No I do not have anything planned. Of course, I could. Thank you!", I hung up.
"And?", Luna demanded to know everything the lady that called said over the phone.
"Well, they want me to go for an interview. There are 10 more applicants so they had to choose wisely. This woman gave me the address of the hotel where the interview would be done and told me to come there tomorrow at 8 am."
"Amazing! Did she mention the name of the band so we could stalk them on social media? Did she say anything about the salary?", Luan wanted to know.
"She was actually very mysterious about the band and she didn't mention anything about the payments."
We got up from our beds since it was already noon and struggled to make some coffee and eat since we felt like dying from all that alcohol we poured into ourselves last night. We called other people that were with us and they were also hungover. Since I didn't have the strength to do literally anything, I just took a shower and went back to bed for the rest of the day. Luna had an hour-long bath after which she did the same. Only in the evening did we start to gather our strength back. That's when I started getting nervous about my interview. I gathered all the papers I thought I might need and put them in my backpack. I talked it through with my best friend who reassured me saying it will be alright. Then we picked out some decent outfit for this opportunity. Those were simple wide-legged jeans and a white button-up shirt.
My alarm went off at 7:30 so I would be able to get to the interview on time. Luckily, the hotel wasn't that far from me. I put on some makeup and got dressed. Then, I took my backpack and my Vans and got going. Luna wished me luck and walked me out. When I got into the building I headed straight to the reception.
"Good morning! Could you tell me where is a job interview for a certain band being taken?", I politely asked the man standing behind the counter.
"Good morning! You mean the interview for the Måneskin?", the receptionist replied.
I was puzzled at first but I concluded it must be a misunderstanding.
"Oh, no! I don't think so. You see the woman called Francesca called me and told me to come here for a job interview. It's the translator job for a band.", I explained additionally.
"Sí! For Måneskin band Miss.", he repeated and I froze.
This can't be real!
"Are you sure there is no other interview for today?", I had to ask.
"Miss, Francesca is their manager and she told me to instruct each applicant to go to the first-floor conference room.", he politely reassured me.
"Grazie!", I replied and started walking towards the elevator.
'Måneskin' kept repeating in my head. Was that the reason Francesca kept being so secretive about the band's name? Because it's freaking Måneskin? I didn't know what to think so I texted Luna letting her know what was happening. She told me not to panic and we concluded that it was not likely that I'll see them today. I sat down in the waiting room listening to hear my name. After 5 people did their interview, it was my turn. They all came out of the conference room looking startled but didn5have any time to say anything to us since the next name was immediately being called out. I stood up, fixed my clothes, and went in but almost fainted when I saw 3 men and a girl sitting on the couch while another older woman was sitting behind the desk. The 4 people on the couch were the fucking Måneskin!