6
Job hunting
It's time for water to brawl
It's time to follow your heart
It's time for buildings to shake
It's time for barriers to break
To break, to break, to break, to break
To break, to break, to break, to break
—Break the Barrier
Miss Li
I SIGHED as I came out of what was the fifth building I had gone to today.
Job hunting sucks.
It's official.
Especially on a Monday morning.
I had applied to every best job I could find near the area for a computer science engineer. I knew my projects were up to standards of a professional and though I have not had much experience in the Job sector somehow I had managed to get an executive job in the last company I worked for and that made an impression on several of these people.
I knew I should have left that job the moment I realised that the company had business with Zach. If I had, I wouldn't be job hunting right now.
Internal sigh.
I crossed the road and went to a cafe across the tech company I just had an interview with. Honestly, they were my best option and I had completed my internship here before so I already felt home.
I didn't wear too formal clothing, just skinny black pants and a white t-shirt. Of course, the stilettoes were killing me but, I look hot in them and I needed their support today. See what I did there?
I told them I had an executive job and managed to lose it within a year because I am moral like that, they just laughed it off and said the fact that I managed such a demanding job in such a young age was something quite impressive.
And I melted.
I mean, these people are great. Hell, they are the best.
I sat down at a table with my latte from where I could see the building. AIR tech is the largest growing corporation of its sort in the world and this is their most important office, if I get a job here I am practically going to be a prodigy in the tech world. They only hire the best, because well, they are the best.
I swooned over the building and logo from the view that I had from this table.
I opened my laptop and started working on this database that I was designing for an old client.
Hours passed and the cups on my table increased as I spent time working on the finishing touches of my project when my phone started ringing. With my fingers typing, my eyes glanced at the phone beside my laptop.
It was Zach.
My fingers froze as my eyes bored into his name flashing on my phone.
My gaze just bore at my phone at the word Zach as if it would disappear by doing so.
Finally, he decided to call.
Now, after a freaking week. What was he doing up until now?
And even then, I had no idea for what purpose. Maybe he just wanted to clear some mundane things that couples go over when they break up. 'Like what about our joint lease?'
We didn't have a joint lease. I always had my apartment.
As if, I had already presaged it to happen. Somewhere I knew that our relationship wasn't going to last. But I just didn't accept it.
More like didn't get the time to. With Zach, everything was so public. We had absolutely no privacy and that was his fault. I would say I need some time, a day later I would get a call from his mother on how less time some people have, she would send me a forwarded message of how people lose things just because they needed some time.
He was responsible for that.
And that is why even though it hurts.
Strangely, it doesn't.
Because even though my heart is wailing in despair of losing a potential husband, a partner for life, my brain is relieved. The freedom that I once had and that I felt was slipping out of my hands was regained.
And hell, even my work seemed to remind me that I had a relationship with Zach. He would visit once in a while and barge in my cabin whenever as if I had no work to do. Or it was less significant than his. Earlier, I felt it was sweet, that he spent so much time with me. But now I realised how suffocating he was. Something would happen at work, he would know in a flash. It's like having your father as your high school teacher. Nothing would remain a secret anymore, somehow it always would get to him.
And so even though the job paid a hell lotta money and I did get to do a hell lotta work. I am okay with not having it anymore.
Because even though I made sure that I had gotten in because of my credentials, I still felt as if Zach played a role in my career. And that kinda sucks when you work hard for what you are and your entire image becomes Zach's fiancé, who worked at Zach's business partner's company, lived at Zach's house and driving Zach's car. And while the latter part isn't true I won't be surprised if many people consider it to be true.
And I am Emilia Kyra Hawthorne, not Zach Miller's shadow.
And shit, somehow that is necessary for me for everyone to know.
The phone screen blackened as the phone call ended itself. I kept on staring at it and I knew the teen sitting on the table behind me was getting a hell lot aggravated by my phone ringing by his continuous squawking of—
"Just pick it up already!" Needless to say, I ignored him.
I sighed after what seemed like an hour was only a few minutes.
"They say we are crazy, look at yourselves first..." The kid who was starting to get on my nerves, murmured.
I took a deep breath and put a finger on the bridge of my nose.
"the fucking phone is ringing... not picking it up...looking at it as if it was some sort of curse."
"WOULD YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!" I turned towards the guy in his late teens hooked up all sorts of tech around him, headphones on his ears, laptop in front, a tablet beside it, a mobile phone aside from the laptop and a hard disk connected to it.
"What the hell is your problem woman, why are you shouting?" He put off his headphones and on his shoulders with an annoyed expression.
"You get irked with my phone ringing when you have Taylor Swift blasting through your headphones, how the fuck can you even hear my phone after deafening yourself and the people around you like that!" I gave my withering look that makes adults cry and tilted my head daring him to say anything in his defence.
"I was just... I have to... um... sorry maybe you're going through a breakup or something..."
I saw red.
"EVERYTHING IS NOT ABOUT A GUY." I ran my hands in the air. I was livid. This kid had nerves. And he was getting on mine.
The guy looked at me like he was going to shit himself. He looked at me with wide eyes and stood up and ran to the bathroom.
He had pissed himself.
I blinked.
What did I just do?
"Wow. You're my idol." I turned to find a woman about my age as she took a seat across me on my table.
"I am not always like this." I muttered as I ran a hand through my hair.
"Well that, my dear, was amazing. If only I were like that with my kids." The woman with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes said as she put her bag on the seat beside her on the plush seat.
"You have kids?" I asked incredulously. Wow, she was so young.
"Yup, had one when I was eighteen have been taking care of her for a while until her father got to know and decided it was time for her to stay with daddy."
"Holy hell." I muttered.
"Yeah well, we got angry and had some breakup sex and guess who got lucky again at twenty-one?" She said dryly as she took out her phone.
"Damn, that's—wow." I raised both my eyebrows as I contemplated how hard this classy woman must've worked in the years where most people are building their future she was taking care of her child. No, children.
"Here they are, Dahlia and Jake." She pointed her locked screen to me which had a pic of two kids one girl with blonde hair and a little boy with brown hair.
"They are two little angels." I cooed as I looked at the cute kids on the screen.
She smiled and put her phone in the pocket of her black pants which she paired with a yellow shirt.
"So what do you do, Red?" She asked as she passed a chocolate frappe towards and sipped her strawberry milkshake.
"Didn't know what you liked, chocolate is the safest flavour." She shrugged as she explained.
"Thanks. I work in Tech."
"Hey, we're under the same umbrella, I am a game developer, I work right there." She pointed at the building from where I just came form.
"I just gave an interview there." I smiled.
"Oh yeah? Well, you're gonna get it girl, because you fit right in." She stood up and patted my shoulder.
"Thanks." I smiled back at her.
"Here, since we're going to be work buddies." She announced with certainty that I was already beginning to like and took out a card and placed it in my hand and picked up her bag.
"Thanks," I read the name on the card. "Raven."
"See ya around, Red." she smirked.
"Emilia." I said as put the card in my wallet which I had taken out to pay for the frappe that she very generously supplied me with.
"Here" I put a bill towards her on the table. "For the frappe."
She smirked as she eyed the note.
"I like you, and because of that, take it as my treat." She put her empty cup in the trash that she had inhaled in seconds.
"Bye, Red." She winked on her way out.
I guess she's calling me Red.
***
A/n: No, it wasn't ironic when she said everything is not about a guy, it's just at the moment the general assumption seemed true. Plus, it wasn't Zach she was upset with, she was upset with the fact that she was letting this affect her so much. Just letting this out y'all.
Any dream jobs people?
I wanna travel for a living. Like for real. And no, I don't wanna be an air hostess, it objectifies women to such an extent...I can't 🙈.
~Ria
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