Her first day at training was the most startling experience she had ever had in her lifetime. All the girls present were asked to walk the runway with either their underwear or in a swimsuit. Obviously, most of them did not have swimsuits on and therefore chose the first option so the employer could have a look and see whether they were fit for the job or not. Fortunately for Mamle, she was excluded from all those girls, yet, didn't consider it a privilege. If they could do that to anyone, they could do worse. Her first instinct was to complain bitterly about it to Amihere.
"You have just begun, Mamle," he said "Let's see how things go over there."
"Amihere, I just can't stand this. Do you approve of it? This is my opportunity to call it quits."
"Just be patient," he said. Kwei Fosu was surprised to see Mamle around the next day.
"Mamle, you're here?"
"Yes I am," she replied.
"Come over here, let me feel your body a little bit. You know you're my pet." Mamle felt jittery and perambulated his office, avoiding him.
"You'll get used to this," he said and let her go free. This time, Mamle found it difficult to tell Amihere how shocked she was about his friend's behaviour. It may break his heart. What a dilemma!
The next day, Mamle saw many of her colleagues had been promoted except herself. It was shocking to know this stark discrimination. Kwei Fosu was nowhere to be found and no one could give her any tangible explanation. The whole day, she sat sitting in the waiting lounge staring into the thin air. That was the story she brought to Amihere. It seemed he was also at a loss at what was happening. Upon inquiry, Amihere was told that Mamle did not meet the requirements for the next stage of screening.
"What do you mean by she doesn't meet the requirements?" asked Amihere.
"She's a little over the weight required to go to the next stage. The customers have their own specifications."
"I don't believe this," Amihere said, astonished.
"Better believe it, sir, this is what we do here."
"Then that should be discrimination, wouldn't it be?" he asked.
"If you have any complaints, sir, put them in the suggestion box. We'll see to them as soon as possible." Amihere could not wait to talk to his friend about the bias in his organisation.
"Unfortunately, that is what happens over here," he said
"Why didn't you tell me so? You know she has been through a procedure already and is struggling with her self-esteem. This will destroy her!"
"I'm sorry about that, but we must separate our personal lives from our work lives."
"Stop this crap!"
"Hold your fire, Amihere. We must remain friends no matter what. Remember that."
The test
Kwei Fosu kept inquiring from Amihere what kind of friendship he and Mamle had.
"I only wanted to help her in the first place. There's nothing more to it than that," he said.
"Please remember what you just said right now. I may refer to it later," Kwei Fosu replied.
"I have no ulterior motives and I hope you don't too," Amihere said, stroking his moustache,
"We'll see about that." Content with Amihere's answer, Kwei Fosu was happy to proceed with his agenda. Mamle kept her distance from Kwei Fosu although they were partners. Her wariness radar told her to stay far away from him. Kwei Fosu didn't mind treating her like his pet, running around with her by his side, giving her no space to breathe and couldn't take his eyes off her for a moment. He was in her dressing room, her chaperone, choosing clothes and hairstyles for her and even the kind of make-up she needed. Once or twice, Mamle complained to Amihere. Though he took note of her concerns, the gentleman that he was, chose to stay out of the deal for reasons best known to himself. Kwei Fosu became her personal coach and signed contracts and deals she was even not aware of so much that Amihere realised how much it was affecting her performance.
"Watch it, Kwei Fosu," he admonished. "I perceive Mamle might grow weary of all this hype."
"I've got it all under control," he replied.
After several days, Amihere noticed that Mamle skipped her meals and changed her choice of clothing because she had lost a lot of weight. It seemed to suit her though but it was too unprecedented to pass for a normal occurrence. Something must certainly be brewing which he must find out.
"Mamle, I recommended this job for you," he said. "If it's too much for you, just let me know, we'll sort it out together."
"I'm fine with it, Amihere. Don't worry about me."
"Are you sure?" Mamle thought it would be ungrateful on her part to tell him she was struggling to fit in.
"When I met you, I was content with your personality but it seems you're trying to change yourself. It's going to affect you." Mamle finally broke down. Amihere was right. She was trying to change herself to suit the demands of the industry. Choosing the Instagram option would have been the best of decisions, yet, she was already caught up in a contract she had signed with her own hands and an abrogation of it would amount to a fine, an amount that she wouldn't want to mention to Amihere.
"The industry is demanding, Amihere," she finally said "Your friend is not helping much. It seems he's keeping me for his personal use."
"When you say personal use, what do you mean?"
"He's like a pimp, Amihere!" she moaned.
"I can't believe this! I'm hurting my own friend?" It was such a pity.