Anna took a deep breath as she stood outside the door, collecting her thoughts. "You've got this," she said to herself, trying to feel more confident. She took one last breath, then pushed open the door. Her foot caught on the threshold and she stumbled forward, papers flying in all directions as she landed with a thud on the floor.
"Oh no!" she exclaimed, embarrassed. She scrambled to her feet, trying to regain her composure as she looked up at the man sitting behind the desk. To her surprise, he looked much younger than she had expected.
"Please, have a seat," he said, his voice calm and soothing. His words snapped Anna out of her trance, and she realized she was still standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. She quickly made her way to the chair in front of his desk, hoping he hadn't noticed her staring.
"Are you alright?" he asked, his gray eyes fixed on hers. They were so intense as if he could see right through her. She tried to ignore the butterflies in her stomach, focusing instead on his question.
"Um. Actually," Anna muttered. Her eyes were lost in the handsomeness of the figure seated before her. He looked breathtaking in his fine black suit, white shite, and black tie. His gray eyes stared intently at her as if he could read the thoughts of her heart like a textbook. His hair brown hair which was styled in such a way that none was going astray. Even his aura commanded respect.
She was lost for a moment, the intense feeling of having to be interviewed by him thrilled her.
Would she be able to concentrate look him in the eyes and answer his questions?
It takes a moment for her to find her voice. Her heartbeat had already started racing frantically and she could feel something in the pt of her belle light up.
"I'm fine." She blinks, rapidly, trying to curb the heated nerves in her.
"Okay then." His voice is warm and an impassive expression on his face as he relaxes back in his seat.
Anna kept gawking at him. An odd exhilarating shiver ran through her spine.
Why was she feeling this way?
Why was it so hard to keep her cool in his presence?
The company should have just let an old man with a pot belly and weird-looking expression interview her. It would have been much better then.
"My name is Leonard Snow. And you?"
"Anna Briggs, sir." She replied and stretched out her hand for a formal handshake.
He extended his long-fingered hand and shook her.
So young and attractive, her subconsciousness cooed.
She noticed a fresh burn mark on his hand.
What would have tried to ruin such a perfect skin she thought.
"Sorry!" the word escaped her lips before she knew it.
"For what?" he asked with curved brows as he withdrew his hand.
I um," she stuttered as she pointed to his hand. "The burn, it must hurt." She managed to finish her sentence without stuttering mindlessly.
"Oh, it's nothing. I bumped into a girl in front of Gold Inc. and she spilled my hot coffee on me." He says and his gaze catches hers.
Anna seemed to have stopped breathing for a few seconds as events from that day replayed in her head.
Of all the people in the world to interview her, it was him.
Was he telling this to her because he recognized her?
She was flushed with mixed emotions. Surprise, anxiety, and relief.
Different questions kept popping in and out of her head and it was making her restless. She kept pondering and figured that maybe he didn't recognize her because he did not get a good look at her face.
"I was the girl," she blurted out. "I was having a rough day. I was there for an interview that did not hold and I met someone who I shouldn't have, so I was running to my car and that was when I unintentionally bumped into you. I'm sorry."
Leonard listened quietly with no facial expression. Was this some sort of trick?
Maybe she had known that she would be coming for an interview and staged all that to pique his interest. he wasn't going to fall for such a lame scam and let her fill his head with any more lies, so he cut her short with a question.
"If you are done rambling, can we go straight to the interview? I have far more important things to spend my time on."
She had never been so shocked, not even when she was pulled away from her father's hospital bed and told that he was no longer sleeping, but dead. His words were like a knife to her heart, but she tried to maintain her composure. He had reduced her to nothing more than a bumbling, awkward girl, incapable of walking through a door without stumbling.
She sat up a little straighter in her chair, determined to prove him wrong. She may have been clumsy, but she was intelligent, and a hard worker. She would show him that she was worth his time.
"We can go on with the interview sir."
Leonard threw a lot of questions at her which she answered with ease. If it wasn't for his harsh reply that brought her senses back to normal, she would have been too distracted to even answer any of his questions.
"Why did you choose to apply to this company?" he finally asked a question that had been lurking in his head since the interview started.
"I may not have the most impressive clients on my resume, but I know I have what it takes to succeed," she said, her voice determined. "I'm a fast learner, and I'm dedicated to doing my best. I'm confident that I can bring value to Snow Corp and help the company grow. I hope you'll give me the chance to prove myself."
She held her breath, waiting for his response. Would he appreciate her conviction and drive, or would he dismiss her as a naive young woman who didn't know what she was getting into?
After her long reply, he did not ask any further questions. He closed her resume and started going through some other documents on his desk. Utter silence loomed over them for a while and this made Anna nervous, she felt like she should say something. Maybe to ease the tension in her. And so, she did.
"That is not the main reason why I am here. Well, I should have been here if it wasn't for my best friend, Kate, who took the liberty of sending my resume to companies. The reason was that she thought a job would get my mind off my recent heartbreak and would set my life back on track. I have going for the interview ever since and on the day, I bumped into you, I saw the guy that broke my heart, and it kind of brought back some sad feelings I just wanted to go back to my car and cry. So right now, I just need a job. Internship, whatsoever.
Leonard listens keenly. Her words seemed honest. And seemed to explain why she was crying when she bumped into him. But why does it all sound like some well-written story?
"Well, that will be all Miss Briggs." He said coldly.
She nodded and rose to leave.
What if what she was saying was true? Leo wondered.