Chapter 5 You're... Hiring Me?
~Elara
By the time I saw the hiring sign, my feet were already killing me.
I had been walking since morning. Two interviews. One rejection and one “we'll call you." My phone battery was on fifteen percent, and I had exactly enough cash left for a cheap dinner, that's if I skipped transport and walked home.
I almost didn't look up, but the glass building was surely hard to miss. It was too clean, tall, and definitely too polished for someone like me.
Clerk Needed. Immediate Employment. Staff Accommodation Available.
A sign post read just beside the building.
My legs halted to a stop immediately.
Accommodation.
That word alone sent a jittery feeling to my chest.
I had been sleeping in a shared apartment with thin walls and thinner patience. Hearing things I shouldn't be hearing. I shuddered, but If I lost that place, I had nowhere else to go.
I stared at the revolving doors for a long moment. My inner thoughts in a constant battle between reality and a pipe dream.
You're not qualified, I told myself.
Still… what was the worst they could say?
No?
I kissed my teeth and matched towards the building, slid past the doors as cold air hit my face. The lobby smelled expensive. Clean floors and white walls. People were moving fast like they had to be somewhere important.
I looked around in mix awe and hesitation, feeling so small and out of place immediately.
Then, I approached the front desk, the receptionist barely looked at me when I said I was for the clerk position. She just slid a form toward me with one hand as the other typed away.
“No certificates required. You'll be tested," she said in a monotonous tone.
Tested? Shit, I wasn't prepared for that. Shit, I wasn't prepared for that.
My hands shook a little as I filled out the form, my eyes darting sideways as I kept expecting someone to tell me it was all a mistake.
Instead, a woman in a form-fitted blazer approached me after I handed the form to the receptionist. She led me into a smaller office with three desks and stacks of files.
“You'll organize these according to date and department," she said neatlytly. “Then we'll test your data entry speed."
That was all she said. No small talks or fake smiles.
I nodded eagerly, already on the first task.
The files weren't complicated at all, just messy and I sorted them quickly, double-checking dates and making sure nothing was misplaced. When I felt her eyes on me, heat crawled up my neck, but I didn't slow down.
After that, she sat me in front of a computer, with one single instruction.
“Type."
And that I did. Numbers, names, addresses, etc. I focused on the screen and blocked everything else out. I'd always been good with details. It was the one thing no one could take from me.
“You're fast," her voice carried.
And I blinked in surprise, and I could feel the red coating my cheeks. “I am?"
I guess I just zoned out for a bit.
"You start tomorrow. Probation period first month. Accommodation is included and would be discussed.”
For a second I just stared at her.
"You're… hiring me?"
“Yes. If you're still interested."
Interested?
“Yes. I am." My voice came out quicker and louder than expected, but she just smiled it off.
Then she nodded once, ready to move into the next task. “HR will give you the details."
After everything, I walked back into the main lobby, a little bounce to my steps as my feet carried me like I was floating.
A job. A place to stay. I could already feel the stability seeping inside of me. I inhaled with a giddy smile. Maybe things were finally turning around.
That was when the noise changed. It didn't stop all at once. It just… lowered.
Voices softened, movements slowed as people straightened, scrambling out of the way. I whipped my head sideways in search for the cause.
Someone close to me whispered frantically, “He's here."
I frowned. He?
Who's he?
The woman who interviewed me leaned, pulling me close. “Stand aside."
And I stepped back immediately.
That was when I saw him.
Tall, broad shoulders, dark hair sleeked to the side, dark suit, sharp eyes, with calm steady steps. He didn't rush, just walked like he owned the world.
His presence alone commanded attention without even trying. Obviously possible with that kind of face. He looked like he was sculpted— perfectly.
People moved out of his way, even without being told.
Suddenly, my chest tightened and I didn't understand why. It felt like air had shifted, and something invisible had brushed against my skin.
Then—
A groan slipped past my lips as a sharp throb pierced the side of my neck.
I froze.
My fingers lifted without control, automatically touching the spot just below my hairline.
What's happening now?
It's… hot
It hadn't reacted like that in weeks, not since that night. Heat spread under my skin, just so sudden like a pulse.
I swallowed thickly, a bit dizzy. It must be stress. It is stress… and nerves
He's just a man. Obviously, powerful men like this makes you nervous. That's all.
But my breathing wouldn't slow down, and as he moved closer to where I stood, a sudden pressure sent an involuntary shudder up my spine. Like standing too close to a live wire.
I stepped sideways quickly, almost bumping into someone.
“Watch it," a staff member muttered.
“Sorry," I whispered.
I kept my head down, didn't want him seeing my face and I swear I don't even know why.
The woman who hired me grabbed my arm lightly. “Don't stand in his path," she said under her breath.
“Who is he?" I asked quietly.
“Our boss."
My eye widened. That explains the silence, and definitely not my body's reaction.
"He doesn't tolerate mistakes," she added. “You bump into him, you're done. Understand?"
I nodded quickly. “Yes."
My heart was still racing and I told myself it was fear. That's all it had to be. Men with that kind of presence always made rooms uncomfortable.
I caught a glimpse of him as he walked past and for a split second, something about him felt familiar.
Not his face. Not exactly.
Just… the feeling.
Like standing in the dark and recognizing a shadow you've seen before.
The mark throbbed again, softer this time as I pressed my palm against it until it faded.
This stress is really getting to me. I haven't slept properly in days. Well, if you've been job hunting for days nonstop, of course your body would definitely react.
He disappeared into a private elevator and slowly the noise in the hall resumed. People started moving again as the tension vanished.
I shook my head. It's fine. You're fine, this is absolutely normal.
He's just a man in a fancy suit, and these reactions were normal.
Right?
