(Right Building, Wrong Boss).
"Oh no, I forgot to charge my phone last night," Callie said, staring at the dead phone in her hand with a frown.
She needed it for her interview, or else she wouldn't be allowed in if she didn't show them her interview email invite.
"Roxy!" She called as she ran out of her small room, grabbing her small, black handbag from the handle of her door as she did.
She ran inside the small living room she shared with her housemate and searched the couch for something.
"What are you looking for?" A young woman in black pyjamas walked into the living room, her blonde hair was packed in a bun to reveal the heart-shaped neck tattoo.
"Ah, thank goodness you're awake, Roxy. I need your power bank. I know, I know, I forgot to charge my phone again last night. Please, I need to meet up for the interview." Callie pleaded urgently.
Roxy yawned lazily, plopping down on the couch, "Two bucks," she extended her hand to Callie, smacking her lips.
Callie bit her lower lip, "Come on, Roxy; all I have here is for the cab man, I would be stranded if I took out of it." She pouted at Roxy.
"Then you owe me one... no, two." Roxy took out her rectangular power bank from her pocket and threw it to Callie.
"Oh! Got it. Thanks, Roxy, I'll treat you to a drink tonight," Callie caught the power bank and pushed it into her small handbag.
"You've got thirty-four... thirty-three now, to make it to Tribeca. Can you make it?" Roxy asked as Callie hurried out of the house.
"You bet!" Callie replied before closing the door behind her.
In the cab, Callie kept tapping her foot on the floor of the car, her fingers drummed her knees, and her bottom lip was almost bruised from how hard she was biting it.
She couldn't miss this one, either. Melinda would be so disappointed if she did, and not just Melinda; this was her greatest hope for financial liberty.
Her mother depended on her, even her father, as much as she was starting not to like the man; he was still her father, and she needed to care for him, too.
"Are we there yet?" She asked the driver.
"Yes," He replied.
Callie looked out of her window in surprise, and truly, a tall and large silver building with'Apex Whisky Co' carved at the top stood staring at her with luxurious intimidation.
"Thanks. Here," She hurried and paid the man, then she quickly left the car.
She walked through the silver gates and was amazed by the number of luxury cars that were parked in front of the building. Selling one of them would comfortably cover her mother's medical bill and still be enough to cover their expenses for a few years.
"Damn..." She muttered as she walked toward the doors.
Her heart was beating faster as she walked through the tall doors and into a very spacious reception hall.
Men and women were dressed neatly, and even their movements looked rich. Unlike her, who was dressed in the only presentable skirt and blouse she owned.
She would have loved to wear Melinda's red dress, which she had worn last night, but this was an interview, not a stupid game show.
"Oh?! I'm sorry... I wasn't looking," Callie apologised as she got carried away in her thoughts and bumped into someone.
"You?" A tall, slim man in a blue suit narrowed his eyes at her.
She furrowed her brows as she tried to remember if she knew the young man from anywhere, but she was sure she had never seen the face before.
"I'm sorry, do I know you?" She asked the man.
"Ah, no. My name is Willow, the manager. You're not our staff, so... are here for -"
"Yes, yes, I'm here for the interview, Mr. Willow," Callie enthusiastically cut him off, feeling lucky she had run directly into the manager of the company.
"Um... awesome," Willow cleared his throat.
She recognized the young woman from the video his boss had asked Tony to delete last night; he thought she was here for some personal reasons, but he just discovered something very shocking: This woman didn't know who owned the company.
It made him wonder how she got the interview in the first place. He was eager to see the look on her face when she realized that the man she had disgraced and rejected last night was the person she wanted to work for.
Karma was a wicked bitch.
"Please, follow me, Ms..." He trailed off.
"Callie, Callie Monroe," She filled in.
Willow nodded, "Of course, please follow me." He said and moved toward the left side of the reception hall.
He wasn't mistaken; hearing her name had confirmed that she was indeed the red-haired contestant in the red dress, contestant 12.
He was already feeling bad for her; no one messed with the boss and went free. He knew she was going to be served.
Callie followed the weird manager up the stairs. She wondered why they took the stairs when she saw people using the elevator. Perhaps they weren't going that high because, if they were, it meant she was doomed to miss the interview; the building was fucking tall.
"Right in here, please," Willow led her through a door.
Callie sighed in relief when she realised that there was an elevator in the small, empty hall.
She was quiet throughout their way up. After a minute, the door slid open, and they walked into a long, shiny hallway.
"This is the interview floor. Go to door number 6 and show the lady your invite. Good luck," Willow wished.
He meant it, she needed that luck.
"Thank you, Mr. Willow." She nodded at him and walked away.
Her face was lifted as she searched for the door with the number 6.
She found it, and her heart missed two beats.
Taking a deep breath, she went closer and knocked.
"Come in," A female voice replied from inside the office.
Callie slowly pushed the door open and went into the office.
"Good morning, Ma'am," She greeted the older lady across the short, brown desk.
The first thing that caught her eye was the woman's bright, red lipstick, but that's not why she was here.
"Your invite, please," The lady said, glancing at Callie.
Callie blinked and immediately unzipped her handbag to retrieve her phone. She unplugged it from the power bank she had borrowed and went straight to her email.
"Here it is, Ma'am," She stepped closer to the desk and showed her the invite.
"Callie Monroe... your file is already sent to the boss, and he is waiting for you. Please use the elevator to reach the last floor," The woman instructed.
Callie sucked in a quiet breath and immediately left the office, "Thank you, Ma'am," She didn't forget to appreciate the woman before she hurried away.
"Oh God, please, don't make me miss this job, too," She muttered as she stood inside the moving elevator.
It finally opened, and she practically ran out of it.
She saw that the place was quiet, it was almost the same as the interview floor, but the walls of this floor were made of transparent glass, allowing light and a view of the big city.
Doors were closed, she didn't know which one to enter, but the moment she heard a movement from inside the room with the tinted glass door at the corner, she moved closer to it.
She was about to knock on the door when someone pulled it open from inside.
"Excuse me," A beautiful woman walked out of the room, looking as if she was holding back her tears.
Callie gulped, hoping she didn't look like that woman when she left.
She took a deep breath and pushed the door open, walking into the office.
"Good morning, I'm here for..." Callie had finished closing the door and turned to see who her boss was, but not in her wildest dreams did she imagine or believe she would see that face again.
She gulped, blinking to make sure her sight hadn't gone bad all of a sudden.
She couldn't be mistaken, those blue eyes that stared at her like blue fire that wanted to consume her.
It was him, Grayson Wolfe.
Every second of how she had proudly rejected him last night flooded into her head; there was no way in hell she was getting this job. She didn't even want to do the interviews anymore; begging him would only make it worse.
"Then... I will take my leave," Callie cleared her throat and forced out a smile.
Robotically, she turned her body to the door, but before she could place her hand on it, a voice stopped her.
"Wait," Grayson halted her. His voice was calm, but she could sense the underlying volcano beneath it.
She halted.
Could it be that the man wasn't as bad as she thought? Was he going to let bygones be bygones and give her an interview after all?
With a very little glimmer of hope, Callie steered her body to face Grayson again, a polite smile on her face, "Yes, Mr. Wolfe?" She said.
Grayson's expression didn't change, 'She knows my name.' He calmly stared at the same red-haired woman who had almost ruined his reputation last night, now standing before him and even smiling.
He wasn't expecting to see her, he hadn't even checked the file Willow delivered to him this morning, it was Okani who went through them and sorted the ones with best potentials; maybe, if he had gone through them, he would have seen her, and maybe prepared for this unexpected meeting.
However, there was no way he was offering her the job, even if he wanted to, it would be after he had completed his plan.
She needed to feel a bit of the humiliation he felt.
"Come," He commanded smoothly.
Callie blinked her green eyes and slowly walked toward his desk. She was about to sit down when he pointed at something in front of him.
"Your file." His tone was cold and dismissive.
Callie let out an embarrassed chuckle and awkwardly picked up her file, "That's what I wanted to do... then... I'll be going, yeah..." She cleared her throat and turned away from the intense blue eyes that were burning holes in her skin.
She wished for a vortex or portal to open up and suck her out of the office; embarrassment was an understatement for what she felt.
As she walked out the door, she could still feel his eyes on her, disappointment washed over her.
Once again, she had lost another opportunity, all because of the same man.
Why did it have to be him?