DAMON

 The sun was shining.

Not kind of shining in a princess movie where the girl looks so beautiful with the sun rays on her face.

No.

It was shining hard. More like scorching.

 My face dripping with sweat, I stole a look at the passers-by. They were talking and walking eagerly like the heat wasn't there. I guess the sun decided to use me as its experiment today.

I stole a look at the bear’s head in my hands and shook my head. I was tempted to shout; ‘Listen, people! If I die today, I died of heat!’

But no one was looking my way. It was like I was not in a mascot bear body suit at all.

I mean, the body was rainbow-coloured!

Whoever ignores a rainbow-coloured mascot bear?

I sighed and held the white coloured head up, stared at it for a while, and I could have sworn, it looked like it was mocking me for a minute.

I quickly took my eyes off it and stared at the big tower clock afar off. I have just ten minutes left before my work for the day is over. Hopefully, I will leave today without any form of abuse from my boss.

 I wish I didn't have to call Mr. Hands my boss, that man is somewhat a terrible person.

"Listen Jones, either you put that head back on and stop gazing at that woman's butt or I fire you this instant."

Speak of the devil.

My eyes fell in pretense.

"Sorry boss," I replied with a low voice.

"Sorry, useless, I didn't hear you." Mr. Hands with his unusual attire combination cupped his right ear and leaned forward, flashing his neon-coloured tie which he had carelessly tucked into the suit he had on.

I know right? Neon... Ugh!

Gritting my teeth with anger already building up within me, I replied to him, "I said, sorry boss."

"Finish your work, dumbass. Then you can go back to staring at asses." I watched as a disturbing smile followed his raspy voice.

After my eyes watched him walk past the huge doors of the tall building, I put on the mascot’s head.

The company was trying out a new flavour of sweets and they had the idea to put them out at reduced prices for people to try. I was the unlucky employee who got to put on the mascot costume and suffer in the hot sun whose intense radiation was gradually reducing. Thank God for that.

I picked up the tray that had just two sweet packets in its span and went back to my position, the almost filled money jar hanging around my neck. I resumed the embarrassing dance that I had to do while my bear suit announced its existence with a loud, cringy song.

 Despite the heat, I could not help but be glad that my shift was almost over. As my thoughts took me far away from the embarrassing moment I was in, someone took the sweets from the tray and dropped something that was certainly not money in the jar.

The tower clock quickly struck six pm and its loud ringing was enough to tell me that my work for the day was officially over.

 Soon, I took off the entire costume and looked into the money jar.

The last person left a banana.

 A freaking banana that had words written on it.

I want your ****.

Call me.

234-675-432

Shaking my head, I took out the banana and put it inside the hollowness of the bear's head. I passed through the company's glass doors and was welcomed with some cool air.

Then, I went straight to the secretary's office which was exclusive to the ground floor.

"Hey, Linda," I greeted the red-haired woman seated by the unusually tall desk. I literally had to climb a platform to stand in front of the desk.

 She tore her gaze from the computer screen and a smile replaced her seriousness as she looked in my direction.

"Damon. Hi." The tug on her lips easily turned to a frown.  "Look at you, you are sweating." Her eyes traveled to my shirt. "It looks like you went for a swim in your shirt." She sighed at me while I managed to tug my lips into a smile. "Damon..." Her eyes were filled with pity.

Silently, I got down from the platform and climbed the short stairs that led to her seat.

After I dropped the money jar and bear suit beside her, I grabbed a stool and sat down.

"I know, Linda. My life is trash. But you should not beat up yourself over my predicament."

"But, you deserve more than this. You have got potential bigger than this company. You are supposed to be a famous photographer by now if not for circumstances."

"Somethings are meant to be, Lin."

She twirled a strand of her hair as her bold, twinkling eyes squinted. "I think I found a post that might interest you." She faced her screen and continued talking. "There is this modelling company that needs two qualified photographers. I know you have heard of TIANOR."

I nodded happily. "One of the best modelling company. When is the interview?" I just couldn't contain the excitement that suddenly took over me.

 "To... day."

My happiness crashed fast.

 "Today? Wait, what time?"

 "From eight am to eight pm," she replied.

My gaze quickly traveled to the shabby-looking watch on my wrist which was surprisingly still functioning well despite the numerous predicaments it has faced.

"It is fifteen minutes past six. I need to get my CV file from my house. Hopefully, I can make it back to the city by seven something-ish."

"Isn't your journey home about thirty minutes or so?"

 "Yes, if there is no traffic hold up. I just pray I'll get a taxi on time," I replied, already calculating my movements in my head.

"I'll just pray I get a taxi on time." She mimicked me with a child-like voice. "I will be driving you there. This is a great opportunity that you can't miss."

I happily hugged her as I stood up. "Thank you so much, Linda. Okay, let's go."

 She grabbed the bear suit, ready to put it aside.

"I'll just put this right here. Hey, what's this?"

I almost gritted my teeth in reaction to the approaching embarrassment as I watched her dig her hand into the bear's head.  "A banana?" She looked at it, raised one of her brows, then looked my way. "I want your ****?"

I gave her a short sheepish smile as her gaze intensified.

"Wow Damon, you have fans already. Actually, it seems your little friend down there got some fans." She winked and I rolled my eyeballs.

She was talking as though I have been walking ***** and showing women my, huh, little friend. Little did she know.

Linda packed her bag and soon led us out of the room after locking the door.

"You know, I can't remember the last time I got a ****."

"Linda!" My eyes widened at her sudden utterance which came as we walked into the car park.

"What? It is true. I seriously need a fucking **** right now," she said as she got to her car and unlocked the doors.

I entered, sat comfortably, and said, "Linda, what you are saying is very, huh, very disturbing."

"Puh-lease, why are you talking like you don't have a *****? I am pretty sure that gorgeous **** of yours has gotten lots of hits over the past week." The engine revved for some seconds after which we hit the road.

God, this woman. She has used the same word so many times, I can feel heat rush through my cheeks and I just had to turn away in shyness.

I felt her glance in my direction.

"Heavens, don't tell me you are a..."

I covered my face with my palms.

"Don't say it," I warned.

"A fucking ******."

DAMON

"And she said it." I threw my hands in the air.

"Damon. You are twenty-five years old. A freaking twenty-five-year-old photography genius. A freaking handsome dude. I mean, you should have seen the look on my face the first time you stepped into this building. I was almost drooling. You looked like an angel in human clothing, so sweet, cute, and good-looking. And then I heard your voice. It..."

I cleared my throat. She was going off track.

"Okay fine. What I am trying to ask is, how are you a ****** with this..." She took her eyes off the road briefly and quickly scanned my body before her attention went back to where it was needed. "... this amount of handsomeness? Have you ever seen yourself in the mirror?"

 "Linda..."

"Don't girls swoon over you? Wait, are you for the other..."

"Linda!" I shut her up loudly. "I don't see anything wrong with me being a ******. And, I don't play for the other team."

"It is just strange." I heard the desperation to talk more in her voice.

But, she sighed lightly and silence finally ruled the car.

"But why?" she persisted after an eternity of tranquility.

"I want to give myself to someone special." I saw her brow rise. "There is nothing weird with that, okay?"

She nodded with a grim look. I sighed silently.

We had finally reached my house and I jumped out of the car. I lived in a small abode with a bedroom, barely spacious bathroom, and living room with most of my cooking done in the backyard which was quite spacious compared to the entire house.

 I hurriedly took out my keys and entered. I went straight to my room and took the blue file from the tiny table on which I worked on my photography projects while brooding about the sorry state of my life. I hurried back out after I made sure to take my wallet which was resting freely on my couch after I had forgotten it there in the morning.

The wooden door locked once again, I approached a very patient-looking Linda. I noticed her bright smile as I entered. I just had to ask, "What's with the smile?"

"I think I found my man for the night." Her head gestured towards some dude across the street. I didn't know the man at all, in fact, I have never seen him in the neighbourhood.

But then I couldn't act fatherly or brotherly and say, 'Hey he is bad news don't mix with him,'because I hardly know anyone in the neighbourhood apart from Grandma Nooni who died the previous week.

Bless her soul.

 "Just be careful Lin," I finally said.

She gave a quick nod as she started the car's engine.

As soon as we hit the road, my imagination started to run wild. I began to picture how the interview would go.

I even played a scene where I would be grossly embarrassed for coming late.

Yes, sometimes, I deliberately hurt myself by thinking about terrible things.

I checked the time. 6:45 pm.

I could still make it provided...

"Aw shit! There's a freaking hold up!" Linda exclaimed as her car's bumper nearly kissed the vehicle in front of her.  My hopes were almost crashing as I looked around and saw the long line of cars waiting to leave the hold up which was likely to have no exact cause.

"I am so sorry Damon, this will delay you greatly. But I promise you'll get to that place today and get that job," she said assuredly.

I nodded appreciatively and sighed as the cars moved slowly.

Why does this have to happen to me today? God, why?

An hour later, we were in front of TIANOR, the huge signboard adjacent to the building insulting Linda's Micra.

"Go, go, go. Go win this, baby." Linda pushed me out with her words of encouragement. I thanked her loudly, pulled the file to myself, took a deep breath, and raced into the building.

Immediately, I bumped into a lady dressed in a suit, who let out a peculiar shriek. It was really weird. It was like hearing baby dragons cry.

No, I don't know what they sound like, but let's just imagine they cry like a person in distress.

"Watch it." She gave me a glare with her very tiny eyes. I gulped hard and apologized.

She kept her hand on her very slim waist, she was probably one of the models because of her very kept figure.

"I am here for the interview."

She stared me down and turned.  

"Well, aren't you the earliest?"  she said sarcastically as she started walking. And,  I wasted no time in following her. "Hand me your university certificate." She extended her hand over her shoulder.

My hands trembling, I took the documents out. But the documents in my hands didn't have purple or pale green colours with gold or silver stripes decorating their tips. I didn't see any form of calligraphic writing on them either.

Oh no.

I stopped my tracks, stood upright and stared at the lady's back.

"No, no, no, no," I murmured frantically.

 "Mister, I am waiting." She glared at me as she turned and watched me drown in confusion and distress.

How would I even explain this?

 How would I explain that I had the scribbled drawings of my niece instead of the documents that make up my CV?

"Mister..." She sounded like I was testing her patience. Like she had any before.

"I..." I cleared my throat to force out the words. "I... Um... I happen not to have my documents at the moment."

I scratched the back of my head as I prayed the floor would just swallow me because the look she was giving me was deadly enough.

"Look at me, Mister." I raised my head slowly to meet her eyes. "Do I look like I am trying to be funny at the moment?"

I gritted my teeth, wondering what next step to take. My hands which were doing nothing were suddenly clasped in front of my chest as though I was about to pray. Then, I did something I swore to never do.

"Please, don't chase me out. At least give me a chance to get the interview. I swear I didn't mean to get the wrong file. I was rushing at that moment. Please give me a chance." I begged profusely as though my existenced depended on it.

 Well, it does. If I land this job, things will be set for me. I will finally have a good life.

 She stared at me for a while like I was speaking gibberish before she finally talked.

"Mister, get out." She pointed towards the exit.

I fell to my knees and as I did that, my hands formed tight fists as they rested on my laps. I felt a small shiver in my system as that moment annoyed me even more.

'God, I really hate this.'

"Please, I really need this job. Just give me a chance. Just one chance."

If only she could understand the pain and desperation in my voice.

But it was clear that she didn't as she told me to leave once again.

"Mister, you can come back tomorrow. I will reserve a seat for you."

‘That is a lie. A big fat lie. There are no interviews set for the next day.’

I was tempted to say that, but I was trying to get her to help me.

"No, let me stay here. I will kneel here till I get the interview."

"I said..." She was interrupted by another lady who whispered something into her right ear. It was then I noticed I had attracted an audience who were watching me beg for something I may never get.

I was waiting for the other lady to leave so I could plead some more. She didn’t leave. Instead, she faced me and said, "The boss wants you upstairs."

DAMON

The boss was really ugly. He had so many bumps of pimples on his face that I just had to feel a shiver run down my spine.

Okay...

My stupid imagination was at work again. I wasn't even in the office yet. After about five elevator rides, we were yet to reach the boss's office.

Damn!

TIANOR is really huge. It's bigger than I thought it was and the environment was amazing as well. Serene, colourful and, beautiful, the company would be a good place to work.

The elevator soon stopped and it vomited the woman and me out. She faced me and gave me a smile which I returned hesitantly. She also gave a flirting look...

Oh, now I get it.

I am twenty-five-year-old handsome dude, so women can't help but admire me.

It's a good thing to be admired but the look in the woman's eyes was starting to make me feel extremely uncomfortable.

As my sight darted towards the space ahead, the woman stretched her long, slender hand.

"Hey, my name is Camilla."

I took her hand and was soon having fun squishing her soft hand.

"What is your," I squeezed her hand again as she asked her question, "...name?"

 After another squish, I finally released her hand.

"Damon," my firm voice responded.

"Well Damon, it is nice to meet you." I did not miss how her voice sounded more sultry.

I smiled at her as my eyes darted across the room. There were no doors in sight, just walls painted with a nice shade of blue.

I gave the flirting and probably horny lady in front of me a look. I was starting to think she brought me there to seduce me into having a sexual intercourse kind of interview with her.

"I thought your boss wanted to see me," I queried her and she frowned like the word, 'boss', was bad news.

"I should get you to the office." She suddenly replaced the frown with a blank look. With her sudden seriousness maintained, her legs took a right turn towards the wall in that direction and I wore a little frown as I asked myself, 'Where on earth is she walking to?'

"Uh, Camilla, where are you going?"

"The boss's office." She didn't glance my way as she replied.

But, when we finally reached the end of the room, she turned and faced me.

"I'll let the boss know you are here."

I was about to recommend Dr. Manor, my mother's therapist to her when I saw her slightly push the wall open.

Just like how the entrance to secret rooms in those movies open, the wall slid open and displayed a space wide enough for a person to pass through.

Camilla entered and left me to wonder why the CEO would want to hide his or her office from plain sight.

It was a good move though. The secret room had a good feel to it as well.

But it was still somewhat creepy.

Soon, Camilla walked out of the room. As she told me to go in, I dragged myself out of my many thoughts and composed myself.

As I walked past the door, the document file in my hands pressed against my lower abdomen, I admonished myself to make great use of the golden opportunity I was about to have.

I cannot afford to mess up.

I finally went past the door which didn't have hinges or door marks on its other side. It was just a wall that could be flipped.

Soon, I looked ahead. The room my footsteps advanced into had a rich look to it. It was not the usual, simple kind of office. This one was highly furnished with expensive items.

One odd thing I observed as I walked past three sets of couches arranged in an L-shape was the repetitive use of the colours; red, black, and white.

As my mind refused to be bothered by the decoration choice of another human, my eyes darted to the left and I saw the huge television attached to the wall and I suddenly felt uneasy.

I don't have a television in my house. Not even a small one.

My body slightly shivered in response to the intense cool air in the room. As I walked into the second part of the large room which was separated from the first space by beaded curtains, I noticed a figure standing beside a leather office chair which was undoubtedly expensive just like the entire room was.

The person had their hair up in a bun. Standing above the chair, this person was slightly tall. Beside me, the individual's height would be dismissed. I would be taller.

But I was yet to decipher the gender of the individual because of the huge leather jacket resting on the person's shoulder.

"Hello. Good day," I finally greeted as my footsteps came to a halt.

"Sit." It was a feminine voice that spoke.

I followed the instruction and sat on one of the chairs facing the bigger seat and waited patiently. The jacket soon fell and revealed a feminine body dressed in a well-fitted, short red gown whose shoulders looked padded.

Once the woman in front of me turned, something about me changed.

My hands instantly felt heavy, the corner of my eyes twitched and I fell into some kind of trance. I could not, for the love of my life, take my eyes off her.

If she were the very Medusa, God knows I would have turned into stone.

She was so pretty. And this was not a make-up-induced prettiness.

No, it was not make-up.

Her face was definitely bare yet it radiated strongly. Her eyes suggested tenderness, her honey-like orbs gave her entire face unrivaled, special beauty.

Her lips drew a smile and that made me realize how young she looked.

"Damon," she called my name softly. It was rolled out carefully and sort of seductively. It almost sounded like a whisper.

A sweet whisper that pulled me out of the unexpected trance I was in.

I soon cleared my throat as I recalled why I was there. After adjusting my position and as I urged myself to avoid staring at her too much, I said, "Miss, I am here to meet the CEO."

She raised a brow with a smirk playing on her lips which were fuller on the lower part. As she sat down, the fingers on her right hand began up-down movements, like they were creating a melody on a musical instrument.

"Miss..." I called again.

"My name is Selena." Her voice was as soft as the look on her face.

"Miss Selena. Can I meet the CEO now? Please." I pleaded as though it would get hard for me to leave the office as time increased. It actually felt like it.

I was feeling pulled by the woman's attractive look second after second.

And because it is the first time such would happen to me, I consider it a huge deal and a warning.

So yes, I needed to run out of that place as soon as possible. Well, that is after I get what I want.

"Since you asked, I'll go straight to the point. I am the CEO you seek."

My jaw almost fell. The sight must have pleased her as another smile covered her face.