THE WRONG CANDIDATE

I sat in the waiting area with the other applicants but gave myself space away from them. A woman in her late forties came toward us. She was one of the interviewers. Her gaze briefly locked with mine before she called the next batch of applicants.

I grabbed my identity card and held the bottom edge firmly in my hands. My mouth started moving as I murmured words repeatedly.

“Is that some sort of ritual?” A cheerful voice spoke. I looked to my left to see a guy staring at me with a gummy smile.

I’m jealous of happy people. I dropped my hands, and my mouth stopped moving.

“No,” I answered, my expression stoic and unreadable.

“Well, are you from here? You look—”

The rest of his sentence faded as I drifted back into my thoughts.

“So what do you think?” he said loudly, jolting me back to reality.

Begone, stranger. A few seconds later, my thoughts were answered in reality. We were called in for the interview.

I sat down, trying to maintain my composure in a room that smelled like power. Too many eyes felt like they were on me.

The interviewer finally spoke and asked a question, one of the questions I had been asked to memorize.

I answered the first question proudly when it reached my turn. Almost everyone in the room seemed impressed.

A man walked in and whispered to one interviewer, then moved to another. Immediately, I sensed something was wrong.

It felt like sitting on a barrel of gunpowder. My guilt lingered. I had refused this job in the first place. I knew Thor could not get me a job or bribe interviewers for old times’ sake or as a bonus as he claimed.

Whatever plans anyone had, I had to be careful not to get ruined, even if it meant playing unaware. Another interviewer spoke up. This time, he asked a question that was not among the leaked ones.

“You are being observed during your first task in this company. It is more about loyalty than skill. How do you respond without exposing that you know?”

I scanned the room without meaning to. That was when I noticed it, the camera facing us, almost unnoticeable.

We were being observed by higher executives. This could be my chance to make a strong impression if I wanted things easier here.

“I continue with the task as instructed,” I said calmly. “But I treat it as a performance, not a routine assignment.”

I paused briefly.

“I don’t react to being observed. I work under it. I adjust my approach based on what the task is meant to reveal about me, not just what it requires.”

The look on their faces stayed unchanged. My temperature rose, and anxiety set in. I really needed this. I watched them type on their laptops as they made a vote.

The scoreboard displayed the results. I scored a five, the second highest mark. The highest was seven.

Yet another disappointment, I thought. Then the scoreboard updated. The voting hadn’t ended; three more points were added to my score.

Anonymous executives had voted for me. I exhaled.

“Thank you,” I said, bowing slightly with a small smile as I stood. Some of them shook my hand.

A staff member came and asked me to follow her. We entered an elevator and went up to the top floor, stopping in front of an office.

She knocked once, softly.

“Come in,” a deep voice answered from inside. It was barely audible.

We entered. To my surprise, the nameplate on the desk read: CEO.

“So here’s your new P.A., sir,” she said calmly.

My brows drew together slightly in surprise. His P.A.? Thor never informed me I would be the CEO’s P.A. I thought I would be assigned to a department.

My eyes moved to him, straight, sleek black hair. Green eyes. A calm, dominating presence that made the room feel smaller. He looked unreal, and I felt my focus loosen. This is not why I'm here.

He lifted his head, studied me briefly, then turned to the woman. “Let her study basic manners,” he ordered.

“Alright, sir,” she replied. “What else do you need, sir?” she asked carefully.

No answer came. She turned and left the office.

He gestured for me to sit. I did. I took out my pen and wrote down my observations.

“Study the guide.” He pointed to a book on the table.

I nodded and began reading. It was difficult at first under the dim lighting, but my eyes adjusted. I turned each page with care, glanced at him, and wrote again. This time, I felt his attention on me.

“Adjust the lights,” he ordered.

I stood and picked up the remote. To confirm, I raised the brightness slightly above what someone who preferred dim light would normally choose.

I watched him. He reacted immediately, lifting a hand to shield his eyes. I lowered it again without being told, settling it to a level that felt right.

He said nothing and continued signing papers. I received the message: basic manners. Fifty of them.

I could hardly believe it, but I had no space to complain. Powerful men always care about themselves.

“Most P.A.s don’t last long in this environment,” Mr. Blackwood said suddenly.

“I’ll try my best,” I replied, even though I wanted to say something else.

I can only try him by crossing boundaries, not understanding him. If I mirror his energy, my chance of survival is around 70.

A knock came, and a man entered the office. “This is Director Kade. He’ll train you officially and plan with you,” Mr. Blackwood said.

“Yes, sir,” I replied, turning to him. “Hello, sir. My name is Gianne Morgan.”

“Nice to meet you,” he replied before returning to his report.

“The court has declared the company not guilty. The ex-employees who sued will pay fines for false charges and defamation. Should we settle?”

“Let them pay. They always put up a fight when they’ve already lost.” His words felt aimed.

I lowered my gaze but listened carefully. This could be more than I thought. If I slip here, it means trouble.

“Gianne Morgan, you say?” he asked.

“Yes, sir.”

“There has been a case of bribery among officials who conducted today’s interview.”

“Work with Director Kade to find who and why.”

He pointed to a pile of resumes on the desk.

“One of them has a loophole. Find it. Identify the person behind it. Decide the consequence accordingly.”

He tapped the table twice. “You are not to fail your first task.”

“And don’t trust any names on those resumes. Including yours.”