Immortal
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"That's better!"
Having looked at my breakfast, for a moment, I saw milk turned black and instead of cereals, the souls of the dead were looking at me. I could not take my eyes away looking at the little faces. One of them noticed me and flew at me.
Fear brought me to my senses, and I recoiled, knocking over the chair and spilling my breakfast.
"That's too much! I'm done!" I said and locked myself in the room.
Chapter 2
Corporate headquarters of INC
"Why did I agree to come here? How did I let you convince me? After what I told you, you were supposed to take me to the nearest mental hospital but not for an interview!" we had been sitting for ten minutes in the reception hall of INC, one of the largest law firms in Boston. My first interview for the position of the Assistant Secretary was to take place in a few minutes. I should have been nervous and repeating the answers to possible questions in my mind but, instead, I recalled everything that happened the night before, trying to find some answer, to justify my condition.
"That's because I know you like the back of my hand! Your hallucinations are a manifestation of fear of a new stage in life! Just think about it, every time you are about to start something new you are completely at a loss, shut down, and distance from others. You see signs everywhere. Like when you joined the team of cheerleaders. You imagined yourself breaking your leg while jumping, had dreams where you go up to the stage naked. You got yourself worked up so much that fell out of the elementary support at the major performance, although you had always done it flawlessly during the practice. You let down the team because of your nerves. I don't really care about this, but you cannot mess it up for yourself right now."
"This time, it's different! My visions are real. I feel something I've never felt before. It's not just nerves before the competition!"
"But entering the university, finding the first job, and moving out is not the same as joining the team of cheerleaders. Thes are much bigger steps. That's why the consequences are more global."
"I wasn't nervous at all!"
"I think its psychological. You are subconsciously afraid of all of this."
"Just admit I'm going crazy! Do you remember what I told you about my great-aunt? This can be genetic."
"Silly you! Your great-aunt had the Alzheimer disease but not schizophrenia. You cannot have it at such a young age. The first signs of the Alzheimer disease show up not earlier than at the middle age. You still have around twenty years until then. But if you are so concerned I can take you to the hospital for examination straight after the interview. Deal?"
I did not get a chance to answer because a tall attractive girl in a suit of olive color and stunning pumps entered the reception hall. She seemed unbelievably tall. And what was she doing there? As for me, she belonged somewhere on the catwalk in Paris.
"Miss Black?" the friendly secretary addressed me.
"Yes?"
"Please, follow me. Mrs. Shaw will interview You now."
I nodded and followed her into a small office with transparent walls. A middle-aged woman with fair hair was typing quickly at the table. She could barely fit in the chair, and her feet in gorgeous shoes did not touch the floor. I was hesitant to go ahead and take a seat opposite her without permission, so I hovered at the door due to indecision.
Mrs. Shaw finished her fascinating task and looked at me.
"Miss Black, right?"
"Yes.
"Please, come in and sit down," she pointed at the chair opposite her.
The chair was comfortable, and the person opposite me boded for the conversation or it only looked that way. The most important thing was not to start seeing things at the most inopportune moment. Mrs. Shaw decided to get down to business without delay.
"Tell me about yourself."
"My name is Darsy Black. I came here from Springfield to study law…"
"No, no!" Mrs. Shaw interrupted me. "I read your CV, and all this is well-written there. I want to hear something that would make me hire an 18-year-old student. In the future, the Assistant Secretary will be able to become a registered partner if she works hard, therefore there are enough applicants for this position even among the graduates. But I'm that kind of a boss who values not the theoretical knowledge but the personality, attitude to life and comfort of mutual work. So, you have three minutes to convince me that I can rely on you, despite your lack of experience and young age."
"Ok!" I nodded. Nobody had prepared me for such an interview. As a rule, the interviewers usually ask about skills, but not about my personality, since this was of the least interest to the employer. "Can you rely on me? Absolutely. I grew up in a poor, large family. I have two younger brothers and a sister. My little brother died of lymphoma five years ago. This loss nearly wrecked my Dad and since then he has not gone outside. Shortly after he had a stroke and became confined to a wheelchair. My Mom works hard to provide us with everything we need. And I had to help her with domestic chores from the age of six because both parents had to work to pay the mortgage. After my brother's death and my father's illness, we had to sell the house and move into the smaller one, and I had to change school. Despite this, I graduated with honors, got a scholarship at Harvard. Now I want to get a job to help my family. I don't have skills or knowledge to compete for the higher position or at least the trainee, but I am sure to be perfect for getting coffee and handling the copy machine. I am quite reserved and discreet, so you can feel free to entrust me with your private matters, and nobody will find out about this…"
"Do you believe in God, Miss Black?" Mrs. Shaw interrupted me.
"This is the only thing I believe in."
It wasn't clear whether Mrs. Shaw was satisfied with this answer or not, but the interview was over. The friendly secretary promised to call me and inform of any decision made by Mrs. Shaw. I left the building of the law firm in much worse condition than the one with which I came there. It was unlikely for me to get this job after this weird two-minute conversation. I could only count on the second and last attempt this year – the position of the cashier at the local supermarket was much more appropriate, given the absence of any experience.
"Where are we going?" the understanding that we were not going home brought me back to my senses.
"You're the one who insisted on being examined. Or have you already changed your mind?" Jackson asked.
I had not had a hallucination in hours, but it could mean nothing, so I shook my head and we continued our way.
Jackson undertook the talk to the doctor concerning my condition. I partially heard the conversation. Jackson told the story of how I hit my head yesterday and felt bad afterwards. My condition could be hardly described that way, but after that brief conversation, I had the MRI, tomography, general analyses, and a bunch of other procedures. I wondered whether my insurance covered this or I would soon receive a bill for a huge sum that I would not be able to pay.