The Interview

Image with thanks to tsk and found here

The butterflies in Sally's stomach were fluttering at break neck speeds. Two weeks before her twenty first birthday and this was her first ever real job interview.

Sure she may have been working since just before she turned fourteen, but she hadn't needed to interview for it and after seven years with the same company she had more than found her comfort zone. One that right now she was wondering why she felt the need to leave.

Nervous didn't even begin to describe how she felt as she approached the door. Taking a deep breath she pushed against it and walked on through. Her heart was beating so fast it felt as if it may very well burst on through her chest.

As she approached the empty counter her eyes scanned the room. None of it was quite as she expected. Hanging on the walls in a rather haphazard and disorderly fashion were a few mobile phone accessories. Sally had been expecting an interview with a leading telecommunication agency to become their newest sales manager. She was now wondering exactly how leading they really were.

"Hello" Sally called out towards the back room.

"Coming" a female voice called back.

Sally heard a chair scrape across the floor followed by the shuffle of footsteps. An overweight woman appeared in the door way and walked to behind the counter. Her clothes were of a bright floral pattern and looked like they belonged on a hawaiian holiday. The amount of make up on her face could easily have been shared amongst fifteen teenagers.

"How can I help you?" The woman asked in a less than helpful tone.

"My name is Sally I have an interview at..." Sally started but, was distracted by a man who was pacing around the back room while on the phone.

"...f*&k no!!" he yelled into the handset

Sally looked back at the woman, suddenly forgetting the rest of her sentence.

"Oh that's right dear, so you do" The woman's demeanour suddenly changing. "Just take a seat, he shouldn't be too long and then he will be right with you" she continued as she motioned to an empty chair for Sally to sit in.

"Thanks" Sally stammered as she made her way over to the chair and sat herself down. Exhaling a breath she hadn't realised she was holding on to. The butterflies eased off somewhat.

Sitting there looking around at what she assumed was some sort of show room Sally couldn't help but hear the man's booming voice as he continued on his call. She wondered who he was possibly talking to. Every other word seemed to be f*&k. By the time the call had ended Sally's nerves had well and truly dispersed. This interview was by no means going to be as intimidating as what she had imagined it to be.

"Hi I'm Will" the man said as he appeared from the back room "you must be Sally, thanks for coming in and sorry about all of that" he went on. Waving his hand in the air as if to just dismiss all the profanities Sally had heard

Sally jumped to her feet and suddenly felt the butterflies return.

She couldn't help but notice the way Will seemed to look at her. His eyes never leaving her and half a smile on his face. It created a stirring in her that she wasn't too sure on how to interpret.

Determining age by appearance had never been one of Sally's strong points, but she figured that Will had to be at least thirty, probably even close to forty. Despite numerous crows feet around his eyes though there was still something rather dashing and youthful about Will.

His light blue business shirt had been freshly ironed. Crinkles were begin to form from the wear of the day. His grey slacks still had firm crease lines and she couldn't help but notice the shiny black shoes he wore. While he may not have sounded much like a business man on the phone two minutes ago, he certainly looked the part.

"Come on through and have a chat" Will said as he led the way to the back room, readjusting his pants and tucking his shirt in again as he went.

The back room was much more office looking than where they had just been. There were a number of desks with chairs on either side. Some had computers that looked like they may well have been some of the first PC's ever invented.

Will sat down behind a desk and offered Sally a chair on the opposite side.

"So tell me a bit about yourself and why you want to come and sell my phones" Will said with a smile while staring right into Sally's eyes. Something she found a tad unnerving yet sexy all at once.

Sally may only have been young but she was old enough to know that she was not exactly what most would call ugly. In fact quite the opposite. While exercise was not something she regularly took part in, spending most weekends dancing at nightclubs had helped keep her enough in shape to not worry about too much flab.

Her brown hair was highlighted with various shades of fire engine red through it. A year or so earlier she had shaved all of her hair off, but it had now grown so there was a enough length to style it into a rather funky do. Sally liked the way she could get bits of it to stick out everywhere or slick it back. Depending of course on how the mood took her. It really was hair for any occasion.

Today she had opted for a combination of the two. Slightly slicked down at the front with spiky bits at the back. The kind of hair that said I am hip and young but I have a mature grown up aspect to me as well. Or at least that is what she thought it said. Which to Sally was all that mattered. Sally had a tendency to exude confidence despite not  necessarily always possessing it.

Once she started talking the words just started to flow from Sally's mouth. She explained how while she loved her old job she knew there was more she could do. As a small family business, that the family was still heavily involved with, she knew there was only so far she could go and given her ambitious desires to go far in life she needed to look for something else.

A brief stint as a temp with the biggest national telecommunication company had shown her that she didn't need to go too big too soon but she most certainly wanted to work within the telecommunications industry. It was an innovative and exciting new area that would be bound to change the way that people lived their lives.

By the end of the interview Sally felt completely at ease. She again found herself scrutinising Will's appearance. He had a certain charm that she couldn't quite put her finger on. There was something very manly and grown up about him. Unlike the boys that she lived with.

"Well I think that is about it for now" Sally heard Will say. "Thanks for coming in, it was lovely to meet you, we will be in contact shortly, make sure Janet has your number" he went on as pointed to the lady in the floral outfit.

"Oh, ok, thank you" Sally replied as she stood up. Slightly disappointed that she had not been offered the job on the spot. Everything had seemed so positive while they were talking her inexperienced mind had just assumed the job was hers for the taking.

Walking out the door Sally turned to close it behind her. It had a glass window in the middle of it and she found herself looking through it staring at Will, who just happened to be staring right back at her. Perhaps there was still a chance the job was hers after all.

Love In An Apple Orchard

Image with thanks to gabriel77 found here

The winter of '83 had been a hard one for Sally and her family. Her beloved grandmother passed away leaving her grandfather alone for the first time in over sixty years. And while with spring came new hope, her grandfather was immune to any sign of new life. When his wife died she took with her a lifetime of love. Leaving only a shell of a man behind.

By the time summer arrived her grandfather had lost what little interest in life he had left. He had no desire to watch another season pass on by without his life long love by his side.

Sally had just finished school and was at a bit of a loose end as to what to do next. Logically she knew that she should find some employment and move out of home, but realistically that was the least thing she wanted to do. As much as she wanted to get on and live her life she wasn't really sure how to play it out. Instead she decided that spending some time with her grandfather at the old apple orchard was a much better option.

To begin with the old man made her feel less than welcome. Sally reminded him too much of his wife when they first met and fell in love. She was exactly the same age now as when he and his wife first met. The similarities between the Sally and her Gran were uncanny. It made the pain of his loss cut even deeper than what it already was.

Of an afternoon Sally would drag her grandfather out for a walk amongst the old trees. The trees that he had loved so dearly for nearly a lifetime. The trees that up until a few months ago he and Gran would walk amongst every day from almost the moment they met. Over the years their love for each other grew stronger just as the branches of the apple trees did.

In the middle of the orchard stood the oldest, tallest tree. It was one of the few left from the original plantation. Over the years some trees had to be replaced as their fruiting quality dropped, but not this one. This apple tree was special and not like the rest.

“It's so beautiful at this time of day" Sally pondered out loud, more to herself than her grandfather. He always seemed to get extra quiet when they first sat down.

“Yes that is what your Gran always said as well" her Grandfather replied. Sally glanced over at the old man. She noticed the tears quietly rolling down his cheek and instantly felt her own eyes well and begin to burn with the onset of tears. Blinking quickly she looked away. The pain of his loss almost too much for her to bare. As selfish as that seemed. She could only imagine how much his heart had been shattered in the last few months.

“Today was day I proposed you know? his shaky voice continued. "I can remember it as if it were only yesterday. Right here under this old tree you know.The old man couldn't go on. His words stuck in his throat as he choked back tears."

“Yes Gramps I know" was all Sally could manage.

She had heard the story a thousand times or maybe more over the years. As a little girl it had reminded her of a fairy tale, one where everyone lived happily ever after. There was never any denying the love felt between her grandparents. Blind Freddy could have seen they were a match meant to be. She hoped and prayed that one day she would get to feel a love even half as strong as theirs.

He had organised a picnic with all of her favourite fare. An apple pie he had even gone to the trouble of preparing himself. A crumbly base that he would never live down nor never make again. Not that he would need to once his love had agreed to be by his side.

If only men like grandad still existed Sally thought to herself.

“She wouldn't say yes you know, until I took off that silly fake moustache" Gramps continued. His gaze far off into the distance, as if he could see it all before him.

Sally tried to imagine what it would have been like laying there sprawled out on the blanket looking up at the multi coloured leaves as the sun glistened down between them. Gentle rays filtering through the branches and engulfing the pair's love. She envied their ability to just know they were so right for each.

“I only had it on because she loved Charlie Chaplin so much" he went on, "She was always going on about how wonderful he was and what it would be like to live with such a man.The old man pausing once more as the words got caught in his throat again.

“She was a funny thing your Gran" he started again. "She wouldn't even give me a kiss while I had it on, reckoned it tickled her too much, and that it felt like she was kissing another man

Sally noticed the corners of her grandfather's lips start to curl up and a small smile crept across his face. Even through the pain of his loss the thought of his beloved wife could always bring him comfort in some way. 

That's what true love is Sally found herself thinking.