Emilia's heart was in a turmoil as she stood in the kitchen, her hand gripped the handle of the frying pan a little too tightly. The scent of the spices used in the chicken filled the air, but all she could focus on was the sound of the foot steps coming close to her. She didn’t need to turn around to know it was her boss
“Hey Emilia” her boss, Mr brown said, his voice a bit low and dripping with fake charm, she could feel his eyes roaming over her , she could feel the discomfort that prickled under her skin
She slightly turned, just to see him at her back leaning against the counter, his lips curled in a silly smile. “ you know, you’ve been doing an excellent job lately, and I think you deserve a raise or maybe a little reward,”
Lorena’s grip on the pan tightened even more, she had enough stories from other female employees to know what was going to happen next, but this time it’s looked like it was finally hr turn.
“I’m good, thank you sir , I’m okay receiving the same amount as others”, her voice not breaking, even though her stomach turned
He took a step closer, ignoring her response as be held her waist , “C’mon, Emilia I can make things easier for you. You don’t have to keep working these long shifts. I can put in a good word with management, maybe get you promoted. All you have to do is..”
And that was it she has had enough
Before he could finish his sentence, Emilia spun around and aimed her knee straight at his member, exactly where sun doesn’t shine or maybe, she kicked him with everything she had. His smug smile instantly twisted into a look of agony as he doubled over, gasping for breath. The pan fell to the floor.
“The hell is wrong with you?” he wheezed, clutching his crotch.
Emilia'sheart was pounding, but she refused to back down. “Don’t you ever try that again.”
She yanked off her apron and threw it on the counter, ignoring the shocked stares of the other kitchen staff. As she stormed out of the kitchen, she could hear her boss cursing under his breath, but she didn’t care. She was done. Done with the harassment, done with the pathetic excuses for men who thought they could control her.
As soon as she stepped outside into the cool evening air, it hit her, she was now jobless.
“Great,” she muttered, the adrenaline still running through her veins. “What now?”
The weeks that followed weren’t kind to Emila, Days Turned into nights, repeating the same cycle of scrolling through job listings and half-heartedly submitting applications, only to hear nothing in return. She had enough money saved up to cover rent for the next month or two, but after that… well, she didn’t like to think about what would happen after that.
Her once neatly organized apartment now looked like a dump site of unwashed dishes, laundry piles, and takeout containers. She spent most of her days in the same black sweatpants, only leaving the house when absolutely necessary, like to buy groceries or to remind herself that she was still alive
“Maybe I should’ve just stayed quiet,” she whispered to herself one afternoon, staring at the ceiling as she lay on her couch. “At least then I’d still have a job.”
But even as she thought it, she knew she couldn’t have controlled herself. Kicking her boss had been a reflex sure, but there was no way she’d let herself be treated or touched like that.
Still, the silence of her apartment was deafening. The TV murmured in the background, but it was just noise something that does nothing to distract her from the sickening feeling.
On one particularl slow afternoon, Emilia found herself staring at a blank document on her laptop, the cursor blinking at her mockingly. She had been trying to update her resume for the 30th job she had applied for since she got fired and for the past hour but hadn’t typed a single word. What was she even supposed to write? “Fired for kicking my boss in the balls” didn’t exactly scream “hire me.”
Just as she was about to close the laptop and call it a day, her phone rang.
Lorena almost ignored it, assuming it was just another scam call. But something made her pick up.
“Good evening, am I speaking to Miss Emilia?” a polite, professional voice asked on the other end.
“Uh, yeah, this is Emilia,” she said, sitting up on the couch, her voice bored
“This is the head of house affairs for the Rudolph's estate.
“Uh?” Emilia removed her phone stared at it and kept it back on her ear
“I’m pleased to inform you that you’ve been selected as one of the top five candidates for the final interview for the cook position. The final tryout will be tomorrow at 10 a.m. sharp”. The voice said
“Umm, sorry…I umm” Emilia stammered not knowing what to say
“You’re very welcome. Good luck,” the voice said, and the call ended.
Emilia stared at her phone, her mouth hanging open in shock. “ the hell just happened, I can’t…I can’t…I can’t just believe it… I actually made it.”
She screamed in excitement, but quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, remembering her thin walls and the nosy neighbors who were bound to start complaining. “Oh, who cares!” she laughed, bouncing off the couch and doing a little dance in her living room.
She was dancing around until she tripped on a can of beer, “shit” she cursed holding her toe
Sitting on her bed as she massaged her toe, All she could think about
was tomorrow. What would they ask? How hard would it be? Her last interview had been tough, and this final round would surely be hard