Page 4 of Vows of a Mobster
Two
Brianna
As soon as I exited the building to Quincy Market in downtown Boston, the light breeze soothed my hot skin. I felt like my cheeks were on fire from frustration. I knew I wouldn’t be offered the job. By now, I knew all the signs. This had been my thirtieth or was it fortieth interview in the past month. I was sick and tired of talking about myself and my skill set. I sucked at selling myself. And if I had to bullshit my way through explaining why a certain company is ideal to work for, I was sure to lose my shit. I wanted to scream at all of them that I just wanted a job, any job, so I could have health insurance for my kid.
My eyes soaked in the colorful marketplace with shops and eateries everywhere. If I was in a better mood, I’d have found a spot to soak up the crowds of Boston, enjoying the warm weather and the atmosphere. But I just couldn’t stomach it right now, the cheerful scenery was so contrary to my mood.
I don’t think I can handle much more rejection.
I’d tried to keep a positive attitude, but I could only take a limited amount of rejections. I was starting to wonder if there was something completely unappealing about me that turned people away. I knew my resume wasn’t really polished, but I haven’t had a real job yet.
Finding myself pregnant the last year of college, I was shoved into adulthood with the help of my grandmother and my best friends. I supported myself with freelance writing and teaching ballet classes, which was barely enough to get us by.
I thought back to last week’s ballet performance at the Boston Opera House. God, I felt alive and it was so good to be back on the stage. The star of the show was unable to perform and the ballet director called on me to take it on since he knew me from my college years and had seen me perform. Coincidently, we both ended up in Boston and his daughter was in my class. My heart skipped a beat each time I thought about ballet. It was almost bittersweet. I missed it so much, it was part of my DNA, part of the air I breathed. I resented it when my mother pounded it into me, ensuring ballet was my only purpose in life. Now, it was like I was missing a limb when I didn’t dance. I was grateful that I still got the chance to do it occasionally, and I got to teach it to the little ones, including my own daughter.
But now that Emma’s illness has come back, I wasn’t sure how it would all work out. I needed a real job; otherwise, we’d lose it all. I had to get a real job with insurance to help pay for her medical bills.
“How did it go?” A voice startled me and my head snapped to the left. My two best friends Marissa and Daphne stood there with hopeful expressions on their faces. No words were needed. “That bad, huh,” Marissa murmured.
I turned around and caught my appearance in the reflective glass of the building. Yes, I appeared young, but I looked professional. I wore a black pencil skirt that came right under my knees with a matching blazer and a white blouse. My hair was pulled up into a bun, highlighting my high cheekbones and my eyes. Overall, I looked decent… normal.
“I don’t get it,” I muttered to both of them. “I feel like it is always the same thing. They dismiss me as soon as I walk in. I mean, yes I don’t have experience but how can I possibly get it if nobody is willing to give me a chance.” I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. Getting upset wouldn’t do me any good. “I’m telling you, they make up their mind even before I open my mouth.”
“Maybe you are too pretty?” Daphne asked. I frowned at her words. I didn’t think so.
My eyes darted back to the window reflection, studying myself. I wouldn’t call myself too pretty. More like average looking. Marissa with her raven black hair and green eyes would be considered too pretty, too beautiful. Daphne with her honey-colored hair and blue eyes was too pretty. I was just an average girl with dark brown, curly hair and dark brown eyes. There was nothing extraordinary about me.
“Pretty or not, it wouldn’t have anything to do with getting a job. It shouldn’t,” I retorted dryly. “Maybe they’ve somehow found out that I write smut and are freaked out.”
All three of us chuckled, although there was no reason for me to laugh. Desperation was slowly seeping into me. I had to figure out a way to get health insurance.
“I was thinking,” Marissa chewed on her bottom lip, which meant she had an idea that wasn’t the greatest. “Maybe I could put in a word for you to get a job at my cousin’s company. Secretary or something like that.”
It wasn’t my first choice but nobody else was willing to hire me, so at this point, it might be my only choice. I hated favors that I couldn’t return, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. Right?
“The company is legit?” I asked her in a hushed tone. Marissa's family had some weird and not so legitimate connections. I couldn’t afford to be wrapped up in it. When I’d originally found out about it, the knowledge freaked me out. And the situation we found ourselves in wasn’t the ideal circumstance to learn about her family’s connections to the Mafia.
“Yes,” she assured me. “They have great benefits and the insurance kicks in on the first day of employment.” She took my hand and dragged me away from the building where my last interview just went awry.
“Yes, it is quite a prestigious company to work for,” Daphne added as she followed on my other side and it felt like they were ganging up on me.
I eyed them both suspiciously. “What’s the name of it?” My mind kept whispering to me that beggars couldn’t be choosers, and at this moment, I was the beggar.
“Agosti Enterprise,” Marissa answered. “It has been named as one of the top one hundred companies to work for the past five years.”
Agosti Enterprise.I seemed to remember seeing the name somewhere but couldn’t quite place it. I have looked at so many companies over the last thirty days, they were all mixing together. I have never aspired to work in the corporate world; never thought I’d be forced to find a job in it. I studied dance and World Literature; definitely not prepared for the cold corporate atmosphere. Yet here I was, desperate to find a job. I always thought I’d be a dancer or a school teacher, and now I was neither. In order to teach school, I needed to go back to school and work on my teaching license and certification. It wasn’t an option for me. I couldn’t afford it on my writer’s income nor did I have a desire for it right now.
All three of us walked through the large square, the chatter of people all around us. The sounds of women’s heels against the pavement, voices of men talking on the phone, trying to conduct their business, and nannies entertaining children by the fountain were all around us.
“Where are we going?” I asked reluctantly. I wanted to go pick up Emma from daycare and spend the sunny afternoon in our backyard with her.
“We’ll grab something to eat and figure out how to get you into Agosti Enterprise,” Marissa answered, and I could already see her wheels turning as she cooked up a plan.
“If they are such a prestigious company to work for,” I added wryly, “why would they hire me? I have absolutely no experience.”
“Because you are my best friend,” Marissa retorted with a wink. “They usually only hire family or individuals that come recommended by family. So that would be me.”
“That’s right,” Daphne interjected. “Just take it, Brie. My dad works there and the insurance is great. When my mom went through chemo, it covered all the cost.”
