"All I want is to go to sleep" I said out loud to myself while lying awake and staring at the ceiling.
All hope may be lost considering that I have to wake up in exactly 73 minutes for the biggest interview of my life, but I am determined to get at least a power nap. Since I was a little girl, I have always dreamed of becoming a teacher. I worked my butt off in school to get that diploma reading "Laura Hollis, Bachelors of English and Comparative Literature" and now I just need an opportunity to do something with it. Every interview I've had so far had been a complete bust. Either the principal was a total idiot who only cared about how my class was going to get the football team to the state championship, or I just "wasn't the right fit."
I have spent the entire summer, feeling like my life has come to a complete stop. College was the best experience I could ever ask for. I went to a small college that you have probably never even heard of. Oh god, I can still hear the Dean now "We at Styria University share a rich history of blah, blah, blah." I always hated that woman.
Anyway, while there were some weird things that happened on that tiny campus, the hidden gem was really the Education Department. The real reason I even went to Silas was because of the Department Head, my mentor, Dr. Joseph Sheridan. While the Alchemy Department was busy trying to bring down the school one failed experiment at a time, we were doing some amazing work over in the education world. We students were so lucky to be studying under "the doctor" as we so affectionately called him because we were able to actually teach real students instead of just learning from outdated, over-priced text books. You see, the doctor's wife was the superintendent for the surrounding school district so we were able to gain field experience in the surrounding schools which is so much better that anything we could have learned on our own campus.
After going from teaching in a classroom almost every day to working in a bakery over the summer and just waiting for the right job to open up, I was becoming a bit depressed to say the least. It also didn't help that I was surrounded by delicious cookies all day. I was already eating tons of cookies since they are my favorite food in the world, but now I'm just aggressively sad-eating the cookies. My life was once filled with such optimism and a genuine happiness and now all I have room for is dread that the dream that I've been working my entire life for may never come to fruition.
"I might as well get up and start getting ready" I said to myself knowing that my first alarm will be going off in just a few minutes.
Maybe I can spend the extra time eating a healthy breakfast so my nerves don't eat me alive.
This is the last of many interviews so it's my last chance to get a job for this school year so I have to make this one count.
I finally arrive at Silas High School and I have to sit in the parking lot for twenty minutes so I don't come across as annoyingly-eager to get this job. I have a problem with being chronically early; probably because my dad always said things like "if you're on time, then you're late" and "Laura, your reputation is everything!"
He wouldn't even let me have a smart iPhone in college because he thought I might send high resolution selfies to potential stalkers. He could be irritating at times, but he means well. Losing my mom was really hard on him so he latched onto me and still hasn't figured out how to let go.
As I walk into the front office and directly up to the secretary's desk, I am suddenly distracted. I see this woman sitting in the back of the office, absent-mindedly flipping through a magazine while waiting for the copy machine to finish. She might be the most gorgeous woman I have ev-
"Excuse me, miss? Can I help you?" Oh crap, I have been standing here not saying a word. Get it together, Hollis.
"Um, yes. I'm here for an 8:30 interview with the principal."
The secretary looked at me with pity in her eyes and said "have a seat miss, the principal will be with you shortly."
After what seemed like an eternity of sitting silently and checking my phone for the time, this tall, blonde woman who kind of looked like she could set me on fire with her eyes approaches me.
"Laura Hollis?" she said almost like I looked familiar or something.
"Yes, that's me" I said, like an idiot I might add.
"Right this way" she stated while turning around to lead me to her office and holy crap, is this woman intimidating; she's six feet of power-suited, middle-aged glamazon.
As I sit down in the chair in front of her desk, I notice something a bit odd, there are nothing personal in this room. There aren't any family pictures, no gifts from students, nothing. I find that very strange, but I quickly forget about it and get my head in the game as my future depends on the conversation I'm about to have with this frightening woman.
"Well Ms. Hollis, you come highly recommended by the faculty over at Styria. All of your references had only great things to say about you. So, what's actually wrong with you?" the woman says with a straight face.
I don't know whether it's ok to laugh at that or not. I couldn't tell if it was sincere or sarcastic. God, this woman is just too much.
"I am so appreciative of my professors and time spent at Styria, but it's time that I move on. I'm sure that there are things about myself that I can improve, but I'm so glad to hear that people think so highly of me."
"It's great that everyone likes you, but that doesn't make you an effective teacher. Why would I want to hire you? What could you bring to the Silas family that will help our school improvement plan? How can you help in improving the school grade?"
"Well ma'am, I have dreamed of being a teacher since I was a little kid. I honestly can't see myself doing anything else. I can assure you that I will be dedicated and compassionate. I am a team-player that will do whatever is necessary to make Silas High School the best in the district."
She sat silently, pensively looking over my resumé. I swear I aged ten years just waiting for the woman to respond to me and yet she just sat there… reading.
"Well Ms. Hollis, it was nice to meet you. You should hear from my secretary by the end of the week. I wish you the best of luck."
Fuck. That speech means that I didn't get the job. I stand up slowly to avoid puking on her desk which would just further seal my fate.
"Thank you and have a great day" I said sheepishly as I'm making my way out the door, trying not to trip on the way out.
I have got to get out of here. I could feel my cheeks turning red, my throat started tightening up indicating that I was about to cry. I had to make it out the door before anyone notices me when I suddenly run into someone, knocking all the papers out of their hands.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" I say as I frantically attempt to pick up everything that had fallen.
Then I hear this low, sultry voice say "Don't worry cupcake, my classes don't really need a syllabus. It's not like they're going to read it anyway."
The sound of her voice is both soothing and frustrating in the best way. It's almost like I felt her words more than I heard them. I stopped immediately and looked up. It was her. It was the gorgeous woman from the copy machine! She might be the most beautiful woman I have ever seen and our first interaction is me running into her like an idiot. Smooth, Hollis.
"I really hope I didn't mess anything up too badly" I say as the first tear breaks free and rolls down my cheek."
"Hey cutie, it's really not a big deal. If you really feel that badly, you can come to my classroom and help me put this all back together" she said while grabbing my wrist to stop me from panicking.
"I don't want to intrude on your work day" I said while looking down at the floor.
"Well, I'm pretty sure that already happened when you ran me over" she laughed, "but I will let you make it up to me."
I slowly looked up and into her eyes. It's like she was waiting for me because as soon as our eyes connected, she winked at me. Wow, I never thought that something as stupid as a wink could affect me physically.
After being caught in her stare for what seemed like hours, I finally spoke up. "Well, I don't have anything better to do so I could help if you really mean it."
"After you, cutie" she said with a smug smile.
As we're walking toward her classroom, I'm trying to figure out a way that I can get my emotions in check. If I'm going to be spending the afternoon with a girl this attractive, I certainly don't want to look like a hot mess.
When we get to the door, I ask her where the bathroom is and she points me in the right direction. As soon as I close the door behind me, I am relieved to find that this is a staff bathroom and I won't have to deal with any kids in here. I look into the mirror at the raccoon-eyed mess that is myself. I guess I was crying harder than I thought.
"Why is this happening right now?"
I frantically soak some paper towels in the sink and try to start repairing my face. There is not enough cold water in the world to fix how I'm feeling at the moment, but I have to at least look presentable if I'm going to be in close proximity with… wait, I don't even know her name yet. I put the finishing touches on my flushed cheeks and puffy eyes and make my way back to her.
As I walk into her classroom, she is straightening up her desk and doesn't make any effort to look up at me. I just stand at the door, not sure of what to say.
She finally speaks up and says "are you gonna stand there all day or come help me put my life back together?"
The look she just shot at me felt like a challenge, but I wasn't sure why.
"Yea, sorry. It's been a rough day. How can I help?" I say feeling insecure.
"Well, I'm trying to sort these papers into piles. If you can collate and staple them, we'll be done in no time and then we can do something that's actually fun."
I smile at her, which makes her do a double take. That was weird.
"So, what's your name, cutie?" she said while methodically stacking papers.
"Oh, um, I'm Laura. Laura Hollis, it's a pleasure to meet you. What's yours?"
"Oh believe me, the pleasure is all mine for now. I'm Carmilla." said the woman who just took my breath away.
Wait, was she just flirting? That can't be right. I mean, look at her! I have never seen such a captivating woman and she's flirting with me?