The Interview
You can listen to these songs while reading this chapter to feel its full atmosphere. I hope you enjoy the story and have a great reading experience. Take care of yourself ??
Bts -- Come Over
Jungkook -- Still With You
Billie Eilish -- Lovely
----
The Interview
Hazel Brooks’ POV
The elevator climbed so smoothly that I barely felt it move.
Floor 12.
Floor 19.
Floor 27.
By the time the glowing number changed to 32, my heartbeat had become louder than the quiet instrumental music playing through the speakers.
“You’re here.”
The doors slid open.
The executive floor looked nothing like the bustling lobby downstairs.
It was quieter.
Elegant.
Every employee walked with purpose, speaking in calm voices that barely carried beyond the glass offices lining the hallway.
No one seemed rushed.
Yet everyone looked busy.
It was... intimidating.
“Ms. Brooks?”
A woman in her early thirties approached with a warm smile.
She wore a navy suit and carried a tablet tucked beneath one arm.
“I’m Claire Bennett from Human Resources.”
I returned her smile.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
“You too.”
She offered a reassuring expression.
“Nervous?”
I laughed softly.
“Is it that obvious?”
“Only because every candidate says they aren’t.”
That made me laugh again.
A little of the tension disappeared.
Claire led me down the hallway.
As we walked, I couldn’t help noticing framed photographs decorating the walls.
Company milestones.
International offices.
Charity events.
One picture caught my attention.
A group of men in military uniforms.
Standing among them was a younger Ethan Blackwood.
His expression was almost identical to the one I’d seen in magazine interviews.
Serious.
Focused.
Disciplined.
Claire noticed me looking.
“That was taken during Mr. Blackwood’s final year in the Army.”
“I didn’t know the company displayed those.”
“He didn’t want them displayed.”
I looked at her.
“He didn’t?”
She smiled knowingly.
“The Board insisted.”
Before I could ask another question, we stopped in front of large walnut doors.
Claire turned toward me.
“He’s already inside.”
My stomach tightened.
“Any advice?”
She thought for a moment.
“Be yourself.”
I smiled nervously.
“I’ll try.”
“No.”
She shook her head gently.
“Don’t try.”
Her smile widened.
“Just do it.”
She knocked twice before opening the door.
“Mr. Blackwood?”
A deep voice answered from inside.
“Come in.”
Claire stepped aside.
“Ms. Hazel Brooks.”
I took one steadying breath.
Then walked inside.
----
Ethan’s POV
The first thing I noticed wasn’t her résumé.
It wasn’t the degree.
Or the recommendations.
It was the way she entered the room.
She wasn’t trying to impress anyone.
She wasn’t pretending to be confident.
She simply looked determined not to waste the opportunity she’d been given.
That alone made her different from most applicants.
She stopped beside the chair.
“Good morning, Mr. Blackwood.”
Her voice was calm.
Softer than I expected.
I stood.
“Good morning.”
She extended her hand.
Confident.
Professional.
I shook it.
Her grip was firm despite the slight nervousness I could sense.
Interesting.
“Please.”
I gestured toward the chair opposite mine.
“Have a seat.”
“Thank you.”
She placed a leather portfolio neatly on the table before sitting.
No unnecessary movements.
Everything organized.
Disciplined.
Not unlike a cadet before an inspection.
For reasons I couldn’t explain...
That observation made me almost smile.
----
Hazel’s POV
He was taller than anyone I’d ever met.
Even seated across from him, I had noticed it the moment he stood to greet me.
Broad shoulders.
Perfect posture.
Dark brown hair trimmed neatly.
Strong jawline with the faintest dimple in his chin whenever his expression shifted.
And those eyes...
Warm brown.
Yet unreadable.
Magazine photos hadn’t done him justice.
He looked less like a billionaire CEO...
And more like someone who had spent years carrying responsibilities most people would never understand.
There was something quietly guarded about him.
Something lonely.
Stop staring, Hazel.
He’s interviewing you.
Not the other way around.
----
Ethan’s POV
I opened her file.
“Top of your class.”
“Yes, sir.”
“You don’t have to call me ‘sir.’”
A flicker of surprise crossed her face.
“I’m sorry.”
“No apology necessary.”
I folded my hands.
“Mr. Blackwood is fine.”
She nodded.
“Mr. Blackwood.”
Better.
I looked back at the résumé.
“Business Administration.”
“Yes.”
“Excellent recommendations.”
“I was fortunate to have wonderful professors.”
“You earned those recommendations.”
A faint blush colored her cheeks.
“Thank you.”
She accepted compliments awkwardly.
Not because she lacked confidence.
Because she wasn’t used to receiving them.
I noticed more than she probably realized.
The careful way she chose her words.
The slight movement of her hands whenever she became nervous.
The determination behind her green eyes.
They reminded me of dense forests after rain.
Clear.
Steady.
Unusually calm.
For a brief moment...
I forgot I was conducting an interview.
Then I caught myself.
Focus.
Professionalism first.
Everything else second.
“Ms. Brooks...”
I closed the résumé.
“Tell me something about yourself that isn’t written anywhere in this file.”
For the first time since entering the room...
She looked genuinely surprised.
----
Hazel Brooks’ POV
I blinked, caught off guard by his question.
“Tell me something about yourself that isn’t written anywhere in this file.”
For a moment, I searched for the perfect answer.
Then I realized...
He hadn’t asked for the perfect answer.
He had asked for the honest one.
I folded my hands in my lap.
“When I graduated, I thought everything would be simple.”
His expression remained unreadable, but he gave a small nod, encouraging me to continue.
“I believed that if I worked hard enough, someone would eventually notice.”
A faint smile crossed my lips.
“I was wrong.”
Silence settled between us.
Not uncomfortable.
Just... thoughtful.
“I’ve attended more interviews than I care to count.”
“I know,” he replied quietly.
“Twenty-three.”
I looked up in surprise.
“You remembered.”
“I read every page of your file.”
There wasn’t a hint of arrogance in the way he said it.
Just a statement of fact.
“I started wondering if there was something wrong with me.”
The words left my mouth before I could stop them.
I hadn’t planned to admit that.
Not here.
Not to him.
“But every morning,” I continued, “I still got up, put on a smile, and sent another application.”
“Why?”
His voice was calm.
“You could have chosen another career.”
I smiled softly.
“Because I didn’t spend four years studying business just to give up after a few difficult months.”
His eyes stayed on mine.
“And because my mother taught me something I’ll never forget.”
I paused, hearing her voice in my mind.
“Success doesn’t belong to the person who never fails, Hazel. It belongs to the person who refuses to quit.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“So I kept trying.”
----
Ethan’s POV
Most candidates tried to impress me.
Hazel Brooks didn’t.
She answered every question with honesty, even when the truth made her vulnerable.
That was rare.
Very rare.
People often believed confidence meant pretending to be fearless.
The military had taught me something different.
Real courage was admitting fear...
...and moving forward anyway.
Hazel wasn’t asking for sympathy.
She wasn’t making excuses.
She was taking responsibility for her journey.
I respected that.
I closed the résumé.
“You’ve been working in a flower shop for almost two years.”
“Yes.”
“What has that taught you?”
She looked surprised again.
“I don’t mean arranging flowers,” I clarified.
“I mean working with people.”
She thought for a moment.
“Flowers are usually part of an important moment in someone’s life.”
I waited.
“A wedding.”
“A birthday.”
“An apology.”
“A funeral.”
Her voice softened.
“I’ve learned that everyone who walks through the door is carrying a story.”
Something about that answer stayed with me.
“And?”
She smiled gently.
“I’ve learned not to judge people before I know their story.”
For the first time that morning...
I almost forgot we were in an interview.
----
Ethan’s POV
For a long moment, neither of us spoke.
I had conducted hundreds of interviews over the years.
Executives.
Consultants.
Lawyers.
Financial analysts.
Most of them walked into this room determined to convince me they were exceptional.
Hazel Brooks was different.
She wasn’t trying to convince me of anything.
She was simply telling me the truth.
And somehow...
That was far more convincing.
I leaned back slightly in my chair.
“Let’s try something different.”
She straightened instinctively.
“Imagine you’re my executive assistant.”
She nodded.
“You’re preparing for a meeting with investors. Five minutes before it begins, you discover that the presentation contains incorrect financial figures.”
Her expression immediately became focused.
“What would you do?”
She didn’t answer right away.
Good.
She was thinking.
“I’d verify whether the figures were actually incorrect.”
I gave a small nod.
“Go on.”
“If they were, I’d inform you immediately.”
“You wouldn’t try to fix it yourself?”
“If I had enough time and I was absolutely certain the correction was accurate, yes.”
She paused.
“But if there was any doubt, I’d rather walk into the meeting with a delayed presentation than inaccurate information.”
Interesting.
“Why?”
“Because trust is harder to rebuild than a schedule.”
For the first time that morning...
A genuine smile almost appeared.
Almost.
----
Hazel’s POV
Had I said something wrong?
Mr. Blackwood watched me in silence.
His expression was impossible to read.
The articles had been right.
He really did have the most unreadable face I’d ever seen.
Then he asked another question.
“What do you consider your greatest weakness?”
I laughed quietly before I could stop myself.
One of his eyebrows lifted.
“Something amusing?”
“I’m sorry.”
“So?”
“My greatest weakness...”
I looked down for a second.
“I care too much.”
He waited.
“When I commit to something, I give it everything.”
“I don’t see that as a weakness.”
“It becomes one when I forget to take care of myself.”
That answer surprised even me.
I’d never admitted it aloud before.
“I’ve stayed late to help coworkers.”
“I’ve skipped meals to finish projects.”
“I’ve taken responsibility for mistakes that weren’t mine.”
I smiled sheepishly.
“I’m still learning that doing my best doesn’t mean carrying everything alone.”
His gaze softened, just enough for me to notice.
“That’s an important lesson.”
“I know.”
“I’m still working on it.”
----
Ethan’s POV
There it was again.
Honesty.
No rehearsed answers.
No corporate clichés.
Just honesty.
I looked down at her résumé one final time.
Then closed the folder.
“Ms. Brooks.”
She looked up immediately.
“Yes, Mr. Blackwood?”
“I have one final question.”
She folded her hands neatly together.
“If you don’t get this job...”
Her shoulders stiffened almost imperceptibly.
“...what will you do tomorrow?”
For the first time since the interview had begun, emotion flickered openly across her face.
Disappointment.
Fear.
Hope.
Then determination.
“I’ll go back to the flower shop.”
She answered without hesitation.
“I’ll thank my manager for believing in me.”
“I’ll send out another application during my lunch break.”
“And the day after that...”
She smiled.
“I’ll send another.”
Her green eyes met mine.
“I don’t know when someone will finally say yes.”
She took a slow breath.
“But I refuse to let a ‘no’ decide the rest of my life.”
Silence filled the room.
Not awkward.
Meaningful.
In that moment, I wasn’t looking at an inexperienced applicant.
I was looking at someone with resilience.
Someone who had been tested long before walking into this office.
Someone who hadn’t allowed rejection to define her.
I stood.
“So that’s it?”
She blinked.
“I... I believe so.”
She rose to her feet.
“Thank you for your time.”
I walked around the table.
She extended her hand again.
This time, I noticed it before anything else.
Steady.
Confident.
She hadn’t lost hope.
Even now.
I shook her hand.
“Thank you for coming, Ms. Brooks.”
She offered one last polite smile.
“It was an honor meeting you, Mr. Blackwood.”
Then she turned and walked toward the door.
Just before she reached it...
I found myself saying something I almost never said during interviews.
“Ms. Brooks.”
She looked back.
“Yes?”
“We’ll be in touch soon.”
A genuine smile lit up her face, dimples appearing in her cheeks.
“I’ll look forward to hearing from you.”
The door closed softly behind her.
The room became quiet once again.
But somehow...
It no longer felt empty.
A minute later, Claire stepped inside.
“Well?”
I looked at the closed résumé on my desk.
Then at the door Hazel had just walked through.
“Prepare the paperwork.”
Claire blinked.
“For the next round?”
I shook my head.
“No.”
A faint smile touched the corner of my lips.
“I’ve already made my decision.”
“You have?”
“Offer Hazel Brooks the position.”
Claire smiled.
“I thought you might say that.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“What gave it away?”
She laughed softly.
“You smiled.”
I glanced toward the window overlooking Manhattan.
Without realizing it...
For the first time in a very long time...
I had.
----
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