40

London, 14 February 2015

I wake up early, I already take my shower, comb my hair and brush my teeth, as the weather is neither rainy nor cold, I put on a pair of blue jeans and a red coloured checkered blouse. I also put on an All Star and grab my bag, put my wallet inside and take a cold sweater inside the bag, just in case.

It was already six thirty, luckily the Museum is close, right on the corner. I buy in the hotel a doughnut, a cappuccino and eat quickly trying not to get sugar in my mouth. I drink my cappuccino, throw the cup in the trash and clean my hands and mouth of sugar.

I look at the street and realize that it is already busy, I cross it and walk towards the Museum. As soon as I enter, I bump into Diego, he smiles when he sees me.

" I'm on time. "

And it's exactly seven o'clock in the morning, I give him a shy smile and he starts to talk:

" Come with me Annie. "

He says serious and walks towards a room, he opens it and I enter. There is a man in a blue suit and dark glasses, he takes off his glasses and stares at me, his eyes are charming, but I don't dare to stay admiring that man. He is tall, dark haired and neat. His hair is not a hair out of place, it is all neat, not even the wind has messed it up. I see Diego withdraw and the man says:

" Please, Annie, sit down. "

His voice is firm and a little seductive. I sit down a little shyly and he walks over and sits down in front of me. What the fuck, he's the man from the plane. Obviously he doesn't know I was there.

" Okay, Diego printed out his resume yesterday, he is fluent in Spanish his language, speaks Portuguese, French and English, correct?"

I nod my head at him and he continues.

" You are twenty two years old, from Madrid, have you lived in London?"

" Yes. "

My voice comes out weak, but he heard me. He continues.

" Well... I've been looking for a good translator for months. Give me a demonstration."

" Yo soy buena, yo daba clases como consta en el currículum. It means I'm good, I used to give classes as it says on my CV. And also, J'étais traducteur pour plusieurs célébrités, celle-ci également dans le programme. It means I was a translator for several famous people, it's on the curriculum too."

He looks at me seriously and says:

"Okay, thanks for the interview Annie, I'll call you anything."

He smiles dryly at me and I notice his eyes and what eyes! The colour of his eyes is lovely, a mix of blue and grey. I stop admiring him again and retreat from his office, after leaving I read over the door. "

Office of Chief Bryan Sirfeld.

*****

Arriving at the hotel, I take another shower and go downstairs to eat something, I buy a pizza and drink a juice. I look at the people around me, many seem happy and others lost like me. As soon as I sit down at a table, my phone makes a noise, I pick it up and an unknown message pops up on the screen. It's Bryan's secretary, he said to be in his office next week, Monday at 07:00am, he will personally choose from the contestants for the translator position. Great evening Miss Annie.

I rejoice a little at the news, but I know that I might just be the chosen one, I have to think positive and calm down, I decide to go up to my room.

The week goes by and I get to know London and its delicious food, so they say.

I had fish and chips, it's a traditional dish of fish and chips, super delicious, I remember eating it when I lived here with my aunt, but it's so many years ago. In the following days I tried "Full english breakfast" which is eggs with bacon, beans with tomato sauce, and for this very different breakfast you can add fried bread, mushrooms and sausages, quite a breakfast!

In Madrid my breakfast is a delicious tortilla which is an omelette with potatoes, I always add spices, lots of onion and pepper. The tortilla can be eaten at any time of the day, it is delicious.

I miss eating in the restaurants, Café de Chinitas, my favourite dish there is the cocido madrileño, it is a very heavy dish, it goes well, especially for cold days, the ingredients of this delicious food is chicken, beef and pork or all mixed together, it has pasta (fideos), potatoes, chickpeas and other vegetables. It's delicious, my mouth watered just remembering it.

I miss the most bustling and beautiful square in Madrid, the Puerta Del Sol. It's a beautiful place.

****

Days pass and I know a few sights of London. I went to the British museum only to observe from the outside, as this is the Bryan Museum. I went to the Tower of London and took several photos. And other places, it was quite a tiring week.

In the flat I eat a snack and fall asleep, I feel quite tired, exhausted actually.

****

The next day I leave my rucksack prepared, I put my wallet, cold sweater, perfume and a book. I make a juice to drink and brush my teeth, it's almost time for the interview.

Luckily the alarm clock woke me up at five thirty in the morning. I'm already showered, brush my hair and teeth and put on a blue dress with sleeves. Today is a beautiful day! No rain forecast, it's just a bit dark, I put on a jumper and a small black heel, grab my backpack and leave the room. I ask for a taxi and it arrives quicker than I imagined.

I don't want to keep looking at this man, as his physique draws a lot of attention.

After we arrive at the address Bryan's secretary sent me, I pay the driver and look at the huge company he owns. My eyes light up. I can already imagine that he is demanding and arrogant, I'm not judging, but that's what I thought of him when I saw him.

I head towards the entrance of the building and read "Dunner Solers Company" Plus how many surnames does he have? Where does the Sirfeld surname fit in?

I stop thinking for a moment and start walking.

****

Entering a corridor I see many women and men looking at me, am I weird with this backpack on my back wearing a dress? It must be weird for them, but not for me. I don't care about the people around me, I go to the bench and tell them about my interview, a well defined blonde leads me to a room where there are three more women. We greet each other and wait for Bryan to arrive.

After ten minutes, I see Bryan coming towards us, with his elegant suit, his light grey tie and his neat hair, he is so neat that he is boring! But a very nice one, I confess.

With his look, he tells me to get up. You know that bossy "get up now" look? That's the look I'm talking about. I obeyed, there's no denying it, right?

He looks me up and down and says after a few seconds, when he looks at me completely:

" Well... Good morning everyone. "

I turn around and see all the candidates standing, just like me. - Mark, hand over the rules to the ladies, and take your seats please.

"Bryan talks to a black man, muscular, very handsome, the same is next to Bryan and that scared me, because I did not see him there."

I take a step back, I was afraid because this man suddenly appeared, or I didn't see him because I was looking only at the businessman there. I sit down after the fright.

Marcos hands out some sheets for us, I hear Bryan say.

" If I was late, I apologize, ladies. I'm not one to be late, but I was in a meeting. "

He says walking towards his desk. The manager asks a few questions and we all answer, but a woman whose name Elizabeth, if I am not mistaken, is trembling, sweating.

He impatiently ends the interview and asks everyone to leave, the manager there spoke very rude to us. As soon as I got my backpack, Bryan takes my arm in a rough way and I turn and look at him with a certain fear of him.