Pets n Story

I walked into the interview for my dream job, certain it would be the start of something great. But when I saw who was leading it, my stomach turned. The last person I ever wanted to see again was sitting across from me, turning my dream into a waking nightmare.

Didn’t everyone have a dream job when they were kids? I dreamed of becoming an architect, just like my dad. Only my childhood dream job turned into a dream job in adulthood.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

Ever since I was little, my dad taught me how to draw, always giving me advice, then supporting me when I entered university and throughout my studies. But just a few months before my graduation, my dad passed away.

And with him, a part of me went too. He never got to see me walk down the path of my dream, never saw me become an architect. But I kept going, for him.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

I even had to move back to my hometown, the town I grew up in, a place I hadn’t been to in nearly seven years because it brought too many painful memories.

I had to move back in order to get a job at the company I’d dreamed of working at since I was a child.

I rented an apartment not far from the company’s office and just hoped they would hire me as I unpacked my things.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

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I was almost certain I had the job because I had worked hard my entire life preparing for this moment.

To work at the place where my dad once worked. I pulled out a framed photo of me with my dad from one of the boxes and placed it on a shelf.

By morning, I had to go for the interview, and it would’ve been nice to get some sleep, but with all the nerves, I couldn’t make myself lie down in bed, so I kept unpacking.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

The next morning, I woke up on the floor. Apparently, I had been so exhausted that I just passed out.

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I panicked when I looked at the clock and saw that I still had two hours before the interview, so I relaxed a bit.

I managed to get ready and have breakfast calmly, then left my new home and drove to the interview.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

My hands and legs were shaking as I entered the building, the building I used to run through when I was a little girl visiting my dad at work.

I walked up to the office where I was supposed to have the interview and sat on one of the chairs in the hallway, waiting for my name to be called.

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Next to me, there were men, some in suits, some in casual clothes. They all came for the same reason, and watching them only made my panic grow. But then, suddenly, my dad’s words popped into my head.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“Remember, you’re better than anyone who stands in your way. Believe in my belief in you.”

I took a deep breath and exhaled. A man walked out of the office, apparently one of the candidates, and I heard a voice from the office call my name.

A painfully familiar voice, but I thought that with all my nerves, I must’ve imagined it.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

But no, when I walked into the office, I saw her. She was sitting there, filling out some paperwork, as if she had every right to be there.

My mother. Linda, whom I hadn’t seen since my father’s death and never wanted to see again for the rest of my life.

“Linda?! What are you doing here?!” I shouted.

“Kassandra…” she said softly.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“I doubted until the very end, thought it was just someone with the same name,” Linda said.

“I’ll ask again, what. are. you. doing. here?” I said sternly.

“I work here…” she answered quietly.

“How dare you?!” I shouted.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“Kassandra, let’s calm down. People are watching, at least close the door,” Linda said.

“I don’t want to calm down! Let everyone hear what kind of person works at this company!” I shouted. “How dare you come here to work! To the building where he once worked!”

“Let’s just talk calmly, please,” Linda said. “Or at least let me conduct the interview,” she added.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

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“I’m not discussing anything with you! You’re immoral! You killed my father!” I shouted.

“I didn’t kill anyone! Your dad had a heart attack,” Linda said.

“Because of you! His heart stopped because of you! He died alone while you were cheating on him with some other guy!” I screamed.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“This man is now my husband, so I’d appreciate it if you’d stop,” Linda said.

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“You think that makes the situation better?!” I shouted. “I can’t believe you have the audacity to sit here!”

“Kassandra, it’s just a job,” Linda said.

“A job where your ex-husband worked! The man you killed!” I shouted.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“So why am I not in jail then, if I killed him?” Linda asked.

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“You don’t have an ounce of conscience left,” I said, disappointed.

“If you let me explain everything…” Linda said.

“You don’t deserve the right to explain!” I shouted. “How dare you come in and sit in the place where he once sat?”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“I’m not even an architect! I’m HR!” Linda shouted.

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“That still doesn’t give you the right to be here!” I shouted.

“Your father would’ve wanted…”

“You don’t know a damn thing about what my father wanted! You destroyed him! You and your betrayals!” I screamed.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

A man entered the office.

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“Linda, should I call security?” he asked.

“Don’t bother, I’ll leave on my own,” I said and walked out.

As soon as I left the building, tears started streaming down my face. I couldn’t hold it in, no matter how hard I tried. When I sat in my car, I started crying even harder.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Midjourney

I couldn’t believe this woman was ruining my life again. My mind began to flash back to when my mom called me while I was in the dorm, preparing for exams, and told me that my dad had died.

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How I came home and learned that while my dad was dying at home, mom was having fun with some man in a hotel. How I screamed at her, telling her it was her fault.

How I never returned to my parent’s house after his funeral and never spoke to her again.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

I hated her for that. For taking away my ability to come back to the house full of memories of my dad, for not being there when he had his heart attack, for sleeping with another man while he suffered.

She didn’t deserve forgiveness after all that, and I wasn’t going to give it to her.

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I returned to my apartment on autopilot, it was a miracle I even managed to drive there calmly.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

I walked back and forth around the apartment, aimlessly. It seemed I’d have to pack my things again and move, because I wasn’t going to work in the same building as her.

As it started to get dark, I heard a knock on the door. I opened it without thinking, and when I saw Linda standing there, I slammed the door right in her face.

“Kassandra, let’s talk, please,” Linda begged through the door.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“I have nothing to talk to you about,” I said.

“How did you even find where I live?” I asked.

“I’m HR, it wasn’t that hard,” Linda said. “By the way, you’ve been accepted,” she added.

“How can you hire me when I haven’t even had an interview?” I asked.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“I know what you’re capable of, no one else will be better than you,” Linda said.

“I don’t need your charity!” I shouted.

“Just take the job offer,” Linda said.

“I’m not going to work there, you can take your offer and leave,” I said. I was about to step away from the door, but then I heard Linda’s words.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“Are you really going to give up the job you’ve been dreaming of your whole life?” she asked.

With fury, I opened the door. “What do you know about what I want?!” I shouted in her face.

“I’m still your mother, and I’m still the one who raised you. I’m your family,” Linda said.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

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“Why didn’t you think about your family when you slept with that man while dad was dying?!” I shouted.

“Because we were getting a divorce!” Linda yelled.

I scoffed. “Now you’re making up lies to make yourself seem better than you really are,” I said.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“But it’s the truth!” Linda shouted. “When your dad died, we hadn’t been living together for three months. I only came to the house when you visited,” she said.

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“Why am I hearing this for the first time now?” I asked.

“Your dad and I were really scared of your reaction, so we dragged it out as long as we could… until it was too late,” Linda said.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“That’s nonsense, why did you even need to get divorced, you had a perfect relationship,” I said.

“Your dad cheated on me, with some young colleague of his, but the relationship had been falling apart long before that, that was the last straw,” Linda said.

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“Now you’re making him the guilty one?!” I shouted.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“I’m not blaming anyone. That’s why I didn’t tell you anything, I didn’t want to ruin your image of your dad in your mind, but I can’t keep this to myself anymore,” Linda said.

“You’re lying!” I said.

Linda silently pulled documents from her bag and handed them to me. They were divorce papers, dated four months before my dad’s death.

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For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“No, this isn’t true,” I said quietly.

“We were protecting you until the end, but you’re old enough now to understand,” Linda said.

I silently collapsed onto the floor, still holding the divorce papers in my hands.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

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“But I want your dad to still be your dad, the way you remember him. He loved you so much, just like I did. I’m just tired of being the only one blamed for everything,” Linda said.

“I just… I don’t understand,” I said quietly. “You should’ve told me this earlier.”

“Parents always protect their children, no matter how old they are,” Linda said. “And you didn’t exactly want to listen,” she added.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora
For illustration purposes only. | Source: Sora

“I’m sorry,” I said.