“Sorry, what was your name, sir?”
“Glen Young.”
“Just a moment.” I call John’s extension. He answers after two rings. “Yeah?”
“Hi, John? It’s Lauren at reception. I have Glen Young down here to see you. Should I send him up?”
“Thanks. Tell him I’ll meet him in the third floor boardroom.”
“Will do.”
I hang up and smile at the guy in front of me. “Please go on up to the third floor boardroom. Do you know the way?”
“I do. Thanks.”
He hurries off and I smile expectantly at the next person in line. The receptionist is watching me with bemusement, but he can’t say anything, because he’s still stuck on his phone call.
“Hi!” I say to the woman in front of me. “How can I help you?”
I quickly direct the two other people in front of me to their relevant appointments and then sit watching the receptionist.
“I’m sorry ma’am, but there’s nothing I can do,” he says. “I’d be happy to take a message and pass it on?”
Even I can hear the unhappy voice yelling at the other end. The guy holds the receiver slightly away from his ear and rolls his eyes at me. “Won’t be too much longer,” he mouths.
I grin conspiratorially. He seems nice. Thin, with short cropped hair and huge brown eyes that could possibly be rimmed with liner. I can only see his top half properly. His button-down shirt is white with black turned-up cuffs.
Finally, after what feels like forever, he hangs up the phone and stares at me. “Oh my God, honey. Who are you, and where did you come from?”
I can’t tell if he’s annoyed or relieved by my presence.
“Sorry, I just saw you were stuck on that call and I wanted to help.”
“Don’t tell me. You’re here to try out for the next season of MultiDate.”
“Oh God, no,” I blurt out. “If anything, I’d want to work behind the scenes. Definitely not as one of the contestants.”
He raises an amused eyebrow. “Is that so? And this is your interview outfit?” He waves a hand up and down at my leggings and shirt.
I blush. “Obviously, no. Sorry, let me start again. My name is Lauren Hunter and I have no idea why I’m here.”
He laughs. “Well, if we’re doing introductions, I’m Jules Croft and I’m in charge of front of house. So, are you actually looking for a job?”
“I’m not sure.”
“What experience do you have?”
“Four years in real estate and six months in telecommunications.”
He smiles, but in a way that I suspect means he feels sorry for me.
“Sweetie, do you know how many applications we get every day for people wanting to work both behind and in front of the camera? Hundreds.”
I stand up and turn to leave. “Yeah, I expected that might be the case. I’m not really sure what I was thinking. I don’t even live down here. It was a dumb, spontaneous decision to come in. Don’t mind me.”
“Where do you normally live?” he calls out.
I face him again. “Brisbane. My lease is just about to run out, so I’ll be looking for somewhere new when I go back.” I figure that’s easier than explaining the whole Katie situation.
“I’m originally from there too. Whereabouts?”
“The Valley. Right near Chinatown.”
“Oh, yes. I’ve spent many a night there. Cool. Do you go clubbing? Cloudland was my favourite place.”
“Yeah, Cloudland is great. But I expect the clubs down here are way better.”
“It depends. You have read about all the curfews now, haven’t you?”
“Oh, that’s right. All the small bars are shutting down because they can’t keep up with the restrictions.”
He shakes his head. “I’m tempted to head back up north one of these days. Seriously, I never imagined when I first moved that I would ever yearn for Brisvegas.”
“Well, if you decide to return, I might see you around.”
He hesitates for a second. “Hey, when you said you had experience in telecommunications, did that mean you used to take a lot of calls?”
“A few.”
“And you can work under pressure?”
“Yes. I know this sounds like a line, but I actually quite like working under pressure. It keeps things interesting.”
“Would you be interested in working here on reception with me? As you can probably guess, we’re a bit short-staffed. I mean, I know you don’t live here, but if you could find somewhere to stay…”
“I’ll do it!” I say without hesitation. “I’m staying with my brother over at Bronte. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind putting me up for a while until I find somewhere else.”
He beams. “Well, in that case, we should probably make it official. But before I give you an application, I have to ask. You’re not a stalker or anything, are you?”
I laugh. “I may have a slight obsession with Reid Martinez, but I promise it’s not a dangerous one. Or one that I would ever want him to know about.”
He laughs too. “Join the club, sweetie.” He prints out something from his computer and hands it to me. “Take this home, fill it out and bring it back before we close at five. We’ll need all your tax and super fund info. Oh, and Shelly in HR might want to talk to you and call your last place of employment for a reference.”
I pause for a moment, but then shrug it off. Surely Rob and Chris will say nice things about me. After all, they were the unfair ones. They can’t want me to fail in all future employment too.
“That’s fine. Thank you so much! I’ll be back in a few hours.”
He holds out his hand so we can shake on our new potential working relationship. “See you again soon!”
“You will.”
I try not to skip down the road until I’m out of sight.
Holy crap! I might have a job at NBS!
SEVEN
I wonder how I’m going to break the news to Josh if this really does go through. I’m not sure he envisioned that by inviting me to hang out in Sydney for a week, I’d end up landing a job and wanting to stay at his house longer. I know neither of us will be happy with me taking up permanent residence in his spare room, but hopefully he’ll let me stay for a few weeks while I wind up my life in Brisbane and re-settle down here.
It finally hits me. I’m probably moving to Sydney! That’s crazy! I’ve only ever known the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane! All the doubts I had yesterday when I was only hypothetically considering living down here resurface. I have no idea which suburbs I should be looking at to rent—or even where I can afford. I’ll need to check what I’ll be getting paid as a receptionist. Hopefully it will be at least the same as what I was getting at the phone store before commissions. Agh! I will be working mere feet away from Reid Martinez and the cast of MultiDate! Not to mention all the other cool shows NBS produces. Their list includes cooking shows, dancing shows, morning talk shows and several sitcoms and dramas. Pretty much all the popular TV shows broadcast on Australian television originate from that one studio. Not that I really watch much free-to-air these days. But I guess that will change if I’m going to act knowledgeable around the people coming through reception.
I shouldn’t get ahead of myself, though. I know Jules kind of made it sound like a done deal, but I still have to talk to the woman in HR. She might hate me, or decide I have to go through several rounds of interviews first.
But I’m still amped up, so I jog nearly the whole way home. Once inside, I have another shower and chow down on a protein bar from Josh’s cupboard before setting to work on my CV. I spend half an hour waiting on the phone to the tax office so I can retrieve my tax file number, and then another few minutes looking up all my superannuation information.
The job application isn’t too hard to fill out, but it’s a little time-consuming. Still, I’m used to lots of paperwork from both real estate and the phone store.
An hour and a half later, I change into
the most corporate outfit I brought with me: a pair of black pants, a crisp white shirt and a pair of black kitten heels.
An Uber carries me back to the studio in record time. Jules whistles approvingly when he sees me again. “I can definitely see you fitting in here,” he drawls.
I blush. I’m not normally one to respond favourably to comments on my appearance, especially in the workplace, but for some reason, I know Jules means it in a non-threatening way. “Thanks.” I put my CV and application on the counter. “Let me know if you need anything else.”
He flicks through the pages. “It all looks good to me. I’ll just let Shelly know you’re here and see if she’s free for a quick chat.”
I wait while he makes the call.
“Hey, Shelly? That lovely lady I was telling you about is back. Do you have time to see her now?”
He listens for a moment and then nods. “Great. I’ll send her up.”
He hangs up and waves his hand towards the elevator. “Off you go, honey. She’s on the third floor next to the boardroom.”
“Thank you!”
I make my way over to the elevator, self-consciously patting down my hair. Once on the third floor, I locate Shelly’s office and knock softly.
“Come in.”
I enter the room and see a large woman with an immaculate white bob sitting behind a desk.
“Hi, Lauren? Come in.”
I oblige and sit in a seat in front of her.
“So, you want to join us here at NBS on reception?”
“I do. I love this company and would do anything to work here.”
She raises an eyebrow. “Anything?”
I laugh nervously. “Within reason.” I hand her my resume. “As you’ll see, I have considerable experience in an office environment and dealing with people.”
She skims through the pages so quickly, I’m sure she mustn’t be able to read them. “Listen, I have to fire a fairly prominent talk show host in about ten minutes, so I don’t really have time to do an extensive interview right now. But I’ll talk to Jules and see what we can work out.”
“Oh, okay.” What does that mean?
“Thanks for coming in. We’ll be in touch.”
My heart sinks and I slowly get to my feet. “Thank you for your time.”
Shelly gives me a polite smile and then turns to her computer.
I drag my feet back to the elevator. I guess I got too excited too soon. I should have known I couldn’t walk into a job that easily. When someone says they’ll be in touch, it usually means the opposite.
I re-enter the lobby and see Jules on the phone. I want to thank him for making an effort for me, despite the outcome. He winks when he sees me and holds up a finger, indicating I should wait.
After a moment, he speaks into his headpiece. “Perfect. Thanks, babe!”
He dramatically presses the hang up button and grins.
“That was Shelly. You’re hired!”
My eyes widen in surprise. “Seriously? I thought she was fobbing me off just now.”
“Nope. That’s just the way she operates. You’ll get used to her soon enough.”
“Wow! Okay. Thank you!”
“My pleasure, honey. Shelly said she’s happy for me to do whatever I want with you.” He covers his mouth with a hand. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that to sound as dirty as it did. By the way, I’m into boys, so you don’t have to worry about me hitting on you or anything.”
I chuckle. “Duly noted.”
“So, can you start tomorrow at 8am?”
I let out a squeak of surprise. “Yes! Wow. You guys move fast around here.”
“That we do, sweetie. That we do.”
“Well, I was going to use this as extra bribery, but you can have it anyway.” I open my handbag and pull out a paper bag containing a cinnamon scroll. I’d quickly picked it up from Starbucks on my way in.
“Okay, it’s official. I already love you.” He greedily takes the paper bag and practically inhales the pastry. “How did you know these were my favourite?”
“Lucky guess?”
“I feel like this is all meant to be. You’re my guardian angel, come to make my life better.”
“Well, you’re giving me the chance to work in the same building as my favourite TV show, so I’d say we’re even.”
He grins. “I’ll see you here bright and early tomorrow morning.”
I give him a little wave. “First thing.”
Ha! Who said chasing your dreams was difficult?
***
“Oh my God, you’re insane,” Josh says later when we’ve been seated at Billy Kwong’s.
“But you’re happy for me, right?” I ask.
“I guess. What made you apply for a job in Sydney? I didn’t even know you wanted to live here!”
“I didn’t. Until I saw that NBS is just up the road.”
“And why is NBS so exciting?”
“Because they make MultiDate!”
Josh shakes his head. “I expected more from you, sis. MultiDate? Isn’t that worse than Married at First Sight?”
“No! How dare you compare my show to that show! Anyway, last time I checked, you were ever so slightly obsessed with Survivor. Is that no longer the case?”
“Survivor’s different!” he protests. “It’s a game of psychological skill. Not to mention the physical strain those people have to endure.”
“One could argue that MultiDate is the same, only they prepare their bodies beforehand. Plus, it’s just as much about psychological manipulation.”
Josh puts up his hands in surrender. “Fine. If it makes you sleep better at night thinking you’re watching something remotely intelligent, that’s cool with me.”
I punch him playfully. “So, can I stay on at your place for a few more weeks? I’ll pay board in the meantime.”
He pretends to think about it for a minute. “You’ll kind of cramp my style if I want to bring someone home…”
“That’s your only concern? Well, how about this? If you happen to meet someone in the next few weeks that you want to sleep with—and by the way, thanks for making me visualise that—you can text me from wherever you are. And if I’m at home, I’ll leave for the evening. I’m sure I’ll have a bunch of new friends at the studio in no time.”
Josh looks at the ceiling, like he can’t believe he’s agreeing to this. “Okay. If you’re happy to go out when I need privacy, we have a deal. But I want you to look for somewhere else as soon as possible. I can’t afford to be mad at another sibling. What are you going to do about all your stuff in Brisbane?”
“Most of the furniture is Katie’s, so I just have my clothes and knick-knacks to transport. I could probably rent a small truck or something and do a return trip one weekend.”
“All right. Let me know. If I’m not doing anything when you book it, I’ll go with you. That way, I can make sure you don’t fall asleep at the wheel.”
I quickly kiss him on the cheek. “Aw, thanks, bro.”
“Now get off me. All this lovey-dovey stuff is making me feel weird.”
I laugh. “Would it help if I punched you again?”
“No, no. Let’s just order some food. I’m starving.”
I browse the menu. When my eyes skim over the san choy bau and dumplings, I feel a little stab of disappointment. “You better not order what I made last night,” I warn.
“Hey, come on. I already apologised for that. And I did eat the san choy bau filling on toast this morning. It was really good.”
I smile, pleased. “Thanks. Well, tonight I think I want to go a little wild. How about the wallaby tail?”
“Okay. But I’m getting the deep-fried chicken.”
“Maybe some Australian native greens too, so we don’t look like complete carnivores?”
“Whatever you like. I don’t really care what people think of me.”
“I know you don’t. Do you think that explains your lack of girlfriend lately?”
He sticks
his tongue out at me, reminding me of when we were kids. “I do fine, thank you very much. I just haven’t met anyone worthy of a long term relationship for a while. And you can talk. I haven’t heard you mention anyone since you ran away from home.”
“It may technically have been running away, but I was trying to distance myself from a toxic situation.”
“Actually, I don’t blame you. Even before all the stuff with Mum and Dad, I knew I didn’t want to stay on the Sunshine Coast. It’s too small.”
Josh signals a waitress over and orders for us. When she’s gone, I look at my brother.
“So, you enjoy Sydney?”
“I do. I love the anonymity. But I still have my colleagues from work, and the guys I play tennis with. It’s a good balance.”
“You think I’ll be okay if I live down here?”
“Sis, I know I give you a hard time, but you’d fit in anywhere. Sydney’s no scarier than Brisbane. Besides, you lived in the freakin’ Valley! That’s not exactly white picket fences and manicured lawns.”
“True.”
“I think you’ll settle in just fine.”
“Thanks. I hope so.”
I really do.
EIGHT
I wake up at 5am the next morning. I was way too excited to sleep last night and only managed about five hours in total. Still, after a strong coffee and a cool shower, I’m awake, and new-job adrenalin is coursing through my veins.
I’m going to have to wear the same outfit as yesterday afternoon, because I didn’t bring any other corporate clothes with me, and I haven’t had a chance to go shopping yet. After smoothing out my hair, I brush my teeth and start the walk towards the studio. It’s freezing cold, but I barely notice.
I was too jumpy to eat breakfast, but I’m wondering if it’s wise to start a new job on an empty stomach. Being on reception will probably mean I don’t get a decent break throughout the day. It will be interesting to see how well I work with Jules. I hope he’s as fun and cool as he seemed yesterday.
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