Chapter 431 Recognized At The Interview
After helping Isabella to the sofa, Olivia remarked, “Isabella, as you are the Clinton family’s future daughter-in-law, you have to take good care of yourself.” After that, she glared at Oscar and declared, “I know how badly Oscar treated you yesterday. Hence, I’m getting him to apologize to you. Given that you’re engaged, it’s better to make up as early as possible.”
Isabella played along. “Mrs. Clinton, I don’t blame Oscar, as I was the one who got on his nerves, causing him to throw me onto the ground. Now that I’ve admitted my role in the matter, I hope you won’t blame Oscar for it.”
Olivia patted the back of Isabella’s hand and praised, “You’re such a sensible child!” She then turned to Oscar and asserted, “Oscar, apologize to Isabella now. As a man, you should be brave enough to admit your mistakes instead of being wishy-washy like a lady.”
When Oscar shot Isabella an icy glare, she felt a chill down her spine. Tugging at Olivia, she protested, “Mrs. Clinton, please don’t say that.”
Olivia gave her a reassuring look before adding, “Oscar, if you are a man, apologize to Isabella.”
Suddenly, Amelia stepped in front of Oscar with a faint smile on her face. “Mrs. Clinton, if you’re talking about what happened yesterday, I was there too. I recall Oscar being trained in martial arts before. As a martial artist, he is sensitive to being attacked from behind. Unfortunately, Ms. Walker wasn’t aware of that when she hugged him, causing Oscar to shoulder throw her by reflex. Given that Oscar had acted on impulse, I would like to apologize to Ms. Walker on his behalf.”
Isabella’s face drastically changed.
After giving her the side-eye, Olivia replied frostily, “Amelia, since when have you become so brazen to make decisions for my son?”
Amelia simply smiled.
However, Olivia found her smile to be especially jarring. She felt nauseated by the fact that Amelia seemed to be wearing a mask.
She sprang up from the sofa and snapped, “Amelia, this is a family affair, can you leave us first?”
Oscar pulled Amelia behind him to shield her. “Dad, Mom, I still have a meeting at ten thirty, and I’m hungry now. Hence, can I have my breakfast first?”
Having heard his request, Olivia had no choice but to suppress her rage.
After Oscar led Amelia to another sofa, he gleefully opened the lunch box she brought as if they were alone in the room. Inside the box, there was an array of delicious snacks.
In front of the other three, Oscar praised the food on purpose, “All of them look delicious! I’m so tempted to finish everything in one bite.”
Amelia handed him a fork and affirmed, “In that case, you should have more.”
With the fork in hand, Oscar began to wolf down the food.
Meanwhile, Isabella, who was filled with jealousy, bit her lip so hard that she didn’t realize it had become bruised.
Olivia tugged at Owen and suggested, “Owen, let’s go now. Our son is big enough and doesn’t listen to us. Staying here any longer will just cause us to burst a vessel.”
After the three of them left, Amelia closed the door behind them. The smile on her face gradually faded as her mood turned grim.
She knew that Olivia’s resentment for her had deepened.
Putting down his fork, Oscar clasped his fingers with Amelia’s. “What are you thinking about?”
Regaining her senses, she forced a smile at Oscar and shook her head. “Nothing really, I was just thinking about the past.”
Cognizant of what was going through her mind, Oscar comforted her, “Don’t overthink it. Just give my parents some more time. I’m sure they will forgive you.”
Picking up the fork, Amelia fed Oscar some food. “I feel as if there’s a knot in my heart. Prior to this, Mom loved me to bits. But after two years, everything has changed. Now, she simply sees me as a despicable person.”
“You foolish gal!” Oscar tousled her hair affectionately before changing the topic. “Didn’t you say you were going for an interview? Have you decided to go back to work?”
“I have an appointment with an advertising firm at eleven.” As Amelia continued to feed Oscar, she added, “After being bored of doing nothing for the last few years, I hope to get myself out there again. You won’t object, will you?”
Looking longingly at her, Oscar swallowed the food he was chewing. “How am I to object when you have already gone ahead with it? To be honest, if you really want to work, you can do so here at Clinton Corporations. As my special assistant, we will be working together all the time.”
Cupping her chin, Amelia tried to hold back her smile. “If I work here, your mom will be upset. Moreover, I’ll prevent other ladies from flirting with you while others will gossip about us. So do you think it’s even feasible?”
After scratching her nose, Oscar didn’t insist.
“If you’re unhappy at work, you can always come back. Since you enjoy designing, I can get the company to set up a design studio for you that focuses on advertising designs. What do you think?” Oscar proposed.
Amelia shook her head to decline.
“Oscar, there’s no need for that. After leaving the workforce for such a long time, I want to find out how much I can do now.” Amelia continued, “Even though it’s nice to live a comfortable life, I would like to make something of myself with my own hands still. After all, who knows when I might lose my eyesight again.”
Oscar gaze darkened in response.
After giving him a peck, Amelia reassured him, “Oscar, don’t overthink it. I was just making a casual comment.”
Reaching out his hand, Oscar pulled her into his embrace and buried his head on her neck. “Amelia, no matter what happens in the future, don’t leave me.”
Patting him on his back, she promised, “I won’t.” However, neither of them could have expected how cruel fate could sometimes be.
After a passionate embrace, Amelia took the elevator and left.
When she arrived at the company where the interview was, she noticed that it was a medium-sized advertising firm.
Upon entering the building, she informed the receptionist of the purpose of her visit and was ushered to the interview room.
Inside, she saw two men and a woman sitting behind a table. The moment she saw the lady, Amelia found her familiar. But when she thought about the picture, she figured otherwise. As for the lady, she was stunned to see Amelia and called out in reflex, “Amelia.”
Amelia found her voice to be familiar too. Even if one’s appearance has changed, one’s voice would never do so.
She probed, “Rory?”
The lady nodded.
Amelia was taken by surprise. She couldn’t believe the shabbily dressed girl in the picture had turned into a fashionable and professionally-looking lady. However, Amelia could see that she still looked a tad dowdy. Nevertheless, she still hoped that her gut feeling was wrong. After all, Rory still carried the innocence of a village girl not too long ago despite being a little vain.
“Rory, is she your friend?” One of the male interviewers tried to ingratiate himself with her.
Rory nodded and replied, “Amelia helped me out once when I was in a situation.”
“Since she is your benefactor, let’s keep this interview simple. Nonetheless, we’ll still need to go through the motions.” The man who sat in the center had exquisite features and looked around twenty-eight or nine years of age. When he looked at Rory, his eyes glistened with affection.
As the interview began, the three of them asked straightforward yet professional questions which Amelia answered eloquently. Even though she had been out of the industry for two years, her understanding of design concepts was just as sharp. In Carter’s words, she was a very talented designer.
As the two men were extremely satisfied with Amelia, both of them stood up with the man in the center extending his hand. “Ms. Winters, congratulations and welcome to the firm. Even though you have not worked for the last two years, you have impressed us with your professional knowledge. Also, you graduated from a good university, and I believe you will be a valuable asset to the company.”
Shaking his hand, Amelia replied with a smile, “Thank you. I’m delighted to be joining the firm.”
After exchanging pleasantries, the two men left, leaving Amelia and Rory alone.
Rory walked up to Amelia and asked in surprise, “Amelia, are your eyes cured? I did return to visit you but was met by a young couple instead. They said that you had moved and sold the house to them. Why didn’t you tell me when you left? I was really sad then.”
Amelia replied, “My ex-husband found me a donor with compatible corneas. Hence, he took me to Anglandur for the operation. After the transplant, I returned to the city with Tony. Given what a rush it was back then, I didn’t have the chance to inform my friends in Beshya. Anyway, didn’t Tiff arrange for you to work in an advertising firm there? How did you end up here?”
“I was transferred here by the company about a week ago. Three days ago, I went back to Beshya wanting to thank you, but didn’t expect you to have moved,” Rory explained as she held Amelia’s hand.
Actually, Amelia wasn’t comfortable holding hands with people she wasn’t close to. Hence, she resented it when Rory intruded into her personal space. Nevertheless, she didn’t express what she felt.
“It looks to me that you’ve changed a lot and settled into your job. Congratulations, you are now a true white-collared worker.” Unfortunately, the innocence you previously had is now gone.
“Thank you, Amelia. I didn’t expect after all that had happened, we would end up as colleagues. In a way, this might be fate at work, and I’m happy for it.” Rory was delighted at the thought. “Amelia, since I have no relatives or family here, you are just like a sister to me. Whenever you’re free, we can have a gathering with Tiffany too.”
After a brief pause, Rory casually commented, “Tiffany and Derrick are probably getting married soon, right? After all, they have already been together for two years.”
Amelia replied, “They’re doing well and have indeed discussed the topic of marriage.”
When a look of disappointment flashed across Rory’s face, Amelia managed to catch a glimpse of it. However, she didn’t bring it up.
Now that Amelia’s eyes had recovered, her mind had grown sharper and more sensitive to situations like this. Moreover, life’s lessons had also taught her to hide the resentment she felt toward others. Since Rory didn’t show her greedy side, Amelia figured there was no basis for her to dislike Rory.
Given that they were reunited after so long, Rory took the rest of the day off so that she could have coffee with Amelia. She even declared that they were celebrating their reunion. Nevertheless, Amelia didn’t say much other than going along with a smile.
Sitting in the café, Amelia listened patiently to Rory telling her stories about her career.
