For Sam, there was something slightly intimidating about large corporations. Perhaps it was the vast, open spaces of marble and brass elevators, the enormous windows overlooking from the 17th story an immaculate plaza below. Perhaps it was the power suits, and the executives downing an egg roll as they listened intently to their messages on cell phones like looked more like laptops. For a boy from Boise, Idaho, this was as alien as Mars.
There was something also thrilling about the prospect that he might become part of this word, that he would be like an eagle in a nest, overlooking the entire skyline of Manhattan.
But first he had to get this job.
And to do this he had to pass the interview.
Sam was sweating as the elevator climbed and climbed passing floors eight, then nine, then ten . . all the way to the 17th floor. He was alone. He studied his black Italian-made shoes, looking for an imperfection in his recent polishing. He felt like he was in a costume, his blue suit just not fitting quite right; it had been the suit he wore for his best friend's wedding. Sam had put on at least ten pounds since then. Would they notice? The person giving the interview? Would she notice?
He looked down now at his appointment card: it said simply, "Theresa Golapenis" 4 p.m., room #1757." He could feel his armpits become humid as he thought about his interview. It actually felt a lot more like an execution.
The elevator opened, and he blindly walked out, like he was being ejected from a machine. He turned right quickly, just because he wanted to appear that he knew exactly where he was going, even though he didn't. It didn't take long for someone to catch on.
"Can I help you?" a woman behind a hexagon-shaped mahogany desk said.
"Um . . I'm here for an interview . . room . . ," He looked down at his appointment card. "Room 1757."
"I'll buzz you in." The woman smiled as though she was earning $100 just for that perfected smile technique. There was just absolutely no way to tell if she was being genuine or fake.
He walked through glass doors imprinted with the company logo, like a watermark, and was told to follow a hall down to room 1757 . . and that Ms. Golapenis would be waiting." He did as he was told and moved quickly, since his watch just turned 4 p.m. He felt beads of sweat grow under his arms, as he remembered his father's words, "No one is ever on time. One is either early, or one is late." He definitely wasn't early, so that meant . . .
"Are you Sam Anderson?" a voice immediately said, as soon as he walked through the door of room 1757.
"Yes."
"I'm Theresa Golapenis. Please sit."
He did as he was told, and his armpits now felt wet—not just moist—but wet. He wondered if he should have walked up to shake her hand. He already felt that he blew the part about eye contact, and a firm handshake. This wasn't going well.
"So why do you want to work for Fidelity?"
Okay, this was good; he had completely prepared for this question. His answer would be in three parts. The first related to the prestige of Fidelity as a company; the second related to the idea of challenge, that he enjoyed challenges the position would bring; the third point . . .
As his brain was racing to collect and order his thoughts, he noticed that Theresa Golapenis had uncrossed her legs . . and -- there is no way he could be seeing this -- he saw what looked like -- of course he knew it must just be a shadow, but there was . . texture . . hair? His mind was playing tricks . . and his heart pounded like he had just gulped four shots of espresso. What was that third point?
"Mr. Anderson?"
"Yes: well there are two . . no three reasons I feel Fidelity is . . "
Theresa Golapenis was looking at him sternly now with a clipboard and pen ready, and she leaned back in her chair, as if preparing to write down his response. As she did so, her knees widened, and what he thought was shadow clearly wasn't. He bounced his eyes away so she wouldn't notice, but he flipped them back one more time just to be sure.
Beneath her navy blue short skirt, he saw, clearly this time, a fluffy patch of pubic hair with a tan slit running from the center of the patch to the bottom. His heart began to pound like a base drum, and he moved his eyes to the ceiling, pretending he was deep in thought.
"Mr. Anderson . . you said there were three reasons?"