Chapter 14: The Lucky Applicant
Vanessa decided to take a bus to the company headquarters to finalize her contract since there was enough time before 6 pm. Throughout the bus ride, she kept on giggling in excitement like a carefree girl. Her laughter was very contagious, and people sitting close to her moods were also uplifted.
The thought of having a well-paying job that would not affect her studies was a fantasy to her before, but now her fantasy was turning into reality. She was seated by the window where she could see fast fleeting images of the streets as the bus moved by because she was in a good mood, she was able to appreciate how beautiful the environs were for the first time since she moved here to attend college.
She alighted from the bus at the nearest bus stop to her destination and commenced strolling to her intended destination. It was a short walk of about 10 minutes after she saw herself standing in front of a grandiose skyscraper. It was one of the tallest in Port Marino, which is the city where her university is situated.
Sterling Tower as it was called was a business complex which contained multiple business branches and headquarters in Port Marino on its multiple floors. It had 85 floors and the family fantasy headquarters was located on the 27th floor. It was a very busy building with people moving to and fro. The first floor was pristine white from the sparkling white marble floor to the roof, pillars and some internal walls. The perfect blend of glass walls along with white walls designed with modern architecture made it very charming.
The first floor had a wide, welcoming hall with people loitering around. There was a receptionist's table at the left corner of the hall. Vanessa did not bother to go to the receptionist because she was already aware of the address of the Family Fantasy office from her invitation email.
She headed straight for the elevators at the end of the wide hall. Vanessa could see her reflection on the Polish white marble floor. She was wearing high-waisted dark blue jeans trousers with a long sleeve milk colour body com crop top, it had a short zip in front from the neck to her breast which Vanessa left half open because she did not want her clothes to be revealing in class.
The outfit was paired with a black bomber jacket which had just a few design details in white. Her long golden locks were tied into a high ponytail so that it would not inconvenience her. The look was then completed with an old pair of black and white Jordan which was gifted to her a few years ago on Christmas by Zayn.
The Sneakers was the most expensive gift her little cousin had gotten her, which he claimed he bought with his savings then. Zayn insisted he got the Jordans for Vanessa because he observed how her eyes always sparkled in delight whenever she saw a new pair of sneakers. Which was not a lie, Vanessa did love sneakers more than heels because they seemed more practical to her.
The elevator was stuffy, with plenty of people inside, but it did not bother Vanessa. She inputted her floor number and then pulled out her AirPods to listen to music. By the time the elevator arrived on the 27th floor, it was still cramped up. She stepped out and located the floor receptionist stand. Family Fantasy was a sizeable company, so it occupied the entire floor.
" Good afternoon ma'am, welcome to Family Fantasy, how can I help you." The receptionist was very professional. It was a young lady a few older than Vanessa maybe around 24 years old. She was dressed in a black skirt, a blue cotton shirt with some intricate design and a family fantasy logo on the breast pocket, paired with a check boyfriend blazer. Her hair was tied into a neat bun. She had a soft welcoming smile. Vanessa could not see her shoes because she was seated behind the stand.
" Hi, I am Vanessa Clarkson. I was sent an email informing me that I passed the interview process and was instructed to come over to sign my employment contract before 6 pm today." Vanessa Swiftly explained her purpose in a single breath.
The receptionist was already expecting this reply because of how gorgeous Vanessa looked. She was secretly jealous of her. ' God created some people on a good day.' she thought. "Come please give me a minute, let me confirm the information."
Vanessa nodded in acknowledgement. The receptionist's fingers started rapidly moving on the keyboard and mouse.
"Oh, you are the lucky one. Miss Vanessa Clarkson, you came out as the 5th person from the selection process," gushed the receptionist with her eyes bright at the desktop screen. She smiled reaching her eyes, it was a convincing smile showing she was genuinely happy for Vanessa.
" Thank you. I was indeed lucky." Vanessa chimed happily. She returned the smile, she considered herself lucky because when she was announced as 7th in the physical Interview she had lost all hope of being selected.
" Since you are pretty, I will tell you a secret. I heard a rumor that the 4th lady submitted false verification documents including her medical reports, so she was disqualified. I also heard the person who replaced her after the 5th was moved to the 4th, The replacement was not even the 6th person but the 7th which one of the interview judges that was sent to secretly gauge the applicants' appearance and conduct vouched for her. We all thought the judge was exaggerating, but after seeing you in person Miss Clarkson I can confirm her words." The receptionist could not help but gossip to Vanessa about how she made the list from rumours she heard around in a low whisper. She indeed had a big gossiping stomach.
Vanessa was amazed by the revelation, so the lady was a secret judge, she was very lucky to leave a good impression on her that day. Come to think about if her memory serves her right, the person who was 4th in the physical Interview name was Bertha Alexis, she was the same lady Alyssa had mistakenly spilled a milkshake on. The woman was quite shady, it was obvious from how she exploited Alyssa.
After the receptionist was done gossiping with Vanessa her playful vibe was gone, she cleared her throat and looked very professional again. How she changed her, how she carried herself amused Vanessa who involuntary released a chuckle. ' I guess everyone working here are excellent actors.' Vanessa commented in her mind.
" Alright, let me make a call then I will get back to you." The receptionist informed someone on the phone about Vanessa's arrival it was not a long telephone call, but in a few minutes she was done, then she replied to Vanessa. " Since coincidentally all 5 selected applicants are here including you. You all arrived relatively at the same time, the contract signing and a little brief is about to start. Someone will be here to take you to the conference room."
In less than a minute, Vanessa had taken a seat in the reception area. The lady who vouched for Vanessa arrived. " Miss Clarkson." The lady called out, Vanessa stood up immediately.
" Good afternoon, ma'am." She greeted the lady. " Good afternoon, please follow me, everyone is waiting for you." The lady led Vanessa to the conference room where she saw some familiar faces including Alyssa and Brandy along with the others from the interview. There were also some strange faces there too.
Under the guidance of a lawyer provided by the company, the contract was explained to them, including the pros and cons. There were a lot of restrictions concerning your interaction with customers along with a set of rules, if violated comes with a heavy fine.
They were to gain 40 percentages of their earnings and if they exceeded their monthly target of bookings they would be awarded a bonus. Their first contract has a 2-year tenure, which would be renewed if 60 percentages of your target was met.
The contract came with a signing bonus, which was immediately transferred to them after the contract was signed. The new escorts, including Vanessa, were all given a senior colleague to help them in case there was a need for advice and guidance.
Vanessa and Brandy were placed under the same lady. This outcome was not welcomed by Alyssa because she wanted to be paired with her goddess, but she could only grunt and complain about it to herself.
Alyssa instead was paired with somebody who was ranked number 3 in the male category, Maverick under another lady. Maverick, coincidentally was the same person who helped in stopping Alyssa from fighting with Brady during the interview. He was a handsome champ with obsidian eyes and his hair dyed silver. Alyssa found it strange that somebody would be given the same mentor with a guy, but it was later explained that family fantasy had more female escorts than male escorts.
After the contract was finalized, the new escorts were instructed to leave with their respective mentors. Vanessa's mentor's name was Mabel Hunt, who used the pseudonym Kelsey Kings because all escorts had a different name to hide their identity.