“Kim Seyun?”

All the noise in the hallway immediately dissipates after the lady who just poked her head out of the small opening between the meeting room and it’s opened door calls my name, as if my name is some kind of a Voldemort-like-taboo name. It makes me feel worse than I already do, the day had been scorching hot to begin with.

The excessive sweating that I’ve been experiencing ever since the moment I’ve stepped foot into the building today might have something to do with the building’s poor air conditioning—being it an uncharacteristically hot spring day. It’s a little odd that a supposedly filthy rich company is experiencing this minor kind of problem, but it’s the last thing I should be thinking when the hushed whispers finally dies down into a complete silence with every step I take closer towards the meeting room.

“Is there something on my face?” I ask conspicuously, unable to hold my annoyance back. Plus, I’m more than curious to find out why is it so shocking that a woman like me is having a job interview.

The two women standing in front of the receptionist along with the receptionist herself who had been so obviously staring at me previously appears to be shocked that I would acknowledge their impoliteness so blatantly, and they break into a series of coughs accompanied with sheepish, embarrassed smiles, waving their hands off in unison towards me.

“Then why were you and the rest of the people in this room staring at me like I havea pile of smeared on my face?” I push, unsatisfied with their patronizing answer. It’s not like I want to make enemies with my possible future co-workers on the day of my actual interview, but I’m not one to take from people—especially when I’ve woken up on the wrong side of the bed today only to hear that my job interview that’s supposed to be scheduled for next week gets randomly pushed to today.

Hearing my words, everyone else that has been hanging around the perimeter suddenly seems to be occupied with their electronic devices or suddenly has somewhere else to go. One of the women actually seems to be offended by my poor choice of words and looks like she’s ready to give me a piece of her mind, until her friend places a warning hand on her shoulder to calm her down.

“We’re sorry, none of us thought that our staring would make you uncomfortable like this. It’s just that it’s a rare sight to see people get job interviews on a Tuesday, hence the commotion. Good luck with your interview,” the