A Job Interview ~ Story Time

Hello! Now that the urethane eyes finally arrived, I was able to take photos of the lingerie I made for Venezia, and share the story that goes with it. From now on, I plan to periodically share short written stories... maybe sort of chapters, of the "models" story.

I also plan on taking new profile photos for all my dolls, with their proper urethane eyes. I will be also sharing a basic info post on each of them (with the NaNoWriMo format, probably), so I can link them on the profiles instead of the 10 facts. I know Merry, Coco and Cookie have the facts already, but... I sort of want to start on a clean slate, with better photos, now that I have the worlds a little more organized and planned.

Anyways, today is about Venezia. Please, forgive any spelling issues, you all know English is not my main language. Here is a photo, and the story is under the cut!

A Job Interview

She was nervous, but somehow she managed to remain still, her legs crossed and her back relaxed against the chair. She didn’t want to look too eager, too nervous but neither show as not giving the situation the appropriate interest. Being a model required a lot of acting, and not only on the runways or photo-shoots.

Nevertheless, job interviews were always a dilemma. For her, they would usually end up in similar ways, with the same excuses repeating over and over. 'I'm sorry, but we are not looking for plus sized models', or 'You are beautiful, but your accent stands out a little for commercials', or the newest one, from a makeup company: 'I'm sorry, but we do not offer such... dark make up'. Venezia sighed at the thought of the high pitched voice of the woman who said that.

The waiting room of the HR office at MOMO was big, mostly painted in white and decorated with some framed photos of their most famous models and outfits. They were a recent brand, not older than five years, but their popularity had risen fast and steady. Each campaign included more and more segments, ranging from lingerie, to sport wears, cocktail, black tie… Nadia, her Manager, had been very insistent on sending her portfolio after MOMO announced they would be recruiting new models.

“They are different from other brands” she had said, but Venezia didn’t hope for anything. She had had too many rejections, too many disdainful gazes and pitiful smiles thrown at her. She closed her eyes attempting to wash out the bad thoughts, re-positioning on her chair while keeping her peaceful facade. The other woman that had been waiting with her had been long gone, and she wondered if at any time the assistant was going to announce that the HR Manager had something else to take care of.

“Miss Venezia Reyes?” asked a female voice, and Venezia nodded, smiling politely. Now she was going to ask her to reschedule the interview or plainly go away. “Miss Favre will see you now”, the assistant added, signaling with her right hand the door to the main office.

"Thank you".

She stood up, and followed her to the door. After a customary knock on the door and a brief introduction, the short woman left closing the door behind her, and leaving Venezia with her boss. Miss Favre was tall, with golden skin and brown hair with a blonde ombre dye on the edges. She rose her head, and her blue eyes focused on the newly arrived woman.

"I'm Renée Favre, HR Manager. It is nice to finally meet you", she said, standing and indicating a chair in front of her desk. Although she was smiling, Venezia felt it was rehearsed, carefully studied on a mirror so that it would look good on magazines.

“A pleasure to meet you too” answered the model, walking and accepting the chair.

"We got the portfolio your manager sent us." said Renée, after a moment of silence. She made a tentative pause, leaving the phrase to hang up on the air, and taking the chance to study her interviewee’s face. Venezia had dark brown skin and perfectly wavy hair, and Reneé was sure none of her model had those amazing hazel eyes, contoured by such shiny green. However, she only saw interest and expectation on her face, correct responses to her small introductory revelation. “I must confess… you did impress me. You have talent”.

If the previous silence had left her having to remember herself to keep breathing because anticipation was rendering her unable to, this time the words she heard threatened to make her heart race out of her chest. That couldn’t be so easy, she thought, without knowing how to answer. What should she do? Thank her? Smile? Not a fraction of a second had passed when Favre spoke again.

"Tell me, what do you know about MOMO?"

That was an easy question. Nadia had made her practice it several times, so the answer was carefully tailored. "MOMO is a fairly new brand, but you have already made five successful Fashion Shows, and you recently started a division on Australia. This company is always proud of their innovation on fabric blends and the distinguishable style you have". Her voice was deeper than the common female voice, and her mixed accent on French made her hate herself internally. It would always come up whenever she got nervous.

"You know us well!" Renée laughed softly, hoping to ease the situation. "But why do you want to work with us?" Maybe that question will get her the answer she wanted.

Another question that Nadia had pointed out and she made a note to thank her later, if things went well. "I have been following you shows and clothing for a long time, and I really like the clothing you offer. This brand is always trying something new, always making something different". Venezia’s voice was steady and sincere, since she honestly believed what she was saying. "But most of all… I love the diversity I've seen on your models. You are changing the fashion industry, and I want to be part of it".

Reneé studied her while she spoke, that smile never leaving her face. When Venezia finished, the HR Manager reclined herself on her executive and cushioned chair, hands resting on top of the desk. The silence did not last for more than a second, but it was an eternity to the younger woman, who wondered if she had said anything wrong. The last thing she wanted was to ruin this chance, and considering that the interview had started so well…

"We have four types of models". Favre said, interrupting Venezia’s thoughts. “At any rate, we only have three Dolls, as we call our highest paying models. Their contracts have more time restrictions than any other, they are always present on the runway… Dolls open or close segments, get the most outfits, and so on. They are also our face for magazines and the website". Reneé numbered their responsibilities as if sharing something trivial. She made a pause, giving a chance for Venezia to process what she was saying. "There are two intermediate levels, and the bottom one are newcomers.” She continued. “As a newcomer, you’ll need to make test photoshoots for us, for two different segments of our brand. One will be a solo, and you will have to work with other models for the second one".

For a second time in such short timespan Venezia felt the air leaving her lungs, and her control fading over. She was startled, surprised to say the least, and couldn’t find a way to answer properly. She straightened her back, opening her mouth to just say something, but Reneé moved one of her hands, to silence her.

"Of course, we will pay you for these jobs, but they won't guarantee a contract with us” She clarified, and then lowered her hand once again. “However, after that, we will have another meeting and discuss your chances to be part of our brand”. The last word ended almost happily, with a slightly higher tone than her otherwise calmed and precise voice. “What do you think of my offer? Do you have any questions?”

The final part shocked Venezia, she smiled slightly lowering her head, and a rebel strand of hair came to her face. She welcomed it because it allowed her to brush it away with a hand, while thinking on the never ending list of possible answers. Of course she was interested, but she had so many question she could easily arrange a whole Q/A session by her own. But she knew better. So many failed interviews and an increasingly desperate manager had taught her to be select and keep her cool.

“I think it is a great offer, and would like to accept it” she finally said, to which Reneé changed her smile to a more genuine one and, for a moment, she looked… relaxed? Venezia did not gave it much attention, as her racing heart and overjoyed mind only allowed her to think in one thing at the time. “I do have a question. For which segments would I be working on those tests?” she would love to know with who she will do the second one, but she decided against asking it, as it would probably be not decided yet.

Miss Favre expression changed to contempt. She looked pleased. “Your solo photo session will be for our lingerie line, and the second one will be for cocktail attires. We have new outfits coming for both of them…” The truth was that she also wanted to add new faces, but she couldn’t say such thing. It was too much of a compromise, too high the risks of Venezia failing on her test jobs. “Regardless of how your test ends, if we consider your photos good enough, we will use them for our website and magazine".

"I think that is perfect. Do the photo shootings have a date?"

"Yes, they have. My secretary will give you all the information you'll need". With these words, Reneé moved to her left, grabbing the company’s phone, and calling her assistant. After that, she stood on the same moment the woman from before knocked and opened the door. This time, Favre offered her hand to Venezia. She reciprocated, standing and shaking it firmly but softly. "We look forward to working with you, Venezia" were her last words, wrapping the interview up.

"Me too, and thank you for the opportunity"

Venezia turned to the door and followed the short woman that was expecting her. She was eager to arrange the dates of the shoot, as well as get out to the street to call Nadia. Finally, things were starting to look better since she had moved to Paris. She hoped to land some contracts, start building her portfolio and maybe move to a better apartment. Maybe that was the start of all of it.

Well, this was all for today! I hope you enjoyed reading, and that it wasn't too long... do you think this length is OK? Would you prefer it shorter? Or with photos in between? I'm asking because, well, this is the first time I share something so long, and you know English is not my first language.

Anyways, thanks for reading the wall of text, and hope you are having a great day! Next weekend will feature a new interview!