𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐘𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐒 𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐄 (Completed)

Chapter 14 - Job Hunt

"Mom, I can't stay. Ayokong mag-TNT!" Sabi ko. 

"So iiwan mo lang ako dito?" Umiyak siya. Gusto niyang manatili dito sa Germany after Dad died.

"Ba't mo ba kasi gustong manatili dito? Pwede namang umuwi tayo pareho sa Pilipinas."

"Wala tayong aabutan sa Pinas! Magugutom lang tayo dun!"

"We can use Dad's insurance money para bumili ng bahay, o kahit condo. My modeling job is paying me well. I can look for a regular job as well. Kaya lang naman ako walang stable na trabaho kasi pabalik-balik ako dito." Paliwanag ko sa kanya.

"Nangangatwiran ka pa! Sa tingin mo you'll just magically land on a stable job pag-uwi mo?"

"Hindi ko sinabing madali. At hindi 'yon ang punto ko," Sabi ko, "Ayokong mag-TNT. May college degree ako, Mom. Gagamitin ko 'yon!"

"What's going on here?" Pumasok si Charles sa sala nang narinig na nagtatalo kami ng mom ko. Charles is Dad's bestfriend dito sa Germany. He helped us in organizing Dad's funeral and burial.

Pumunta si Charles sa tabi ni Mom para itahan siya. He placed his hands on my mom's shoulders. 

It can't be...

"Why are you shouting at your mother?" Pinagalitan ako ni Charles. 

"Mom, is he the reason why you're staying?" Hindi ko pinansin si Charles at patuloy na nakipag-usap sa mom ko. Hindi siya sumagot. Yumuko lang siya at hinawakan ang kamay ni Charles sa kanyang balikat.

"I can't believe you!" Nagwalk out ako sa kanila. I took my suitcase at lumayas na sa bahay na iyon. I contacted Timmy. Umutang ako sa kanya para makabili ng ticket ko pabalik sa Pinas. Sa airport na ako natulog. 

I can't believe my mom was having an affair when my dad was dying. Hindi ba siya kinilabutan?

While waiting for my flight to board, naghanap na ako ng mga pwedeng applyan pagbalik ko ng Pinas. I finally have the liberty to apply for a regular job. Hindi na ako babalik sa bansang ito.

Nakita ko ang ad ni Angel sa Facebook. Hindi na kami nag-uusap but we're still friends on Facebook. Their company is looking for a Junior Designer. I sent her a private message for the first time in many years.

Me: Hi! Are you guys still hiring?

Angel: VAN!!!! Hhuhuhu kumusta ka na? yep we're still hiring! :D

Me: Okay lang naman ako Angel. Ikaw? How's life? Qualified ba ako sa position na yan? Hehe

Angel: ok lang din ako :D namiss kita sobraaaaa! oo naman more than qualified ka nga eh

Me: Sila Gab at Jake, kamusta na?

Angel: ang yabang na ng mga mokong na yon hahaha Gab is working in Australia, nasa Japan naman si Jake nakatira. nag-asawa sya ng Japanese

Me: Wow ang yayabang nga hahaha! Sge Angel, pa-board na yung flight ko. Its nice talking to you :)

Angel: wow sosyal nagtravel-travel ka na pala ngayon hahaha sige Van. Have a safe flight! miss u ulit! :D

Ang sarap sabihin sa kanya ang lahat ng pinapagdaanan ko ngayon. I miss my friends so bad. Ano kayang nangyari kung hindi ko sila pinagtabuyan noon? I was so stupid and selfish.

Nag-apply na ako sa company na pinagtatrabahuan ni Angel at na-interview na rin nila ako. Start-up lang pala sila. Okay naman ang in-offer nila na starting salary pero hindi parin mas competitive kagaya ng malalaking kumpanya. I didn't wanna settle. Naghanap parin ako ng ibang job offers na mas mataas ang sahod.

I came across this job advertisement sa isang job hosting site. Swak na swak sa skillset ko. Mataas rin ang sahod. And what's even better is it's from a prestigious company—Hues & Selec Studios.

I updated my resumé and design portfolio to make it more impressive. Kailangan ko talagang makuha ang trabaho na ito. They finally responded to my application and invited me for a phone interview. Nagresearch ako ng todo about sa kumpanya nila. Inaral ko din ang mga common questions sa interview.

"Hi, Savannah. My name is Cheska, HR Associate of Hues & Selec Studios. I will be the one to conduct your interview." Sabi ni Cheska sa kabilang linya.

"Oh hi Cheska, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Thank you. Pleasure to meet you too. So, can we start?"

"Yes of course, go ahead". Tumango ako kahit hindi naman niya 'yon nakikita.

"So we've received your application on LinkedIn. I've read in your resume that you've graduated as cum laude, correct?"

"Yes."

"Okay, can you tell me more about your process in attaining that?"

"Well, studying in a prestigious art school was already enough to drive me to become the best version of myself. The training they have at Granity School of Design and Fine Arts was tough. The school has done a marvelous job in honing our competitive drive while also developing our creative and technical skills. Equipped with my innate competitiveness and desire to be the best that I can be, it was not too hard to graduate with flying colors."

"That's great to hear. Most of our designers here in Hues & Selec graduated from Granity and most of them do have an impressive work ethic and easily stand out among their peers. But it says here in your resumé that you graduated in 2018. While you have the honors and all, how come you only applied for a position related to your degree two, maybe three years after you graduated? Have you gone under any skill training during those three years?"

Should I tell her the truth? Sabi ng karamihan, hindi dapat maging completely honest sa job interviews as they might take it the wrong way. But I can't think of any alibi in such a short time so...bahala na. "Well, right before I graduated, my dad had a stroke attack. I had to fly to Germany time and time again. I had to attend to my family's needs, I couldn't really commit to regular job during those years."

"How's your dad now?"

"Unfortunately, he passed away."

"I'm so sorry to hear that," Sabi ni Cheska, "Well, does that mean you'll be staying in the Philippines for good?"

"Yes, this time I can finally be available to work full-time."

"That's good to hear. Also, it's not really an issue but...can you speak or at least understand Filipino?"

"Yes po, marunong po."

Tumawa siya ng mahina sa kabilang linya. "Okay, that's great! So after this, I will be sending your design portfolio to the Department Head of our Creative Team. After that, we will be informing you through e-mail if you are eligible to proceed to a secondary interview. The Creative Department Manager will be the one to conduct the interview which means we need you on-site. Will you be able to visit our office if invited?"

"Yes, of course."

"That's good. So, after that, you will need to take a skill assessment test. And if you passed, we will proceed to the signing of the job offer. Alright?"

"Alright." Sagot ko sa kanya.

"Ok, that concludes the phone interview. It was nice talking to you, Savannah. I hope to see you soon and work with us. Ba-bye!"

Shit, I'm so freaking excited! Ito na 'yon!