Chapter 22

 22:
“All done.” She flashed the interviewers a self-assured smile as she handed over her sketch. “Cynthia Keller. My name’s in the bottom right corner.”
The interviewers accepted it with polite professionalism.
“Thank you. You may wait outside.”
The other candidates exchanged uneasy glances. Cynthia had finished already? Only thirty minutes had passed, and most of them weren’t even halfway through their sketches.
Completing a design in just half an hour seemed almost impossible.
Their growing anxiety rippled through the room.
“What do I do? I still have so much left to sketch.”
“I shouldn’t have picked this concept. It’s too late to start over now.”
“This is a disaster. I’m completely screwed.”
The restless murmurs prompted one of the interviewers to issue a sharp reminder.
“Please maintain silence. You have twenty-seven minutes remaining.”
Linsey, oblivious to Cynthia’s early submission, remained engrossed in her work, her pen moving steadily across the page.
As the minutes ticked by, the others gradually completed their designs and turned them in, filing out one by one.
With just a minute left, Linsey was the only candidate still seated in the room.
An interviewer glanced at the clock.
“You have fifty seconds remaining.”
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“I see,” Linsey murmured, her voice steady as she signed her name at the bottom of her design. She rose from her seat and walked forward, placing her work on the desk.
“I’m done. Thank you.”
The interviewer gave her a small nod of acknowledgment.
Linsey stepped out of the interview room and leaned against the wall, letting out a quiet breath as she sat down.
Cynthia spotted her immediately, seizing the moment to taunt her.
“Linsey, what took you so long? Did they throw you out because you couldn’t finish in time?”
The sycophants who had rallied behind Cynthia earlier eagerly joined in.
“I bet they did. The interviewers probably won’t forget her anytime soon.”
“I bet she just scribbled something last minute.”
Linsey’s brows drew together in irritation. She shot them a cold look and snapped,
“Shut up. You’re all too loud.”
With that, she closed her eyes, refusing to give them any more attention.
Cynthia clenched her fists, seething, but with CR Corporation’s staff nearby, she had no choice but to swallow her anger and glare in silence.
Once all the candidates had submitted their designs, the interviewers began sorting through them, matching the strongest pieces with resumes to determine the sole designer they would select.
The wait felt endless. When the interviewers finally emerged, all the designers gathered anxiously.
Linsey, having rested for a bit, suddenly felt her nerves creeping in. Her pulse quickened, her breath shallow as she fixed her gaze on the interviewer holding the final decision.
Beside her, a designer whispered to Cynthia,
.
.
.