Chapter 3: Nervous
Mu Chen felt the knots in his stomach, no words came out of his mouth as he stared at the floor. He felt like his lips had been glued together and he was unable to speak.
"Are you going to stand there all day? Stop wasting my time." She snapped at him. Her voice was soft but powerful. Her words sent shivers along his spine, and he felt drops of sweat appeared on his forehead.
And even when she was sitting in between two men he could feel the power and confidence radiating from her. Mu Chen lifted his gaze from the floor and looked up to meet her striking amber eyes. She had removed her glasses so he could finally see her face now. The pictures on the internet were not enough to describe her beauty.
He drank in her features. She was shockingly young, maybe a year or two younger than him, but the hard set of her shoulders indicated a maturity and confidence beyond her age.
Ash brown hair framed her oval face, with thick lips and large amber eyes.
Mu Chen dragged his body, and under her piercing gaze, sat down in front of the panel.
Her eyebrows puckered, and her succulent thick lips turned down into the smallest frown as she went through his resume which the man had brought it earlier before he came in.
"Mr. Mu, why should I hire you?" She asked, looking up from the folder.
Mu Chen's heart raced in his chest while he replied, "W-well ma'am I have all the skills except the experience listed in the job description, and I'm confident that I can make an immediate impact on your company-"
Bai Lu raised her eyebrows; clearly, she was dissatisfied with the answer.
"What else?" She interrupted him.
"I-also am very flexible and adaptive to learning new things."
"Well clearly, you didn't learn about this company before coming." She said, her voice was cold, and he almost trembled. Mu Chen realized that she wasn't going to let him off that easily.
Mu Chen took a deep breath, "I did ma'am." He replied as her intense gaze burned through him.
"Hmm….so what did you learn about the CEO of this company?" She asked.
Panic rushed throughout his whole body, and he found it hard to maintain eye contact with her. So he kept his head high as his eyes looked at the wall behind her.
"She is hardworking, determined and-"
Bai Lu scoffed, and Mu Chen blinked. A lovely pink hue rose to his cheeks from the embarrassment. His mouth worked to form a response, but none was released from his lips. He felt so embarrassed.
"What? You were confident a few minutes ago calling me all kinds of names. What were the names again?
Ah Ruthless Queen, Witch, Demoness, She-devil. Was that the information you learnt about the CEO of this company?!"
She yelled at him, and he trembled. The men sitting beside her gasped, and they looked at Mu Chen with pity.
Mu Chen bowed his head in shame. He knew what he did was wrong, and she had every right to be mad. So he just sat there, not able to utter one word.
"If you don't have anything to say, get out!"
Mu Chen blinked, and he flushed in embarrassment.
He stood up and opened his mouth to say something, but it remained soundless with shame. He had a lot he wanted to say, but he wasn't someone who said what was on his mind. Being an introvert who had anxiety really sucked.
He walked towards the door, and just as he was about to open the door, he walked back to the panel.
"I-I know what I said in the elevator was wrong b-but I-I was panicking and wanted someone to talk to.
Then…y-you came in the elevator. I t-hought talking to you would help soothe my nerves and I never insulted you. It was what was on the internet that I was sharing. You asked me first, remember?
I'm sorry and I really need this job, so please just give me a second chance and at least let me finish this interview like everyone else."
Mu Chen said all that in one breath, and he exhaled deeply once he was done talking. Only God knows what he had gone through just to say these words. His heart was racing, and he licked his lips nervously as he waited for her decision.
He saw an amused glint pass through her eyes as she stared at him. Silence enveloped them as everyone waited for her decision.
After what seemed like forever she nodded, "Alright, sit down."
A smile appeared on Mu Chen's face, "Thank you, thank you." For once he was proud of sticking up for himself.
"Hmm, sit down." She said.
Mu Chen sat down. He feigned a confident look like the one he had practiced a million times in the mirror. He met Miss Bai's piercing eyes, and for a brief second, his confident look flattered.
"You have exceptional grades and portfolio here, Mr. Mu. Actually the best we have seen today so why haven't you been able to land a job for two years now?" She questioned leaning back in her chair.
"W-well ma'am you know how nepotism and corruption is in the business world. Any- place that I had-applied to gave…. preference to people- they knew or to the rich kids and they were at least 2 years working experience requirements."
Mu Chen clenched his fists as he replied. He was trying so hard to appear confident but he was failing miserably.
Bai Lu nodded and continued asking a series of questions. Even though he was flushing and stuttering throughout, he was able to answer all of them correctly.
He saw her nodded in appreciation, and a smile graced his lips.
"Do you get nervous really quickly Mr. Mu?" She asked suddenly as she closed his folder.
"Umm, what…. No not at all" he said trying to form a decent sentence.
"I'm starting to think I make you nervous."
Mu Chen blinked and fought back a blush, but he lost. He felt a hot blush settle on his cheeks.
He didn't know how to react to her question. He averted his gaze but felt hers on his.
"So tell me, do I make you nervous Mr. Mu?"
"I-I yes ma'am. I-know I'm not the most confident person and I get nervous…easily but I-know working under.. you will help boost my confidence and make me more collected."
For a split second, he thought he had seen her smile, but it disappeared so fast that he thought he was hallucinating.
"Alright. You can leave; we will contact you if you get the job."
"Thank you for giving me another chance and I'm really sorry. Actually-y-you're not bad- like the villain the internet- paints you to be. I'm sorry that I-I judged you without even meeting you first." He blushed and pulled his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
Without looking at her or waiting for her response, he left the conference room.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone