Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The woman’s tone was so distinctive and familiar that Samantha practically knew who it was as soon as she heard it.

Sure enough, she raised her head and immediately saw the beautiful woman who she met at the airport and Barrkjaer Island. She could not hide her surprise when she exclaimed, “It’s you!”

People used to say that it was rare for chance encounters to happen more than once, so it never crossed Samantha’s mind that her ‘chance encounter’ with that beautiful woman would be so frequent within such a short amount of time.

The woman smiled gently, “It’s such a coincidence that we meet again.”

She glanced at the seat next to Samantha and asked, “May I?”

“Oh sure, go ahead.”

The woman sat down gracefully and looked at Samantha from the side before asking, “Are you here for today’s interview as well?”

‘As well…’

Samantha became even more surprised. “I am. It seems we were destined to meet again.”

Had either of them been a man, it would have been the start of a romantic story.

Harmony nodded with a smile and said, “Let me introduce myself. My name is Harmony, Harmony Johnson.”

Harmony already knew Samantha’s name as the latter replied out of courtesy, “Samantha. Samantha Larsson.”

“Pleased to meet you, Samantha.”

“The pleasure’s mine.”

Harmony’s black pupils glanced across Samantha’s face and she asked all of a sudden, “How’s your recovery going, Samantha?”

The sudden question stunned Samantha for a moment.

How could Harmony know about her injury when no outsider was supposed to know?

She frowned in confusion and could not help asking, “You… How did you know about my injury?”

“Ah?” A fleeting self-conscious expression appeared in Harmony’s eyes but her smile soon returned and she said, “I went to the hospital the other day and happened to see you wearing a hospital gown. Your complexion didn’t seem very good so I assumed you were ill.”

“I see. Well, thank you for your concern. I’m fully healed now,” Samantha replied. She then turned to look at the woman and ask, “Why were you at the hospital? Were you feeling unwell too?”

Harmony shook her head gently. “I wasn’t the one who was unwell. Someone…very important to me got injured and I went to visit him in the hospital.”

‘Very important person…’

Samantha could not resist asking, “Is he your boyfriend?”

Harmony raised her gaze, looked right into Samantha’s eyes, and emphasized each word of her sentence, “He’s…someone I love dearly.”

She pursed her red lips lightly and a radiant glow stained her cheeks. “And he…loves me dearly too.”

Samantha knew how fortunate a person would be if they met someone who reciprocated their love.

Harmony seemed to be one of those lucky people.

She smiled and said, “I hope that man recovers soon.”

Harmony chuckled. “Thank you. He already has and the hospital has discharged him.”

“Really? Well, that’s good.”

As Samantha spoke, the thought of Timothy appeared inexplicably in her mind. Timothy was also injured a few days ago and had been discharged two days ago because he had since recovered.

The subject of Harmony’s affections seemed to have been discharged at the same time as Timothy.

Could it have been…the same person?

When that thought occurred in Samantha’s mind, she laughed in spite of herself for thinking about something so ridiculous.

It just so happened that an announcement was made in the waiting hall. “The interview will be starting now. Please keep your numbers in mind. We’ll call you one by one. Please come in for the interview when your number is called. We will not entertain anyone who misses their call.”

As soon as the announcement was broadcasted, everyone shifted their focus to the upcoming interview.

Samantha chucked her ridiculous notions away and concentrated on making her final preparations.

Timothy, Old Madam Barker, and Aunt Julia were all so confident in her when they cheered her on. She felt obliged to pass the interview and make sure she did not fail to meet their expectations.

Samantha was number 19 and Harmony was number 20. When number 19 was called, Samantha stood up.

Harmony said to her, “Break a leg, Ms. Larsson.”

Samantha smiled in response. “Thank you.”

She walked up to the door of the interview room, took a deep breath, then pushed the door open and walked in.

Her ability to withstand pressure and stay calm was extremely strong, probably because she had to deal with Timothy so many times before. When she faced the interviewers, she could cope with no difficulty whatsoever and completed the interview without feeling any stage fright.

It was Harmony’s turn after her. When they passed each other, she said to Harmony, “Break a leg, Ms. Johnson!”

“Thanks.”

Harmony walked in with poise.

…

The results were made available at eight o’clock the night after.

30 candidates were selected for the audition, but the interview was even more unforgiving. Half of the candidates had been screened out, leaving only fifteen spots.

Samantha was already on edge when she woke up the next morning. Her heartbeat accelerated even more when it was nearing eight in the evening.

Her hands were trembling as she held the laptop and clicked on the email, but at that moment, she did not dare to read it for fear that she had failed to make it.

Footsteps were heard at the door and Samantha was slightly surprised to see Timothy’s return.

The man undid his tie and walked toward her.

He sat on the sofa, pulled her into his embrace, then lifted her chin and kissed her before replying, “The results of your interview are coming out today, aren’t they? I have to come back and comfort you in case you don’t make it.”

Samantha did not know what to say to him. She gritted her teeth and punched his chest, “I’m going to make it through.”

“Is that so?” Timothy cocked an eyebrow and narrowed his eyes at the computer screen. “If you’re so confident, why are you scared to look at the list?”

“Who told you I was scared to look at the list? I just didn’t haven’t gotten round to it yet,” Samantha retorted. She then forced herself to look at the screen and see the list.

However, she was afraid to go on any further after barely seeing the first name. She eventually decided to give up trying to read further and covered her eyes while saying to Timothy, “Okay, I admit it. I’m scared to read it. Could you…help me to check? Then tell me if I made it.”

Timothy smiled dotingly. “Okay, I’ll help you take a look.”

His black pupils glanced quickly through the list.

Ten seconds later, Samantha’s heart was starting to feel more anxious when she did not hear any answer from him. She could not help but say, “How is it, Timothy? Am I on the list?”

The man still remained silent.

Samantha’s heart sank and she wondered if she had failed to make it.

She opened her eyes slightly and glanced at Timothy’s expression. When she saw the odd expression on his face, she gulped and turned to the screen to read the list.

The name on the first line was not hers and neither was the name on the second. It was not until the second-last line that she saw the name, Samantha Larsson.

She had passed the interview!

Samantha placed both hands over her mouth and she could not hide the excitement in her eyes.

She looked at Timothy and said in a slightly reproachful tone, “What kind of expression is that, Timothy? Shouldn’t you be happy that I passed the interview?”

Timothy did not seem to have heard Samantha’s words and did not answer her. Instead, his focus was on one particular name on the list..