Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69877 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69877 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Because there is no logical reason I should be nervous about the upcoming interview. Intellectually, I know it’s just a formality. Dr. Samuel himself has indicated that we’ll be discussing compensation, which tells me the job is mine for the taking. That come summer term, I’ll be a Northern California resident.
But that doesn’t erase the fact that emotionally, my stomach is tied up in knots. Exposing that part of myself to my family, while a little foreign, feels surprisingly… good.
“Did you know I went to school with Dr. Chang?” my father asks from beside me. “He’ll be on the interview panel. You’ll have to tell him I say hello. It might help.”
“Sure, of course.”
“I heard Dr. Lena Goodrich will be there as well. I’d like to pick her brain,” Brian adds.
“You’d like to pick more than that,” Jamie mutters under his breath, this time failing to dodge my mother’s swipe.
My dad ignores his sons and gives me an encouraging smile. “I think your chances are looking good. And even if this doesn’t work out, you’ll still land on your feet. Find something even better.”
“I appreciate that.”
“Don’t thank me. It’s just the way the stars have written it,” my dad says, looking adorably eager as he pulls his phone out of his blazer pocket. “Check this out. I did your whole chart reading, and there’s just no way the next few months don’t hold good things for you.”
I lift a hand to my lips to hide my affectionate smile before looking around the table. “So, exactly how aggressive was my tantrum on Christmas?”
“You reminded me of lightning,” says my sister-in-law Emily, sounding a bit awed. “I thought you were going to channel all the energy from the cosmos and set the table on fire.”
“You were intense,” Jamie agrees. “It was cool, actually. Seeing beneath the mask a bit.”
I smile because I know it’s true. I had been living behind a mask.
And the past few months, I feel like I’ve just started to shed it. To learn who Miranda really is, and yet…
My disastrous conversation with Archer continues to loop through my head.
Wondering if I haven’t really grown at all. If I’m not just putting on a different mask and calling it improvement.
“You were quite right to chastise us,” Mom says, surprising me. “We’ve had some uncomfortable conversations since December, and I think we’ve all come to realize that our family value system can be a bit… rigid. And we got you something. A little good luck token.” My mother slides a small box across the table.
“Oh. Wow,” I say, because my family is not big on spontaneous anything, and now I have a spontaneous visit and a surprise gift.
I tug the white ribbon and flip open the tiny jewelry box to find a pair of delicate gold earrings. “Scorpio,” I say, recognizing the constellation’s symbol immediately.
“I know that you’re a Virgo sun,” Mom says quickly. Nervously. “And the important one, the ascendant, is Gemini. But your aunt told us that your moon sign was a Scorpio. And that the moon sign is what rules your emotions. Your intuition. It’s what we’ve all seen you get in touch with this past year. And it’s what we’re all most proud of. Whatever happens tomorrow… we’re proud of you.”
Through a haze of tears, I see the rest of my family nod in agreement. And I’m touched by the gesture and the sentiment. More than I’ll probably be able to express.
But as I stare down at the delicate jewelry, I also have to bite back the protest that I haven’t earned these. Not really.
I may have faced some of the emotions. But not the big ones.
Not the ones that could change everything, if I were only a little bit braver.
TAURUS SEASON
Prepare for a seismic shift, Gemini, as the world will throw you a curveball challenging the very foundations of your belief system. This upheaval is uncomfortable but necessary; use its momentum to build new, stronger truths.
The next evening, my 5 p.m. flight to California is delayed by a couple of hours. Since the actual interview isn’t until tomorrow afternoon, I shouldn’t be worried. Even with the delay, the three-hour time difference means I’ll land in San Francisco well before midnight. Plenty of time to get a good night’s sleep and review my notes in the morning.
And I’m not worried. Not about the flight, or the interview.
I’m just… jittery. I have been all day, and I can’t quite figure out why. My brain has gone through every scenario, reassured me that everything is in order. But it feels a bit like logic is warring with instinct.
And instinct seems to be getting the edge, because the closer I get to my flight’s departure, the more I sense that something’s off.
Or maybe it’s just my horoscope. A seismic shift?