“Ok, sell me this pen,” said Karl. They had spoken a bit about what Andrew could do. Karl had quizzed him on some history facts, to which Andrew had answered just fine. And now, it was time for the final test.

Andrew looked the pen from all angles and shrugged.

“Pens are overrated. I’d rather sell you a pencil,” Karl quirked an eyebrow at that. Andrew rummaged in his bag, where he always kept a pencil, and took it out. It was a simple B1 pencil with an eraser. “Pencils can be erased. Pens need a corrector, and that makes for sloppy note-taking.”

Karl’s eyes twinkled at the game, but, he nodded.

“For how much?” Andrew looked at the pencil from all angles. Then, he shrugged.

“I’ll sell it to you for ten dollars. It is brand new and can be used for professional sketching,” Karl’s lips quirked up.

“Yes, but it looks used,” Andrew smiled at that.

“Once or twice. It also has a blue eraser. That is lucky,” Karl nodded.

“Eight dollars,” offered Karl, and Andrew shook his head.

“No can do. It was bought from last year’s Christmas fair. It is limited edition pencil,” Karl chuckled at that. Andrew was yet to end up without things to say for the pencil. So, Karl decided to throw him a curveball.

“It was still made in China, though,” Andrew looked at the pencil and grinned.

“It says here it was made in Italy. They are renowned there for their fine wares. If you buy this pencil, you won’t be disappointed. Besides, everyone knows that Italy has some of the best painters. So, it is important for them to make good quality sketching pencils. A matter of honor, one could say,” Karl stopped to think on that. His grandson loved to draw. He would be happy to get a professional pencil. Wait a minute…

Karl caught himself considering buying the pen, and his eyes narrowed. The kid was good. But Karl was an old fox. He had some tricks up his sleeve.

“Yes, but I need a pen for singing documents. It is just not official to sing with a pencil,” Andrew took the pen that was lying on the counter. It had a painting of a woman in a Victorian style dress on it. Clearly, it was meant for tourists.

“This is quite the famous paining,” the truth was, Andrew had no idea whether it was or not. He was swinging it. “I believe the painter got knighted for it.”

Karl looked at the pen with suspicion. Was that the truth? The girl on it looked British, so the story could be a true one. And Andrew had answered all the history questions correctly. Granted, they had been in American history. But the boy had a couple of diplomas for international history contests. So, he probably knew this stuff.

“So, what should I buy?” Asked Karl, throwing Andrew another curveball.

“One must buy what they need. However, it will be a lost opportunity if you miss out on buying this special Christmas fair pencil. Especially since it was bow as a part of a charity program,” Karl nodded. He expected his cashiers to sell more than one thing. If Andrew had given up on the pencil, he would have told him that he wasn’t the right one for the job. “Perhaps you would like to test the pencil and the pen? To see if they are the right fit for you?”

Karl grinned at the suggestion, and he was given the pencil and the pen. Then, Andrew pulled out a notebook, which spoke eloquently for how prepared he was for this interview, and handed it over.

The shop owner had to admit that the pencil was nice and nimble. Something a child could use, even. And the line he made was thin, and there was nothing out of order for it. Then, just to humor Andrew, he tried the pen. Even though he already knew how these types of pens wrote.

“These are both good. If I buy them both, do I get a discount?” That was the last curveball Karl threw. He didn’t give discounts. He simply couldn’t afford to. If Andrew said yes, then he simply didn’t know anything about how Karl ran this store. Despite having come here for years.

“I am sorry, sir,” Karl noted pleasantly, that Andrew was so deep in his role he was pretending not to know Karl. “It is against the store’s policy.”

Karl grinned widely and extended his hand.

“I will be buying your pencil for my grandson,” said Karl as he shook Andrew’s hand. “And you better be here bright and early at seven thirty tomorrow morning.”

Andrew’s face split in a grin and Karl handed him a ten dollar note. Andrew tried to push it back, but Karl was having none of it.

“You sold it for ten dollars, so, take them. I expect that you make me countless sales. Andrew, the suit is not needed for your day-to-day work. You are not in a jewelry store. Come in more casual clothes tomorrow,” Andrew nodded. “Still, it was a nice touch for the interview. Showed me right from the start you were serious.”

“I took your offer seriously, yes. I…would it be ok to ask you what the pay is?” Karl nodded and spoke.

“Fifteen dollars per hour. You may work for more than eight hours. That will count towards overtime, and you will get seventeen dollars for those hours. I won’t force you to work overtime, however. But, it would be a pleasant touch,” Andrew nodded. He could potentially get two more hours of overtime per day. Soon, he would have enough money to get himself entered a college or a university.

“Would you mind if I open the shop during the weekend?” Asked Andrew. The shop had never been opened on weekends as far as Andrew could remember. If Mr. Roman couldn’t pay him for that, he supposed he could always babysit as a side gig.

“You prefer not to rest? Well, I won’t be the one to put a damper on your desire to work. Your weekend time will count as overtime. I think you deserve it for the initiative. You have today free. Have a wonderful day, Andrew,” Andrew nodded and got out of the shop, the chime of the bell now sounding even happier than before.

He giggled as he made his way home. He needed to email the matron of the orphanage, so she could tell everyone. Furthermore, he was sure they would be happy for him.