Finding Out the Truth
By: Yordanzi Eliosa
There was once a girl named Eileen. She struggled with a few things like any other teenager, but what she wanted was to get a job because she didn’t like to ask her parents for things because she knew how hard her parents worked for it.
Page:1
Eileen asked one of her guy friends if he knew of a job she could apply for.
“Yes, I do! Where I work at, they’re hiring,” Elijah said.
“Can you please help me get a job interview?” Eileen asked.
“I’ll try my best to see, but aren’t you a daddy’s little girl?” Elijah asked.
“Yes, but I just see how my parents buy me and my sibling things, and I just don’t want them to do that anymore because I know I can get a job,” Eileen said.
Page: 2
Eileen had to tell her parents that she was looking for a job. Eileen’s hands were sweating a lot, and she was tapping her feet.
“Mom and Dad, I have to tell you something important,” Eileen said to her parents.
“What is it honey?” Mom asked.
“You know you can tell us anything,” Dad reminded her.
“I want you guys to understand that I’m doing this because I don’t want you guys to
worry about somethings,” Eileen said.
“What is it? You're getting us worried,” her parents said at the same time.
“I am getting a job!” Eileen stated.
Eileen’s mom and dad's mouths were wide open because of the news. Eileen was just relieved that she told her parents her plans.
Page: 3
Elijah was smiling so big you could see his pearly white teeth
“Do you have good news?” Eileen asked.
“Yes, I do!” Elijah said.
“Tell me! I just want to know already,” Eileen wondered.
“My boss said he will interview you,” Elijah announced.
Eileen's hands were covering her mouth. She couldn’t believe what Elijah told her. Eileen couldn’t believe that she was getting a job interview. She was in shock the whole time Elijah was telling her what to bring for the interview.
Page:4
The whole day Eileen was so happy that you could even see her dimple. Eileen went home and had to tell her parents the great news.
“Mom and Dad, I have wonderful news!” Eileen announced.
“What is it sweetheart?” her mom wondered.
“Tell us already,” her dad stated.
“I have a job interview!” Eileen shouted.
Eileen’s parents had tears running down their faces. They couldn’t believe that their first daughter was already having a job interview. Her parents knew that she would have a great interview, and she would get the job.
Page:5
The next day, Eileen went for her job interview. Eileen had butterflies in her stomach because she was nervous. Eileen was thinking negatively the whole time she was in the car.
“Everything is going to go well,” her dad yelled out of the car.
Eileen entered the restaurant, and she went looking for Elijah.
“You have to go over there,” Elijah informed Eileen. “Good luck!” Elijah whispered.
As Eileen entered the office, she started tapping her feet a lot. Eileen introduced herself to the boss and told him why she should have the job.
Page: 6
“I can see that you don’t have experience,” the boss questioned.
“Yes, I don’t have experience, but I learn fast,” Eileen replied.
“Come back tomorrow, and I’ll put you to a test,” the boss stated.
Eileen explained to her parents what happened, and they motivated her to do a good job the following day. Eileen went back to the restaurant the next day.
Page: 7
“You’re back! Put your things in the locker and attend to the people that come in,” the boss told her.
Eileen went to put her things in a locker and went to attend to the people. Eileen had to show that she was polite, patient with customers, and hard working to her boss. The boss noticed that Eileen was doing a wonderful job, so he decided to talk to her.
“Eileen, I have seen that you’re putting in a lot of work,” the boss mentioned.
“Yes, I have,” Eileen answered.
“You have the job!” the boss told her.
“OMG! I have the job?” Eileen replied.
Page: 8
Eileen went home and told her parents that she finally had a job.
“You see mija, hard work pays off,” her mom stated.
“That’s good news! When are you going to start?” her dad questioned.
“I am going to start tomorrow!” Eileen replied excitedly.
Page: 9
Eileen was speechless the whole time her parents were talking to her. Eileen thought it was just a dream. She couldn’t believe that she had a job. Eileen, of course, had to tell Elijah because he was the one who helped her in the first place to get the interview. Eileen decided to tell him face to face and not over the phone because she wanted to see his reaction.
“Elijah, I have to tell you something,” Eileen announced.
“Okay, what is it?” Elijah questioned.
“Thank you for everything. You’re a good friend,” Eileen stated.
“I know I am. Just tell me Eileen,” Elijah wondered.
“I have the job!” Eileen replied.
“OMG! I knew that you were going to get it,” Elijah exclaimed.
Page: 10
Elijah and Eileen had been friends since they were little, and he saw that she really wanted a job; that’s why he helped her out. Elijah invited Eileen to eat ice cream at her favorite place, and of course, Eileen couldn’t resist going. When Elijah and Eileen went to get ice cream, they decided to do cheers with their ice cream in honor of Eileen’s new job and for their friendship.
Page: 11
A few days later, Eileen started her first day of work, and it was very fast because there were a lot of customers to attend to. Eileen always went to work with a big smile to show that she enjoyed working and helping people out, at least she was happy to be at work until something happened in her personal life and at work.
Page:12
“Why aren't you smiling like always?” a customer questioned.
“Someone in my family passed away, so that’s why I haven’t been smiling,” Eileen replied.
“If you’re not fine, then take some time off. I think your boss would understand,” the customer stated.
Eileen went to talk to her boss. She told him that she had to take some days off from work. He didn’t give her the time off because they didn’t have enough people to cover her shifts. Eileen understood what he said, so she decided not to take time off from work.
Page: 13
Eileen decided to go back to work the next day no matter how she was feeling. When it was time to leave, she noticed that Elijah dropped his paycheck. Eileen picked it up, and curiosity beat her because she opened Elijah’s paycheck without him knowing. Eileen saw the last digit of Elijah’s paycheck.
Page:14
“Elijah, wait up,” Eileen yelled.
“Hurry up, before I leave you behind!” Elijah responded.
“You dropped your paycheck,” Eileen mentioned.
“Why is it open? Did you open it?” Elijah questioned.
“I stepped on it when I was walking; that’s why it’s open,” Eileen replied.
Eileen felt so bad for lying to Elijah because she never did that, but she had so many questions on her mind. Eileen was up all night wondering why Elijah's last digit of his paycheck was a nine but on her paycheck it was a two. Eileen wanted to ask Elijah the next day at work, but she knew if she did that he would know Eileen was lying to him when he asked.
Page:15
Eileen went to work like normal; she forgot about everything. Eileen was thinking that she was seeing things wrong, and that’s why she saw the nine. While she was attending to customers, she saw the lady from the other day.
“I thought you were going to take some time off work,” the customer said.
“My boss told me that there’s not enough people to cover my shifts, so I decided not to,” Eileen replied.
Eileen decided to tell her about Elijah’s paycheck because it seemed like she cared about Eileen a lot.
Page: 16
“I saw my friend’s paycheck, and I think he earns more money than me,” Eileen announced.
“I read an article about women earning less money than men,” the customer replied.
Eileen thought about what the customer said. When Eileen got home, she decided to do a little research about it, and she saw that it’s possible for women to earn less money than men. The only thing that she didn’t understand was why women were getting treated differently? Eileen knew she had to stand up for herself and other women.
Page: 17
Eileen went to work, and instead of helping the customers, she went to talk to her boss about what she found out the day before. Eileen knew what she was doing was very brave, and she was also doing it because she didn’t want other women to experience what she had.
Page:18
“Do you know that you pay Elijah more money than me?” Eileen questioned.
“Yes, I do know. I do that because he’s a white male,” the boss replied.
“That’s not fair! So you’re paying me less just because I’m a woman?” Eileen wondered.
“Not only that, but you’re Hispanic,” the boss answered.
Eileen had flames coming out of her ears. Elijah didn’t understand why Eileen was mad. They knew each other very well, and he knew something was bothering her.
Page: 19
“I saw your paycheck!” Eileen informed Elijah.
“Why did you lie to me?” Elijah questioned.
“I don’t know, but just know that you earn more money than me,” Eileen replied.
“What? No, we earn the same. We both have the same job,” Elijah explained.
Eileen explained everything to Elijah. Elijah was shocked when he found out that pay often depends on your gender and ethnicity. Elijah showed Eileen his paycheck, and they did the math. It showed that Elijah earned fortynine dollars more than Eileen.
Page:20
After Elijah found out the truth, he decided to give his boss two choices, and he had to pick one.
“You have two options: pay Eileen the same amount of money as me, or I will quit this job,” Elijah announced.
“Elijah, you can’t make me choose,” the boss replied.
“It was nice working with you,” Elijah stated.
“No, Elijah, don’t leave. I will pay Eileen the same amount as you starting this week,” the boss informed Elijah.
Page:21
Elijah decided to talk to Eileen, and he told her about the conversation with the boss. Eileen couldn’t believe that he did that for her. Eileen knew he did that because he felt bad about her making less money than him.
“Eileen, you’re brave for standing up for yourself!” Elijah told her.
“I did it for myself, but also I also did it for the women in the world,” Eileen stated.
Page: 22
“Stand up for yourself and other people when you notice something wrong.” That’s the quote Eileen tells people when she tells them about her experience with her first job. Everyone should get paid equally, no matter their gender and their race, because they all work hard and put an effort into their job. You should always stand up for yourself because that’s how people can hear your voice and what you have to say.
Page:23
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This is a book that talks about a girl named Eileen, who starts looking for a job. Eileen knows that her best friend Elijah could help her look for a job, but she’s not sure if they're going to hire her because she doesn’t have any work experience. Do you think Eileen was hired?
Part of the proceeced of the book sales will go to an organization for women to get paid equally.