Amira had been scoring the written tests for two hours when she finished the stack. The candidates had been numbered, not named, so that nothing could influence the marking. Number seven was the best by a wide margin.
阿米拉批了两个小时的笔试卷，终于批完了那一摞。考生都只有编号，没有姓名，这样就不会有任何东西影响评分。七号是其中最好的，而且遥遥领先。
Only when she opened the key to schedule the interviews did she see who number seven was. Gisela. The name stopped her hand halfway to the keyboard.
直到她打开对照表安排面试，才看到七号是谁。吉泽拉。这个名字让她的手停在了半空，离键盘还差一点。
Six years earlier, the two of them had ended things calmly, in a kitchen, with a list of who would keep which pans. Gisela had accepted a job overseas, and Amira had stayed. They had exchanged a few warm messages afterward, then none at all.
六年前，她们两人是平静地分开的，在一间厨房里，列了一张单子，写着谁留下哪些锅。吉泽拉接受了一份海外的工作，阿米拉留了下来。后来她们互发过几条温暖的消息，再后来就一条也没有了。
Amira read the score sheet again. She had given Gisela the top mark before she knew whose work it was, and she was sure it was deserved. However, she was no longer sure she could judge the interview without noticing every pause, every smile.
阿米拉又看了一遍评分表。她在不知道是谁的卷子之前，就给了吉泽拉最高分，而且她确信这分数是应得的。可是，她不再确定自己面试时能公正地评判，不去留意每一次停顿、每一个微笑。
If she lowered a score out of caution, that would be unfair. If she raised one out of nostalgia, that would be unfair too. Either way, a stranger's work would be measured against an old story.
如果出于谨慎压低一个分数，那是不公平的。如果出于怀旧抬高一个分数，那同样不公平。不管哪一种，一个陌生人的成绩，都会被拿去和一段旧事相比。
So she walked down the corridor and knocked on her director's door. "I have to step back from this hiring," she said. "One of the candidates is someone I used to be close to. I can't be neutral."
于是她走过走廊，敲响了主管办公室的门。“我得退出这次招聘，”她说，“有一位应聘者是我以前很亲近的人。我没法保持中立。”
Her director nodded without asking for details. By the end of the day, a colleague had taken over the interviews, and two weeks later the panel agreed unanimously. Gisela was offered the job and accepted.
主管点点头，没有追问细节。当天下班前，一位同事接手了面试，两周后评审组一致通过。吉泽拉得到了这份工作，并且接受了。
Amira kept away from the second-floor kitchen for most of Gisela's first week, until an email appeared in her inbox. It was short: "I heard you stepped aside. Could I buy you a coffee?"
吉泽拉入职的第一周，阿米拉大部分时间都躲着二楼的茶水间，直到她的收件箱里出现了一封邮件。邮件很短：“听说你主动回避了。我请你喝杯咖啡好吗？”
They met at the café on the corner, where the tables wobbled. For a minute they discussed the weather, as if neither of them could afford any other topic.
她们在街角的咖啡馆见面，那里的桌子摇摇晃晃。有一分钟，她们聊起了天气，好像两个人都没有余力聊别的话题。
"Did you know when you marked my test?" Gisela finally asked.
“你批我的卷子时知道吗？”吉泽拉终于问。
"No. I found out afterward."
“不知道。是后来才发现的。”
"Would it have changed anything?"
“知道的话会有什么不同吗？”
"Probably," Amira said. "I might have marked you down just to prove I could. And you? Would you have applied if you had known I was the manager?"
“大概会吧，”阿米拉说，“我也许会故意给你扣分，只为证明我做得到。那你呢？如果你早知道我是负责人，你还会来应聘吗？”
Gisela turned her cup slowly on the saucer. "I might have withdrawn. Which would have been a mistake, because I wanted that job."
吉泽拉慢慢转动着碟子上的杯子。“我可能会退出。那就错了，因为我想要那份工作。”
"Your test was very good," Amira said.
“你的卷子答得很好。”阿米拉说。
"I know." Gisela smiled. "I'm trying to be humble about it."
“我知道。”吉泽拉笑了，“我正努力对这件事谦虚一点。”
When the bill arrived, they both reached for it, and Gisela won. "Same time next week?" she asked.
账单送来时，她们俩同时伸手去拿，吉泽拉赢了。“下周同一时间？”她问。
"Ask me after your first performance review," Amira said, and picked up her coat.
“等你第一次绩效评估之后再问我吧。”阿米拉说着，拿起了外套。
