Indulgence

Four

Monday morning came and Fatima found herself up at exactly 7:30 am to prepare for her everyday routine but stopped short when she picked up her phone with confusion written across her face. After contemplating on whether or not she should make contact with Zac or not she decided on sending him a simple message the next morning and unfortunately stopped there.

404-910-1130
Hey, this is Fatima from the bar last night.
9:08am

There was no response. Feeing like a complete idiot for wasting her own time, she retreated back into her own protective shell.

Not wanting to dwell on the situation, Fatima went on with her daily routine and began getting herself ready for work. Walking into her office, she immediately spotted her blazer wrapped in a clear protective wrap hanging on her office mirror."At least she got the stain out" she uttered sitting down at her desk before calling her secretary in.

Leaning backwards in her chair she glanced up folding her hands on her desk "Go"

"Good morning Mrs Wright" Ashley started before setting a warm cup of tea on the coaster "Your morning tea is here when you are ready for it. Facility three called this morning about their supply order being late. Facility five called a possible Covid patient that they took to the hospital on Sunday. The worker has been instructed to quarantine but coverage has already been worked out. Your party planner called to set up a meeting for 1, the message is on your desk. And I can go ahead and take your lunch order now if you're ready"

"Grilled chicken Caesar, water with lemon. Anything else?"

She glanced over her notes "That is all"

"Would you like me to—"

"Close the door on your way out. Absolutely." Fatima checked out of their conversation the second her lunch order was place and powered up her computer. Lifting her cup towards her lip, she could smell the difference in her usual tea. She called Ashley back into her office

"What's in this cup?"

"It's a lemon ginger tea. I thought maybe—"

"How much do you make a week Ashley?"

"Um..about 1000 after taxes."

"Do you think that I pay you that much money for you to think for me?"

"N-no Mrs.Wright."

Fatima rolled her eyes "So get this shit out of my face and bring me the same tea I drink every morning. Can you handle that or do I need to find a more competent assistant?"

Tears filled her eyes as she grabbed the tea up, spilling a few drops on her desk. Ashley gasped and quickly grabbed a napkin "I'm so-"

"Just..leave the damn cup and remove yourself from my line of sight. Don't let me see you again today."

"Should I—go home?"

"At this point...I don't care. Get out of my office."

Her phone vibrated against the wooden desk notifying her that shehad an incoming call from her mother. Fatima rolled her eyes and quickly declined the call. This certainly wasn't the day that she wanted to talk to anyone in her family. They didn't always see eye to eye and ever since she announced to her parents that she was divorcing Ian, it had been a non stop journey to get them to understand that he was no walk in the park.

After her 5:30 meeting, Fatima found no exact reason to stick around for the day and decided to head towards her empty home. Seeing an incoming call from Dani, she rolled her eyes and declined her request as well. A relentless Dani, dialed her back once again