The Sphere

Chapter 3: Norah Versus Shazlin

The crisis reached its peak when Zara decided to cancel Shazlin's appearance on a women's television program and replace her with her niece, Norah. I vividly remember the day when Shazlin came out of Zara's office with red, teary eyes. She rushed past me without even looking in my direction.

"What's wrong, Shazlin? What did Zara do to you?" I asked, concerned.

"Zara replaced me with Norah for the interview," Shazlin explained. I was taken aback by this news because I knew Norah quite well. Every time I saw her, she reminded me of Amanda from Ugly Betty. I had no idea what Zara was thinking, but I hoped everything would go smoothly.

On the day of the event, Zara had yet another surprise in store for us. I could hear the sound of her heels tapping on the floor as she approached my office.

"Uh, oh..." Shazlin muttered, clearly feeling the same mix of anticipation and anxiety that I did. We had no clue what Zara wanted this time.

"Oh! There you are, Shazlin! What are you doing here with Marina?" Zara asked, her tone making it difficult to discern whether she was calm or angry, as both sounded eerily similar.

I was about to respond, but Zara interrupted me. "Shazlin, Marina. Can you two go to the studio today?" Zara's words sounded like a question, but it was clear that it was actually a command. There was no room for a "no" answer, only "yes, yes, and yes!"

Shazlin and I exchanged glances, silently communicating our thoughts if we had the power of telepathy. I slowly asked, "Why do you want us to go, Zara?"

Zara repeated my question, her face showing a hint of irritation. "Why do I want you to go?" She asked, her face turning slightly red.

"I thought Norah was supposed to go," Shazlin chimed in, seeking clarification.

"I want you to be her bodyguards," Zara explained.

"Bodyguards?" Shazlin and I asked in unison, our faces now displaying confusion. We exchanged another glance, this time with furrowed brows.

"Yes. Is there a problem?" Zara inquired.

"No, but..." Shazlin attempted to voice her concerns.

"That means there's no problem. Let's go now!" Zara abruptly left, leaving us stunned by what we had just heard. I quickly discussed the situation with Shazlin, trying to make sense of Zara's request. Suddenly, Suzie, Zara's personal assistant, entered my office.

"I heard you've been asked to go to the studio," Suzie said.

"Yes, to be Norah's bodyguards!" Shazlin replied. Suzie burst into laughter upon hearing this.

"Oh, come on. Don't worry. Being Norah's bodyguard isn't that difficult. Just make sure she doesn't fall. That's all. I'm sure nobody wants to kidnap her. Alright, I have to go see Zara. Good luck!" Suzie quickly exited the room.

I glanced at Shazlin, who still appeared confused. However, she remained silent, unable to articulate her thoughts. Perhaps, Shazlin was pondering the same thing that was on my mind - Suzie's words were indeed accurate.

I attempted to reassure both Shazlin and myself that the task assigned by Zara was incredibly simple. In fact, it was the easiest task Zara had ever assigned.

******

When we got to the studio, Shazlin and I were asked by Zara to keep an eye on Norah in the waiting room. Norah was totally engrossed in a tabloid magazine filled with supernatural and ghost stories.

Zara walked in looking all stylish and took a quick scan of the room. Then, she focused on our faces, starting with mine, then Shazlin's, and finally Norah's, who was too absorbed in her reading to notice Zara.

"Shazlin," Zara called out.

"Yeah, Zara?" Shazlin replied.

"Can you do Norah's makeup?" Zara asked, throwing it out there like a question.

"Yes," Shazlin replied confidently. Luckily, she knew exactly what to do.

While waiting for Norah to finish getting ready, I grabbed a magazine and sat down at the make-up table to pass the time. I skimmed through a few articles, trying to keep myself occupied.

"It's ready!" Shazlin exclaimed.

I turned to look at Norah's face and couldn't help but let out a surprised "Wooooo..." It was quite a transformation.

"How do you like it? Beautiful, isn't it?" Norah asked eagerly.

I found myself in a bit of a dilemma. To be honest, I didn't think the make-up was necessary, even though Shazlin had done a great job. The idea had come from Norah, after all.

"Isn't it too much?" I cautiously asked Norah.

"No... It's okay! It's fine!" she reassured me.

Whispering to me, Shazlin expressed her unease. "I don't feel good about this, Marina."

Despite my reservations, Norah seemed ready for her interview. I had to admit, she looked presentable and interesting. It was just the excessive makeup that bothered me. As we waited for the show's presenters, we struck up a conversation with one of the crew members, Sean. He was handsome and friendly, but I noticed a change in his demeanour when he saw Zara.

"What's happened to him?" I asked Shazlin, curious about the sudden shift.

Shazlin explained, "I once read a blog that mentioned Zara doesn't like the media talking to her staff. That's probably why he suddenly became silent."

I glanced over at Zara, who was sitting a few meters away from us on a purple chair. Purple was her favourite colour, so it was no surprise that she had requested it for the studio. With her sunglasses on, it was impossible to tell what was going on in her mind

"We're back on Women's Today, and as promised, we have Norah Nasrul from La Nona here to talk about their latest product. It's the talk of the town right now!" Effa, our first presenter, kicked off the discussion. "Just so you know, Norah Nasrul is an advisor at La Nona, and we're thrilled to have her here today. So, Norah, how are you?"

"I'm doing well, thank you so much for having me today."

"Alright, Norah, could you give us a little insight into this new product? I heard that La Nona has developed a new cosmetic-grade raw material based on passion fruit," Norish, the second presenter, began questioning.

"Yes, it is indeed based on passion fruit," Norah started her explanation. I have to admit, Norah provided a fantastic explanation. I never thought she could do it.

However, the interview was abruptly interrupted by a loud ringtone. Norah checked her pockets and pulled out her red phone. All eyes in the studio were on her. I'm sure the audience at home was also wondering what was happening.

"What's going on right now?" I asked Shazlin.

"I don't know, Marina. I'm not sure. But I have a bad feeling about this," Shazlin replied, wearing a look that said, "I told you she would do something terrible." I tried to stay positive, telling myself that it was probably just one of Zara's planned gimmicks, as she was still sitting there like a statue on the purple chair.

"Wow, Norah has been crazy busy lately, huh?" Norish remarked to Norah, who was still glued to her phone screen.

"Do you have anything to share? Any comments from La Nona users about the..." Effa's words were abruptly cut off by Norah's sudden outburst.

"What's wrong, Norah? What happened?" Effa and Norish rushed to calm her down, but Norah just burst into tears and stormed off.

"Norah, please don't go!" Effa and Norish pleaded desperately.

Shazlin and I exchanged puzzled glances, then turned to Zara. Zara removed her sunglasses, her face flushed with anger. It was clear she was fuming.