Farrah Ahmed wishes for a cliché life, one in which she would have a pleasant childhood, become a rebellious teenage girl and graduate college with a huge smile on her face.
However, at 22, she's drowned in responsibilities that chip at her resilien...
The car ride was silent as me and Mr. Bilal were both lost in our thoughts. It was an uncomfortable and akward silence but no one was willing to address the elephant in the room.
"Who is he to you" Mr Zayyad broke the silence.
I thought for a while not willing to answer, but when I thought of how I'd run back to the hall eyes red and blotchy, and how Mr Zayyad had called his driver, understanding somehow that I just needed to be away from there, I realised that I owed him some form of an explanation.
"An old friend" I said simply, gazing out the window at the hotel.
Obviously he knew there was more to the bullshit I just fed him, but thankfully he knew when to drop the issue.
Gradually, I relaxed in the seat and only when the storm in my head had finally calmed, did I realise the reality of my situation.
My eyes glanced quickly to the distance between us, heart doing the incessant palpitations I was beginning to get used to.
I began to shift uncomfortably and nervously fiddle with my finger, turning the once comforting silence, awkward.
**** Once we got out of the car, I stood for a moment under the shade, trying to organise my thoughts.
"Thank you Mr Zayyad" I said, and I meant every word of it.
"Its no issue, just--" He said, and would have continued but for his phone ringing.
"I'll meet you inside Miss Ahmed, I've had a table arranged for you in my office while yours is being prepared. Excuse me" He said, walking away as he placed the phone against his ears.
I got my bag from where I'd left it and made my way to Mr Zayyad's office, noticing that it was time for Zuhr( noon prayer), I pulled my khimar out of my bag.
I waited for a while for Mr Zayyad to come, so I could ask him for where to pray but after thirty minutes of waiting, I decided to just say my prayer, thankful that I still had my ablution.
I looked around the office, having a chance to take in everything I hadn't been able to, from the stark white walls, to the abstract wallpaper of black and white opposite the door.
Black furniture consisting of a chair, a swivel chair for the boss and two smaller ones across him, and a black sofa at one end of the room provided a sort of calming contrast that was pleasing to the eyes.
And then at one corner, a light brown mahogany desk and chair were placed, looking out of place.
'That's you, Farrah' A voice whispered in my ears, 'Just like that chair, you'd also be out of place with someone like Mr Zayyad, stop this foolish feeling before it becomes much more'.
Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I grabbed a mat from a corner of the room and proceeded to start my prayer.
I stood for my prayers, trying to focus on the meanings of what I was saying, to distract myself from the noise outside the room, and soon terminated my prayer with a taslim.
Just as I turned my head to the right, I caught the sight of Mr Zayyad watching me from the door.
Frozen, I watched as he lowered his gaze to the floor, giving me privacy to change out of my khimar.
"I'll excuse you" he said quietly, saving us both from the embarrassment.
I quickly folded my prayer mat, khimar and adjusted my scarf, once my heart beat normalised a bit, I knocked on the door signalling to Mr Zayyad that I was done.
Mr Zayyad entered, and walked towards his table.
"The door opposite you leads to the prayer room, you can pray there from tomorrow" he said.
I silently thanked Allah for saving me from further embarrassments in the future and muttered a word or two of gratitude to him.
Standing quite awkwardly in the room, I proceeded to make my way out of the door, but was halted just as my hand pulled at the knob.
"Tomorrow you don't have to report at the office" Something in me broke at those words, my entire world shattering before my eyes.
I could feel the tears beginning to sting at my eyes as I leaned against the door for support.
"Miss Ahmed?" Mr Zayyad said, confused. What did he expect? That I would jump in excitement after being told I was fired?.
"Why?" I said turning back to look at him, I didn't care that he would see my teary eyes or hear the crack in my voice, didn't care that the stupid, stupid, stupid feelings that were budding in my heart were visible in my teary gaze, all I could focus on was the disbelief and confusion that clouded my senses.
"Miss Ahmed?" He said, and through the haziness of my tears, I could see the concern as he made to get up from his chair.
"Don't" I said, lifting up a finger to him, "Please don't" I said, a distinct crack in my voice that I could hardly place.
"Why are you firing me, did I do something wrong?" I watched as his face contorted into a look of confusion, eye brows furrowed as he stared at me.
Slowly, there was a glint of understanding in his eyes as a smile blossomed in the most heart wrenching manner possible.
Ya Allah, my heart!
A deep laughter filled the spacious room, richer and more masculine than any i'd heard, yet carrying a musical note that pulled at the taut strings of my heart.
"Miss Ahmed, when I said you shouldn't report to the office, I wasn't being in any way, shape or form indirect, I meant you don't have to come to the office"
Seeing what I was sure was a still confused and quite fearful expression on my face, Mr Zayyad's smile widened, the contrast between his dark skin and the pearls he called teeth, creating a magnetic pull I was loosing my mind trying to resist.
"I meant I won't be in the office tomorrow, I never am on Thursdays, and so you also don't need to be here except on occasions in which you will be foretold" He said, a teasing smile on his face as he averted his gaze from mine.
"So, I'm not getting fired?" I asked, already feeling the embarrassment creep up my skin.
"Not at all" He answered.
"Okay, umm...thank you, that's uhh...great. I'm.... I don't"
Why couldn't my mouth stop forming words!!!!!.
"Miss Ahmed" He said, stopping me mid-rant, "it's okay" He said finally, the smile off his face but the gentleness still there.
"Thank you sir" I said, and hurriedly bolted out of the office.
********* Hope you enjoyed that chapter; Don't forget to:
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~Ameenarrh
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