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Ahmed's POV:

"Follow me, Ms Sandal." I said.

She stood up and mumbled something to Mamo before start following me as I take the lead. Entering into the office, I sat on my seat, took a random file from the desk and start pretending to read it. I didn't even bother to look at her or ask her to sit.

Why am I acting like a jerk?

Few minutes passed, both of us stay silent. I glanced at her and found her looking back at me with a blank expression.

What is she doing?

She has been standing at the door for five minutes but didn't utter a single word. I didn't realize I was staring at her until she changed her position uncomfortably.

"Ms Sandal, wait in that room. I'll send someone to give you a briefing on your job." I said, pointing towards the glass door on the right side of my office. She nodded and went inside.

~*~

Sandal's POV:

The room in which I entered wasn't a waiting area, it was an office. I stood there for a minute, before taking a chair near the office desk. About five minutes later, I heard a knock on the door and a man came in, with a bright smile on his face.

"Assalam o Alaikum! You must be Sandal, right? I am Ali." He said, smiling even wider.

"Waallaikum Assalam." I said and tried to return his smile.

"Mr Ahmed sent me to give you a little rundown on your job. Firstly, your job timing will be from nine to five and from one p.m. to two p.m. is lunch and prayer time. Second, Boss is quite strict when it comes to working, so never be late. Third, complete the given work in time and listen carefully to what he says because he doesn't like to repeat himself and... oh the most important thing is, ...uh ...stay alert from the other female staffs, okay?" He said with a blush on his face.

I didn't get his point but I nodded.

"Good! Now let's start with your job description." He said with a warm smile.

Compared to Mr Ahmed, he was quite nice and has a warm aura, which didn't make me uncomfortable. I am not used to working with men as I am from a girl majority family.

For the next forty minutes, he gave me a briefing about my work and gave me today's task, which was to familiarise with all the office staff and try to understand how things are done. After he left, I looked at my watch and realize it's already Eleven thirty a.m. I got up from my chair and start exploring my office, observing the arrangements of the files, various documents and etc. I also found a glass door which connects my room directly to Mr Ahmed's office. I took a peek inside and found him talking on the phone. He was leaning back to his seat, one hand on his desk and the other one holding his phone. He does look like a boss, but not a nice one.

I came back to my desk, turned on my desktop computer and start looking through random documents. My attention was diverted when I hear the intercom ringing.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Sandal! Mr Ahmed says you can take off early today and be at the office tomorrow before nine, okay?" I heard Mr Ali's voice.

"Okay."

"Good, so see you tomorrow. Allah Hafiz." He said and disconnected.

I guess I am free to go home now. Standing up, I took another peek of Mr Ahmed's office, but he was nowhere to be found. I have a feeling that he avoided me on purpose. He could have told me directly instead of asking Mr Ali to do it for him. So I left without waiting for him.

~*~

After dinner and praying Isha (night pray), I lied on the bed beside Hareem. Areeba and I decided not to let Ami and Hareem sleep alone and I guess we both also didn't want to be left alone anymore.

Don't know for how long I have been staring at the ceiling. Suddenly my attention was caught by the sound of running footsteps from the living room. I silently got up from the bed so Hareem won't be disturbed. When I entered the living room, I saw Areeba standing in the middle of the room, out of breath. She must have been praying as her head was still covered with a dupatta.

She saw me standing and mumbled Sorry.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Nothing."

"Areeba?"

"It's nothing, bajjo! I thought I heard Papa calling me." She said in a low voice, looking at her feet.

I massaged my temples for not knowing what to do.

"Go to sleep Areeba, it's getting late."

" You too, bajjo. Shab-a-khair (good night)"

"Shab-a-khair"

I gave a glance to my peacefully sleeping Ami before going back to my room. I lie down next to Hareem and gently put my arm around her, cautious not to nudge her injured arm.

Papa, Shoaib! My first day of work wasn't that bad...

I sighed and closed my eyes, hoping that tonight's sleep won't shun me away.

~*~

As I enter the building, I was greeted by the smiling face of Mr Ali.

"Assalam o Alaikum!" He said in his usual happy voice.

"Waallaikum Assalam." I answered as we both reached the elevator.

"Ladies first." He stepped aside and let me in first.

"Will Mr Ahmed be coming today?" I asked him out of nowhere.

It's my second week on the job but I barely see him. He always seems to be on outdoor work.

"Yes, he will. The work on site has almost ended, the only thing that's left is a few formal meetings. So he will be here from now on and you'll be attending all meetings with him."

"Me? Why me?"

"Because you're his assistant, remember?"

"Oh!" I said, looking at my feet.

"Don't worry. I'll guide you through the meetings, okay?" He smiled at me.

Mr Ali is the only one whom I can talk to without hesitation. It wasn't like I don't talk to everyone else, it's just that he was more easygoing than others. As I enter my office, I found Mr Ahmed standing there. When he saw me he looked at his watch, I also copy his movement and look at the time on my watch.

I am on time!

I sighed in relief.

"Sandal, I want all the files of the last three months on my table in fifteen minutes, and my tea also, strong with one teaspoon of sugar." He said in a strict tone and rushed back to his office.

Always in a rush.

In the last few days, I had rearranged all the files and documents of the office. So it didn't take me long to search for the files.

Within ten minutes, I was standing in Mr Ahmed's office. His tea was now on his table along with the files he asked for. He looked at me with a somewhat surprised expression but didn't say anything. Then his eyes landed on my feet.

"Tell me Sandal, are you here to run a marathon?" He asked, frowning at me.

"Pardon?"

"Don't wear sneakers on the job again." He said, combing his light brown hair with his right hand.

"But it's..." I tried to tell him that I am not used to wearing sandals while travelling by public transport, but he cut me off.

"Don't argue and do as I say."

" Okay!" I nodded, remembering Mr Ali saying 'don't say no to the boss'.

"Here! Take this file and read all the details about this project and arrange a meeting tomorrow with Arshad Farooq. His card is in the file, you can get his number from it." He said as he handed me the file.

I nodded and took the file from him. As I was about to leave, he called me again.

"You will be going into a meeting with me tomorrow, so try to look like a normal girl. But if you're clueless about how a normal girl looks like, then I can arrange a makeover for you." He said, making a disgusted face.

What the hell...

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