Chapter 1

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Ayesha's PoV

I dragged my suitcase towards our on-waiting uber. My friend, Asmara, wheezed and puffed as she too, dragged her belongings.

We were moving to my father's mansion in Multan. I turned around, and waved to the people of the orphanage as a final goodbye. I spent my entire life living with them. Asmara followed suit and waved at them, a huge smile on her face.

"We love you guys!" She shouted. I smiled in agreement.

The air was filled with wishes, cheers, goodbyes and love as we jumped into the uber. I told the driver our destination.

"You can not imagine how much I am gonna miss those guys." Asmara quipped.

I sighed,"Me too. They had become our family."

She turned towards me. "Now that we have left the orphanage, what next? You are going to find a new job?"

I nodded. "Well we had to leave and move to that mansion, since its under my name after my father. And to run the house, we need jobs."

"Yeah you're right. So, when are you going to go job-hunting? I think we should use our savings and set up the house first. Its been like that since 11 years Ayesha."

"Ok. Job-hunting, three days later."

I shifted and stared out the window. Buildings, cars, people passed by in a blur as the uber zoomed forward. For the first time in years, I felt optimistic.

And actually looked forward to my new life with my best friend.

I busted open the rusty door to the mansion. The walls, furniture, everything was just like how I remembered it. Except now the walls had gone slightly black with dust and the furniture was covered with white sheets.

Asmara trudged beside me and stared at the house.

"Woah! This place is huge. We have some serious work cut out for us."

I nodded.

Abandoning this place and choosing to live in the orphanage had been my only choice back then. Father had died and there wasn't a soul on this planet that would've taken me in.

I smiled slightly as I stared at a small picture frame of his on the coffee table, bitten by dust.

Looking around, I folded my sleeves half way up, gearing up.

***

We spent the next three days cleaning and setting up. Asmara and I took rooms opposite to one another in the hall. The lounge was next to the living room, which was on the West side of the house. An old staircase at the back of the hall led to the first floor, which had two bedrooms, a storage room and a bathroom. On the 2nd floor was the attic and the roof.

Me and Asmara were rooming on the ground floor. The kitchen was on the East side and like everything else, it too was huge.

It was amazing how two young, orphaned girls had scored this place. But it was all thanks to him, obviously. Otherwise, I guess we didn't stand a chance at survival in this cruel, cruel world.

I was dressing up for my job hunting. I am always catious about my dressing. Hence, I had put on a pretty decent looking dress and wrapped my upper body with a wide enough scarf and pulled my hair into a ponytail.

"Asmara! Im leaving." I shouted to my friend who was upstairs, rummaging through some old stuff.

"Ok! Be back soon!" She shouted back. She would go job-hunting tomorrow.

I walked into the 'Nursing Home' with high hopes. Maybe I might get a job here. My education was in medical but I didnt want to become a practicing doctor.

I made my way towards the secretary who was sitting at the desk.

"Good Afternoon." I greeted. She looked up and smiled warmly at me. She was a woman of my age. She had light brown hair and really pretty eyes.

On her coat a nametag was pinned with the name Saleha Ashraf.

"Good Morning. How may I help you?" She asked me kindly.

"My name is Ayesha Aslam. I applied for a nursing job here two days ago." I replied.

She told me to wait for a minute so she could check my application. She looked up and gave me a heart-warming smile.

"Yes you have been accepted and also have been assigned to an elderly woman."

I froze.

I had? I didn't think I heard her correctly. I mean, what were the odds that I could land a job so fast? Especially when I had to work so hard to find that internship last time?

"I......have?" I asked nervously.

She laughed. "Why yes."

It was so hard for me to stop myself from doing a victory screech. I wanted to jump up and down all around the lobby. But I managed to give her a calm smile whereas on the inside, I was ready to jump out of my skin.

"You have to go inside and meet up with my boss. She would tell you the details."

"Thank you so much Ms. Ashraf." I said with gratitude. She was so kind!

"Oh please, drop the formality, call me Saleha." She smiled, then ushered me into the office of her boss.

Infront of me, an elder woman was standing, with her back facing me. I saw the name pin on the desk. Her name was Tara Afroze.

She turned around, facing me. Tara Ma'am was a charming woman even though she looked like she must be 30 years or older. She smiled warmly at me.

"Hi. My name is Ayesha," I started.

"Oh yes I know. Hello Ayesha I am Tara, the owner of this Nursing home. I welcome you to be a part of our team and to help take care of ailing people. Please have a seat." She gestured towards the chair. I walked and sat down on her leather chair which was so comfy.

I shifted so I was comfortably seated. I sneaked a tiny glance around her office. It was small but cozy. The walls were painted a fresh, light green and were decorated with several certificates and pictures. I looked back her before she could catch me ogling her office.

The last thing I want her to think is that I'm some sort of a freak.

She strode towards her desk and opened a drawer. She pulled out a file with my name on it and began flipping the pages. I felt so nervous. It was like high school all over again.

"As per your personal data, you are an orphan. You graduated in medical but are not a practicing doctor." She finished and dropped the file back on her desk.

"So I thought it would be best for you to do nursing job for a female." She continued. She then picked up another file from her desk and opened it. I sighed in relief. At least this job wont be awkward.

Tara ma'am's voice interrupted my brief thinking.

"The lady you have been assigned to take care is a patient of breast cancer and her name is Shaila Shahid Waqar."

Edited

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