Impress \im-‘pres.\
to produce a vivid impression of
to affect especially forcibly or deeply: gain the admiration or interest of
(Merriam Webster)
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Zahra was visibly shaking from head to foot, her knees buckling in anticipation of the aftermath of the disaster that she had just caused. Her eyes were firmly shut, so hard that her mind screamed with pain. There was an eerie silence throughout the whole corridor and in the room ahead. The CALM before the STORM.
She was having Goosebumps now. ‘Ya Allah, please help’ she internally prayed. It couldn’t get any worse than this. It just was the limit of her bad luck, which, unfortunately for her, was riding at an all-time high. She never used to be this clumsy, did she?
Finally, as expected, the silence broke. But, instead of the whole crowd coming on to see the drama like a wild storm, only two people, her supervisor, Mr. Hammond and Walworth Jr., came out of the room, hotly arguing over something. She was sure of getting a huge amount of scolding. But, what she got was much worse than that.
When they neared her, David Walworth looked up at her with so much hatred that it seemed as if he was jabbing her with knives all over, and if looks could kill, she would have been dead and buried by now. He came beside her and in an irritated, angry undertone, said “You will have to pay for this. There is no way I’m letting you get away with it. And you’ll have only ten months of training, unlike the others. Mind your manners, control your actions or don’t come here. Did you get it?” he asked, looking at her with a questioning glare. Staring at the ground, Zahra nodded in acquiescence. “Well then, Hammond, tell them that the meeting is over. We’ll talk later” he said to the supervisor and sauntered away.
Mr. Hammond stood there, contemplating whether to go after him, or go into the meeting room and wrap up the discussion or stop for a few seconds to talk to the poor girl. He chose the third option, as he found it the only sensible thing to do at the moment. After all, mistakes are made by everyone, and she was only human.
“I asked him to just cut your stipend and leave it at that, but he was totally adamant and wouldn’t listen to anything. I am really sorry Zahra. I tried my best. If you want, you can come to me and I’ll help you out with your work. Itis hard upon you, I know that. Two whole months less of training is a big thing. So, think over my offer, and if you agree with it, do tell me, okay” Mr. Hammond whispered to her, so that HE wouldn’t overhear. He was a man of about forty five years of age with an affectionate face, but could be very stern and unforgiving at times. Thankfully, he was in his former mood right now.
At least, somebody was trying to help her out. Otherwise, all the people here, acted like leeches, always ready to suck the blood out of anyone who came in their way. It was all just an accident, maybe because of wrong timing, but who was going to listen to her measly justifications….no one. “Thank you very much for the offer, Mr. Hammond, I would really like that, but, I just don’t have the time. My schedule is already overloaded with work and I will manage with whatever time I’ve got” she said, her voice faltering, ever so slightly.
She checked her emotions. There was no way she was going to expose herself as weak and vulnerable in front of this sympathetic man. He was pitying her and she thought of it as the worst kind of weakness anyone could have. “It’s okay. But do tell me if you ever need the offer” he said and went inside.
Needless to say, once she was left alone to herself, her tears, which were as yet, threatening to spill out, now ran freely down her cheeks. She was pained beyond measure, and it wasn’t something she was going to forget that easily, any time soon. Never had she been humiliated like this in her twenty three years of life ever, by anybody, let alone, that loathsome man who thought so highly about himself. Before anyone could see her like this, she ran to the washroom to wash her face, so that she wouldn’t look puffy eyed and arouse other people’s curiosity. She patted her face dry and came out making her way to the third floor where her cabin was, and reached the desired place without causing any further damage to any of the Company’s properties.
She opened her laptop and started working upon some three year old completed project that she, along with her group, had been assigned to prepare a report on. She had to analyze the project assigned, on her own, list the shortcomings, if any, and make it into one complete report, with all the conclusions that she might have found, by doing the analysis. It was, as Mr. Hammond said, 'seeing the projects in a new light.'
It was something that she loved doing with all her heart, because nobody directed or ordered her to do it their way, it was wholly based upon her own judgment.
But today, she felt distracted. The whole drama kept playing in her mind, throughout the whole time, and after many futile attempts to dislodge it from her brain and concentrate upon whatever was written on her screen, she closed her laptop, wiped her eyes and got up to go home. She desperately needed rest, a big headache was coming on and she just couldn’t bear being in this place anymore, for now.
Just as she was going to push open the main doors of her office building, somebody shouted her name from behind her. It was Jennifer. She came towards her panting. “Thank God, I found you. Where have you been? We were searching everywhere for you. Mr. Hammond has called a meeting. He must have texted on your cellphone to inform you. Don’t you check up your phone, ever?” she asked irritated. “Sorry, I guess, I must have switched it off by mistake” Zahra replied, not feeling even a little bit guilty.
“We didn’t begin the meeting because Mr. Hammond told us wait for everybody to get there as it (the meeting) wasn’t actually on our schedule for today. But, after ten minutes had passed, and everybody else had settled in their seats and yours was still empty, he asked one of us to go and look for you. Now, let’s go quickly, everybody’s waiting.”
“But, what exactly is the meeting about?” Zahra asked impatiently, as she was ushered back into the lift by her friend. “Oh! Yes, I forgot to tell you. You remember the gala event I told you about. It’s on the day after tomorrow. We have to be there, no matter what. So, he called us to discuss the dress codes for it, or more like, tell us what they will be. I hope that they’ve selected something nice for us to wear. I don’t wanna look like a fool in my first party over here.”
“What difference does it make to me? I’m still going to wear my abaya….if, that is to say, I’ll even be coming on that day” Zahra replied, sulkily. “Well, I don’t suppose you’ll be allowed to skip the event. As for the abaya thing, you can ask Mr. Hammond about that, if you like. Hurry up, Zahra. You are extra slow today.”
“Ah! So you have come. Do take your seat, Ms. Fatimah. I’m afraid, I thought you must have, somehow, slipped out and gone home” Mr. Hammond said, with an amused expression on his face. “As a matter of fact, sir, she actually wasslipping out when I, thankfully, caught her, otherwise we’d have lost her for the day” Jennifer quipped up, glad to be of some use, for once. “Good work Ms. Riley. So, now that you’ve all gathered over here, let’s get started.”
As the meeting ended, it was confirmed that, at least, Zahra was not going to be there. She had made up her mind now and nothing was going to make her budge from her decision. The dress code was horrific. For females, it was to be a black knee length dress, with same color of slacks, and they could modify it to their own tastes as long as they kept it sober, paired with classic- heeled shoes which too were to be of black color and white overcoats, if they found it necessary, due to the cold. As for men, it was the same old tuxedoes with white shirts underneath.
As she made her way outside, towards the main road, to look for a taxi, Zahra heard her phone ring once…twice, and when it rang for the third time, she got it out of her bag, angrily. Who was it now!!!? But, when she saw the screen, she couldn’t believe her eyes. Walworth Jr.! Why was he calling her now?
Slowly, scared out of her wits, she whispered “Hello”. “Zahra, what am I hearing now? Just why you can’t let me breathe in peace, hunh. You need to meet me right now, in my office. I’m waiting. Come right over and don’t take long.” He shouted at the other end.
“Why are you not coming to the event?” he asked her when she got into his office, trying to keep calm. “H…how do you know that…” “Just answer my question” he said. “Alright, I cannot come in that dress which you have selected for the dress code, and I cannot come without wearing this robe, as you called it….once” she said, pointing to her abaya “and if I do, I will be violating the dress code” she stated flatly, staring at the ground the whole time.
“What if I make an exception for you?” he said, which made her look up. “As for skipping the event, it is definitely not an option, and you will be violating the dress code by wearing that abaya thing, as you call it, why don’t you wear something that looks like this robe, but is actually not a robe. What do you think? I hope that it is agreeable to you.” He had considerably calmed down since the beginning of their discussion, his tone becoming soft, even.
“I….I’ll see about that, sir” she stuttered, uncertain as to how she was supposed to respond to the proposal he had just put before her. “But youwill come, right?” he asked in a tone which was too sure of a positive answer. “I’ll try my best to come, sir” Zahra replied and went out of the room.
Finally, the day of the event arrived and Zahra tried in vain to find the exact dress to go by the definition of sober. She had decided to wear an anarkali to the party, as it was like a robe, but definitely not a robe. She hadn’t been able to find a good dress as yet even after searching the whole Clydesville for it.
Giving up, she went home to her apartment. And when she opened her cupboard to put back the dress she had worn to her shopping spree, she found something shining at the back of the cupboard. She quickly grabbed the cloth and forced it out. To her amazement, it was a long black ankle- length anarkali that she had totally forgotten about. It was just perfect for wearing to the event as it was both sober and beautiful at the same time. She had been given the dress as a birthday gift by her best friend, Avantika. ‘My dear friend, you have, unknowingly, saved the day for me’ she thought, lovingly stroking it and smiling. She carefully put it back and started getting ready for the party.
After a while, someone knocked at her door. “Come in” Zahra told the person. It was Laura. “Hey, I thought you might need some help with yourmake-up and all. Did you pick out the dress?” “Yeah, it’s in the cupboard. It’s the black one. You can see it, if you like” Zahra replied. “Where did you get it, it’s beautiful” seeing the dress Laura squealed with delight. “My best friend gave it to me” Zahra replied smiling. “And what are you going to do with your hairs? You can leave them open, curls look good when they are open, and yours have a rich black tinge to them….oh, yes, I forgot, you will be wearing hijab over them. At least you can let me do your make-up then. I promise I won’t ruin it” Laura pleaded to her.
After much thought, Zahra decided to let her do her make-up for once. Seeing that she was a fashion designer, Laura had a natural flare for those kind of things. To her, it was a joy to do her make-up as Zahra’s complexion was not too dark nor too light, so whatever color she put on her face, it looked like it was natural. As for her features, they were a bit trying. Her eyes were fine, round in shape with curled up lashes, her nose was small but it was pointed, so that too was okay, but her lips were a bit too thin, so it was a little hard to put lipstick on them without making it spread to her cheeks.
But, after a while she was ready to go. Laura looked at her from a distance, and admired the work she had done on her face. “You look perfect. There’s just one thing missing” saying which, she ran to her room and came back with a beautiful black clutch in her hands to go with the dress. Zahra stared at herself in the mirror, and she too couldn’t help thinking that she did look good. “Thanks a lot Laura. I would never have been able to do this kind of amake-up even if I had tried it for a thousand years” she said, smiling to herself in the mirror. “That’s what I’m here for. Now go.”
The night sped by quickly after that. When Zahra arrived at the glittery event, everyone was stunned and wondered “could this be the plain abaya girl”. They all complimented her on her dress. Though she did look like an odd one out of them, with almost all of them wearing knee length dresses, but, it was a nice kind of an odd. Even David Walworth was impressed by her choice of the dress. ‘The girl did know how to choose dresses’ he thought out loud.
When Zahra couldn’t take the stinging smell of alcohol anymore, she slipped out into the balcony, without anyone noticing her absence. The silent atmosphere soothed her to no measure. ‘Ah….sometimes solitude did wonders to a person’s mood’ she thought to herself, breathing in the cool evening breeze.
“That’s a nice dress you chose to wear” David Walworth said and came to stand beside her. Zahra inched a little away from him. He smelled a little of alcohol, so he wasn’t totally intoxicated to do any harm to her, but still she hated the smell and was disgusted with it. “Thank you….sir” she said straightly, without any expression coming onto her face. This man had broken her heavenly solitude and she was boiling up inside due to that. “So….what’s it called?” he spoke again.
Hesitating, she spoke “It’s called ‘anarkali’, but, I don’t think you’d be able to pronounce that…” “Nonsense! It’s easy. I’ll get the hang of it in no time” he said, irritated, cutting her in the middle of the sentence. “You see, it’s ‘a…naar…kaali’ right” he said, making a faint smile to come to her face, in spite of her anger. “Yes, it was fine, but, it would be better if you don’t say it in front of anybody else.”
Ten minutes passed without anything said between the two of them, and in the whole span of that time, David kept staring at her, thinking what was so different about her today. In the end, fed up of feeling his eyes on her, Zahra turned her face and kept looking in the other direction, so that her face would be out of his line of view.
“Hey…um…I’m…I’m sorry about that day. I said a lot to you, I guess. I was just so much flustered, that I didn’t realize what you did could be an accident, and…I’m really sorry” he suddenly said, trying his best to explain himself. Hearing thus, Zahra’s face at once turned to stone, her features becoming contorted in pain of the humiliation she felt, every time she remembered it, but instead, she said “It’s okay. I’m fine with it now, I think.”
“There you are David. I’ve been looking everywhere for you, and you are stuck in a dark corner of some balcony” a gorgeously beautiful girl, clad in a dazzling black strapless, floor-length, thigh-high split dress suddenly said in an irritated passionate drawl. Her face was milky white, and she hadblood-red lipstick on her face, making her look hot. She came towards him and boldly pecked his cheek. Instantly, his face lit up with joy and he closed the distance between them putting his arms around her waist, seeing which Zahra moved away into a dark spot, so that she wouldn’t be seen and disturb the pair from talking animatedly.
After a few minutes, tired, Zahra moved towards the doorway to go inside. David saw her and said, “You are going. Is there anything I can do to help you? Do you need a ride home? If you want, I can arrange it.” ‘Is he faking it or is he genuinely concerned?’ Zahra wondered. Nevertheless, she said “No. I’ll be fine thank you.”
“David, won’t you introduce us?” the girl asked. “Oh! Yes, I forgot. Zahra, this is Demetria Torres, regional manager of ‘Walworth & Co.’ she was inducted just a few months ago, and Demetria, this is Ms. Fatimah, a trainee in our company.” The girl extended her hand towards Zahra and smiling sweetly, she said “Welcome to the Company. I’m sure you’ll like it here.” Zahra took her hand and just smiled tiredly in return. When the girl dropped her hand, she ran away like the wind itself, determined to get to her apartment as soon as possible and not to stop anywhere for even a few seconds, not knowing what had come over her to make her run like that.
That night, standing in the doorway of Laura’s room and watching her pouring over a fashion magazine, she asked her friend, “Laura, what kind of a make-up did you do on my face, today?” “Why? Did somebody flirt with you or something?” Laura asked, jokingly.
“Don’t be stupid. Who would want to flirt with me?” “It was just that… David Walworth was paying unusual attention to me today…” she replied, thoughtfully.