𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟐

FAIZAN

“What did you just do?” Farhan asks as soon as he barges into my office- without my permission.

I don’t look up from my screen, writing an email as I say, “be more specific,”

“I just found out you terminated an intern.” my movement comes to a halt, “and not just an intern. Bill Wagner.”

I look up from my screen, “and?”

Farhan frowns and takes his seat, “Why are you so calm?”

“Bill went against company policies and insulted another intern.” I say, “I did my job.”

“You didn’t give him a warning notice.” Farhan says, staring at me as if someone has possessed me, “you always give a warning notice if something like this happens and I go talk to the victim reassuring them,”

“He wasn’t worth giving a warning notice to,”

“Did he get three strikes of complaints?”

I pause for a moment before I say, “yes,”

“From who?”

Me. “Doesn’t matter.” I say, “and why are you acting like this?”

“Because you’re acting like.. That!”

“Like what?”

“What were you doing on the eighth floor either way? You barely go there and now I find out, you’re almost always there?”

It’s not on purpose. I always end up going to the eighth floor without my concession. I also might go upstairs to make sure no intern is facing any trouble.

“On a serious note, Daniel Wagner will not tie any relations with our company after this. His poor ego probably got hurt.”

“He doesn’t have to. He needs us, not the other way around.”

Farhan blinks at me, twice, “who are you and what have you done to my best friend?”

I sigh, “I don’t understand what the big deal is.”

“Do you not know for whom you did this?”

I look back at my computer screen, “no,”

“Oh, please. You did it for Arzo.”

“I didn’t do it for her. I looked at the situation as something that could happen again and-”

“Instead of warning him, you threw him out.”

“Yes.”

I’d admit it. My action yesterday surprised me as well. I always give warning notices whenever I get a complaint from an employee or an intern. However, in Bill’s case, he didn’t get any complaint but I caught him red handed.

I’ve known about Bill’s behavior since he got the internship and I ignored it because no one was filing a complaint against him and I had no right. But yesterday was the breaking point.

My decision might have been quick and harsh but I don’t regret it. He had no right talking about her like that.

I don’t ever want to see her on the brink of a breakdown, trying to fight herself. That’s how she looked that day.

Arzo is a very strong woman. She’s not dumb that she doesn’t know most of the employees and interns here talk about her but she didn’t let anyone make her quit or stop doing something. That shows courage and is impressive.

“You’re hiding something,”

I sigh and look up from my screen again, resting my cheek on my fist,”hiding what?”

“I don’t know but it’s something. This is very suspicious, what you did. Although I am one hundred percent proud of you for what you did, your sudden change of rules is suspicious.”

“Okay. Is that all?”

“For now.” he stands up and starts to walk backwards while squinting his eyes at me.

“You’re going to-” my sentence gets cut off when the door knob hits Farhan’s back.

“F- ouch.”

“-hit your back,”

“Thanks for the warning,” he says, rubbing his back, “what did I do to not get a warning?”

I shake my head in disbelief. After he’s done whining, he finally leaves my office.

After Farhan leaves, my phone starts ringing. I pick it up and find Zahid calling me.

I answer the call, placing the phone against my ear, “Assalamu Alaikum,”

“Wale Kum Assalam, Faizan. How are you?”

“I’m good, Alhumdulillah. And you?”

“Alhumdulillah, I’m good as well.”

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes, yes. I want to know if you are available this weekend. Hafsah and I are arranging a dinner for the family so we want you to have dinner with us.”

“Okay,” I say, “Is Arzo’s family also coming?-” I freeze as soon as the question leaves my mouth.

Why did I ask that?

“No.” he pauses, “Why?” I can feel his grin through the phone.

I suppress a sigh, “Nothing. Forget I asked something,”

“I will not. You just asked if Arzo’s family was coming.” I pinch the bridge of my nose, “is there something you want to tell me, little brother?”

“If you don’t stop talking then I’m not coming over for dinner,”

“Geez, okay, I’ll stop.” I release a sigh of relief, “But I won’t forget. Allah hafiz!”

And he hangs up.

I sigh and put my phone away. I drag my hand across my face and stare into the distance.

As much as I tried to not make it look like I am interested in her, the more it looks like it. If Zahid wasn’t suspicious before, he’d be suspicious now.

And the worst part is, I don’t know either what’s going on with me.