20-year-old university student Maliyah Tijjani is independent and fierce, yet damaged. She's been damaged for many years of her life and she is trying her best not to bring her past traumas into her new profound freedom. She avoids dating to maintai...
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SATURDAY NIGHT.
"It has been a pleasure to have you all in attendance with me tonight at the official Tijjani-Ryad Grand Opening,"
I confidently glided across the stage, clenching the microphone with my right hand as the crowd erupted into applause.
"This is our first location nationwide, however it is most certainly not the last. I am proud to have my headquarters be based right here, in my home of Houston, Texas. Not only am I excited for us to officially go into business, but I am super excited to bring your corporation's business as well. With our new addition to your community, we all gain some and profit a little bit more. We also have been working hard on hiring Houston's very own to lower employment rates and raising outlooks percentages. Therefore, now is the time to text your niece that's fresh out of grad school or your cousin's cousin about us."
The audience laughed and I continued my speech.
"I want this speech to be brief, so I want to give an enormous thank you to my splendid name partner, the respected Bilal Ryad. C-can we get the spotlight on him please?" I asked, looking backstage towards technical.
The spotlight was then directed onto him, who was seated at the uppermost front table, right beneath me. At his table were other trustees and members of the board.
He stood up, and did a full 360°, smiling and waving at the audience that surrounded him. The crowd applauded and the spotlight was redirected onto me.
"This entire dream would not have happened if it wasn't for the opportunity offered to me by Mr. Ryad. It is an honor to be working with him. I also want to thank our special black-owned catering company who fed us all tonight, Granny's Kitchen. Their cards, along with other delights from our other sponsors, are in the complementary bags underneath all of your chairs."
The crowd began to frantically look underneath their seats, pulling out mini white goody-bags.
"I have no doubt in my mind that our real estate firm will disappoint you. Thank you for allowing me to introduce myself and my company to you tonight. I also want to thank my family, friends, and peers for their faith and unconditional support in me. Lastly, I want to thank our future business partners for their upcoming collaborations with Tijjani-Ryad. Thank you all for your attendance and please enjoy the rest of your Saturday night." I said, closing my discourse.
I grabbed the large pair of scissors from underneath the podium and walked across the stage. I gracefully walked towards our logo statue wrapped in a large red ribbon and snipped the ribbon in half. Applause erupted through the room, along with photograph flashes from the press.
I heard Elijah and Levi whooping and chanting from our table, which was in the uppermost right corner of the floor. They even stood up, resulting in a standing ovation from the rest of the crowd.
