Can I Be Your Mrs?

2: Working Together

She ran to the elevator before it closed and entered, heaving a sigh out of relief. She knew if she had slackened, she would have waited there until someone came, which she was sure there would be no one unless the ones coming down for something because she was late enough for the day. She would have to find herself a driver, which they would reach an agreement because this Uber didn't help a lot sometimes. She calmed herself down and turned to look at the people in the elevator. 'Damn it' nearly fell from her lips, did she have to run onto him every day? And that too in the elevator?

She wondered what kind of thing this was. Just that today he wasn't alone, he was together with Sulaiman, and she smiled politely at him. "Good morning," she greeted them in unison, but she could swear he didn't even look up at her. What was his name again? Yeah, Yazeed Adam Bunza.

"Good morning, Jalilah. How was your night? And how do you like it in our company?" Sulaiman answered and smiled back at her. They exchanged a few pleasantries before she brought out her phone and waited patiently while fighting the end corners of her eyes not to take a look at his closed-off face. What was wrong with him for the sake of Allah? He looked like someone who was into the most grievous phase of his life.

'Rather, what was wrong with you?' She redirected the question at herself and completely turned to face the opening. That was the question she should've asked herself since. What was wrong with her? Why wouldn't she leave this man alone? He fought his demons what was hers to keep being curious about the life he didn't want anyone into it. She had noticed some resemblance with him and Sulaiman but she wondered if they were somehow related. It got opened, and Jalilah was glad to have a breath of fresh air, more than the one they kept circulating between themselves. If some scientist would tell her she had breathed in the same air that he did in that elevator, she wouldn't argue.

"Come to my office, I have some work for you, Jalilah!" Sulaiman called out to her when she had already taken the route that would take her to her office, which was the same way with that of Yazeed. She was happy for this distraction, and she got the chance to change paths with him, all this didn't look promising.

"Okay," she calmly said and followed Sulaiman to his office. They entered and she waited until he fished out the files from his cabinet and he handed her while saying out the instructions of how to do it. She was about to leave the office when she remembered she had something to ask him, and she turned to look at him with a sly smile on her lips.

"I wanted to ask you something," he sat down on his chair and motioned for her to go on. "Is it okay if I stayed here longer than 5:30 pm? Or everyone has to leave at that time?"

He quickly shook his head, "No, they generally close the company by 7 pm, I think it's fine." She thanked him because she had been thinking about what she would do if she wouldn't be allowed to take her ballet classes. Though she still had to ask Mrs. Rosey for the delay of at least ten minutes to give the workers the chance to fully evacuate from the office so she could freely do her dancing.

She walked back to her office, and she caught a glimpse of his face through the glasses, it looked like he was in a heated argument with someone, like what he was talking over the phone with someone was his least favorite to talk about. She wanted to know what that was, what was taking a toll on him that it showed all over his face, but she had no excuse to do that, and she silently walked to her office, thinking of how she had missed her ballet class yesterday even though she had practiced it at home, it was still not the same.

Before she sat down, she looked at the office and made sure if she cleared the sofa it would be enough for her, even though she would still be restricted. But reminding herself how she squeezed and practiced at home in her room, even though it had enough space, this was more spacious. Here, she didn't have her mirror to get along, she didn't have her half-completed canvases to keep moving between her wardrobe and her bed, lots of things weren't here.