We Found Love In A Hopeless Place

Chapter 1 : What NEXT?

The sun was shining bright, up in the sky. Yellowish sunrays fell directly on her face through the open slits of her bedroom window. She opened her eyes, then scrunched them shut due to the heavy headache she was going through.

Shehnaaz kept lying there, with her eyes closed. Her thoughts, running wild back to the events that had happened yesterday at her workplace, the whole scenario kept replaying itself in her head. Her heart pained because of that. And what pained her more was the realisation that she had to survive in this mad, cruel world, surrounded by people wearing multiple facades, and she had no shoulder to lean on.

She was all alone, ever since her childhood. Her mother had died while giving birth to her. Her stepmother had abandoned her and left her on the doors of an orphanage, upon her father's death. She was just 8 years old then. She vividly remembered how that night was - cold, dark, silent, and full of stark terror. The managers took her in when they heard her loud cries and sobs. She gelled in with the children of the orphanage quite well. She was a positive energy for the people around her, always spreading love, even in her childhood.

The orphanage provided scholarships for her to attend college, given her amazing excellence in academics and sports. Her college days were pretty normal. There wasn't anything specific that had to be remembered, or that she should be grateful of, except for the fact that it provided her an internship in a reputed firm,where she presently worked. Until yesterday.

The trail of her thoughts were broken by the painful allegations that were put on her yesterday. Her eyes welled up, when those events flashed in her mind once again. She found herself suffocating, almost unable to breathe. She gasped for air, and the pool of tears that weren't pouring out yet, shed themselves, all at once. She sobbed uncontrollably. She somehow managed to get herself a glass of water to drink, not knowing what else to do at the moment. It was 9 am. She had the whole day to cry, panic, overthink, understand amd most importantly overcome yesterday's events and think of what's coming next for her.

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(Flashback)

"Shehnaaz, where the hell were you when the lights went off?" Naman, her boss, asked in a harsh tone.
She caught Kavya, her archenemy, smirking from the side of her eye.
Kavya was one hell of a bitch. Shehnaaz never got good vibes from her since she started interning there. Well, to be precise, Naman was in awe of Shehnaaz, given that she was really good at her work while Kavya on the other hand, not so much. Ahe would burn from inside everytime Shehnaaz would be appreciated over her work.

"S.. Sir.. Kavya.." she stuttered.
"Kavya told you've asked me to fetch some files from the locker room. Thats why I went there. I swear I did not take anything, I did not take any money." she managed to speak amidst her sobs.

"Haww, why are you lying, Shehnaaz! When did I ever ask you to do any such thing? Hell, I do not even like your presence around me, talking to you will be a far-fetched action, huh" Kavya lied with a straight face.

"We all know how miserable your life has been, its okay if you took the money, just admit it, goddammit" She added.

This was too much of a blame to be put on her. Yeah, her life has been difficult and harsh on her, full of economic and financial crises, but her morals and ethics were way above her obligations. They never allowed her to steal, no matter what.

As if luck was not in her favour, she was kicked out of the job. She had no evidence to prove her innocence. She couldn't prove how Kavya had manipulated her to go the locker room, and how sge managed to switch off the lights, and how someone else robbed the office in front of her. It all happened in front of her eyes, but she couldn't prove a thing. The darkness did not let her see who the actual thief was. And sge had passed out there, due to the panic she felt coursing through her nerves.

When the lights were repaired, she was found shaking in the corner of the locker room, trying to find an escape. And that was it. No one believed her story. She kept telling them, and no one believed her.

"You. Are. Fired. Shehnaaz Kaur Gill" Naman said in a low voice, through gritted teeth. He almost dragged her out of his office, handed her an emvelope that consisted of her earnings till the date, and a letter. A letter that said she was fired because of misconduct. A letter that questioned the very thing she was proud of - her morale.

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(Flashback ends)

She got freshened up, made herself toasts and some tea for breakfast. She then prepared herself to clean her small flat, that had one bedroom, one bathroom, a kitchen and a small space that she used as living room. The rest of the day passed by in a haze, with her looking up for certain jobs and sending her CV. She felt lost, so so lost, right now. Like she is being sinking into oblivion. Like she is back to where she started. But guess thats how life works. We never know what the next few moments might unfold, and how they could change our entire being.

She kept thinking and preparing herself of whatever was coming next.

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Phewwww so that was it... Let me know ur views and suggestions in the comments. Press on the star icon to vote for me. And follow me for further updates.