x
I'd only been back twelve hours, and already my inbox looked like a war zone.
One week. One summit in Vienna. A few brutal layovers.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1wZCk81mX
And I came back to find the entire rhythm of my org chart quietly rearranged.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUwlFMrsTuW
Not by me. Not by anyone who reports to me.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgBHbGIwK7
But by the man at the top.
Husine Begović didn't ask for opinions. He gave orders.
Still, when I saw Ayub's name missing from my leadership circle, I had to reread it three times.
Transferred. Reassigned.
To Lamija's division.
I sat back in my chair, jaw tight.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGfQV7ZzHj
He didn't even consult me. Not a message. Not a call.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaDyHLNxuWA
Just a silent maneuver that stripped me of one of my best men.
Ayub wasn't just good.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp7sw55sfwV
He was my stabilizer.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnkkzSEjM9w
The one I trusted when everything was on fire.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoOMOT4hs4R
Precise, unshakable, loyal to the bone.
I didn't have many of those.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJn6eajzxCa
And Babo just handed him off like a spare part.
It was strategic. Sure.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PnGPlC6Ji
Babo saw a storm in Lamija and thought Ayub would be the anchor. That made sense.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGlQMprnLOj
But what grated was how quietly it happened—no discussion, no warning.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHZUT7inLj
Just a line moved from one chart to another, as if it meant nothing.
To me, it did.
I was still working through my flagged emails when the knock came.
Right on time.
Didn't even have to check the clock.
"Come in."
Ayub stepped inside, shoulders squared but tension radiating off him.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOyghu3Er5J
Calm on the surface, panic humming underneath.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9FufVxxSII
I knew the look. He wore it when his father died. When Babo first offered him a role.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8hC91jsFus
When he thought too much of himself was at risk to speak.
"Morning," I said, motioning to the chair.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrcNo5xRcJD
"Jet lagged and already three fires deep, so just say it."
He sat.
"I need to be reassigned," he said.
There it was.
I raised an eyebrow. "Thought so."
He shifted.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF9ec5I4egD
"I just... I don't think I'm a good fit for Lamija's team. She works differently. Pushes hard. I don't know if I—"
"Ayub," I cut in, not angry, just sharp.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeMKxSRboZy
"You don't want to work with Lamija. Just say that. Don't dress it up in performance talk."
He exhaled through his nose, gaze dropping.
"You saw the update last night?"
He nodded. "Thought it was a mistake."
"It wasn't. Babo moved you.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiqub94mp5o
And we both know his decisions don't come with feedback forms."
I leaned back, studying him.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoL7IVAsKmV
"You think you're not cut out for her team? That's garbage.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERsB1l4EYr
You're one of the best assets in this building.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR5nSpAj8Uk
You execute without fanfare, without ego, and you get it done."
His jaw flexed.
"But the reason she doesn't know that—the reason no one outside my team knows that—is because you don't let anyone see you.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMehzLa8xQs
You do the job, then vanish.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7UAWIrjVcp
You stay safe in the background and act surprised when no one hands you a stage."
Still quiet. That was always his move.
I leaned forward, voice lower.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4NZb2KIPKA
"This isn't about the job. This is about her."
He tensed.
"You've avoided her for years. I watched it happen.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrtuS4QAoiw
Switching shifts, avoiding meetings, never once volunteering on anything tied to her division.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZfCgkYmxYL
I let it go. Figured you had your reasons.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy8pRuxzbQQ
But now you're finally in her space and you want to retreat."
He said nothing, but his silence cracked louder than any words.
"She's not going to break you, Ayub."
He looked up, finally.
"You think she's this impossible standard, and maybe she is.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeMCm16dClo
She's sharp, relentless, and doesn't bend for anyone.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqRRzqMHBQr
But that doesn't mean you don't belong beside her.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvyu5jG32m5
You don't need to compete with her.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL3UTF3jKGp
You need to stop disappearing."
He ran a hand over his face.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeuAbv6iLLo
He looked tired. Frayed.
"I don't belong in her world."
I shook my head.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBMqouTWRRC
"Don't give me that. You lived in our house. You ate at our table. My mother calls you her son.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0BScOy8XVS
You belong here more than half the clowns drawing a paycheck off our name."
Still nothing.
"You want me to go to Babo and reverse it? Can't. Wouldn't, even if I could."
His brow creased.
"Because you're not running this time. You're going to show up. Show her who you really are. And if she doesn't like it? That's her problem. At least she'll finally see you."
I let the words land. Let the silence sit.
Then I added, lighter, "You know what might actually help though? We get her married off."
He blinked. Just blinked.
"I'm serious," I said, straight-faced. "Set her up. Vet the prospects. Do background checks, call their mothers, screen their blood type. Maybe get psychological evaluations done ahead of time."
I tapped my tablet. "You could run the whole operation. Set up interviews. Coffee tastings. Prayer compatibility tests."
Ayub gave me the driest look I'd ever seen.
"I mean it," I added with a smirk.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM76b1ALZu1
"It'd be good for the company. Imagine the morale boost."
As he stood, he didn't say a word—just flicked me off on the way to the door.
I grinned.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMQvqxSjQ4S
"That's more like it."
He walked out, shoulders still tight, but not shrinking.
I watched the door click shut behind him.
Maybe Babo knew what he was doing.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVhMwXFLQOa
But it still felt like a warning shot.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
And now we meet Imran — eldest son, CEO-in-training, corporate firefighter, part-time therapist, full-time older brother who absolutely did not sign up for any of this.
He's trying to keep the entire empire from imploding while his father plays chess with people's careers and his sister sharpens her metaphorical sword before breakfast.
Also, yes — his solution to workplace tension is matchmaking.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNfUXQbzzHM
Respectfully, he's tired.
Ayub wants to disappear.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Pc3OJDvpW
Lamija wants control.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCZLMhXWHfm
And Imran just wants a functioning org chart and one (1) peaceful morning.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbf1OT1Ol7
He's not getting it.
Let me know if you're starting to pick a favorite.24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgHoo4UCZl0
(And if it's not Imran by now, you're lying.)24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtWwxU1lh8g
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpqQJihGD9
- Ash&Olive
24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMZ0yXmOaQb
