He showed up.
I was already at my desk when I heard the firm click of his shoes in the hallway.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfyDpZ3epKE
7:58 AM. Two minutes early.
Of course he was.
Ayub Selimović was too stubborn to back down and too proud to arrive late.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBfZLuJnBCq
After the way I pushed him yesterday—in front of Emir, in front of the whole team—I expected frost.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE3k7WuWfnZ
Maybe clipped words.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx5bQvETGoj
Maybe a little fire.
But when he stepped through the door, all I got was calm.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBp3NhI4bv1
Polished.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPxDoC2Tm2w
Composed.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wdhF0hEsW
Too composed.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgnjPeK1MfG
Like a man who’d spent the morning rebuilding the walls I cracked yesterday—only thicker.
He closed the door behind him with one clean motion.
The air in my office was always still—deliberately so.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4KK6Y2QCUu
No clutter. No noise. No framed degrees or trophies on the walls, just a single photograph near the bookshelf: my grandfather standing outside the original Begović textile mill, sleeves rolled, arms folded. The reminder wasn’t for visitors. It was for me.
The desk was matte walnut—clean lines, no shine. A single glass of water sat to the left of my laptop, untouched. I never kept coffee cups on my desk. Never left files out overnight. No one should be able to read me by the mess I left behind.
The windows were tall but tinted, facing the east side of the city. Morning light filtered through soft linen blinds, enough to see each other clearly—but never enough to feel fully lit. The walls were a deep slate gray, interrupted only by a quiet black-and-gold clock and a row of clean shelving behind me. Everything had a place. Everything stayed where I put it.
Except him.
Ayub stepped inside like he belonged in the space. Like he’d already mapped the geometry of it—how far he could lean back without touching the wall, how much silence he could stretch before I’d speak first.
I hated how well he fit into the quiet.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9g7tHWJKm4
And maybe, just a little, I liked it too.
I didn't look up right away.
Let the moment breathe.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8OOtV2CxqF
Let him wait.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVLquE7ggCK
Let him wonder if I was doing it on purpose.
Because I was.
When I finally lifted my gaze, he was already watching me.
Not like a subordinate.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5SQC7fDv4
Not even like a man who'd been humiliated the day before.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKyC3M2Pgt
He was studying me.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYqkGC6Sgb
Like he was trying to solve a problem he was getting too close to enjoying.
"Asalaam Aleykum," he said, voice even.
"Aleykum Selaam."
Just that.
No smile.
But something in the air shifted.
I gestured toward the chair across from me.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5qpVOF8hSH
"Sit. Let's get started."
No small talk. No apologies. No mention of yesterday.
Let it hang.
He sat, tugging his sleeve just enough to reveal the edge of his watch.
His suit was charcoal—slim fit, sharp lapels, clean lines. The shirt was crisp white, top button open, no tie. Everything about him looked intentional. Efficient. Like he dressed the way he moved: precise, focused, with just enough edge to keep you guessing.
He dressed well. Better than most.
But not well enough for me.
The cut was clean, but off by a breath—jacket half an inch too long, sleeves not quite breaking where they should. His shoes were solid. Safe. The watch was understated, but didn’t match the belt buckle. Little things. Easily fixed.
It wasn’t wrong. It just wasn’t perfect.
Still, there was something about the way he wore it all—like he didn’t care how he looked, but knew he had to carry it right. And he did.
That, I respected.
The man had presence. Stillness. Heat he didn’t waste.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrzWH4ZsViy
He didn’t fidget. Didn’t posture. Just took up space like it was owed to him.
And—God help me—he was beautiful.
Rough around the edges, quiet in all the right ways.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvIRiTYJtT3
The kind of man you could dress in anything and make look dangerous.
If he were mine, I’d start with the tailoring.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj2rcIfZYzr
Nothing drastic—just sharp enough to cut.
He wouldn’t fight me on it.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDwohV2HQ2e
I could see it. A cleaner cut, sharper detail. A tie in slate or navy. Not for him—he didn’t need it. But because I wouldn’t be able to help myself.
He was always the picture of quiet discipline.
Even when I tore him open in front of his peers, he didn't crumble.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZV2s5EgeTj
He cracked, maybe. But he didn't fall.
And now he was here.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg9pD9rXJIY
Two hours before the client briefing that could make or break this quarter’s regional numbers. And he was here—because I told him to be.
I slid the printed deck toward him.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnhggK6vOO
"Your pacing is off by five minutes. You're overloaded in the second section, and the numbers on slide eleven contradict the Q2 client brief. Fix them. We'll run through it twice before 8:45."
He didn't reach for the deck right away.
Instead, he looked at me.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRw9zh92j3j
Not just eye contact—held it.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaDyeGvVke1
Steady. Sharp. Like he was reading the spaces between my words.
“You think I can’t handle it.”42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZBFqNktm6g
He paused. “Insha’Allah, I can.”
I tilted my head. Didn't blink.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtsi34wpTLT
"I think you haven't had to handle this before."
"That's not an answer."
I smiled. Slow. Deliberate.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgMScTIoxC7
Not flirtatious. But not harmless, either.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH4JiLLZiEc
I wanted him to feel it. Just a little.
"It wasn't meant to be."
That earned me something.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6J41TFOa6n
A flicker behind his eyes—not quite irritation, not quite challenge.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ411uDo6jjN
Something hotter.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMW8b7dj6t
And just like that, I wasn’t sure who was holding the line anymore.
He covered it well, but it was there.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWQW9oZv1om
And it made my spine straighten. My pulse tick upward.
"Slide eleven," I said again, quieter now.
“You always talk softer when you’re about to rip something apart.”
He took the deck.
I let that sit between us. Let him have it.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhi6KZsa84Y
Didn’t flinch. Didn’t smile.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3tCCjEgGBf
But I didn’t correct him either.
There was a rhythm to the way he moved.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyqgIs9SMa2
Precise. Economical. Like a man who knew Allah was watching, even when no one else was.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO0d9AIoKuU
No wasted energy. No distraction.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB1DUaJxQp2
Except maybe me.
I watched the furrow form between his brows as he scanned the numbers.
"The Q2 brief used forecasted figures," he said, voice low. Thoughtful.
"And your slide uses reported. Pick one. Don't confuse the client. They hate feeling stupid."
He nodded once.
Didn't write anything down.
Because he already remembered it.
And for a reason I didn't care to name, I liked that more than I should have.
I watched his hands.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdV4VhFMXK
Broad palms. Calloused fingers.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmlNcxWKRB
The kind of hands that didn’t belong in boardrooms—but somehow fit the suit anyway.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRFEdWJaZm1
Hands that could hold you in place without ever raising their voice.
It always struck me how much of Ayub didn't match the rest.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1b5Y7mjY4i
The roughness under the polish.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlIpsScX6xt
The fight under the control.
I liked watching him recalibrate.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6Aub5mN5n
Liked that he never pushed back out of ego—only when it made sense.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaOY0L2wDPk
Liked that he listened. Really listened.
"Your tone's a mess," I added, leaning back slightly.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRA3HfttElN
"You sound like a man reporting findings, not leading a client team. If you don't believe what you're saying, why should they?"
He looked up.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBJ1DUBqf0I
Met my gaze head-on.
No flinching. No ego.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiH4bSNR8tB
Just that same stillness that reminded me he prayed Fajr before most of this city even opened its eyes.
"Maybe because I earned the data."
"Earning it isn't enough," I said.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF3gSkZlEnS
"You have to sell it."
His jaw tensed.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBHOlrSI1SY
"So I should be more like you."
I let my lips curve.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIQddVvEJhB
"You say that like it's a bad thing."
He didn't smile.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ382AJEdzP5
But he didn't look away, either.
That was the thing about Ayub.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn3zqpoBHIS
He never blinked first.
"Again," I said, lifting my hand toward the screen.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQvePIztVpe
"Start from the top. Don't read the script. Speak."
He exhaled through his nose. Sat up straighter.
And then he did.
I listened—not just to his words, but the way he formed them.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0WDWggYnx
He still stumbled on the third section. Still rushed the close.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡugkJQzPGbg
But something had shifted.
Less distance.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RSNzHLfzZ
More presence.
Like he'd stopped trying to impress me and started trying to lead.
"Again," I said when he finished.
He blinked.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3CWCfeGK2T
"Already?"
"You think the client only listens once?"
He didn't argue.
He just went again.
I watched the line of tension in his shoulders stretch thinner with each round.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi9KSiBP4wZ
Watched his jaw tighten. Watched him fight the part of himself that didn't like being molded.
Good.
He shouldn't like it.
Growth never came easy.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2fubbUlfqs
Not for men like him.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxu7GUDINqx
And I didn't want him easy.
I leaned forward. Cut him off mid-sentence.
"What does that figure mean?"
He barely paused.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKeF8SiDeNU
"It reflects—"
"No. Not what it reflects."42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSh9qT4QFET
I tilted my head.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqHA8dseRXo
"What does it mean?"
His brow twitched.
"To them," I clarified.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhF4R6Mokzj
"The clients. The men in suits. The ones who measure success in margin and control. Why should they care?"
The silence stretched.
I didn't fill it.
Finally, he said,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEdxN3qTLQ
"Because if they don't, they'll cut the next quarter's budget."
"Better."42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqhb7DZkjVP
I sat back. Let it land.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMBGIiiNaTS
"Now say it like you mean it."
He did.
This time, he meant it.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR2cZ8z9vP3
You could hear it.
I caught myself nodding.
"How much sleep did you get?" I asked, voice lighter now.
“Enough.”
“Uh-huh. Qiyam or anxiety?”
He smirked. Just barely. But it was there. "Bit of both."
The tension wasn't gone.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWV0BpC5VkC
Just... changed.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZJ6zRAcslB
Warmer.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkfIB1z4hNp
Thicker.
Like we'd stopped circling and started facing each other.
I let my tone soften.
“Wallahi, you’re sharper than most of them already. You just don’t see it yet.”
He looked up—genuinely surprised.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQCZ8hfd14V
Not by the words.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbXbG40B9Ok
But that I meant them.
"Could've fooled me yesterday."
"Yesterday," I said, steady, "was necessary."
"For who?"
"Both of us."
That stopped him.
I saw it in the way his hands stilled on the deck.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuMSIs2dXf6
The way his eyes narrowed—not in anger, but thought.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFDjvmNW6B8
Like something had just clicked into place.
"I need you sharp," I continued.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlXNZT5xibw
"If I push you hard, it's because I know you can take it. Rise above it. That's more than I can say for most of the men around here."
His lips parted.
The first real crack in his armor.
"I'm not here to break you," I said.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ04C1ZC4B4T
"I'm here to build you. If you can survive me, you can survive anyone."
His gaze dropped to the deck for a beat.
Then returned to me.
Not gratitude.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVoxcFjSIZO
Not quite admiration.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtj9oXsS080
Something quieter—respect, maybe. Or the start of it.
“You're dangerous,” he said quietly.
“Alhamdulillah,” I said. “You’re finally catching on.”
His mouth twitched.
He didn't smile.
But he wanted to.
Good.
Let him.
The clock on the wall ticked over to 8:42.
I stood. Walked around the desk. Took the deck from his hand without asking.
"You're ready," I said.
He blinked.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGCYyacuI1S
"You sure?"
"No," I replied, handing it back.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6m305zfWhY
"But you're as close as you're going to get. Go get a coffee. Come back at 9 sharp. And drink water before you speak."
He stood slowly. Rolled his shoulders once—casual, but I could see the tension still living in the line of his back.
He looked like he wanted to say something else.
But he didn't.
He just nodded.
And walked out.
The door clicked shut behind him.
And the second it did,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXKQHSj8HG
I let myself smile.
May Allah protect him, I thought.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyD8bMYNBJM
I wasn’t sure from what. Me, maybe.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Look, I didn’t mean for this chapter to feel like a corporate hostage negotiation with bonus eye contact—but here we are.
Lamija is terrifying. Ayub is unbothered. They’re both in denial.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBKXegDV5xc
Meanwhile, the rest of us are just trying to survive the tension in that office.
No one blinked.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKSsoGwMAgN
No one smiled.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRO1Lr8h83l
And yet somehow, everyone’s a little flustered.
Thanks for reading.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡushLPDB36c
Next time: will someone finally crack? (Spoiler: probably not.)42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2O4uwExN4p
They’ve got five more meetings, six more power struggles, and at least one coordinated outfit to get through first.
Pray for them.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4nKF5xQQdK
And maybe for me.
