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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBKx845wkx
And I came back to find the entire rhythm of my org chart quietly rearranged.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZMKQttFANq
Not by me. Not by anyone who reports to me.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWtQwm0vcw
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnGOUrq63lR
He didn't even consult me. Not a message. Not a call.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtMP8mWQ6g3
Just a silent maneuver that stripped me of one of my best men.
Ayub wasn't just good.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHqgfmNqM3X
He was my stabilizer.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKhF4DsBhe
The one I trusted when everything was on fire.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrijxijsQ8
Precise, unshakable, loyal to the bone.
I didn't have many of those.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdDlwrtLBP
And Babo just handed him off like a spare part.
It was strategic. Sure.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyV2eyAjEq
Babo saw a storm in Lamija and thought Ayub would be the anchor. That made sense.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBXbsOZtGB3
But what grated was how quietly it happened—no discussion, no warning.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLjX6xJXmSH
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5MdSoxTHGC
Calm on the surface, panic humming underneath.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt5xdvOSt0o
I knew the look. He wore it when his father died. When Babo first offered him a role.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhL8YcIHgx5
When he thought too much of himself was at risk to speak.
"Morning," I said, motioning to the chair.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡobTXZaXEjE
"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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡozJGbSGPQc
"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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWptMx5B82K
"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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAL7hc7XjGN
And we both know his decisions don't come with feedback forms."
I leaned back, studying him.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmSvwKtHXdx
"You think you're not cut out for her team? That's garbage.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvMfFSoxMso
You're one of the best assets in this building.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8SQniNCdMQ
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI0yZLC9gmJ
You do the job, then vanish.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBIZc3XMAq3
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9LnvwqiaaU
"This isn't about the job. This is about her."
He tensed.
"You've avoided her for years. I watched it happen.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsJAJ6Kdl1u
Switching shifts, avoiding meetings, never once volunteering on anything tied to her division.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUtnvAdS9NV
I let it go. Figured you had your reasons.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo2t0FOXNPJ
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRBmAxaWUnh
She's sharp, relentless, and doesn't bend for anyone.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7pNo5Z7YU
But that doesn't mean you don't belong beside her.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFWtxdfv7PD
You don't need to compete with her.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtssh1IsmvY
You need to stop disappearing."
He ran a hand over his face.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJZHqEJGCQQ
He looked tired. Frayed.
"I don't belong in her world."
I shook my head.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Sv8r81jov
"Don't give me that. You lived in our house. You ate at our table. My mother calls you her son.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUJzR0xw0d
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Ioz1hCNVE
"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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0wKjxP6cUk
"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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeCZf6upsyH
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.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYFXAKhECpY
Respectfully, he's tired.
Ayub wants to disappear.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3mXueHMo9
Lamija wants control.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDfNhqbOgL
And Imran just wants a functioning org chart and one (1) peaceful morning.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAYn2ilMWl
He's not getting it.
Let me know if you're starting to pick a favorite.71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvRCKftek8c
(And if it's not Imran by now, you're lying.)71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTubJCk9YQQ
71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6i0SN5paEm
- Ash&Olive
71Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJWDdGs5Wzp
