12-08-2025, 05:36 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-08-2025, 05:36 AM by matiba2025213. Edited 1 time in total. Edited 1 time in total.)
Chapter 22: Wasim & Jamal (Act 11)
Wasim quickly grabbed his clothes, buttoning it up with trembling hands as he muttered a rushed apology. He thrust the bag of clothes into Lina’s arms, avoiding her furious gaze. “Here...take it. I’m very sorry,” he stammered, his voice uncharacteristically shaky. Before she could respond, he bolted out of the room, leaving her standing there, still trembling with anger.
Lina clutched the bag tightly, her nails digging into the fabric. Her mind raced as she glared at the spot where Wasim had just been. “I’ll report this to the security officer,” she hissed under her breath, her voice low but seething. “And Rahim will hear about this too. You won’t get away with it.”
Behind the curtain, Jamal shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what had just transpired. He hesitated before stepping out, his brow furrowed with concern. “Lina?” he called softly, his eyes scanning her disheveled appearance. “What… what happened? Are you okay?”
Lina didn’t respond immediately. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, but the words caught in her throat. How could she explain what just happened? How could she even begin to process it? Instead, she shook her head and walked past him, her legs feeling like lead as she made her way to the counter.
Jamal followed hesitantly, keeping a respectful distance. “Lina, talk to me,” he insisted, his voice gentle but insistent. “Something’s wrong. I can see it on your face.”
She ignored him, her eyes scanning the empty shop for any sign of Wasim. He was gone, leaving behind only a small note tucked into the bag of clothes. She pulled it out, her fingers trembling as she unfolded it. The words were hastily scribbled: “Custom dresses and lingerie. Complimentary. Please forgive my earlier behavior.”
Lina crumpled the note in her fist, her anger flaring anew. Forgive him? She thought bitterly. After what he did? She shoved the note back into the bag and turned to Jamal, who was still watching her with a mixture of confusion and worry.
“I need to go to Rahim’s shop,” she said abruptly, her voice firm despite the storm raging inside her. “Now!!”
Jamal nodded quickly, sensing that this wasn’t the time to press further. “Okay,” he said gently. “I’ll take you there on my bike. Just… let me know if there’s anything else I can do.”
Lina didn’t respond, her mind already racing ahead to Rahim. She needed to see him, to feel his arms around her, to tell him everything. She followed Jamal out of the shop, clutching the bag to her chest like a shield.
As they mounted the motorcycle, Jamal glanced over his shoulder at her. “Hold on tight,” he said softly. Lina wrapped her arms around his waist, her grip tighter than usual, as if she were clinging to something solid in a world that had suddenly shifted beneath her feet.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, Wasim was frantically dialing Kartini’s number. When she answered, he didn’t waste any time.
“It’s really bad,” he said hurriedly. “Lina’s furious. She’s going to the security officer and informing Rahim ” as he relayed the whole event to her.
Kartini cut him off with a sharp curse. “You idiot!” she snapped. “Why didn’t you make sure Jamal wasn’t there? I told you to give him the day off!”
There was a brief silence on Wasim’s end before he muttered, “I… I forgot.”
Kartini groaned in frustration. “And you gave her the dresses for free? With an apology note? Are you out of your mind?”
“I didn’t know what else to do!” Wasim protested, his voice rising in panic. “She was threatening to go to the security officer....”
“Enough!” Kartini barked, cutting him off again. “Where is she now?”
“Probably heading to Rahim’s shop,” Wasim replied sullenly.
Kartini’s mind raced. She had to act fast. She hung up on Wasim without another word and pulled out a burner phone from her purse. She dialed Rahim’s number that she had memorized it from Lina’s work emergency contact list and waited for him to pick up.
When he did, she disguised her voice slightly, affecting a tone of urgency. “Rahim? It’s… it’s Shazia, Lina’s friend from work. Look, she’s really upset with you for not being supportive about the pregnancy thing. She said she’s going back to her hometown. She’s on a bus right now and if you leave now, you can catch her at the rest stop before she goes too far.”
Rahim’s voice was tinged with alarm. “What? Why? What happened?”
Kartini quickly fabricated details to make the story sound credible. “She feels like you’re not there for her emotionally,” she said with practiced sympathy. “She mentioned something about needing space to think.”
Rahim sounded genuinely distressed. “Which rest stop? I’ll go now.”
Kartini gave him the location, then hung up, a sly smile creeping across her face. She watched from a distance as Rahim hastily closed his shop knowing the long distance ahead, scrawling a note that read “Temporarily Closed for 2 Days & Gone outstation ” before hopping on his motorcycle and speeding away.
She then drove to Rahim’s shop herself, parking her car nearby and waiting. When Jamal’s motorcycle pulled up with Lina in tow, Kartini stepped out of the shadows, pretending to be just as surprised as anyone else.
“Lina?” she called, feigning concern as she approached. “What’s going on? Why are you here?”
Lina hurried toward the shop entrance, her heart sinking as she saw the note on the door. She read it aloud, her voice trembling with disbelief. “Temporarily closed for two days and gone outstation? Where is he?”
Kartini placed a comforting hand on Lina’s shoulder. “Hey, calm down. Tell me what happened.”
Lina hesitated, then broke down, pouring out the events of the afternoon on Wasim’s inappropriate behavior, his advances, her outrage and fear. Kartini listened intently, nodding sympathetically though inwardly seething at how well her plan had unraveled.
“That’s awful,” Kartini said soothingly. “I can’t believe Wasim would do something like that. He’s always been so professional with me.”
Lina wiped away a tear, her frustration mounting as she tried Rahim’s phone again. “He’s not answering,” she whispered, her voice shaking.
Kartini quickly stepped in, taking charge. “Look, it’s late. You need somewhere safe to stay tonight.” She pulled out her phone and made a few quick calls, booking a room at a nearby hotel. “I’ve arranged a place for you,” she said firmly. “You can go to the security officer tomorrow with Rahim when he gets back.”
She handed Lina some cash for dinner and turned to Jamal. “Can you take her to the hotel? Make sure she gets there safely.”
Jamal nodded without hesitation. “Of course.”
Lina looked between them, exhaustion creeping in. “Thank you,” she murmured softly, though her mind was still reeling.
Kartini gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t mention it. You just focus on calming down for now.” She added, "Maybe, Rahim has some business to attend...don't worry, he'll return soon"
As Jamal and Lina got back on the motorcycle, Kartini watched them go, her expression unreadable. She couldn’t help but wonder how this would all play out and whether her carefully laid plans would still manage to come together in the end.
The ride to the hotel was quiet, the hum of the engine filling the silence between them as Lina clung to Jamal’s back.
Wasim quickly grabbed his clothes, buttoning it up with trembling hands as he muttered a rushed apology. He thrust the bag of clothes into Lina’s arms, avoiding her furious gaze. “Here...take it. I’m very sorry,” he stammered, his voice uncharacteristically shaky. Before she could respond, he bolted out of the room, leaving her standing there, still trembling with anger.
Lina clutched the bag tightly, her nails digging into the fabric. Her mind raced as she glared at the spot where Wasim had just been. “I’ll report this to the security officer,” she hissed under her breath, her voice low but seething. “And Rahim will hear about this too. You won’t get away with it.”
Behind the curtain, Jamal shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what had just transpired. He hesitated before stepping out, his brow furrowed with concern. “Lina?” he called softly, his eyes scanning her disheveled appearance. “What… what happened? Are you okay?”
Lina didn’t respond immediately. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, but the words caught in her throat. How could she explain what just happened? How could she even begin to process it? Instead, she shook her head and walked past him, her legs feeling like lead as she made her way to the counter.
Jamal followed hesitantly, keeping a respectful distance. “Lina, talk to me,” he insisted, his voice gentle but insistent. “Something’s wrong. I can see it on your face.”
She ignored him, her eyes scanning the empty shop for any sign of Wasim. He was gone, leaving behind only a small note tucked into the bag of clothes. She pulled it out, her fingers trembling as she unfolded it. The words were hastily scribbled: “Custom dresses and lingerie. Complimentary. Please forgive my earlier behavior.”
Lina crumpled the note in her fist, her anger flaring anew. Forgive him? She thought bitterly. After what he did? She shoved the note back into the bag and turned to Jamal, who was still watching her with a mixture of confusion and worry.
“I need to go to Rahim’s shop,” she said abruptly, her voice firm despite the storm raging inside her. “Now!!”
Jamal nodded quickly, sensing that this wasn’t the time to press further. “Okay,” he said gently. “I’ll take you there on my bike. Just… let me know if there’s anything else I can do.”
Lina didn’t respond, her mind already racing ahead to Rahim. She needed to see him, to feel his arms around her, to tell him everything. She followed Jamal out of the shop, clutching the bag to her chest like a shield.
As they mounted the motorcycle, Jamal glanced over his shoulder at her. “Hold on tight,” he said softly. Lina wrapped her arms around his waist, her grip tighter than usual, as if she were clinging to something solid in a world that had suddenly shifted beneath her feet.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, Wasim was frantically dialing Kartini’s number. When she answered, he didn’t waste any time.
“It’s really bad,” he said hurriedly. “Lina’s furious. She’s going to the security officer and informing Rahim ” as he relayed the whole event to her.
Kartini cut him off with a sharp curse. “You idiot!” she snapped. “Why didn’t you make sure Jamal wasn’t there? I told you to give him the day off!”
There was a brief silence on Wasim’s end before he muttered, “I… I forgot.”
Kartini groaned in frustration. “And you gave her the dresses for free? With an apology note? Are you out of your mind?”
“I didn’t know what else to do!” Wasim protested, his voice rising in panic. “She was threatening to go to the security officer....”
“Enough!” Kartini barked, cutting him off again. “Where is she now?”
“Probably heading to Rahim’s shop,” Wasim replied sullenly.
Kartini’s mind raced. She had to act fast. She hung up on Wasim without another word and pulled out a burner phone from her purse. She dialed Rahim’s number that she had memorized it from Lina’s work emergency contact list and waited for him to pick up.
When he did, she disguised her voice slightly, affecting a tone of urgency. “Rahim? It’s… it’s Shazia, Lina’s friend from work. Look, she’s really upset with you for not being supportive about the pregnancy thing. She said she’s going back to her hometown. She’s on a bus right now and if you leave now, you can catch her at the rest stop before she goes too far.”
Rahim’s voice was tinged with alarm. “What? Why? What happened?”
Kartini quickly fabricated details to make the story sound credible. “She feels like you’re not there for her emotionally,” she said with practiced sympathy. “She mentioned something about needing space to think.”
Rahim sounded genuinely distressed. “Which rest stop? I’ll go now.”
Kartini gave him the location, then hung up, a sly smile creeping across her face. She watched from a distance as Rahim hastily closed his shop knowing the long distance ahead, scrawling a note that read “Temporarily Closed for 2 Days & Gone outstation ” before hopping on his motorcycle and speeding away.
She then drove to Rahim’s shop herself, parking her car nearby and waiting. When Jamal’s motorcycle pulled up with Lina in tow, Kartini stepped out of the shadows, pretending to be just as surprised as anyone else.
“Lina?” she called, feigning concern as she approached. “What’s going on? Why are you here?”
Lina hurried toward the shop entrance, her heart sinking as she saw the note on the door. She read it aloud, her voice trembling with disbelief. “Temporarily closed for two days and gone outstation? Where is he?”
Kartini placed a comforting hand on Lina’s shoulder. “Hey, calm down. Tell me what happened.”
Lina hesitated, then broke down, pouring out the events of the afternoon on Wasim’s inappropriate behavior, his advances, her outrage and fear. Kartini listened intently, nodding sympathetically though inwardly seething at how well her plan had unraveled.
“That’s awful,” Kartini said soothingly. “I can’t believe Wasim would do something like that. He’s always been so professional with me.”
Lina wiped away a tear, her frustration mounting as she tried Rahim’s phone again. “He’s not answering,” she whispered, her voice shaking.
Kartini quickly stepped in, taking charge. “Look, it’s late. You need somewhere safe to stay tonight.” She pulled out her phone and made a few quick calls, booking a room at a nearby hotel. “I’ve arranged a place for you,” she said firmly. “You can go to the security officer tomorrow with Rahim when he gets back.”
She handed Lina some cash for dinner and turned to Jamal. “Can you take her to the hotel? Make sure she gets there safely.”
Jamal nodded without hesitation. “Of course.”
Lina looked between them, exhaustion creeping in. “Thank you,” she murmured softly, though her mind was still reeling.
Kartini gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t mention it. You just focus on calming down for now.” She added, "Maybe, Rahim has some business to attend...don't worry, he'll return soon"
As Jamal and Lina got back on the motorcycle, Kartini watched them go, her expression unreadable. She couldn’t help but wonder how this would all play out and whether her carefully laid plans would still manage to come together in the end.
The ride to the hotel was quiet, the hum of the engine filling the silence between them as Lina clung to Jamal’s back.
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