Golden sunlight filtered into the beige-walled room. The living room was quiet except for hushed tones coming from the neighboring room. Everything sat in its place, the white sofa looked undisturbed and the rug, unruffled. A small purple flower sat on the table but the edges of its petals were gathering a thin film of dust. Silence mediated for peace and bore witness to the lack of noisy children in the house. A quiet little girl emerged from her room, clad in a properly pressed and neat school uniform. Her mother followed, reminding her that they were getting late for their destinations; the girl to her school and the mother to her office.
Just then the shrill cry of the doorbell pierced through the air. Nilofer quickly fetched the door. On the other end, a bird-like girl in a thin frame and small features on a pale white complexion stared at her, slightly hesitant, or maybe nervous altogether.
In her manager’s voice, Nilofer commanded, “you must be the maid we have been waiting for?” At once a question and an answer. The fragile, young girl responded with a “yes ma’am,” and was invited inside.
The maid pasted a small smile on her face, but both the mother and daughter duo did not respond. It could probably be because the little girl knew nothing of the new stranger maid, so she observed no salutations towards her. Nilofer, at the same time, was a busy woman who had little time for smiles or frowns, she only had affection reserved for her daughter. In fact, most of her polite behavior lasted only in her office hours, she was a woman who struggled hard and in doing so, lost her loving side somewhere.
Nilofer asked for the maid, Shella’s passport, and other documents. Shella was reluctant at first; she was new to the country and might need her documents, as her identity, for traveling around the city or for going to the grocers. She expressed her hesitance to Nilofer as well but Nilofar sternly declined the offer, “no, you won’t need it, you are here to work not for roaming around the city.”
“But ma’am, I might need it for the days that I take an off.” Shella tried again, but another strict command crushed her desire to see the city even on her holidays. “No, you won’t need it. You are already late, so you won’t need it, as your off would not come for a few days. “
New to her work, Shella let it go. What else was she supposed to do anyway? An old, worn-out bag hung by her shoulder, and she asked for the instructions to the kitchen and the room she would stay in.
For s split second, Nilofer was taken aback, as though she had completely forgotten about allocating a room to the newly appointed maid. Then an idea sparked through her beady eyes and long nose. She pulled open a small door to the storeroom. Various items came flooding down in a mess, disorganized due to a year’s neglect. “You can clean this up, you’ll be staying here.”
