Basma Aziz - The Queue

The man in the galabeya had begun to appear beside her at all hours, and people saw him talking to her at length, sometimes even shouting. Sometimes she cried harder when he was around, and other times her tears abated, but no one heard exactly what he said.

Amani had no news from the office, just that Um Mabrouk was often absent. Nagy explained that even though she was doing good business in the queue, he imagined she would return to honor her responsibilities at the office — particularly given the current situation. She had recently gotten rid of her phone, and her revenue had dropped sharply.

They rapidly exchanged news, falling silent for just a moment here or there and then picking up the conversation again, while the waiter punished them for their delay in ordering by delaying their food in turn.

Yehya had avoided revealing what had happened between him and Mrs. Alfat, but there was no way to avoid it when the other two asked him straight out if he was hiding something. Amani didn’t believe the head nurse, and called her a snake, while Nagy accused Tarek of lying. Yehya didn’t side with either of them, but flat-out refused the suggestion that they go back and face Tarek in the hospital again. If Alfat or Tarek had any intention of giving him the X-ray, they would’ve done so, but they both denied they had it, and Yehya had no way to prove it had ever even existed. Confronting them about its disappearance might just make things worse. The levity with which they had begun the afternoon dissipated, and each of them turned to the plates of food that had arrived, isolated in their individual thoughts.

After slowly finishing her food, Amani solemnly announced that she’d go to Zephyr Hospital early the next morning. Yehya tried to dissuade her, but she pointedly ended the discussion. She had delayed it long enough, she said, and she didn’t need anyone to discourage her now. She was even more worried now that Yehya had confirmed that the X-ray was lost, and that was enough to convince her that she had to go. She could barely keep herself in her chair; she rocked back and forth and fidgeted in her seat, wrung her hands, and fiddled with her hair. If the hospital staff hadn’t already left for the day, she would have gone over there right then.

Silence settled over them as Yehya sank deeper into his turbulent thoughts. He knew there was no other way forward, but he’d been to Zephyr Hospital once in his life and it had been enough; he knew how dangerous it would be for Amani to go on her own, particularly at a time like this. Things had become increasingly restrictive, and her visit might draw more attention to him, resulting in his X-ray vanishing from that hospital as well. His options flickered and faded in front of him, he was losing one after another. He rested his elbows on the table and sank his forehead into his palms. The mention of Zephyr Hospital reminded him of the doctor in military uniform who’d asked about him at the office a while back. Amani didn’t have any more information than she’d written in her letter; the man had arrived mysteriously and was gone within minutes. He hadn’t left a business card or phone number, nothing but the name of the place where he worked, which was now engraved in her mind.

Nagy tried to break the silence casually and mentioned that Ehab had offered to go with Amani — actually, he’d insisted on it. Like Yehya, he was cautious around Amani’s harsh temper that was quick to flare up, and he expected her to be annoyed by Ehab’s insistence, afraid he might jeopardize the whole plan. But although she remained tense, she didn’t get angry. She was less concerned with Ehab and more afraid of anything that might ruin this opportunity. She had become Yehya’s only hope when all other ways forward were blocked. She knew that their success depended on her making her visit to the hospital seem routine and innocent, just an ordinary request. She had to act in a way that would make asking the hospital official for an X-ray seem entirely unimportant, not alarming at all, the kind of request that plenty of people had made before her without any complication.

Amani agreed that Ehab could come, but she stressed to Nagy that as long as she didn’t run into any problems, Ehab had to keep his distance from her, and he could only interfere if it was absolutely necessary. The tension in their conversation eased, and Yehya asked her to avoid the doctor from Zephyr who had come to the office, who was bound to recognize her face.

Amani paid the bill, easily beating them to the check; she was the only one among them who still had a steady job and reliable income. Nagy sat gazing out the window at the coffee shop across the road while Yehya headed to the toilet. While there, he carefully inspected his underwear, and then pulled it up after counting the concentric circles of blood. There were two fresh rings. He put his head under the tap, let the water run over him, and caught up with the others by the door.

With every piece of news that another citizen had disappeared, Ines grew more anxious. She wouldn’t leave her place for more than a moment, and Um Mabrouk began to send Mabrouk to bring her breakfast every day, so she wouldn’t pass out from hunger. Ines never imagined she would fall victim to fear like this, having long considered herself one of the most resolute and resilient of people. She’d lived alone in a big apartment for years, had gotten through university and finished her studies in peace without anyone to look after her, and then had applied for jobs and been the first in her class to get one. She skillfully surpassed the other women in her cohort; she was hired first, given a permanent position first, and given a better bonus. She was known for her flawless teaching reputation, beloved by her students and their parents alike, who were always impressed by her dedication.

Yet despite this spotless record, things had changed overnight. Her first mistake had brought her to the Gate against her will, and she didn’t know where she’d end up as a result of the second one. Soon she might be no more than a note in the margins of the escalating unemployment figures. She was haunted by waking dreams, imagining a photograph of herself in a turquoise headscarf printed on one of the missing-person flyers, which her mother would distribute in the queue and pass sorrowfully among the people waiting.

Her parents would never forgive her if her mother had to return from the Gulf because of her, if she was the reason they lost their jobs and their good salary in riyals. And if Ines tarnished the family name, it could result in divorce for her sister, who would be forced to leave her husband’s house and take her children with her. She would blame Ines for everything she’d done, even though it hadn’t been intentional. Not even in her worst nightmares had she seen things ending up like this. She’d never meant to make disparaging remarks about Shalaby, his cousin, or the guard unit he belonged to. If she had known that the exchange would be transmitted to officials behind the Gate, just the mention of his name would have given her chills, she would’ve never opened her mouth in the first place, and she wouldn’t have ignored Um Mabrouk’s advice.

The boycott against Violet Telecom suffered a harsh blow at the hands of the High Sheikh, who issued a fatwa declaring it impermissible to harm the economic interests of the country and its people. It also criminalized boycotts that negatively affected businesses owned by God-fearing believers. The fatwa declared that if anyone insulted religion in any way, boycotting and ignoring them would be not only permissible but also a religious duty. It concluded by saying that believers should continue to treat their brothers charitably, even if in doing so it brought them hardship or put them in danger.