A Strong Girl (Part 3)

The bus came to a stop just outside her house and Lucy got off. There was no need to thank Burke for a safe trip, but frankly Lucy wouldn’t have minded if she had to do it. She was just thankful she was no longer in the niqaab and another horrible day was over.

The house was a dream of suburbia. Big, spacious, with a driveway and white picket fence, it seemed perfect when they made the down-payment. Now it was the nightmare that stuck Lucy in her horrible job.

Lucy walked up the driveway and saw that the car was still there. Of course it was there! Where could Simon be but at home? The couple did not have the best of relationship nowadays. She opened the door and saw that dinner has been prepared already. Lucy took off her shoes and went to the study. As expected, her husband was sitting in front of the computer again.

Too skinny, too pale with thick glasses, Simon Kelly looked every bit like the tech geek he was. Looking back, Lucy realized what a mistake she made marrying him. She wasn’t a model or anything but she was good-looking enough to have her pick of guys. Unfortunately, she had to pick a decent guy who became a dead-weight in his career.

She tried to start off on the right foot. “Thanks for getting dinner ready honey.”

Simon looked up in surprised. He didn’t even know she was there. Like always, put him in front of a computer and Simon would lose track of everything. “Oh…Chestnut! Didn’t hear you come in; dinner still warm. Help yourself with it.”

Lucy tried her best to smile. The nickname referred to her hair color and while it was cute when they were dating, it had long lost its sparkle. Now it just sounded tacky. “What you’re going?”

“Looking around…you know the usual.”

The usual meant doing nothing. Simon had been laid off 2 years ago and had never found another job since. Lucy had to admit he tried, even scoring an interview with Sun Horizon a few months ago, but with the American economy in its tailspin, no one needed another information technology specialist. When they were first married, there were talks of start-ups and Silicon Valley. Now he was just another bum lazing around the house.

“Okay, but you may want to read this.” Lucy handed him the file from Matt. “My contract is up in 6 months and this is Sun Horizon’s kind offer.”

“What it says?”

“God knows with those Middle Eastern pricks. I’m not signing it.” Lucy turned and headed to the dining room when she heard Simon getting out of his chair.

“What? Why? We need the money Chestnut.” 

“Money’s the problem. They’re only offering a third of my current salary and this is the best part; my new job would be “Office Assistance Girl”! Fuck them!”

“It’s better than nothing. Without your job we’ll have no income to speak of.” Simon opened up the file and Lucy lost it.

“Yeah, well whose fault is that? I’m not the one doing nothing for the last 2 years!” The moment the words came out, Lucy knew she made a mistake. “Look honey, you don’t know what…”

“No, no,” Simon waved off the apology. “It’s not your fault. It’s your decision.”

Simon retreated back to the study as Lucy stood there feeling guilty. There was nothing she could do now. She was about to start her dinner when Simon ran out with the file.

“Chestnut, you haven’t read this?”
“No. Why?”
Simon looked at her in shock. “They’re offering me a job!”

---

The next day was a Saturday and Lucy was back at work. One of the things Sun Horizon changed was moving the company to a 5 and a half work week. There were some complaints but Sun Horizon claimed this was the norm in most of the world (which was true) and in the end, everyone had to adapt.

For the first time, Lucy was grateful for the change. She didn’t think she could have waited till Monday!

Lucy knew she wanted to see Matt the first chance she got but as a girl, she couldn’t see him directly. Protocol dictated that she had to go through her DSO. Unfortunately for her, that happened to be Oscar.
Standing beside his desk in the prescribe manner, Lucy asked submissively, “Sir, this girl request to see our manager Matt.”

Oscar leaned back on his chair with a wicked smile on his face. “Really? You know girls aren’t supposed to go to management right? What possible reason does a stupid girl like you have to bother management?”

“It’s a private matter sir.”

“You know girl…I don’t think that was very respectful of you.” Oscar pointed at the floor. “Why don’t you ask that again on your knees?”

Lucy quietly knelt and asked again, “Sir, this girl request permission to see our manager Matt Hanson.”

Oscar smiled and…went back to the work on his desk. Not having been told what to do, Lucy decided to do nothing but to continue kneeling. She wasn’t leaving without seeing Matt and she knew Oscar had to acknowledge her request sooner or later. She just had to wait.

After about 10mins, Oscar looked back at her and exclaimed, “Girl, you’re still here? I thought you went off already.” Lucy silently fumed but kept quiet. Oscar finally stood up. “Hang on then. We can’t have you just lazing on your knees right? We have work!”

Oscar walked into Matt’s office and Lucy could see them talking through the window. After a minute, Oscar came back. “Good news girl! Matt’s too busy to talk to a girl like you but you are to report to the head of human resource right now.”

---

Lucy guessed that a “team player” like Matt would hate confrontation but she couldn’t help but felt that Matt was a coward for dodging her. However, she then realized that speaking to the main man might be better for her.

The secretary of the human resource manager was a girl with the name tag of Betty. Lucy didn’t know if she was a new hire but she was good at her job. She got her boss on the line the moment she saw Lucy entered the office. When Lucy arrived at her desk, Betty was already on her feet at the door of the manager office. 

She opened the door but stopped Lucy from walking in. Betty pointed at the ground and Lucy silently cursed. Stated in the employee handbook; when girls enter the office of a manager, they had to do it on their hands and knees unless they are carrying an item on their hands. Basically, girls were not allowed to walk into a manager’s officer, they were only allowed to crawl in. It was a rule most managers ignored but as the man rumored to have written most of the employee handbook and the head of human resource, Lucy guessed it was no surprise Abdullah bin Ismail would follow all the rules within it.

Sighing, Lucy fell on her knees and crawled into the office. Lucy could see that there were 2 chairs for guests and she crawled between them. Stopping just in front of the desk, Lucy asked for permission, “Sir, this girl request permission to stand”

“Granted”

At the single word command, Lucy stood up carefully. She made sure her feet were at shoulder length apart, her hands were clasped, and her eyes were downcast on the ground between her feet. She had the feeling Abdullah was not someone who was forgiving to girls who did not obey all the rules in his rulebook.

“You may look up”

Slightly surprised, Lucy looked up at the man in front of her. Abdullah was a short man with a big belly on him. Looking around, Lucy saw a cold office, devoid of all manner of decoration. She immediately asked her question and was shocked by his admission.

“Yes, I know. I was the one who drew up the offer to your husband.”

“You…but why?” The man frowned and Lucy quickly remembered her mistake. “Sir, this girl respectfully asks why did the company tag my husband’s employment to this girl’s continued employment with Sun Horizon?”

“Silly girl, I would think the answer to that would be obvious. We want you to stay with us!”

Lucy bit her lips at the remark and continued, “Sir, my husband is well-qualified for the position he applied for. There is no reason for the company to do this sir.”

Abdullah smiled and Lucy could see that he was enjoying this.

“First off girl, you are being disrespectful to your husband. Simon Kelly isn’t just well-qualified for the position, he is overqualified for it!” That stunned her but before Lucy could say anything, he continued. “However, we could get what he could do for us from any new college graduate in America. I could even hire a guy from India at half the salary we are offering him. Frankly, he can do the job but Sun Horizon does not really need him.”

Abdullah paused, waiting for his words to sink in. “Second; we loved you. Girl, you used to hold a high ranking position in the company but you had adapted to your new post better than almost any other female. You are subservient to the men, respectful in your words and tone, and you do your job without complain. I won’t say you are the best girl we have but among the girls who stayed, you are among the best. Most of the other girls get demerits left, right and centre but you actually managed to get the bonus twice! We love you! You are a great example to the other girls!” Lucy reeled from the revelations. The last thing she wanted was to be some sort of role model for Sun Horizon. “So when your contract came up, I was almost ordered to find a way to keep you.”

“And you came up with the idea of offering my husband a job…sir?”

Abdullah laughed. “I’m quite proud of it in fact. Although we are a huge multi-national company, we at Sun Horizon still like to think of ourselves as a family company. This is an idea that we had tried out in other countries with great success.”

“So instead of offering me a job I’m suited for, you just offered me a bribe? Blackmailing me with my husband?” Her anger clearly showing in her voice, Lucy didn’t care about her tone, speaking in the third person or the “respectful” sir at the end of the sentence.

Abdullah’s smile disappeared. “It’s not a bribe or blackmail girl. This is a deal and a very good one. With the economy as it is, your husband would be lucky to get any job, much less one at the salary we are offering him. The one goes for you. For a girl, you are pretty smart so you should know what your chances are of getting a new job in this economic environment. You two could reject our offers of course but I don’t think you will be getting anything better than this. With the economy as it is, you guys have a better chance of hitting the lottery.” Lucy thought of everything Abdullah had said and knew he was right. However he wasn’t done yet. “I’ve checked and found that your husband had not worked for over 2 years. A man with talent and passion for his chosen field but still…2 years without work in the IT sector? Girl, Sun Horizon has been more than fair. We’re not taking him as a new hire but offering him your old salary! Tell me he can get something better than this?”

Abdullah was calm and collected throughout the whole thing but Lucy did not care. Lucy practically screamed at him. “I’m not working here for another 3 years just because of that! I don’t care about the fact he don’t have a job!”

“You don’t care?” Abdullah’s look went from shocked to one of cold understanding. His next words were spoken in a voice made of ice. “Oh, you are one of those then!”

“One of what?” Lucy had no idea what the man was talking about.

“One of those women who think nothing about your husband’s position and well-being. There’re a lot you here in the West. Women who believe you are more important than your husband; who think it perfectly all right for a man to go 2 years without work! Tell me girl, is this Simon a henpecked husband?”

She had heard enough. Lucy turned to storm out of the office but was cut short by Abdullah’s commanding voice. “Girl!” Lucy turned back to the man. “I will have to give you a demerit for your disrespectful performance just now. You should know the proper way to get out of my office.”

“The Proper Way” meant crawling out of the office on her hands and knees, the same way she came in. To that, Lucy only had one answer, “Fuck you!”

---

When Lucy arrived at the law firm, she was suitably impressed. The office was huge and she was quickly ushered into a conference room where she saw over 30 women inside. She quickly realized that all the women there were either working or had worked for Sun Horizon before. However the meeting, as Jennifer called, wasn’t really a meeting at all; it was a call for war. 

“Well? What do you think?”

Lucy sipped her coffee while thinking of a response to the question by Danielle. “It’s sound. The lawyer seems to have done some work already on the matter. A class action suit against Sun Horizon…we probably have a case.”

“That’s what they say,” Danielle smiled, obviously happy with Lucy’s words. “They say a law suit against Sun Horizon for discrimination is a slam dunk!”

“Famous last words” The words came out before Lucy could stop herself.

“You don’t think so? You don’t think we’ll win?”

“No; nothing like that.” Lucy took a moment to compose herself. She needed to choose her next words carefully. “Remember, Sun Horizon gave all of us a lot of chances to back out when they first took over. They could argue that anyone who stayed made their own decision.”

“But what about your duties? Lucy, you’re one of the best in sales but now…”

“I’m not arguing with you Danielle. The lawyer is probably right, we’ll probably win but I’m just saying it’s not a slam dunk. It’s just not a sure thing.”

“Oh,” Danielle sounded strangely relieved. “This means you’re in right? You’re joining our lawsuit against the company?”

“Yes” Danielle hugged a surprised Lucy who almost dropped her cup. “Whoa, what’s the matter girl? There’s no need for that.”

“Oh Lucy, I was just so worried about you. We’re been trying to get all the senior female executives still in the company to come on board and you’re the last one. That plus the rest of…”

“All of the senior female executives? I don’t see Karen.”

“Oh…we won’t be approaching her.”

“Why not? She’s even more senior than me or Jennifer.”

The good thing about “not” being in a niqaab was that Lucy could clearly see the war on Danielle’s face. After a short while arguing with herself, Danielle decided to talk. “Well…we won’t be approaching her because she might say no. Worse she might tell Matt and the company. We don’t want to tip our hand before we’re ready.”

“You think she’ll say no?”

“I’m Matt’s secretary. I know things about Matt and Karen.”

“Like what?” That was all it took. You know what people always said about women and gossip; Danielle was the living example.

“Like how their marriage has gotten a lot better since the takeover. You know Karen is the best well-behaved girl in the company, even better than the new hires? She had the bonus 8 times already!”

“8?” Lucy was shocked. Just this morning, Abdullah told her having gotten the bonus twice made her one of the best girls in the company, but now she discovered that Karen got 8? Despite herself, Lucy felt her competitive juices flowing at the news.

“Yeah, I even heard Matt boasting once to someone on the phone about how proud he was of her and how much she enjoyed her new role in the company!”

“She’s a front-line receptionist now and Matt thinks she’s enjoying it?”

“Frankly I think he’s right.” Danielle whispered. “You know how rough their marriage was in the past?” Lucy nodded. It was one of the things known throughout the company. “That’s no longer the case. Since the takeover of Sun Horizon, I hardly hear them fight on the phone anymore.”

Lucy scoffed at the idea. “So…she’s what? Embracing her burka? Enjoying her role kneeling and bowing at the company? Come on Danielle, that’s ridiculous.”

“Come on Lucy, you know of the whistle-girls too! There are some of them who get off on the veiling and the humiliation. Hell, I thought you were one of them!”

“Me?”

“Yeah, I mean you used to be so strong. In the past when you wanted something, you would just go through anyone who was in your way but now…you are just so good at your job! Even with jerks like Oscar around the office, you just take it and don’t let them faze you at all.”

Lucy thought about what Abdullah said of her being a role model. It was the last thing on her mind but it seemed Sun Horizon weren’t the only one who thought she was a good worker.

“Come on Danielle! This is me you’re talking to! It’s just my natural instinct to do things well. You know I don’t do things half-ass!” It then hit her. “Wait, is that why you guys waited so long to approach me? Because you thought I would say no!”

“Yeah,” Danielle said with a laugh. “At times, I really thought you kind of enjoyed it!”

“Hell no! I just…just don’t mind it that much!”

Danielle gave her a curious look. “Lucy dear, that’s the problem! Honey, why don’t you hate it?”

To that question, Lucy Rice found that she had no answer.

A Strong Girl (Part 2)

Keyboards were being banged and the phones were ringing. A year ago, Lucy would have been with the men on the phones, analyzing the various markets of the world. As a company with national reach, they had business throughout America and being on top of the market was of vital importance to the company.

Nowadays, Lucy could do nothing but continued her typing. When the Sun Horizon Group took over, most of the girls within the company were reassigned to other jobs in the company. When she said most, it meant any girl who was in an executive position. To avoid lawsuits, the company still allowed Lucy the title of her former position and she still drew the same pay, but now she had none of the responsibilities.

Lucy Rice, who was an executive in the sales division was reassigned to being an office girl.

The female executives were insulted by their new roles and most of them rather paid the financial penalty to break their contract than continued on. If not for her financial situation, Lucy would have joined them. Now her job mainly consisted of typing documents of the work done by her male co-workers. If only that was all, it wouldn’t be so bad. However Lucy had other duties assigned to her as well.

Suddenly the light on her desk turned red and the number “9” was shown on her dashboard. Lucy immediately stopped her typing and got up from her seat. Table 9 was Oscar Mendez.

Lucy had once thought of Oscar as a pretty decent guy but since the company had been taken over, that had changed. More than any guy on the floor, Oscar had taken advantage of the Sun Horizon takeover and thoroughly enjoyed the power he had over the girls.

Lucy walked across the floor with her head bowed. It wasn’t due to any shame she felt in her new position. Her head was bowed because this was prescript in the employee handbook. Girls were only allowed to walk with their head bowed.

When she reached Oscar’s desk, Lucy stood at the position prescript in the employee handbook for girls when they were waiting for orders from men. Her feet were about shoulder length apart, her hands were clasped at the small of her back, her eyes were downcast on the ground between her feet and she made sure her voice was in a respectful, submissive tone, “Sir, how may this girl assist you?” 

“I dropped my pen,” Oscar pointed at a pen just behind his seat. He could have just bended over to pick it up but since he didn’t, Lucy knew what was coming. “Pick it up for me girl.”
Making sure not to lift up her head, Lucy quietly knelt with her knees apart and pick up the pen. Holding it in both hands, she lifted the pen above her head and said, “Your pen sir.”

She heard a chuckle from Oscar and laughter from some of the men but Lucy knew better than to break her position. According to the employee handbook, this was how girls were supposed to offer items to men. Failure to present this position when offering something to the men would be a reason for a demerit. If she got 25 demerits in a month, her pay would be docked but if she got less than 15, there would be a bonus at the end of the month. Lucy had already got the bonus twice.

Lucy felt the pen being taken from her hands. “Thanks you girl.” The mocking in Oscar’s voice was clear for all to hear. “You are a good girl Lucy.”

Lucy wasn’t going to give Oscar the satisfaction of seeing her losing her cool. “Thank you sir. This girl is glad to be of service. Is there anything else I may assist with sir?”
“Not at the moment girl. You may leave.”

Lucy got to her feet and went back to her desk. She continued her typing, blocking out the laughter coming from Oscar’s desk. She continued till the light on her desk was brightened again. Her dashboard showed 9.15am and Lucy got up to do her rounds.

Taking along her pen and notebook, she went to all the men in her area. Standing in front of each of them the same way as she did with Oscar, Lucy took their orders. Once the orders were taken, she slowly walked to the pantry and saw that Jamila and Suriani were already there. One look at their trays and Lucy knew that something was wrong.

“What’s all that?” pointing at their trolleys.
“It’s Michele’s area,” it was Suriani who answered. “Jamila and I are going to spilt her area between us.”

Lucy nodded her appreciation to the two girls. It was one of the reasons she enjoyed working with both of them. The thought of taking over Michele’s area never even occurred to her and she was glad it did to the 2 girls. Knowing the men, failure to serve would be a reason for a demerit for all of them.

Lucy went to the counter and started preparing the snacks. Danielle came in and went to the counter with a tray. Lucy nodded at her and Danielle nodded back.

“Matt wants to see you after lunch.”

Lucy looked up at Danielle in surprise. “What for?”
“Who knows,” Danielle said as she placed the snacks and coffee on her tray. “Remember, after lunch”

Danielle took the tray and left the pantry. As Matt’s secretary, she only had to care for Matt’s needs. As one of the girls in the office however, Lucy had to serve all the men whose desks were in her area. She took out the cups from the cupboards and started on the tea and coffee. The clock stuck 9.30am and the 3 girls pushed out their trolleys.

Lucy went to each individual desk and kneeled. She then offered the men their snacks (which was either sandwiches or biscuits) and drinks (coffee or tea) the same way she offered up Oscar’s pen. Her humiliation was only completed after she thanked the men, happy to be of service to them.

After serving the men in her area, Lucy pushed her trolley back into the pantry. As she walked back to her desk, she saw that Jamila and Suriani were still in service. Lucy sat down and continued her typing.

Her dashboard lighted up again at 11am. Lucy went back to the pantry and took her trolley again. This time on her rounds, she took back the cups and cleaned up the desks of the men. She made sure she was not a “bother” to the men as she cleaned. Most of the men were good enough to stay out of the way but a few, like Oscar, tried having a little fun at her expense by obstructing her.

Lucy let them have their fun. She wasn’t going to tell them off and get herself into trouble again over such juvenile tactics. She once got a demerit for such an offence and besides, she found that after awhile the men would tired of the games and let her do her cleaning.

Lucy took the cups to the washing area and washed them clean alongside Jamila and Suriani. Rubber gloves were given to them for the washing. After the cleaning, she took the cups back to the pantry and placed them back in the cupboards. Lucy, Jamila and Suriani then waited in the pantry for the DSO.

To ensure that the girls did a good job, there was a male worker who would be assigned as the DSO (daily supervising officer) of the girls. The men on the floor had a rotating schedule where they would serve this duty once every few weeks. Basically, the DSO would be the girls’ superior for the day and since the men had a rotating shift, this meant that every man in the office was Lucy’s superior. Today, it was the duty of a young man named Brandon.

Brandon had only been working at the company for a few months before the takeover by The Sun Horizon Group and it was his first job. He was just fresh out of college and Lucy had been one of his seniors. She had even offered him some advice from time to time back then. Now she was waiting for his approval with her eyes downcast, her feet apart, and her hands clasped behind her back for a job well done.

Luckily for Lucy, Brandon was one of the few men who seem highly embarrassed by some of new rules in place. He was happy with the cups and quickly dismissed the girls for lunch. The 3 girls had to thank him of course, “Thank you sir for inspecting our works.”

The girls then filed out of the office to the stairs. Lucy, Jamila and Suriani walked down to the 5^th floor where the girls’ lunch room was.

Unlike the men who were allowed to go out for their lunches, girls in the building were only allowed to have their lunches within. Not that it matter as none of the girls wanted to go out in public in their niqaabs anyway. The Sun Horizon Group had setup a mini canteen on the 5^th floor where all the girls could go for their lunch and this was where all the girls gathered for their daily break.

There were stalls in the canteen where the girls could buy their food but some of the girls bought their lunches from home. Lucy never did. The stalls at the canteen were rented out by the Sun Horizon Group at very cheap rates to the operators after a background check. The group only allowed the needy to operate the stalls, and from what Lucy heard, it was almost a form of charity. That was why she always bought from the stalls. 

The canteen was a cauldron of noise when she entered. Everyone within was a girl, even the operators of the stalls. None of the men was allowed into the canteen and the reason was immediate. For lunch, the girls were allowed to release themselves from their veils. Most just flipped their veils over the heads like Lucy, but a few unfasten theirs off their heads.

Lucy bought her lunch and found a seat. She spoke to some of the girls, not always knowing who they were. As an executive, in the past she didn’t really join the rest of the girls in the office for small talk. Most of them were in lower positions than her but that was no longer a problem.

And talk they did! Most of the girls were able to speak only a few sentences throughout their mornings and all were more than happy to gossip about what happened on their floor without their veils.

“Lucy Rice?”
Lucy had to turn to see who was speaking to her. “Jennifer? How are you?” It was a minor surprise that Jennifer Harris was speaking to her. Lucy didn’t like her much in the past and she always thought the feeling was mutual. However they were both former executives in the company and in a way she guessed it was expected the two of them would be talking. After all, they were the few female executives left from the old company.

“As well as can be expected in this stupid costume.” Lucy couldn’t help but gave a small laugh at that. Costume was exactly the right word.

As one of the girls in the mailroom, Jennifer was wearing the uniform of the mailgirls which was highly different from the normal niqaab. Harem pants, with a long-sleeve shirt that hugged her body, Jennifer was wearing an outfit that came straight out of “I Love Jeannie”.

The outfit was completed by a yashmak, a type of veil that is similar to the niqab but different. Unlike the niqaab, the yashmak consists of 2 different pieces of cloth that covered both the face and the forehead. The costume was completed with gloves and shoes similar to what Lucy was wearing and a belt with numerous small bells attached on it.

Although it covered every part of her body, Jennifer’s uniform was far more eye-catching and alluring than hers. Maybe it’s because of the bells on the belt or the fact that the outfit was pink in color, but whenever one of the mailgirls came to the office to deliver mail, there should be whistles from the men of the office. Hence their nicknames, the “whistle girls”.

“Thanks a lot.”

Lucy smiled at the annoyed Jennifer. Despite the words Jennifer said, the common consensus among the girls was that the “whistle girls” loved the attention they received. More than a few of the whistle girls deliberately swayed their bottoms when they walked so that the bells on their belt would sound. However Lucy understood that sometimes pride must be maintained.

Lucy smiled in sympathy and said, “Must be tough working in that.”

It was the correct move as Jennifer smiled back and whispered. “You got that right. Free tomorrow after work?”
“I think so. Why?”
“We’re having a meeting. I like you to join us.”
“A meeting? About what?”
“About what to do with Sun Horizon”

“What…”

“Keep your voice down!”

After looking around to make sure no one was paying them any extra attention, Lucy asked. “What do you mean?”
“Just go here,” Jennifer handed Lucy a piece of paper. “Make sure you’re on time. Everything will be explained.”

Jennifer walked away and Lucy was left with an easy decision to make.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Standing in front of his desk with her feet apart and her hands clasped behind her, Lucy’s eyes darted around the office of Matt Hanson. She knew her eyes were supposed to be downcast on the ground but it had been quite some time since she had been in Matt’s office.

Manager of the sales division, Matt Hanson’s office was bright and warm. There were no binds at the windows and sunlight shone through to give the office the warm feeling it always had in the past. Matt famously had an open door policy that welcomed all his employees to come into his office to speak to him but since the takeover by Sun Horizon, Lucy had not been into his office. Girls were supposed to bother their daily officer, not management, about their problems.

Matt’s desk was neat and tidy and Lucy could see numerous pictures of his family scattered through his office. He and his wife, Karen, were quite the power couple in the past as both were managers of their respective department. The status of their marriage was quite the gossip with the girls of Sun Horizon. Rather surprisingly, Karen was still with the company. Now working as a receptionist on the ground floor of the building, Karen greeted every visitor in a sky-blue burqa, the standard uniform of all receptionists in the company.   

 
“Lucy, you know what you’re here for?”
“No sir, this girl does not.”

It was a lie. She did have some idea why she was there. Matt seemed to understand the situation as well. “It’s about your contract girl. It’s almost up. You have less than 6 months left on your contract with our glorious company.” He smiled as he said that and not for the first time, Lucy wondered how Matt truly felt about Sun Horizon.

“Sir, may this girl enquiry on what is it about the contract you wish to speak to this girl about?”

“It’s very simple really. Lucy, the company wishes to extend your contract for another 3 years.” Matt’s smile didn’t waver. “Of course, you will no longer part of the sales team, so your new job title would be “Office Assistance Girl”. Oh, and your new salary will be a third of your current one.”

It took all her willpower not to laugh at the joke. “I…this girl is sorry sir but this girl would have to refuse the…kind offer of the company.”

“Unfortunately I can’t accept your refusal at the moment. You have to bring this document,” Matt put a yellow file on his desk, “and let your husband read it over the weekend. On Monday, you may come back with your answer.”
“Over the weekend?” Lucy was surprised. Why would the company impose such a rule? “That’s stupid! I’ll reject it now!”
“Language girl!” Matt admonished. “I have to give you a demerit for that.”
Lucy bit her mouth and composed herself. “This girl is sorry sir. This girl wishes to know why this girl can’t reject the offer now?”
“Let your husband read it and you’ll know,” Matt lifted the file to her. “It’s Friday, read and think about it over the weekend. Trust me, both of you want to read it first.”      

A Strong Girl (Part 1 )

The bus stopped smoothly as usual and Lucy got up from her seat along with all the girls. Burke, the driver, opened the front door of the bus and the passengers slowly streamed out of the bus. Of course, there was one thing they all had to do before getting off.

One after another, Lucy saw the girls in front of her did it before stepping off the bus. When Lucy reached the front, it was her turn. She turned to Burke, bowed her head slightly and said the words prescript on the employee manual, “Thank you sir for bring this girl safely to her workplace.”

As she raised her head, she saw a big smile on Burke’s face. Well, she can’t blame him. It must be a kick for him to have a busload of female passengers thanking him for doing his job. Silently, she wondered if the few men who used the male company bus had to say this “respectable” line to their driver. Most probably not!

Lucy got off the bus and walked through the carpark of the Sun Horizon Building. The new owners had built a new room in the basement of the building for the female workers and nowadays, this was where the company bus dropped off their female passengers. It was where the women went to change into their company uniforms.

She stepped into the room and when to her locker. In the past, Lucy would have turned up at the company in a power suit benefiting her position as a high-level executive in the sales department but now she came to work in a T-shirt, a windbreaker and a pair of pants. Gone were the suitcase, the designer bag and the high-heel shoes. Dressing up for work was no longer needed because as a female employee of the Sun Horizon Group, she had to put on the prescript uniform for the women in the company.

When she first heard that the company would be bought over by a Middle Eastern investment group, Lucy had been delighted. The non-stop financial crisis in the West had caused extreme strain on the world economy and there were fears that the company would have to declare bankruptcy. She had some expectations that the new owners would bring with them some changes to the company but she now knew that she was sadly mistaken.

The Sun Horizon Group didn’t just make some changes; they bought wholesale changes that changed almost everything about the company. The first things they did were to change the company name to “Sun Horizon Inc” and the name of the building the company owned to “The Sun Horizon Building”. After that, they bought changes to the culture and workplace of the company including installing a uniform for all female workers of the company depending on their jobs within the company.

Lucy looked at the clothes hanging on her locker and again wondered why she stayed with the company. Of course she knew the reason. She and her husband had a mortgage to pay off on a house they couldn’t sell and she couldn’t afford to pay the penalty to break her contract. Sighing silently, she took off her clothes, her sneakers and started putting on her uniform.

She put on the long-sleeved blouse and skirt given to her by the company. The sleeves of the blouse covered her arms while the skirt reached the floor. Both pieces of the uniform were larger than necessary to hide the figure of the wearer. She ignored the socks provided by the company as she was already wearing black socks and put on the company shoes. The shoes were supposed to make no sound when she walked and while that was true, they were made of material so soft at times Lucy thought she was walking around barefooted. She tied them up firmly.

Once that was done, she got to the part of the uniform she hated the most; her niqaab. She first tied up her hair in a headscarf which she wound around her head, then she put on her veil which was fastened around her head above the eyes. The veil dropped down in front of her face till her midriff, leaving only a tiny slit for her eyes. There was even a small piece of fabric down the middle between her eyes for added modesty!

Looking at the mirror of her locker, Lucy could fully understand why the men mockingly called the room “The Black Ghost Room”. Her entire uniform was black and she was covered from the top of her head to feet. She hardly recognized the girl in the mirror but there was nothing to it. She needed the job and the majority of the girls in the company wore this uniform. Lucy put on her black gloves and the last part of her uniform; a name tag that had her name “LUCY” written on it. She clipped the name tag on her niqaab in front of her chest.

She stepped out of the changing room into the corridor and walked to the end where the stairs were. Girls were now on longer allowed to use the elevators or escalators within the building so she had to walk up to her office on the 23th floor in her uniform. It was a horror at first started but now Lucy no longer fear tripping on her long skirt. However it was still heavy exercise going up 23 floors and she took care to use the handrails.

Once she reached the 23th floor, Lucy took a moment for a deep breath. She needed the time to compose herself for the morning greeting.

When the Sun Horizon Group first took over about a year ago, they happily announced that there would be no layoffs and anyone who wished to resign and break their contracts need only pay three quarter of the penalty fees stated in their contract. Everyone stayed except for a few who took early retirement but when changes started taking place people, especially the female workers, started resigning. The morning greeting ritual caused more resignations in the company than any other changes the Sun Horizon Group introduced.

Lucy exited the stairways and walked past the elevators. She saw that 3 other women were already at the entrance of the office and took a quick look at the clock. The company bus dropped her off exactly at 7am and it was already 7.20am.

“Lucy, come on.” The girl who spoke was Danielle, one of the only 5 girls left on her floor and who worked as a secretary to Matt, the manger of the sales division. “You are the last one.”
Lucy’s eyes widen in surprise before she realized that none of the girls could see her face. She looked at the name tags and quickly asked Danielle, “What happened to Michele?”
“She resigned!” Danielle replied.
“Shit!” Lucy answered. “Only 4 of us left then.”
Danielle shrugged in resignation. “Nothing we can do about it. Let’s just get into position,” she said.

The other 2 girls nodded to Lucy who nodded back. They were Jamila and Suriani, new employees the group hired as other women resigned from the company. Lucy could understand why they were hired. The duo were hard workers, comfortable with the niqaab and work culture of the company, and they also seemed to have no problem following the various rules of the company.

The girls spilt into 2 lines facing each other, standing just beyond the entrance of the office. Lucy and Danielle were in one line, while Jamila and Suriani in another. Once the clock hit 7.30am, the office siren sounded and the 4 girls fell to their knees. Kneeling on the floor with her knees wide apart, Lucy then put both hands on the ground in front of her. On her hands and knees, she waited in the humiliating position for her male co-workers.

The Sun Horizon Group said they were taking a leaf out of the Japanese, installing a rule that all the female workers of the company need to greet their male co-workers when the men arrived for work. They said that this was to improve morale.

Lucy was sure the Japanese never has any rule that required their female workers to be on their hands and knees but the rule was pushed through and it applied to all female employees in the company, no matter what her position was. Lucy could only comfort herself in the thought that all the female employees in the company were in the same position as her right now.

She did not have to wait long. The bus for male employees was supposed to reach the building at 7.30am and it was almost never late. The men who drove to work usually arrived after the company bus. Girls of course had to take the company bus as no parking space within the building was given to female employees and the basement changing room was barred to all who did not entered through the carpark entrance. A few minutes after she got into position, Lucy heard the sound of the elevator door opening and the men walking to the office.

As the men walked towards the office, the 4 women lowered their head to the ground and said the words prescript on the employee manual, “Welcome Sir! This girl wishes you a good day at the office!”

The men walked past the women and only after they had passed did the 4 women lifted up their heads. However they stayed on their hands and knees waiting for the rest of the men. The official starting time of the workday was 8am and for the next 30mins, the 4 girls bowed their head and said their lines to all the men who walked past. Most of the men ignore them but occasionally Lucy could hear a chuckle or two from the passing men.

Again Lucy couldn’t blame them. A year ago, most of them were working with her, some were even under her, but now she was on her hands and knees welcoming them to the office. The sad thing was that Lucy could see that the morning greeting was working! Morale around the office had truly increased since the rule had been introduced and what’s more was that the men were never late for work. All of them came between 7.30am and 8am to partake in the morning greeting and male absentees were so rare you knew it must be something serious for men to miss work. All the women of course had to take the company bus, so they were never late. It was a rule that truly did worked!

At 8am, the officer siren sounded again and the 4 girls got to their feet and went to their desks. The day has officially started.

“Nana To Kaoru” by Ryuta Amazume (Story & Art)

“Nana To Kaoru” is a on-going manga written and drawn by Ryuta Amazume. For those who do not know, manga are Japanese comics that catered to a wide spectrum of the population in Japan. Unlike American comics (which focused on superheroes) or Chinese mahwa (which focused on martial arts stories), there are mangas for almost every genre under the sun. Including BDSM!

The story is on Kaoru, a 17-year old high-school student who has a SM fetish. He has a childhood friend named Nana who lives next door and always dreamt of having a SM relationship with her. However their relationship had deteriorated over the years due to the fact they belong to different clique in school and they hanged out with different people.

The story starts when one day when Kaoru's mom decided to hide all his SM toys so that he would study for an exam. Worried that Kaoru would find the items in their house, she asked Nana (who is an honor student) to hide the toys. Nana agreed but curiosity got the better of her and later at night, she went through the toys she had heard so much about. She found a one-piece leather suit that Kaoru had and tries it on. After much stumbling and fumbling, she finally got it on but she accidentally locks it and found that she don't have the key!

She approached Kaoru who freed her from the suit but only after having some fun with her. Nana then realized to her surprise that she enjoyed her time in the suit as she was free of all responsibility and subsequently the two of them started engaging in these so-called "breathers".

First off let me be clear; this manga is not hentai. There's very little nudity, totally none for the first couple of chapters, and totally no sex. In fact, the writer, Ryuta Amazume, focused more on the mental aspect of S&M than anything else. The readers (that’s us) are gradually introduced to the characters as well as to the world of S&M.

Amazingly, it works! The manga did a great job showing the world of S&M without being exploitive and showed the amount of trust, self control, and love that a BDSM couple needs to have to keep it going. There’s really character development in this manga with insight into the minds of Kaoru and Nana as they struggle with their roles in their secret relationship. In fact, part of the fun in this manga was the absurd lengths the duo would go to hide their “hobby” from others and how they justified their actions to themselves. They never called their play “roleplay” or even “S&M”, instead calling them “breathers” throughout the series as they were intended to relieve Nana of stress. Yes, that’s weak and the couple knows it too but to do otherwise would require them to confront a situation neither were willing to admit. That they were truly a couple that was meant for each other.

The manga also includes things most people never thought of; like the sheer amount of prep work you need to do for a session and how little an S&M relationship has to do with sex. I especially like the idea of how careful the duo are and how slowly the limits were gradually pushed. It just made sense when you consider how inexperience both Nana and Kaoru are.

I highly recommend anyone who is interested in BDSM to take a look at this manga. Even if you are not into comics, this manga is for you. The series is such a hit in Jpan, there is even a spin-off series, a movie and a one episode anime of it. The only problem is that there is no real English translated comics for “Nana To Kaoru” and given the subject material, there probably never will be. So the only way to enjoy the series in English is to go to scan sites like Mangareader and Mangafox. I put a link below but there are others out there.

http://www.mangareader.net/926/nana-to-kaoru.html

Take a look if you want a proper look into a real life BDSM relationship. It’s destined to be a classic BDSM work and you can see it as it happens.