Months faded to years. I got married and had children. I had changed quite a few jobs by that time but I wasn't satisfied. I was trying at different firms but since they all wanted fresh and new faces, they didn't think of me as appropriate.

A call came from 'The Burnished Sun and Co', a relatively new firm that was competing in shares at the top of the market list. It was an electronics goods company and I thought my course on electronics would help. The interview went well and I got the job.

On the first day at my new place, I was asked to report to the CEO. I quickly checked myself in the mirror before proceeding to his cabin. I wanted to look, fit and young for the job. As I pushed open the door, I almost collapsed to shock.

The person on the other side of the desk was staring at me with her big brown eyes. The same nose, those full lips, black hair and the gorgeous curves. Her lips were quivering as she struggled to stand up.

"Amara!" I breathed, unsure of my own voice.

"Pearl. I..." she grabbed a tissue and dabbed it at her eyes.

"Don't spoil the mascara," I joked, just like the good old days.

"You have one in your purse right now, don't you?" she smiled and then the tears came. We both collapsed into each other's arms and cried wordlessly.

She told me about how she had run away with only a little money as savings. And she had worked two jobs as a cleaner and a waitress and then she had gathered up her money and invested it into her own business. She had been determined to make her own company if no one was going to hire her. As talented as she was, business boomed and she climbed the charts steadily.

"Nadim?" the word hung on my lips like the chasm between us that was healing.

She shook her head, her eyes turning moist. She had used all her contacts but Nadim was lost. He had probably been deported, or worse been killed in custody like a thousand other poor fellows like him.

We sat there in silence. Amara informed she had never married but she donated money to a charity fund for the education of the kids from the downtown. And her company was mainly run by an entire black team. But she didn't discriminate or bar the whites from working for her.

For Amara, it was never us or them. It was only we.

A/N  3000 words completed!