Third Person's POV

She sprinkled the cardamon, added the cinnamon sticks, lemon juice, cilantro leaves, coriander powder, garlic, tomatoes, cumin powder, and paprika powder to the large pot containing the fried lamb and onions.

Using her clean hands, she mixed them and let them cook for a few minutes, then added little water and covered the pot to let it simmer under medium heat.

" is it ready yet?" the head chef peeped in through the window.

" it's almost done," she replied and proceeded to get the boiled rice that was in a colander, it had cooled down.

She lowered the heat when the lamb sauce started to boil. She then brought closer the saffron water, caramelised onions and raisins.

She added the boiled rice to the lamb sauce, then the raisins, caramelised onions and finally, the saffron water and covered the pot again.

" you're so talented Huda. I'm salivating right now," the girl beside her praised.

"Now you're just exaggerating, Amy".

"No, I'm not. Didn't you notice that the other chefs kept dashing glances at you?" Amy shook her head vehemently and said.

"There's nothing special in what I am cooking, Amy," Huda said and reduced the heat to let the food simmer.

A young girl cleared the ingredients from the counter returning them to their proper place. Amy rolled her eyes at Huda. The latter however took no notice of that and checked the Surbiyaan Hilib Adhi.

" All set!"

Two different girls came and dished the food. They passed it to the previous girl who had cleared the ingredients and put it on a golden tray. The waitress then rolled the trolley containing the Surbiyaan Hilib Adhi and other dishes to the corner where the customers were site.

Huda cleaned her hands and walked to a corner of the restaurant's kitchen where a woman was measuring some ingredients.
" you're here. I'm almost through with the measurements," the woman said softly.
Huda looked at the large quantities of brown, white sugar and cornstarch that she had measured into different large bowls.
" I'm guessing it's a grand ceremony, " she said while simultaneously getting water from the tap into a deep nonstick pan. She turned on the heat.

" it's a grand wedding. Have you heard of the 'Hashims'?"

" no, I haven't, "

There was silence after that. The woman stood aside and helped Huda add water to the cornflour in a large bowl while she mixed it to form a paste.

When the water was almost boiling, they added the white and brown sugars,  then added the cornflour paste. Huda and the woman took turns in stirring the mixture which was on medium heat continuously.

She added the nutmeg, ground cardamom, ground cloves, saffron powder for colour, and crushed nuts. She then began adding the oil while the woman stirred continuously.

This is one of the most important steps in making the popular sweet Halwa or also known as Xalwad, Halwo or Halwad in Somalia which was mostly served in weddings or festivals such as the Eid ul Fitr with strong black coffee or Somali spiced tea.

They removed the pan from the heat and poured the Halwa in large greased flat trays, and sprinkled sliced nuts on it.

" Huda, can I have a minute with you?"

Huda turned at the voice surprised. It was the manager who was standing beside the Head chef. She rolled her eyes mentally. What was it this time?

She had secured the job at this expensive restaurant a week ago. Everything had been going smoothly excluding the fact that the head chef had a problem with her. She was a woman in her mid-fifties who had taken a strong dislike to Huda a day after her employment.

"Okay,"

The manager walked out of the kitchen with the head chef closely behind him. Huda washed her hands at the sink and followed their retreating steps.

Amy stopped halfway giving her a 'what's wrong' look. Huda shook her head in negative and mouthed a 'don't know' to her in reply. She then gave Amy a gentle pat on the shoulder exiting the kitchen to the Manager's office.

"Have a seat," the manager gestured to Huda who had a blank look on her face.

" it's been over a week you started work here in this restaurant, and I'm pleased to see your hard work and dedication, " the manager started in a coaxing tone.

Huda sighed, she knew this conversation was heading to a negative end. Her intuition had warned her about it a day ago when she caught the head chef throwing a mischievous stare in her direction when she thought she wasn't aware.

" however-" he paused looking into her eyes.

Huda blinked lazily waiting for him to complete the sentence. Her body was fatigued from the work she had been doing since early morning. She almost yawned but forced it back.

" We had a VIP client who filed a complaint against your services and there was also a complaint on our website and social media pages similar to that of the client's,"

Seriously? She thought sarcastically.

" How can a client file a complaint about my services? How did they know that I handled their orders? Unless-" she glanced at the head chef. " - An insider is giving out the information, "

" what do you mean by that ?" The head chef spoke heatedly.

Huda merely gave a look when she replied. The manager was staring at her with an unknown emotion in his eyes.

" exactly! How comes the client who sat in the dining area knew the chef who made his or her order?" She raised an eyebrow at the manager ignoring the head chef.

The head chef was breathing heavily in rage at Huda's attitude towards her. She was speaking like she was absent from the office.

The manager cleared his voice at the growing tension in the room. He adjusted his tie which had become a bit uncomfortable.

" the client is very important and also a shareholder. They demanded the termination of your employment with immediate effect, "

There was pin-drop silence in the room. The manager tensed awaiting Huda's reaction. He had heard about her temper from different gossips outside. He expected her to blow up in a few seconds from now.

Huda's reaction however took them by surprise. She finally let out the yawn which she had been holding back.
" When do I get my paycheck?"

"..."

"..."

She rolled her eyes at the dumbfounded expression on their faces.
I'm just not in the mood today.

"What? Are you also going to deny me the reward for my efforts, huh?"

                              *  *  *

She came in sight first with Amy who was tapping her feet on the floor anxiously. She immediately rushed to Huda when she caught the sight of her.
" what happened? I didn't hear any noises, so I hope it's good news,"

When Huda didn't give her a reply, she tugged at the sleeves of her dress.
"Well? What was the matter then?"

Huda let out a tired yawn again and smiled.

" Now, you're freaking me out!"

Huda burst out in laughter and shook her head.
" my employment got terminated".

"..."

Seeing as Amy was still finding the four words hard to process, she swiftly entered the common room where the employees keep their things and carried her bag.

Amy barged into the room making Huda flinched a little.

" what do you mean by your employment had been terminated?" She demanded furiously. Huda had been a good chef with great cooking skills, even better than the Head chef, and she was being laid off from the job. She found that unbelievable.

Huda turned on her cellphone and watched it as it boots. Her heart hardened as the realisation of the matter struck her. She knew who was behind this and that person just gave her another reason to despise them.

Amy noticed the change in Huda's eyes. Her blue eyes darkened as she narrowed them while staring at her cellphone. However, the rest of her facial features remained the same as her body language.

" Perhaps, for you have an idea on who it was that caused it?" Amy asked helplessly when the silence was getting uncomfortable.

This question brought Huda out of her thoughts. She glanced at Amy before unlocking her phone and began typing.
" don't worry yourself, Amy. Just go on with your job as usual," she said still typing.

When she finally hit the 'send' button, she smiled and looked at Amy with full attention.

" why do I have a feeling that your smile has nothing to do with something good?"

Huda chuckled and hung her bag.
" You can always drop by whenever, feel free,"

" argh! I wished there was something I could do to help, Huda," Amy whined.

" I'm going to deal with my problem myself, but thanks anyway. I had a good time here even if it was just a week".

She walked out of the common room with Amy behind her.
" I'll drop by tomorrow for the night, okay?"

" I'll think about your request, "

"It's not a request. I'm merely being polite and giving you a heads up!"

"Okay I'll be taking my leave now," Huda gave a pat on the shoulder and Amy pouts before waving her a 'bye'.

She had observed that Huda was a person who wasn't a fan of hugs the day a woman hugged her outside the restaurant,  that was three days ago. She had seen how Huda's body remain stiff as she made no effort to hug the woman back. She had assumed that the woman was her mother or a female relative.

" bye. Take care, I'll be at your place in a few hours, "

                             *   *   *
Huda was walking on the street for a few minutes when her phone vibrated in her hand. She hissed before hitting the 'answer' button.

However, she gave the other person on the line no chance to speak.
" Tea shop in the street opposite the laundromat!" She cuts the call and rolled her eyes before hailing a cab.

                               *   *
Herearare chapter 17 guyys☺.
So as usual, let me know your thoughts on it. Don't forget to vote also😉.

So, who has had Surbiyaan Hilib Adhi or Halwa before? How was it?😊

Who filed a complaint?

Is that person in any way related to Huda? What might be the possible reasons? 🤔

And who gave Huda a call 📞?

Stay tuned...everything's going to unfold at the right time, soon hopefully 😁

                                  Much love,
                                                Midha...