Appropriate

In-between all the big people lounging on the few leather sofas, lingering in duos or trios or marching up and down the corridor, distant-mindedly strapped to their mobile phones, sipping tea or nibbling on the free biscuits, a little girl – hardly 6 or 7 years old – slips past with big eyes under swinging, curly hair. After her I'm maybe the the second-youngest – all others are mid-30s to mid-60s and awfully adult – appropriate facial expressions, fake self-confidence plastered all over the body, suits, ties, long skirts and high-heels; talking about their companies, projects, business ventures and developments... all awfully important, of course, and awfully appropriate. Everybody is behaving so appropriately – no loud laughter, nobody sitting on the floor, no t-shirts and jeans.
“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for attending the information day for the Jordan Services Modernisation Program, we hope you enjoyed your break. Please return now to the main hall for 'How to fill in the grant application form', the second part of today's event. We will start in a few minutes.”
Only seconds after the lady in front begins to explain the very detailed application form, a mobile phone rings somewhere behind me. Hurried movement, rustling of a jacket pocket, a second ring, swearing, rustling of another jacket pocket, then a third ring – much louder than the previous, then a sudden, short silence, followed by the greeting “Salamu aleikum” from an only mildly hushed voice.
“I'm good, how're you? ... listen,” and a little more hushed, though clearly audible to nearly everyone in the conference room: “I'm in this meeting now... you know, the thingie, what's it called, in the Hussein Youth Compound...”
Someone turns around and sends a death-stare, answered by an awkward facial expression as if to say: what can I do? – I had to answer the phone!
“...you know, about the support from the EU for our company... I told you about it, remember?... yeah, exactly... so can we talk later?”
I turn around and give a fake smile and a stare with raised eye-brows, to which the man on the phone responds with hurried nodding, also with raised eye-brows.
“... yeah, maybe in an hour... yeah, sure... ok, great. Thanks. Talk to you later.”