Sayf al-Qattan wanted to rise from his chair and leave the coffee house the moment he glimpsed the woman he chased walking along the sidewalk, as she did every morning on her way to work. But he was astonished to find that he remained stuck to the chair, and that the legs of the chair were also glued to the floor. It occurred to him to call the waiter and ask for help, but he changed his mind when he considered that the waiter might draw the attention of the other customers to his plight, saying to them, “It appears that the honored gentleman is going to be our guest for an indefinite period.”
Thus, Sayf al-Qattan was obliged to remain in his chair close to the glass front of the coffee house. As he stared speechlessly at the street crowded with people and cars, he ordered a cup of coffee and drank it, a cup of tea and drank it, and bought a newspaper and a magazine and read them to the last letter. Every once in a while he would try to get up from his chair, but in vain. When it was nearly two o’clock, he focused his attention on the street, expecting the woman to come that way on her way back from work, and he was not disappointed. She did pass by, walking her slow gait with a bearing that exuded pride. But today her eyes were different, for they gave him a long look that did not hide a frank and hot appeal he had not noticed before. He tried to rise from the chair, and, to his surprise, he could do so without hindrance. He rushed out of the coffee house and followed her, always making sure to stay a few meters behind, as was his custom every day. Suddenly, the woman halted while he continued walking, his face frozen and feeling embarrassed, and no sooner had he come close than she started screaming angrily at him, reviling him for his pursuit. Very quickly, a number of men who were ready to help the woman gathered around her. One of them asked, pointing to Sayf al-Qattan: “Has he done anything improper?”
“Every morning and afternoon,” the woman answered without hesitation, “he follows me and asks me to go home with him, claiming his family is away on a journey. But today he reached for my hand and tried to drag me to his house against my will.”
Her lying stunned Sayf al-Qattan and he tried to say something, but the man gave him a ringing slap on the face, and said angrily, “Shut up, you dog! Do you still have a tongue that can speak!”
That slap was just the beginning. The other men took part in slapping, hitting, and kicking him, and in spite of the painful blows descending on him Sayf could see the woman he admired standing there with her lips wide open as though she were panting. Her hand was on her neck in the gesture of one who appeared to be choking, and from her eyes came the same hot appeal. Sayf then called out to the men beating him. He urged them to hit him hard, but they thought he was mocking them and beat him harder and harder. From that time Sayf became a bitter and savage man who was obliged to spend his time in hospitals and graveyards.