My Turkish Heart

Chapter 19- Can we handle the storm?

When Izzy entered the office that morning, everyone was flustered and buzzing. She sat down at her desk and was puzzled at what was going on. Moving to the cubicle next to hers, she asked her colleague Selma.
"The chairman came in early this morning. There are some issues with some projects and there was money missing from the one funding project we were working on. Now every project is getting investigated. Some will be suspended or come to an end"
Izzy sat stunned and she understood now why Burak left in such a hurry this morning. She was not sure what to do, so she called up Rachel.
"Hey Rachel, have you heard anything about our project here?"
"Hey Iz, yeah just some bits and pieces. Apparently they will do a full briefing later today. Are you okay? Has Burak said anything?"
"I'm okay and no his been busy all morning. I'll do a review on our project and add alternatives to it in case they need it later"
"Thanks Iz! I knew I could count on you. Also, have you spoken to your family?"
Izzy was caught off guard by Rachel's question, as she spoke to her family quite often and nothing seemed out of place.
"Why? Has anything happened?!" she asked in a panic.
"......"
There was a brief moment of silence, which made Izzy feel even more uneasy.
"Please Rach! Tell me!"
Rachel felt bad because she didn't want to add tension to Izzy's already crazy morning. But she knew that there was no turning back after she already left that slip.
"I'm sorry, I thought they already told you... I didn't want to be the one who spilled the beans"
"It's okay you can tell me"
"There was a car accident two days ago. Your family wasn't at fault, but your dad got injured quite badly"
"What??!!!"
"His stable now and I will go visit the hospital later tonight"
Izzy could barely speak all she could do was try to control her heavy breathing and stop her tears from falling. Her heart had sunk automatically and she needed to pull herself together.
"Iz? Are you still there? Say something!"
"I'm still here... Sorry... Thank you for telling me. My family probably didn't want me to worry"
She lifted her head up to stop the tears from falling and ruining her mascara. Thankfully she had decided to take the call on the balcony, so no one was around to see her fall apart.
"I'm sorry.. I thought you knew.."
"No, it's okay. I appreciate that you told me... I have to go now, but I'll try and call my family later"
Izzy tried to pull herself together as she needed to get work done. Hanging up the call and clearing her throat, she tried to calm herself down before heading back in.

When she came back in, everyone was head down and working like busy bees. She sat down in her cubicle and started working too. Sipping on her ice coffee, she sped through her projects without even noticing the time. At one point she looked up as Burak and his secretary was on their way to the boardroom. He looked so cold and serious, she could tell he seemed pressured by the whole situation. The rest of the board members followed after and then lastly the chairman strolled in. His facial expression was quite sour, as he walked past everyone without even flinching to acknowledge their greetings.

The air felt so tense, that Izzy even held her breath until the chairman got inside the boardroom. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief once the door closed. It was a very stressful day and everyone was working extra hard to ensure their projects didn't get affected by the situation. Every so often, Izzy would try to get a glimpse of Burak in the boardroom, but the blinds were not wide enough to see in. She worried about him, especially as she knew his father had been giving him a hard time lately regarding the business. She reminisced the day she met his parents over coffee at a very beautiful hotel, the first week she arrived. Izzy's nerves were in knots, as she read up a bit of his parents and she knew she would not be their preference as a partner for their son. Even though she had doubts, Burak reassuranced her that it would be fine and if not he would protect her. The mood was a bit stiff when they first arrived, as his parents were dressed to the nines and Izzy felt under dress in her cocktail dress and blazer. His mother especially had gold embellishments on her blouse and made sure Izzy knew that she was faking her kindness towards her. Burak's father tried to ease the mood a little bit, but his wife kept him in line. Not long after, Burak's mother wanted to leave. They stylishly gulped down their coffees then gave a timid smile before leaving. The entire time it felt like there was a noose around Izzy's neck waiting to execute her, as his mother's deathly glares were that intense. Every answer Izzy gave to the questions they asked were responded with a simple "hmm.." then there would be silence until the next question. It felt like nothing she said was right and Burak was not helping the situation by getting annoyed at his parents. As they were leaving, they asked Burak to walk them out. She knew what his parents probably wanted to tell him, so Izzy stood up bid them farewell, sat down again and enjoyed the cakes on the table when they were out of sight. Knowing it might be a negative feedback from his parents, she thought let her atleast eat something sweet to get the sour taste out of her mouth.

When Burak returned to the table he was trying to hide his bad mood, but he couldn't help but laugh when he saw Izzy devouring the little cakes on the table.
"Whaaaat?!" she asked as she bit on the fork.
"You're just so beautiful!" he smirked.
She offered him a piece of the cake she was eating and he took a bite of it.
"Tasty, right?!"
"Evet( yes)!"
He knew that she would have felt worse if she knew exactly what his parents said, but before he could even comfort her, she was comforting herself.
"I know you're the one, I've been waiting for..."
Burak said out of the blue as he leaned over and kissed her cheek. Izzy flushed as his soft lips were felt on her heated cheeks.

As her thoughts came back to the present, she smiled knowing how much Burak cared for her. Sometimes he struggled expressing himself, but she knew he cared for her. Getting up to get some water, she sighed heavily thinking of her family and how she needed time to call back home. The project work was almost done and she was stalling to call, afraid of what she would hear. Her heartbeat increased at the anxious thoughts she was having. Staring out the window, she looked at the beauty of the city below her.

If anyone can get through the storms, it's us. I believe in us, Burak... She reminded herself mentally.