A Turkish Delight☆

Chapter 11: House Warming

Nadine:

I don't know what had gotten into me, to be honest. Although, I was very straightforward, I normally wouldn't flirt with anyone, especially to the point it'd become so apparent. Neither would I reciprocate to anyone who'd flirt with me, regardless of their intentions. While I wasn't good at hiding any kind of emotions, be it positive or negative, I did have a good control over my impulsive thoughts and acts. But not today. I really don't know why I acted the way I did. Maybe it was my rising dopamine levels, or maybe it was something else, but I felt like I was going crazy. No matter what it was, it was inappropriate and completely unacceptable. If my mom would've seen me behave this way, she wouldn't have approved of it under any circumstances. Its not a matter of being a girl, its a matter of mannerism, and knowing your limitations, something our youth lacks.

Anywho, fast forward to a few days. I finally settled in my one-bedroom apartment. The apartment seemed small, but cozy. It was spacious for me though, since I did not buy a lot of furniture. Plus this was just a temporary fix. But I was happy. The view from my room was amazing though. The room had a balcony, with glass doors, which overlooked the Bosphorus. It looked absolutely magnificient at night. Often times I would sit in the balcony, with a warm cup of coffee, which complimented the cold weather, and appreciate the beauty of Istanbul. Ah Istanbul! There is something magical about the name, no wonder I loved this city so much. I loved isolation, I loved being independent. This situation was perfect for me. But I would feel home sick too, although it had only been 2 weeks, but I had already started missing home. I didn't want to go back though, I loved it here. The only reason why I missed Karachi was my family, although my mom and dad were just a Skype call away, and with a time zone difference of only 2 hours, it wasn't that inconvenient either. But, I still missed them. Which is why I had planned of sponsoring them as soon as I would get my Turkish nationality.

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, well, its true. You can only realize the true worth of something when you don't have it. And as much as I loved isolation and independence, I loved my family too.

My job was to start from the 1st of December, so I still had another month to settle down and get accustomed to everything, although there wasn't much difference. The people were really helpful and generous. My neighbours were an old couple who were married together for 43 years. They had a fairy tale kind of love story. They were so adorable. They invited me over for dinner the first day they saw me move in, and so, it only seemed fitting that I invite them over for dinner as a house warming party. And while I had that thought, I was reminded of the 'good looking Turk, not in his 20s anymore'.

"What was his name again? Mehmet! Yes. I should invite him too!" I said to myself while I searched for his number in my cellphone.

"But should I?" I thought to myself as I was about to press 'Call'. "Would he be interested? I mean, I'm pretty sure he would be really busy, considering that he owns the business now. But it won't do me any harm if I invite him, now would it?"

"Merhaba (hello)! I'm Nadine, the gir--"

"I know who you are, my girl, I can never forget that voice." He interrupted me before I could even finish, "so what made you call me at this ungodly hour?"

Oh shoot! I had totally forgotten what time it was. It was 3 in the morning! The caffeine overload and the captivating beauty of the Bosphorus had totally made me lose track of time.

"Shoot! I'm so sorry! I totally lost count of the time. I'll call you again later, during appropriate hours."

"Hahaha princess! Its not a problem. I was awake, I couldn't sleep."

"Oh, why?" I asked in a state of confusion. Why would someone not sleep? Its like the best thing ever!

"The same reason why you're still awake."

"And what would that be?" I asked confused as ever.

"Thinking about you." He said, in his polite, soothing voice.

I'm pretty sure I turned pink, I could feel the facial flush developing. I had a big smile on my face, the kind of smile that you'd normally see on a child when they would get their favourite ice cream. He wasn't wrong though, I was thinking about him-thinking about inviting him over to my apartment for dinner.

"So I'll make it short, I was quite busy in these past 2 weeks setting up my apartment, which is why I couldn't call or message you. But today I am done with everything, the curtains, the painting, the furniture etc. So I was wondering whether you could come tomorrow to my place for dinner..." I paused to wait for him to respond, but he didn't so I continued, "don't worry we won't be alone, I also invited my neighbours, they're a really cute, old couple who have been married for over 40 years!"

"I would prefer if we were alone, princess." He said. I could almost hear the flirtatious tone in his voice.

"Haha well, too bad, they would be coming as well. But I'd really love it if you could come tomorrow, you're the only friend I have here."

"My girl, I'd love to come, but I have an important meeting tomorrow. Maybe some other day?"

"Oh, um, okay. Well it was nice talking to you. I'll message you the address anyway so you can pop up whenever you feel like haha." I said jokingly.

"Yeah why not! That would be great!" He said, not jokingly.

"Well then, I'll do that," I said.

"Good night, princess. Sleep well."