Distance

Chapter 5

Inside No.22 Rizavi, Yagiz sat at the dining table with Mert across him, Sedef Solaker (Mert’s twin sister) on his left, and Nazli Karayel, Nihal’s friend and at the same time Director of Marketing and Advertisement at Solaker Cosmetics, sat beside Mert.

Sedef had a heart-shaped face marked with light brown eyes and brown hair that fell off her shoulders. She was of average height and her positive aura was accompanied by a contagious smile.

Nazli, on the other hand, was tall, exceptionally beautiful and looked like she had come straight out of a high-end fashion show.

Nazli: “Eh, Yagiz, how did the meeting with Arif Telci go? Were you able to convince him?” She looked up at him as she sipped her juice.

Mert suppressed a laugh. Nazli was always trying to get Yagiz’s attention with her questions and remarks. It had been more than a year since she had joined them but she hadn’t given up despite zero encouragement from Yagiz’s side. It was not that Yagiz was rude to her; in fact, they had an amazing chemistry and admirable understanding. It was just that he had never responded to her advances.

Yagiz: “WE both were able to, yes.” Putting an emphasis on the word ‘we’ to remind her that Mert deserved equal credit for that.

Sedef, oblivious to the hints and undercurrents, immediately blurted out: “We are having a promotional lunch two days prior to the launch of new edition,” she got up from the table as she said, “and I want all you to be there. No excuses.” She was the Co-editor at a fashion magazine.

She kissed Mert on the cheek and left.

Mert: “Nazli, we will meet you after dinner then. We need to go early to the hotel to show Arif bey that we’re the luckiest people on earth to be invited by him.” He said with a mock show of gratitude.”

“Hadi, Yagiz.” He said as he raised from his chair and then kissed Yagiz on the cheek.

Yagiz put back the glass he was drinking from and hit Mert and the side. “Mert Allah askina Im tired of your morning kisses okay?!” He made a face as if he had just seen dirt clogged up in the sink.

Mert stood back and doubled up with laughter as he always did whenever he pulled off this stunt with Yagiz.
“Okay, okay, lets go.” He said as Nazli joined in on the laughter too.

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Hazan and Kuzey sat in the bar by the large swimming pool. Hazan sipped her fruit punch still lost in thoughts.

She wore a white, off-shoulder top which hugged her torso, paired with magenta pants. Her hair were let loose and a few strands here and there danced in the light wind.

Stop thinking about him, Hazan. Stop already.

Kuzey noticing her mentally absent waved a hand in front of her.
Kuzey: “Hazan Hanim, you’re here for work and not for staring at women. Let me remind you that.”

Hazan looked confused but looked again at the spot where she was looking and realized she had been staring at a woman in bikini.

Kuzey: “I always suspected you weren’t straight. Otherwise why would such a beautiful and intelligent woman like you be single?”

Hazan started laughing and replied: “Im sorry, I was lost-”

Kuzey: “Well sorry but you can’t allow yourself to get lost on such an important day. You are here for work and you know I don’t tolerate any inefficiency in work.”

Hazan: “Im sorry, I’ll be careful."

He is such a gicik sometimes, she thought to herself.