With Love, Nuri [1] ✅

6. First Day

[•Nuri's POV•]

After waving bye at the girls, I hired a cab and told the address to the driver that Ezgi had sent last night. I was really excited for my first day at work, nervous as well. I peeped out at the neighborhood that looked posh and beautiful. The cab came to a stop at the entrance of a slope with short marble steps. I got out after paying the fare and took a deep breath.

I watched as the cab disappeared down the road and made my way up the shady slope. I paused outside a metal door but the house was nowhere to be seen. Towards my left, I found another narrow sloping path, god knew where that lead. "Who are you?" Came a voice, I swiftly turned to find a security guard. He must've come out of the garage... At least that's what it looked like.

I was surprised to see him. "Your name?" He asked again, "Uh... I'm Nuri... Miss Nazmiya called me here" I said, "Oh yes. You're the new chef. Nazmiya hanim is expecting you upstairs" He said as he opened the door for me. There were stairs on the other side, I thanked him and headed up. To be honest, the house felt really secluded and secretive. More like the owner purposefully wanted it to be hidden. The man was too strange.

My breath got caught in my lungs. My jaw hung open as I digested the view before me. The house was incredible. There was a pool, a long table next to it, a pair of outdoor sofa's and finally... The house. I had believed that Fatoş's place was gorgeous but this-

This was breathtaking.

I continued gawking at the house till someone cleared their throat. I averted my gaze to the lady sitting on the sofa. She got up and smiled at me. "Thank you for coming Nuri," I smiled back at her and shook her hand, "The pleasure's mine." Miss Nazmiya was a short serious woman in her late appearance. 

She adjusted her specs before looking back at me, "So let's get into business right away as I have a meeting in thirty minutes" She glanced down at her watch before handing me a set of pinned papers. "This is the agreement which states all the terms of the job. You have to sign here and the first step is done" She stated professionally. "I am just gonna be the chef right?" I asked with a chuckle, judging from the number of papers.

She smiled, "Ferit bey prefers doing things professionally. Everything has been clearly described in it- The time you have to arrive, what to cook, etc..." she said. I nodded and signed the papers along with their copy. "Let me show you the kitchen now" She beckoned me to follow her. The kitchen could be accessed from the front yard just like the living room. The house was too good to be true. The architecture was just superb.

"Ezgi told me that you're very talented. I am very happy you agreed to work, thank you so much dear" She smiled at me lovingly. "That's alright Miss Nazmiya," I smiled back at her. "Okay then, I'll just sum up the important details in the agreement. The jars and cups are kept inside the bottom shelves. The spoons and knives are here, in the middle drawers. And the grains are at the top cupboards behind you..." She explained every detail concisely and I nodded.

"So when do I start cooking?" I asked, "Well Nuri, the interview isn't complete yet. Ferit bey will have lunch at home today, so you can cook something good for him, as a trial. If he likes it, then you will get to stay longer" She replied, "Uh... Is the boss's name 'Ferit Bey'? I mean... Just like that?" "His name is Ferit Aras" She said, "Hmm 'kay" "But Nuri, he is a bit strict you see... He doesn't like his workers going around his house. But if you need to use the restroom, it's right there. The front door is downstairs" She pointed at the staircase across the hallway.

"This one is a small room, with a washroom and a cupboard. If you want to change your clothes before working, you can do it there. The cleaner keeps her things in there" She said, "So that's about it. I wish you good luck dear" Shook my hand again and I smiled. "Tomorrow you'll find out whether you get to keep the job or not. Most of them don't last long but I am sure you will" She assured me with a bright smile.

"Wait... Uh... What do you mean by 'they don't last long?'" I frowned at her. She sighed, "Well, Ferit bey is a strict person, so if you don't meet his standards he'll fire you. But don't worry, do your best and good luck. I'll call you soon, bye!" "Thank you!" I called after her as she walked out of the kitchen and disappeared down the stairs. I leaned over the kitchen island and sighed, "What do I make to please that control freak?" I asked myself.

I glanced at my surroundings. "You're not supposed to..." I scolded myself for even attempting to wander around his house. But what's the worse that could happen? I'm definitely not going to steal anything or criticize Ferit bey's beautiful abode... I'll just admire his place. "A tiny peek..." I grinned to myself and walked down the hallway taking in every fantastic detail of his house. I badly wanted to explore upstairs as well, but I'd be crossing the line by then so I thought against it.

The living room had a grey and navy blue theme. A smart TV stood at the corner surrounded by dark grey couches. It radiated a cozy and intimidating feeling. The abstract paintings in the room suited the furniture well. I headed to the other room now, which had a sporty theme. The playroom consisted of a billiard table and the shelves had a variety of items in them like trophies, medals, bats, balls, cue sticks, etc.

The next door opened into a small bedroom. A neat and tidy room, probably for guests. My eyes caught a glance at the lamp next to the bed. It resembled Pasta.

Pasta! That's it!

I hurried back to the kitchen and searched the shelves for Pasta. Soon enough, I was able to hunt out all my ingredients and got to cooking. I did a cheese drizzle on top of the pasta with some powdered black pepper. It smelled really good, just like its taste. To finish it off, I made my signature tomato sauce with sliced onions and green chili. I even made lemon juice for the boss and myself.

I kept his food in the refrigerator and wandered around the living room with my glass of lemon juice. The shelf near the television had many DVDs stacked neatly in them. I realized that nearly all of them were great movies for youngsters. A few of them were classics, while most of them were English movies and I even found a few foreign ones.

I walked around a bit more till I noticed dark clouds forming in the sky, it was gonna rain soon. I went to the kitchen and grabbed my bag before an idea clicked in my head. The sauce and lemon juice were in the fridge, what if he didn't know that?

I searched my bag for a pen and wrote down on a piece of paper,

~-~-~-~-~
The pasta is in the microwave. It will be tastier with the tomato sauce which is in the fridge, there's also lemon juice.

Afiyet olsun!

With Love, Nuri

Ps: I really want the job so I hope you like my food.
~-~-~-~-~

I kept the paper under a jug of water then grabbed my bag to leave. "I hope he reads it" I sighed and sprinted out the kitchen as the raindrops began falling.

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 Last Edited: 17th May 2021