Snow Days

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See notes below*

Haziran slowly parked her car in a space in front of the cabin, relief flooding her body that she had made it up safely through the treacherous drive.  She did not really want to go to the cabin that day and she would have declined the journey considering the conditions on the road, but there was no way she was not going to be at the retreat.  Not only was it important for a junior associate of the hotel management team like her to make it to the retreat and make connections with the senior management, she also was not going to allow her main competition to edge her out from any promotion.  So, despite the deep snow banks and her car basically skating over the road, Haziran determinedly made her way up to the mountain.  She was freezing cold and ready to collapse in her bed.  But she knew that she had to make a professional appearance so she straightened her jacket and carefully made her way up the steps with her luggage.  There was not much she could do to her limp straight hair and her seriously chapped lips, but she was determined to look as well as she could.  As she gripped the knob, Haziran was surprised that the door was unlocked and allowed anyone to come in.  She guessed no one who was not invited was going to go there anyway.  As she went in, she was greeted by the warmth of the cabin's heat and the smell of wonderfully cooking food wafting from the kitchen.  Haziran's mouth watered.  She was really hungry.  She only had coffee and a small croissant when she left Istanbul that morning.  It had been 7 hours since she last ate.  She had seen that the weather conditions were getting bad so she did not want to stop to get food.  She was about to follow her nose and walk into the cabin's kitchen to greet her co-workers when a man with dark brown curly hair appeared before her.  The man's curls fell to skim just above golden eyes speckled with greens of different hues.  The distinctive eyes belonged to the tall man now standing before her wearing dark jeans and a black cable knit sweater.  He came towards her holding a blue towel and wiping his hand on it.  For a moment, his dark hazel eyes looked at her with relief and warmth.  Then they turned indifferent and looked to peer past her shoulder.  Haziran clamped her jaw.  It was her nemesis and main competition, God's gift to women, at least that's what the other women in the office said, Poyraz Ali Ozgur.

"Who's with you?" Poyraz asked.

"No one," Haziran said.  "I had to go offsite and drove by myself."

"Who's with you cooking?" Haziran asked anxiously, trepidation forming at the pit of her stomach.

"I was cooking.  I'm the only one other than you who has made it in so far." Poyraz said.

The feeling of dread formed into a rock and she felt sweat trickling down her back.  In a shaky voice that was unnaturally high pitched, Haziran said, "I don't think anyone else is making it up the mountain Poyraz!  The snow was coming down so hard that I barely made it here!"

"What!" Poyraz exclaimed, his hands balling the towel that was in his hand and immediately walking back to the kitchen.  Haziran anxiously followed him, noting as she followed him, the white and gray Carrara marble countertops, the stainless steel appliances, the herringbone subway tile backsplash, and even the gleaming pot-filler above the professional grade stove.  She saw that there was a big pot simmering on top of that stove where all the delectable scents were coming from.  Poyraz dropped the bit of cloth on the kitchen counter and grabbed his phone that had been sitting next to a big basket filled with crusty rolls. He immediately began calling the office and then some of the other people who were expected to join them for the retreat.  All had said that the roads to the cabin were now closed and the cops had told them that it was not likely to open for days given the weather report.

After hearing the last news, Poyraz was silent for a few moments.  Then he turned and looked at Haziran with a glint in his eyes and said, "looks like it's just you and me."

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⏰ Last updated: Mar 23, 2023 ⏰

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