One Step Closer

2. The world is yours

"I don't know how I would've lived without you." She said to him, her voice in a slow whisper and no, she wasn't talking to her boyfriend serving her breakfast in the bed. She was saying it to her dog Juno who started barking at the smell of gas leaking.

She turned off the stove immediately, so glad deep inside that she didn't burned the whole place down to ground, her dealer wouldn't had spared her in that situation. A homeless Meral wouldn't have looked too good.

"Huh! What a great start of this beautiful day but you know what?" She turned her head towards Juno who stopped barking just a moments ago and was now deep inside expecting a treat from his beautiful human.

She waited, Juno didn't answered. No nod, no shake. Quitting her attempt to make her dog react, she let her arms fall to a side and faked a gasp in disappoinment coming from her dog mainly.

"I have a job interview today, actually.... it's more like I'm going to start a new job, or a second job because I'm pretty sure they will keep me with my wonderful profile and amazing soul and the actual photo I chose for it, in which I wore that pale green shirt is just chef kiss. Immediate attraction!"

She was looking at the walls now as she kept going on about her abilities and her beautiful self. Her walls that were more like a fawn color decorated with lots of frames and plants.

Her two bedroom apartment had an aesthetic going on, a vibe. She had alot of plants which naturally meant alot of windows and sunlight. Her bed was all white with a blush pink coffee chair resting beside it and a lamp and some lights that TikTok made her buy and wasted a few dollars over.

Her other room was her work space. Her desk was all white while it had wooden sleak legs going like a cross and her chair had the same colors. She had a whole inspiration mood board too along with a white board she was used to brainstorm. Her work from home job allowed her to enjoy her little space all to herself and make it feel more comfortable for herself but her little space gave her feeling of being lonely too.

"Though you know, I work for Turkiye's most famous magazine plus newspaper and have the most read columns in entire country, I don't lack any money but you know what? We gotta meet more people and explore and just get the hell out and make friends, right?"

Ihsan Demir can't relate. But Meral liked it, her social life, her exposure to people, talking, laughing, gossiping and it was a part of her job, understand more people, their emotions, the meaning of right and wrong for them, it was her job in which she aced but got alot of negative remarks too.

She worked as an advice columnist, as a different pen name to avoid any clash with people who seek advice from her because she tells them, share and advice what she think is the best and she isn't responsible for any later consequences because life doesn't work for everyone the same way.

She can be right, she can be wrong. She just had to be honest and put herself in the shoes and give the best advice but sometimes hate doesn't stop. People hate people who get fame. Everyone use their right to hate and they use it quite well but that's what they say, never check comments, do your best, be honest.

"So in order to not get late, let me leave and talking about my breakfast, thank you for asking but i will grab a bite from the new coffee shop that opened just around the corner, just beside that cobbler shop." She announced to her walls, it felt useless, sounded weird and she hated herself for it. It made her depress but she threw it away.

Quickly filling Juno's bowl with dog food, she picked up her helmet, eyed around the corner when it caught her eyes.

Her last night work, the man who seek advice because of being in a relationship where he feels that his girlfriend have been emotionally abusing him because she thinks that he being a man don't have much rights to feel things. She felt bad for him. She always gets surprised by how much emails and questions she get from men more than women, men seeked advice from her more and it was quite difficult to know a man and how he feels because she never knew a men, and the ones she knew, she didn't even knew if she knew them.

"Mahir Bey, I'll get back to you tonight and I swear I put my mind out thinking about your case but let me have this job first, wish me luck, tell me Meral that 'the world is yours'!"

She whispered to her laptop and shut the screen as she took some deep breaths. THE WORLD IS YOURS MERAL. THE WORLD IS YOURS. She kept reminding herself because no one else did that.

As much as she loved making friends, she had to leave the fancy life of Istanbul and shift there three years back, thanks to her ex boyfriend but she never shifted back to her city, thanks to her family who hate her. She had no friends, no family and the only person she considered something was the woman who lived next door who was also locking her door just as Meral exited her apartment.

"Good morning to this beautiful lady." Meral said to Deniz who replied with a smirk and a flying kiss. Though Deniz's eyes looked puffy, her hair were up in a bun that wasn't even a cute messy bun but when Deniz try to look good, she do look good more than anyone. She had the body of a model but her job.... took her inspiration to look good away in every way possible.

"What's happening my soul? What is your destination?"

"Breakfast and then a job interview." Meral replied, rotating her scooter's key on her finger.

"You finally moving your body to work a job? Daddy's money finishd?" Deniz questioned. Yes, her question was as horrible as she was looking like at the moment. Meral had her back towards her as she secured the lock and she hated every word of that taunt.

It was taunt, Meral knew because she had heard many from the mouth of same Deniz but she never left her because.... because she had no one else.

Deniz was a doctor in the nearby hospital, though Meral always say that it should be called a clinic more but it was a busy place and unlike Deniz, Meral knew how to respect someone's job.

Deniz worked different shifts and Meral stayed at home and still earned a bit more than Deniz, that's where the jealousy started for Deniz because Meral's online job gave her more than Deniz's practical job but Deniz still didn't knew about Meral being the same advice columnist, she was used to get advices from.

Deniz in her relationship was used to contact the advice columnist and was used to tell Meral too not knowing she's literally telling her the same thing again so Meral was used to say everything to Deniz being the advice columnist more than she ever got the chance as a friend and let's say Deniz ended up hating the magazine as her ex boyfriend found a another girl but poor Deniz didn't knew it was for her best.

"I don't have to move to work but I thought to join you in this journey of experiencing practical life." Meral answered as she started descending down the stairs without waiting for Deniz.

Sometimes Deniz just piss Meral off and Meral ignores it, she ignore herself because at the end, what she need is someone to hold, someone who actually listens to her life drama, who have some answers, some questions, who is curious.

When she didn't heard Deniz descending down the stairs after her, she waited for a second but deciding against looking back at her, she kept going as she should have.

"Good morning!" The kid from the first floor greeted from his balcony as Meral put her helmet on.

"Good morning Efe. What do you want?" She replied, knowing his intentions quite well. He always needed something. Tution, pick and drop, sometimes running to the grocery store to buy chips and sometimes lying to his mom.

"I need nothing, you are going somewhere?"

"Yes, to your school. I'll meet your teacher and complaint to them, do you want to join?"

She kicked start her scooter and giving a wink to Efe who looked quite scared, she left her street onto the coffee shop. Today will be good for you Meral, she promised herself.

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