"I am already so mad we couldn't meet last week." Safa's voice huffs through the phone speaker.
I chuckle, "It's okay, we can meet this week."
"Today? Today then." She confirms on her own.
"I am at office, safa." I remind her.
"Then after your work hours? I am not hearing your excuses. Come on, we live in different cities now, you and Ayesha can meet all the time, and what about me? I am alone. Even Sania left for London."
She is right, as we grew more, became adults and all, our weekly meetings got shortened to monthly and then yearly.
Me and Ayesha meet occasionally since we are in the same city, but Safa and Sania? Yes, I do miss them, a lot.
It's been almost a year since Sania shifted permanently to London, and since Safa started her own business, her trips to Istanbul also reduced.
"Alright, you win." I chuckle, sitting on my table with my coffee. "Tell me when and where."
"That's more like it." She squeals, "Right now I am going to see my brother in his office."
"Oh okay." I reply.
And I pause.
I look at my right to see her brother in a meeting with the finance team in his cabin.
"Ah I um oh wow." I blabber.
"What was that? Anyway, I am going to his office right now and then I will pick you from yours. Send me your location."
"Are you here already?" I ask standing from my seat, Juvee looks up at me from her cubicle.
"At my brother's office, yes." She replies, "Alright babes, talk to you later."
Before I could reply anything, she hangs up the call.
I scramble to feet and run towards Juvee.
"What are you—"
I hide below her desk. "If someone asks for me, I don't exist."
"Sakina?" She blinks, "What are you doing?"
"Uh, meditating." I reply folding my legs, "It's good for brain stimulation."
Juvee looks at me and nods, "Alright. As you wish. Should I get you something?"
I hear the distant sound of elevator, "Yes, if a glamorous lady walks in and asks for Mr. Dorok's assistant, tell them he's busy in a meeting and it will last for two hours."
"But the meeting got over." She replies simply.
"No it didn't."
I look over my shoulder to see the finance team walking out of his cabin.
"Damn it." I punch the ground and stand up from under the table, "Alright I am off."
"Your meditation?" Juvee calls out.
"It was for one minute, I am already light, bye." I reply over my shoulder while going towards the kitchen.
What do I do? Should I tell Doruk?
But why am I scared?
I straight my back and lean on the kitchen counter.
What would Safa do?
Oh she would be mad. Nothing I could handle.
A guy who sits opposite to Juvee's cubicle enters the kitchen and smiles, "Here you are, Boss is asking you to come to his cabin with two cups of coffee. One black and one full of creamer."
"She is already here?" I whisper to myself.
"Who?" He asks.
I shake my head, "No one."
I prepare both the coffees according to both of the sibling's liking and take it to the cabin.
I peek from the behind a wall first, there looks only a man seated on the chair facing Doruk.
Doruk laughs at something the man says and I blow out a breath.
It's not Safa.
Yet.
Whatever. I will face her later.
Now relaxed, I walk confidently towards the cabin and balance the coffee tray in one hand and knock on the door.
Doruk's eyes snap to mine and he smiles, "Please come in."
I give him a mocking smile and walk inside, placing the coffee cups on the table.
"Your coffee's sir."
"Oh my god."
I bite my tongue by the startling voice from behind me.
Doruk winces as I put a hand on my mouth.
I turn around to see Safa seated on the couch instead.
Her eyes widen and a manicured hand with pink nail polish on her chest, as if she is in great tragedy.
I lick my lips and give a small smile. "Surprise?"
A laugh sounds from beside me and I finally look at the man seated on the chair.
Murat. Safa's husband, Ayesha's brother.
"Nice to see you again." He grins.
"Told you I wasn't joking." Doruk says, his tone sounding pretentious.
I give him a glare over my shoulder and approach Safa.
I give her a smile and pat my hands on my thighs as if finding it funny. "Coincidence, crazy huh?"
Safa closes her eyes and raises a finger, "So you are saying my best friend works in our company as your assistant?"
"I was appointed as a creative writer." I point out. "He choose me as a assistant two weeks later."
"Yes, it was a surprise for me as well." Doruk says.
I sit beside Safa. "Are you mad?"
She closes her mouth and looks at me as if I said something completely ridiculous. "Why would I?" A large smile forms on her face, "I am so happy that you two— I mean you work here."
She engulfs me in a hug and my shoulders slump down in relief. "I wanted to tell you, but I forgot."
Safa narrows her eyes, moving back from the hug. "Oh yes you totally forgot such a big thing. I believe you."
I give her a forced chuckle and she shakes her head. "No problem, I am glad you are working here." She points at her brother, "You better treat her well."
Doruk raises his hands, "As you say."
Safa slings her arm around my shoulders, "And now that I know you are her boss, I am kidnapping my friend for a day."
"She has work to do." Doruk frowns.
"So? Do it yourself." Safa says nonchalantly. "In fact, let's leave now."
She grabs my hand and stands up, "We are leaving, bye."
Doruk stands up and stands in front of us with his arms spread apart. "No."
"Hold on Safa. Don't give your brother grief now." Murat chuckles pointing at Doruk's troubled expression.
"Abi." Safa says sweetly, "Don't be sad. You see her everyday and I see her once in a while, pleaseeeeee."
"Why would he be sad?" I ask confused.
Doruk narrows his eyes at me, folding his arms now. "Fine, only for today."
Safa squeals and gives him a hug. "Thank you."
Murat stands up, "Alright, I'll be leaving now, I have to assist an old friend at the court."
Court?
"Are you a lawyer?" I ask.
Murat nods, "Yes. Oh of course. I totally forgot about your goldfish memory."
I shake my head but an idea forms in my head. Maybe I could ask him to help me? Maybe find a lawyer friend who can see my case in low budget?
"Let's go Sakina." Safa says after giving her husband a hug.
I blink out of my thoughts. "Ah yeah. Give me five minutes."
She nods, "I will wait for you in the lobby."
When it's just both of left in the cabin, Doruk tilts my chin up with his index finger, "What's this?" He asks hovering his thumb over the small scar on my skin from where Sukru threw the file at me.
"By my nails." I cover the spot and step away from him.
A small frown forms between his eyebrows. "All good?"
"Yes." I reply curtly, "I will be back in few hours."
He shakes his head, "You won't be able to, see you tomorrow."
"You will allow that?" I ask raising my eyebrows.
He nods, "I know my sister." He gives a smile, "Go and enjoy the rest of the day, Sakina."
*****
"I wish Ayesha could join us." Safa sighs as we go through our old photos of our college days.
"I wish too." I say, "But she just had a baby and when I visited her last week, it looked like she even had trouble walking."
Safa nods, "Life goes on too fast, no?"
I nod, watching the blue glistening sea contrasting with the dark clouds surrounding the sky today. "One moment we were celebrating our graduation and look at us today."
"Sometimes I think, life was better when we were kids." Safa smiles, "Had we known growing up is like this, we wouldn't have grown up."
I look at her, "You are right. Atleast as kids, our perspective of world was innocent."
An almost sad smile forms on her face as she scrolls the old photos of us from our last Annual fest day. "Remember this day?"
I groan, "Do not remind me."
She zooms on a picture of us where I was scowling with a hot chocolate in my hands and Safa took a selfie with me.
"Look here, nothing changed." She chuckles.
I roll my eyes, "Nothing changed for you too, still stunning."
The shine from her eyes dims as she zooms on her picture, "No. I gained weight."
"Safa." I grab her hand, "You just growed into a woman from a girl."
She smiles, "Yes, you could say." Her hand instantly goes on her stomach. "Life thought me so much."
My smile drops as I see the sadness coating her voice.
Safa was pregnant last year. Her whole pregnancy was normal, until one day she had contractions at the end of six months and had to be operated immediately.
Doctors were sure the baby would survive albeit with a few complications, but there were hopes that the baby might be saved.
But it didn't.
It was a still birth. The baby's lungs weren't completely formed which caused him to born blue, no amount of efforts from doctors could save the baby.
And that completely shattered Safa and her family.
It was a tough time for her, the glamorous and smiling girl which I knew from the start, she broke. After therapies and support from us, her family and Murat, she came back to life and started investing her mind somewhere else. And that's how she started her business as a designer.
It's been a year since she started her business and is already causing a roar in the fashion industry.
Safa was always confident, her business gave her even more confidence as a business woman.
But sometimes like today, she becomes vulnerable and her mind goes in a dark place. She had obviously gained few pounds after her postpartum. She tried to work out but she was too week to do, the doctors advised her not to any workouts as it could effect her hormones.
When she looks at her old photos, those dark thoughts resurfaces again.
I take the phone from her hand and sling my arm around her shoulder, I point at the sea ahead of us, "You look at that sea?"
She nods wiping the corner of her eyes. "I do."
"Do you know what lays beneath it?"
She shakes her head.
"It has fishes, sea animals, flora and all and then deep, deep down, there is darkness." I look at the sea, "But we don't see that, we only see the outer beauty of it. The way the sea moulds into an ocean, to a lake, to a river. It doesn't matter where it is, it is beautiful."
I squeeze her shoulder, "It's not the physical aspects that matters, it's the fight. Fight to survive, fight to shine, fight to control. It's all a fight. Sometimes a tsunami can cause a havoc. But that's okay, that's a part of the nature."
She wipes under her eyes. "Thank you, I needed to hear that."
I smile and bring her closer to me, "What else are friends for?"
She chuckles, "Not friends. Soul friends. That's what you are to me, and even Ayesha and Sania. It's like falling to a safe net with all of you."
I smile. "You are always welcome to fall in the safe net, but sometimes not finding the net is also fine."
She nods, "I didn't wanted to turn emotional, I am sorry. It's just hormones."
"Oh come on." I roll my eyes, "As if I don't cry watching titanic when I am on hormones."
"Your choices are horrible."
"You are my choice of friend."
She narrows her eyes, "Not all choices then."
I chuckle and pick up my Simit from the bench and take a bite. "So you don't mind me working in your family company?"
"No, why would I? Besides I am happy for you." She smiles and then frowns, "Wait where you there at the transition ceremony?"
I nod guiltily, "Yes and I ran away because I panicked."
"Looking at my brother?"
"Well, yes." I bite my tongue again.
Safa smiles delightfully, "Ah uh, I remember an old ship which I tried so hard to sail."
"Don't." I stop her, "Don't sail it again. Burn it down."
Safa laughs, "It's time to work with my girls."
I groan. "No."
She merely smirks.
"Okay now let's go, I want to do some shopping." She stands up and grabs my hand.
I walk with her towards her car, "You are a designer now, why do you need other's clothes?"
Safa wears her Channel sunglasses, "Because I can."
I take a bite of my snack, "And Mrs. Bougie is back."
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A/N:-
I MISSED WRITING ABOUT MY FAVOURITE FRIENDS GROUP!!!!!!
I am so excited for their meet up!!!!!!!
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