We were having another busy day at the Tarot café where I've been working for two years. Most of the customers come for the readings done by our boss, Firuze. There are five of us working at the café. In two years, we've become five very close friends. The café is going under renovation, so we're on a one-week break starting today. Luckily, there wasn't much time left until our shift ended. Just then, Firuze clapped her hands. "Kids, come here," she called to us. "Kids, there's no one left. Sit down at my table." "I'm so tired, my feet are killing me," I grumbled, sitting down at Firuze's table. My friends also pulled up chairs and sat down. Firuze said, "You're on leave for a week. Rest well. Then I expect you all back at work, well-rested. But first, let me read your fortunes one last time." Yasemin said, "Firuze, can you read my fortune first? When will I have a handsome boyfriend?" Kaya said, "Dude, it's only been a week since you broke up with your boyfriend. Can't you just stay single?" "None of your business. It's been too long already," she said, tossing her blonde hair. Yasemin is a beautiful girl with blonde hair and green eyes. She uses this advantage to change boyfriends often, doesn't believe in love, and amuses herself in her own way. Firuze started with Yasemin's fortune. She talked about how she would have a handsome, tall, rich boyfriend in the near future, not immediately, and many other things. After reading Aslı, Elif, and Kaya's fortunes in turn, it was my turn. "Firuze, you know I don't really believe in fortunes, but I'm really curious what you'll say," I said, leaning closer to the Tarot cards. Kaya said, "Ceyda, you don't even need a reading. You know your fortune will show me," and smirked. "Kaya, please, no need for your silliness. Don't start again," I said.
"I'm telling you I love you, and you still think I'm joking." Because I like Kaya very much as a friend and don't want to hurt him, I smiled, first at him, then at the girls. "I know, you love me the most, not these unpleasant girls." The girls all shouted "Ceyda!" in unison. Firuze said, "Okay, kids, let's continue," and started laying out the cards. After a while, she lifted her head from the cards, opened her green eyes wide, and looked at me. When she stayed silent, I said, "What? What did you see? Am I going to die?" Aslı shouted "Ceyda!" and threw a pen from the table at my face. Laughing, I said, "What? Firuze, you looked at me so shocked and froze, so I thought I must be dying." "It's not that, but Ceyda, I see very complicated things in the cards." "What do you mean? What do you see?" "You're in the middle of a great confusion. The truths you know will turn out to be lies. I see you in the middle of a great chaos." "No way! My life consists of my mom, my dad, and you guys. I have an ordinary life. How can there be chaos?" "Be careful, Ceyda. You will be dragged into a great predicament," she said. Elif said, laughing, "Yeah, she doesn't even have a boyfriend!" Kaya said, "Of course, she's waiting for me." "Ugh, Kaya! I don't want a boyfriend. I'm almost 20, I'm in no hurry. I'll love the man I'm going to marry when I find him. And even though what came up in my fortune scares me, I can't bring myself to believe it. For me, it's just curiosity." Aslı said, "Anyway, guys, we're going to the mountain house tomorrow. Did you all get your leave? Don't cause any last-minute problems." "I had a hard time getting permission from my dad. He said, 'What if something happens to you in that deserted place? Couldn't you find another place to vacation?'" "We go every summer, it won't be a problem, honey. I'll come in the morning and talk to your dad, dear Ceyda." After tidying up the café, we made plans for the next day and left. Firuze can't come with us due to the renovations. The five of us friends will spend a few days at Aslı's grandfather's mountain house. My dad objected at first, but then he couldn't resist my insistence. Since I'm an only child, my mom and dad raised me a bit anxiously. And until now, I've always been careful not to upset them. Since I got home late, I chatted with my family a bit and then retreated to my room. I was so tired. I struggled to put on my pajamas, and as soon as I lay down on my bed, I fell asleep. I tried to wake up to the sound of laughter in my ears. "Ugh, what's going on, morning already?" I shouted, putting my pillow over my head, trying to continue sleeping. But no, the laughter wouldn't
stop. Grumbling, I got out of bed and left my room. When I entered the living room, I saw my friends sitting at the breakfast table, laughing with my mom and dad. "Guys, what are you doing here at this hour?" Kaya said, "What, are you kicking us out?" "No, I'm just surprised. You were supposed to come in the afternoon." Yasemin said with a pout, "Exactly. We were going to sleep a bit today, but Mr. Kaya showed up at the crack of dawn at the door." Kaya said, "You guys are making a big deal, it's already 10 a.m. That's enough sleep. Sleep, sleep, you're getting fat." I was about to shout "Kaya!" when my dad said, laughing, "Okay, kids, have your breakfast and then you can head out. Honey, go wash your face and come have your breakfast." After breakfast, I put on some comfortable clothes and came out of my room. I kissed my mom and dad's chubby cheeks and hugged them tightly. "Don't worry about me, Mom. Aslı and her family go to the mountain house all the time. Nothing will happen." Mom said, "Okay, honey, but keep your phone on. I'll worry about you. It's your first time staying overnight somewhere." Dad put his hand on Mom's shoulder. "Sevil Sultan, don't worry. They're not kids anymore. Our girl will be 20 soon," he said. Kaya said, "Don't worry, Uncle Yusuf. Nothing will happen to the girls while I'm here." "I know, son." We left the house and got into Kaya's car. No matter how much Yasemin tried to sit in the front passenger seat, Kaya didn't allow it and made me sit there. We talked and sang songs along the way. We stopped at a market at one point, bought our food and drinks, and continued on our way. After about two hours, we had arrived at the mountain house outside Istanbul. Getting out of the car, I looked around. It was a single-story, not too large, cute house with a small garden, surrounded by trees, a deserted forest. "Aslı, are you sure this place is safe?" I said. Aslı laughed. "Are you scared, Ceyda?" "No, I'm not scared, but it's so quiet here. I think it must be terrifying at night." "Don't worry, we come every summer. Nothing bad has ever happened to us. Besides, there are neighboring houses around, so we're not alone, sweetie." Elif said, "Are there wolves, bears, wild animals here?" "No, honey, even if there were, I've never seen any," said Aslı.
Kaya said, "Okay, girls, enough tension. These next few days will be great. Come on, let's carry our suitcases inside now." We took our things from the car and entered the garden. There were walnut and pine trees in the garden, and a gazebo. When we reached the house door, Aslı took out a key from her pocket and opened the door. We went inside. It was a cute wooden house with two rooms and a kitchen-living room combo. Aslı said, "Yasemin, you and Ceyda take the back room. Elif and I will take the room facing the front. Kaya, you sleep in the living room, meaning on this big couch here." "Why's that? I'll sleep in Ceyda's room. One of you can sleep here." I frowned. "Stay away from me," I said, turning my back and walking to the front room with my things. "I'm settling in this room. I get bored stuck in the back," I said. The rooms had two sofa beds each. We opened them up to make them into beds and put on the pillowcases and sheets. We put our clothes in the closet. I lay down on the bed, took my phone out of my pocket, and called my mom. She picked up on the first ring. "Ceyda!" "Were you waiting by the phone, Sevil Sultan?" "My dear girl, I was just about to call you to see if you'd arrived." "Mom, we're here. Don't worry about us. It's very beautiful here." "Okay, honey. Call me sometimes. Take care of yourselves." "Okay, Mom. Kissing those chubby cheeks," I said and hung up, leaving the room. Kaya had put on some nice music, was singing along to the song, and was putting away the food we brought. I started singing a song with him. Some have a sultan for a father, he solves their problems Some have a father who smiles from a photograph Some go to space, the other in a room In a perpetual coma Hearing my voice, he turned to me. We were singing the song and dancing at the same time. Every morning I started a new movie Even if I wanted different endings, it always ended the same
Then it suddenly hit me, I understood the world I took it in front of me and started to explain We looked at each other, laughing, and sang the chorus together. Big, old, fat world Big, old, fat world Kaya put his right arm around my neck. "Ceyda, this is why I love you so much, girl. Your energy is good for me. You're awesome." "I love you too, Kaya. But please, don't sometimes talk as if you're in love with me and annoy me." "Okay, would I ever annoy you? You're my sister," he said, then added, "But it wouldn't be bad if you were my girlfriend." "What, do you only love Ceyda? What about us?" We turned at the sound of Aslı's voice. Elif, Aslı, and Yasemin were lined up, watching us. Kaya said, "Come here," and the girls came and hugged us too. Kaya is the oldest, 25, very handsome with black eyes, black hair, and tall. After high school, he didn't want to study, so he fell out with his dad. Even though they're very well-off, he's trying to make his own way. Yasemin is 22, with green eyes and blonde hair. Because she was cheated on by an old love, she has no trust in men and changes boyfriends constantly. Aslı is also 22, a nice girl with hazel eyes and black hair. Her boyfriend, Alp, couldn't come with us because he's out of town for work. Elif is 20 – we're the same age, just Elif has already turned 20, and my birthday is soon. She has hazel eyes and light brown hair. She lost her father in a traffic accident when she was ten and lives with her mother and younger brother. Together, we prepared our dinner and set the table outside in the gazebo. Kaya brought the beers to the table too. Eating amidst the greenery in the lovely air was so enjoyable.
"Guys, it was so good that we came here. What if we came here often from now on? The fresh forest air has given me an appetite, for real," I said. Elif said, "I'm not so sure." "You have a big brother like Kaya here. I'll protect you, girls. Come on, let's enjoy ourselves," Kaya said, taking a sip of his beer. All night, we drank our beers, ate our food, and sang songs with the music. The night felt a bit scary, but since we were all together, it was fun. We didn't notice how time passed. Yasemin said in a tearful voice, "How many glasses have I had? My head is spinning." I guess I was a bit tipsy too. A song came to mind after Yasemin's comment, and I started singing. How many glasses were broken in my drunken heart? I couldn't console myself no matter what They said there's no good in this love, forget it No matter what I did, I couldn't forget the voice No matter what I did, I couldn't forget you "Wow, you sing so beautifully, Ceyda," Kaya said. I laughed. I was in a good mood. Yasemin said, "It doesn't pass. Time passes, but the pain of betrayal doesn't pass." So I started singing the song that came to my mind. It will pass, it will pass, like the ones before, this too shall pass. So many things have passed, falling in love, in love We all laughed together. Around 3 a.m., we cleared the table and retreated to our rooms. The sun's light was dazzling my eyes. I want to open them, but I can't. There's a weight on me, pressing on my stomach. I think I'll go back to sleep, but no, the pressure on my stomach won't allow it. I forced my eyes open. Yasemin had buried her head in my stomach and was lying on top of me. "Yasemin." "Huh?" "Could you get off me?" She had no intention of getting off. "Yasemin!" I shouted suddenly. She opened her green eyes wide. "What's happening?" she said.
"You're lying on top of me right now. If you don't get off immediately, I'll push you off the bed." She immediately lifted her head. "How did I get here?" she said. "You should ask yourself that. Do you maybe sleepwalk?" "No, I just drank too much last night," she said, getting off me. I took a relieved breath as the weight lifted off me. She, as if nothing had happened, got into her bed and continued sleeping. I left the room. Kaya had already prepared breakfast on the table in the living room. He turned to me with the sausage pan in his hand. "Oh, the beauty is awake," he said, pinching my cheek. "You're early too." "It's almost noon. Go wake the girls. We didn't come here to sleep. Let's go out and explore," he said. I said okay and managed, with difficulty, to wake the girls. We had a nice breakfast and changed our clothes. I put on a beautiful white, thick-strapped lace bodysuit, with khaki green capris and white sneakers underneath. I let my long, wavy light brown hair down. I put black mascara on my light brown eyes and dusty rose lipstick on my lips. Since I couldn't see myself well in the small mirror in my hand, I left the room and headed for the mirror in the living room, but all the girls were in front of it, admiring their beauty. "Enough! You've cracked the mirror. Move aside and let me admire my beauty a bit too," I said. I pushed the girls aside and stood in front of the mirror. "Ooh, I'm not bad, am I, girls?" I said, then shouted, "Damn it!" The girls looked at me in alarm. "What happened?" they said anxiously. I smiled. "I'm just too beautiful today," I said and started running towards the exit. I could hear the girls shouting after me. As soon as I got outside, I hid behind Kaya, who was waiting for us in the garden. "Protect me, Kaya! These girls will tear me apart!" Kaya laughed. "What did you do now, Ceyda?" "Nothing." The girls stood in front of us, angry. Elif said, "You scared us so much, Ceyda!" "I just made a joke. What's the big deal?" I said, laughing. Kaya said, "What's up, girls? Who did you get all dressed up for?" Yasemin tossed her blonde hair with her hand. "Well, what if my destiny crosses my path in the forest?" she said.
"I just don't get these girls," Kaya said, turning to me. "Let me see, did you get dressed up too?" he said, looking me over. "You look very beautiful too, peanut," he said, putting his arm around my neck. "Come on, girls, let's explore a bit." We started walking. "What joke did you play on the girls, Ceyda?" "I was looking in the mirror, saying how beautiful I was, and then I shouted 'Damn it!' The girls looked at me in alarm. Then I said, 'I'm just too beautiful today.' The girls couldn't handle this little joke," I said. Kaya laughed. "You cute thing," he said, pinching my nose. After walking around for a while, I was starting to feel overwhelmed by the heat. "Kaya, can you let go of me now? I'm hot. Go hug her for a bit," I said, nodding towards Elif, who was walking beside us. He let me go and hugged Elif. Elif said, "Kaya, the forest gives me the creeps. Are there snakes here?" "Don't worry, Elif-cim. Nothing will happen to you while I'm here. I'll protect you." "There are forest berries everywhere. They taste so good," I said, putting the ones I'd picked in my mouth. Yasemin said, "Ceyda, don't eat those! They're poisonous." "They're not poisonous, you can eat them," I said, continuing to eat after getting confirmation from Aslı. It had been an hour since we left the mountain house. Yasemin said, "I'm bored already. When are we going back home? There's nothing to do here." Kaya said, "Fancy-pants, you got bored so quickly? We just arrived yesterday. We'll stay a few days." "If you're bored, let's play a game," Aslı said. Elif said, "What can we play?" "Hide and seek," said Aslı. "Then you're 'it' first," I said. "Why me, Ceyda?" "The idea came from you." "Fine, but you're 'it' second then." In about half an hour, Aslı had found all of us. Of course, now it was my turn. Kaya said, "Ceyda, count to a hundred." I leaned my arm against a tree, covered my face against it, and started counting. When I got to fifty, I thought, "Enough already," and turned around.
I looked around. None of them were visible. I started looking behind trees and bushes. Elif's feet were sticking out from beside a tree. "Elif, I found you! You're behind the tree!" I shouted. A bit further away, murmurs were coming from behind some bushes. I approached the bushes. Yasemin had fallen into the bushes and was grumbling. "Yasemin, your spot seems very comfortable," I said, laughing. Her hair was a mess, and she looked at me with a sour expression. "I fell into this damn bush trying to hide. Help me up, Ceyda." I reached out, took her arm, and pulled her out of the bushes. While Elif and Yasemin sat down somewhere, I started looking for the others. I'd been searching for almost ten minutes, but they were nowhere to be found. While searching for them, I didn't realize how far I had walked or how far I had strayed from our spot. I suddenly realized I was lost. "This can't be! I'm lost! How?" A fear gripped me, and I started shouting. "Kaya! Aslı!" I called their names one by one. They didn't hear me. I started running in a panic. Suddenly, my foot got caught, and I started tumbling down a bushy area. "Ugh, look what's happened to me! Thorns are stuck all over me!" I grumbled, getting up. I managed with difficulty to get out of the bushes. "Look at the state of my hands, all scratched. My foot hurts." Limping from the pain in my foot, I tried to walk. Finally, I slapped my forehead as something occurred to me. In my panic, I had forgotten the phone in my back pocket. I took the phone out of my pocket. I looked at the screen. The phone was off. It must have turned off when I fell. I tried to turn it on, but it wouldn't. If I turned back and went the way I came, maybe I could find our group. I looked back once, then at the imposing two-story house in front of me. It sparked my curiosity. Who would build such a beautiful house in the middle of nowhere? "Look at what's happened to me! As if getting lost wasn't enough, I've gone and hurt my foot. What am I going to do now? I wonder if I go into that house, will they help me? Someone must live here." Anxiously, I opened the large garden gate and entered. Unable to bear the pain in my foot, I sat down on the gazebo at the garden entrance, sighing as I placed my sprained left foot on my right thigh and started rubbing it. "Oh, Ceyda, what are you doing here? Whatever's happening is because of that curiosity of yours." I was muttering to myself when I fell silent at the feel of a hard object against the back of my neck. Is that a gun!
