#buy house in istanbul

[necdetkarali]

Necdet Karalı +90 506 858 55 45

Kuşadası Remax Pasha

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

I was watching baby reindeer and it struck me how real trauma binding in such situations can be. Which got me thinking .... Did Harry marry his stalker??

We know she orchestrated the meeting with Harry. We know the lowkey stalking-manifesting on her part may have started a couple of years in advance. So many credible theories that they "accidentally" kept meeting again and again, their circles just "coincidentally" coincided over the years.

Various youtubers and Tumblr bloggers have put together very credible evidence of them meeting in -

1. May 2016 in Toronto for an Invictus lunch that Cory was a chef for.

2. In May/June 2015, Soho House Istanbul inauguration. Lots of pictures of Meghan being there, meeting various celebs. And Harry supposedly also attended since he was in Istanbul, with Charles, for a royal engagement. No pictures, but rumour is he landed a day early for the Soho gig.

3. May/June 2014, art Basel Miami, where Meghan met up with Misha, who also introduced her to Eugenie. Early articles mentioned Mm and Misha meeting there, and Misha said this in the interview she did for her store launch that happened with the smartworks thing Meghan did in london 2019. That article has since been edited. There were also mentions of this in Meghan's PR she did pre-harry (I used to follow her superficially). It was also on Tig. I remember this but those articles have also gone now.

Harry was in Miami at that same time for his friends bachelors and pre-wedding party. This is the same thing he broke-up with cressida over, not buying her ticket even though their whole friend circle was going to Miami. (William joined the gang later in another city for the wedding, so no chance of him meeting her).

Anyway, at the time this was covered by some media reports which said Harry spent the evening chatting up a "tanned brunette" in a corner and spent the whole evening with her. There were no photos. It's quite a coincidence that both HnM attended the same party at the same venue, were in the same social circle (misha-eug-harrys aristo group).

So, what I am saying is that it seems that they kept meeting every year around the same time, and that Meghan (or Harry) may have thought this was the universe trying to push them together. So when Meghan found herself in London in June 2016, having already met Harry 2 months back in May, she took her chance and "surprised" him with a blind date. She may as well have deliberately put her pictures with Violet on social media in order to bait Harry.

I know it's far fetched but this kind of orchestrated serendipity isn't unheard of. It's a very teenage, high school behaviour but it does happen. And people fall for this all the time.

This theory also aligns with how and why Meghan suddenly pivoted towards a humanitarian PR in 2014. For Harry, it may have been a forgettable encounter, but for her it was the perfect opportunity.

So, what do you think? Is there any credibility to the rumours that Meghan targetting Harry, and then enmeshed him in some sort of trauma bond?

Old ask from May 9th

To the first question, I don't think so. I think if one wants to believe that Meghan stalked/targeted Harry for two years, one needs to also believe the rumor that Harry met Meghan multiple times before he remembered who she was. And personally, I don't have any evidence of that other than the conflicting stories of when they met and who set them up. Those aren't slam dunks.

I'm not discounting that it couldn't happen, it absolutely can and the internet is chockful of stories about real relationships like this. I just don't think it's likely - primarily because given how messy Meghan is, something like this would've leaked out by now.

I do think Meghan was social climbing and strategizing for a wealthier husband - remember, she was going after athletes (hockey boys post-Trevor, cheating on Cory with Rory McIlroy, sliding into Ashley Cole's DMs) because being a WAG was the ultimate life of luxury - when the opportunity to meet Harry dropped in her lap, and she took full advantage of it. Because to someone like Meghan who's chasing WAG dreams, the only thing better than being a WAG was being a princess.

Which is, I think, the real story: Meghan and Harry hooked up in May 2016 at the Toronto Invictus Dinner behind Cory's back and met up again a few weeks later when she was in London for Wimbledon. The Violet photos could very well have been bait (to catch Harry's attention and let him know she was in town) or a plant (to create a Hallmark meet-cute story to hide how they really met).

But to the second question, absolutely. Meghan definitely set things up so that Harry trauma-bonded to her and she did that with the Toronto break-in claims, which preyed on Harry's paranoia of paparazzi and security.

I couldn't get into Baby Reindeer. I tried several to watch it several times but it wasn't for me.

[reimenaashelyee]

Thanks so much for the God of Arepo hype yall!!

If you're interested in checking out the rest of my comics, I've got:

The Carpet Merchant of Konstantiniyya: 600 paged historical epic set in 17th century Istanbul and 18th century England, about the life and romance shared by two carpet merchants... until one of them gets turned into a djinn (a ghul/vampire). Sad feels, vampires, gothic fiction, similar to the God of Arepo in terms of scale and tenderness. The original edition is a free webcomic, but the remastered edition is printed in two hardcover tomes.

Seance Tea Party: a coming-of-age autumnal story about a 12 year old girl being left behind as her peers grow up. While playing pretend, she summons the resident ghost in her house, who used to be her childhood imaginary friend. This is a graphic novel you can buy.

My Aunt is a Monster: silly, fun, whimsical adventure comedy about a young blind recently-orphaned girl who dreams of adventure, and who gets sent to a mysterious distant aunt, a former famous adventurer. The aunt has a secret - she's cursed into the form of a monster and has presumed dead for years - but a rival's claim of a monumental discovery forces everyone to go on an adventure of a lifetime. This is also a graphic novel.

Alexander, The Servant & The Water of Life: for 2300 years there is an unbroken tradition of retellings of the life and legends of Alexander the Great, and I'm making the 21st century one!! It's currently an ongoing webcomic.

Plus a bunch of short comics about random stuff.

Follow my newsletter for more comics and ~ process ~ (if you aren't already active on Tumblr)

[ultfreakme]

Freeing Palestine is India's fight

I've seen lots of posts about how Western countries and their populations should be concerned for stopping the genocide in Palestine but Indians are involved in this as well.

India has a HUGE Islamophobia problem, from the day India became what it is, this country exists the way it does through conflict regarding religious majorities and it is a problem we must acknowledge.

Collective punishment has often been carried out indiscriminately against Muslims in India- Muslim people's houses in Madhya Pradesh have been demolished without warning. This has also happened in Uttar Pradesh and in 2023, Haryana(300 businesses and homes). These were all normal innocent civilians who had proper legal paperwork showing their purchase and ownership of their home and land, but the police did not care. In many of these instances the police stood by and were involved in demolition and all of these were under BJP-majority and ruled areas. The recent Ram Mandir was built on the demolished land of Babri Masjid(it was built in the 14th century before India as it was even a THING, its destruction & demolition on the claim that it was Ram's birth place is unfair). Hate crimes against Muslims run amok and there are multiple cases of violence against Muslims in India.

PM Modi of the BJP party has been consistent in maintaining positive relations with Benjamin Netanyahu and the occupying force of Israel. A majority of the military equipment for India comes from Israel, and India has constantly been neutral in UN council meetings when decisions regarding Israel are brought up. A spyware called Pegasus, developed by the occupying force of Israel was used to surveil politicians, journalists, activists etc severely breaching right to privacy and threatening freedom of speech.

Worse; India has been using the Israeli strategy of colonizing Palestine with Kashmir. Jammu & Kashmir is a union territory which basically means they are allowed to function independently on most fronts but India has been seeking to integrate J&K into itself and has been extremely hostile to its Muslim citizens and are currently intensifying their occupation efforts. There have been consistent internet and communication blackouts since 2018 and it is STILL ongoing.

India invited Israeli officials to Kashmir to open 'Centers of Excellence' which are supposedly for agricultural innovation but everyone in J&K are concerned and see it as India taking an opportunity to intensify its occupation with Israeli help.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, several Kashmiris told Middle East Eye the Israeli agriculture hubs would deepen India's occupation in the region and accelerate its settler-colonial project. "Earlier, we would draw the parallels between Kashmir and Palestine or India's intimate alliance with Israel. But now they are bringing Israel to the Valley in the form of these institutions - which will be "agro-oriented" in name - but we all know that Israel will physically help India in Kashmir to turn it into a proper Palestine," a Kashmiri academic based in Istanbul told Middle East Eye.

In 2016 Coalition of Civil Society said there are more than 8000 'disappearances' of people in J&K. There are mass graves with over 2000 bodies being found with these unlawful activities being attributed to the Indian Security Forces. That's just scratching the surface of decades of violence and human rights violations enacted by India.

BJP is not shy about its ties to the RSS and promotes Hindutva(I've seen people citing the literal meaning of the word as evidence that it is harmless but the word is a label given to an embraced by extreme right-wing groups who are open about their Islamaphobia. Meaning of the word becomes pointless when actions speak otherwise).

India is an occupying force on J&K, it's suppressing Muslims, demonizing them and further marginalizing them in the name of 'Hinduism'. It buys from Israel and endorses them. As Indians, it is key that we do whatever we can to stop the genocide because we are unwittingly being used to fuel this and are being radicalized to hate on our neighbors, the people we share our land and history with.

Even outside of the ways in which the current government is shamelessly supporting Israel, India's history is rife with colonization. The British had occupied us, forced us into fighting each other, into prioritizing meaningless differences to suppress each other. We were once starved by occupying forces, violated, killed. Our land is also covered in blood shed by colonization.

What are we doing if we don't speak up? If we don't stop this? Do not follow the propaganda conflating extreme right-wing ideologies with the identity of being Indian. Don't buy into the idea that India is "for Hindus", we are so ridiculously diverse, there are 100s of languages and religions in this country.

Free Jammu & Kashmir, free Palestine, stop Islamophobia.

[syedahmedsabrina]

While Bangladesh was having riots because of the protests, I returned to the place where I was born, Turkey, because 1 year ago Turkey had an earthquake, so my house was left with only a lot of debris. I thought and decided to I went to buy a house in the suburbs of Istanbul, Turkey. As for me going to work every day, I took the subway myself with my dad.

[fashionbooksmilano]

Silks for the Sultans

Ottoman Imperial garments from Topkapi Palace

Photos by Ahmet Ertuğ, Essay by Dr.Patrick L.Baker, Dr.Hülya Tezean, Jennifer Wearden

Ertuğ & Kocabıyık, 1996, 251 pages, 150 colour plates, 31x42cm,

euro 600,00

email if you want to buy booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

This superb oversized book is published by Ertuğ & Kocabiyik Publications, a publishing house established by leading architect and photographer Ahmet Ertuğ and Ahmet Kocabiyik. Their books are unique collector's items focusing on the cultural heritage of Anatolia. The magnificent images by Ahmet Ertuğ are accompanied by articles of world-renowned academics to reflect the inherent value of the masterpieces they contain. The garments shown and described in this book were chosen from about five thousand objects in the garments and accessories collections of Topkapı Palace Museum in İstanbul. In making this selection, emphasis was placed on the silk kaftans (robes) that were worn by the sultans with an eye on such criteria as color, design, and quality reflecting the rich cosmopolitan atmosphere that prevailed in the Ottoman court. The examples in this book are classified according to design categories within which they are generally presented in chronological order. This has the advantage of reflecting the stylistic developments that took place in the design-shops attached to the Ottoman court. The first category consists of fabrics with the "triple spot" motif and its variations. The second group presents two examples of garments in the "saz" style and in the third, of the "Floral style". These are followed by kaftans in "Seraser" fabrics. The next three groups are devoted to fabrics that are of European origin or were imported from India. The next two categories show items of dress made from plain fabrics, some with appliqué designs, other garments from the 18th and 19th centuries. The last group are not kaftans but talismanic shirts, included because the unusual calligraphic treatment of their designs provides an interesting coda to the magnificent and elegant garments that precede them.

24/01/24

[itstokkii]

tell us about turkuzbek in the modern day :0!!!

modern day turkuzbek has my SOUL anon ! gonna list all kinds of things off my head lol

- women's day in many post soviet countries are celebrated with guys giving flowers to girls as a token of appreciation(this could be family, friends, etc), anyways turkey hops on this and on march 8th uzbekistan opens her door to see an avalanche of flowers. buried under there is a pink piece of paper that says "you're my favorite woman ❤️🔥"

- as mentioned before, she invites everyone nearby to her house. these include the other central asians, as well as iran and afghanistan! turkey tho...he stays at a hotel. she's way too embarrassed to let him in(until later as shown in my latest fic)

- in those rare moments where she invites him to a family friend's wedding she can't keep her eyes off of him. bro is the life of the party and kills the dancefloor.

mother in laws that come to weddings to gossip and flex on others with their outfits: nargiza is that your man

- people that don't know she's a country assume they're married, so the shopkeeper at the local bazaar goes "oh i haven't seen him before congrats on your marriage!" and then she goes completely red

- whenever they go on dinners/banquets to talk diplomacy turkey always posts the photos and then calls it a "romantic dinner/date." she immediately comments "please remove the caption" to which he makes that the pinned comment

- he sends her pics of himself late at 12am elbow propped up on his bed shirtless. like you know like the fboy pic that says "noo don't kill yourself you're too sexy ahaha" yeah.

- in response she sends back a pic of her sitting at her desk doing paperwork at 4am with the caption "sleep because you're able to"

- they always cook at each other's houses. it's another way they spend quality time together. she always insists on adding less sugar to the baklava or şekerpare syrup("it's too sweet, you could choke!").

- when she goes to istanbul and stays with him for a while you BEST BELIEVE she's taking a thousand pics of the atmosphere and herself. she's not going to waste a single second. she also takes this time to buy a lot of clothes to wear back home(and also flex on those other aunties at weddings).

- she loves the kitties and resists the urge to squeeze them and bite their cute little ears(turkey saw her doing this with her own cat once. needless to say he was absolutely shocked). she does pet them and talks to them in a super high pitched voice. to turkey this is like gap moe

- he gets her to come out of her shell more. she wore a ribbon in her hair once to a meeting. he complimented her one time. now she wears ribbons all the time.

- he tries(and fails) to get her to drink just a shot of rakı. she refuses, both because she takes halal dietary restrictions quite seriously, and because she doesn't do well with drinks.

- when he's in the room with the other central asians and she wants to say something, she's not taking any chances. they're all speaking in russian. not all of them are fluent in tajik, and kazakh and kyrgyz is one of the languages he understands the most alongside turkmen. bro is left attempting to pick up bits and pieces of what they're saying based on his vocabulary stored way back in the ottoman empire 😭

- forced him into bukharan clothing to take a photoshoot when they traveled to bukhara.

- soft launches most of her photos with him lol. NOBODY is looking at her man for longer than a minute 😤

- he calls her petnames in turkish(aşkım, sevgilim, canım) a lot !! and she gets really embarrassed. one time she had to hype herself up for a solid 10 mins before uttering an "asalim" and then everyone and everything in the room just stops.

🇹🇷: what did you just say-

🇺🇿: i need to buy more carrots asap

🇹🇷: you bought them yesterday???

- they already watch turkish dramas together, so she probably also shows him old soviet movies/70s to 2000s uzbek movies! thankfully the soviet movies have a turkish subtitle option otherwise he'd be totally lost lol

[cillspropertea]

No Fucking Way

Chapter 5: Tiny gates and heels.

Synopsis: Y/N finds herself in a unique situation where her heart wants to believe everything but her mind wants her to repress herself to prevent heartbreak. The love of her life is miraculously close enough to touch but everything stops with the question, “Is any of this real?”

 Authors note: I apologize beforehand to how medically incompatible this story will be, as I am not a professional doctor, just a fanfic writer with an idea she cannot contain in her head anymore. So, please, bear with me.

   The test results weren’t expected before midnight, but ‘our’ flight was at 6:30 in the morning so Marie had decided to utilize our time by packing up my stuff at ‘home’. Yes, our flight. Cillian had bought my ticket and upgraded Mom and Marie’s tickets to first class as well. And yes, home. My home apparently. We were in my ‘husbands’ car right now, which was being driven by his driver. “It’s good to have you back Mrs. Murphy.” He’d greeted. There was that name again. It made me happy and sad at the same time.  

    The conversation with Marie had been a revelation. I had to share the details with Dr. Sophie or any other Doctor I was going to consult in Istanbul. Plus I had to know what had happened at the night of the accident. Everyone was being so tight lipped about it. I hope they understood that it was only making me more curious. Even my phone was wiped out. Everything deleted and wiped before it was handed over to me. Only the wallpaper remained and my contacts.

    Thinking about having to talk to Cillian, one on one, was giving me tingles in my stomach. I had practiced for a bit in front of the bathroom mirror before getting out. I had seen myself, completely, for the first time after getting out of the hospital. I had lost a lot of weight and had some scarring on my body as well, no doubt from the accident. It made me a bit self-conscious knowing that Cillian could even rock a sack if he had to. I had dark circles under my eyes as well, making my face look a bit faint and tired. In simple words, I could go to audition for a Tim Burton live action with the satisfaction that they wouldn’t have had to use a lot of makeup on me. I wondered what Cillian would think of this thought of mine and chuckled.

    Before I knew it we had reached.

   The house wasn’t something I would have thought of buying for myself really. Yet, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of familiarity at all. The moment I had laid my eyes on it, I felt like I had travelled in to a memory. Everything felt slow-motioned. It looked like a house with old bones but a youthful soul. The blinds were drawn so there wasn’t much I could make about the inside of it. The small black gate screeched as I slowly pushed it open and stepped inside.

   ‘I am late! Fuck! He would be so mad at me. I hurriedly park the car and literally run towards the gate. It won’t open! Why isn’t it opening danm it. I look around to make sure no one is watching, especially ‘him’. He would tease me to death if he sees me doing this. And when I’m sure, I simply jump over the tiny gate and almost fall on my butt because of my tight fitted dress and heels. I was wearing them because we are supposed to go on a date right after his friend’s housewarming party here. But before I can ring the bell the door opens…’

     I wobbled and almost fell backwards as I was still in a daze but Cillian had caught me, “Hey! I’ve got you.” He had opened the door even before I could ring the bell. ‘What was that?’ I wondered silently. His hand lingered on my waist as he steadied me. “You okay?” he asked clearing his throat. “Yeah…” my reply was breathier than I wanted it to be. His scent was bothering me again, no, intoxicating has to be the word. It was not just perfume, it was him. Definitely him.

    Marie came and Cillian greeted her and let us both in.

    The house was beautiful from the inside as well. Cozy, warm and inviting. The color blue could be found almost on every inch of the place, with accents of gold and beige. It was casual with a strong lacing of extravagance and elegance. I loved it instantly.

    “Oh my! I never thought I would see you in this hallway again Mrs. Murphy!” an old lady with an apron around her waist rushed towards me and clasped my hands. Cillian gave her a look which made her nod and move back. “This is Grace umm… the housekeeper and cook.” He announced to me of course. Grace looked at me expectantly, as if she was waiting for me to say, ‘April’s fool’ in November. “Hello Grace. It’s lovely to meet you.” My words made her flinch. A look of disappointment crossed her face before she gathered herself. “Likewise.” She said curtly and went into the kitchen mumbling something I could not catch. We went and sat in the living room.

    You know how every house has its own fragrance? This one had one too. But the only name I could give it would be ‘déjà vu’. It felt like something very nearly in my minds grasp but not quite. Grace brought in tea on a trolley but I refused it. All of this was making my stomach churn. The last thing I wanted to do is puke all over Cillian’s beautiful house. “Did you talk to Ashton? Is he okay with having Y/N over?” Cillian asked Marie, once again pretending like I wasn’t just sitting right in front of him, “’Cuz if he is not, I can arrange a separate…” “Oh no Cillian. Ashton said it was absolutely fine. We would just have to keep it a secret from Ashton’s mother. You know how she is right?” Cillian simply nodded with raised brows, “Oh I do! I remember her fits of fury on your wedding quite well.” I kept looking between them. This was exactly what I’d always wanted. I wouldn’t have survived this long if my sister hadn’t supported and guided me throughout my life. So naturally whenever we’d discuss our ‘ideal man’, one of my most valued qualities was him having a good relationship with Marie. Because it was a fact that I wouldn’t ever ditch my sister, especially not for a guy and she had pledged the same. But right now, looking at them like this did not feel great. I was lost. It was as if I did not even exist. They did not even need me to have a genuine conversation.

     I know in my head that I’m being irrational and silly but my eyes water up. “I need to use the restroom.” I should have asked Cillian but I looked at Marie instead. If he wants to ignore me than two can play this game. “Of course.” She instantly stood up and led me towards a bathroom under the stairs. I washed my face and breathed in and out slowly. I needed to get a grip on my emotions again. I could feel the leash slipping away. Wiping my face with a towel I went out, but instead of joining my husband and sister I decided to look around a bit. It was ‘my home’ after all, wasn’t it?

    Walking up the blue carpeted stairs, I found myself in a long stretched hallway with framed glass windows on one side. There were at least five bedroom doors. I started with the first one on my left. It was a standard bedroom, obviously not used much. The furniture mostly covered with sheets and plastic. The same happened with the two other doors. But when I tried to open the fourth one, it wouldn’t open. I tried to open it a couple of times but it still did not budge. Strange. The one in the end of the hallway was a store room of sorts.

    Boxes and packages covered in dust were roughly placed inside the dark, windowless room.

Just when I was about to close it and turn, a figure in the beginning of the hallway almost made me shit my pants. I yelped, “Fucking hell!” Cillian chuckled, “I was wondering where you’ve gone.” I blushed, he’d caught me snooping around in his house. “I was just looking around.” I said, trying to explain. “It was quite obvious I wasn’t included in your conversation with Marie.” I said looking straight into his eyes. It was pretty clear he couldn’t wait to get rid of me. Like Marie said, he has to be tired of waiting for me by now. A successful actor like him could get anyone he wanted in a blink of an eye. “That is not true.” He said staring right back at me matching the ferocity and answering my painful thoughts even, sort of. “Technically it was you we were talking about.” Hmm, “Technically you are right I suppose” ”You can look around all you want.” ‘It is your house too…’ he did not say it but I knew he was thinking it. The look he gave me made me look away. He gradually walked towards me and when I was certain he was about to touch me his hand slid behind me to open the door next to me, the one I hadn’t seen yet. “After you.” His smile was full of flirty mischief as he invited me to ‘our’ bedroom.              

[trashbinbackyard]

1-20 mhairi & ihn + whichever armed asshats pair you want

Let me put your anxieties at ease, this is my preferred way of getting these prompts, one shared pair and one i get to pick bc there’s blorbos brewing in my head

You get academic old man yaoi with Osman and Konstantin

1. What were their first impressions of one another?

I think they met for the first time when they were still starting out. Ihn has always respected Mhairi, and they’ve had a friendly rivalry going on. For many years he wasn’t romantically interested and everything was strictly professional/platonic. He would be lying if he said Mhairi wasn’t a looker tho

They met each other the first time in the academy d’Arcane when Osman was visiting a class and they sat next to each other, they were in their late 20’s. Osman thought Konstantin was intense and Konstantin thought Osman was too loud.

2 .What was their first date like? If they haven’t been on a date yet, how would it go? 

They were old and in a situation of a century ago agreeing to go on a date if they were single still and welp, widowed and tragically broken up with is one way to get there. So they picked a bar, went for drinks and then things might’ve gotten spicy

It was a study date in a cafe which also was the unofficial gathering place of all the city’s cats (the basis for Nia Vasileos in Istanbul so). They bonded over love of coffee, pastries and magic

3. It’s late at night and your characters want food, what do they order/find in the fridge? 

I bet Mhairi has all kinds of fancy stuff like fresh exotic fruits, nuts and the like, i get more ingredient house vibes from her than snack house, and also they’re both loaded so minimal cooking is done. She could also just call up some food. Ihn would rummage through the cabinets and curse not having any snacks handy so almonds it is, or call up some food.

Konstantin is a pretty picky eater, Osman not so much. Konstantin is also the type of guy to prepare meals so if Osman is hungry, one day’s meal might go missing. But they also keep a lot fruits in the house to satisfy most hunger pangs, and also bread

4. What’s a typical Sunday like for them? 

Ihn’s long retired so he does fuck all, naps thruout the day, reads, watches the news etc., grandpa activities Mhairi is welcome to join. He also likes following Mhairi around when she’s doing her thing, sorting out her stuff. Sunday is a lazy day

They’re both insanely busy, Osman serves the palace and the crescent university, and has his own pet projects, so Sunday’s for him is working on his own things like painting and drawing. Konstantin needs to check in on the academy every day but on Sundays he’s like “if something is not on fire right it can wait a day, and if something is on fire you have a building full of mages, figure something out”. So he’s at home chilling with Osman, makes them both afternoon coffee and reads in the same room Osman is painting in.

5. What’s their love language like? Are they compatible with one another? 

Quality time, acts of service for Ihn, third would be physical touch, he knows how the nedians get with touch.

Osman is loud and touchy, Konstantin is more reserved but he also likes physical affection, just somewhere no one can see. Quality time together too, what’s better than two academics having dinner

6. Do they have any pet names/nicknames for eachother? 

“Old [insert thing here]” but like, in a loving way

My beloved, love, etc in their native tongues, (haven’t come up with the regions they’re from but Konstantin is greek-ish and Osman would be arabic)

7. What do they argue about? 

I think their arguments have mostly been about how to handle something

Their most common argument is how the other doesn’t make enough time for the other

8. Who does what chores, and why? 

Hoooousekeeping

Konstantin cooks more, both clean up after each other, Osman handles fixing things and buying necessities

9. What’s the most difficult thing they’ve been through together? 

Ihn being widowed, losing his son and daughter-in-law, losing his granddaughter in a very short span of time. Mhairi’s dealings with Xiulan and the catastrophic end to that, they were always each other’s shoulder to cry on.

Dunno yet

10. How do they make up after a fight? 

Talk it through once calmed down, work together for a solution to whatever they were fighting about, kiss and make up

Osman writes an apology monologue worthy of awards and Konstantin will get Osman his favorite baklava

11. Who causes the most arguments? 

I think pretty equally, both can get really stubborn

Osman can be a little inconsiderate, but not maliciously, he’s just gets so excited about stuff he might forget to consult Konstantin

12. What would they say each other’s worst quality is? 

The other being stubborn, stuck in their way, Ihn has a bad habit of not taking things seriously until it blows up on his face, Ihn thinks Mhairi miiiight take a little too much joy out of putting people down but hey, captains gotta captain

Osman has his head in the clouds, and sometimes forgets to focus on things that matter more. Konstantin is 

13. What would they say each other’s best quality is? 

Ihn’s always loved Mhairi’s wit, and ambition

Osman is endlessly curious and creative. Konstantin is extremely loyal and intelligent (well they both are)

14. How would they describe one another if asked? 

It would be really hard to get Ihn to describe Mhairi in a genuine manner, but under all those layers of sarcasm, he thinks really highly of them, Mhairi is intelligent in both knowledge and socially, ambitious, ready to do everything to get what she wants, looks out for those who really matter to her. They’ve known each other for so long 

They both would say the other is the smartest man in Nia Vasileos. A big “no you” “no u” type of argument would ensue

15. What names are they saved as on each other’s phone? 

Ihn has Mhairi marked down as “ball and chain” ironically, he switches it sometimes to other weapons/guns

No phones, but both would refer to the other by their name

16. What would they consider quality time? 

Good food, good drinks, great backdrop, reminiscing about all their greatest heists.

17. Who decides which movies to watch? 

They insult each other into submission: “Oh you wanna watch *war movie*? what are you 900 years old?” / “very rich coming from the guy who wants to watch troy, you just wanna see 200 bare chested men”

They take turn on deciding which theater show to go see, their tastes are very similar

18. How are they like on a road trip together? 

Whenever they take an interplanetary trip, Ihn insists on being the pilot, that’s his bread and butter. Mhairi arranges the places they’ll be staying at

Long carriage/boat rides would be mostly spent napping and reading by them both

19. It’s raining, did either of your OCs bring an umbrella? If so, who, and do they share it? 

Mhairi has a large coat, she could hoist up in case of sudden rain. They both come prepared for the weather though most of the time, just one thing less to worry about, and you don’t get to rule a space pirate empire without knowing how to prepare.

Konstantin can just move the rain away from them, a trick Osman is trying to learn

20. What are they like when sharing a bed?

Ihn is way smaller, so little spoon, also he snores so he can’t be trusted to sleep on his back, also his back hurts most of the time, and his leg. Mhairi has similar ailments so I think there will be a lot pillows involved to prop things into the right angle 

Konstantin sleeps like carcass, on his back, unmoving. Osman wraps around him and Konstantin leans his head in to kiss him goodnight

[alwayzraven]

Kardeşlerim 86

Serpil didn't die after Ayla hit her. Ayla told Sengul to distract Berk so he doesn’t see Serpil and she’s going to take her to the hospital. Sengul told Berk that the dishwasher was broken and the house was flooded with water so she and Ayla were busy cleaning everywhere all morning. She told him that his mother was in the shower and that’s why she didn’t hear him knock on the door. Sengul asked Berk to drop her home since he knows the way and he was more than happy to do so. 

Berk dropped Sengul off at her house and Aybike and Omer were there. When Aybike saw Berk with her mom together, she was surprised.

Berk explained to her since their moms made up, Sengul came and had coffee with his mom. Sengul told Aybike that she asked him to drop her off. Look how happy he is 🥺

Berk said that he still can’t believe that their moms are hanging out together and Aybike said she is also surprised.

and then when they started looking at each other intensily, Omer got the hint and left them alone 😂😂

Berk told Aybike that he will go home and ask his mom about what she talked about with Sengul and he will let her know.

On their way to the hospital, Serpil told Ayla to stop the car. Ayla didn't want to let her go bc she was injured and she was scared that she was going to die. Also, Serpil said that she was going to report her to the police and she’s going to take Berk from her.  While they were fighting, Serpil fell and hit her head and she died exactly like Resul. Ayla went home and Sengul called her. Ayla lied to Sengul and told her that she took Serpil to the hospital and she was fine when she left her there. Later, Sengul met Elif. She was crying, Elif's friend told Sengul that Serpil died. Sengul went to Ayla's house and Ayla told her how Serpil died.

Zehra took the bag of money and left istanbul after she locked Tolga up at the house. Asiye went to look for Zehra at her house but she and Doruk found Tolga locked up in her room. Tolga told them that Zehram left with the money. The drug dealers came looking for Zehra and when they didn't find her they kidnapped Asiye and Doruk. Asiye tried to escape but failed. Everyone was at the Eren's house trying to think of a solution Nebehat said that she wished they took Akif bc she installed an app on his phone and she would've found him right away 😂. Akif said that Doruk had his phone with him and that's how they found them. The police arrested two of the four guys and the other two managed to escape. 

Zehra came back the next day and gave the bag to the police. She went to the restaurant to apologize to everyone for leaving and causing the drug dealers to kidnap Asiye and Doruk. Asiye went to buy something and just when she left a car pulled over in front the restaurant and the two drug dealers who escaped got off the car. They went into the restaurant and shot everyone. I don't think Yasmin was shot because Omer protected her but I think she was injured by the broken glass. Asiye heard the shots and went back to the resturant. She was shocked, she checked on Omer then Aybike. Aybike said that she was in pain and she was cold 😭. Asiye covered her with her coat then called an ambulance.

In the teaser, everyone was taken to the hospital. I guess also all the parents will be there. Ayla and Berk will also be there.

Berk: ”Don’t go anywhere, please. Stay here, please, my Aybike”

I know that Zehra will die but I think everyone else will live bc we saw them at the party. Also, Sarp is going to donate blood to Omer so I think Sarp and Omer’s relationship will improve in the coming episodes.Concerning Elif, she will start going to Attaman school soon. I am sure that Ayla is going to give her a scholarship. I am curious about whether she will be friends with the squad or if she’s going to be a troublemaker.

[eruverse]

Pets, Pets, Pets!!

My headcanon of the pets the characters have:

Mongolia: horsies… or not, since they’re technically livestock. He has a LOT of horsies he lends to nomads and sometimes he will sell them too. Anyway, he has a bankhar (native Mongolian guard dog) — so bankhars don’t technically get super big but his is a Lorge puppy nearly as big as he is. His dog has also sired countless pups. He brings his dog all the time when he’s out in the steppe and would camp with him.

Cute!!!!

Kazakhstan: infinity cats aka 8 cats. Half were strays and half are adopted — one or two of them he adopted from Russia. They’re literally replacement kids for him; were he a human he would have 10 children. Proudly calls himself cat dad. He loves them so much he bought a big luxurious house just so that them fully indoor cats can have room to roam. They hog the bed often that Kaz would sleep on the rug.

Uzbekistan: two cats, who are also barn/outdoor cats. They often help hunt small animals that could potentially ruin his harvest since he gardens at home!!

Russia: ofc he has cats. He has had cats since he was born. Sometimes his cats would have kittens and he asks his neighbors if they would love to adopt cats from him.

Turkey: well, for him all the cats in Istanbul are his (literally he is right). So he doesn’t really have cats at home, but he lets his house open for cats to roam. Also buys a ton of best quality cat food every month.

[istanbulpropertygorkem]

Things to Consider While Buying Property in Tuzla 

Tuzla, the county of Istanbul, is a residential area located on the Asian side. The district has a surface area of 123 km2, consisting of seventeen neighborhoods with a population of 273,608 people. 

Tuzla is not only a residential area but also a popular location for summer houses in Istanbul. The things to consider while buying property in Tuzla are as follows. 

Identify your Requirements: Figure out what you need and want from a house while buying property in Tuzla. Identifying your requirements for a residential project and its features will result in a hassle-free buying process. 

Investment Growth: Most of the residential complexes in Tuzla have excellent investment returns and good rental incomes. 

Research Projects: Tuzla has a variety of real estate projects ranging from duplex apartments to modern flats. While purchasing property in Tuzla, it is best to conduct comprehensive research to find the ideal home that meets your needs. 

Costs: Purchasing a home in Tuzla, Istanbul comes with additional costs. Knowing these costs before purchasing a property in Tuzla will make the entire process easier and less stressful. 

Real Estate Agency: While buying property in Tuzla, it is crucial to pick a trustworthy real estate agent. The agency should be reliable and capable of guiding you in finding the perfect home. A stress-free property buying process is also guaranteed by the right agent.  For more details: Property for Sale in Tuzla, Istanbul

[originalhybridloverfics-backup]

Ch9 Don't Give Up Now

A/N: Sorry for the lack of post. My writing time is limit.

Anyway this chapter isn't perfect but I hope you enjoy regardless.

After spending one of the best days of his life since his diagnosis with Eda. Serkan had hoped they were at a turning point. 

It surprised him when they returned to work, she had returned to her previous attitude toward him. 

Business and civil, but not familiar. Not connected. 

It hurt, but he was willing to bear her hot and cold attitude, hoping to break all her walls down for good. 

He wanted his last days to be filled with love and Eda. He knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but he was willing to fight for it. 

He let her set the pace and tone of their relationship, hoping that as long as he didn’t push her too hard, things would work out how he wanted them to. 

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ 

Eda smiled in thanks when Serkan arrived in her office with a coffee for her. “You didn’t have to. I have an assistant that could have gotten me coffee.” 

“I wanted to,” Serkan said. “I found a place similar to our cafe back in Istanbul. It tastes the same. I’m sure you know the one I am talking about.” 

Eda paused as she recalled the cafe he spoke of. It was one of their first places they went together after admitting their true feelings and had quickly become their place. Serkan had gone so far as to permanently reserve a table for them. 

A warm feeling filled her chest, one she wanted to go away. 

Spending the weekend with Serkan had been both wonderful and not good. It was wonderful because she had been happier than she could remember in a long time. She had fun, and she enjoyed his company, but it was also bad because she felt old buried feelings brimming to the surface. 

Eda wasn’t sure she wanted to go there again with Serkan. 

She had her heart broken by him once and it almost destroy her and she wasn’t sure she could survive it a second time. 

And self-preservation was a powerful thing. 

Sher found herself shutting him out, remaining professional and all but putting the brakes on any chance of a reconciliation between them. 

But it was hard, so fucking hard, like right now when he did sweet things that reminded her why she had fallen in love with him the first time around. 

When moments like this she just wanted to grab him by the lapels of his jacket and kiss him for all he was worth. 

Eda lifted the starfoam cup to her lips and sipped at the liquid. 

Serkan was right, it taste the same. She took a larger drink. 

“I have some ideas for your home I want you to take a look at.” Eda pulled a file out from her desk and held it out to Serkan. 

Serkan accepted the file and sat across from her, opening the file and flipping through the detailed designs. 

Eda watched, biting her lip, awaiting his approval. 

Another thing that didn’t change. She cared for his opinion. More than she wanted to admit. 

“You’ve really improved.” Serkan said, closing the file. “We will implement this. We’ll need to hire contractors, buy materials and supplies.”

“That fast?” Eda asked. 

“I don’t intend to stay in a hotel during the duration of my stay. I would love to get a move on things.” Serkan replied and in truth, he had every intention of giving this dream house to Eda once he was gone to do with what she wanted. 

“There’s no rush though.” said Eda. Her heart beat faster in her chest.

She had wanted to figure out why Serkan was here and send him on his way back to Istanbul, ignore old feelings coming to the surface, but now, everything inside her was screaming to keep him here as long as possible. 

It was a conundrum. She wanted him as close as possible, but she also couldn’t help but push him away, putting distance between them.

Working with him despite her vocal protest and objections had become the best part of her day. 

There was a rush. Serkan fought the urge to grab her and kiss her like it would be the last time.

“Maybe not,” he lied, “but I would like to have it done.”

Eda fell silent momentarily, then with a sigh, she produced another file. “Here’s a list of contractors and supplies trades I liked to use. I’m certain you’ll find it up to your standers.”

Serkan took the file, opening it and checking it. 

Eda moved to the window as Serkan worked. 

Serkan watched her, uncertain what to make of things. She was sending him more mix signals than he knew what to do with. 

Slowly he approached her, taking her hand as he led her outside on to the terrace. 

“I don’t plan on going anywhere when my home is done.” Serkan told her. 

Eda turned to look at him but said nothing, but her hand tightened around his. 

God, Serkan had turned her into a mess. She didn’t know what she wanted anymore. She wanted him gone, and she wanted him close. 

She pulled her hand from his to wrap her arms around him, hugging him to her much to Serkan’s surprise, but he didn’t hesitate to hold her in his arms. 

He had dreamed of moments like this and he was going to saviour it as much as he still could. 

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ 

Efe opened the door to Eda’s office, frowning when he couldn’t find Eda, but all he had to do was step further into her office and looking out to the terrace. 

His stomach twisted at what he saw. 

Serkan’s arms enveloped Eda’s waist, her head tucked into his shoulder, and she looked like there was nowhere else she wanted to be. 

Stepping back out of the room, he silently returned to his office. Taking a seat in his office chair, he picked up his cell, scrolling through his phone until he found the contact he was searching for. 

It ranged several times before it was answered. 

“Sehima, we have a bigger problem than I first thought.” Efe said at once. 

“If this is about Serkan Bolat, I thought I told you to take care of it.” 

“I’ve been trying. I’ve made it clear to Serkan he’s not welcome here. I reminded Eda of her past history with Serkan not ending well. I urged her to keep her relationship with Serkan professional, but you don’t see them together.” Efe tried to explain. 

Serkan and Eda were like two magnetic forces being pulled together. 

“I don’t want to see them together. Haven’t I made that clear?” her voice was hard. “Do whatever you have to do to keep them apart. I don’t care if you have to pursue Eda yourself to do it. I want Serkan Bolat out of my granddaughter’s life. Do you understand?” 

“Sehima, Eda is-”

“Do you understand?” her tone was like ice. 

Efe swallowed. “I understand.” 

“Be sure that you do. I would hate to have to make you pay back all that I have done for you.” 

Efe didn’t have time to respond before he heard the click of the call ending. 

He lowered his phone slowly. He knew Sehima had a fondness for him, but it seemed that fondness only went so far. 

And she was one person he did not want to be on the wrong side of. 

He would do as she ask to the best of his ability for his own sake. 

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ 

The next week, Eda and Serkan worked together, getting everything together. Supplies, contractor, workers. All that they would need to begin working on the project. 

To celebrate Serkan’s team, Eda, all went out to dinner, even Aydan and Seyfi joined them. 

They went out to Eda’s favorite restaurant; it was held on an outside patio, the stars in the sky shining brightly, reflecting off the river with a trail walk. Soft music was being played by a local band. 

Dinner was filled with jokes, grins and laughter. 

Aydan watched her son. Happiness shined from him anytime he was near Eda and it was a sight to see. One she would cherish. 

At first, she hadn’t understood why being near Eda when he was so sick was so important. He should’ve been trying to fight, to live but seeing him with Eda now she got it.

He was living. Eda breathed life in him the way nothing else did. 

Her boy wanted to spend the remainder of his time living. 

Tears gathered in her eyes, tears that broke her heart because her boy was dying. His time on this earth was limited, and she wasn’t ready for that clock to run out. Her smile, however, was happy. Seeing Serkan happy brought joy to her heart and not much these days after learning of his illness did.

She watched as Eda leaned into Serkan, whispering something to him. Serkan turned to look at her, his eyes shining with mirth, a laugh on his lips. 

Eda grinned, leaning closer, her bangs brushing against her cheek. 

Serkan reached out, brushing the strands of her hair back, his knuckles skimming across her skin. 

Aydan could clearly see where everyone fell away for them, their world narrowing down to the two of them. 

It was a familiar sight and a welcome one, feeling like she was witnessing something intimate, she focused her attention back on everyone else. Engin had begun regaling the table with one of his many stories. 

Eda felt a shiver coursed through her as Serkan lifted her hand and pressed her knuckles to his lips in a brief kiss, turning his focus back on Engin to interject with his side of the story, since he was telling a story from their school days. 

Eda couldn’t make heads of tails of what was going on between them. One minute she was pushing him away, the next she refused to let him go, and Serkan was no better than her. He was so soft and sweet with her. Acting just the way he did when they were together and he made no efforts to disguise his attentions for being here and it went past their current business relationship for him. 

He wanted more. He wanted to reconcile. He wanted her. 

She turned her head just in time to catch Aydan stealing a glance at them, but she quickly looked away, but not fast enough. 

There was a strange sadness mixed with acceptant when she looked at them or more precisely when she looked at Serkan. 

Eda looked between the two, and she couldn’t for the life of her understand why. 

What didn’t she know? Did it have something to do with why Serkan was here? Why Aydan showed up suddenly? Why all of Art-Life best employees were there? Why even Engin, Peril and Layla would look at Serkan with this look of hopelessness? 

It all had to mean something, and she needed to know. 

She felt like something was wrong, but she couldn’t explain it. She had no reason to feel this way, but she did, and every bone in her body was screaming that this feeling was tied to Serkan. 

Seeing Serkan order dishes that were filled with spices and desserts that had a ton of sugar. It was so unlike him. Serkan who was a health nut and was careful about what he put in his body. 

He was a hypochondriac for christ’ sake. 

Further more as she thought about it, the other night, when he had the headache and the nosebleed, the Serkan she knew would have been calling the doctor immediately, scared he was deathly ill. 

Eda turned slowly to watch Serkan. There was something he wasn’t telling her. She knew it; she felt it and she wasn’t going to be able to let it go until she knew what it was Serkan was keeping from her. 

Serkan keeping secrets is what killed them the first time around. Hadn’t he learned anything from that? 

But what he was keeping from her now couldn’t be as bad as the secret he kept from her about her parents’ death. Could it? 

No, it was impossible. 

“Hey,” 

Eda felt Serkan’s hand slip in hers, the warmth of his skin seeping into her own. 

“You ok?” 

His eyes were so filled with genuine concern and care, it made her worries fall away. 

“Yeah.” she curled her fingers around his. “I’m good.”

Without thinking, Serkan smiled and lifted her hand to his mouth, his lips brushing her knuckles. 

Eda’s heart pounded in her chest. Dear God, what was he doing to her?

She wasn’t sure she had the strength to keep them apart for much longer, not when every nerve in her body screamed to be close to him, when her body yearned for his touch, not when she herself wanted all he could give and more. 

She leaned forward instinctively, kissing the edge of his jaw. 

Serkan’s eyes flitted to her in surprise, but she didn’t look away. 

A charge moment between them passing, only broken by Engin calling for Serkan’s recollection of the time he drunkenly fell into a water fountain when they were in school. 

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

The following days, Eda couldn’t explain it, but she felt closer to Serkan as they continued to work together. 

It was almost as if they had never broken up, as if they had never spent a day apart, and this was exactly where they were meant to be. 

Eda could pretend that he never broke her heart, that there was no bad history between them, and that they were better together in all the ways that mattered. 

Eda walked back into her office with a takeout bag. “So, I got us coffee and croiss-”

Eda's brow furrowed. Serkan was hunched over a chair, spilled papers scattered about him. He had one hand pressed tightly to the side of his skull and the other wiping beneath his nose. 

“Serkan? Are you alright?” Eda inquired, concerned.

Serkan immediately turned his back to her. 

“Serkan?” She set her bag down and their drinks and touched his arm, turning him back to face her. “Are you not well?” 

His skin was pale, there was a slight sheen of perspiration on his skin, his eyes looked pain, and she wasn’t for certain but his nostril were almost coated red along the edges as if his nose had been bleeding. 

He looked worse for wear, and it was alarming when Serkan was normally the image of perfection. 

“I’m fine. Just allergies.” Serkan said, brushing off her concern. “I want to see how everything is progressing. Engin and Piril have assured me everything is moving along smoothly, but I would like to see it for myself.”

“Serkan, if you’re not feeling well, maybe you should go home, rest.” Eda suggested. “You shouldn’t run yourself ragged. The team can handle it.” 

“It’s just a cold.” Serkan forced a smile, grabbing one of the coffee’s she brought and taking a generous sip and then biting into one of the croissants. “See I’m fine.” he said, after swallowing his bite of food. “C’mon, let’s go. I need to see how things are going myself.”

“Fine.” Eda relented, hoping he would not over do it. “But I’m driving.” 

“Not your Uncle.” Serkan protested. 

Despite her worry, Eda found herself smiling. “Don’t talk bad about Uncle. He’s my constant.”

Serkan shook his head and with one hand carrying his coffee, and the other hand on her lower back usher her out of the room. 

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ 

Serkan’s head pounded. There was a sharp pain behind his eyes that made him want to double over, but he clenched his jaw against it, willing his body to ignore and endure the pain. 

He saw the look of worry in Eda’s eyes from earlier, and he hated it. He didn’t want to worry her and he certainly didn’t want that worry to turn into pity.

It would be the end of them, 

Throughout the day, she would ask him if he was okay and every time he told her, he was fine. 

He could see she didn’t believe him and was becoming frustrated with him, but there was nothing he could do. 

He could not let her know he was sick. He didn’t want his illness to fluence any of her decisions where he was concerned. 

Serkan rolled the passenger side window down, hoping the fresh air would ease the nausea brought on by his headache. 

With Eda’s eyes on the road, he faced out the window and discretely rubbed his temple. It was a few moments before the pain eased and he didn’t feel like his head was going to explode or like he was going to hurl. 

“We’re here.” Eda pulled up outside his property they were working on. 

There were several construction trucks and workers moving around the property. 

There were a couple of gardeners tending to the garden. 

He could see that Engin and Piril were set up on the wrap-around porch, overseeing and giving instructions when needed. 

Serkan didn’t answer and stepped out of the car. He felt a little dizzy, so he moved slowly. 

Eda watched him carefully. She had been doing so since they left the office, but did her best not to be obvious. 

He was under the weather, she was certain of it. She just didn’t understand why he was pretending he wasn’t. 

The Serkan she knew would have called the doctor at the first sign of a cold. He had a hypochondriac personality. When did that change? 

Eda moved to his side, standing close enough in case he needed help, though she knew he would never ask for it. 

They made it up the steps to where Engin and Piril were. 

“What’s the progress?” Serkan asked. 

Engin and Piril went into what had already been done and what was currently being worked on. 

Engin and Piril both ushered Serkan inside so he could see the work for himself. 

Work on the upstairs floor was well underway and once it was done, they would work on the bottom floor. 

Eda had people already working on the garden. She excused herself to go check on them, telling herself that Serkan would be fine. He was with others and if he was fine as he claimed to be. She had nothing to worry about. 

Eda walked outside to the garden and smiled at the progress.

The garden was going to be beautiful when it was done. Eda noticed faintly it would be in the image of her perfect garden. 

Rather, that was intentional on Serkan’s part, she didn’t know, but as she walked back into the house and up the stairs, seeing the progress, she noticed the house was in the image of what she wanted. 

What was he playing at?

He was confusing her more than ever. His reasons for being here, the renovations he wanted, hiring her to help with this when Art Life was more than equipped for this project, his cold that was ailing him and him not seeking immediate medical attention. It was all leaving her confounded.

She hated the feeling that she was missing something. Something important. Something that would make everything make sense. 

Her worry for Serkan grew as she walked in to see Serkan leaning against the wall, his palm pressed against his temple, his eyes squeezed shut tightly. 

He looked in pain. 

Piril and Engin stood with him, concerned energy coming off them. It wasn’t surprising to see Engin, looking concerned. It didn’t take much to get the man upset or worried, but Piril was different. 

In a lot of ways, the red-haired woman was a lot like Serkan. Work-a-holic, short-tempered, low tolerance, no nonsense attitude and didn’t like to discuss personal matters or feelings unnecessarily. 

Yet, she stood beside Serkan with a worried frown, her hand hovering in the air as if she wanted to reach out to Serkan. 

“Is everything okay?” Eda asked, walking further into the room. 

Engin and Piril straightened and smiled over at her. 

“Everything is fine.” Piril answered. “We were just going over some material details with Serkan.”

“Why would anything be wrong?” Engin gave a laugh. “Everything’s perfect as can be.” 

Eda saw through their fake smiles, as Serkan’s hand dropped from his head and he pushed away from the wall, straightening. 

Eda’s eyes narrowed. “Could you two give Serkan and I a moment, please?” 

Engin and Piril shared a look and then looked to Serkan, waiting for his answer.

Serkan nodded at them. “We’ll be along shortly.” 

Eda waited until they were alone. “What is going on with you?” 

“Nothing?” Serkan answered. “I’m just feeling a little under the weather.” 

Eda’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t feel under the weather and when you do, you're the first to believe you are dying. The Serkan I knew would have gone to a doctor by now.” 

“But I’m not the Serkan you once knew.” Serkan argued. “I’m not the same man you left behind. I changed. This is one of those changes. I don’t obsess over my health likes I once did.” 

“People change. Yes, but not like this.” Eda insisted. She knew in her bones something was different. Wrong even. 

“Eda, I am telling you nothing is going on. Nothing is wrong.” Serkan said, firmly, his jaw clenching. “I have a cold and I’m stressed. Nothing more.” 

Eda shook her head and took a step forward, her front brushing against him. “I know there’s something you are not telling me, Serkan.”

Serkan stared down at her. She was so beautiful, so insistent. So frustrating. 

He knew she was pressing because she cared, but he couldn’t let her find out the truth. 

“There’s noth-”

“There is. I can feel it-”

Eda’s eyes widened as he grabbed her by the back of the neck, closing the remaining distance between them, his mouth on hers. 

It was so reminiscent of the kiss when he told her he was madly in love with her. 

It took Eda’s breath away and everything fell away. 

Nothing mattered but the feel of his lips on hers. 

It was like coming home, and she welcomed the feeling. 

Her hands reached up to grip his shoulders, her mouth moving with his in a familiar dance. 

Serkan deepened the kiss at her reactive response. His entire being focused solely on kissing Eda like his life depended on it. 

And for him, in a way, it did. 

Being with her was the purpose for his life and it was the only thing that mattered to him. 

She was everything. 

A/N: I want to take a moment and thank anyone whos is still reading this.

[brostateexam]

It’s also the kind of instant gratification business that for a brief moment in recent years seemed to have the potential to change e-commerce forever. “We’d build a plan and they’d [investors would] say you’re not spending enough,” Ilishayev says. “It’s easy to get caught up when you’re having a lot of things go right.”

Gopuff is part of a class of startups that soared during the pandemic, trying to solve a logistics and math puzzle that’s dogged Silicon Valley for decades: Can an e-commerce company whisk products to your house in under an hour? And more important: Can it actually make money doing so?

Flying cars and nuclear fusion it certainly isn’t. But the problem has confounded nearly everyone who’s tried to solve it, starting in the 1990s with Kozmo.com, whose bike messengers swarmed New York and a handful of other cities, offering free one-hour delivery of everything from magazines to 16-ounce Cokes, before it was vaporized in the dot-com crash. Two decades later, Covid-19 lockdowns created the perfect conditions for the model to finally work—billions of people trapped at home, desperate to have anything and everything delivered as quickly as possible, for almost any price. Nearly $10 billion of venture capital gushed into so-called quick commerce companies like Gopuff and the Istanbul-based Getir in 2021, according to PitchBook Data Inc. That didn’t include the exponential growth of delivery apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Instacart, which ferried food from restaurants and supermarkets. Meanwhile, the biggest deliverer of all, Amazon.com Inc., was notching a 40% annual growth rate.

Gopuff, which had been kicking around since 2013, emerged with a different strategy than its DoorDash ilk, mostly middlemen apps that relied on a contract workforce and often skimmed a margin of up to 40% from the restaurants and retailers they made deliveries for. Instead, Gopuff had an Amazon-like approach of storing and stocking products in its own mini warehouses staffed by full-time employees, then using contractors to deliver products to people’s doorstep for $1.95 an order. Its founders, Ilishayev and Yakir Gola, each now 29, got to know each other when they were undergrads at Drexel University, where they started an online business selling hookahs and other smoking paraphernalia to other college kids (early slogan: “Puffin’ has never been this easy”). It wasn’t until 2015 that they entered the booze business, charging an additional $2 fee per order for alcohol, and gradually expanded their assortment and ambition.

By early 2020, Gopuff had 165 warehouses covering some 600 US cities. Then, in the span of two years, the startup raised an astounding $3 billion in venture capital from the likes of SoftBank Group Corp.’s infamous Vision Fund, acquired the 28-year-old liquor retailer BevMo!, and expanded into Europe by buying two smaller competitors. By 2021 its valuation had risen to a hyperbolic $15 billion, and the founders had cashed out by selling some of their shares to investors. They bought a private plane and decamped from Philadelphia to intracoastal mansions in Miami.

Paywall Free version here.

[bopinion]

2022 / 50

Aperçu of the Week:

"Having to go to school should be considered child labor."

(My 14-year-old son)

Bad News of the Week:

In a European country that is also a NATO member, the judiciary has sentenced a citizen to two years and seven months in prison for insulting public officials. Sound harsh? It is. Especially when the convicted man merely spoke of "fools" and did not address anyone personally. Even harder, however, is that the person also got a so-called "political ban". Especially because he is a politician. Stupidly from the opposition. Stupidly in Turkey.

Ekrem Imamoglu is the mayor of Istanbul, by far the largest city in Turkey, a vibrant metropolis located on two continents. He is accused of publicly insulting officials: he is said to have called those who "canceled the (municipal) elections (on March 31, 2019)" idiots. The bottom line is that he has thus denied non-partisanship to the officials. And is right in doing so. Because after two decades of the richly authoritative AKP rule under President Recep Erdogan, Turkey's state agencies, like the judiciary, have degenerated into lackeys.

And just like other critics such as Deniz Yükel, Osman Kavala, Canan Kaftancioglu or even Jan Böhmermann, Ekrem Imamoglu is now suffering the same fate. Anyone who doubts the ruler gets into trouble. Especially if he is considered a promising challenger to Erdogan in the upcoming elections in June 2023. Who obviously thinks little of the rule of law. You can also ask any Kurd. Or, more recently, any Swede or Finn. He denies the former any right to exist. And at least NATO membership for the latter, because he disagrees with their treatment of the - surprise! - Kurds. After all, they are basically terrorists.

But as I said, Turkey is a NATO member. For the U.S., therefore, it is a geopolitically indispensable partner. Because of its location on the southern Black Sea, which controls the access of Russian navy - not only Cuba fan Nikita Crushchov can sing a song about that. And for the EU also geopolitically an indispensable partner. Again, on the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. In this case as the bridge of countless not only Syrian or Afghan refugees to Europe. As long as Erdogan protects the democracies of others, he may nip this same democracy in the bud in his own country. That is probably also politics. Without any ban at all.

Good News of the Week:

Political Brussels has been rocked by a scandal for a week now: there are allegations of corruption against members of the EU Parliament. And these are so massive that the investigation has led to house searches and even arrests in four cases. At the center is a vice president of the Parliament, the Greek Eva Kaili. Bags full of cash would have been found on her. The accusations are serious. They range from bribery and money laundering to participation in a criminal organization.

Corruption always involves two parties: the bribed party and the bribing party. The latter is allegedly the Gulf state of Qatar. Which is apparently not only willing to buy international sports organizations, but also political goodwill with key partner countries. And it seems fitting, after all, Kaili in particular has recently been a vocal advocate of visa-free travel for Qataris. Her lawyer has so far denied any corruption, but that is his job: "She has nothing to do with money flows from Qatar, nothing at all," and he is not allowed to comment on details.

The reactions at the European level came promptly. Still on the weekend, Kaili was deprived of all powers of the office by the President of the Parliament, the Maltese Roberta Metsola. Then she was expelled from her Greek Pasok party and also from the Socialist group in the European Parliament. And finally, the formal impeachment by the Parliament itself. Already on the second working day of the week! And with only one dissenting vote!

Mind you, the presumption of innocence also applies in Belgium until a legal conviction. And at the moment it seems that Kaili's partner Giorgi is the mastermind. But political hygiene demands action in the case of such serious accusations. Quickly and clearly. That is what happened. The U.S. Republicans, for example, could take a leaf out of their book.

But what also makes this case so unique is just that - its uniqueness. For background: the EU Parliament has existed since 1952, has 705 members from 27 countries in this legislative period, and is the only directly elected supranational institution in the world. And yet this is the first time that a scandal of this magnitude has happened. For me, this means two things: Europe is not a banana republic. And if it is, it knows how to fight back.

Personal happy moment of the week:

Just now the fireplace crackles für the first time this winter. Which pleases me in several ways. The never-ending fascination of the flames. The adorable scent that fills the whole house. The almost therapeutic warmth, which is incomparable. And it was a simple wish I could fulfill for my wife on her birthday.

I couldn't care less...

...about the publicly celebrated royal family therapy of "Harry & Meghan" - now also available as a streaming service. There's really nothing more to say about it.

As I write this...

...I am once again very much in agreement with a position taken by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. He had reacted "very disturbed" to the interim blocking of various journalists' accounts on Twitter by Elon Musk. The "arbitrary" move sets a "dangerous precedent" at a time when journalists around the world are facing "censorship, physical danger and even worse." Media should not be "silenced on a platform that declares itself a space for free speech." There is really nothing more to say about this either.

Post Scriptum

U.S. Republicans continue to work to lack respect for the rule of law. The latest highlight was delivered by Marjorie Taylor Greene at the New York Young Republican Club Gala, when she commented on the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, as follows: "I got to tell you something, if Steve Bannon and I had organized that, we would have won. Not to mention, it would've been armed." There was applause. That can only be called a loss of reality. In comparison, the digital trading cards in the style of superheroes of her idol Donald Trump, who considers himself "better than Lincoln, better than Washington," are merely a bad joke. But they also show that the true function of elected politicians - namely to be public servants - has not yet got around in these circles.

[sanajeh1909]

Someone slap me to work because; -I didnt get a break nor holiday when i was doing my internship. -Summer holiday went bye. -Im now in Istanbul, staying at my sisters house and she wants to take me to places until we need sleep. -Currently going out to buy the stuff my sister needs and im the one who does the heavylifting because she cant carry. -Working on a game story that my friend is developing. Also creating the world map and writing character stories too. -Writing Chamber's story but its %90 chance sloppy and i dont have much time to add it on the tumblr. I need alone time to recover send help