An Agreement

"Stop…Sir…." While running, Yara yelled at the person inside the car which was about to leave the parking lot. "Please…."

The vehicle in front of her screeched to a halt at her shout out; the window of the car rolled open through which the man waved his hand at Yara to invite her in. That girl hurried to the car whose door was open.

"Get in the car," instructed the man who did not even turn his head to her. Yara, removing her doubt, followed his order and slid into the back seat next to the tuxedo man whom she had no idea what his name was; she just saved his number as the stranger on her phone book. "You finally make a good decision."

"Tell me who my parents are."

That man, instead of responding to her, took a document out of his suitcase. "Sign this first."

"I won't sign that agreement until you tell me who my father and mother are."

"Then, you may leave as you have wasted my precious time. Get out!" Through the overview mirror, Yara could see the blushing face of the man who was in anger at her impertinence for playing with him. "I told you to leave."

"I will do it," she decided at the end for it was probably her only way out of her inferno.

"Great! Remember, you work for me now so, you have to follow my order."

At his unexpected honesty, Yara stopped signing the document; her eyebrows furrowed. "What? Do you use me to accomplish your mission? I should have expected that since the beginning." Yara put the pen back on the paper on her lap; in the next second, that document had returned to the owner and her palm grabbed the door as she was ready to go.

"You are right; but don't you want to change your future? If you live with your new family even though they are a fake family, you will have a better life. You will marry a handsome wealthy man, the only heir of the biggest hotel in this city. I can assure you that you will regret nothing, Miss Baiq."

His persuasion did not work on her, she kept pushing the door open; before she climbed out, Yara stated something which he sneered at as a response. "I am indeed poor but that doesn't mean you can buy my dignity." With those words, Yara slammed the door open and dashed out, abandoning the man whose lips were full of smirk of insult.

"You will get back to me, Yara." He grumbled; his hands formed fists in pique. "Let's go from here."

***

"Who do you think he is? Does he think that he can get everything with his money?" In a mumble of disapproval and vexation, Yara walked through the corridor of the hospital building.

It indeed annoyed Yara with the fact how stupid she was to eat his lies about the story of her true parents he made up. However, wasting her time to see that man and even chase his car was something she regretted more.

"Yara…how come you believe that you are a daughter of a rich family?" Yara hit her own head softly in the assertion of her bummer at her own self.

"Yara…where have you been?" And her boss who had enslaved all the time snarled at her who just arrived in the pantry to take a glass of water to cool her piqued heart. It was fortunate for her that the water did not spill out to the tiled floor.

"I went out as I had an appointment with someone during lunchtime. Besides, I have completed all the tasks you assigned me with." Yara put her glass on the table while talking to the woman who no longer daunted her.

That woman whose scowled expression implied her dislike toward Yara let that girl move past her without a single comment on her arguments. Yara was finally safe from the poisonous insult she used to address to her every time that supervisor spotted her mistake.

Walking away from that woman, Yara returned to her routine which drained her energy; she would not do all this exhausting work if she concurred to sign that agreement. Should she allow that stranger to control her life for the sake of luxury which would free her from all her sufferings?

Yara brushed the sweat on her forehead; even after one hour, the floor was still dirty. It was as if her work ended up futile with more visitors who entered the restrooms.

Leaning against the wall, she attempted to dig up the information she managed to record in her brain. And one name lingered there; that man said one name which seemed familiar to her.

"Is the same Ozkan, the wealthiest person in the city, whom I know he talked about? That's impossible as there are so many people here with that name."

***

"Congratulations…." Esma smiled at the happy faces of her friends who welcomed her arrival at her boutique early in the morning to congratulate her on her wedding plan. "So, have you decided on the date?" One of them, Alice, the girl with straight blonde hair, walked closer to her wrapped her arm around her shoulder, and guided Esma to her seat near the others.

"It will be on my birthday," at her confession out of her family's lips, her friends clapped their hands in happiness; to them, it was great news they had been waiting for.

"Wow…that's perfect," commented the girl with blue eyes. "Erhan is the luckiest guy in the world to have a future wife like our bestie." That girl whose name was Hazel continued, which blushed Esma's cheeks, flattered at her friend's compliment.

"That's too exaggerated, Hazel. Thank you so much guys for that night; I know you have contributed a lot to the event of my engagement. And I don't know how to express how grateful I am to have all of you as my friends."

"Esma….that's what friends are for." The girl with wavy long brown hair, Ana, replied, representing the others.

"And now just focus on your wedding which will be held in less than a month." Alice gave her advice which sounded logical to her.

"I will," she promised.

"By the way, that dress looks good on you, Esma. That's the same piece you showed me the design last month, isn't it?" Esma nodded her head, confirming her answer to the question her friend Hazel asked; that girl who was charmed by the perfection of the dress stood up and watched closer to the simple beige long-sleeves and calf-length gown she wore. "How gorgeous. Do you plan to display this masterpiece of yours in the next season's exhibition?"

"Sure it's gonna be one of my pieces I will display in that event. What do you think, guys?" She surveyed the others' opinions.

"Hazel is right; this is perfect," Alice agreed.

"That's awesome, sear. We're rooting for you."

It was another bliss Esma never wanted to forfeit from her life, their true friendship; she was indeed fortunate that God sent her those friends with genuine hearts.

"Esma, what are you thinking about?" Alice jerked Esma out of her reverie which drowned her in her thoughts for a while.

"I am just pondering how kind God is toward me." All her friends spontaneously approached and cuddled her with smiles coloring their faces.

It did not last long; the buzz of Esma's phone stopped their cuddles and togetherness; Yara's lips curled into a small line of smiles that attracted her friends to tease her.

"It must be from Erhan," Hazel guessed.

"It is a text from him; he told me that he would pick me up for dinner tonight."

"I am jealous of you," Ana uttered but it was certainly just a joke to tease Esma more.

***

In the passenger seat, Yara settled next to Erhan; they were about to go to the restaurant Erhan had booked for their dinner tonight. As a romantic man, Yara got used to receiving the surprises from Erhan who always treated her like a queen.

It was just yesterday, that a man sent her a bouquet to her boutique and the day before, he also delivered a package of lunch meals as she didn't have time to go out with him; her job occupied her.

"Thank you for the dinner," Esma turned to him, who was driving with a broad smile.

"Why are you thanking me?"

Erhan looked at her in return, and that caused trouble for he could not control his car so that it almost hit a passerby. Both of them cried in panic at the girl in front of them who also screamed out loud.