With Love, Nuri [1] ✅

14. An Invitation

[•Nuri's POV•]

Ferit bey greeted me as I entered his kitchen. "Good morning, Nuri" "Morning" I smiled back. "Nuri, you're here!" Idris came sprinting to hug me. "Hey there big guy" I squeezed him back, "Hoşgeldin!" He replied with a giggle.

"Since you are here, I'm leaving for work now. Kolay gelsin" He kissed Idris and turned to leave, "Ferit bey... I have to leave early today, I have the demonstration..." I reminded him. "Hmm... I'll be back by afternoon" He nodded before leaving.

As I got busy working, I noticed that Idris was lost in thought. "What are you thinking?" I gave him a playful poke but he was still dull. "Nuri...?" "Yeah" I smiled at him. "I did something bad" He mumbled. I stopped grating onions. "What did you do dear?" I sat down on his opposite side. "You won't get angry at me will you?" "First tell me what you did" I replied. "Well, last day a new chef came. She made vegetable soup for lunch and I put a teeny bit of salt into it..." He said, "A teeny bit?" "Umm... A lot of salt" He smiled nervously.

I held his hands and sighed, "Why did you do that dear?" "So that abi would fire her. I didn't like her one bit! As soon as she came, she started pinching my cheeks, but the real reason was for you to come back" He smiled at me. "Idris look, what you did wasn't right. Do you realize how sad she must have been?" I frowned at him. "I am sorry" He mumbled, "Promise me that you won't do anything like this again" 

"I promise" He replied and hugged me. "But please don't tell abi" "Hmm... Just this once" I warned him, he agreed with a bright smile and sat down to have breakfast at the kitchen table while watching me work.

Ferit bey returned in the afternoon and I went to my university directly. To my relief, my demonstration turned out better than I expected. A part of me wanted to thank Ferit bey for helping me yesterday, but I would never do that. The next day when I went to work, the first thing that caught my attention was Idris at the table with a plaster on his hand. My eyes widened, "What happened?" I knelt in front of him. "Why don't you tell her Idris" Ferit bey frowned at the boy, I hadn't noticed him standing near the coffee machine.

"Yesterday... After drawing class... We went to the park. I wanted to climb the bars alone, so when abi went to buy ice cream I tried doing it... But I couldn't so... I fell from them." He replied with his puppy eyes, "You made me so worried. I told you that I'd help you" Ferit bey scolded Idris. "Does it hurt now?" I asked him, "Yesterday evening it did, but now it doesn't 'cause you're here." He replied and I chuckled at his childishness.

"Nuri... I can't attend drawing classes for a few days... Will you stay here with me till abi comes in the evening?" "Idris, she has to go to her university. Right?" Ferit bey turned to me, "Well not exactly. I passed my demonstration with good grades so next year I am a senior. We are having our winter break now" I replied, "Yippee! So you'll stay with me and make cookies!" Idris rejoiced. "But won't that be overtime?" Asked Ferit bey, "That's alright. I can stay till this trouble maker gets better" I replied tickling him.