❛❛ 𝐑𝐀𝐙𝐎𝐑 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐏

COMPLETED

hayat's not wrong; she'll have to take a different approach with her sister but afet had quite the ability to convince. a small laugh escapes her, nodding along in approval to her cousin's words. she didn't have a reputation of an easy-going superior herself but zaviyar made her look like a saint. "i'll drink that," she grinned as she tipped her glass before doing just as she said. and oh, she'd book the trip for sure— she had already mentally began preparing her checklist for it from the moment the words had left her mouth. "if?" she asks with a knowing look. "i think we both know the answer to that. he'll break in less than forty-eight hours. wholly deserved, might i add." there was no vendetta against the siddique heir, just a distaste that stemmed from his behaviour towards hayat. "although... i do wonder why you're on the receiving end of that. you've proved yourself time and again." they were lucky to have someone like her in their arsenal; maybe he'd only realise once they lost her.

"I mean, I hope he appreciates it," Vera said, taking a sip of her fresh coffee. "Right now it feels like he just wants me to agree with everything he says." Afet's validation felt like a lifeline - finally someone who understood that standing your ground didn't make you difficult. The c-suite sibling comment made her wince slightly. "Oh wow, that sounds brutal. I can't imagine competing with family for power like that." She'd never had to deal with siblings, let alone ones fighting over corporate thrones. The managing versus crumbling part hit home though - she'd been feeling pretty crushed lately by expectations she didn't even fully understand. Thomas seemed to navigate family politics like he was born for it, but she felt like she was constantly stepping on invisible landmines. "I think I'm still figuring out which category I fall into," she said. "Thomas definitely wields it all to his advantage, but I'm not sure I'm cut out for those kinds of games. Do you think some people are just naturally better at handling family pressure?"

"there is that," she concedes, "but when the dust settles, you'll know." and afet was genuinely confident that they'd work through this even if they didn't see eye-to-eye for now. what they had was wholly unlike what she and lucian had in the past. brutal was one way of putting it and she merely chuckled at vera's reaction, having been used to watching the chess games from a distance, focused on keeping her involvement at arms length (or further). "that's what happens when you don't follow the old rules of succession. not that i'm in favour of that either." she found them archaic and unfit for purpose in a modern world. she leaned back as she considered vera's assessment on both herself and thomas. "i think so, yeah. it sometimes comes with the territory— and i can't imagine it's enjoyable having that over your head but some people either have a knack for it, or work out how to handle it with time. although i'd argue you can handle anything." afet didn't say that lightly, for she was not one to say things she didn't mean.

Krish was heading back to his car after wrapping up a late meeting when he spotted Afet walking down the sidewalk ahead of him. He picked up his pace to catch up. "Afet, hey," he called out as he reached her. "What are you doing out here this late?" She turned around, and he couldn't help but grin. It had been a few weeks since they'd run into each other, maybe longer. Their thing worked because neither of them expected anything beyond what it was - casual, fun, uncomplicated. "How've you been? I was starting to think you'd disappeared on me." He fell into step beside her as they walked. "Work keeping you crazy busy or something?" He truly wanted to know. Sure, they kept things light, but that didn't mean he wasn't curious about what she was up to. "Where are you headed?"

"stalking the car park for an unsuspecting target," she deadpanned, "same as you, i suppose." her tone was even but there was enough indication that she was joking— they both had better things to do than lurk around in car parks. "you could say that. i've been preparing a handover of sorts for the gallery." in preparation for her trip with alev and hayat, though she dreaded to think what their handovers looked like. as for her other line of work, they'd hear of her unavailability if they reached out to her assistant. "as for where i'm headed…" she shrugged, "home. unless you have a better idea to unseat raiding the drinks cabinet off the top step. i might not even make it to a glass at this point." her day had been long, but that was a tad dramatic. she'd be fine after a drink. and she wouldn’t drink straight from the bottle.

one minute she was hissing at lucian and the next, someone shoved him towards her, unsettling her balance. if he hadn't caught her arm, she may have had a nasty fall, given how sudden the movement was. she ignored the idiot on the sidewalk, for lucian bit back at him just fine. "yeah— i'm good." that wasn't the most honest, but given how her tone had mellowed, it was obvious that she'd been brought back to the present by the unexpected jolt. there was no benefit to them clawing one another's eyes out for the past, not when it was dead and buried. "i've got somewhere to be," she nodded before stepping around him without another word and walking in the direction she had been heading towards, prior to the run-in with lucian. now that she'd seen him once, the odds of reoccurrence were higher. and unfortunately for afet, she had grown used to not having to contend with him or their history.

A small, genuine laugh escaped Vera. "Okay, you're absolutely right to judge me for the coffee ... that's completely fair game." She nodded at the barista, a silent thank you. "And thanks ... for this, and for getting it. You said it perfectly. His feelings are valid, but he needs to understand mine are too, without it becoming a relationship referendum." This was a relief - a massive, unclench-your-jaw kind of relief. Finally, someone who didn't automatically side with him. He didn't just dig his heels in; he built a damn fortress around his opinion. "That's what the two weeks were about. It's just so completely exhausting." She took a slow sip of the fresh coffee, a break before she added to the conversation. "Honestly, you're of a few to validate my side of things without making it complicated. Everyone else just expects me to fall in line because he's Thomas Kang. Does that pressure ever actually get easier to navigate, the whole family expectation thing? Or do you just get better at ignoring it all after a while? I'm genuinely asking."

she shook her head with a smile, "you don't need to thank me." her professional dynamic with thomas did not define her personal equation with vera. nor did her thoughts on the situation between the brothers. "yeah, well— you're vera brooks," she nodded, "you're not the kind of woman who just falls in line and i'm sure that's something he appreciates." her honesty, ability to stand her ground, even if it resulted in stand-offs like this. vera was someone afet admired greatly, and her no-nonsense approach was something she resonated with too. "sadly, not the expert when it comes to family expectations. you'll have to hit up my siblings in the race for the top seat in the c-suite for their take on that." either she had been free to do as she pleased, or the family had quickly understood that she would stop at nothing to follow her own path. maybe a bit of both. "and i would argue that it depends on what is expected from you and how... you manage it, i guess. some wield it to their advantage and others crumble under the weight of it."

the queen

a double vacation? god knows hayat deserved it, but there was something to unpack there with her cousin— not right now, though. "yeah, that sounds like something you should do." truth be told, afet was not in any position where a vacation or time off came after nudges from others, but she was always happy to nudge someone else along. "i'll pitch it to her when we go on our next walk," she nods, knowing that the sisters had one pencilled in a few days later. a small chuckle left her at hayat's continued reference to the kidnapping. "better yet, maybe he'll fall apart and run back to his old job." and wouldn't that be great? the work probably wouldn't be less demanding as the corporate world never slowed down, but her boss was... something. "just imagine, the chief operating officer can't keep the ship steady when you take some overdue pto— actually, don't, i still have to get you on the flight."

it's no surprise that alev knew that afet was prone to showing her things that neither of them would wear but profusely profess that she'd look great in them. "i was thinking more zebra print," she said, the teasing evident in her tone. her sister also made a valid point in that afet would be inclined to begin shopping for herself, so she chose not to make any false denials. mildly shocked that she didn't have to do much convincing with either of them, she chuckles softly at alev's condition. "deal." there was very little she'd disagree to for the trip to go ahead, even she wouldn't admit to it. "oh see, that's the thing— i've already got her on board. weird, right?" not that she was complaining, just... observing. "and please, we'll have the jet fuelled and ready, so neither of you will have to be up and out the door before 7 for once." the joys of the corporate world; it was one of the things that had put her off from a young age. "i haven't come up with a full itinerary yet, but just know that the art galleries will be on the list." even if she'd visited them many years ago.

she's silent as he makes his feelings clear on his former friend's involvement; his assessment on the siddique heir very much in line with her own. "i wouldn't be sat across the table from you if there was risk of that." afet typically kept her cards close to her chest, but there was truth to her words. picking lucian's side? there was not a chance in hell. besides, even if she was not looking to use the situation between the brothers to settle any scores with her ex, she was willing to throw her support behind thomas due to her agreeing with his stance. "if you ever need a second opinion, i'm open to a discussion." her honesty was sharp, lethal. "but i'm sure you've got it covered, not everyone needs to surround themselves with sharks who smell blood." a clear nod at who lucian had in his corner. zaviyar siddique was one such man; always looking out for number one— much like most, but there was a particular deviousness to his outlook.

it was evident that they had each not shaken off old habits, unwilling to let go of the argument and retreat. even if this was a rather different playing field, where callousness now dominated as opposed to emotions, even if they were of anger. "yeah, well— here's hoping you won't need a repeat of it. because i've got better things to do than to regurgitate basic life lessons like i'm your skills coach." why was she still standing there when all they were doing was going around in circles, talking about the same semblance of nothing? a part of her thought that they may just not have caught up to the actual impact of crossing one another's paths again after all these years, not yet processing it in full. and therefore, they did not know what to do now and instead resorted to what they used to do, just on a less volatile scale.

afet was quick to shake her head at the suggestion. "of-course not. i told him to take his sheepish sorry and fuck off." she sighed, "and then he started picking faults in my behaviour during our relationship which— newsflash, he knew what he was signing up for. ridiculous, right?" he hadn't even seen the worst sides of her yet.

it was a difficult situation, and jasmine had to navigate through it to find out what was the right thing for her. "sounds like you're at a cross-roads. whatever you decide to do, just know that i'm here if you need someone to lend an ear." afet raised her glass to her lips, taking a sip of her drink. "and if not, then we can always drown it out with something stronger than this wine." because sometimes, people needed company, good alcohol and conversation that served as a distraction.

"Yeah, it really is exhausting," Vera said, sighing. "And you're right about having opinions from the sidelines ... everyone thinks they know what I should do." Afet clearly had her own family drama brewing, which made this conversation feel less like seeking advice and more like mutual understanding. At least she wasn't the only one dealing with complicated family dynamics where loyalty got twisted into impossible positions. "Two weeks ago," she answered, the timeline feeling both forever and not nearly long enough. "We had this stupid fight about his brother, and I just ... walked away. Thomas thinks everything has to be about picking sides, but I don't see why I can't care about both of them." The frustration bubbled up again - why did men always make everything so black and white? "Lucian actually listens when I tell him to back off. Thomas just digs in deeper, makes it about our relationship somehow." She shook her head. "Thanks for not judging me for this mess."

"two weeks?" she repeated, brows raised slightly. "he really must have dug his heels in. of-course, thomas' feelings are totally valid but he needs to understand that so are yours. your take on the situation doesn't have to be seen through the lens of your relationship with him." afet had her own grievances with lucian, but she didn't think it was fair on thomas' part to make the issue with his brother and vera's opinion on the situation about their relationship. the other woman seemed to have a lot on her plate with what was going on so afet didn't want to bring her own thoughts on it or past with lucian into the mix. they could open that pandora's box another day. "anytime. although i do think you need a replacement because i am judging you on drinking lukewarm coffee," she gestured to the latte and signalled over a barista nearby. "i refuse to let you subject yourself to that," she said before asking for a refill for vera.

his jibes rolled off her, not making the slightest of dents in the armour. she was still reeling from him standing in front of her, but had honed a cold, calculated approach to any given situation and utilised that to perfection. "you're welcome. i'm glad we've cleared up any illusions on your part. at least you won't waste any more years in a world of delusion." how he had the cheek to waltz back into her life and expect that she'd give an inch, even consider forgiving him for his actions was unfathomable. "—by the way, forgiveness is earned, not demanded. just a tip if you're going to start a spree of trying to make amends with anyone else." except the rumblings she'd heard were angling towards lucian causing further conflict and havoc, given the situation brewing between him and thomas.

"trying is good enough for me. but you also know that this means i'll have to get some gear that you... may wear once." which was code for her going on a shopping spree to tempt her sister to start joining her at pilates more regularly. they'd start off with a single session, but they both knew afet would have a full wardrobe kitted out by the time she was done. "we can still head out from time to time," she yielded somewhat wearily. "but i have a better outdoor proposal in mind— you, hayat and i head off to venice for a week. and yes, i have blocked the jet for use." she had done so once hayat and afet had gone their separate ways. "pizza, pasta, vineyards and sunshine. tell me that doesn't sound like a good way to spend a few days?" their cousin needed a proper break and afet was sure alev would also benefit from the same, her intervention not being without cause. although she'd done plenty of similar things without cause over the years, so she wouldn't be surprised if her sister figured this was one of those.