I plastered on a forced smile as I rang Aylin's doorbell. When the door opened and Feyza jumped into my arms excitedly, my smile became genuine. My eyes even started to sting.
"What kind of vacation was that? You took forever to come back! We missed you!"
"I missed you too, Blondy."
After hugging Feyza, I stepped inside smiling and kissed Aylin, who came out of the kitchen holding a tray.
"What's up, Teresa?"
"Good. You?"
"So-so."
She studied my face closely and frowned.
"Something's off. Did something bad happen?"
I sighed and nodded.
"Nothing happened exactly… I'm just a little down."
Feyza immediately grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the living room.
"Why? What happened? Is it about Kerem? Of course it is! Did something happen while you were at your parents'? Tell us!"
"If you'd let her speak, maybe she could explain, Sapphire."
"Okay, okay, I'm quiet. Go on."
Once we were seated, I picked up my tea and started talking—about the apartment, and naturally, about Kerem. When I finished, I sniffed, wiped away the single tear on my cheek, and looked at them.
They exchanged glances, unsure what to say. Feyza was about to speak when Aylin suddenly jumped up.
"Oh! There was a cake in the oven! I totally forgot while listening. Sapphire, get up and help me!"
They rushed into the kitchen together. I sighed and picked up my phone, fiddling with it. When they came back empty-handed, my eyebrows rose in curiosity.
"Where's the cake?"
Aylin sighed sadly.
"In the trash. It burned."
"That's weird. I didn't smell anything."
"I left the balcony door open. That's probably why."
It didn't quite convince me, but I nodded anyway.
"I ruined the mood again. You guys talk—what did you do while I was gone?"
"Don't be ridiculous, Duru. If you can't even share your problems with us, who will you share them with? Besides, nothing new here. Same old. But Sapphire has a surprise for you."
I turned to Feyza, curious.
"Oh? What kind of surprise?"
Grinning, she grabbed a big package and came over.
"Here. I thought of you the moment I saw it. I had to buy it."
As I opened the package, I grumbled,
"You didn't spend a fortune again, did you, Sapphire? You buy so much that I'm starting to feel like your dad works for me."
The moment I saw the dress inside, I fell silent and stared in admiration.
It was a knee-length, light blue, sleeveless dress with a flared skirt. The top hugged the body with a soft sweetheart neckline, while the skirt flowed loosely, forming gentle waves when you moved. Elegant without being over the top.
I'd always loved dresses like this. Finding one these days was almost impossible. I turned to her with a sincere smile.
"I love it, Sapphire. It's beautiful. Thank you."
Just then, Aylin handed me another package.
"This one's from me."
"You bought something too?"
I opened it, puzzled. Inside was an off-white cropped cardigan with a V-neck and delicate knit. Small pearl-like buttons, soft fabric, slightly fuzzy, long sleeves—perfectly elegant.
"This is beautiful too, Teresa. Exactly the kind I wanted. Thank you—but please tell me you didn't go overboard too?"
"We bought it because we wanted to. Don't worry about the money."
"Teresa's right. Stop talking and go try them on."
"Now?"
They both nodded.
"Can't I try them later? I'm going to Kerem's in two hours. Please don't make me change clothes a hundred times."
Aylin shot me a glare while Feyza grabbed my arm and pulled me up.
"Come on. If we worked that hard to find these, you can work a little to try them on."
As she dragged me toward the bedroom, I muttered,
"You actually searched for these on purpose? I thought you just came across them. Why did you look for clothes for me?"
At the door, she shoved the clothes into my arms.
"I just said that so you'd feel guilty. Go try them. We'll wait."
She shut the door before I could respond. I sighed and laid the clothes on the bed.
When I opened the door wearing them, my friends stopped whispering and stared at me approvingly.
"High five, Teresa! We nailed it."
Aylin giggled and slapped Feyza's raised hand.
"I agree, Sapphire. Even better than we imagined."
Watching their excitement with half-lidded eyes, I cut in,
"You should've popped champagne too. This dry celebration isn't enough."
"Good idea! There should still be one of the champagnes Sapphire brought for my birthday in the fridge. You two wait here, I'll grab it right away."
Meanwhile, Feyza was smoothing out the wrinkles of my dress as if there were absolutely nothing strange about the situation. It seemed both of my friends had completely lost it out of sheer boredom while I was gone.
"What shoes would go with this? Normally stilettos, but since you hate heels, cute flats might work."
I pulled the dress from her hands.
"Enough already! My butt's freezing in this thing. If you're done staring, I'm changing."
She grabbed my shoulders instantly.
"No way! You can't take it off yet. We still need to decide on hair and makeup."
I stared at her.
"What kind of trauma did you two go through while I was gone?"
Aylin came over to us holding a couple of glasses, handed one to Feyza and the other to me. When I wrinkled my nose in displeasure, she laughed and practically shoved the glass into my hand. After we all took a sip, Feyza grabbed my hand and dragged me back into the bedroom.
She sat me down on the puff in front of the vanity and reached out to undo my hair, but I caught her hand and looked at both of them suspiciously.
"Tell me the truth. What are you two up to this time?"