His Substitute Wife

Her New Job

Aleena uncomfortably sat on the dinner table and picked at her food as everyone else spoke to one another, completely ignoring her presence. 

From what she found out from their conversations though, Ilhan and Melek were siblings which she was not too surprised by. They both shared the same golden brown hair and deep blue eyes. It was really just their personalities that really set them apart and made Aleena wonder if they were truly related. Although Aleena felt that it was too early to judge, she felt a sly vibe from Melek. Everything she said and the way she behaved seemed so fake and exaggerated to Aleena. On the other hand, Ilhan radiated kindness and purity. 

Suddenly, as Aleena was in the middle of observing the two siblings, the conversation suddenly became about her. 

"Tell me a little bit about yourself," Ilhan suddenly called for everyone to turn their attention to Aleena. "So far all I know about you is that you are married to my brother." 

Aleena's face slightly reddened again upon seeing everyone's eyes on her. She squirmed in her seat before she stated some obvious facts about herself. 

"I am nineteen years old," she told them, as she met Ilhan's soft gaze. "Before I moved here I lived with my father in Ankara." 

"What about your mother?" Melek asked without any constraints. Any normal person wouldn't have just asked something like that so unemotionally. 

"She passed away giving birth to me," Aleena responded in a soft voice. 

Suddenly everyone on the table's face softened besides Melek's. She was surprised to see that even the usually cold Rezan sultan had let her walls slightly down, yet the young girl that sat across from her looked colder than the cold madam. Aleena wasn't sure if she was just perceiving things wrong because she had a strange dislike towards Melek or if she was truly harsh and uncaring, but Aleena was certain at that point that Melek too did not like her. 

"It's alright," she suddenly told everyone with a soft smile, feeling uncomfortable under their sympathetic gazes. "I'm used to it now. Besides, my dad made sure I never felt her absence." 

Everyone realised that they were making her uncomfortable so they returned back to their food but it seemed Melek was not finished with her mission to humiliate and upset Aleena that day. 

"That explains why you can't cook then," Melek suddenly said, causing her brother to give her a warning look. Aleena on the other hand slightly paled. That was a low blow from Melek's end. 

"E-Exuse me?"

"Usually it's our mother's who teach us to cook. If not our mother, then another mother-figure in their place," she said as she turned to Rezan sultan with a grateful look on her face. 

Aleena did not have anything to say to that. Melek really hit her where it hurt most and she wasn't wrong either. Over the years, Aleena had countless friends and whenever she had visited their homes, their mothers were always reprimanding them to help out with dinner or cleaning whereas in Aleena's home, her dad would literally bring everything to her feet. If she was hungry he would cook for her, if her room was messy, he would clean it for her. Heck, even when she was stressed or busy with work, he would go out of his way to find a way to make her happy. He really didn't let her do a single thing that would tire her out. As a result, she was left not knowing how to do even the most basic things despite the fact that all the other girls her age even knew how to complete the most difficult of household tasks. 

"Your relationship with your father must be really good," Ilhan fortunately changed the topic. 

A large smile filled with love suddenly grew on Aleena's face. "Yes," she breathed out, choking up slightly upon remembering her father. "He's my closest friend in this world. I love him a lot." 

Ilhan smiled with a soft nod but it seemed Melek hadn't finished being her toxic self. She slightly tilted her head to the side and looked as if she was in deep thought.

"It's really amazing that he loved you despite the fact that you killed his lover," she said, causing a gasp to escape Aleena's lips. 

Never in her life had anyone said such words to her. Her father had always treated her with so much love that such thoughts hadn't even crossed her mind before. In fact, when she was younger her father had been so worried about her blaming herself for what happened to her mother that the same day she found out the truth behind her mother's death, he told her that everyone in the world had a set time and the way they left it didn't matter. One way or another, that person would depart the world on that set day. So Aleena always believed that even if her mother hadn't died giving birth to her that day, she would have still died in a different way because that was her fate. So she never blamed herself and she never felt guilt either. Her father made sure that she didn't. 

That was until that very moment. Although her father's words repeated in her mind and she believed that it truly wasn't her fault, hearing someone else say that to her broke her heart. Tears filled her eyes but she willed them away. She knew very well that that was the reaction Melek wanted from her and so, she made it her mission to ensure that that wasn't what she would get. 

"Melek!" Ilhan gasped out in shock upon hearing the words that left his sister's lips. He could not believe what he just heard. His sister was not a monster who would say such things. 

Zayd on the other hand tightened his hands around his utensils, feeling his anger levels rise. His eyes significantly darkened upon hearing the words leave Melek's lips but he did not comment on it. He had known Melek since she was a child so he knew very well that she would not mean such terrible words. So he did not want to hurt her feelings by reprimanding her in front of everyone. He decided it would be more suitable to pull her aside later and explain to her properly why her words were hurtful. 

Melek realised that she had gone too far the moment her eyes met the anger filled eyes of her love. For a brief second she felt livid that he was taking Aleena's side over her side, but then she reminded herself that Zayd still was not aware of his own feelings for her so she needed to be careful.

"I am so sorry," she gasped as she stood up from her seat and walked around to Aleena. "I did not mean for my words to be so harsh. Sometimes I don't have a filter. I am terribly sorry!" 

Aleena flinched upon feeling Melek's freezing cold hands touch her own but she quickly recovered and let her hold her hands. 

"Please forgive me," Melek asked for forgiveness, although her eyes told a different story. There was a slight anger and hatred in there but unless they were as close as Aleena was to her, no one else would be able to see it. 

"When someone apologises, you should forgive them," Rezan sultan spoke up when Aleena continued to wordlessly stare at her. 

"It's fine," Melek said with a soft, sad smile as she returned to her seat, acting like the victim. "I can completely understand if she doesn't want to forgive me. What I said was too harsh."

Aleena couldn't help but internally scoff. She wanted to fight back but then her eyes met the sad and sorry gaze of Ilhan, making her forget that she had been feeling hurt only moments earlier. 

"I forgive you," Aleena found herself saying. "I'm sure you didn't mean to hurt me." 

Melek smiled at Aleena brightly and soon enough everyone returned to their food. Aleena on the other hand continued to stare down at the food without eating any of it. No matter how much she acted as if Melek's words hadn't affected her, she couldn't lie to herself: she was hurt. 

"Were you studying in Ankara?" Ilhan suddenly asked Aleena, upon noticing her return back to her quiet self. 

Aleena looked up at Ilhan and nodded her head. "I was studying business." 

"Business?" Ilhan's brows rose in surprise. "Not many girls take up business."

Aleena simply shrugged in response, once again feeling unsure of how to respond. Business really wasn't a popular choice for females just like engineering, but it was where Aleena's passions lay. She really wanted to start her own business in the future. She wasn't too sure which field but her interests mainly lay in the food and technology industry. 

"How long do you have until you finish?" 

"I only have my placement and six months of theory work left and then I'll graduate." 

"Where do you plan to do your placement?" 

"I'm not sure," she responded honestly to Ilhan's question. She had thought about her placement for a long time, but finding a company that was willing to take her in as an intern was near impossible. "Not many businesses are willing to take a student with no experience as their intern."

Ilhan slightly frowned and looked as if he was thinking deeply about something before his face lit up. 

"Why don't you do your internship at our company?" he asked with a smile. "We're in need of a new secretary so you can take her spot. You'll help us with our work and we'll help you gain experience for your course!" 

Aleena's eyes grew wide. The offer sounded amazing and she would die to take it. But judging by the look on Rezan sultan's face, she did not want her to take the offer up at all. In fact, she looked as if she was about to reject it in place of Aleena herself. 

However, before she could, Zayd spoke up. 

"You can begin tomorrow," he decided before his grandmother could. 

Aleena's heart skipped a beat in excitement. It turned out that her marriage to Zayd was more beneficial than she had expected. 

"Ok," she simply said, her smile growing wide. 

For the first time since entering Mardin, Aleena felt truly happy.