Interrupted by Esma's unexpected presence, one of those people in a dark thick leather jacket shoved Yara's body to the side; that girl's hands wriggled, attempting to set herself free from the man's tight hold. Her hateful balled eyes shifted to Esma's figure, disbelieving and wondering how she could end up in this place.
Those thugs with fierce faces under the caps except the tallest one eyed Esma from top to toe with the desire to devour her whole; their mischievous sneers hung on their curled lips. Pressing all her fear, Esma's gaze didn't stray away from any of them to convince them that they could not daunt her despite their numbers. It was lucky for her that no one noticed her trembling hands.
"It seems we have more prey," one of them who appeared to be their leader exclaimed while rubbing his visage.
His eyes winked at Esma; his hand raised, ordering one of his men to push Yara to Esma's side. That girl groaned at the man's harsh action.
In the next minutes, they swarmed and surrounded both of the girls who helplessly watched around in panic; their bodies moved here and there, finding an escape between the men forming a fence, circling them.
"It is useless to try running away," teased one of them, followed by giggles from other thugs.
Yara cut the space between her and Esma; her eyes scanned around in fear, anticipating the way to flee. Esma, who never encountered the mafia or any other criminals in her whole life, struggled to calm her pounding chest under their intimidating hungry eyes.
The leader slipped inside the ring made of the man's body and started investigating Esma. His domineering eyes delved into her orbs, forcing Esma to look away.
"You are not the type of ordinary girl we came across on the street; you must come from a wealthy family."
"You guessed it right, buddy! Look at her branded bag." The other man, shorter than him, slid to his side; his hand instantly grabbed Esma's bag which she failed to hold back.
"What is in the bag?" Another thug staying in his spot surrounding the girls impatiently inquired as he saw his friend's dilated eyes at the objects inside the bag.
"We are going to be rich! There is a lot of money." He yelled while lifting out the cards; in a second his other hand fished money out of it and soared them to the sky; their eyes followed the money falling like snowflakes raining on the earth.
"You may have them all but please let us go." Esma's voice trembled, begging them to set her and Yara free.
The leader sneered; his feet strode forward, one meter closer to Esma who staggered backward with her ball-forming hands ready to fight. His mouth motioned with his eyes lingering on Esma.
"Let them go." They obeyed his instruction; the swarms dispersed. Those criminals started leaving them; before taking his steps away, the leader cast a final glance at Yara and grumbled. "It's not the end; tell your mother to pay for her debt, otherwise, you will bear even worse consequences."
Esma's corner eye spotted Yara's uneasy white face, listening to the threat the man addressed to her. Esma had an urge to ask why she could meddle with those criminals but her words only churned in her brains.
Yara compelled a reluctant look at Esma with the word of gratitude she coerced to come out of her mouth. "Thank you for saving me." Swallowing her saliva, Esma nodded her head in response. "You can leave." Her voice sounded flat.
"What about you?"
"There is a bus stop around here; I'll take the bus." Her eyes went straight ahead of us.
"But, it's almost midnight. It would be dangerous for you to walk alone. Let me take you to the bust stop."
"Thanks but it just takes five minutes from here. Good night."
Esma's mouth had opened to argue but her ringing phone clogged her sentences in her throat; her eyes dropped at the name on the screen. Her mother was calling. As all her focus was on the call; she didn't pay attention to Yara who had paced through the narrow asphalt street, abandoning her.
"Where are you? Why didn't you answer my call?" Panic shaded her mother's shaking tone of voice.
"Don't worry, Mom. I am on my way home. I was caught in the traffic for a few hours but I'll arrive in less than one hour."
Esma's teeth dug into her lips for her remorse, making up the story. It was a lie she had to create to comfort her mother only; she didn't mean to fool her. Her heart whispered her apology. "I'm sorry, Mom."
"I am relieved now. See you at home, dear." Her mother hung up the phone.
Esma turned around to Yara but her eyes discovered no one but the dusk accompanied by the dark tall trees lining up on the right side of the trod. She picked up her handbag the thug threw away after robbing her money and the cards before trotting toward her car, parked far from the crime scene.
***
While struggling to walk up the road toward the bus halt, Yara battled with her own thoughts as Esma's voice, mentioning her mother played in her head. Her lips pursed with jealousy for that girl's luck, having a mother who always cared for her.
She sighed at how sickening her life was. Her mother who owed a lot of debt could only put her into trouble, requiring her to pay for it. It meant that those debt collectors would never stop bothering her.
The tip of her flat shoes kicked the pebbles along the way to vent her irritation. The farther she walked, the more pebbles hit the void of the street and landed on the edge of the road.
She reached the bus halt longer than she predicted; her arse plunged on the bench under the canopy once she arrived, waiting for the last bus. The blackness caged most of the area around her except those lit by the street light.
After a few minutes, the bus was coming her way and screeched to a stop. The door opened, welcoming her tired body. Dropping her backpack on the empty seat, she sat next to it. It took fifteen minutes to get to the next bus stop.
Yara carried her bag on her back as soon as she jumped out of the bus; her eyes stared at the long dark street ahead of her. Her long legs had to struggle, following the rhythm of her feet while enduring the exhaustion.
Fear of facing her mother's wrath weighed his heart with more burden. She took a long pause in front of her rented house before her trembling hand grabbed the door's handle.
The darkness blinded her eyes and she could not see anything in the room once the door squeaked open. They were late to pay for the electricity bill this month. Yara's face cringed in regret; her mother might have used the money she had given to buy alcoholic drinks.
Yara walked inside toward her room while grunting her annoyance in her heart. Before she could reach anywhere, her feet slipped away, letting her torso hit the floor.
"Ouch….'" She covered her groan, preventing her mother from hearing her voice.
But something strange got her foot stuck; the hard object didn't move. Yara briskly rose and ran to the switch to turn the light on.
"Mom….." The numb body of her mother sprawled with her breath ups and downs. "Mom…wake up, Mom." Despite her cruelty, she was her mother, the reason for her presence in this world. Yara shook the woman's fat body. Tears welled up in her eyes and streamed like a river on her cheeks. Her worries became intense as the woman's heart pulse weakened.
Brushing her cry, Yara leaped to her feet and dashed toward the telephone; she called the hospital. She inhaled to calm herself down; they would come as soon as possible.
Yara tried to carry her mother and rest her on the couch but her obesity didn't enable her to do that. She could only watch her mother's quiet unmoving torso in tears.
The roaring siren of the ambulance indicated the arrival of assistance. Yara jogged outside and waved her hands helplessly toward the doctor and the nurses who got out of the vehicle.
Her mouth gaped and her eyes stared at the man in a white cloak she never anticipated to come. Despite many hours of work, his appearance showed no difference; his tidy shirt and hair and the good smell of his body froze Yara in awe, ignoring the white light shining on her face. He was her hero, Erhan Durmaz.