#thread: yasemin dogan

[lorelai-tseng]

character: Yasemin Dogan @yasdogan

location: Frederick's Farm; Spring Extravaganza

Last spring was a very different time for Lorelai, and it was interesting to see just how things had changed for her. She was in a totally different mind frame back then and now she was not blissfully happy because she was with someone, but blissfully happy because she was independent and alone. But that didn't mean she couldn't make time for friends to explore just to see how similar the area would be from last year. She couldn't recall the last time she had seen Yasemin and was happy she was able to reach out to see how she was doing and if she would like to come along for the day. Taking a bite of her popcorn as she waited, she let out a small noise of exclamation when she finally saw her. "Hello darling, how are you doing? It's beautiful today, isn't it? Have you ever been up in a hot air balloon?" She asked as she offered the other the popcorn to see if she would like any.

[lorelai-tseng]

Lorelai raised a brow at Yas' suggestion giving a small shake of her head. "Well that would be a bit silly considering we would be going to the same restaurant. If afterwards you'd like me to drive you home though I'd be happy to." She shared as she had no idea why the other woman was switching up the plans, and she was going to need her to use her words if she was trying to tell Lorelai that she no longer wanted to go get food with her. Though she had a feeling she was trying to do that right now, it was a bit unclear to the restauranteur.

Life was hard and Lorelai was right, whatever gets someone through the day sometimes is all that you can ask of a person. She'd never fault someone for their methods of coping, as long as it worked for them and wasn't hurting anyone else, that was really all that mattered. "No, no, none taken," Yas assured her with a soft, breathy laugh. It felt stupid being as drunk as she was, though at least by that point gratefully it was starting to fade enough. "I can always get an Uber home too, you know. You don't have to put me in your car." Yas wanted to make sure Lorelai knew that she was under no obligation whatsoever to help her.

[providencepeakrp]

A day full of love has mysterious ways of pulling people together; whether that's in friendship, romance, or complete strangers being in the right place at the right time. The interactions someone may have on the greatest day of love has the opportunity to influence them for a lifetime. This is your chance. Take it. Have that interaction with someone you may have never met before or maybe someone you haven't spoked to in a long time. Experience a day full of love.

Details of the Task:

This task was designed for characters to interact with others whom they may not have interacted with before. The pairings between characters were generated using an online randomizer and then again randomized to link that pairing with a Valentine's Day related word. This task is REQUIRED. Members are asked to reach out to their match and plot a thread based on the random word they were given. * If a member is on hiatus, threads may be granted an extension. Admins will be in contact with those members.

Francesca Shen ♥ Thea Harris - Other Half

Yasemin Dogan ♥ Atlas Williams - Red

Kennedy Davis ♥ Roman Daniels - Arrow

Maya Lee ♥ Lorelai Tseng - Precious

Dean Adulyadej ♥ Elijah Falvey - Embrace

Lena Yener ♥ Zuri Hendrix - Poem

Jacob Lee ♥ Carla Villanueva - Flowers

Rachel Hargrove ♥ Aysel Karademir - Soulmates

Emeline Cormier ♥ Hyunwoo Seong - Candy

Cheyenne O'Hara ♥ Dylan Westwick - Cupid

Alicia Miller-Garcia ♥ Sara Yoon-Castillo - Valentine

Dilan Barak ♥ Aslihan Fahri-Bailey - Champagne

Abel Thompson ♥ Derek Aranda - Rose

Phoebe Yates ♥ Ayla Ceylin - Lucky

Maximiliano Cortez ♥ Wesley Kennedy - Diamond

Joshua Lincoln ♥ Tyler Singh - Passion

Verda Durmaz ♥ Sebastian Vora - Love Letter

Remi Wilder ♥ Ingrid Lozano - Kiss

CJ Welford ♥ Leila Barak - Lovebirds

Sophia Ramirez ♥ Jeanette Prabhakar - Everlasting

Esther Clements ♥ Zeynep Türkmen - Dinner

Matty Foster ♥ Elliot Chapman - Chocolate

Daniel Torres ♥ Khalil Hassan - Dance

Alejandra Solano ♥ Theo Bailey - Candles

Erol Tilki ♥ Freddie Crane - Marriage

Sage Franklin ♥ Jesse El-Massalamy - Celebration

[lorelai-tseng]

character: Yasemin Dogan @yasdogan

location: Farmer's Market

It had been quite some time since spending time with Yas, but it didn't mean that she didn't care about their friendship. It just had been quite a busy year so far and her priorities had been all over the place. Strolling in between the farmer's market booths, her eyes shot to a strawberry stand. "I think we should check those out. They look absolutely perfect." She shared as they passed others on the way. "So, tell me darling, how did that presentation end up going for your proposal?" Lorelai had not seen her since she had helped with listening to Yas do a dry run of the presentation and she wondered whether or not it had ended up well.

[lorelai-tseng]

character: Yasemin Dogan @yasdogan

location: Possible location for Lorelai's Sushi Restaurant

Lorelai had been scouting places out for almost a year now in thoughts of starting a new restaurant. It had been something she'd contemplated for quite some time before even moving forward with looking at locations, because she wanted to be sure of the decision. She felt like now though she was sure that she'd be at least have a residence in Providence Peak even if she did travel more so now she had decided to finally look at places to open her sushi restaurant. She was well aware that Yas knew probably nothing of the industry, but needing a second pair of eyes and she enjoyed spending time with her friend. She was also concerned about her friend who seemed to be going through something so wanted to spend time with her. "Well, this place certainly has potential. I'm still contemplating whether I want to have it be conveyer belt type of sushi restaurant or have the bar where you can see the sushi chef and have possible hibachi tables." She spoke aloud as she was able to see everything in her mind even if right now it was just a large empty space.

[theaxharris]

"Oh did you? Yeah, I feel like that is a good point, except that's a family-friendly place." Thea shared with a small chuckle, trying to think of someone trying to explain where they were for their engagement, they figured they would have to keep it PG at Valentine's party rather than explain the theme of the party. "Right? Work hard, play hard, pamper hard." She said with a smirk, adding on the last part to tease a bit. "They do, I've gotten gifted a massage here before and it's a really cool vibe." Thea wasn't too sure if they would be taking advantage of them since they'd only gotten the room for the night, but she thought it wouldn't hurt to see if they had any availability. Yas seemed just as excited though to be going off to a more secluded part of Providence Peak for the rest of the weekend. "Good, well you'll have to come by Holy Spirits soon to tell me how it goes, yeah?"

@yasdogan

"Oh, you would think, but some people are into that kind of thing," Yas laughed, having seen more than her fair share of over the top proposals in her years working at a theme park. Yas would never want to be the person at the middle of a flash mob getting proposed to, but some people loved it. "I used to work at Disney and some people go...way over the top with proposals there. So, by comparison, this was totally tame." Again, not the type of place she'd ever want to get proposed to at, but as long as the couple seemed happy, she loved to be at least on the outskirts and able to watch it. "Who doesn't? A little pampering once in awhile is great. I bet they have some incredible spa options here." Yas had never experienced them herself, but with how beautiful the rest of the hotel was, she could only assume there was some type of spa around. A massage or a soothing facial would have been a great way to spend the rest of the weekend, though Yas wasn't complaining about her plans either. "Exactly, yeah. The rest of the world can fall away for a bit and just...yeah. It'll be really nice." A softer smile had started to stretch at her lips, the thought of being lost out in the cabin in the woods with just Sage one that she found herself looking forward to more and more as it grew closer.

@theaxharris

[lorelai-tseng]

Lorelai grinned at the statement and appreciated there was at least one person besides herself that would not have a bad thing to say about her. And she was even happier to hear that Yas was at peace with whatever it was that she was dealing with. "Good, that's the most important thing honestly. Being good with whatever is happening in your life is the first step." The first step to what? Lorelai wouldn't be able to say exactly but living life in denial was never fun. She did want to disagree though with Yasemin about boring being a good thing. "I can guarantee you that I never and will never find boring a good thing, darling. I enjoy an eventful life. Peace is good, quiet not so much." Next year she wanted it to be loud and whirlwindy. It was partially why she loved the industry that she worked in, but maybe she needed more she at least was craving more. Perhaps she was finally having a midlife crisis. Lorelai opened her mouth to protest but her friend was too fast. "Ah you are well versed in the pulling out of the wallet. I see you and respect you for it. Thank you."

@yasdogan

"Always. I could never have a bad thing to say about you," Yas assured her with a bright smile, genuinely meaning every word of what she said. While there were certainly some people that could call Lorelai's negative traits out, Yas saw the good in her far more than anything else. "I think progress has been made. I would say...I'm more at peace with where things are, anyway," she explained further. Though things with Sage hadn't exactly come to any real resolution, things were shifting. The fact that she would be going to the charity ball with Sage was proof of that, though of course they were simply going as friends. Or, at least, that was what she was telling herself it was. "That's not embarrassing at all. Sometimes boring is a good thing. Things will pick up, they always seem to find a way to, so...enjoy the peace and quiet while you can, right?" Yas wouldn't have minded a bit of that in her own life, a boring few months with nothing dramatic to worry about. "We can definitely share, I've got it." Yas pulled her own card out to pay for the assortment of snacks, perfectly happy to buy for the both of them.

@lorelai-tseng

[lorelai-tseng]

She laughed along with Yas, knowing that was more of an understatement than anything, but she didn't want to be unkind to her about the fact that Lorelai was well aware of this. She was glad to hear the small exception that the other woman was willing to make in her insecurities in order to ace this presentation. "Brilliant." Relaxing into the office chair, she moved to watch and listen although she didn't know how receptive this audience of people she was presenting for were, she would try to follow along and give honest but constructive critique. Although this was an interesting change of dynamic than they'd initially started off with, she was always open for change and adaption.

"I suppose you could say I'm prone to feelings," Yasemin agreed with a soft laugh. It was an understatement, to say the least. Feelings were something that Yasemin couldn't get away from. Whether they were good or bad, she felt them and she felt them intensely, something that had come to be a constant battle for her. Even when she could see the logic in something, she was ultimately someone that was run by emotions. "Yeah, okay, yeah. I can absolutely do that. Fake it and hope for the best is sometimes...all I can manage," she agreed with a soft shake of her head. Getting the last of her thoughts gathered and loading up the presentation on her laptop for Lorelai to look through, Yas gave a soft nod. "Perfect, okay. Tell me if it's absolutely trash and I can just...you know, redo the whole thing tonight before my presentation." Yas hoped that wouldn't be the case as she launched into the presentation, going through it exactly as she had it planned for the office for Lorelai to critique.

[cynthiafalvey]

The thing is, Cynthia knew that Yasemin didn't even know just how fair of a question that was.

She smiled, albeit tightly, at the teasing, grateful for the distraction of the coffee mug set before her. If she ends up taking a much too hot sip from it without even adding it's necessary condiments, she at least hides it well, though she knows the tip of her tongue will be burnt for days.

"Even my evil powers are no match for a real life Disney princess." This time, Cynthia did allow herself to reach for the milk and sugar, adding a liberal amount of each to her mug before her next sip. Much better. "Shit, sorry, I mean a friend of a Disney princess."

Her eyes cut around the room suspiciously, as if expecting the Big Mouse himself to make a personal appearance to punish her for her transgression, before fixing back on Yasemin.

"Please. I don't think I've ever even seen you have a bad hair day. Seriously. Not even one out of place, not even now. Honestly, it kinda makes me hate you. Like what the fuck? Do you just wake up like this?" She gestured vaguely to Yasemin's person. Maybe she was laying it on thick (and only slightly exaggerating), but one skill she'd taken with her from her last position had been knowing just how to hype her talent up.

Mostly so she knew just how to knock them back down, but still.

"All that to say...I don't think I could make you look like a moron, even if I tried. Which I'm not going to, obviously, so it's a total nonissue. You're going to be great, you're going to look great, and the funding the donations will bring in will be so great that they're probably gonna wanna name a whole wing of the hospital in your honor, so. Maybe even rename the entire hospital itself. I can totally see it now: Yasemin Dogan Memorial. Has a nice ring to it, don't you think?" Her eyebrows wiggled playfully, grin hidden behind the rim of her mug.

@yasdogan

closed starter for @cynthiafalvey at yasemin's house

"Honestly, I can't believe I let myself get talked into doing this," Yas admitted with a laugh as she shuffled around the kitchen getting coffee and snacks set out for Cynthia. Despite doing musical theatre all through school and even professionally for a time at Disney, there was something comical about the idea of being in a commercial now in her life. However, it was hard for her to say no when the hospital came knocking to see if she would be willing to be a part of a commercial they were looking to have filmed. Yas had trouble saying no in general, but even more so when it came to helping the hospital she worked for. If it had even the smallest chance of helping someone get better, she would always take it.

Setting the coffee cups down, Yas took a seat herself at the table, relaxing into the seat as she sipped at the coffee. "You won't make me look like a complete moron on local television, though, right?" she teased, though the small part of her that had a bit of vanity couldn't help but worry that it could end up being the case. Luckily, with Cynthia producing it, she felt comfortable that at the very least she had someone she knew overseeing the project. Inviting Cynthia over for coffee to catch up and talk about the project a bit had seemed like a perfect way to spend her morning off before the commercial got into full swing in the coming weeks.

[lorelai-tseng]

"Exactly, whatever gets you through the day." Lorelai agreed as she was glad that Yas did not call her robotic for her behavior. Though it wouldn't change how she dealt with things, it certainly would have put a sour taste in her mouth on helping her. Not that seemed like it was in Yasemin's nature to say something insulting like that even when intoxicated. She listened to Yas and raised her brow and shook her head. "Well I'd like to make certain for the sake of my car's interior, no offense." She did think that perhaps if she sobered up a bit more before Lorelai sent her home or allowed her to stay at her home, that the morning might not be as horrible.

In her line of work, Yasemin had seen every method of coping she could imagine. Everyone processed things differently and handled their grief uniquely, something Yas had learned to accept and embrace. "Of course. It's something everyone has to figure out for themselves," she agreed. There wasn't a one size fits all coping mechanism, as much as Yas wished there could be. Nodding with a soft chuckle, Yas pulled the soda over to take another few sips from it. "Thankfully my head is feeling it worse than my stomach, so it should be...mostly okay." The worst would come in the morning when she had to deal with the aftereffects of a night out drinking, something she hadn't tackled in quite a stretch of time.

[lorelai-tseng]

Lorelai hadn't meant to make Yas sad, she had thought it was a rather optimistic point of view considering it meant that the forgetting would stop the hurting. But of course it seemed that they differed in opinion on quite a lot towards emotions. "I suppose everyone copes in their own ways." She gave a small shrug in return, not really thinking anything horrible of her way of doing things. Lorelai looked at her friend cautiously in response. "I don't think that quite reassures me yet, why don't you drink some of the soda, carbonation helps with upset stomachs I've been told." Though it was comical to be telling Yasemin that considering she was the one who was a doctor and knew all about human anatomy and bodies in general.

"Just forgetting about things, I don't know. Pushing them away. The whole wisp of a memory thing, that was really rather sad," Yas answered with a soft shrug. She'd been through her fair share of heartbreak in her lifetime whether romantically or with her family. As easy as it could have seemed to just forget, there was something just a touch sad about it to Yasemin. As much as the hard times sucked, being able to remember the good times felt worth every bit of it. Finishing a few more gulps of water, Yas gave it a moment to see how her head was feeling, already some of the spinning starting to slow. It wasn't entirely gone, but it was better. "Enough to move, I think. Definitely, probably no longer in danger of puking on myself."

[lorelai-tseng]

"What about it doesn't sound nice?" Lorelai didn't quite follow the woman's thinking, although to be sure she wasn't sure what exactly she was thinking about. Or what had made her distraught in the first place. She nodded as Yasemin decided the order of events quite easily. Lorelai couldn't help but laugh a little at the clarification that she was given. "I had no doubt about that, darling, but thank you for letting me know." There were only a certain amount of people she would do these types of tender things for and Yas had made her way into the category through her genuine goodness. It wasn't a quality one saw often in people, but the woman next to her had it. "Are you feeling any better at least spinning wise?"

All things considered, Yas was a pretty tame drunk. She talked a little more, opened up about things she'd probably have preferred to keep inside, but otherwise was quite harmless. She was definitely a three drinks and time for a nap kind of drinker. With a slowed brain from the drinking, Yasemin's brows crinkled together as she followed Lorelai's explanation, nodding slowly as if she were fully understanding every bit of it. What she could latch onto, at least, was that the idea of Sage and Maggie becoming nothing more than a wisp of a thought was even more painful than having to sit and think about them all the time. "None of that sounds very nice," Yasemin decided with a frustrated sigh. There was no easy answer, no magic method of skirting by pain without having to feel it fully. Either you felt it and found a way past it or ignored it and let it slowly eat at you. It was no real comfort to know that her personality simply would never lend itself to ignoring her problems, but she supposed it was at least good to know that about herself. "I would very much like to drink water and eat food." Her lips pursed together for a moment before her gaze shifted up to Lorelai's. "And maybe talk about it while I eat. I promise to keep my mouth closed when there's food in it, though."

[lorelai-tseng]

Lorelai was relieved to hear that, even if Yas was drunk she was still making a modicum amount of sense in her reasoning. "Good, glad to see you're not irrational when drunk." It was a dry joke that she wasn't sure Yas would be able to pick up on while drunk, but she at least seemed to be coming to a little bit now. She smiled a bit more when she was called an angel once more. Lorelai preferred goddess but also wasn't going to push the topic further. The question that her friend was asking was a difficult one to answer. "It depends I suppose on how big the problem is. Sometimes it is easier to ignore and other times even while ignoring it, you still find yourself thinking about it. In the end the more you ignore it the less you think about it until it's only a wisp of a thought or completely gone." She spoke honestly as she didn't want to give Yas false hope that this way was better. It was certainly more unhealthy. "I don't think you could either. Not to say that is a bad thing. I think if you tried you'd end up exploding at some point. You have to have a cool countenance and ability to shut things down. Dealing with stuff doesn't sound fun at all to me. Would you like to talk about the stuff or would you rather drink the water and then eat some food?"

"I would not be at all offended if you don't say it," Yasemin assured her with a bit of a laugh. It was a stupid way to refer to a nugget, but with as much time as Yas spent working with kids, sometimes the dumb names for things bled into her everyday speech without her thinking about it. Lorelai was a familiar comfort for her, though, something that Yas had been craving since Sage was out of her life now and her friendship with Asher was now in question. Eyes closing gently as Lorelai moved the hair behind her ears, Yas offered a small, grateful smile. "Angel it is, then," she confirmed. It was a mystery to Yasemin how Lorelai seemed to have everything so under control all the time. Things never seemed to rattle her or, if they did, she managed to hide it well. Yas had never been so lucky, every emotion she had fully out there for the world to see whether she wanted it to be or not. Shifting again, Yas took a longer sip from the water as she looked over towards Lorelai, sensing an underlying sadness there from the momentarily vulnerable statement. "Is it easier, do you think? Ignoring problems?" she asked, genuinely curious. Feeling everything and feeling it deeply the way that Yasemin did was never easy, times like this feeling like they were going to cripple her with the weight of it all. "I don't think I could do it, but I wish I could. It sucks sometimes dealing with stuff."

[lorelai-tseng]

Lorelai felt the word just sticking in her mouth and she gave Yas a look. "Would it make you feel better if I said it or may I just proceed to not say it, because I don't really do baby talk." She had seen people turning towards baby talk as slang in recent years and cringed every time she heard it. The fact was that it just sounded like nails scraping along a chalkboard. Though the word 'nuggies' was not exactly having that effect just on its own. But if it was combined with more she was sure to be leaving. She looked down towards Yas, grinning at the woman as she replied in turn to the question. She moved a few stray locks behind the woman's ears absentmindedly, laughing a bit as the drunk woman continued to assess Lorelai. "I think I would prefer angel to alien. I do a wonderful job of holding up that façade, don't I?" It was rhetorical and if it had been months earlier, she would have agreed that she was good at life. But she had been shaken recently with a feeling that was similar to grief. Lorelai always was someone who did the leaving, only once had she been left and even then it had been on mutual understanding. This time it was not. She of course had not begged Albie to come back, but she was not one to beg. And that had broken her in an internal way. Her exterior was still glamorous as ever and she felt in time the chip in her heart would heal itself, but it was there still. "I tend to ignore problems, I wouldn't say that is exactly being good at life." She shared the small amount of vulnerability she felt Yas afforded.

"Oh c'mon, you won't even call them nuggies," Yas snorted back, rolling forward slightly in laughter as she let her weight shift back against the bar again. Lorelai was just someone that seemed to have her shit together in a way that Yasemin was starting to think she never could. Despite having a stable job, a beautiful house, a solid retirement fund, and everything else that they said an adult was supposed to have, Yas felt like she was still just trying to figure out her shit. Resting her chin on her hand, propped up on the bar, Yas looked back over at Lorelai with a searching gaze. "Mmmmmmm. Sometimes I'm not totally convinced you're not an angel. Or an alien. You just...I don't know. From the outside looking in, you've got this shit on lock. Life, I mean. Like, you're good at life." Reaching for the water with her free hand, Yas pulled it over to start sipping, disinterested in the water, but aware that she needed it.

[lorelai-tseng]

That seemed even more concerning that Yas had been here by herself and drinking that much, in Lorelai's mind, but again she wasn't going to chastise or scold. She'd done plenty of concerning things in her youth. Though she wouldn't qualify Yas as being in her youth, there was clearly something happening. She raised a brow at Yas's next words. "What do you mean? Of course I eat greasy food from time to time. I do not tend to eat chicken nuggets though." She couldn't even repeat the pet name for the food, it would sound odd coming from her. Though she wasn't sure how to feel about Yasemin's laughing at her. "You really do not consider me human, do you?" She teased a bit, though it was starting to seem like that might be true. Lorelai was starting to find it rather comical, but pushed the water towards the other woman as soon as it came.

Lorelai's question brought a sag to Yasemin's shoulders. She'd most definitely just been there alone, trying to find some lifeline to hold onto in a stranger. "Ah, no. No, I'm not...not with anyone tonight," she confirmed, head bobbing in agreement at the plan for some greasy food. It wasn't normally her type of food, but with the way she was currently feeling and all the alcohol rolling around in her stomach it sounded perfect. "Do you eat greasy food? I can't even picture it. Like, you with a giant burger or some nuggies." The thought brought a still rather drunken laugh out of Yasemin, whose brain was doing it's best to focus on anything other than Sage.

[lorelai-tseng]

She gave Yas another wink at her response, glad to see her smiling and laughing a bit. Lorelai wanted to ask what exactly was the issue and why she was in a bit more somber space, but she also was not too sure of whether or not that would only make Yasemin feel more defensive or it would turn the mood of their spending time together. "Brilliant, I'll expect to you see you soon then." She shared not actually going to keep track of it in reality, Lorelai didn't have the time to put that much effort forth on making sure Yas was coming to visit. Though she did care about her friend, she was never going to be the type of person who cared that much. "Okay good, because I was going to say that sounded a bit like when wanting a specific color for one of those amusement park rides." She said with a small chuckle as she shook her head a bit before taking another few pieces of popcorn. "Oh yes, don't worry about me darling. I am plenty experienced with heights. I wouldn't have agreed to this adventure if I wasn't." Lorelai pointed out to Yasemin, because unlike her friend she was more than happy to disagree or not do something if she didn't want to do it. Yas could be very much of a people pleaser from Lorelai's experience.

@yasdogan

"Oh, come on now, it'll never cease amazing me either," she chuckled back with a warm smile. There was a certain brilliance to Lorelai that had always been part of why Yasemin had been attracted to her in the first place. Even now with nothing more than a friendship between them, Yas still found the woman more and more impressive every time she got to see her in action with her work. "If that's the case, I'll be sure to stop in before the end of the week." It would be good for her to make the plans, to have any reason at all to get out of her house and out of her office. That was all just part of the process of moving forward, finding ways to get out and take the time to think about anything other than Sage. "I don't at all. I don't think you really see the color of it in pictures, so it kind of doesn't matter," she agreed with a shrug as they were moved along through the line to get into their balloon. It didn't take long at all and they were quickly ushered into one of the baskets to take flight. "You're good with heights, right?" A question she probably should have asked prior to getting in the basket, though she had to assume Lorelai would have said something herself beforehand if she had an issue with it.

@lorelai-tseng