Part One
It was a cold Monday. I woke up at seven with the swagger of Elvis on the radio. It was going to be my first day at work and I couldn't help thinking about all the things that could go wrong and make my first day a hell.
My name is Rastignac. I am twenty-nine and I, somehow, suddenly decided to change my whole life completely by moving to another city which I had never been before: Istanbul... I am an artist. You might want to learn what kind of an artist I am, yet I'd like to keep this a secret. Giving you some tips as we move on, I will actually expect you to figure out what I do for living within artistic frame.
A yellow cab, for which I have been waiting, has arrived at the hotel. I got in. A guy with super short hair nodded his head and smiled at me. I could only see his hazel eyes through reflection on the mirror.
Then he spoke, "Where are we heading, sir?"
First, I did not speak.
After a moment I said, " to Galata, please."
The hotel manager had arranged the cab and the driver personally to take me from my hotel and drive me to Galata, where my office is, every work day as a favor for having me as their guests. The hotel was in Levent so I had about half an hour to chat with this cab driver every morning.
He spoke again with his eastern accent, " What is your name, sir? "
I remained silent for a while again. I did not mean to look cool or behave strangely. I just wanted to do that.
He repeated, " Sir? Can I learn you name? "
I replied also with a question, " Why do you care? "
He was so emberrassed by my reaction that he did not say a word, he just continued driving. At one moment, as we arrived to Galata, our eyes met on the mirror and I could sense the disgust and humiliation in his eyes. Then, I was miraculously able to read his mind for a second. It was saying:
" Don't worry, you will be fine. "
