yakamoz

Aiyla Kaplan, 23, dance teacher.

[aiylakcplan]

[ credit for the graphic template goes to @translunaer ❤️ ]

( SIMAY BARLAS. SHE/HER. CISFEMALE ) Did I just see ( AIYLA KAPLAN )? This ( TWENTY-THREE )YEAR OLD ( DANCE TEACHER ) has been living in Chicago for ( ONE YEAR ). Some say that they are ( INDEPENDENT and DETERMINED ) as well as ( STUBBORN and A PERFECTIONIST ). If they had a theme song, some might say that it would be ( JUST STAND UP BY ARTISTS STAND UP TO CANCER ). All I know is that I can’t wait to see what they bring to the Windy City. ( @hocstarters )

[ trigger warning: house fire & death ]

her basics

Name: Aiyla (pronounced as aye-lah) Kaplan

Nickname: Ai (pronounced as aye)

Gender: Cisfemale

Date of Birth: October 11, 1997

Age: 23

Family: Aslan & Abigail Kaplan (parents, deceased) and Atesh Kaplan (twin brother, deceased)

Education: Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance (2020), Juilliard University, Magna Cum Laude

her background

Fairytales are more than true

In the year 1993, Aslan Kaplan travelled to Chicago, United States in hopes of making his family’s hotel company go global. After he made the deals he needed to do so, he visited the landmarks that was recommended to him. A cafe near the Willis Tower was where he met a pediatric surgeon named Abigail. She was in a rush, causing them to bump into each other, and he ended up spending the rest of his trip and of his life with her. In the year 1996, three years into their relationship, Aslan and Abigail got married then moved to Turkey.

In the year 1997, Abigail gave birth to twins, Atesh and Aiyla. They brought a different kind of joy to the Kaplans’ life. Despite the Kaplans’ hotel company thriving and how busy both Aslan & Abigail were with their respective careers, they provided the boy & girl with all the love and attention they can give, and Atesh and Aiyla did the same. Their home wasn’t perfect but it was close.

not because they tell us that dragons exist

Atesh and Aiyla were raised to make their own decisions and do whatever they wanted to do as long as  they would be responsible while doing it. The twins made the most out of that freedom and were able to balance having a good academic life & a good social life. In terms of their careers, their grandparents may have pressured them to follow in their father’s’ footsteps and take on a big role in their family’s prestigious hotel company or follow in their mother’s footsteps and pursue a career in the medical field but their parents told them to do neither if they did not want to. Aiyla was planning to do exactly that.

Growing up, Aiyla found a love for dance. It’s just a hobby, her grandparents said, but it was so much more to her and her parents supported her pursuing that passion. That is why she was quick to accept her dance scholarship that Juilliard offered her. Everything was going perfectly for her but, unfortunately, life wasn’t ever meant to the stay that way.

Shortly after Aiyla and Atesh’s highschool graduation, the Kaplans chose to spent the weekend in their family’s beach house to celebrate that milestone in the twins’ lives. After spending their day on the beach since after eating breakfast, the Kaplans turned in for the night and prepared for their dinner and karaoke. Now, as they were preparing, a fire started somewhere in the house and the fire grew too big, too fast. The four Kaplans were all rushed to the hospital but only Aiyla was saved. There were numerous questions about what started the fire, some even had a theory that it wasn’t an accident, but the eighteen year old was taken of Turkey before the press would get the chance to harass her with their questions and assumptions.

but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten,

Losing the three most important in her life on the night that she was supposed to be. celebrating unsurprisingly took a toll on her mental health. It didn’t help that someone might have planned for this to happen and that her parents might have saw it coming. Why else would they have left a letter addressed to Aiyla and Atesh in case something bad happens? In that letter were the security codes she needed to gain access to the money they saved up for her future, the explanation of why they chose to put her aunt who lived in Chicago as her primary guardian and the request that she doesn’t live the rest of her life trying to piece the puzzle together. Of course, that was easier said than done but she was committed to doing so for her parents and for her brother who did not get the opportunity to fulfill his dream of being a film director.

Aiyla still accepted the scholarship to Juilliard and during her first year of college, it was difficult to not completely lose the spark but she had the photo of her family on their last day together in a frame on her bedside table, reminding her of the source of that spark. For the rest of her life, she carried her losses with her, her grief, and as unbelievable as this sounds, it kept her going.

and Aiyla is not going to stop until the dragons in her life are beaten.

some tidbits about her

Aiyla believes that no one deserves to be treated unkindly so she never treats the people in her life that way, not even those who caused her harm. This makes her vulnerable but she does not see that as a problem.

She tries her best to find the silver lining in things even if that’s not the easiest thing for her to do anymore.

She is a hopeful and she liked to believe that things will get better

She has the tendency to cares too much when a person is very important to her.

After losing her family, she became more fragile and it does not take a lot for her to be affected by something.

Knowing that someone planned to kill her family, she believes that there are a lot of cruel people out there so trusting people is something she doesn’t do often. While she is kind to everyone, it takes a lot for her to let open up and let people in.

[aiylakcplan]

purple tulips

purple tulips: what’s your most prized possession?

"My locket containing the last picture that I took with my parents and brother. I can't sleep unless I'm sure about where it is."

[aiylakcplan]

Bumblebees

bumblebees: tell me about something you’ve worked really hard for.

"My students' summer recital was held a month ago and we weren't sure we would have a theater to perform in so I had to create two different versions of each performance, one that was created for the stage and one that was created for a performance in the studio. It was exhausting because it's only my second recital as a full-time teacher but it was all worth it when I watched my students perform. I'm very proud of them."

[aiylakcplan]

sugar cookies, wildflowers

sugar cookies: do you have any spring traditions?

"In Turkey, the beginning of spring is actually what we consider the new year and one of my family's traditions is to attend the Nevruz festival. Because there isn't a festival like that in Chicago, my aunt & uncle held a smaller one for me in their backyard during my first year here. They started a bonfire for me to jump over (it's a Turkish tradition) then surprise me with homemade Turkish food for dinner. That's part of our two-day Spring weekend tradition now. On the second day, we do some spring cleaning, go to the Botanical Festival together, and end the weekend at home with The Muppets and pizza.

wildflowers: where do you feel most free?

"Wherever I'm dancing and no one's watching." (ooc note: Aiyla has the tendency to be in her own world when she's dancing so even if someone suddenly watches in the middle of a routine, she won't realize it until she's done.)

[aiylakcplan]

chrysanthemum

chrysanthemum: how does your muse express romantic love? how do they feel about love as a concept?

I’ll answer this ooc because I feel like I’ll better explain it this way! Aiyla always believed that true love exists. She's seen it in the relationship of her parents and of her aunt & uncle. Those two relationships kind of set the standard for what she's looking for? She doesn't want something exactly like theirs but she wants someone to love her the way they love each other and she likes to think that it will happen one day. As for how she expresses romantic love, her fear of letting someone in in that way only to lose him in the end still controls her at times so her actions express the love she feels first. She doesn't even realize it at first but once she does and once she's ready to take the risk, she'll say it. Probably will even actively remind the person of it through her words or actions because of her "say it before it's too late" mindset.

[aiylakcplan]

what would you do if your crush proposed to you?

“If it’s Derek Klena we’re talking about, all I’ll do is scream but if it’s Tommy, I might just stare at him then end up crying.” ( @thomas-miller )

[aiylakcplan]

what is love?

“As cliche as this sounds, I think it’s the most powerful thing in the world so anyone who feels it is very lucky.”

[aiylakcplan]

👀 weird food combo that you love?

“Carrots and peanut butter.”

[aiylakcplan]

👀 most expired thing in your fridge?

“I make sure to use or eat the food in my fridge before it expires so the answer to do this is nothing.”

[aiylakcplan]

👀 + what's something you hope to have accomplished within the next couple of years?

“Just one thing? Well, I really that by the time I’m 26, I already became the lead dancer in a Broadway show.”

[aiylakcplan]

👀 + who's one person that you miss right now?

“My mom. That’s a usual thing for me though. I miss her, my dad and my brother everyday.”

[aiylakcplan]

be honest + whats one thing you couldn't live without?

“Dance. It helped me a lot with dealing with my grief and trauma, and I can’t imagine a life in which I can’t do it anymore.”

[aiylakcplan]

Thomas Miller:

Thomas shrugged, and grinned at Aiyla across the table. “I’ll bring it over next time I come round. As for the others, you can keep them. They look better on you anyway,” he said with a small laugh. He had a habit of leaving his belongings strewn across the place, and since he spent so much time in Aiyla’s apartment nowadays, it wasn’t a surprise that his things had ended up finding a place there too. He noted the faint blush that appeared on her cheeks, and a smile crept across his face in response. He dipped his head in thanks, and gave her a wink. “Well I have a great teacher,” he teased, chuckling quietly. She then ordered, and he glanced over the menu to find the other dish on there that she mentioned, trying and failing to figure out what exactly it was. Regardless, he would eat it anyway. He wasn’t fussy and besides, the two of them shared very similar tastes when it came to food. The two clinked their glasses together lightly, and Thomas took a sip of the wine. “It definitely won’t be the last, but you’re welcome,” he said softly, a warm smile fixed on his face. He let out a small hum of approval then, looking at the wine in his glass. “This is good. It’s not too heavy. Some reds are a bit much but I like this one,” he commented thoughtfully, swirling the liquid around slowly. 

“Really? Thank you! I’d be careful with offering things like that if I were you though. You might end up with just half of the shirts you own otherwise.” Aiyla laughed, indicating that the latter half of her statement was just a joke. With how much things he left behind after leaving her apartment, she actually already allotted a small cabinet for those things in her room. That cabinet also had what he needs if he spontaneously decides to stay the night, a toothbrush, towel and a pair of pajamas included. It was one of the recent changes she made so he doesn’t know about that yet. She made a mental note to tell him about that the next time he comes over. “Your teacher must be really proud of you.” She offered him yet another warm smile. “I really hope not.” She tried to mask the worry behind those words with the playful tone in her voice but because it was Thomas she was talking to, she didn’t really do a good job at it. He was one of the few that she can’t hide her true feelings from. “Oh, thank goodness! I know that you don’t like drinks that have an aggressive taste so I had a feeling this would be the perfect wine for us to drink but I was a little worried I’d be wrong about that.”

[aiylakcplan]

Thomas Miller:

Thomas let out a low chuckle, shaking his head slightly. “I don’t know about that, but thank you. I’m glad you appreciate the classic jeans and t-shirt combination as much as I do,” he joked, a grin on his face. He wasn’t particularly adventurous with his fashion choices. He valued comfort over anything else, but at least he was somehow managing to pull it off. As Aiyla finally noticed him watching her, his grin widened as he shrugged. “You’re just going to have to get used to it now that I don’t have to be subtle about it.” It wasn’t a new habit of his. It had been happening for a long time, really, but he had always made sure to look away before she could spot it rather than just openly staring at her. Thankfully she didn’t seem to find it uncomfortable, so his eyes never left her face. Humming quietly, he finally tore his gaze from her to pay attention to the menu, scanning it before finding the dish she was describing. “Gozleme,” he repeated, copying her pronunciation. “I can handle a little bit of spice. That sounds really good,” he said, eyes flitting across the other options before he put the menu down gently, having decided to go with Aiyla’s recommendation. The waiter appeared then with their wine, pouring them both a glass. He picked up his drink, and held it out. “To our first official date,” he said with a laugh, and a fond smile. 

“I really do. I actually wanted to borrow the shirt that you were wearing when you dropped by my apartment the other day but I still have two of your shirts with me that you should already have back by now.” Aiyla would have returned it a long time ago but if she was being honest, she didn’t want to. If he asked her to, however, she’d give it. Upon hearing his comment about not having to be subtle anymore, her cheeks flushed and a warm smile appeared on her face because it may not have been the first time that a guy showed her that kind of attention but it was the first time in a long time that said attention came from someone who she actually had feelings for. It felt really nice. “I don’t have a problem with that.”, she assured him. “You’re getting better at pronouncing the Turkish words I use.” Which was not surprising given the fact that at this point in their relationship, she has taught him quite a lot about her native language already. “It’s settled then! We’ll have one order of gozleme and an order of eggplant bulgur pilaf please.” The waiter left the two of them with their wine then, and she was quick to pick up her own glass and clink it against his. “To our first official date. Thank you for making it real.”

[kiteandline]

SIMAY BARLAS via instagram

[aiylakcplan]

Thomas Miller:

Thomas smiled warmly at Aiyla and gave a slow nod. “I have a good memory when it comes to little stuff like that,” he said nonchalantly. What he really meant was he had a good memory when it came to things that Aiyla told him. “You’re welcome,” he said with a grin, before letting out a laugh. “Good. I’ll have to hire them as my personal stylist from now on,” he joked, as they made their way to the table. As she pondered the wine menu, he leant forward on his elbows, watching her closely. He was hoping that tonight would go well. Even if it didn’t, he knew that things between them wouldn’t change anyway, but it was important to him that she had a good night, and that it would be something they could look back on fondly in the future. “Merlot it is,” he announced with a grin, glancing around before waving over a waiter and ordering it. After he’d scuttled off, Thomas picked up the food menu. “So, I know what a few of these dishes are from you, obviously, but half of them are a mystery,” he mused, a smirk on his face. “What are you going to go for?”

“I noticed.” It made Aiyla wonder what else her bestfriend remembered about her. There were so many things that she shared with him, some of which she doesn’t even remember bringing up. Having someone she managed to trust that much was a miracle to her, and everytime she spent with Thomas, she felt herself become more grateful that miracles do happen. After all, if they didn’t, she wouldn’t be here with him today. “I will support you on that one but honestly, I don’t think you need a stylist. You do a pretty good job at picking clothes for yourself already.” It was an observation she’s made almost everytime that the two of them spend time shopping together. She would give him advice sometimes but he seemed more than fine without it. Looking up from the wine menu now, she realized that he was just watching her and that realization made her smile grow. “You’re doing that again.” Not that she had a problem with it. She actually found herself lucky to be on the receiving end of his full attention. “That will make this even more fun. We can try things without you knowing what it is.” She laughed. “I suggest the gozleme. It’s basically flat bread with spinach, cheese and minced lamb. It can be a little spicy though.”

[aiylakcplan]

Thomas Miller:

Thomas shook his head as he handed her the bunch of flowers he’d brought along with him. “Not at all, you look beautiful,” he said with a fond smile, before laughing quietly as she took a small step backwards and assessed his own outfit. Grinning, he dipped his head a little. “Thank you. I did have to get some fashion advice but I’m glad you like it,” he admitted, a sheepish smile on his face. He’d wanted to make a good impression, but it had been so long since he’d actually gone on a date with anyone that he’d had no idea what to wear. “Shall we?” he asked, gesturing towards the restaurant as he pulled open the door for her to allow her to enter first. Once inside, the waiter took them to their table and he pulled back the chair for her, before sitting down himself. “Alright, I don’t know anything about wine so I’m letting you take the lead on this one,” he said with a laugh after he’d briefly perused the wine list, passing it over to Aiyla with a grin. 

Taking the bouquet in her hand, Aiyla took a look at what flowers he chose to give and immediately upon seeing the peach roses. “You remembered.”, she spoke, referring to the fact that peach roses are her favorite. He never failed to remember even the little things. “Thank you.” She returned his smile then shifted her attention from the bouquet to what he was wearing again. “Whoever gave you the advice got it right. You are pulling it off.” Nodding at his question, she walked towards the door of the restaurant and wasn’t surprised that he beat her to it so he can open it for her. She wasn’t surprised that he pulled her chair for her either. He was always the biggest gentleman in her eyes, and the things he has done so far tonight has proved that. “Hmm.”, she mumbled while looking over the wine that the restaurant had available. “I always liked the taste of Merlot wine. If you’d like something delicate and sweet, I recommend that.”