Chapter 4
That night had already dragged past closing time, and I was exhausted.
I’d gotten distracted at the bar, and not wanting to send Eda away in that condition, I ended up dismissing all the employees and closing up myself.
In a moment of madness, I even sent the security guards home—after all, she was still there, drinking too much, lost in a sea of tears and alcohol.
I’d listened to her lamentations for hours, but I’d reached my limit.
She couldn’t even grasp that I wasn’t the bartender, despite my explaining it several times—which left me impatient and frustrated.
How could she think I was just some employee?
Couldn’t she tell from my refinement and manners that I couldn’t possibly be of humble origins?
Either way, I gave up and played along. Maybe it was better she didn’t know who I really was. That might scare her.
So I decided it was time to close up and had to ask Eda to leave. She was so drunk she couldn’t even stand. I figured it was best to call a taxi to take her home. I stepped away from the bar and went to the phone to call the nearest taxi stand while Eda kept sobbing.
When I returned and approached the bar to tell her the car was on its way, an unexpected scene made me hesitate.
I looked at the beautiful young woman in front of me, her eyelids heavy, slumped over the bar in a deep sleep.
Her face was serene despite the tear stains, and an involuntary sigh escaped her lips.
She’d had way too much to drink and was completely passed out.
I knew I had to do something—I couldn’t leave her there.
I tried to wake her, but she didn’t respond. I had to help her.
“Eda, wake up! We need to get out of here,” I murmured, gently shaking her.
Nothing. She didn’t even move.
I stood beside her, thinking about what to do next. I didn’t have the heart to let her leave alone. She obviously wasn’t in any condition to take care of herself. I decided to call the taxi driver and cancel.
I knew I needed to get her somewhere safe, so with great care, I lifted her fragile body onto my shoulders, feeling the weight of her limp form. I carried her carefully to my car, and since I didn’t know her address, I decided to take her to a nearby hotel.
As we drove through the silent streets of Istanbul, I couldn’t help worrying about what would happen when Eda woke up. After all, she didn’t know who I was, and I was about to leave her in an unfamiliar hotel room.
When we arrived, I paid for one night’s stay and carried Eda—still deep in slumber—to the room I’d reserved for her.
I tried to wake her one more time, but she didn’t move.
I was starting to worry about her health.
Carefully, I laid her on the bed and covered her with a sheet.
She looked fragile and vulnerable, so lost on that chaotic night... completely passed out.
I knew I’d done the right thing, but I was still uneasy about the situation.
“Please, don’t go. Stay with me,” she murmured drowsily the moment I turned to leave.
My concern deepened. She was sleepy, confused, and completely defenseless. I returned to her side and gently stroked her hair.
“It’s all right, Eda. I’ll stay with you to make sure you’re safe.”
I knew it wasn’t the most appropriate thing to do, but I couldn’t leave her alone.
And so, on that unexpected night, while the city’s silence enveloped the hotel room, I lay down beside Eda in a bed that wasn’t mine but had become a refuge for us both—and somehow felt like exactly where I was supposed to be.
As the darkness and stillness of the early morning hours surrounded us, she drifted back to sleep, and a strange sense of connection began growing inside me, as if our destinies were meant to intertwine in a way neither of us could have predicted.
That night united us in a unique way, like strangers sharing an unexpected and intimate experience.
When I woke up in the morning, she was still asleep, her arms and legs intertwined with mine while I held her tightly around the waist. I shook my head, trying to push away the strange sense of intimacy the moment had stirred in me.
I mentally kicked myself when I realized I was hard, so I decided to get up, take a cold shower, and wait for her to wake up.