The night was passing very slowly.
Elena was standing by her room window, her hands lightly resting against the glass. Outside, everything looked the same as always. The street lights were on, somewhere far away a dog was barking, and a soft breeze was moving through the air.
There was no storm outside.
The storm had come into Elena's life.
In the darkness of the night, the cool moonlight was falling on her face, making her beauty stand out even more. The soft wind made the front strands of her hair move gently. But there was no peace in her eyes — only questions.
One question that was eating her from inside.
"Why did Ethan make such a big joke with me…? What did I ever do to him…?"
She asked herself quietly.
Her breath trembled slightly.
"Ethan… I had started to like you…"
As soon as these words left her lips, her heart felt heavier. It was as if admitting it made her more weak.
"Your style… I had started to like it… When you smiled, I felt like the world could stop…"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"I started noticing every small thing about you… what time you come… how you talk… when you get serious, how your jaw becomes tight… when you tease someone, how your eyes shine…"
She gave a small smile… but it broke quickly.
"I wish you hadn't done that, Ethan…"
She looked at the moon, as if it could understand her secret.
"I wish you had kept it just a joke… I wish I had gotten time to understand my feelings… I wish you hadn't embarrassed me like that in front of everyone…"
Tears were now falling silently. This time, she wasn't trying to stop them.
"Do you even know… when I said 'yes'… how fast my heart was beating? I didn't even understand what I was doing… I didn't just want to defeat you… I was running away from my own feelings…"
The soft wind moved her hair again.
"I want to hate you… I really do… but the more I think about it… the more I remember you…"
She closed her eyes.
"You made a joke out of me, Ethan… but you have no idea that in that one moment… I lost my heart…"
The room was silent except for the sound of her breathing.
The moon was still there. The night was still the same.
But Elena was not the same anymore.
She slowly whispered to herself,
"Maybe you think the game is over… but Ethan… what I felt… was not a joke."
She looked at the moon one last time.
"I wish you could understand…"
The night grew deeper.
And Elena's heart… even deeper than that.
The night was deep.
Ethan was sitting beside the pool of his grand house. He had his feet dipped into the cold water of the pool. The sleeves of his shirt were slightly rolled up. In the night view, the shine of the pool had increased even more — the blue light was moving gently over the water, as if even the silence was breathing.
Ethan was staring at the moon without blinking.
His jawline was tight. His face was hard. He was trying his best to keep himself calm… but the storm inside him was not stopping.
Suddenly, he felt someone's hand on his shoulder.
He slowly turned.
"Dad…"
William was standing beside him. There was concern in his eyes, but his tone was soft as always.
"What happened? You look very upset today. Is everything okay?" William asked in a loving tone.
"Yes, Dad."
Ethan's gaze shifted down to his feet in the pool.
"Nothing special, Dad… I was just missing Mom a lot today…"
His voice trembled slightly.
William just kept looking at his face. He took a very deep breath… then removed his shoes, sat beside him, and put his feet into the pool as well.
Small ripples formed in the water from both their feet.
"Look, son…" William's eyes were also fixed on the water now. "In life, there are some decisions we have to make that we don't want to make… but still we are forced to make them. To make our life better."
Ethan stayed silent.
"You know very well why I divorced Sophia. Even while being my wife, she was in love with someone else. I tried very hard to give her every comfort, every happiness in life… but she never loved me."
The night became even more silent.
"I am not saying that you should hate her. No, my son… she is your mother. No matter what the circumstances were."
There was pain in William's voice… but no complaint.
"But think once, son… did she ever try to meet you again? Any call? Did she ever ask about you?"
Ethan's fist slowly tightened.
"No. She had become so blind in that man's love that she couldn't even see her own son's love."
A small pause.
"I will not tell you to consider Cathrine as your mother. Okay? I brought her into your life so that you would not feel the absence of a mother. And there is no doubt… Cathrine loved you like a mother."
Ethan took a deep breath.
The water was cold… but his chest was still heavy.
"It's okay, son. It's your choice. You are grown up now. You should make your own decisions."
William slowly stood up.
He looked at his son once — a look that only a father can understand — and then he walked away.
Ethan remained sitting there.
The moon was still above. The pool water was still shining.
But in his eyes, a different wave was moving — of past relationships, incomplete love, and those decisions that make a person grow up before time.
The cool morning sunlight passed through the window and fell softly on Elena's face. The golden strands of hair scattered across her cheeks were bothering her. Half asleep, she gently moved her hair back with her hand… and slowly her eyes opened.
She didn't even realize when she had fallen asleep last night.
Elena reached for her phone on the side table and checked the time. There was still plenty of time before school. She had woken up very early today.
For a few moments, she just lay there staring at the ceiling… then suddenly she got up, picked up her towel, and went to the washroom to freshen up.
In the kitchen, Izabel was in a hurry as always.
She was making breakfast while talking to herself.
"Today I'll be late again… and because of being late again, half of my salary might get cut…"
She was quickly spreading jam on the toast and at the same time glancing at the boiling eggs.
"They shouldn't get overboiled… and this girl should at least wake up on time once…"
"I'm awake, Mom."
Elena's voice came from behind as she took a bottle of water from the fridge.
Izabel immediately turned around. Surprise was clearly visible on her face.
"Did the sun rise from somewhere else today?" she muttered softly to herself.
"Are you feeling okay? You're ready for school on time… actually even before time?"
"You're the one who always says I get late, Mom," Elena said while picking up an apple from the fruit basket. "Now that I'm on time, why are you surprised?"
Since last night, Izabel could clearly see the change in Elena's behavior. But she stayed quiet and continued setting the breakfast table.
Elena sat down and started eating the apple.
Izabel spoke again in a worried tone, "You're feeling okay, right, Elena?"
"Yes, Mom, I'm perfectly fine," Elena tried hard to sound normal.
"Did something happen at school?" Izabel asked suspiciously.
Elena looked away. Suddenly her eyes filled with tears. She tried her best to stay normal.
"No, Mom… nothing," she said while picking up a sandwich.
Izabel became even more worried. She knew her daughter was never like this before. She used to be playful, cheerful, always full of energy.
Even though she didn't feel like it, Elena finished the entire sandwich — just so her Mom wouldn't worry more.
While putting on her coat, she said, "Okay Mom, I'm leaving early today… so the other girls can see that today Elena waited for the van, not the van waiting for Elena."
She forced a smile, just to keep her Mom at peace.
Like every day, she drank her juice, then kissed her Mom on the cheek, picked up her bag, and quickly walked out.
Izabel stood at the door watching her leave.
Her heart felt uneasy.
"I know something wrong has happened to my child… but at least tell me what it is…" she whispered to herself.
Cars were moving back and forth on the road. It was morning time. Everyone was heading to school or to their offices.
After stepping outside, Elena took a deep breath, trying to lighten the heaviness in her chest.
She stood there waiting for the van. The wind made her hair move gently.
She really didn't feel like going today.
But if she didn't go… everyone would say that there really was something in her heart.
And so, even though she didn't want to… she had to go.
The alarm kept ringing again and again, but he had no awareness of it. He was lying face down on the bed, half the blanket hanging off the side and half still on top of him. Ethan was sleeping deeply — as if he was at peace with everything, as if nothing had happened.
The sharp beep beep of the alarm was piercing his ears like needles. Ethan grabbed a pillow and tried to hit the alarm clock with it, but the pillow flew off and landed far away. The clock was still beeping.
Unwillingly, he finally got up and forced his eyes open. His hair was completely messy. In his night suit, he looked very normal and extremely casual. Stretching lazily, he picked up the clock and turned the alarm off.
He checked the time.
He was very late for school.
Quickly, Ethan rushed into the washroom to take a shower.
Ethan was tying his shoelaces when there was a knock on the door.
"Yes, come in," Ethan said hurriedly.
"Sir, your breakfast." The helper entered the room carrying a tray.
"I won't have breakfast. I'm already very late," he said while brushing his hair quickly.
"Okay, sir."
Ethan hurriedly started putting his things into his bag.
"And listen… tell the driver to keep the car ready," he said to the servant as she was leaving.
"Yes, sir," she replied respectfully, bowing her head slightly.
Ethan handed his bag to a guard walking nearby and quickly sat inside the car.
"Driver, hurry up. I'm very late," he said.
The car sped onto the road, and behind it, like shadows, the guards' vehicles followed.
It was important for Ethan to go today.
No matter what, he had to meet Elena.
Something was going on in his mind… something he himself did not fully understand.
___end of the chapter ___
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