My Turkish Heart

Chapter 13

Eventually it was the day to return back home. At first it was an exciting feeling to return home, but she knew she would not see Burak again and a part of her felt hurt because of it. Rachel was ready to get home as she missed her kids, so there wasn't much time to even sulk as she kept talking non stop about the videos they sent her from home.

At the airport, Izzy kept looking around hoping Burak would show up like in the movies, but he didn't. With a heavy heart she boarded the plane and as they flew over Istanbul she closed her heart off from Burak. It was a numbing feeling, but she knew it was best for everyone.

Being home felt more foreign to Izzy than anything else. She had felt like something was missing, but she brushed the feeling off to focus on work. It had been 3 weeks since they left Istanbul and she still had not heard a word from Burak. Rachel had occasional calls with the team back in Istanbul, but she never mentioned him being present in any of the calls. Some days Izzy felt like escaping reality and just heading off somewhere to clear her head for a few days, but it wasn't possible as the workload had doubled. During their busy day, Rachel received a call about a charity campaign they need the company's assistance with.

"Hey Iz, come here for a second"

"What's up?"

"Did you ever go to the Elephant Rescue Park the last time you were out of town?"

"I did...but it was closed" she lied as the memory of that day poked at her.

"Ahh okay. They want us to do a paid campaign with them. The park got some big funding and they will do some renovations in the upcoming months"

"That's really good news for all those rescued babies!'

" Would you be keen to take a drive down and attend their expo? If not, I can send one of the team members instead"

She looked at the expo information and saw that there's no association to Burak's company , which made her agree even faster.

It felt like deja vu being back there. The expo was very interesting and Izzy spent most of her time feeding the elephants.A Lot of the memories of how she met Burak flooded her mind as she walked around familiar places after the expo. She later checked into the lodge and funnily enough got the same room as last time she was there. There was a box awaiting her on the bedside table. She put down her overnight bag and picked up the box. Inside was all her favorite candies and a note that said  "Have a sweet stay"

"Oh! This is sweet of the lodge and all my favorite treats"

She relaxed and stuffed her face with candy until dinner time. All the sweet treats made her feel sick and she regretted eating so much. There was a call to her room from the front desk and they told her that there is a special dinner prepared for all the guests at the lodge tonight. As much as Izzy was hungry for food, she also was feeling really queasy at the same time. She ate a minty treat to help curb the nausea and went down for dinner.

When she arrived she could smell the delicious aroma of the food that had been prepared. The smell was familiar, but she couldn't place what dish it belonged to. No one else had arrived and she thought she came down too early. She stood by the open air terrace to get some fresh air, but her nausea had returned. Before she could even make it to the bathroom, she had to throw up in the dark bushes on the side of the building. Izzy felt quite embarrassed, but luckily no one was around. After throwing up she felt much better and as she turned around a handkerchief was held out for her to use. She couldn't see who the formal suit sleeve belonged to, as they stood in the dark shadows, but she felt ashamed thinking it was the lodge staff.

"Thank you! I'm really sorry about this"

"Clearly you always need someone to take care of you.."

The figure came out of the shadows and it was Burak.

"Whhaat are you doing here?!"

"I came to see you ofcourse"

"How..? When..? What about..?"

Izzy stumbled over her words and couldn't even string a sentence together.

"Did you really think I could forget about you so easily? You're precious to me"

He placed his hand on the side of her face and stroked her cheek.

"Sorry, this is a bit much for me to wrap my head around now.."

She walked away and back into the restaurant. No one had yet arrived, but the servers told her dinner was ready.

"We are the only guests here, Izzy Hanim," Burak said from behind her.

"I'm not hungry anymore.."

She turned on her heels to leave, but he pulled her back.

"Don't be silly! You just threw up everything. You have to eat something to replenish yourself"

She rolled her eyes at how right he was and had to admit she was feeling a bit weaker.

"Fine.."

They sat down at the table and she saw all her favorite Turkish dishes being served.

"I guess you planned this..?'

"Evet" he admitted proudly.

She rolled her eyes at him as she ate small increments of everything in silence.

"What do you want from me?" she finally worked up the nerve to ask.

'I want you.. In any way I can have you"

'I'm not a pawn for your game Burak. You can't just have me when you feel like it or keep me in a bubble away from the reality of things. We won't work, we're from different worlds"

She put her cutlery down and excused herself from the table. Burak felt defeated as no matter what he said she still wouldn't believe him.

 The next day Izzy got a call from the rescue park to come by before she left. When she arrived there was no one at the front desk. When she walked further in she saw rose petals and a board that said follow me. She followed it to one of the picnic areas of the park. There saw Burak standing with a bunch of helium balloons tied to his hand.

"What in the world are you doing?"

" I'm proving my feelings for you"

"With balloons??"

" Izzy, look I know we come from different worlds, I know you perceive me as a douche bag, I know we don't even live on the same continent, but I also know I've never felt this way about any woman before. You drive me utterly insane. You bring out the best in me. You make me believe in the magic of life's little pleasures. You inspire me to be a better man. Will it work? I don't know. Will we face challenges? Probably! But I do know for certain that I'd love you with all I have, I'd protect you with all I have and I'll promise to make you happy. Just please give us a chance"

He stood there in anticipation for her answer. She walked slowly towards him and looked up at the balloons and smiled.

"What are the balloons for?"

"I didn't have much time to get you a good gift, so I got colorful balloons as an add on effect to celebrate"

" Celebrate?"

"I adopted an elephant family for you"

She looked at him in amazement.

"You did what..?!"

" Elephants are loyal animals to their friends and family. I want to be your loyal elephant if you will have me. I'm really sorry for everything, but all I'm asking for is a chance"

Izzy came closer and pulled on his tie.

"You had me by Elephant..." she smiled.

Then she pulled him in closer by his tie and kissed him.