SerCem: Unrequited

The evening sun stung; steady and focused.

Pink-flushed skin and a red burning heart were all Cem Öztürk possessed as he laboured towards the entrance of the Istanbul Atatürk Airport. Not wanting to take anything that reminded him of the past, he'd left both suitcases on his bed half-packed. Now, beyond those glass doors laid his escape.

He had his mind set on leaving everything behind partly because he could not stay and witness any more of the ongoing farce. The other three-quarters of him, however, were terrified of the envy building up inside him towards a man he called mentor and later, friend. What about her? What were his feelings for her now? Thinking of the two of them was all he could do for the past week. When did they even become a 'two' anyway?

More than Cem's jealousy, though, there was another reason his mind constantly went back to them. A scene he fought hard not to give much credence as he booked his ticket to Izmir. The sight of his clasped hands around her elbow, yanking her towards him, even if demanding answers to what were reasonable questions.

Cem had no idea how he was able to remain calm when he removed the older man's hand. It was all he could do not to backhand him back into his senses. How those two moved from that to marriage in the space of five days was a mystery. Not really, Cem thought somberly. Because from what he understood from his confrontation with her when he went back to her hotel room later that night, she wanted this. A marriage with Faruk Gencer.

And she had the nerve, the gall, to be jealous of a teenager. Cem wasn't sure what was more ridiculous: that Nisan Gencer had developed a crush on him or her envy of a literal child.

Cem reassured himself that was all behind him as he trudged toward the airport entrance. Yet as he held on to the door with the unwavering intention of disappearing forever, he acknowledged--for the first time since he made the decision--that he'd be leaving Serap to the unknown.

Serap Kutlu. He felt like a recovering addict sniffing crack just thinking her name. Shit.

"She's no longer your responsibility," he reaffirmed under his breath. She, for whom it was so easy to look into your eyes without cowering, saying 'evet' to marrying another.

So Cem yanked the door open, and putting one Converse-clad foot in front of the other, he proceeded to the check-in line. As the line moved forward, he caught a glimpse of a couple a few places ahead of him. Their fingers were intertwined, leaning into each other, whispering the secrets of lovers, only coming up for air to erupt with laughter. Folding his arms across his chest in a slow and deliberate motion, Cem rolled his eyes, deciding to look anywhere except at the lovebirds.

There was a time when he and Serap would evoke an eye roll or two from others. Still, that wasn't all there was to their relationship. Before he loved her, he admired her and respected her.

Serap Kutlu was the daughter of Mürvet Kutlu, the help. Just as he was the son of a helper, Hayriye Öztürk. He looked up to her and the path she created for herself in life. In some ways, she was a role model. A role model he developed a crush on when he was 19.

He only intended to say hi when he heard she was back at the mansion for the first time since leaving home for university a couple of years prior. She hardly came home. And when she did, she wouldn't visit the mansion. He had his suspicions as to why, but that wasn't really his concern at the time.

Serap was making her way to the main gate when he caught up with her.

"Serap!"

He intentionally left off any title to annoy her. She swore she had a poker face, but he had come to realize that he could always read the introverted girl (as she was then) next door. As time passed, he became certain Serap hated 'family friend,' Ipek Zengin. And for reasons he hadn't had the time to figure out, he also noticed that she preferred to avoid Efsun Gencer whenever she could.