BLACK ROSE

9 -

While having dinner with Ceren in the kitchen, I decided to put on a cartoon for her to help distract her and make her forget about what happened.

"What would you like to watch, Ceren? Do you have a favorite cartoon?"

"Hmm... Maybe King Julien."

"Let me see if I can find it," I muttered, opening Netflix and typing the name into the search bar. "Here it is! This one, right?"

"Yes, Ece sister," said Ceren as she ate the chicken wings I had ordered for her. I had also given her some fruit juice. It had been a while since i drank Coca Cola, because i didnt want to support İsrael: a country that kills innocent kids and babies. I had ordered some burger for myself as well. Since I was helping a girl in distress, I deserved a little treat. It was a bit spicy, and if I overdid it, it sometimes upset my stomach, but they made it so well that I indulged from time to time.

We sat together and watched King Julien for almost an hour. I hadn't laughed this much in a long time. "It's supposed to be a children's cartoon, but I have to admit, I enjoy it too, Ceren."

"I figured you would like it, Ece sister."

"The main character, the Madagascar lemur king, is incredibly selfish, incompetent, and a rather unusual protagonist. He spends half his day dancing and shaking his butt. The other half, he spends kicking his assistant's butt..."

Ceren giggled. "Exactly. But my favorite character is Clover. She's a female lemur warrior who's loyal to the king and an excellent fighter."

"Oh yes, I really liked her too," I said. "If I were a monkey, I'd probably resemble her."

"You'd be as beautiful as she is, Ece sister."

"Do you think Clover is beautiful?"

"For a monkey, she's very beautiful, Ece sister. She even wears a wedding dress in one of the later episodes. It looks great on her, I think."

"Hmmm. I'd be happy to watch all the episodes with you, Ceren. I really like this series."

"Yes, let's watch them all together!" Ceren leaned over and hugged me from her seat. I think she had grown fond of me. I had already found her very sweet. I put my arm around her shoulders, gently patted her, and gave her a kiss on the hair.

We talked about various topics for a long time. One thing led to another, and before I knew it, it was bedtime. Since I knew my uncle and aunt wouldn't be home tonight, I comfortably put Ceren to bed in their room.

The Frog Prince... I chose this story as a bedtime tale for Ceren. Considering she had undergone a transformation like the hero in the story, it seemed fitting. Sitting at the edge of the bed, I read her the tale, and by the end, she had fallen asleep. I covered her up and went to my room. I undressed, leaving only my underwear on, and lay down on my bed. After such a tiring day, I quickly fell asleep.

*

"Ece sister?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you sleeping?"

"Mmm."

"I'm a little scared. Can I sleep with you?"

"Mmm hmm," I murmured, half-asleep.

In the middle of the night, Ceren had come into my room, and we had this conversation, but I was too groggy to remember it clearly. She took my affirmative answer and climbed into my bed, snuggling up behind me. Since we were both petite, we fit into the single bed without much trouble. I didn't even realize she had joined me and fell back asleep. She slept cuddled up to me.

*

"Oof! Hey, easy!" I grumbled as my sleep was interrupted while lying in bed. My eyes were still closed, and I wasn't fully awake. It felt like something—or rather, someone—was pressing down on me, and it was uncomfortable. It seemed like they were lying on my back as I lay face down.

Dimly remembering that Ceren had come to my bed in the night, I asked, "Ceren, could you please move over a bit? You're squishing me."

Why was she so heavy? She had her arm draped over my waist. She was lying on my back, and I felt most of her weight on my bottom.

When Ceren didn't respond, I repeated, "Sweetie, you're squishing me. Could you please move over?" Finally, I managed to open my eyes a little. I lazily rubbed my eye with one hand and tried to pull my body out from under Ceren, but I couldn't muster the strength.

Wait a second... This arm wrapped around my waist was too hairy to be Ceren's.

The leg pinning me down was also unexpectedly thick and hairy.

My eyes snapped open. "Fa-Fatih?"

"Hmmm?" Fatih's sleepy voice grumbled.

He had returned to his own body! So I was under Fatih right now, and I was only in my underwear!

Oh my goodness!