She was a nucleus of light

The big troubles of the small village

The order came... A company would enter the village, clean it up, and take control. Those trying to escape would head towards the mountainous area the village backed onto, where they would be eliminated by Cemal's Team, which was stationed at the foothills. The team moved down to the lower slopes of the mountain near the village and took up necessary positions.

A company entered the village, but no one was there, and there was no conflict. The village and its surroundings were clean. Cemal's team returned to the cave to oversee and protect the village and its surroundings from above. İsmail ran towards Narin's location, fearing she might have escaped. Even though she had a broken leg and couldn't go far, she might have tried to hide somewhere. She wasn't one to give up easily. They didn't have enough soldiers to guard her constantly, so they left her alone in the cave. Cemal had said, "If she escapes, let her. How far can she go? I won't sacrifice a man to keep watch. If she escapes, we'll find her and kill her next time."

Narin hadn't escaped... Her anxious, wild expression had been replaced by a clean, innocent, peaceful look. She was sleeping silently, her breathing only noticeable by the rise and fall of her chest. Although she hadn't seen water or soap in days and was covered in dust, dirt, blood, and sweat, her beauty shone through like moonlight filtering through thin clouds at night. İsmail felt as if he could see the buds of beautiful flowers that would bloom into vibrant colors when the time was right. Watching her sleep was beautiful. He was lost in thought...

"There was a desire to watch you while you sleep now / To get drunk on your scent / To long to wake you up / But not to have the heart to..."

The Poet laughed and said, "Küçük İskender... It's a poem by Küçük İskender." İsmail looked at him blankly, not knowing what to say. "Not to have the heart to," described his feelings towards this girl, but he didn't know why. He just couldn't.

The Poet began taking photographs of Narin. He was meticulously trying to capture the ruthless blows of life hidden in this beautiful face, the wounds on her heart reflected on her face, the tears she held back, the rebellion, the hatred, the anger from different angles in his photos. He talked to himself constantly, taking shots from all positions—bending, sitting, standing, lying down, from afar, and close-up—pressing the shutter repeatedly, trying to discover the essence of the warm, sweet femininity that caused a shiver he had never felt in any woman before. He was trying to understand the secret of this fresh, simple, proud beauty he admired and respected.

Finally, he found it: "Pain." Yes, it was pain. It was the "Beauty of Pain" that he couldn't get enough of photographing. He had found the name for the photo exhibition he planned to hold in the future: "The Beauty of Pain." He pressed the shutter with more enthusiasm and excitement, constantly murmuring, "The Beauty of Pain."

Narin woke up eighteen hours after falling asleep in the afternoon, having just treated Kadir's leg one last time. Without opening her eyes, she listened to herself: the mixture of hunger, sleeplessness, exhaustion, and the unbearable pain of her broken bone, which had worn her body down for days, the suspicion, insecurity, fear, and the constant need to be alert, careful, and defensive, which had imprisoned her soul, had ended. She felt healthy, rested, and light. It was as if she could vaguely see a beautiful future through the mist. Could she dare to hope? She wanted to have hope so much. She opened her eyes...

İsmail lightly touched Narin's forehead with his hand, trying not to scare her. She had no fever. For the first time, Narin didn't shy away from a man's touch. It wasn't a tainted, rough, disgusting, merciless hand that made her cringe; it was a hand that warmed, repaired, and could be trusted, like one that brought light and life to a desolate, dark ruin... That's how she felt.

She held his hand and said, "I'm fine, thank you. If it weren't for you..." but she couldn't continue. İsmail interrupted, saying, "Leave that for now. We're going to your village in two days. Do you have any family or anyone there?"