Love Echoes

Chapter-10

Elif inhaled the cool night air as she and Durrah walked down the quiet street, the soft sounds of the city humming around them. The stars flickered overhead, their light shimmering against the backdrop of the dark sky.

" I haven't felt this free in years," Elif said, a genuine smile brightening her face. "I haven't smiled this heartfully lately. It feels like life is worth living for a minute, a second."

Durrah, walking beside her with a half-empty juice cup in hand, turned to Elif, a hint of concern in her eyes.

"There's something that haunts you, isn't there, Elif?"

Elif's smile faltered as she slowed her pace, considering her friend's words. They stepped past streetlamps that cast a warm glow, illuminating their path.

"You have that smile, Elif," Durrah continued, her voice steady but soft. "The kind that people wear to hide their heartbreak. It's like you've mastered the art of masking your pain so perfectly that no one can even recognize it. You have that smile."

Elif chuckled, though the sound was tinged with sadness.

"You can read me. Nobody has been able to until now."

Durrah glanced away for a moment, the memories flooding her mind.

"I lost my mother and two siblings when I was just a teenager," Durrah said quietly, the weight of her past hanging heavy in the air. "They left us too soon. I watched them go, helpless to change anything. Their deaths stripped away my soul. I felt like I was living in a world drained of color."

Elif stopped walking, her heart ached. She could see the pain etched in Durrah's features, the way her eyes shimmered with unshed tears.

"But I'm okay now," Durrah said, her voice regaining strength. "You learn to live with the pain. It's always there, lurking in the shadows, but life moves forward. You find moments of joy amid the sorrow. You cry when you least expect it, and then you find a way to console yourself. Life goes on, Elif. It really does."

Elif bit her lower lip, her thoughts drifting to her own memories of loss and longing. Images of her loved ones flickered through her mind, bittersweet and haunting.

"I know. I know it very well," she replied softly. "You're strong, Durrah. And you have Affan; his very existence screams love for you." She smiled, hoping to lift the weight in the air.

Durrah chuckled, the warmth returning to her eyes. "Yes, he does. It's just... sometimes, it's hard to shake the past."

As they continued walking, the night air wrapped around them like a comforting blanket. They strolled through familiar streets, the sounds of laughter and distant music weaving into their conversation.

"One day," Durrah said, her tone shifting slightly, "when you trust me and feel okay, please tell me what's hurting you. I'll be here for you, Elif. You don't have to carry it alone."

"I will. I promise," Elif replied, touched by Durrah's sincerity.

As they made their way back to the apartment, the city around them began to fade into a backdrop of warmth and comfort. They didn't realize how quickly time had flown until the clock on a nearby church tower chimed, signaling that it was around 9 in the evening.

Turning left onto their apartment road, the air suddenly shifted. Both girls' hearts stopped as they witnessed a car they recognized being hit by a van, crashing violently into the nearby supermarket.

Elif's bag fell from her arms, its contents scattering across the pavement. Her breath caught in her throat as she spotted another car passing by the wreckage. Though she couldn't see the driver's face, she caught a glimpse of a hand hanging out the window, a cigarette pinched between the fingers, the tattoo visible-a tattoo she would never forget for the rest of her life.