Together Again

Chapter 20

Eda woke with the sunrise, its warm light filtering through the trees, illuminating the world in shades of soft amber. The dream still clung to her, wrapping her in a feeling of closeness she hadn’t felt in so long. The words she’d heard—I’m coming, Eda—lingered in her mind as if they had truly been spoken. It was almost surreal, the feeling that Serkan was near, that his presence was woven into the forest around her.

She took a deep breath, feeling her heart beat a little faster, a steady rhythm of hope she couldn’t suppress. For the first time, she allowed herself to believe that maybe, just maybe, he was out there looking for her. Maybe he was even closer than she realized.

Carefully, she packed her few belongings, securing her worn-out journal in her bag. A part of her wondered if she’d ever open it again to write, or if today might bring her journey to its long-awaited end. She didn’t know what lay ahead, but she felt a tug, a magnetic pull guiding her steps.

As she walked, Eda took a moment at every clearing, leaving small symbols—her initials carved on trees, a pile of rocks arranged in a certain way, a strand of fabric tied to a branch. She hoped that, somehow, if he was out there, he’d see them, read them as signs that she was waiting.

Serkan

The morning light stirred Serkan from his restless sleep. He stretched, feeling every ache and bruise that had accumulated from his days of relentless walking. His body was weary, but his resolve was untouched, fierce as ever. Last night’s dream still haunted him, the echo of her voice saying his name, her face so vivid he could almost touch it.

He had heard the stories of how people could feel connected over distances, how threads of fate could pull two people toward each other. He had always dismissed them as fanciful, but now, out here, where time blurred and distance felt surreal, he believed in them. He had to. It was the only thing that made sense of this unending drive he felt to keep going.

As he walked, Serkan found himself noticing things he hadn’t seen before—a broken branch here, a small pile of rocks arranged purposefully. He felt his heartbeat quicken, wondering if she had left these traces. He was no expert in survival, but he knew Eda, knew her attention to detail, her thoughtful touch in everything she did.

Each new sign renewed his strength, turning exhaustion into exhilaration. Every carved mark, every trace, felt like a message from her, like she was leaving him a trail to follow.

Eda

The air grew cooler as Eda walked further down the winding path, her footsteps steady and resolute. For the first time in months, she allowed herself to imagine what it would be like to see Serkan’s face again, to feel his arms around her, to hear his voice speaking to her, not as a memory or a whisper on the wind, but as something real and present.

Lost in thought, she didn’t immediately notice the faint footprints that crossed her path. When she did, her breath caught. They were faint, almost entirely erased by time, but they were undeniably human. Her heart pounded as she knelt down to study them, her fingers tracing the outline of the indentations.

Was it him? Could he really be here?

She continued forward with renewed energy, her eyes scanning every inch of the forest for another sign. The ground beneath her seemed to pulse with life, as if guiding her forward. She imagined him just beyond the next bend, or around the next set of trees, her heart leaping with every possibility.

Serkan

Serkan paused as he spotted another one of her markers—a simple stack of stones on the edge of a trail. It felt like a conversation in the wilderness, as if she were speaking to him with each sign. His chest tightened with emotion, the longing almost unbearable.