The next day Eda debated just calling up Engin and saying she was going to quit. She couldn't bear the thought of going back in and facing Serkan and tussling with her messed up emotions.
She dressed for work and then sat on the living room sofa for an eternity, before finally pulling herself up by her adulting bootstraps and driving to work.
Serkan arrived at work earlier than usual. He needed all the distraction he could find. When his brain was not otherwise occupied, it filled with visions of her - carefree Eda walking barefoot in the park, drunk and beyond cute Eda on the couch in the hotel room, mortified Eda in bed thinking that something had happened between them, happy Eda when her work was being recognized, fiery Eda who yelled at him for not removing his shoes, kind Eda who came through for him when Asli returned, the sexiest Eda ever who watched him make love to her in the mirror of her bathroom. It was a continuous montage with no respite, and he didn't know whether to curse or be grateful for the constant reminder.
He kept looking over at Eda's desk, half afraid that she wouldn't come in today, he had never intended for her work to be affected. The rest of the office had arrived, and with no sign of her, he was half tempted to text her. He took his phone out, and she walked in just then. He heaved an internal sigh of relief, and looked back at his screen immediately.
It felt like deja vu after their weekend in Izmir, but even more uneasy and distressing this time -for both of them. Serkan decided to work in his office upstairs and Eda felt her shoulders drop as she watched him climb the stairs. She didn't realize she had them raised defensively the entire time. They did that all day - not being in meetings together, not looking at each other, just going to great lengths to avoid each other.
The following day was more of the same. Serkan got an email from the Emre Bey in Izmir saying that a friend had taken a look at the plans and was very impressed with Eda's work, and that they were looking forward to working with ArtLife on their next project. His chest swelled with pride. He rose excitedly to tell Eda about it, and then slumped back in his chair. Ugh, he hated this impasse between them. He forwarded the email to her instead, with a congratulatory note. And she responded with a simple thank you.
Serkan's email had been the highlight of Eda's day, bringing a smile to her lips that immediately faded when she realized that they couldn't even talk anymore. As the day drew to a close she thought she might just implode from the heartache. She pressed her hand to her chest, trying to dull the pain, but dropped it immediately when she saw Piril watching her curiously. It felt like she was in a glass cage, hiding her feelings from the world, powering on like nothing was wrong- like...well, like a robot.
She went home that night, her anxiety reaching new levels. Her stomach churned and she thought she might even have a fever. When did life get so complicated? Remember when you would just faint when the stress was too much and then it would pass? Good times, she huffed to herself in self deprecation.
She almost called Melo, but she knew Melo was meeting Tahir tonight. She didn't want to interrupt them knowing that Melo would drop everything if she knew her dada needed her. She ordered in an extra unhealthy burger instead, loaded with every possible side. She was going to eat her way out of her misery, dammit.
Her phone pinged and she looked down at it. Efe was checking in on her. She sighed wearily and sent the text she knew she owed him. The one where she made it clear to him that she didn't see him as anything more than a friend, and that she never would. Efe was surprisingly unaffected by her reply. He said he figured as much from her non-existent response to his kiss, and he just wanted to reassure her that they were good.
Eda smiled at his text, relieved that he was giving her an out.
Eda : We're good 🙂
Efe : My offer still stands tho. On a purely professional level, I love the way your mind works and would love for you to be part of my company.
YOU ARE READING
The Thing About Love -SenÇalKalpımı EdSer Story (complete)
RomanceEda and Ceren are best friends. Eda's known Ceren since forever, and by association she's known Ceren's brother Serkan for as long as she can remember too. He's just back from finishing up his studies in London, and Eda thinks he might just be the...
