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Sanem

I fell in love with the town of Camogli as soon as the taxi that brought us here from the station passed the last bend in the road overlooking the sea and an incredible scenery opened up before my eyes.

It's lovely, colourful and picturesque with the rugged mountain ranges as a backdrop, I can't wait to go exploring to discover views and vistas so different from what I'm used to in Turkey.

The building that houses Elisa's flat and mine is located in the old part of the town just past the town harbour. Everything seems different from what I'm used to, Ischia was beautiful but I don't know why the colours, the scents, the noises of this town, everything seems incredibly more intense, maybe it's me who perceives them that way because I'm happy to be here.

My flat is small but delightful, colourful and full of light, it has a small balcony furnished with a wrought iron table and chairs and a canvas deckchair, it overlooks the little square below which has a café with outdoor tables, a fishmonger's and a general store. It all seems like a dream to me, it's a magical place and for a moment I think I wish Can was here with me to share with him the excitement I feel at this moment, who knows... one day... who knows.

We have decided with Elisa to go out for dinner together tonight to celebrate my arrival in Camogli, we choose a little restaurant in the open air which has tables directly on the quay of the port, it is an incredibly warm evening for being only at the beginning of April. The tolling of the church bells every hour, the call of the seagulls flying high over the boats in search of fresh fish discarded by the fishermen, the noise of the boats entering and leaving the port, everything contributes to the magic of this place.

We are both tired and immediately after dinner we go back home, before going to bed I go out onto the terrace and sit on the deckchair to send a message to Can, I reassure him that I have arrived at my destination safe and sound and I wish him a good night.

- Iyi geceler sevgilim, my dear -

I smile dreamily, there's nothing I can do, I just can't remain indifferent to his words. I think this time apart will be good for us, I am optimistic about the future, I feel I am taking the right steps for me, for him and for the child.

I put my hand on my abdomen which I feel getting tighter and more prominent every day, soon it will be more and more visible and I will have to figure out the best way to tell Can that he is going to be a father, I don't know how he will take the news. Now that the shock of the first moments has passed, I feel ecstatic at the idea of the baby, I wish it was a boy and had the wonderful features of the father.

I devoted the next few days to resting and discovering the narrow streets and breathtaking views of this village, which never ceases to amaze me with its beauty and uniqueness.

I hear more and more from my sister and my parents. They were very worried about me, but now that they can call me whenever they want, they seem to be reassured. I have long chats with Layla who constantly mentions Emre to me, when a lunch when a business trip, it seems they are spending more and more time together and my sister's dreamy voice when she talks about him says a lot about her feelings, we will see what the future holds for them.

I spend whole afternoons on a bench I found in the shade of the trees on a terrace overlooking the harbour, writing and reading a lot. I have started to keep a diary in which I write down every single thought that goes through my mind: memories, feelings, fears, hopes. Somehow it helps me to put my thoughts in order. Stopping them on paper and looking for the right words to express them makes them concrete and crystallises them.

Then there are our messages, those are becoming an increasingly important part of my day, we started with shy good mornings and gradually they are acquiring a new importance and meaning. Every morning I don't know what to expect from him, he always manages to find new ways to wish me a good morning: poems, aphorisms, beautiful images.

"To my ray of sunshine... good morning"
"Even today I carry you in my heart... good morning"
"I wake up and think of you ... Good morning
"The most beautiful thought when I wake up is of you ... Good morning
"The sun lights up the day, I want you to light up my life ... Good morning
"You are my first thought in the morning ... Good morning
"And as usual tonight you were my fondest dream ... good morning

Gradually, his messages became more and more beautiful and intense, each one stealing my heart even more. I am sitting on the usual bench in the late afternoon and I divide my attention between my diary, on which I am writing, and the magnificent sunset that nature is once again staging before my enraptured eyes. A notification arrives and I hurry to look curiously to see if it is him writing, this time it is an image that moves me deeply.


                                                         (Take care of rare people)

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                                                         (Take care of rare people)

His comment leaves me speechless: "Right now I just want to take care of you".
I'm discovering a side of Can that I didn't know, he had always been very kind and gentle towards me, but never during our relationship had he shown this romantic and sentimental side.

The goodnight messages are no less and every night they risk making me not sleep a wink at all to think about his words.

"You are the star that guides my most beautiful dreams.... goodnight"

"It all comes down to the last person you think about at night: that's where your heart is.
I think of you Sanem... goodnight"

"I hug and kiss you from afar my love, because at the moment it's the only thing I'm allowed to do... Good night."

"You're my last thought before I start dreaming of you ... Good night"

I wait every night for his message with anticipation and excitement, he is expressing feelings now that he never revealed he felt before, our relationship is changing, I feel him much more balanced and equal now. I realise that before I was dependent and hanging on his every word, my love for him had completely eclipsed myself and my desires.

To his messages I could only respond with more poems and quotes in which my desires and fears were hidden.

"I don't want to be the most beautiful thing in your life. I want to be the thing you would still choose despite all the beautiful things you have."

"Don't tell me it's forever.
Just tell me, 'See you tomorrow.
But tell me forever"

"Love is just a word until someone comes along and it makes sense"

"Love is not falling in love with the most beautiful person, but with the person who makes your world more beautiful"

Where was this leading us? Perhaps to falling in love with each other differently, it was right that it should be so, that it should be a new beginning, a new knowing and discovering each other different and more aware.

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