Better Together

Won't let go

Ozgur sat on the bench facing the river trying to process what she just told him. He could not believe he forgot something like that. Even worse, he discarded the flashes of that image in his head as a dream for years.

Ezgi sat beside him and looked at the dome of the cathedral across the river. She knew it was a lot for him to process but she couldn't carry the burden of the secret anymore.

"You could've told me earlier Ezgi" He started not looking at her and focussed on the illuminated bridge he could see in the distance.

"I did call you the next day. You told me about your Brighton mess up, went on and on about how much you were scolded and pretty much escaped back to the university dorm later that evening." She recalled the events that followed.

"Didn't we meet for my birthday a month after that though when Ozan flew in?" He tried to jog his memory.

"As if your then girlfriend left you alone for a second at the party." Ezgi rolled her eyes.

"Look who's talking. You were dancing along with that jerk Ryan all night" Ozgur remembered that night.

"You remember him?" She asked him surprised that he could remember the name knowing his memory.

"Of course, he was the worst of the lot. Ozan and I had a rating scale for all your boyfriends." He spilled out and then bit his tongue.

"What?? As if there were dozens to compare like you had..." She poked him suddenly bursting with anger. She never had any successful relationships even when she tried hard to focus on her life. She was either taken for granted or cheated on.

"You got better over the years though. I never got to meet him but Ozan spoke highly of the doctor guy, shame he had to leave. I guess it was just written for me to be the scapegoat." He joked even though he was grateful that he left. Ezgi just hit him on his arm and walked away.

"Ouch it still hurts" He joined her rubbing his arm.

"Good it was meant to" She carried on walking.

"In all these years, did you never feel that I should know about it?" He asked suddenly and she stopped.

"That kiss just happened out of blue because you were trying to shoo away some random guy who wasn't leaving us alone. At that time, it seemed like something not worth risking our friendship for. We were both young and had no idea what we wanted in life. You were replacing girlfriends at a speed I couldn't even get my head around." She dismissed the idea of them together as they grew up together and she knew he never took anyone or anything seriously. She chose to bury any feelings brewing in her and carried on with her life.

Years flew by and she witnessed the change in him, he became more responsible or rather she started to understand him better. Their friendship evolved and he became an integral part of her life. Over the years she realised, she would always hold a soft spot for him no matter what.

"Maybe you're right..." He pretty much glided through his life without any concerns or care about his actions. He faced reality when he ventured into the restaurant business on his own. His family must be proud of him now, but he upset them choosing to move away from the accountancy firm his father owned. Just when he was happy that he turned around things, setbacks came knocking in the form of a broken relationship and his fathers' diagnosis.

"Or maybe I was foolish... I didn't want to complicate things" She knew she would have been broken if he hurt her in any way. She always ended up hurt during relationships and it wasn't a risk she was willing to take with him. Every time her heart fluttered a little for him, she cemented it with the thought that it would be the end of their friendship. A tear escaped her eye and she got up to leave.