TWO BIRDS OF A FEATHER

Tandem of suffering...

Suffering brings pain. Yet, suffering together, in unisom of love, offers support that uplifts the heart in the time of need. Whether physical, spiritual, of emotional, pain may prove to be ever so less painful, so long as the heart of the beloved beats by one's side, and only for the one...

Leaving the park, Sanem and Can never expected the storms brewing within the clouds approaching their love-filled hearts. They had each other, and the strength that came with that. Can asked if she wouldn't mind enjoying a meal in the riverside eatery they had eaten not long ago. There was a beloveds table that was calling out their name. Sanem agreed wholeheartedly. Life was better when Can was around, and food definitely tasted better with him next to her. Especially the kind of food they both enjoyed. This time Can suggested bluefish, one of her favorite kinds of fish. She felt so happy that she believed she could scream about her feelings for Can at the top of her lungs. And she did just that. She did not realize what her words of confidence in their feelings meant to Can. He, too, wanted to exclaim to the rest of the world about how much they loved each other.

That moment of bliss turned into a moment of consternation. Sanem feared her parents and wanted to wait with telling them about Can. She was in love with him, and all that he was, but neither of them was ready for marriage. Especially not Can - she understood that better than he did. Yet, the phone call she received from Ayhan caused drops of cold sweats run down her spine. Not only were her parents made aware of her and Can's relationship, all of it blew up in their face and Nihat fought with their neighbors.

Sanem's fears grew larger than she expected. She was too late to prevent the news from getting to her parents, and she was far too late to soften the blow because they did not find out from her - they found out from someone else. And she could only imagine what they thought. Can drove her home, yet they decided that he would not come near her neighborhood. When she got home, she was as surprised as she was hurt. First, in a good way, because Nihat and Mevkibe chose to show her that they were parents who trusted their children and wanted to guide them with love in their hearts. But as much as Sanem's fears were put to rest, albeit temporarily, her heart now ached for Can in a way she was not able to reveal to her parents. Because, Nihat surprised her and advised her and Leyla that although he respected Can, and Emre likewise, he wished for the Divit brothers to stay away from their neighborhood, needless to say to stay away from them. That was something she did not take lightly...

As for Can, his ache that evening proved of a completely different nature. Though his heart ached for Sanem, his eyes burned in an utterly physical sense. So much so that it was hard for him to see. He barely got home, and all he wanted to do was rest. Luckily, Emre was aleady there to keep him company. They sat together and struck a conversation that Can was beginning to enjoy more often. A brotherly kind of conversation he yearned for in the past years. And this time the conversation revolved around a matter of the heart. Well, both of their hearts. Emre asked Can how his and Sanem's relationship was going. Can smiled through pain, and revealed that life was quite a one way street for him now. He saw Sanem and only Sanem, both through his eyes and through his heart. To return the favor, he asked Emre how things were going between him and Leyla. Emre could not hide his feelings and it showed in his smile. Though not used to quoting his big brother often, Emre replied to Can that things were good, baya baya baya iyi good. Both brothers laughed and noticed that the bond that was growing between them was beginning to mean more and more to them with each passing day. Even Emre, whose heart was still filled with hidden agenda against Can, could not help but realize that there was more to his attachment to Can, an attachment that was slowly beginning to outweigh that of his to Aylin's...

As the morning came, neither Sanem or Can were prepared or suspecting of what was to unfold in a matter of just a few hours. First, Can's morning began with even more indescribably painful irritation to his eyes. But that was nothing. Any sensory pain from that infection went away the moment Emre showed him tabloid photographs of him and Sanem. Him AND Sanem. Though he was a man who accepted what life threw his way, he was sure that Sanem would not take this revealing news the same way. Neither would her parents. But he realized that perhaps this would prove to put a bridge before them that they knew they would have to cross sooner or later. And it turned out to be sooner. Or, so he thought...

Stepping into the agency Sanem did not realize she was stepping onto a ground of burning coal. One look at her colleagues, and she knew something was brewing. And she wasn't mistaken. Only, she never expected what was brewing had to do with her and Can. She denied it with utter fear in her eyes. Deren was shaken. Güliz was excited to say the least. And Ceycey? Ceycey breathed with complete calm and tranquil ease. Finally, the secret was out. Finally, his blood pressure was back to normal. Finally, he could sit back and enjoy life with a peace of mind. That was, until Can came into the agency.

Without a moment to spare, Can asked Sanem to see him in his office. He was calm and saw what had happened with a clear picture in his mind. The way he saw it, the news about their relationship was acutally good fortune in misfortune. They would reveal their relationship. No more hiding. No more gossip. No more denying of what they felt for one another for the longest of time. But Sanem did not see it that way. She was a ball of nerves, ready to combust within the claustrophobic walls of his office. She told Can that she wasn't able to tell her mother about them, and now she had to face suspicion at the agency. They both did. He told her to calm down. If she wanted not to cause a scene she was doing the exact opposite. Even her bright and cheery yellow coat was attracting attention.

Suddenly, Sanem had a plan. And the more sense she made, the less sense it made in his head. Where he wanted to clear out any gossip about them, she wanted him to deny all of it. Where he wanted to reveal to the agency how much he loved her, she wanted him to conceal it. Where he wanted to finally be able to hold her in his arms at the agency, she wanted him to tell everyone that she meant no more to him than the rest of the employees. But what could he do? Not much. When Sanem made up her mind, she made it for the both of them. Fine then. He agreed to refute their relationship. He asked for some guidelines, boundaries they would need to follow. But the moment she mentioned he could not come closer to her than an arm's length, he stopped asking for any more guidelines. No way would he be able to keep away from her. He was never the "arm's length" kind of a man, friend-wise or not.

They decided they also needed to explain the situation of the photographs taken at the park. They left his office and Can asked for everyone's attention. He explained that the gossip or any news of their relationship was groundless. Completely.  And it was all a lie. They had met at the part. When parting ways, Can asked Sanem if she needed a ride home and she declined. So, in an effort to be polite, he bid Sanem farewell by giving her a hug. A professional embrace. To point out how it looked, he brought Sanem close and hugged her in a purely friendly way. It looked that way to all. All, except Ceycey, who caught the little gesture that Sanem made to inhale Can's scent. Twice.

Can continued to present to the employees not only how the situation looked, but how it would not make any sense for them to deny a relationship if they were beloveds. Why would he, the man that he was, Can Divit, deny a relationship? Why wouldn't he just hold hands with Sanem in a true beloveds sort of way if they were together? And, again, he took her hand in his, and linked their fingers together. And, again, everyone else fell oblivious to that little detail. Everyone, except for Ceycey... Deren was relieved. Güliz was disappointed. And Ceycey was utterly distraught because he would again have to pretend that Can and Sanem were simply co-workers. Simply colleagues. Simply nothing more than friends. To end his explanation of the whole situation, Can pointed out that Sanem earned her position by working hard. By her own effort. By her own achievements.

They thought it was all done. They were out of the woods. Case closed. That they overcame that obstacle victorious. But fate brought them another form of lightning in that day's thunderous storms. This time, in the form of Mevkibe. The moment Sanem saw her mother walk into the agency, she felt the ground shake. Literally. She begged Ceycey to slow Mevkibe down, and she rushed to speak with Can. She pleaded with him to help her, to help them both. And there was only one way out of it. He had to scold her. And he had to make it both loud and believeable. So he did. But he went one tiny step too far. Scolding her for her writing was one thing. But scolding her for her çay? Ufffff, Can, ufffff. He knew he made a mistake the moment she shot him her own version of ''Mevkibe's stare" the moment those words left his lips. Because the tandem of suffering they both felt that day was nothing compared to the suffering that would come his way if he ever insulted the taste of her çay again...