Erkenci Kus, The Continuing Story

Island Home - part 7 of 8

Sanem is weaving her magic spell on him again. She seems unreal, like a moon goddess or a sea nymph, frolicking in the water with the sea turtles. Can is calm and happy watching her... until she dives under the surface. He can no longer see her and begins to feel a sense of panic but knows how important it is to stay calm! "Ahhh, Sanem, Ahhh!"  he cries out loud, aggravated at how this moment might possibly become dangerous. 

Calling out her name loudly, he walks along the shore line searching the water for any sign of motion. There should be some sign of her, ripples in the water, splashing, air bubbles, noise of some sort... but there is nothing. He calls out again, furious at himself for standing at the edge of the water and letting her go in alone. He slowly wades into the surf, listening intently for any sound, glaring over the surface of the water, looking for any movement... again there is nothing.

Holding back the panic threatening to overtake him, he takes a few deep breaths and dives under the water at the point where he last saw Sanem. With the bright moonlight shining through the water, it is fairly easy to see under the surface. Can is a powerful waterman and able to stay underwater for a long amount of time. He cannot believe he does not see her. The turtles are nowhere to be seen either but he expected that they would be gone by now. He surfaces, fills his lungs with air and bellows out her name again. 

"Can!" he hears Sanem's voice and relief floods his system. He holds very still, treading water as quietly as possible to avoid making much noise, and calls back, "Sanem?" Then he hears her again calling out to him, "Can!" He slowly turns and looks for her desperately, listening for her voice as it floats across the water's surface.

Sanem is reminded of the time Can kidnapped her and took her to the mountains. She had run away from him and gotten lost trudging through the snow. She called out for help, and he was already standing close by, calmly waiting for her to see him. This feels like the reverse is happening now and Sanem is having a hard time not laughing at him. But seeing him in a state of panic, she knows better than to laugh, even though she is only about 500 feet away, floating calmly on the surface of the water.

She calls out one more time "Can!" and he turns to her. She waves her hands up high out of the water and it takes mere seconds before he reaches her with a few powerful strokes of his long, strong arms and legs. He wraps his arms around her and hugs her to him, kissing her face several times and brushing her hair back from her face. "I was so scared," he blurted out, , sounding both panicked and relieved at the same time.

"I'm all right, Can. Calm down or you will drown us both." That was the perfect thing to say to get Can's attention and bring him back to his senses. He flips from scared to angry in a flash. Just as he opens his mouth to speak, Sanem suddenly turns pale looking over his shoulder. She points out to the water and quietly asks, "What is that?" Seeing her face and the look of fear, Can turned to see what she was asking about. He calmly announced, "Shark!" then watched the reality of that word as it hit Sanem.

Without a word, he turned her away from him, wrapped his arm around her waist and in less than a minute, had brought her back close to shore. Once they reached shallow water, he pulled her around and carried her out of the water in his arms. Then without saying a word, he flipped her up and over his shoulder and carried her all the way across the beach and into the house. Sanem called his name several times before choosing to just be quiet and go along for the ride. She looked back out over the water and saw two dolphins jumping high into the moonlight. "Sharks!" she declares quietly. Realizing she has been duped, without a second thought she smacked her hand down hard on Can's behind. He immediately returned a smack of his own. The only fabric covering her bottom was her tiny panty of delicate wet silk.  The slap stung and Sanem could not hold back a tiny yelp. 

Can carried Sanem directly to his room, set her down in his shower, and turned on the water. Clearly angry, he turned his back to her and left the bathroom. Sanem never took her eyes off of Can until he was out of sight. The water is cold but she didn't notice the temperature of the water. She is shaking from the fear of Can's anger because it never goes well when he loses his temper. Sanem is consumed with a dreadful feeling. She showered and washed her hair as quickly as she could. Then borrowing a white button-down shirt from his closet, she goes to find him and sees him outside on the Veranda.

Barefooted, Sanem gingerly steps out onto the cool tile. "I'm sorry, Can," she says quietly, tiptoeing over to stand behind him. He is at the railing, and staring out at the sea, nursing a Scotch on the rocks. When he doesn't respond, she slips her hands through his arms and slides them around his waist. Hugging him tightly, she presses her cheek against his back. He sighs and drops his head, covering her small hands with one of his large hands. He can feel her tremble and hears her sniff like she is ready to cry.

Taking a gentle grip on her hands, he guides her around to stand in front of him. Sanem resumes her hold, stepping up close to him and wrapping her arms back around his waist. Laying her head on Can's chest right over his heart, she whispers, "I am sorry I scared you." She tips her head back to peer up at Can's strained face with eyes filled to the brim with worried tears. Can stands, looking straight ahead but then rolls his eyes down to meet hers. As a tear slips down her cheek, he sighs. He cannot stand making Sanem unhappy.  Gently taking her face in his hands, he wipes away her tears as they begin to fall.

"Ahh, Sanem Aydin, what are you doing to me? I don't ever want to feel that again. I was so scared.  I don't know what I would do if something ever happened to you." He had been holding his breath with great tension in his body. Drawing her close as he presses her head against his heart. This releases some of his tension and he begins to relax. After holding each other tightly for several minutes, he asks if she is hungry. Sanem knows this is his way of taking care of her and she can begin to relax too.

While Sanem was in the shower, Can had prepared some food and they sat down together to eat. Sanem reminded Can of what had happened when he kidnapped her and took her to mountains, and how she had gotten lost in the snow as she called out for help. Of how he had stood close by watching her struggle, and just waited for her to see him, calmly waving when she finally did. She giggled telling him the story, but when she met his very stoic gaze, the giggle died in her throat.

Can asked with great curiosity, "And why were you lost in the snow?" Rather than answering with the truth, that she had broken out of a safe, warm cabin to steal a snowmobile she didn't know how to use; it had run out of gas and she was stranded on a snowy mountain... a distraction was a good idea. Yes, a distraction of some kind would be a much better idea.

"Will you lay in the hammock with me and watch the stars?" Sanem sweetly invited Can, holding her hand out to him. He accepted her hand, stood up and led her to the hammock. They cuddled in as close as they could get to each other. Sanem's head rested on Can's chest and their arms tightly embraced each other. Both are very happy to be in each other's arms again, safe and secure. Can's hand takes a leisurely slide down Sanem's bare leg and taking her by the knee, he pulled her leg over the top of his and held it there. Gazing up at the stars, they rested in silence for a long while. Can finally spoke in a very quiet, soft voice as he stroked Sanem's hair. "You looked incredibly beautiful tonight dancing naked under the stars in the moonlight; mystical like a goddess."