Being in a partnership necessitated making sacrifices; otherwise, it would crumble like a sand castle when water flooded on it. And it meant that you, as a man, had to cope with your fiance's mood swings, especially if she was hungry or exhausted.
Kanat's pet peeve in his relationship was Ekim's behaviour while she was ill. She always acted like a small child, with the most extreme mood swings.
Everything started this morning with their breakfast. They ate their omelettes, which Kanat had cooked this time. After a while in their relationship, Ekim taught him how to cook properly, which he eventually mastered. He could cook, but just simple things like salads and omelettes. Ekim continued to attempt to teach him increasingly harder recipes, but she was not yet successful.
"This time you didn't burn it. I'm quite proud of you. "
Wow, he felt honoured by her generosity. When it came to cuisine, Ekim was a ruthless critic. She constantly found something that didn't fit her tastes, and he had a tough time finding a place where she was satisfied with the dinner. However, every time they went to see her mother, she never said anything negative about it, even if it tasted terrible. She simply smiled at her mother and thanked her for her efforts. He wondered why she couldn't be as tolerant with other people's meals, but then he immediately saw why Ekim acted this way. She was constantly trying to make her mother happy, whether it was by taking her on trips across the world, going on walks together, or simply paying her a visit and spending the night at her old apartment. He knew Neşe was having a difficult time parenting her kid alone with no one by her side since her husband left them, and he understood that, as a result, Ekim was sceptical of males, which was evident at the start of the relationship. But why couldn't she be like that with everyone else's food?
"Thanks." He responded. Their relationship has been deteriorating recently. They grew cold to each other. Ekim was too focused on her job, as did he, and they hadn't had the time to chat properly in the previous month. Today was an exception until the moment Ekim had to ruin their day by criticising the dish he cooked.
"What do you have planned for today?" He attempted small talk, which proved more difficult than he anticipated. It used to be simpler.
Ekim glanced at him perplexed, not understanding why he was asking her this question. "Today I'm meeting with the judge and the attorney. We need to decide which evidence will be used in this case. "
That's exactly what he meant. She didn't even think of spending the day with him, her fiance, with whom she had been in love since high school.
"Okay." He didn't add anything more; he just nodded. He had the sensation that the spark between them had long since vanished, replaced by a large black pit filled with nothing but emptiness. And it pulled everything in to make it happen. He observed as she completed her lunch and exited via the kitchen door.
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It was already late when Kanat came home. Nothing could illuminate his path because the lights were turned off. He dragged himself upstairs to his bedroom, gently opening it so he didn't disturb Ekim, and laid down on his side of the bed. He stepped forward to hug his fiancée, but instead of feeling her warmth, he was met with cold bedsheets. Then he heard someone vomiting in the bathroom.
Kanat sprang up and dashed to the restroom, and the scene before him made him sick. The woman he loved the most in the world was sobbing in front of the toilet and looking at him with a worn out expression.
"Hey, what's going on?" He sat across from her so they could chat at eye level. "I'm ill." She replied before turning her head and vomiting into the toilet. At the same time, he quickly reacted by holding her hair.
"Better?" He queried as she placed her head against his chest, her face faced the toilet. "Only a little." His hands went to her forehead, and he swore he burned himself due to her temperature. She was too hot to sleep at home. He had to get her to the hospital as soon as possible.
"I think we should go to the hospital." He wanted to carry her, but she refused. "I want to sleep in our bed." He knew fighting against her wouldn't bring anything, so he assisted her to stand up. She flushed the toilet before starting to brush her teeth. He helped her to mive her hand properly because she was too weak to move after losing so much fluid. He then kissed her cheek and hugged her.
"Come here," he whispered as he lifted her and led her to their bed. "I'm freezing." She pulled on his shirt like a little child and lied on his chest. Honestly, she hadn't laid on his chest in four months. He now lied alongside her, softly moving her head more onto his chest, so he could feel her more. Then he grabbed their blanket and draped it over them.
"What were you?" She murmured against his chest. He was curious whether she would ask this inquiry. She didn't ask him where he was when he was late the last time. In fact, she brushed it off as if it were nothing.
He remembered wanting to break up with her at one point. But when he approached her to discuss their relationship, she acted like she did in high school. It seemed as if the old Ekim had returned, and he was overjoyed to see the love of his life again. However, things suddenly changed. Ekim was once again preoccupied with her work, and she grew colder to him than he did to her.
"I had been drinking." He responded truthfully. He was drinking his problems away, which was a terrible and irresponsible idea, but he couldn't think of a better solution.
"But you despise drinking. Why did you drink it? " Her warm breath across his chest tickled him. "I had to think."
"What about?" Why was she suddenly so intrigued? It was rare for her to be interested in him.
"It's not important. Besides of being sick, how was your day today? " He changed the subject. He didn't want to talk about them while she was too unwell to think about it.
"I called it off." This came as a surprise. When did Ekim start caring about things other than work? "Why?" His curiosity has now woken him up.
"I wanted to surprise you with something. Today is our anniversary. "
Kanat's eyes widened. He had completely forgotten about their anniversary. He was whining to Ozan all night about how badly their relationship had been shattered, and it was he who had forgotten the day they officially got together.
"I made your favourite dessert along with your favourite supper. As a gift, I also purchased a vacation to the Italian city you've always wanted to visit. You just didn't show up."
Kanat hurriedly took his phone from his pocket and noticed all of the missed calls and texts from Ekim. He declined them all, assuming she only wanted stuff from the grocery store or something similar. He felt horrible now. He, not Ekim, was the egoistic one in this relationship. She was working harder to fund the trip he had always dreamed of for them. He knew it was pricey since Ekim would only choose the finest of the best because he was more at ease with the Luxus style than the others. He kissed her on the cheek out of remorse.
"Can you help me go to the restroom, Kanat?"
He instantly realised why and ran to the restroom with her in his arms.
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He looked after her during the whole night. When she sweated excessively, he helped her undress, and when she was chilly, he held her and covered her with blankets. He provided her water on a regular basis, so she didn't lose too much fluid. She eventually fell asleep, leaving Kanat to deal with his own problems.
He cooked her soup the next morning because he recalled Neşe telling him that if you lose too much fluid, you should drink some soup, chicken soup.
"Good morning." He overheard her saying, Ekim sat down, a blanket draped over her frail body. "Do you feel better?" As soon as he placed the plate in front of her, he queried. She took a sceptical look at the meal before shifting her focus to him.
"I guarantee it's not toxic." He could tell she was displeased with the dish, but she didn't say anything that confused Kanat. Normally, she would criticise his meal, but today she just consumes it without any comment.
"I'm no longer hungry." Kanat examined the dish with concern. She actually didn't eat much. "I'm going to bed." She got up and went back to their room. Kanat sighed and approached her with a thermometer.
"Ekim, I need to check to see whether your fever is too high." Sulking, Ekim lifted her arm to allow Kanat to place the thermometer on her armpit. "If the temperature rises too high, Ekim, we're going to the hospital."
Ekim was opposed to going to the hospital. She was there far too frequently as a teen. She didn't want to recall the recollections of her worst days in life.
"When is it going to peep?" Ekim eagerly asked like a small child. Kanat did not respond. He just waited for the confirmation sound when the thermometer was finished.
"Kanat."
At the same time, it began to peep, indicating that it was finished. He sighed in relief and said, "Forty."
He then hepled her in lying down and returned to the kitchen to prepare her a ginger tee. He learned that ill people required a lot of vitamin C. As he entered the bedroom, he placed the tee on the counter on her side of the bed.
"Don't leave me."
She grabbed his arm when he tried to walk away. Kanat lied down next to her and hugged her, allowing her to feel his warmth. They ended up in the same situation as the night before.
"Were you considering ending our relationship?" She finally asked. She was aware that he was pondering ending their relationship. "I was thinking about it, but I can't do it because I love you too much."
His pulse was steady yet quick. He was tense. Was it really so obvious? "Was it because I was too preoccupied with my job?"
Yes, he wanted to yell. She was so preoccupied that he felt ignored, like a small child who no longer received his mother's care.
"You are really clingy." Ekim laughed faintly because her throat hurt too much from the night before. "I had a really difficult situation. Nobody could show that a boy was beaten by his father. I wanted to assist him since I was aware of how badly it hurt your family. The boy's elder sibling reminded me of you. You both attempted to safeguard the younger sibling. He was first charged with maltreatment, but when I saw how scared the boy was of his father, I realised he was beating them."
He kissed the top of her head. He forgot how she always assisted the weakest when they needed it the most. He forgot that she was so selfless that she forgot about everything till she attained her goal.
"I want to kiss you." He requested He yearned for her lovely, sweet lips. He missed inhaling her aroma and stroking her hair and cheeks.
"You're going to become ill."
"I don't mind."
He proceeded to kiss her aggressively, and she was taken aback by his sudden desire to kiss her. She expected him to kiss her tenderly, not as if he was about to devour her.
"Kanat, we'll continue when I'm healthy again."
He grinned and handed her the drink. "I hate ginger." She whined like a small child. "It's with honey."
"Why not with sugar?"
"Because honey is good for you."
"Sugar is also good for me."
When Ekim objected, her fiance gave her a warning look. In despair, she grasped the cup and brought it to her lips, then took a taste of the drink and wished she had taken a milkshake instead of this terrible substance that might ostensibly help her feel better.
"Could you get me something sweet?" Kanat grinned in response to her plea. She had to beg for something sweet as a compromise whenever he handed her ginger tea.
"No, you must get healthy first."
Ekim pulled her bottom lip forward in an attempt to persuade Kanat to change his mind, but Kanat refused, so Ekim couldn't eat anything sweet for the rest of the day.
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Kanat was overjoyed when Ekim's fever dropped completely the next evening, leaving her nearly sick-free.
The next morning, he woke up without her by his side, making him wonder whether she had gone to the bathroom to vomit. But she wasn't there when he went to check on her. Then he walked to the kitchen, where he was greeted with a feast prepared by his fiance. She gave him a bright grin, indicating that she had fully recovered.
"Good morning, dear." She greeted him before kissing him on the lips. "Thank you for looking after me." She spoke while hugging his waist.
"And I really love you."
"I love you too, Ekim."
"Happy late anniversary."
"Happy late anniversary."
On the same day, Ozan received a phone call from Kanat, who excitedly informed him that their problems had been resolved and they returned to be the loving couple they were before.
Ozan laughed and turned to face his girlfriend, Melissa, who smiled innocently at him during their dinner. He was aware that she had discussed Kanat's anxieties with Ekim to prevent their breakup. His girlfriend was really devious at times.