With Fatih's arrival, Deniz felt an inexplicable embarrassment. As if she had done something wrong…
Why did she feel this way? Harun was just a colleague, and he had complimented her. Nothing unusual.
But why didn't it feel that way?
Then, suddenly, she realized the situation.
"He's nothing to me… I'm a single woman. What am I doing, Deniz?" she murmured to herself.
Fatih approached, speaking in a firm voice:
"Lieutenant, if you like, we can set it up at the table. Arrange a little picnic."
Harun immediately straightened, standing at attention.
Fatih's voice hardened further:
"You may leave. I'll accompany the Engineer, ma'am."
Even if Harun didn't want to go, the command left him no choice. Fatih's gaze encompassed him completely.
Harun snapped to attention.
"Yes, sir," he said, stepping back.
Once Harun left, Fatih, his expression stern, slowly approached Deniz.
His steps were deliberate, his gaze sharp.
Deniz stepped backward, inch by inch.
"What's happening? Why are you walking toward me!"
Fatih continued forward without a word, his eyes fixed on her.
Deniz swallowed hard. She couldn't comprehend the man walking toward her with such intensity.
"Captain, what are you doing!"
Suddenly, Fatih had cornered her, his arm placed beside her.
He had moved to get her out of the military's line of sight. Now they were hidden among the rocks, out of view.
"So now I'm a captain!"
Deniz swallowed, staring at the man whose breath brushed her face.
"What!"
Fatih narrowed his eyes:
"Last time, we had a date, Redhead."
Deniz couldn't withstand the electricity of his breath on her skin any longer. She turned her face.
"That was acting," she said.
Fatih's teeth ground audibly.
"Acting? So you played a game with me?"
Deniz turned her head, staring him down.
"I didn't play a game. It was just a pretense. My sister was supposed to come, I had to step in."
Fatih's eyes widened in surprise.
"Why?"
Deniz swallowed, looking at the man right in front of her.
"Well… my sister is in love with someone, but she hasn't told our mother yet. So… I helped her out," Deniz explained, slightly embarrassed.
Fatih's lips curved with amusement:
"So your intention from the start was to kidnap me, huh?"
Deniz nodded in agreement.
Suddenly, Fatih laughed. His laughter echoed between the rocks. Deniz stared, stunned.
Why was he laughing?
Her brows knitted. "Why are you laughing?" she muttered.
But Fatih continued, unbothered.
Deniz grew even more frustrated.
"Ugh, do I have to explain myself, Captain! Whatever!" She stepped forward, trying to leave the corner where he'd trapped her.
But as her ankle twisted, she wobbled, losing her balance, falling forward…
Fatih, with a quick reflex, grabbed her by the waist, preventing her fall.
Deniz's red hair flew in the wind, brushing Fatih's face, her scent filling his lungs.
At that moment, her radio slipped from her pocket, hitting the ground and starting to play.
It was as if fate had orchestrated a romantic scene just for them.
Music echoed through the rocks:
"You tried us, twin of my soul
I thought our fingerprints matched
Seeing you hit me like a heart attack
Believe me, believe me
Naughty cat, of course, can't speak
How could it tell you what's inside?
In your absence, I was just skin and bones
Believe me, believe me
Hard, very hard
Don't, please, let it fill my place
If you need me, hug him, eventually you'll forget
Don't, please, let it fill my place
If you need me, hug him, eventually you'll forget"
Now their eyes were locked. Her chest pressed to Fatih's, beating wildly, hearts seemingly in sync.
Only a few inches separated them. His breath brushed her face.
Seconds passed, frozen in time.
Finally, Deniz looked away, trying to regain composure:
"Uh… my foot," she murmured.
Fatih raised a brow, puzzled.
"You're stepping on my foot," Deniz said, her voice trembling slightly.
Fatih realized and quickly pulled back. In his haste to prevent her fall, he hadn't noticed. He steadied himself, pulling Deniz close again.
Deniz looked away, her cheeks flushed.
"Uh… I'm going back now," she said, running off.
Fatih remained behind, his heartbeat unlike anything he'd felt before, watching the redhead run.
Leaning against a rock, he exhaled deeply, pounding his fist against his chest. Her scent, the warmth of her skin…
He tried to regain control.
Deniz ran into the barracks, breathless, closing her door, hiding from everyone.
If anyone saw her, they would know how fast her heart raced, how flustered she was.
Leaning against the door, hand on her chest, she muttered to herself:
"Don't be stupid, Deniz! Don't act like you've never seen a man before!"
But the effect of his gaze, breath, and the warmth of his body… lingered.
After calming herself, the first thing she did was call her sister, Derya.
As soon as Derya answered, Deniz started talking:
"Derya! Because of you, I'm in trouble!"
"What happened now? I can tell from your tone. Did you get yourself into a mess again?"
"I ran into Fatih!"
Silence on the other end. Then Derya's astonished voice:
"Which Fatih? The one you went on a date with…"
"Yes! He's been assigned here as captain, the region's security officer!"
"No way! You're joking, ugh!"
Deniz collapsed onto her bed:
"Worse… he recognized me. He was so annoyed, Derya! So…"
"What do you mean?"
"When we were in the field today… he was close to me, questioning me, breathing on me, touching me…"
Derya laughed:
"Did you like it?"
"No! I mean… what are you saying! I didn't—"
"Could it be… you're falling for him, Deniz?"
"Stop! I don't even know the man."
"You met him on the date, remember?"
"That was acting! Stop it."
Derya chuckled:
"Clearly it wasn't just acting."
Deniz had no reply. Indeed, there was a difference—then it was pretend, now it was real feelings.
"Blame you for telling me! I'm hanging up," she said, ending the call, lying back on her bed.
The next days, Fatih's workload increased. As the region's security captain, he went on border patrols, attended meetings, and wrote reports.
He could only see Deniz briefly during transitions.
Yet even these short encounters left their mark.
In the cafeteria, their eyes met and quickly looked away in embarrassment.
While drawing, Deniz noticed Fatih passing by, her heart racing.
Fatih tried to focus on reports, but her voice distracted him.
The following day, Deniz noticed an error during final checks of the foundation. Miscalculations would delay the project.
Fatih summoned the engineering team, furious.
"We provide every resource, yet at such an early stage, mistakes? How do you explain this!"
The team froze in fear.
Deniz was shocked. Fatih's voice was harsh, eyes burning with cold anger.
"Captain! Calculations were checked. The error came from soil collapse, we didn't anticipate it…"
"Chief Engineer! 'Didn't anticipate'? Isn't that rather amateurish for your career?!"
"The soil survey changed—"
"Don't make excuses! You're the chief engineer. This is your responsibility!"
Deniz flushed with anger:
"I'm not making excuses! The geologist's report arrived later!"
But before she could breathe, Fatih continued his attack:
"Later? What happened? You should have foreseen this!"
"I'm not a fortune teller! I work with the data I have!"
"And now what will you do?"
"I'll revise the project. But it will take time!"
"No time! We're on the border, are you aware!" His eyes burned with fury.
Deniz couldn't take it anymore:
"Then do it yourself! If it's so easy!"
Fatih's eyes widened. No more shy woman—there stood a defiant, stubborn, and irritable chief engineer.
"Know your limits!"
Deniz faced him squarely:
"I know my limits! I'm an engineer, not your subordinate! You have no insight here. Well then. Let you handle it!"
Both returned to their former selves. Fatih, cold and authoritative; Deniz, stubborn and defiant.
Watching from a distance, Private Samet whispered to his friends:
"They're like Hacer yenge and Tahsin emmi from our village."
Elif, curious, asked:
"Why? Were they that attractive? Look at them, total alpha pair."
She watched like a fan of a telenovela.
Samet laughed:
"No, they were always trying to kill each other."
Just then, Lieutenant Harun appeared, snapping at Samet:
"Did you come to serve, or to gossip?"
Samet quickly straightened:
"Sorry, Lieutenant!"
Elif blushed when she made eye contact with Harun:
"Alright then, good work, soldier," she said, quickly leaving.
Harun's gaze turned to Deniz and Fatih. He could see the tension, muttering to himself with jealousy and curiosity:
"Why are you two devouring each other like ex-lovers?"
Fatih's cold gaze had deeply affected Deniz during those close moments. She was surprised by his sudden chill.
Deniz delivered her final words as she walked away:
"I'll revise the project. But I won't accept being scolded like that again!"
Fatih watched her leave, anger simmering. Yet inside, a strange feeling lingered, as if he missed the closeness of those moments.
Both had returned to their harsh and stubborn selves, but their hearts still carried sparks from that electric encounter.