Deniz had stormed away from the area. The only question spinning in her mind at that moment was how the man she had chatted with at length days ago, even gone on a date with a flutter of excitement, could have turned into such an infuriating person.
Yes, she was aware she was among soldiers. She could understand that by nature they were authoritarian, even harsh at times, but Fatih's attitude was something else entirely. As if his sole purpose was to intimidate her.
She entered the meeting room with quick steps and dropped into a chair with a weary breath. One thing was clear now: She was right in the middle of the most difficult project she had ever worked on.
Watching the tension from a distance, Kubilay Bey approached Elif, who had been following the events with curiosity.
"Elif, dear, what happened just now? Why did our chief engineer storm off to the container in anger?" he asked, his voice tinged with unconcealed surprise.
Elif first looked around, then moved closer to Kubilay and lowered her voice to a whisper:
"The ground survey reports came in late, director. Since Deniz Hanım didn't see anything that would pose a risk, she started the project. The foundation was opened today."
Kubilay nodded slightly. "So? She did what needed to be done. She evaluated according to optimal conditions."
Elif's eyes widened with excitement. "Right? That's exactly what I thought. But that military director... he was so angry. Deniz Director didn't back down either, but she was quite upset too."
Kubilay's gaze deepened, his hands unconsciously reaching for his graying beard. He had known Deniz for years. He had met her when she was still a student, nearly ten years ago. She had worked in highly provocative environments, dealt with very difficult characters, but each time she had managed to maintain her composure and professionalism. Now he couldn't make sense of this angry state he was witnessing.
"Interesting..." he said to himself. His eyes focused on Fatih, who was walking with stern steps toward the command container on the opposite side.
Fatih had quickly returned to his office and moved to his desk in anger. His pulse was still racing, but the only thing he couldn't get out of his mind was Deniz's harsh, challenging looks.
"Smiles at everyone else, but when it comes to me, she shows her claws at the first problem. Street cat!..." he thought, gritting his teeth.
When dinnertime arrived, everyone had moved to the cafeteria. At the entrance, at the long table in the corner, the engineering team had taken their seats and fallen into deep conversation.
Deniz was quiet. She was aimlessly chasing peas around her plate with her fork, not even bothering to tend to the red hair falling across her face. She was distracted and tired.
A few minutes later, Fatih entered the cafeteria. Without even glancing at the table where Deniz's group sat, he took his tray and quietly sat in his own place.
Deniz raised her head. Without any hesitation, she fixed her eyes on Fatih. In her gaze was not just anger, but direct hostility, ice-cold resentment. As if a volcano was erupting inside her.
Elif, having sensed the weight of this chaotic atmosphere, quietly got up and moved to the chair directly across from Deniz. Looking carefully at Deniz's face, she spoke in a soft tone:
"Director, shall we have some coffee? We can get some fresh air on the bench in front of our office..."
Deniz still couldn't tear her eyes away from Fatih. But she flinched at Elif's voice and turned to look at her.
"Sure, of course. Let's have some," she said.
Just as she was about to get up, they both startled at a voice from behind them.
"Then I brought it at just the right time. Enjoy!"
Second Lieutenant Harun, with his smiling face, was extending a small package of Turkish delight toward Deniz. His uniform was immaculate, his collar carefully adjusted, not a speck of dust on his shoes. In his voice was both military discipline and genuine warmth. His handsome face and charming smile were, as always, perfectly in place.
Elif had practically melted in the face of Harun's confident, attractive demeanor. She tilted her head to the side, leaning on her arm propped on the table, and murmured in a very low tone:
"Well, God bless... You're as sweet as Turkish delight yourself, soldier."
Deniz first looked at the package, then into Harun's eyes. She spoke with a slight smile:
"Thank you so much, you should have it yourself."
Harun, upon this polite response, took a few more steps closer and leaned down to whisper something in Deniz's ear. No one could hear what he said, but the effect was clear. Deniz suddenly couldn't suppress her laughter. She was trying to be quiet, covering her mouth with her hand, but she couldn't stop giggling.
At that very moment, the dull sound of metal echoed through the cafeteria. Fatih had struck his fork hard against the table. His eyes were turned to the food in front of him, but his ears had clearly heard them. He muttered in a hoarse growl from beneath his tense jaw:
"This woman is going to drive me crazy... Laughing shamelessly!"
Corporal Samet, sitting diagonally across from him, immediately craned his neck and asked in surprise:
"What happened, commander? Did you find a stone in your food?"
Fatih had lost the last crumbs of his patience. Gritting his teeth, he turned his eyes to Deniz. Her laughter, Harun's relaxed enjoyment... All of it was turning into a throbbing anger in his brain.
"Yes, corporal. A huge stone," he hissed.
Then he suddenly stood up and quickly left the cafeteria. As he passed by with practically his own wind, it lightly ruffled Deniz's hair. She turned her head to look after him. Inside, she was grumbling angrily:
"At this hour, still a bundle of nerves... Look at the resentment in that man! He might as well strangle me, complete the job!"
Harun noticed her gaze had shifted elsewhere. He bowed his head slightly.
"I'll head to my table. Enjoy your meal again, Engineer Hanım," he said.
Deniz said with a pleased manner, "Thank you again very much."
Harun smiled and then walked away.
Elif sighed, watching after Harun. Her face wore an expression full of admiration.
"Ahh, director... Why are these men so handsome? Especially in uniform!"
Deniz responded to Elif's gaze with a brief smile.
"My mother fell for my father the same way," she said.
Elif immediately fixed her eyes on Deniz.
"What do you mean? Is your father a soldier?"
Deniz nodded, a mixture of pride and slight sadness appearing in her eyes.
"Yes," she said simply.
Elif's curiosity grew even more. She began fidgeting in her seat.
"You never mentioned... Which region did he serve in? He must be retired now..."
Deniz's face suddenly darkened. Her eyelids slowly lowered, a word barely slipping between her lips:
"No... He was martyred. I was still a child."
A silence formed at the table. Laughter and whispers gave way to a heavy quiet. No one could say anything. Elif didn't know what to say either. "My condolences" had come to mind, but she swallowed it. That's what was always said in such situations, condolences and long live the homeland. But... how much could a child's heart understand that?
Just then, Tolga Bey, the retired soldier and security chief sitting diagonally across, spoke. In his firm, reassuring voice:
"Your father would be proud of you," he said.
Deniz turned her eyes to him. The words hadn't come across like the usual condolences. They carried a different weight. As if, among all the consoling words she had heard over the years, for the first time a sentence had landed exactly where it should.
Because when she lost her father, she didn't even know what her feelings were. She was a child... The lines between right and wrong were blurred. But now, she could see a little more clearly why she was here. She wanted to make her father proud, yes.
She swallowed. Swept her hair back. Her eyes were brimming, but her gaze was steady.
"Do you really think so?" she asked quietly.
Tolga Bey smiled. Nodding his head slightly, he replied:
"Of course. This project will strengthen our border line. Neither weapons smuggled into the country illegally nor those crossing illegally will be able to pass through these lands swinging their arms freely anymore. But most importantly... This structure you've planned includes a large underground shelter and operations base. Many of our soldiers will be much safer now."
These words penetrated Deniz. Because she knew that the fewer children of martyrs there were like her, the more peaceful she would feel. She smiled. Took a deep breath.
"Thank you, sir," she said.
Everyone's eyes at the table had welled up. The silence had given way to an intense emotional density.
Deniz wiped her face. Then turned to Elif:
"Come on, let's get the coffees."
Then she turned her gaze to her teammates at the table. "We have Turkish delight too... We'll all have some together," she said.
Bitter but genuine smiles appeared on the faces at the table. Everyone responded with words of approval.
"Sure."
"Of course we will, chief engineer."
"It'll be perfect after the meal, director!"
As if in that moment, a burden from the past had lightened. And Deniz had experienced her first emotional moment with her team...
But the witnesses to this moment weren't just those at the table.
Just outside the cafeteria door, leaning against the wall, was someone.
Fatih...
About five minutes ago, when he had left in anger, he had returned to retrieve his forgotten phone. But before stepping inside, Deniz's voice had stopped him:
"No... He was martyred. When I was a child."
At that moment, it was as if he had frozen. He swallowed, his hand slowly moving to his chest.
He pressed several times over his heart. It was as if something was piercing... or bleeding. His heart was constricting with a feeling he couldn't make sense of for this woman. Pain...
And he murmured to himself:
"What's happening to me..."