Later that night, the silence between them felt different.
Not tense.
Not distant.
Just… heavy with everything unsaid.
"You didn't have to risk yourself," Asli said softly.
"I did."
"Why?"
Ferhat looked at her.
And this time…
He didn't look away.
"Because it was you."
Her breath caught.
The words weren't loud.
But they carried something powerful.
Something real.
Something neither of them could ignore.
And for a moment…
It felt like everything stopped.
Like the world narrowed down to just them.
This wasn't fear.
This wasn't survival.
This was something else.
Something dangerously close to love.