Teaser - CENK & POLİNA

☀️⚜️ CENK & POLİNA ⚜️☀️

"I want you to come with me."

With every step Cenk took toward me, my heart raced faster. Of all places, the last one I expected to see him in was my bedroom. I swallowed hard. My gaze shifted to the open window. Cold air seeped in with the breeze, gently swaying the curtain.

"I can’t," I whispered. My father was home. If he found out Cenk was here, he wouldn’t hesitate to pull his gun and shoot. The thought of Cenk getting hurt stole the breath from my lungs. The knot in my throat tightened as he came even closer.

"Cenk..." I murmured. I wanted to be with him, but still—this was impossible.

"So you’re not going to run away with me, is that it?" he asked, and with his final step, the distance between us vanished. I felt the wall at my back—there was no more space to escape.

Cenk leaned in slightly and inhaled deeply, as if trying to memorize my scent.

"I missed you, küçüğüm." His soft whisper sent shivers down my spine. The tenderness in his voice destroyed me. He knew we couldn’t be together. My father had refused to give me to him—what else could I have done? I couldn’t just run off with him, could I?

"You need to leave my room. If my father..." I took a deep breath, the thought of Cenk getting hurt stabbing my mind again. "If he sees you here, it won’t end well."

Cenk’s lips curled into a half-smile. "Are you worried about me, Polina?" I swallowed. I hadn’t realized how obvious my emotions had become.

"No. I don’t care at all. There’s nothing betwe—" My words were cut off by his lips pressing against mine. My heart ran wild toward the man it loved, and my body trembled with longing. The way Cenk consumed me was unlike anything else. He and I... we were the same sun, burning to touch, to destroy together.

When he pulled away slightly, he was smiling.

Winking, he said, "It was just a kiss. And yet..." He ran his fingers over my clothes until he reached my chest, then placed his palm right over my pounding heart, clearly feeling its erratic rhythm.

"You want me, küçüğüm. You can’t deny it." How could I? My entire heart was already in his hands. He just didn’t know it yet.

"Come with me," he whispered, resting his forehead gently against mine. Despite the closeness of our bodies, the touch of our skin still made me shiver. I had never been this close to a man before. I had no idea what to do.

And my family... If I did something reckless now and left with Cenk, they’d never support me. I’d be heading to a place I didn’t know, to a country whose language I couldn’t speak... following a man I barely even knew.

Shit!

I wanted to do it blindly, without question.

"Polina..." he whispered, his voice heavy with promises. My eyes drifted shut with a strange sense of surrender. Was I brave enough to go through with this?

"The first time I saw you..." His breath brushed my lips as he spoke.

"I was enchanted. Since that day, I haven’t been able to think of anything else." I wanted to scream why. I couldn’t understand. But maybe I did... It was a strange contradiction. To be loved so deeply when I had never felt loved before—it was terrifying and awe-inspiring.

I felt his hand shift on my chest. Slowly, his fingers slid downward, brushing the back of my hand, tracing soft circles. He was trying to soothe me, I think. But instead, it stirred something deeper.

With his right hand, he reached for my left arm, gently gliding his touch downward. Our breaths mingled. His fingertips on my skin— God. I wasn’t sure I could take this.

Were these sensations normal? The sparks coursing through my body, the tingling across my skin—what was happening to me? Every move he made lit fireworks across my body, scorched my throat.

Swallow? I had already forgotten how.

He inhaled my scent again, kissed the top of my head, and moved his lips toward my ear.

In that moment, I wanted more. I wanted to drown in him. To belong to Cenk... What would that even feel like? His breath against my ear was already too much.

"Come with me, Polina Avilov," he said in a low, husky voice.

"I swear, whatever you want—I'll make it happen." He laced his fingers through mine and squeezed tightly. His other hand slid from mine to my waist, pulling me into him. Our bodies merged. No space left. The pull between us— God! What was this? My entire being was drawn to him.

My eyes were still closed. Encouraged by the way he leaned in, I inhaled his scent again.

He smelled like home—like a home I’d never had. Was that even possible?

"You want time? Fine," he said, pulling back slightly. I opened my eyes and looked at his face.

The love in his expression... No one had ever looked at me like that before.

He started tracing soft circles on my waist with his fingertips.

"You want to go to university? Okay. Don’t want kids?" He sighed.

He nodded with resolution. "That’s okay too." The fact that he was willing to give that up just to be with me... The part of me that had lost all hope bloomed with joy. I knew he wanted to have children with the woman he loved, and yet he still said this to me...

He truly loved me. I felt it in every cell of my body. Knowing that the feelings I had been growing in secret were returned... made me smile.

Cenk watched my smiling lips with such peace. Then, as if he couldn’t stand being apart for a second longer, he leaned in and pressed a tender kiss to my cheek.

His nose grazed against my skin as he whispered, "Whatever you want, I’ll do it. Just be my wife, küçüğüm."

Cultural Notes ~

Küçüğüm: A Turkish term of endearment meaning "my little one"—used to express deep affection, tenderness, and emotional closeness.