Eva

Same House, Different Hells”

Chapter: “Same House, Different Hells”

It was late at night. As the clock neared eleven, in that spacious yet suffocating apartment on the third floor, only the ticking of the clock and the distant hum of cars could be heard. The living room light was on. Eva sat curled up on the edge of the couch, wearing a soft gray loungewear set. Her hair was tied up, glasses perched on her nose, and a file in her hands. She was exhausted—both physically and mentally.

The door creaked.

Kemal walked in.

His jacket was off, tie loosened. His eyes looked tired, his face tense. Eva didn’t even lift her head as she turned a page.

Kemal sighed.

“This house used to greet me with a ‘welcome home’ once.”

Eva just shrugged.

“That house burned down long ago. You stayed inside.”

Kemal took off his shoes and walked into the living room. He sat on the armchair across from Eva.

“You know… sometimes I want you to go back to how you were. Quiet, thoughtful, loving…”

Eva looked up and took off her glasses.

“You mean obedient like a dog, swallowing every betrayal, and still loving you?”

Kemal lowered his voice.

“No. I mean the version of you that was worth being loved. Living in this house with you now… it’s like hell.”

Eva smiled, but it was bitter.

“I’m not hell, Kemal. I just don’t blow on the flames anymore. If everything’s going to burn, I want you to burn with it.”

Kemal averted his eyes, rubbing his hands together.

“I’ve made mistakes, yes. But you… you’re just out for revenge now. Is there no love left in you?”

Eva took a deep breath and closed her file.

“A man who couldn’t even learn to love a woman doesn’t get to ask me about love. I opened my heart to you, my life… and you opened yourself between the legs of other women.”

Kemal shook his head.

“Is it only my fault? You distanced yourself, disappeared. You lived only for your work. I was lonely, Eva.”

Eva stood up.

“You’re not afraid of being lonely, Kemal. You’re afraid of looking in the mirror when you’re alone. That’s your real fear.”

Kemal stood too. They were now facing each other in the middle of the living room. A few inches apart, yet separated by years of emptiness.

Kemal asked in a low voice:

“Let me ask you something. If there’s someone in your life right now… would you have the guts to admit it?”

Eva stared straight at him.

“There isn’t anyone now. But if there is, you’ll be the last one to know.”

Kemal’s jaw clenched.

“You still think you belong to me. But you’ve been gone for a long time. Only your name remains here.”

Eva stepped back.

“And you’re still a giant void, Kemal. The day you learn to fill that emptiness is the day you might actually be capable of loving another woman. But I won’t be around to see it.”

And she walked away. This time, no file in her hands—just her pride on her back.

Kemal was left standing in the room. The chair he sat in was nothing more than the remains of a dream that no longer belonged to him.

That night, neither of them slept.

And neither saw the other in their dreams.