Chapter 94 - Reckoning - Part IV

Every passing moment after Erdem left that day, served as a stark reminder that no one could ever replace him, that his place in our lives remained untouched and unoccupied. The thought of seeking a replacement, of imagining someone else in his stead, was an inconceivable notion. And I realised that after three years, in that defining moment, as our gazes intertwined, a bittersweet realization washed over me, stirring a longing I had tried to suppress—the undeniable truth that my child had been missing a vital connection, a father's love, Erdem's love. Even if I could never accept him in my life, my child needed him in his.