When the evening had almost taken over the sky and painted them in dark hues, the silence of the city was filled with the gentle whispers of the wind. Elina paused, feeling something unusual - as if time itself had come to a halt, allowing her to absorb a silent yet powerful calling. It was a day when fate promised to unveil a new, mysterious chapter in her life, and every step seemed worth believing in that miraculous moment.

As she moved forward, the city seemed to transform around her. The cobblestones echoed with the distant hum of a melody, as if carrying whispers of forgotten dreams. A lone streetlamp flickered softly, drawing her gaze to a solitary figure emerging from the shadows.The stranger's eyes, deep and enigmatic, locked with hers, sending a ripple of recognition through her heart. In that silent exchange, Elina felt a stirring-a subtle invitation to step beyond the boundaries of her known world. It was as though fate had already begun to weave its intricate tapestry, guiding her toward an encounter that promised both mystery and the possibility of a profound, life- altering connection.

Elina stopped, as if her legs were glued to the pavement. The air felt heavier, filled with invisible words that were never spoken. The stranger was still standing there - neither too close nor too far. Her presence was not intrusive, yet undeniably felt.

The wind lifted her hair and, for a moment, placed it on her lips, as if trying to silence any response. But Elina felt that there was no way to avoid it anymore.

She didn't know why, but something inside her whispered, "You've met him before."

But where? When?

The stranger finally moved, slowly approaching. The light from a street lamp revealed his face - those same dark eyes she had once drowned in, and a smile she could never forget. It was him.

He raised his hand, and Elina noticed a small black hair tie with a black heart in his hand.

Her breath stopped for a moment.

"This belongs to you," he said, as if it was an undeniable fact, as if he knew more than he should.

Elina looked at him, then at the hair tie. Her mind resisted, but her heart already knew the answer.

It wasn't a coincidence.

He returned back.

He stood there, his look fixed on Elina, and the air was filled with a silent understanding that seemed deeper than words. She stood still, as if the very place where they had first met was pulling her in. Every step he took felt familiar, every movement, every gesture - like fragments of an image she had seen countless times in her dreams, yet her mind continuously fought the memories that overtook her.

"I don't want to remember," she whispered, as if hoping that somehow it could change everything that now seemed too unclear, too unreachable.

He looked at her with a deep understanding, but her eyes remained mysterious. He knew that words could not change this moment, yet he had to say what her eyes could not admit.

"You can't escape the past," he said calmly, as someone who fully understood that memories are the only true connection to one's identity.And, in truth... you don't need to."

Elina tried to maintain her composure, but her efforts were weak. Her hands began to tremble, and she couldn't tear her look away from him. "How did you find me?" she asked, and this question was all that was left, the one thing she needed to understand.

He smiled. It was a smile she knew so well, a smile that had been a part of him long before they ever met. Her memories of that smile were vivid - they came from the place where they had shared their first kiss, in the same park where their story had begun.

"I never left," he replied, drawing from those memories. He was like a shadow that had never fully disappeared, just waiting for the right moment. "And you've known that all along.

They both stood there, in the same park where time seemed to stand still. Her mind tried to make sense of what it all meant, but her heart already knew the answer. The past had never truly gone. This was only the beginning

Elina was still standing in the same park where they had first met. Everything felt like a long-forgotten landscape. She had the sensation of stepping into a time where the past had become the present.

He stood nearby, saying no words. His silent presence was stronger than any conversation. Elina could feel how he began the conversation without speaking a word. Her body still held the memory of the moment they had stood there for the first time — what they had experienced so many months ago, almost a year, maybe more. It all seemed so unreachable, yet at the same time, it felt like a part of her.

“Do you remember this place?” he asked, his voice calm, yet with something unmistakable in it.

Elina closed her eyes for a moment, letting the memories wash over her. This was the place where they had shared their first kiss. There had been an inexplicable connection between them that day. He had been such an integral part of her past, but now it seemed like she could no longer distinguish what was real and what was just a dream.

He moved closer, and she felt the world start to spin beneath his gaze.

“Are you ready to start this story again?” he asked, and she felt her heart beat faster.

The real question is what happened with us ? And how our story started.

Elina is a young woman who has always lived closely connected to her faith. She is a Christian, and faith has been her greatest support, as she has experienced more than most can imagine. Elina has never been in a relationship, as she has always tried to preserve herself while searching for peace and safety, something she couldn’t find at home.

Her childhood was filled with pain. She was raised by a father who was often violent – he drank and hit, creating constant fear and confusion within the family. Elina had tried countless times to survive in a home where her father ruled with his fists and alcohol. This violence affected her deeply, leading her to seek refuge in her faith and dreams of a better life.

Eventually, she, along with her mother and brother, was forced to leave this destructive environment. They moved to the city, hoping for a fresh start. However, even though she left behind physical and emotional pain, Elina still struggled with loneliness and the feeling that she could never truly belong to a place or people, as she was so deeply wounded.

Elina was forced to grow up faster than her peers, despite still being young and searching for her place in the world. Her heart was locked away because she feared she wouldn’t be understood. She longed for love but was afraid to accept it, having witnessed how violence could completely destroy relationships.

Elina had never imagined that her life would be changed by a foreigner. She had been used to living in a world where faith and family were her main pillars, but nothing could have prepared her for what happened when she met him. He was a Muslim who had moved to the city to find work and had started studying, building a new life. Their paths seemed completely different, and Elina couldn’t imagine that there could be any connection between them. Yet, something deep inside urged her to pay attention to him, even though she was concerned about how they might understand each other.

I was the one walking alone through the quiet, empty city streets at night, hoping that someone would appear to break the solitude. Those nights were filled with emptiness, only the distant glow of streetlights and the deep longing in my heart for true connection. It was in that moment, on my name day, that everything changed.

While strolling through the dimly lit park, where the lights played with shadows, I unexpectedly met him. There was something in his eyes that couldn’t be described – a sense of peace, mystery, and perhaps the spark of a new beginning. We sat on a lonely bench, talking and laughing, and time seemed to slip away. I shared my life story with him – the pain, the losses, and the dreams I had long kept hidden deep within my heart.

The night passed, and each step we took through the park became a page in a story, weaving our souls together. Finally, when the stars began to twinkle and the rhythm of the city lit up in a new light, I dared to lean in – my lips met his, and it was my first kiss.

In that moment, all the illusions of the night turned into reality – I felt that I would never be alone again, that love could heal all wounds and open my heart to a new life.

We continued to meet, each time experiencing something new together. I began to open up, trusting him, and he never denied his support. Every moment we spent together felt like an adventure – he taught me a different perspective on life, on the world, and on what it means to love. Everything was perfect for the first few months, until the moment we crossed into more intimate relations, and I lost my virginity, even though I was underage. He had promised my mother that he wouldn’t touch me until I was 18, but he broke that promise. The first time didn’t go as planned because neither of us had experience, or maybe he pretended to be someone with no experience in bed – I really don’t know. But because it didn’t work out, he stopped contacting me for over a week, and I ended up with health problems and was hospitalized.

A week later, he started asking if I didn’t missed him, and if I missed him, and so on. Of course, I told him that missed him, and I quickly opened up to him again. But he didn’t know I had been in the hospital. He found out just after our intimate night, when he literally forced me to take a Plan B pill, something I couldn’t do because I was forbidden to take medication but still he forced me to take that pill.

He stopped spending time with me, only wanting to be with me at nights. It was literally just a one-night stands . I was constantly in pain, especially in my chest; my breasts were bruised because he started being cruel in bed. He began spending time with other girls, even flirting with them and so on .

I don’t know what happened to him, but he started changing, becoming someone else. He was no longer the person I had met.

Every day we had arguments and moments of breaking up, but he knew how to win me back with sweet words. I started asking him, “Why do you post other girls on the internet but not me? Why do you tell everyone that you’re single?” There was no answer, and I realized something was wrong with him. Rumors even started spreading that he was planning to make me a Muslim

…