|Helena’s POV|

I was sitting in the garden, reading one of the books I had brought with me from Bursa, trying to distract myself from all the swirling thoughts in my head but every now and then, the breeze annoyed me, blowing strands of my hair into my face and pulling my focus away.

"Helena" Sibylle called, lifting her gaze from the book in her hands "Don’t you think you should have visited Orhan this morning to wish him a blessed Ramadan?"

"Maybe tradition doesn’t work like that" Isabel chimed in from the other side, and they both looked at me, waiting for an answer.

I didn’t lift my eyes from the book for a while... Yes, maybe I should have, but I was under the impression that I should have been the one receiving a visit from him this morning.. He didn’t even come back last night until it was quite late due to his work.. Still, he should have had a conversation with me this morning.

"I don’t know... I don’t want to" I said quietly, lifting my eyes and shifting my legs to a more comfortable position "Anyway, I’ll see him at iftar"

"Don’t be upset, Helena" Isabel said, offering a somewhat reassuring smile "You’re not married to just any man... He rules over a huge empire, and sometimes, you might go weeks without seeing him, even if you live in the same place" I kept looking at her, turning her words over in my mind... they made sense, I guess... The same applied to my parents.

At that moment, I looked up and saw Rana and Zeynep approaching... so I sighed quietly, closed the book, and placed it beside me.

A few moments later, they sat down beside me, while Sibylle and Isabel excused themselves and went back inside, leaving me with Anastasia, who stood a few steps behind me.

"So, Zeynep, are you feeling thirsty or hungry?" The question came out before I could think, a small, forced smile on my face.

"Not really" Zeynep replied, looking around with a wide grin "The weather’s mild, so it’s not too difficult"

"I’m really excited for iftar" Rana said enthusiastically, much more animated than usual... I had never seen her like this before "The best part is that I get to spend it here" She looked at me, and her smile was the most fake thing I had ever seen "I wish you’d be with us for iftar, Helena"

For a moment, everything around me stopped... I couldn’t process what I had just heard... Was she serious? She was wishing I was there, but I would already be there... Was this one of Rana’s games, or was she trying to provoke me?

"What are you talking about, Rana?" Zeynep asked, looking more surprised than I was "Helena will be with us too"

"Oh" Rana said, looking momentarily shocked... Her eyes flicked back and forth between me and Zeynep before she added "Well, I thought she wouldn’t be there" Her voice dropped slightly as she shrugged "You remember how Feyza never came to iftar with us"

"Rana!" Zeynep said, her eyes wide, then glanced at me, her anger now evident.

I hated how they spoke as if I couldn’t understand their conversation, while I was hearing everything loud and clear.

"Helena is Orhan’s wife... She’s family, so of course, she’s going to be there" Zeynep kept glaring at Rana as her maid approached her.

"Zeynep Sultan, please, come with me... There are some things I need you to check" the maid said calmly, her head lowered, looking at Zeynep, who nodded and stood quickly, seemingly eager to escape the awkward situation Rana had put her in.

"I know you’ll say I did it on purpose, but I didn’t mean it" Rana said, not even looking at me, pretending to admire the small fountain beside us "I’ve just been used to having only family at iftar for years, and... well..." She turned to me, her eyes sweeping over me, slowly and deliberately "You’re not even fasting, so I thought there was no point in your presence"

I wanted to say something... anything to put her in her place, but the words wouldn’t come... Instead, I could feel the sting of tears threatening to betray me... My throat felt tight, as if I were choking on the weight of everything I couldn’t say..' How could she be so heartless? How could she say those things so casually?

I had spent weeks in this place, trying to learn their customs, their language, putting so much effort into pleasing everyone, seeking the affection of every family member... and here she was, unraveling me with a few careless words.

"If you want my advice, you’d better not come... You’ll really feel like you’re... out of place" she added, her fingers flicking with satisfaction, offering me a mock-sympathetic glance.

"There will come a day, Rana, when you’ll feel exactly how I feel, and then maybe you’ll regret being so cruel" I said, my voice trembling... I hated it... I wanted to sound stronger than this, but I felt as though I had reached my breaking point... I could no longer bear any more of this.

»»————-　♔　-————««

|3rd Person POV|

Orhan had finally returned to the palace... He went straight to his room to review the divan papers, sealing them before handing them over to Mansur Pasha.

He wanted to finish this quickly so he could check on Helena... First, because he hadn’t seen her since yesterday morning, and also because he wanted to make sure she was okay, especially considering the strange atmosphere of the day... He never wanted her to feel out of place, as he’d noticed in the days prior.

Before stepping out of his room, he saw Silahtar approaching with a stack of papers... It seemed like there was more work to be done, and Orhan would have to wait.

He paused for a moment, then took the papers, deciding to finish everything... He would see Helena at iftar.

A few hours later, the long-awaited moment arrived... Iftar would take place in the Valide Sultan’s chambers ...Everything was ready, except for the fact that everyone was still preparing themselves, putting veils on their heads, while Ahmed ran around saying he was fasting, though he had spent most of the time in the kitchen eating, with Aysel chasing after him, denying his claims.

Everyone gathered around the table...Turhan Sultan, Zeynep sultan, Fatma sultan, Rana Hanım Sultan, and then Ahmed and Aysel, all waiting for Orhan and Helena, especially as the adan was approaching.

Everyone stood when the door opened, and Orhan entered, signaling for them to sit... He quickly scanned the room, and although a hint of surprise crossed his face, he quickly masked it.

He went to sit at the head of the table, exchanging a few words with Aysel... A few moments later, the adan echoed, and they all began to eat.

"Where is Helena?" Orhan broke the silence, directing his question to his mother and Zeynep.

"I don’t know, she was supposed to be here" replied Sultan Turhan, looking at Zeynep, who also nodded in agreement, puzzled by Helena’s absence.

"Helena said she wouldn’t join us" Aysel said, not looking at her father as she was busy picking which piece of baklava to take from the plate in front of her.

"Why?" Zeynep asked, placing a piece of baklava on her plate, waiting for an answer.

"I don’t know, I’m really upset with Helena" Aysel replied, folding her arms, as if she had just remembered she was annoyed "We were supposed to wear matching white dresses, but Helena told me to postpone it"

Orhan didn’t show any noticeable reaction... He simply finished his food quickly and excused himself, stating that he had a lot of work to do.