|Nurgül's POV|

While I was carrying my two years old Murad on my lap and talking to Orhan, Alice burst into my room looking like she had just seen a ghost.

"Sultana" she put her hand on her chest catching her breath "They've arrived!"

I gave Murad to Elif and quickly stood up "Who? What are you talking about?"

"Sultan Mehmet" she quickly replied.

A big smile appeared on my lips and I quickly approached her "Oh my God he arrived early!" I was heading to the door until she stopped me.

"No" she lowered her head "the Sultan is not well"

Suddenly I felt shock and panic coming like a sudden storm destroying everything in its path.. It was as if the ground had split under my feet and all the lights were focused on this moment when life seemed to have stopped.

Without realizing it, my feet were taking me to his room. I always went to him with enthusiasm, seeing his face blossomed my heart and lit up my face, but this time it was different... The road seemed long, dark and miserable.

Without paying attention to anything else, I was in my own world... My mind stopped working at that moment and all I felt were the mixed and complex feelings that my heart was sending me.

I entered his room ignoring the guards, Aymen Pasha and the doctors who were all moving and talking...

My thoughts began to race and intersect as if they were searching for a meaning to what had happened... I saw him lying on his bed, sweat covering his face and body... My heart broke into a thousand pieces, each one carrying a great part of the pain... I wanted to cry but I found it difficult to do so as if even that simple act required great strength that I did not possess.

I was pulled out of all of this by Aymen Pasha's voice as he repeated my name more than once... I turned to him and whispered in a broken voice "How?"

“He was hit by a poison-covered arrow in the battle” He lowered his eyes in despair “It’s been two weeks and he’s still in the same condition”

I approached the doctors and tried to speak in a somewhat clear voice “You’ll do everything you can, eventually the Sultan’s condition should improve”

They all nodded and continued their work... I moved closer to his bed, then lowered myself beside him and took his hand “Mehmet, I’m by your side and I’ll never move from here”

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

|3rd Person POV|

-Two Days Later-

For the past two days, Nurgül hadn’t moved from her husband’s side at all...Everyone was visiting him, his children, his sisters… everyone was in a big shock and Nurgül was unable to play the role of a mother now.

Finally this morning, Mehmet regained consciousness, he opened his eyes after days of darkness... The first thing he felt was a sting of pain in his arm and throat. 

He felt something heavy on his hand, so he moved his head with difficulty to see Nurgül, who was resting her forehead on his hand, and she seemed to be asleep.

"Nurgül" he barely whispered, then began to move his fingers under her hands and forehead.

She was in a deep sleep after staying awake for a long time, she felt something moving under her hand, which made her open her eyes quickly... As soon as she raised her head, she met his gaze... Was this a dream? She froze in her place and could not utter even a single word... The words got lost in her throat as if they were trapped deep in her chest.

He opened his mouth and only a few whispers came out of his lips "I can see you, Nurgül, does this mean that I am in heaven?"

“Mehmet” she paused for a moment “if you are in heaven then it means that I am in a dream” she spoke slowly as if each word took a long time to come out.

“since I am here beside you I don’t mind dying” he coughed a little then added “I want to see my children too” he was breathing heavily and the words flowed from him like dry streams of water.

Nurgül felt as if she was speechless, finding words was like finding light in the darkness, she really couldn't express what was inside her but her silence screamed more words.

At that moment the door opened and the doctors quickly entered saying "Thank God" "His Majesty has awakened" "Come on quickly"

After a short examination, one of the doctors stepped back and lowered his head in front of Mehmet "Your Majesty, the poison can never leave your body completely, it must have left some areas but it will attack other areas in your body"

Hearing these words made Nurgül want to fall to the ground and scream loudly... while Mehmet was thinking about Nurgül's feelings and how she would deal with all of this and how he would leave his young children who still needed his protection.

He gathered his strength and raised his hand slowly "You can leave, all of you" The doctors exchanged sad looks among themselves then stepped back and left.

He turned his attention to Nurgül and then whispered to her in a tender voice "I don't want you to worry ever.. I don't want to be the reason behind your sadness"

She held his hand tightly "There is always hope, only God can decide people's destinies"

They continued talking for a while, then to relax, Mehmet closed his eyes and fell into a coma-like sleep while Nurgül sat next to him watching him.

-The next day-

Mehmet's condition was worse today, Nurgül barely made him eat a little, he didn't have the strength to do so but he was trying to please his wife.

She placed a pillow behind his back and helped him sit up "Is this better?" She asked worriedly.

He coughed a little then nodded "Yes" He looked into her eyes tiredly "Do I look good? I don't want the children to worry when they see me"

She passed her hand over his chin "You always look good" She put her other hand over his "You will get better and they will meet you under better conditions than this"

A small smile appeared on his lips, she sighed a little then signaled to the guards to open the door... Hafize and Razye Sultan entered and behind them all the children.

After they all kissed his hand they stood surrounding his bed, some of them collapsed and others had tears in their eyes, his little children had no idea what was happening as they were still innocent... 

Their conversations and prayers continued for more than half an hour while Nurgül watched them all silently and wiped her tears from time to time as she could notice that his condition was getting very bad as time passed but he was trying to maintain his focus only for the sake of his family.

In the last minutes, Mehmet maintained his calm while watching their conversations with a smile, trying to focus on their faces as if he memorized them deep in his heart.

Everyone left for their rooms while feeling a heavy sadness weighing on their hearts... Mehmet was still in his early thirties, it was not fair for this to happen to him.

"Nurgül" he held her hand and placed a kiss on it "I want us to sit in the garden where we always spent time together"

With this sentence, dozens of beautiful memories flooded into her mind, making tears stream from her eyes quickly.

"Shhh" he sighed anxiously, looking into her eyes.

After a short while, Nurgül stood up, took her husband's hand and helped him leave the chamber while two guards followed them from behind in case of any emergency.

They reached their private place where Mehmet sat in a comfortable position and then she sat next to him, passing her hand over his hand gently.

“You know what?” He smiled slightly “Every time we come here all I can think of is when I told you about going to Manisa and you thought I was going to run away” He laughed tiredly “The moment you told me you would help me come up with a proper plan, I knew you were the right person for me”

For months this was the first time a laugh escaped Nurgül’s lips “I was really ready to do this”

He ran his fingers through her hair “To this day I can’t believe you’re real” He put his hand on his chest and started coughing which made Nurgül feel worried and before she could do anything he added “You are an angel… my angel…”

Their conversation continued for a while then they went back inside as Mehmet’s fever started to rise and he became paler than ever.

≿━━━━༺❀༻━━━━≾

In the middle of the night Nurgül was praying in front of his bed while checking on him from time to time, he was asleep after his fever went down a little and he felt very tired.

While she was raising her hands and praying, Mehmet started coughing violently... she quickly stood up and headed towards his bed.

"Mehmet" she put her hand on his forehead to find it as if he was burning "Your temperature is a bit high, I will call the doctor"

Despite his helplessness and weakness, he grabbed her hand and opened his lips with difficulty "No... Don't do that, stay by my side"

"But..." Her eyes shone like a lake of tears.

"They can't do anything" The feeling of longing seeped into his heart like a strong current pulling him towards his memories with her "Let's make one last memory"

"Mehmet, I can't do this..." Her heart was aching as if shards of glass were scattering in it.

"Nurgül" reached out his hand towards her gently, as if trying to hold on to every moment, trying to leave a trace before it slipped away... maybe for the last time "You were the star and the butterfly of my life, I am grateful for every second I spent with you"

She lowered her head, letting the tears leave the cage of her eyes freely "How could you leave me... You told me before that you would never leave me alone"

"It's something I can't control" He felt as if guilt was weighing on him, as if he didn't do enough to protect her feelings "I know that fate has written an end for me, but rest assured that only my body will leave while my soul will remain with you"

"That means my death, Mehmet" She raised his hand and kissed it tightly while the tears seemed like heavy rain "Take me with you"

"If I had one wish, it is that I want you to be happy even after I leave" His grip began to fade a little "Our children need you now, take care of them well because the coming days will be very difficult" He was silent for a while then added "Now focus with me... you know our laws and how is it that only one şehzade is given the right to live and take the throne?"

With this sentence, Nurgül raised her eyes as if a door of hell had just opened in her face... Now she was sure that her death with her husband would be much better than being a helpless mother.

"Nurgül, it is not the right time for shock" He pressed her hand "Bring me a paper, some ink and my seal"

Although Nurgül was collapsing and had become a body devoid of a soul, she moved with difficulty and brought what he asked of her, she helped him sit down and then he started writing.

"Mehmet" she did not care about the paper and continued to watch his eyes, face and hand movements "What are you doing?"

Mehmet did not answer, he was unable to say anything and barely found the strength to write, his motive as a father is what made him do this despite his extreme fatigue.

After he finished, he passed the paper to Nurgül who started reading it quickly and with each line her eyes widened... He changed the laws for them... What his ancestors inherited for centuries now, Mehmet changed it because of his intense love for his children and his wife.

The şehzades will no longer be executed, but the one who will take over the throne is the eldest şehzade and the rest will perform other jobs that serve the state... In this case, Selim is the heir to the throne and Nurgül is the regent.

She threw herself into his arms while crying loudly "I have never seen anyone greater than you" She raised her head and her touch was like a gentle breeze touching his face, carrying with it the final farewell and many other things.

He felt as if he was unable to keep his eyes open despite his constant attempts to do so... He whispered "I love you, butterfly"

She did not take her eyes off his despite her vision being distracted by the layer of tears that filled them "I loved you, I love you, and I will always love you... I had a great life with you and I'm really thankful..." She placed his hand on her chest and lowered her head "I will continue to remember you with every breath of air, and keep the fragrance of our love deep in my soul... Even if we part, we will meet soon"