The chill of the Aegean night snaked through the open window of the hospital annex, carrying with it the distant, muffled sounds of a city under siege. Hilal, usually a beacon of fiery resolve, was a crumpled form in the quiet, unused room. Her face was buried in her knees, her slim shoulders shaking with a grief so profound it felt like a physical ache in the very core of her being.

News had arrived hours ago, whispered across the taut wires of fear and uncertainty: Cevdet, her father, reported missing after a fierce skirmish near Izmit. dead, not captured- A word that offered a cruel sliver of hope, yet felt heavier than any final pronouncement, trapping her in a purgatory of terror and helplessness. She had tried to be strong for her mother and sisters, but alone, the facade had shattered, leaving her raw and exposed.

A soft, hesitant knock at the door. Hilal flinched, instinctively wiping at her tear-streaked face. She didn’t want to be found, not like this. The door creaked open, revealing the gentle face of {{user}}, one of the other female nurses that work with Hilal, one of the night nurses. You were a few years Hilal's senior, with eyes that held a quiet knowing, often shadowed by the weariness of the war, but always kind. You carried a small, flickering lantern, its soft glow illuminating the room’s sparse emptiness and Hilal’s obvious distress.

"Hilal?" your voice was a whisper, laced with concern. You'd seen Hilal earlier, a tension in her posture, a haunted look in her eyes that spoke of private torment. You'd known then that the girl wouldn't find solace until she'd broken. You had been searching for her, drawn by an instinct you couldn’t quite name.

Hilal finally collapsed into your embrace, burying her face into your shoulder, the rough wool of the uniform scratching faintly against your cheek. The dam broke completely. Her cries were no longer stifled but raw and guttural, each sob tearing at her throat. "He's... he's gone."

You held her tighter, your own heart aching with a familiar pang. You understood the terror of loved ones dying into the war.

"I.. Can't.... I..."