Before Jerelr could answer, Egemed caught sight of their fishing rod bending violently toward the river.
"Oh! The fish!" he shouted.
He rushed to the bank, grabbed the rod, and pulled with both hands. A large fish burst out of the water, thrashing wildly. Egemed laughed in delight, lifting it high in triumph, water dripping down his sleeves.
Jerelr, still standing waist-deep in the river, was silent—frozen, almost—watching him.
After a long moment, he finally smiled and swam toward the shore.
"We're out of hell now," he said. "No three days as Mother's servants."
"Yes"
Egemed had already forgotten the question, too absorbed in admiring the fish. They returned to their lines, but both were soaked, and soon the cold started to settle into their bones.
They gathered sticks and lit a small fire, sitting close to the flames. Neither spoke for a while.
Eventually, Egemed glanced sideways.
"Jerelr… are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Just cold. The fire helps."
"Are you really okay?"
Egemed's voice carried a thread of worry. Jerelr seemed… off. His usual ease, the natural rhythm in his voice, was gone. He sat silently, distant, not speaking to Egemed the way he normally would.
And then, it hit Egemed—he remembered the question he had asked earlier.
Jerelr suddenly burst into laughter. "If I'm not, what would you do?"
Egemed scooted closer and placed a hand gently on his head. Then, without warning, he wrapped both arms around him, holding him tightly.
His voice trembled. "To be honest… you're like a brother to me. A best friend. I've never seen you as a lover."
Jerelr stiffened, but Egemed continued, squeezing him tighter, tears rising.
"If you ever truly feel that way about me… could you do just one thing for me? I don't want to see you hurt—especially not because of me".
Jerelr remained silent.
Egemed's chest tightened at the thought of losing him; the ache in his heart was invisible but sharp, "Could you promise me that you'll think of me as your brother Jerelr? Your best friend, someone you can rely on anytime?"
His breath hitched.
"Of course I love you. I love you so much. I've never loved anyone the way I love you. I've given you everything—but not as a lover, Jerelr. As a brother. As a… soulmate."
"If I had to choose between you and a wife to travel with, I'd choose you, always. You worked with me through everything… even when you didn't know the reason behind the building. You gave your whole heart to help me."
Jerelr didn't speak a word, simply listening as Egemed poured out his heart. Every sentence, every trembling confession, he took in silently. The more he heard, the more his own heart softened, and guilt crept in for the words he had spoken earlier. He hated seeing Egemed cry like this. Even as a man, he could feel the depth of Egemed's emotions, the weight of his love and fear, and it struck him sharply.
Egemed sobbed quietly.
"But I...I... have no feelings for you as a lover. And I'm scared our friendship will break because of this. Can we stay friends? Forever? You'll find a wife… and I'll still be there for you. Always. Can you do that for me?"
Jerelr wiped Egemed's face with the back of his hand. "Brother Ege… stop crying. I don't want to hurt you either."
His voice cracked. "Yes… I really did start to have feelings for you. But I'm happy you told me the truth. You didn't lie or pretend. You just… told me."
He sniffled hard, tears dripping off his chin.
"Yes. I'll do what you want. I love you as a brother… and a best friend… a soulmate. I would never leave you. We'll find our wives and maybe marry on the same day, hmm?"
He let out a shaky laugh.
"But what if my feelings keep growing?"
Still holding him, Egemed whispered through tears, "Then I'll stay single. We'll be friends till the end. No one will have me, so you won't get hurt."
Jerelr shook his head. "I don't know anymore… Let's just be happy. Let everything stay as before. Let's catch some more fish, Brother."
He gently patted Egemed's back. "Stop crying, brother. I'll never leave you. I'll always be your good friend… like the umbrella I promised you I would be." Tears rolled softly down his face as he spoke.
Egemed squeezed him so tightly that Jerelr winced.
"Brother, you're crushing me," he groaned. "It's starting to hurt."
But Egemed couldn't loosen his hold. His mind was spinning with fear—fear of losing the one person he loved more than anyone. To him, Jerelr was family, a soul tied to his own. He never once looked at him with romantic eyes; they flirted sometimes for fun—but that was all.
Jerelr sighed, hugging him back gently. "Okay… you can break my ribs if it stops you from crying. I can't believe you'd be hurt this much if I left."
"I'm sorry," Egemed whispered. "You won't leave me in the dark again, right? We'll finish our building together, we'll both be CEOs—two CEOs, one company?"
Jerelr tapped his back softly. "Yes we will."
The sun slowly sank behind the valley, spilling muted golds and purples across the sky. As dusk wrapped the world in quiet shadow, they rose, gently wiping tears from their faces. Their movements were slow, hesitant, as if reluctant to leave the riverbank where so much had been spoken and felt.
Packing their things, they began the walk home, the cool air brushing against them, carrying the soft murmur of the river—a quiet witness to the fragile, unspoken bond that now lay even deeper between them.
After a while, Jerelr spoke.
"Brother Ege… I shouldn't have said anything today. I shouldn't have told you I was starting to have feelings for you. I made you cry."
Egemed shook his head. "It's alright. At least you never hid it from me."
In the darkness, Jerelr smiled faintly at him.
"Thank you. I'll always be your friend. Your soulmate friend."
Egemed smiled back. "Can you even see me smiling? It's dark."
"I'm imagining it," Jerelr laughed.
"Well… I'll be your soulmate friend too. Till the end. Ah—stay at my house tonight. We still have to talk about the new book we're releasing next month. On your birthday."
"Of course. Your mother won't let me go home anyway. We'll have dinner there as usual."
"Yes. And the book… I'm so happy. It's our first book written together."
"Our Friendship on the Valley of Breath," Jerelr said proudly.
Egemed shouted with sudden delight, "YES!"
They walked in silence for a while, the path soft beneath their soaked feet. Shivers ran through them from their wet clothes, but being together made the cold almost meaningless—they simply held onto each other, finding warmth in the shared quiet.
Then Egemed muttered, "You ruined the day, Jerelr."
Jerelr flinched dramatically. "Ah yes… this crazy bastard. When we're quiet together, I feel like I'm in love with you. When we're not, I feel like you're my brother. What am I?"
"An IDIOT!" Egemed shouted, bursting into laughter.
Jerelr stopped abruptly, turning to stare at Egemed, his mouth falling open in disbelief. "That… that's the first time you've called me an idiot in six years!"
Egemed chuckled. "You're the only person I can roast, fry, and boil in a pan. A spoon. Whatever."
"Pff—BAHAHAHA!"
"And I thought my Brother Ege was calm and gentle like cotton!"
"BWAHAHAHA!"
"Stop it! We're home!"
And so, the two of them walked inside—laughing, soaked, shivering, and stubbornly inseparable.
They loved each other in their own way and continued life exactly as before: working on their building, visiting the Valley of Breath, fishing on quiet afternoons, and writing side by side.
. . .
Some things must stay hidden
if you want the word "FOREVER"
to remain forever.