The events that made Armağan feel as if the world had come to an end started with her mother. Mrs Yasemin was born in a very withdrawn family, she had never left the small town where she was born, and no matter how much she wanted to study after high school, her family had not allowed her to do so. When Rıfat set foot in İznik for the first time as an archaeologist, he was a young man in his mid-twenties, not even understanding what life was all about.

They were excavating the Roman Theatre just behind Yasemin's father's house, and they were spending their holidays at the lake in the heat. On one of those days, he met Yasemin. She was a beautiful woman. Her light brown hair attracted the sun to her, the sun creams she applied so that her white skin would not burn added a pleasant aroma to her skin. However, Rıfat had never thought of being with her and had quickly accepted Yasemin as a friend.

Yasemin's father, Faruk Bey, did not like this at all. The woman was no longer a hussy or a philanderer. Faruk was so hard on his daughter that Yasemin started to look for a way to run away from home and somehow informed Rıfat about this situation.

Rıfat married her. Just so she could escape from the family home.

As the responsibilities of married life weighed heavily on both of them, Yasemin miscarried their first babies, Gökçe and Ömer. After that, her life was never the same anyway.

As the years went by, they had a child; Armağan. Armağan was not a very healthy baby when she was born. Her mother Yasemin had lost herself for good. They drifted for a while; Yasemin found the regret of being separated from her family in religion. While trying to encourage Armağan in religion, she alienated the girl from herself, and eventually she was completely alone.

Armağan's Mother committed suicide when she was five years old. Of course, our little girl found her body.

It was raining when she and her father first went to his grave. Since there was no gravestone yet, Armağan could not believe that her mother was seven floors under the ground and had difficulty understanding the concept of death. But she could see how upset her father was, and at that age she was determined to pursue whatever it was that was upsetting him.

Now, as she looked at the small summaries of the notes she had taken for five years in front of the corkboard, she thought that she could now fulfil the promise of revenge she had made to her father. She would defeat death for him. Maybe this was a childish thought, maybe Armağan was making her life difficult by romanticising things... But everything she had achieved in the last two years told her something else:

Death was real, death existed, and death was renewable.

This is what the ancient inscriptions and artefacts of the past told people. Death could be defeated.

Armağan, who had built his entire education life on this, now felt as if she was being rewarded for her life's work.

She had signed the necessary documents to participate in the excavation and packed her belongings. This was not the first excavation she had participated in; after all, she had studied anthropology. Therefore, it could be said that she was experienced. Now she could do nothing but wait for the time to leave, but Armağan was burning with a great excitement.

As she stood with her hands on her hips, trying to work out if she would need her notes, the pleasant sounds of dinner preparations came from the kitchen. Her father had made his excellent chickpea and chicken pilaf. It was one of Armağan's favourite dishes and his father wanted to do her a favour. As she listened to those voices, she wondered where this new path would take her.

The woman who did not like her reflection in the mirror was now brimming with self-confidence.

"Armi, come and get the plates."

She turned her head and looked at her door. It was really time for dinner. She didn't know if she was hungry or not, but she couldn't bother her father when he had tried so hard. She left her room with heavy steps and went to the kitchen. "Dad, I'll tell you what," she said as she walked in the door:

"my camera is all worn out. Can I take yours on my way to the excavation?"

His father handed Armağan the two plates and then took the yoghurt bowls and spoons. After thinking for a while, he said, "OK, but be careful."

After making a murmur of approval, he returned to the living room. They had a small house and they were having dinner at the table in the living room. That's why Armağan, after placing his plates opposite each other as usual, pushed her computer to the side and sat in her usual place. After putting her feet under her and sitting cross-legged, she pulled one of the yoghurt bowls placed on the table by his father in front of her.

After sitting on the sofa, Rıfat Bey said, "Muğla must be hot, I hope you haven't packed your jeans." "While you're there, if you want, drop by Aunt Nazan's house. They are also on that side. You can rest your head for a few days."

Taking a spoonful of her pilaf, Armağan shook her head from side to side. After waiting for the pilaf in her mouth to finish, she said, "Nah, I'll be busy there. Besides, Aunt Nazan is a little out of it."

"The last time I went to her, she told me I had demons."

Her father chuckled and said, "She is a bipolar girl."

"Don't take everything she says seriously."

Even though her father said so, Armağan sometimes got tired of Nazan. When she was little, she might have been someone he enjoyed spending time with, but as she grew older, he realised how strange she was.

While they were eating, Erik, who had been asleep for a while, got up from Rıfat's bed. He shuffled into the hall. After a glance at Armağan and Rıfat, he went to Armağan's room this time.

Turning to his daughter, Rıfat asked, "Do you still want to take Erik?"

Armağan mumbled a murmur of approval because her mouth was full of rice.

"I'll take you then," said her father. "It will be a change for me too."

The young woman said, "Sure." She already knew it would come to this. Erik was huge as a German Shepherd and Labrador mix. He was shedding as much as he was huge. He was not a vocal animal for some reason, but when all these factors were combined, it was impossible for Armağan to go on a bus journey with him.

Therefore, she was aware that at some point her father would offer to take her.

"Maybe you can stop by Aunt Nazan's." She placed a smile on her face and looked at her father from below.

Rıfat Bey said, "No, my daughter, let the devil see your face." and took a spoon from his yoghurt.

This relationship between them was good as long as her father acted responsibly. Armağan always knew this. She loved it when he took care of her and she loved doing activities with her father. But every time Rıfat was a bit free, he would cause them a new trouble.

Armağan was especially unhappy with Rıfat's flirting. She knew that there was nothing between him and her mother, she didn't love her. But no good had come from anyone else she had let into her life either. She had a Bulgarian flirt for a while; Seth. But he, too, was out of her life because of her father's dishonourable behaviour.

When things were like that, Armağan realised that his father would be left on his own, and to tell the truth, she was enjoying it a little.

"Shall we go down to Sakarya after dinner and have a drink?" asked Armağan.

"Sure. I'll call my diving boats too."

Rıfat's mates were his students. He had a few students from the faculty, he called them. Even though Armağan didn't like them that much, she was going to put up with it for tonight.

"Let's take Erik too," she added. "He always stays at home."

The rest of the meal passed in silence. Whether it was because she was going away or because she felt she couldn't come back, she was being kinder to her father. After all, it was all for him, wasn't it, putting up with his dates and his students, beating death.

As We Rot Below

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