The Beauty of Seferihisar | Paranormal Story

Paranormal Story | Summary: Waiter Halil’s mysterious love for Melisa, whom he thought was a ghost, in İzmir Seferihisar. Reunion in İstanbul years later and the lingering question: Real or dream?

Hello, my name is Halil, I’m 32 years old. I want to share a strange event that happened to me 8 years ago. After this event, my life completely changed. My story contains oddities and mystery. Initially, I thought I was hallucinating, but for a while, I believed it was real. Things got complicated sometimes, but in the end, there was also a big coincidence.

I was working at a fish restaurant in Seferihisar, İzmir. Like many people in Turkey, I lived in poverty and hardship. I worked here in the summer and went to İzmir in the winter to find live-in jobs. The season had just started about a month ago. People were slowly arriving at their summer houses, and our business was gradually getting busier. It was a very pleasant place for our customers; in this seaside venue, they enjoyed their fish while having a delightful and good time.

One day, a girl among the customers caught my eye. She was so beautiful that I froze just looking at her. I watched her from afar several times. Occasionally, she would look back at me, and she realized I was interested in her. She wasn’t eating or getting up from the table. She wasn’t talking to anyone at the table either. At one point, I went to the kitchen for orders that came out. When I returned, she was the only one missing from the table. I kept watching that table; no one came or went. The other people at the table paid the bill and left. I watched them leave, but the girl wasn’t there. They got into their cars and drove off.

About two weeks later, I was again taking orders from the kitchen to serve when I saw her. I quickly served my table and started watching her from a distance. Again, she wasn’t talking to anyone or eating anything. This time she had come with different people. We kept making eye contact. Those who work in restaurants know, you can’t stand still for two minutes; there’s always something to do. When I returned, she was gone again. The people at the table paid the bill and left; I couldn’t see her again.

I went home late at night. The next day was my day off. I kept thinking about her in bed, and she even came into my dream. We were at our restaurant again, but no one was working, only me. She was the only customer. I went to her, took her order, and went to the kitchen to start cooking. Then I served the food and asked if she needed anything else. “Not for now,” she said, and I stood there watching her for a while. It was the first time I saw her eating. I noticed she seemed bored and went over to ask again if she needed anything. “I’m lonely, I’m bored. Sit down, let’s chat for a bit,” she said. I sat across from her, and we started talking. Her name was Melisa. She said she had just recently arrived here from Australia. We chatted for a while and got to know each other. “I’ll come again,” she said, and I saw her off. As I was taking the plates to the kitchen, one slipped from my hand and broke. The sound startled me awake, and my dream ended.

After my day off, I returned to work. In the evening, all the customers had left, and we were cleaning up. After finishing my work, I was about to head home when I saw Melisa outside at one of the tables! “I told you I’d come, did you forget?” she asked. I immediately got two drinks and came over. We started talking. I slowly began to show my interest in her, and finally confessed my feelings. She said, “Let’s give it time.” She asked for another drink. “Coming right up,” I said. When I returned, she wasn’t there. She hadn’t even touched the first drink. “Why did she ask for a second one?” I wondered at the table for a while. Meanwhile, one of my colleagues asked me, “Why are you standing there talking to yourself?” “What talking?” I asked. “Yes, I saw you, you were talking alone.” His words bothered me a bit. I headed home and started thinking in bed. She didn’t eat, didn’t talk to anyone. Was there something strange about this?

The next day, I went to work and continued as if nothing had happened. Work finished, and I started walking home. I saw Melisa sitting on a bench near our house. She called me over, and I immediately sat down. We started chatting. After the usual ‘how are you, are you okay’ pleasantries, I asked, “What are you doing here?” She first said, “My aunt lives nearby,” and pointed out the house. I was actually very curious about her. “Should I touch her,” I thought for a moment, “to see if she’s real or not?” Doubt constantly began to form in my mind. I asked her, “Shall we take a picture together?” I insisted, and she agreed. We took a nice picture together, and when I looked at the phone, there was no problem with the photo; we looked quite good. As she was leaving, I wanted to shake her hand and touch her, but she said she was in a big hurry. Just as she was about to leave, I grabbed her arm. “Let’s meet again tomorrow,” I said. She flinched at my touch and quickly walked away.

I went home. My mother asked, “Where have you been, son?” “I met up with a friend, Mom,” I said. “Which friend was that? I watched you from the window, what’s going on, son? You sat there for nearly an hour acting like you were talking to someone, but you were alone!” she said. Hearing this, I thought, “It can’t be!” again. I was going to take out the photo and show it to my mother, but I couldn’t muster the courage. What if Melisa wasn’t in the photo? I could handle what everyone else might say, but I couldn’t bear the thought of my mother thinking I was going crazy. She already had some health issues. So, I didn’t say anything and just said, “I was just talking to myself, making plans.”

I eagerly waited for the next day. After work, I went to the same place again and started waiting. Melisa arrived too. I said to Melisa, “There’s something wrong.” “What is it?” she asked. “I think you are a ghost or a jinn.” She laughed in response: “Where did you get that idea?” “Because no one else can see you but me,” I said. “My colleagues, my mother… They all think I’m talking to myself.” “Then hold my hand. You’ll know then if it’s real or a dream,” she said. I held her hand. It was warm, a real hand. I didn’t let go for a long time. She looked quite good in the picture on my phone too. So, I somehow believed she was real.

This continued for a few days. We had become closer. We kept meeting at the same place after work in the evenings. She had also shown me the house where she stayed. “Look, I stay in that house,” she said. Our relationship had progressed quite a bit. One day, I invited her to the market in Seferihisar. She said she couldn’t make it, that she had some business in İzmir. “I can only come tomorrow evening. Let’s meet at the same place again,” we agreed on the phone. I hadn’t told anyone we were dating, and nobody had seen us together. People passed by where we met, but nothing seemed to catch their attention, I guess. There was no problem. Still, I kept wondering, “Do they see her?” That night, while sitting on the bench, I decided I would stop someone passing by and ask if they saw her.

I came from work and called her. “I’ll be there shortly,” she said. I started waiting. When Melisa arrived, we hugged. I had really missed her; I hadn’t seen her for almost two days. “What have you been up to, tell me,” I said. “We did some shopping at the market,” she replied. I was constantly touching her, holding her hand. Everything was real; I could feel it. I waited for someone to pass by that area. Finally, an elderly auntie passed nearby. Making an excuse, I left Melisa’s side and went to the auntie. “Auntie, this might sound a bit strange, but do you see the girl sitting over there?” I asked. “Yes, I see her, a beautiful girl. Is she your girlfriend?” she asked. “Yes,” I said. I was overjoyed to hear this answer. I immediately went back to Melisa and started talking again. “The auntie seems to have made you quite happy; you keep smiling. What’s up?” she asked. I told her she was my mother’s friend. “She liked you a lot too,” I said, and we said goodbye there. “Let’s meet here again tomorrow at the same time,” we agreed. I didn’t know this would be the last time I saw Melisa.

The next day, near the end of my shift, I went to the same place again. No one came or went. I called her phone; no one answered. I waited on that bench for a long time; nobody came. I went home. “Probably something came up, she couldn’t make it,” I thought. Morning came, and after breakfast, I started calling her. A different woman answered the phone. “That’s enough! If you call this number again, I’ll report you to the prosecutor!” she said. “What are you talking about, woman?” I asked. “You’ve been calling and bothering me for days! Don’t call again!” she said. “What was that now?” I thought to myself. After work, I went to the same place again. No one came, no one went. What was happening? I called Melisa’s number again. The same woman answered. “Didn’t I tell you not to call me again?!” “Wait a minute, don’t hang up!” I said. “This number should belong to someone named Melisa. I used to call her from this number every day and ask her to meet me,” I explained. “Yes, you called every day. And I hung up on you saying ‘stop calling’. But you persistently keep calling! Look, I’m not kidding, I can report you to the prosecutor if you bother me again!” she said.

After hanging up the phone, I immediately went to the house she had shown me, where she supposedly stayed. I knocked on the door, and an elderly auntie opened it. Looking closely at the woman, I realized this was the same auntie I had pointed Melisa out to on the street! “Good Lord!” I muttered to myself. “Yes, young man?” she said. “Auntie, is Melisa here?” I asked. “What Melisa, child?” she said. “Are you talking about the girl from the other evening?” “Yes,” I said. “I’ve been living here alone for years. It’s been a long time since my husband passed away. I haven’t had any guests since then,” she said. Lord help me, what is going on…

I went home and started thinking. My colleague and my mother were right. That woman was an illusion! I couldn’t help myself and burst into tears. For days, after work, I went and sat on the same bench. I would call the number but just drift off.

Exactly two years passed. The pain had significantly subsided by then. I had overcome the trauma Melisa left me with during that period. I had come to İstanbul to find work. I had a friend here too. We went to a place on İstiklal Avenue together. One of the employees there caught my attention. When I looked more closely, I couldn’t stop my heart from pounding. It was Melisa! “It can’t be!” I thought to myself. I postponed the job search a bit. I went there every day. She saw me a few times but didn’t recognize me. I decided I had to talk to her. I went up to her and called out, “Melisa?” “How do you know my name?” she asked. I quickly explained some things to her. “I’m working right now. I can only meet you for half an hour after my shift ends,” she said. “Okay,” I replied and started waiting for her.

I picked her up after work, and we sat down in a cafe and started talking. I told her everything that had happened and also showed her the picture on my phone. She was shocked when she saw it but said, “That’s me in the picture.” “I’ve never been to Seferihisar. I don’t know you either. This can’t be!” she said. She was very surprised too. Thanks to this situation, I had caught her interest a bit. I started going to her workplace almost every day. Over time, she also started showing interest in me. Eventually, we started dating. It began to feel like a very strange situation to me, but I had found her again. I had also found a job in İstanbul.

We had been together for about a year. I proposed to her. She accepted without hesitation. We made all the preparations, got married, and settled in Seferihisar. Everything was going beautifully; we were living quite happily.

One night, after falling asleep, I found myself in a dream. Melisa and that auntie… The auntie said, “You are with her for life now, cherish her.” I turned to Melisa. She said, “Yes, a long time passed, we met again. I love you too. We are reunited, now we are together until death. Don’t forget this,” and she hugged me. Then I woke up from the dream and woke Melisa up. I told her about my dream. She said, “The real one is me, don’t worry.” “We are together for life now.”

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