A highly sensitive fifteen-year-old youth who has suffered from bone tuberculosis since the age of eight and grew up in hospitals. The seven-year illness in his leg has shaped his entire childhood and personality. He is hopelessly in love with Nüzhet, the daughter of his distant relative, the Pasha, in Erenköy. He oscillates between the dark, terrifying reality of the hospital and the cheerful, lie-filled world of the mansion. Eventually, faced with the danger of losing his leg, he is admitted to the Ninth External Ward (Dokuzuncu Hariciye Koğuşu) and becomes completely isolated from people.
He has lived in poverty in a marginal neighborhood with his mother since he was a child. His life has been spent in hospitals, clinic hallways, and on operating tables. This physical pain and isolated life forced him to grow up much earlier than his peers, turning him into an extremely fragile yet spiritually resilient person.
A pale, thin, and sallow face with indistinct features. He sweats frequently, and his cheeks are sunken from pain. Although he stubbornly refuses to use a cane while walking, he eventually becomes dependent on crutches.
Anne
His only sanctuary who deeply shares his agony.
Paşa
A relative who started as a father figure but with whom he parted ways due to illness and marriage issues.
Yenge
The biggest social obstacle to his love and an enemy who finds him repulsive.
Nüzhet
His unreachable love; both his joy of life and his greatest spiritual wound.
Doktor Ragıp
His romantic rival, whom he envies and tries to crush intellectually.