Seraphine sat cross-legged on her bed, the soft glow of her bedside lamp lighting the quiet apartment.
Her phone rested in her hands.
The picture she had posted earlier was still gaining reactions. Notifications kept popping uplikes, comments, old acquaintances appearing again as if they had been waiting for her to show up online.
But she wasn't really looking at the screen.
Her mind was somewhere else.
Back to that night.
Back to him.
She closed her eyes and leaned against the headboard, exhaling slowly.
"Why did he do that…" she murmured.
He hadn't gone all the way with her.
He had just… teased her.
The way he had leaned close.
The way his voice had lowered when he whispered near her ear.
The way his fingers had brushed her waist before pulling away like he enjoyed watching her react.
Her cheeks warmed immediately.
"Ugh… that man."
She threw the phone onto the bed beside her and covered her face with both hands.
But the memories refused to stop.
And slowly… her thoughts drifted further back.
Far before him.
Back to the woman she used to be.
Seraphine had never been the shy type.
In college, she was the girl people noticed the moment she walked into a room.
Not because she tried too hard.
But because she simply enjoyed life.
The parties.
The music.
The late nights.
The freedom.
She remembered the first time her friends dragged her into a nightclub during freshman year.
The lights had flashed across the crowded dance floor, music vibrating through the walls as bodies moved to the rhythm.
She had been wearing a short red dress that hugged her curves, paired with heels she could barely walk in.
Yet somehow she had danced all night.
Laughing.
Spinning.
Meeting strangers.
That was the beginning.
After that, the nights kept coming.
Different clubs.
Different cities.
Different faces.
Sometimes she dressed elegantly in sleek dresses that shimmered under club lights.
Other times she wore bold outfits that made her stand out in every crowd.
Summer vacations meant beach parties.
She remembered one trip clearly.
The ocean stretched endlessly under the sunset as music played from beach speakers.
She and her friends ran across the sand laughing, wearing bright bikinis and oversized sunglasses, rocking their bodies.
They had taken dozens of pictures.
Posing.
Dancing.
Splashing water at each other.
One of those photos was still somewhere in her gallery.
A younger version of herself.
Confident.
Carefree.
Unapologetic.
Then there were the men.
She did slept with few but it was just for fun.
Seraphine sighed softly.
She had dated many people over the years.
Some relationships lasted months.
Others only a few weeks.
There had been the charming DJ who taught her how to mix music in a small studio.
The athletic swimmer who took her on spontaneous road trips.
The quiet artist who loved sketching her while she sat by the window.
And then there were others who never became serious at all.
Just brief connections during wild nights of laughter and music.
At the time, it never felt wrong.
Everyone around her lived the same way.
Dating.
Breaking up.
Moving on.
Life was exciting back then.
Every night felt unpredictable.
Every new person felt like a new story waiting to happen.
But now…
Seraphine stared at the ceiling.
Strangely, all those memories felt distant.
Almost like they belonged to another person.
Because none of those men…
None of those nights…
Had ever made her heart react the way it did around him.
The way her pulse sped up when he looked at her.
The way her stomach flipped when he smiled slowly like he knew exactly what he was doing.
The way he teased her until she couldn't think straight.
She groaned into her pillow.
"Why am I even thinking about him this much?"
She rolled onto her side and grabbed her phone again.
Her post was still gaining attention.
Comments from old party friends.
Messages from former flings.
A few even asking if she wanted to meet up again sometime.
Jessica stared at the screen.
Then quietly locked the phone.
None of them mattered.
Not tonight.
Because the only person stuck in her head…
Was the man who hadn't even touched her completely.
And somehow that made it worse.