Chapter 3 – The Day After
643 Words
She barely slept. Not because of him. That’s what she kept telling herself. It was just… a long day. Too many thoughts. Too much silence where answers should have been.
Morning came wrapped in routine.
Coffee. Quiet. Distance.
He was already in the kitchen.
Scrolling. Detached.
“Morning,” he said.
“Morning.”
No eye contact. No shift. Nothing new.
And yet… she felt different standing there.
Like something inside her had moved… and refused to go back.
The office was the opposite.
Noise. Movement. People talking over each other. Normal. Safe.
- “Okay, what’s wrong with you?” Ana dropped into the chair across from her desk, studying her.
She forced a small smile.
- “Nothing.”
Ana leaned in.
- “That’s your ‘something is definitely wrong’ face.”
She almost laughed. Almost told her everything. About the messages. About the way a stranger had somehow said things no one else did.
But instead—
- “Just didn’t sleep,” she said.
Safe.
Emails filled her screen.
Numbers. Tasks. Deadlines. She focused. Or tried to.
Because her mind kept slipping…back to him. To the words. To the tone. To the way he didn’t try to impress her—just… saw her.
Her phone buzzed.
She froze.
Didn’t reach for it immediately.
Even though her body already knew who it was.
Another vibration.
Short.
Controlled.
She picked it up.
Unlocked it.
A message.
“You look like you’re pretending to focus.”
Her breath caught. Her eyes lifted instantly.
Scanning the office. Desks. People. Screens. No one looking at her. No one… obvious. Her fingers moved before she could stop them.
“Are you watching me?”
Sent. Too fast.
Three dots appeared.
“Would that make it more interesting?”
Her lips parted slightly. That tone. Not defensive. Not serious. Playing.
She frowned at the screen. Typed again.
This time slower.
“What are you, exactly?”
Pause.
Delete.
Rewrite.
“Be honest… are you some kind of psychopath who enjoys messing with people’s minds?”
She stared at the message for a second. Then hit send.
Silence.
One second.
Two.
Her heart picked up.
Why did that feel like a risk?
Three dots appeared again.
“Careful…”
A pause.
“You make it sound like I’m dangerous.”
Another pause.
Then—
“What if I just enjoy talking to someone who finally listens?”
Her chest tightened. That wasn’t what she expected. Before she could process it, another message came in.
“And if I were a psychopath…”
A beat.
“You would be this curious?”
Her breath hitched.
There it was. That pull again. Not safe. Not logical. But real.
“Ahem.”
She looked up fast.
Ana was staring at her.
- “You’re smiling at your phone,” she said slowly. “Should I be concerned?”
She immediately straightened her face.
- “I’m not.”
- “You are.”
- “I’m not.”
Ana narrowed her eyes.
- “Who is he?”
She hesitated. Just for a second.
Then—
- “No one.”
But her phone vibrated again.
And this time…she didn’t even try to hide the reaction.
“You’re thinking about me more than you should.”
Her fingers tightened around the phone.
“That’s usually how this starts.”
Her heart was beating faster now.
Too fast.For something she didn’t understand. She typed. Stopped. Then sent anyway.
“This isn’t starting anything.”
The reply came instantly.
“We’ll see.”
She stared at the screen.
At those two words. Simple. Confident.
Like he already knew something she didn’t.
Around her, the office buzzed like always.
People talking. Phones ringing. Life moving forward.
But inside her…something had already shifted.
And this time...she wasn’t sure she wanted to stop it.
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