An Old Crush
958 Words
The night air was cooler now, the crisp breeze brushing softly against Seren's cheeks as she leaned against the iron railing of the patio. The distant sounds of traffic hummed beneath the muffled laughter and music from the reunion hall. Seren focused on the stars, barely visible beyond the city's glow, but still comforting. Unlike the swirling embarrassment and confusion gnawing at her from inside.
Her fingers toyed with the edge of the pastel dress, Delaney's pick, still feeling like a disguise she hadn't chosen for herself. She hadn't thought this night could get worse. Being mistaken for a copycat, a bully, a pathetic hanger-on... it was high school all over again, only meaner because now she should have known better. Should have protected herself better. Just as she was about to retreat into the quiet of her own thoughts, a voice behind her stirred the air.
"...Seren?"
It wasn't just the name. It was the voice. Familiar. Gentle. She turned around slowly, half-expecting someone to throw another casual insult. But instead, there he was. Jude. Her heart stalled for a moment.
Jude Everett, her quiet school crush, the one person who had seen her when others hadn't. The one she used to talk to at lunch, walk beside in the halls, pass little doodled notes to during free periods. The one she'd grown comfortable enough with to think, maybe, there was something more. Before it all vanished overnight. Before he avoided her without explanation, ghosting her presence with the kind of silence that felt like rejection wrapped in mystery.
Seren blinked, caught between the past and the present. He looked older, but not drastically changed. Still had that soft jawline, those tired but kind eyes, now with faint smile lines forming at the edges. He looked surprised, but not unpleasantly so. If anything, he looked... a little in awe.
"Wow," he said, stepping closer with a cautious grin. "It really is you."
Seren hesitated, then gave a small smile. "Hi, Jude." His name on her lips felt strange, like brushing dust off a keepsake you forgot you treasured.
"I almost didn't recognize you," he said, laughing gently. "You've changed."
Seren looked down at herself, feeling awkward in the pastel dress. "Yeah... not really. Just wrapped in more pink than usual."
He chuckled again. "I mean it in a good way. You look... strong. It's nice seeing you again."
The sincerity in his voice made something soften in her chest. "I didn't expect you to be here," she said. "I figured you'd moved far away. Or gotten too smart to come back to something like this."
He leaned against the railing beside her. "Almost didn't. But I was in town visiting family, and... I guess nostalgia got the better of me."
She nodded. "Yeah. I wasn't even going to come either. Delaney talked me into it."
There was a slight pause at the mention of her name. "Ah," he said, eyes narrowing ever so slightly. "Delaney."
Seren tilted her head. "What?"
He hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck. "I always wondered if you hated me after senior year," he said quietly.
"Hated you?" Seren's eyebrows shot up. "You stopped talking to me out of nowhere. I thought you were avoiding me. You never said anything."
"I was," he admitted, a shadow of guilt passing through his expression. "And I'm sorry. I was a coward back then. I liked you a lot. But... Delaney told me..." He sighed, shaking his head. "She told me you didn't want me hanging around you anymore. That I was making things hard for you."
Seren's blood went cold. "What?"
"Yeah," he said. "She caught me alone after class one day. Said you didn't want to hurt my feelings directly, and that I should give you space. I believed her. I didn't know what was true. And honestly, I didn't want to embarrass myself."
Seren's mouth opened slightly, then closed again. She tried to form a response but couldn't. Delaney. Of course. Of course it had been her. Seren had confided in Delaney about Jude, about how she liked him, how safe he made her feel, how maybe, just maybe, she wanted to try and tell him. And just like that, Delaney had swooped in and cut the strings. Just like now. "Jesus," Seren muttered, leaning harder into the railing. "She told me you were the one who didn't care."
They stood in silence for a moment. The air between them was heavy but not hostile, more like a moment paused in long-needed clarity. "I'm really sorry," Jude said again. "I should've talked to you directly. But I was young. Stupid."
Seren gave him a sad smile. "We both were."
Another moment passed before Jude spoke again, this time gentler. "You look happy now though. Doing okay?"
Seren hesitated. She thought about the laughter in the room. The pastel dress. The quiet betrayal. Malrick. Rowan. All of it.
And then she thought about this moment, about being seen again by someone who had once known her without suspicion.
"I'm... trying," she admitted honestly. "But I think I'm figuring things out."
Jude nodded slowly. "Well, if it means anything, it's good to see you again. The real you."
Seren looked at him, at the familiar curve of his smile, softened by years, shadowed by old miscommunication, and for the first time that evening, she genuinely smiled back. "Yeah," she said. "It's good to see you too."
They didn't say much more after that. There was no need to. But when Jude gently offered to walk her back inside, Seren agreed.
And when they passed through the doors together, Seren didn't care who was watching. Because for the first time that night, she wasn't alone.
- Writer
