The music was too loud, the lights too red, and my heart too broken.
I came here to forget. Not to be found.
"Another shot?" the bartender asked.
I nodded. "Make it burn."
My ex's words still echoed in my head.
You're too cold, Elina. You don't even know how to love.
He was wrong. I just didn't want to waste it on someone temporary.
Then he appeared..leaning against the bar like he owned the air itself.
Dark shirt, darker eyes, smile that felt like sin.
"Drinking alone?" he asked, voice rough and deep.
"Running from something," I muttered.
He smirked
"Then let me help you forget."
Before I could answer, his hand brushed my wrist..light, but electric.
My breath caught.
Something in me..something reckless..said
yes...!
---
The next thing I knew, the club lights blurred.
We were in the hallway.
His breath was warm against my ear.
"Tell me to stop," he whispered.
I didn't.
He kissed me. Hard. Hungry. Like he'd been waiting his whole life for that moment.
I melted against him, my fingers tangled in his hair.
His hand slid up my back, steady, claiming, worshiping.
Every sound..our breaths, my name from his lips..felt too loud, too real.
The world disappeared.
There was only the heat of him, the rhythm between us, the way his voice dropped low when he said..
"You taste like my ruin, Elina."
And I didn't care.
Morning came like punishment.
My head ached. My body felt…different.
My lipstick was gone, my neck marked, my lips swollen.
And beside me..an empty space, cold sheets, and a
note:
You're even better than I imagined --A.
My pulse froze.
I didn't even remember his face.
But my body did.
I left the hotel room like I was escaping a crime scene.
My clothes wrinkled, my hair a mess, my heart still pounding like it hadn't realized the night was over.
The lobby smelled like coffee and expensive perfume.
The receptionist smiled politely.
"Miss, the bill's already paid."
My stomach dropped.
"By whom?"
He just shrugged. "The gentleman left early. Said you might forget."
Forget?
I couldn't even remember.
I checked my phone..
9:07 a.m.
Damn. I was already late for med school.
---
By the time I reached the campus, my head felt like a construction site.
I pushed open the lecture hall door, trying to look normal—whatever that meant after a night like that.
Everyone turned. Of course they did.
Mira waved from the back row, mouthing, "You're dead."
I rushed to her seat, dropping my bag.
She leaned closer, eyes wide.
"Elina, what the hell happened to your neck?"
I froze.
"Oh...uh..mosquito bite."
She laughed.
"That mosquito had a PhD in passion.. girl."
I rolled my eyes, pretending to laugh too. "Shut up...!!"
But then I caught a movement near the front.
My ex.
Same smug face, same stupid watch.
And beside him..her.
Nina...
Perfect hair, perfect nails, perfect new girlfriend.
He didn't even glance at me, but I'd seen his post last night.
"Finally found peace."
Yeah. After shattering mine.
Mira leaned closer.
"Ignore them. You look hotter than both combined."
I smiled, but it didn't reach my eyes.
The laughter, the whispers, the pitying looks they were worse than the hangover.
And then
"Miss Elina!"
Professor Milter's voice snapped through the room.
I jerked up. "Y....Yes sir?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Good of you to join us. Tell me..what nerve originates from the C6 root?"
My brain went blank.
Damn. What even was anatomy at this point?
"Umm… auxiliary nerve?"
A beat of silence then laughter exploded.
Mira facepalmed beside me.
The professor sighed.
"Brachial nerve, Miss Elina. You might want to revise instead of revisiting last night's mistakes."
My cheeks burned.
He had no idea how right he was.
I sank into my seat, trying to hide behind my notebook.
But the whispering wouldn't stop.
Neither would my pulse.
Because in the middle of all the noise…
I heard it.
A voice.
Low, familiar, and far too close to my ear.
"Told you I'd find you, Elina..."
My pen slipped from my hand.
Heart still racing, I bent to pick it up then my phone buzzed.
A message..
Unknown number
"Are you alright sweetheart? Damn… your perfume and those lips won't leave my mind."
My stomach twisted.
What the...?
I frowned and typed back fast:
"Ewww...Who the hell are you?"
Three dots appeared. Then his reply slid in, smooth and slow, like a whisper against my skin.
"Your night in heaven - A"
I froze.
My breath hitched.
The classroom noise faded, replaced by the echo of his voice in my head.
"You're mine tonight, Elina."
And suddenly, I wasn't sure if I was still hungover
Or not
I stared at the screen, my pulse thundering.
My fingers typed before my brain could stop them.
Me: Fuck you.
The reply came instantly.
Him: Eagerly waiting...
I clenched my jaw. My anger almost drowned out the chill crawling down my spine.
"Psycho," I muttered under my breath and hit block.
Mira glanced at me. "Who are you texting?"
"No one. Some idiot."
She smirked. "From last night?"
"Drop it," I said, shoving my phone away.
I tried to focus. Tried to listen to the lecture, but every word from the professor blurred together.
Brachial plexus, C6 root, lateral cord... whatever.
My head was buzzing for all the wrong reasons.
Then
Vibration...
My phone lit up again.
Same number.
I blinked.
Impossible. I'd blocked it.
I opened it slowly, my stomach twisting.
Him: Okay..my ruin! Focus on your classes.
My blood ran cold.
I looked around the classroom—faces, laughter, noise—but suddenly it all felt distant.
How the hell did he know I was in class?
Mira was whispering something beside me, but I didn't hear.
My eyes stayed on the message, on that one word
Ruin.
" Okay...my ruin..."
That night, his breath, his voice, his handsflashed through my mind.
I slammed my phone screen down, heart racing.
I didn't know his name.
I didn't remember his face.
But he remembered everything.