It Made Me Think Of You

By Freddie Sampayo

It Made Me Think of You

by Freddie Sampayo

Paris still smelled of rain a soft blend of stone and roses - when Freddie saw her.

It wasn't Anna.

But for a single breath, the world believed it was.

A stranger in a red silk dress walked into Café Montclair...and memory shattered the distance o

• Language: English
• Publisher: Freddie Sampayo
• Release date: Oct 21, 2025
• ISBN: 9798349639296

Book preview

Chapter 1

A Ghost in the Glass

Freddie left the café with the rain soaking his coat, the memory of that red silk dress still burning behind his eyes. The city smelled of wet asphalt, old brick, and coffee, a scent he associated with long walks and conversations that lingered past midnight. He shook off the drizzle and glanced across the street again, half-expecting the dress to vanish like a dream.

It hadn’t.

The dress swayed gently in the display, catching the streetlight and glinting like it knew something he didn’t. Every step Freddie took forward felt like walking through fog, yet every detail was piercingly clear, the way the fabric flowed, the way the light bounced off it, the way it reminded him of Anna.

He remembered their first encounter vividly. The way she had laughed across a crowded room, the slow tilt of her head, the quiet elegance in her movement. He had been too shy, too inexperienced, too afraid to cross the line from admiration to confession. And yet, her presence had seeped into him, like water into stone.

Even now, years later, the smallest things could undo him. A stranger’s perfume brushing past him on the train, a melody drifting from a passing car, or the rhythmic patter of rain against the windows, every one of them could conjure Anna like a phantom.

Freddie’s hand brushed the edge of his coat pocket, where his phone lay, buzzing with messages that no longer seemed important. Nothing mattered tonight except the memory, the pull, the need to trace back to the moments that had made his heart learn her name by memory alone.

He walked past familiar streets, the corner where they had shared a late-night coffee, the bookstore where Anna had lingered among poetry volumes, and the small music shop where they had discovered their favorite record. Each place was a breadcrumb leading him back to her, to the intimacy he had lost but never forgotten.

And as the rain soaked through his coat, Freddie realized the truth that had always lingered at the edge of his mind, some love isn’t finished when it leaves; it only waits for the right moment to be remembered again.

The red silk dress in the window was not just fabric. It was a doorway, a whisper, a reminder that Anna was everywhere, in everything, in every little thing that moved the way she did.

He took a deep breath and stepped closer, letting the reflection in the glass ripple across his chest like a heartbeat.

And in that reflection, Freddie knew, tonight, he would begin tracing her again.

Chapter 2

The Echo of You

Freddie turned the corner onto a quieter street, slick with rain and glinting under the amber streetlights. The city had a way of feeling both alive and empty at the same time, and tonight it was all memory and longing. Each footstep echoed in puddles, each splash reminding him of the nights he had walked here with Anna, hands brushing, hearts leaning close in the dark.

A faint melody drifted from a small café tucked between two brick buildings. It was that same old song they had once shared, soft, jazzy, with a gentle piano line that tugged at the corners of his heart. He paused, listening, letting the music wash over him like water over worn stone.

And then he saw her, or someone who seemed like her.

Across the street, a woman stood under the soft glow of the café window. Her hair caught the light like a river of midnight, and there was a curve to her smile that made his chest tighten. For a single heartbeat, the world contracted, and Freddie was back at that table, watching Anna’s slow, knowing smile, feeling the quiet pull of a love that had never truly left.

He blinked, and she turned, just a stranger, now blurred and gone from view, but the memory it sparked burned brighter than any neon sign. The faint scent of her, like jasmine and rain, seemed to linger in the air, drawing him forward.

Every little thing reminded him of her. The rhythm of her steps. The faint laughter that echoed in the café. The way the light glinted off her hair. Each detail pulled him further into the past, into the nights they had known, into the intimacy of moments that had never really ended.

He walked forward, almost unconsciously, following the echoes of her presence, and found himself standing in front of a small music shop they had visited together years ago. Its windows were fogged with rain, but inside, instruments gleamed like treasures. He remembered the way Anna had leaned over the piano, her fingers tracing keys with curiosity and grace, how he had watched in quiet admiration, memorizing every gesture.

The memory wrapped around him like a second skin, warm and haunting, pulling at his soul. Freddie realized with a shiver that this journey wasn’t just about finding her, it was about rediscovering the moments that had made him who he was, the intimacy they had shared, and the love that had quietly followed him through time.

And as the rain continued to fall, blending past and present into one seamless thread, Freddie whispered to himself:

It made me think of you…

The song, the city, the rain, the faint echo of Anna’s smile, they all led him forward, and he knew he could no longer resist. He had to follow the memories, no matter where they took him.

Chapter 3

A Familiar Shadow

Freddie stepped inside the music shop, the bell above the door chiming softly, merging with the steady patter of rain outside. The air smelled of polished wood and old paper, a scent that carried echoes of a thousand memories. Every corner of the shop seemed to hum with the past, and he felt as though he were walking into a place suspended between then and now.

As he moved deeper into the store, he caught a glimpse of someone arranging sheet music at a display near the piano. His heart tightened. The posture, the way the light caught the edge of Anna’s hair, the subtle grace in her movements, it all felt achingly familiar.

Excuse me, he said, his voice low, uncertain. He wasn’t sure why he felt nervous, why every muscle in his body held its breath.

Anna turned, and for a moment, Freddie felt time fold in on itself. Her eyes met his. They weren’t hers, but they were. There was a spark, a shadow of a smile, a fleeting alignment of memory and reality that made his pulse quicken.

She tilted her head slightly, a gesture that made him think of nights long ago when the world had shrunk to just the two of them.

It’s… you, he whispered, though he wasn’t sure if he meant it literally or if it was the memory speaking.

Anna smiled, faint and knowing. I get that a lot, she said softly. Do you always come into old music shops when it rains?

Freddie chuckled nervously, the sound breaking a little in his throat. Not always… but some things… they pull you back, you know?

Anna nodded, her gaze thoughtful. I know.

The rain outside tapped against the windows like soft percussion, and for a moment, it was as though the world had shrunk again, just like those nights he had spent watching her, learning her every subtle movement, memorizing the curve of her smile and the rhythm of her laughter.

Freddie felt a tremor in his chest. It made me think of you, he thought, over and over, letting the words echo like a secret prayer.

Anna looked at him with a mixture of curiosity and warmth, as though she could sense the memories he carried, the intimacy of moments they had shared that no one else would ever understand.

You remind me of someone, she said finally, almost as if testing the waters, but I can’t… place it.

Freddie swallowed, his heart pounding. Maybe… some memories don’t leave us. Maybe they just wait… until something, someone, makes us remember.

Her eyes softened, and for a heartbeat, Freddie felt the past and present collide. It was in that collision that he realized some loves, some connections, don’t fade. They linger, hidden in a red silk dress, in the sound of a song, in the rhythm of rain, waiting to be found again.

And tonight, in this quiet music shop, Freddie knew he was standing at the edge of remembering everything.

Chapter 4

Notes Between Hearts

The rain had slowed to a gentle drizzle, leaving the streets outside glistening under the dim light of the shop. Freddie leaned against the piano, watching Anna arrange the sheet music with careful, deliberate movements. It was in the small, almost imperceptible gestures, the tilt of her head, the way her fingers lingered on the edges of the papers, that the past seemed to press in on him.

You play? he asked softly, trying not to let his voice betray the tremor in his chest.

Anna looked up, eyes meeting his, and nodded. A little. Enough to remember the melodies that matter.

Freddie smiled, the memory of her laughter rising unbidden. He could almost hear it again, like wind through the piano strings, lingering between the notes. I used to hear you play all the time… nights when the city seemed to fall away. You had this way of making the world disappear.

A faint blush colored Anna’s cheeks, and she glanced down at the sheet music. Maybe that’s what music does, she murmured. It carries us back to who we were, or who we hoped to be.

He stepped closer, drawn by the invisible thread of memory, and let his fingers brush lightly across the piano keys. A soft chord rang out, resonant and lingering. This one, he said, nodding toward a familiar song, you taught me this. I never forgot it.

Her lips curved into the smallest of smiles. Funny… I thought I had. She reached over and let her fingers hover above the keys, not pressing, just letting the music hover between them. But maybe some things… never leave. Not completely.

Freddie’s heart tightened. He could feel it now, the pull of the past, the intimacy of shared nights and whispered confessions. Every brush of her hand near his, every glance held longer than necessary, carried a history that neither time nor distance had managed to erase.

You know, he said, his voice lower now, even when I’m somewhere else… doing something else… something always brings me back. A smell, a sound, a memory… He hesitated, then met Anna’s gaze. It made me think of you.

Anna’s eyes glistened with something he couldn’t name, and she whispered, almost to herself, It made me think of you, too.

The piano seemed to hum in agreement, vibrating with the echo of their shared memories. The rain against the windows, the soft glow of the lamps, and the warmth of proximity wove a fragile, electric tension around them. It wasn’t just music, they were threading the past and present together, note by note, glance by glance.

For a moment, the world outside ceased to exist. All that remained was the rhythm of their hearts, the echo of their shared past, and the silent promise that some connections never truly end.

Freddie reached for Anna’s hand, hesitant yet certain. She didn’t pull away. Instead, she let her fingers intertwine with his, a delicate acknowledgment of the intimacy that had lingered between them all these years.

And in that small, dimly lit music shop, amidst the lingering scent of rain and polished wood, Freddie realized something profound; the world had found countless ways to bring them back to each other, and maybe, just maybe, this was their moment to finally stop running.

Chapter 5

The Rhythm of Memory

Freddie and Anna sat side by side at the piano, the soft amber light spilling across the keys. The silence between them was neither awkward nor empty; it was weighted with years of unspoken words and lingering moments that refused to fade. Each of them carried a lifetime in their eyes, and in that quiet, their shared history hummed beneath the surface.

You remember that night at the pier? Freddie asked softly, tracing a finger along the edge of the piano. His voice was almost swallowed by the soft hum of the rain outside.

Anna nodded, her gaze drifting to the window. How could I forget? You made me laugh until my cheeks ached, and then you tried to teach me how to skip stones. Her lips curved into a tender, wistful smile.

Freddie smiled, a bittersweet tug in his chest. I remember the way your hand felt in mine when you finally got one to skip three times. I thought… maybe the world would always feel like that, just us, the water, and nothing else.

A shiver ran down Anna’s spine as the memory settled between them. She reached up and let her fingers rest lightly on his hand. Funny how the mind remembers the small things, the touches, the music, the sound of laughter.

It’s the small things, Freddie murmured, that keep you alive in memory. Even after everything else fades, the little details, the red dress in a shop window, the way the rain hits the pavement, a song on the piano, they bring it all back. Every little thing moves the way you moved, and suddenly, I’m there again.

Anna laughed softly, a delicate sound that felt like it belonged to a moment suspended in time. I feel it too. Sometimes, I walk down a street, hear a note of music, and I swear it’s you. That same shadow of a smile, the same warmth, and it’s like no time has passed at all.

Freddie’s chest tightened, a quiet ache that made the room feel impossibly small. It’s strange, he whispered. How love can linger in the smallest details, in the quiet moments we think we forget. Even when life pulls you away, you carry it with you. You can’t run from it, and maybe you shouldn’t.

Anna’s eyes met his, luminous in the soft light. For the first time in years, she seemed fully present, her vulnerability threading between them like a living thing. I never forgot, she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. Even when I thought I had moved on, even when I tried, there was always a part of me that remembered, you.

Freddie reached up, brushing a damp strand of hair from her face, letting his fingertips linger a heartbeat too long. Me too, he said simply. Every song, every laugh, every little thing, it made me think of you.

The words hung between them, suspended in the air like a note that refuses to fade. Outside, the rain had slowed, the world softened, and the music of memory and longing seemed to fill the entire room.

Anna leaned closer, and for