Chapter Text
Five days had passed since Nicole met Alice and Klee. Nothing special happened after that. Nicole continued tending to the library, writing, and even ordered new books, which she was very excited about. But in the back of her head, the woman in red was still there.
Nicole had favorite customers, people she had known for years, even some children she saw growing up. She truly loved seeing them wander in her library, come back the following week, returning books with sparkles in their eyes. People talked about the story they just read, and Nicole was thrilled. Sometimes, she would get too enthusiastic and ramble for hours about her favorite books. She loved when they stayed to listen, even for a short time. These kinds of customers held a special spot in Nicole’s heart.
Alice was different. She met her once. Of course, she had been recommending her famous travel guide for years, but meeting her in person was another step. Yet she had been stuck in her head ever since. Whenever the bell above the door rang, Nicole wished it was Alice.
Nicole looked back at her notebook. She wasn’t working on her manuscript today. Instead, she had been filling paperworks to add the new batch of books she ordered to the registry. Maybe she should switch to numeric, but she loved the smell of paper and ink way too much. Besides, she wasn’t good with technology, and used her phone only when necessary, like when she needed to order books or call her sister.
The bell rang again. Eighth customer today, not unusual for a Saturday. Nicole stopped writing to listen to the footsteps. They were loud, not in an obnoxious way… more like someone who was walking confidently with high heels. Nicole recognized the sound one second before Alice arrived in front of her desk.
“Miss Nicole! How lovely seeing you here!”
“You can call me Nicole,” she chuckled. “And I’m always here when the library is open.”
“Of course.” Alice sat down in the chair in front of the desk and crossed her legs. “I’m returning those.” She slid two books on the desk. “Klee loved them!”
“That’s very nice to hear.”
Nicole grabbed the books to add to the thick pile next to her, that she mentally labelled 'books I have to put back on the shelves'. When she turned back to face Alice, she felt her heart beat faster than usual.
“Actually, Miss Nicole, I’d like a few recommendations for you. I finished my latest article early, and with the free time that I have, I can indulge in a book!”
“Sure, what do you want to read?”
“Anything you think would please me!”
Somehow, Alice’s request was even more vague than Klee’s. So Nicole straightened in her chair and started to think. What did she know about Alice? She wrote travel guides, but she mentioned wanting to read because she had free time off work. So giving her something related to her job was off the table. She had a daughter, but they already borrowed books together and had four left to read. Nicole looked around. She could almost hear the mechanical whirring in her brain as she reviewed every option she could think of. Her eyes stopped on the history section, her favorite besides the fairytale one. If she couldn't know what Alice would enjoy, why not recommend something Nicole fancied herself?
“What about history?”
Alice, who was checking her nails while waiting, turned to her and tilted her head to the side. Nicole felt stupid for one second, but composed herself. Giving recommendations was her job, so why was she so nervous?
“I promise it’s not boring! I have a lot of history books that are really fun. Some have illustrations and even interactive bits, it’s a nice read if you want to relax while still learning. It can be useful for your job - even if I know you’re already very good at it - and you have many topics to choose from…”
Nicole was cut off by a laugh. Alice placed her hand on the desk and leaned in.
“Slow down, slow down! You don’t need to convince me.”
“I’m glad”, Nicole chuckled nervously. “I have a book retracing the town’s history. It’s really fun and has a whole section about folklore.”
Nicole got up. The sound of her chair rattling against the wooden floor echoed in the empty library, and Nicole almost tripped on her long skirt. Gods, why was she so awkward today? She grabbed the book she mentioned from the history section and turned back to face Alice.
“Here!”
Nicole took a step, careful not to trip this time, and gave Alice the book. She started flipping through the pages.
“Oh, it has illustrations! Wonderful!”
“That’s partly why it’s my favorite history book! The illustrations are beautiful, it also has old paintings of the town. I especially love this one…”
Nicole leaned over Alice’s shoulder to flip to a page in the middle, resting her hand on the backrest of the chair to balance herself. She pointed at the painting.
“Here! You can see the hill the library was built on, in the background!”
She smiled widely. The feeling of euphoria of sharing something she loved was warming her heart. She only calmed down, when she noticed how close she was to Alice. She darted back up, her hand brushing against Alice’s in the process.
“Sorry”, she mumbled before going around her desk again. She sat down and pretended to organize a pile of important documents. In truth, it was just pages of doodles.
“You seem to love that book, Miss Nicole. How many times have you read it?”
“Many times”, Nicole smiled, still not looking up. “I have my own edition at home and I annotated each page.”
“Oh!”
Alice slid the book to Nicole and placed her elbows on the desk.
“Actually, I don’t want this one. I want your annotated version!”
Nicole traced her fingers on the cover and hesitated. Could she really do that? Maybe she wrote embarrassing things she can’t remember. She was pretty sure it was nothing more than additional information, some doodles and silly personal thoughts, but still, she never showed anyone her annotated version of books, even to her closest family. But the way Alice was looking at her…
“I’ll bring it tomorrow”, she conceded.
Alice smiled, leaned on the backrest and crossed her arms.
“Lovely then. May I have something else to read while I wait eagerly for tomorrow?”
“Another history book?”
Nicole put her brain back to work, but Alice stopped her.
“What about fiction?”
“You read fiction?”
Alice laughed. “Why wouldn’t I?”
Once more, Nicole felt silly. She assumed the grand journalist Alice was only reading informational literature. But she seemed so versatile and curious, why wouldn't she enjoy fiction? Was the summer heat taking a toll on Nicole’s brain?
“Right, mh…”
Nicole grabbed a book from her books-I-have-to-put-back-on-the-shelves pile. She looked at it for a second. Would Alice like it? She slid the volume timidly across the desk.
“That one is my favorite book.”
Alice looked at the colorful illustrated cover, featuring two witches holding hands. She hummed as she took the book, encouraging Nicole to continue speaking.
“It’s about a young witch who needs to pass a trial, but she’s given an impossible task. She meets a lot of characters, and she goes on a lot of different adventures. She discovers astrology, fights demons, gets caught in some political scheme…”
“Sounds like a lot!” Alice laughed. “I like it.”
Nicole sighed in relief.
“What about this one?”
Alice pointed to Nicole’s manuscript, still open to the last page she wrote on the side of her desk. She immediately closed the notebook and clutched it on her chest.
“It’s nothing. Just something I’ve been working on.”
Alice grinned mischievously. She put the book Nicole gave her back on the table and crossed her arms on top of it.
“Doesn’t look like “nothing” to me. I saw some names written in there, but I couldn’t quite figure out your handwriting, especially upside down. Is it an adventure story? A fairytale? Romance, perhaps?”
Nicole clutched the manuscript even closer. She thanked her messy handwriting for protecting her privacy and cursed herself for not closing the notebook earlier.
“It’s adventure. But I’ve barely written anything yet, I’m just on chapter three.”
“Well, if it’s that short, I’ll have time to read it before Monday, right?”
Nicole traced her thumb along the spine of the manuscript. Was it good enough to give to Alice? Criticism would be welcome. But she still felt the need to impress Alice, to show her that she was an amazing author, just like her. She met Alice’s gaze, and saw nothing but two big sparkling eyes waiting for approval. Again, she conceded.
“Okay. But it’s barely a draft, not the final product. I crossed out a lot of things, it might be hard to read…”
“Ah, don’t underestimate me!”
Alice got up from her chair in a swift motion and leaned above the desk to grab the notebook from Nicole’s hands. Surprised by the sudden initiative, Nicole didn’t even resist. Alice settled the book on top of the fairytale.
“I’ll take both of these, Miss Nicole.”
The librarian sighed as she retrieved the registry. In less than one hour, she gave away her personal annotated version of a book and her precious manuscript. Something about Alice felt magnetising, like it was impossible to deny her anything.
She wrote both titles next to Alice’s name, and crossed out the two books she returned. Before she could close the registry, Alice adjusted her hat and picked up the borrowed volumes.
“I’d love to stay longer, but I have to pick up Klee from summer camp. I’ll be back on Monday, with your manuscript. I expect you to bring me the annotated version of your history book!”
“Of course”, Nicole smiled.
How did she even accept such a thing? Alice waved at her and walked towards the exit. Nicole watched her leave, focused on the manuscript in her hands. She felt a knot form in her stomach. What if she wrote the most obnoxious thing in there and forgot about it? She shook her head and took a deep breath. It was just her manuscript, not her diary. Alice would read it, give constructive feedback and everything would go well. Nicole closed the registry and looked at the clock. One hour left before closing time.
She spent the last hour of her shift putting the books back on the shelves and swiping dust. She finished adding the new batch into the registry, and closed the library as the sunset filtered through the windows. She sat back down at her desk. She didn’t feel like going home yet. Alice was the last customer to leave today, and her presence still lingered in the room.
She sat in silence for a few seconds before taking her phone out of her pocket. She opened her contact list, and called the only person who could understand her. Her sister picked up immediately.
“Nicole! You finally called.”
“Hello, Koitar.”
Nicole was used to calling her older sister every week. She lived in another country with her spouse, and they rarely saw each other in real life. Nicole said it was too far, but in reality, she was anxious at the idea of leaving the library, even for a short period of time. She felt like people needed her here.
“How are you doing? It’s unusual for you to call me right after work.”
Of course she noticed. Nicole grabbed a loose sheet of paper and a pen.
“I know. I have a new customer, she’s…” How could Alice be described? Charming, explosive, imposing, extravagant… so many grandiloquent words for a single person. “She’s different.”
“You speak with fondness in your voice. Could it be that the different customer caught your eye?”
Nicole scribbled on the paper. Saying she felt indifferent about Alice would be lying. On the other hand, she only met her five days ago, and saw her twice, in the context of her job.
“I barely know her.”
“You love analyzing people and making up theories about their lives. I know you too well, Nicole. So tell me more.”
“Well.” Nicole kept on doodling on the paper, trying to organize her thoughts. “She’s a journalist, a famous one. She came with her daughter, an adorable little girl. They borrowed fairytales, and today, she came back and took my manuscript with her…”
“Your manuscript?”
“My manuscript. The story I’m writing.”
“You let her take your manuscript? Oh, dear, that’s worse than I thought…”
“You have to meet her to understand. The way she asked, I couldn’t say no!” Nicole whined.
“That’s how it felt when I fell in love, you know.”
“I know... But anyone who talks to Alice would feel mesmerized. Is everyone in love with her then?”
“You remember her name.”
“Of course I do.”
Nicole continued doodling as Koitar talked about her week. She hummed in acknowledgement now and then. Alice was still on her mind. Every time Nicole blinked, she could see those sparkling eyes, and every time Koitar paused in her story, she heard the echo of a cheerful laugh. She tried to focus on her sister’s voice, but after one hour, she realized she barely picked up on anything that was said.
“You’re awfully quiet today.”
“I’m not.”
“It’s okay," Koitar laughed. “I understand how it feels.”
Nicole smiled. It felt reassuring knowing someone was here for her, even in a silly situation like this.
“I’ll call you next week. Good night, Koitar.”
“I’ll look forward to it. Good night, Nicole.”
The call ended and silence settled back in the library. It was nighttime now ; the weak moonlight shone on the page. Nicole stared at her doodles. Books, teacups, badly drawn squirrels, and in the middle, Alice. Or at least, a stickwoman with long hair, high heels and lively eyes.
Nicole folded the paper and slid it under the registry. For the first time, the idea of next week felt exciting, out of her usual routine. With her bag on her shoulder, she left the library and locked the door behind her. The warm summer air enveloped her. She looked up at the moon, and wished it was Monday already.