Chapter Text
Florescent bright lights had been beating down on you all night so far. Your eyes stung with an edge of tiredness invading your brain, the drowsiness was just as old as the lights above you. Glancing at a nearby clock, you quietly noted to yourself that it was roughly a little past ten P.M. Your shift would be ending sometime in a handful of hours, and you’d finally be able to go home- get rest- eat real food. You tried not to think too hard about what you would do when you got home, though, for fear of distraction.
You had been working at this mini-library for roughly a couple of years now. After quitting your old job, you figured you probably needed one that fit your sleep schedule and your interests better, and a twenty-four hour book store seemed like a goldmine. Literature was one of your strong suits growing up, so it only felt right to take the desperately needed position for this store. Shaking your head again, you kept yourself up and awake as you stared at the emptiness of said corner store that you stood in. You tapped your fingers lazily against the counter, silently waiting for something— anything— to happen.
People rarely came into this place at this time of the night, unless you counted the breathless college students who wanted a hand-me-down textbook for cheap, or some old person who had heard about one of their favorite books still being here after all these years.
You found your interactions with these people charming, quaint even, and while they never stuck around for long- they did come back on several occasions. This time- you heard the doorbell ring, and upon lifting your vision up, you spotted a new face. This was obviously someone you hadn’t met before, so common etiquette was going to be vital here.
“Good evening,” You began, waving to the new customer. He seemed shy, as he waved back to you, though he didn’t say much except a passing ‘hello’. Trying your best not to sound tired, you continued your sentence from earlier, “Are you looking for anything specific?” You didn’t mind asking these questions, but you did find them a bit intrusive at times. Maybe you were just weird like that, but the mandatory list of questions you had been given when you first started working at this place had always felt a little excessive. Turning his attention back to you- the stranger asked his own question in return, his face betraying a bit of doubt on it. “Do you have any books on poetry here?”
You couldn’t stop yourself as you smiled, a little fascinated that he was even looking for such a genre. No one ever looked for poetry when you were on shift. Catching yourself, you made it a point to point roughly to the section where the poetry books lie, “Just in that corner- far back shelf, somewhere in the middle.” You sounded a little winded as you spoke, a yawn threatening to escape your throat as you heard the man thank you, before scurrying over to the direction you had pointed in.
A couple of minutes had passed before the man returned again, smiling as he placed a couple of books on the counter for you. “Is that all, sir?” Your voice seemed to catch him from dissociating- and he nodded towards you, speaking up. “Yes, that would be all.” You scanned the books, ringing up the price of the books, before telling him his total. As he rummaged through his pockets, you couldn’t stop yourself from studying his character. His outfit choice seemed to fit the colder weather nicely, though he didn’t overdue it with his bland blue sweater and darker colored jeans. He even had a heavy-looking bag on him. He seemed happy with his purchase, though, as he handed you over the money.
As you rung it all up again, you didn’t refrain from making light conversation with the younger guy. “That’s a lot of poetry for a guy like you. I take it you’ve got a class on it?” You probably shouldn’t have assumed something like that, but the guy did look like he was in college— would it really hurt to assume such a thing? Were you really even assuming? You were just asking a simpler question to make light conversation, that’s all.
“Well, no,” he began, his voice wavering slightly as he seemed to grow a bit embarrassed. You slid the books over the counter- closer towards him as he rubbed at the back of his neck gently, like he was nervous to share his information on the purchase.
“I’m reading up on this for.. a girl I like.” You couldn’t refrain from smiling a little harder— well, you might’ve been wrong, but he didn’t seem hurt by your assumption from earlier, so that was good.
As you thumbed the proof-of-purchase receipt, you began to speak up again, this time, a little more bold with your tone. “Ohh. Lucky her, huh?” The man seemed to laugh a bit at your words as you put the receipt on top of his books, and the two of you wished goodnight to each other. As he left, you couldn’t help but feel a little happier with your night- like you had temporarily forgotten all of your mundane issues.
It had been about a couple of weeks since you had last seen that guy- you had an issue where your mind seemed to wonder to past customers, silently wondering where they could’ve went. That wasn’t a problem, but it did leave you feeling.. odd.
You were opening your own shift that late afternoon, dismissing your other co-worker- Laura. As you helped her out of the store and to her car more downtown, she excitedly told you about a party she was attending that night. “Gosh, I wish you could just come along and join me at the party, you know?” Her words sounded friendly, but disappointed as she huffed to you. “If I would’ve known sooner.. I would’ve invited you.” You shook your head, pushing her along the sidewalk.
To be completely truthful, you weren’t a big fan of attending parties. Sure- the occasional one hosted by an old friend was something you enjoyed tremendously- but a party where you didn’t know really anyone sounded like a nightmare come true.
“It’s ok, Laura. Really, don’t feel bad. I have work anyways.” You hoped your words would lighten her disappointments, but she was always a tough one to help out when it came down to things like her guilt. “Next time, I’ll invite you- I swear!” She patted your shoulder, pulling you in for a hug as she wished you good luck with your shift— getting into her car, and driving off.
The trip back to the little library was nothing short of uneventful, as you watched people scurry around in the afternoon panic. Watching people get off work right when you were getting onto your shift always made you feel misaligned, like maybe what you were doing was wrong. But as you readjusted your coat a little tighter around you for warmth, you couldn’t help yourself from realizing that you had always been a little misaligned with your life schedule. You always woke up late- always had the drive to stay awake until the early A.M. You were past high school, past college, and you were rapidly approaching the ‘mid life crisis’ stage of everything. It wasn’t like your life had been abrasively rough, truth be told- it all had its ups and downs. More recently though, you had been on a slow, but steady decline. You pushed the doors open to the store, basking in the warm afternoon glow of the air one last time as you ignored the chill that ran up your spine. You made it a point to clock into work in the back break room, you eyed the inventory carefully, mopped the floors because you knew Laura hadn’t done that earlier. After you finally finished up everything, you propped yourself up into your normal spot behind the main counter, and you waited.
Your shift was another slow one. You always had a lovely smaller group of people hit this store for out of date comics, encyclopedias, damn- you name it, the store probably had it. It was refreshing seeing more new faces, and as the afternoon drew into night, the less people showed up. Your mind wandered back to previous customers to pass the time again- and that’s when it hit you.
The guy from weeks past seemed to re-enter your mind, but he also re-entered the shop with his books and receipt in hand. You were a bit puzzled at first, no doubt about it, and your face probably didn’t hide the hint of worry you felt as he lugged the books over effortlessly- and put the stack back onto the counter, not making eye contact with you as he spoke.
What convenient timing, life was almost funnier that way.
“Can I make a refund, please?” His voice sounded tired and weak, and damn, so did he in appearance. It didn’t help that you weren’t necessarily allowed to take returns.. all purchases were final here.
an idea entered your mind, though. It was sort of a loophole, though it would be coming out of your pocket.
There was no way in hell you would hurt this guys feelings anymore than they were already hurt though- you were too good of a heart to tell him such a fact. “I… I really can’t take refunds…” You started, and you watched the guys frown grow ever so slightly as he began to slide the receipt back towards him. Gently, you tried to retreat on your words, voice thick with a sense of purpose. You might’ve been a shut in person- but tonight you were going to do something for someone you didn’t even know, and no one was going to stop you. “…But here. Take this.” He seemed to pipe up at your last set of words as you flicked through your wallet, and slid him a sum almost equal to the amount he had paid for said books.
“Oh, I don’t think I can really take that-“ The man began, his hands waving in the air to try and usher your hand away, but you were a persistent bastard, and you stood your ground, holding the money out more- closer towards him. “No, please,” you interjected, “It’s the least I can do kid. Seriously.” As you practically shoved the money into his chest, he simply caught it, taking it in his hand- tightening his fist around the wadded cash. He reached for his own wallet, face portraying a mix of thankfulness and worry as he finally extended his gratitude. “Thank you.” It was the only thing he said after that, as he simply nodded- turning around and running out of the shop. You were.. a bit surprised that he had left the books and practically booked it out of the shops, but you simply took it as him being embarrassed.
A part of you felt odd that strangers could meet up like that— how the both of you seemed too nice for your own good. Your tiring eyes trailed back down to the books in front of you, and you took notice of a specific book author on the top books’ front cover- T.S. Eliot. An interesting choice of poetry, but not a bad one. You almost felt inclined to believe he had lied about it being for a girl and not a college level class- but the look on his face as he had returned the books told you that he was telling the truth about why he got them originally.
Something in you silently wished that— whoever that guy was— he would get another chance with that girl. You silently wondered if poetry wasn’t really considered romantically anymore… with how literacy seemed to be on a decline, though, you couldn’t help but feel a little backed up on your statement.
Your brain felt occupied with such thoughts as you went back to being alone in the store, face unwavering. You took the poetry books, re-adorning them with price tags as you fit them back on their rightful shelves.
Eventually, you turned your head behind you, staring at a tv that was mounted against a wall- and you couldn’t stop your eyes from reading the text at the bottom of the screen of a news channel. ‘BANK ROBBERY: ENDANGERMENT OF PEOPLE’.
You wanted to shrug it off- this was New York City after all- everyone got robbed eventually. But the pictures that followed the text is what made you blink a couple of times in uncertainty. This wasn’t just some average bank robbery, this one had a frighteningly interesting suspect- a suspect by the name of ‘Doc Ock’. The pictures weren’t the best- but they certainly made you worry a little more then you did before, Spider-Man and this new villain on the block seemed to be fighting when the robbery went down- and that caused infinitely more damage to not only the bank, but the public property around that bank.
The IRS was a blood sucking vampire in this awful city when it came to public property damage and a part of your blood boiled at how many regular-folk were probably going to be forced to pay out of pocket just to fix their damn car. You didn’t want to blame Spider-Man, after all, he was only doing the best he… probably.. could do. But you really wanted to ask whoever it was in that suit if they could maybe— just maybe— catch the villain a little quicker, before all that damage erupted.
This suspect wasn’t even caught this time- whoever this ‘Doc Ock’ was, he had torn up the street and buildings around him- and he got away with a nice thick amount of cash.
You felt a shiver fall down your spine at the idea of this guy still roaming the streets. Four giant mechanical arms on his back- stolen money? Who knows what that could be for. As you stared at the tv, lost deep in your own thoughts, you had barely noticed the older lady now at your front, your head zipping around as you jumped- the noise of books hitting the checkout table scaring you slightly. It was one of your regulars- Ms. G as you called her- smiling up at you while her eyes trailed from the tv, back to your face.
“I’m sorry, Ms. G—“ you began to apologize as you rang up the books for her, but she interrupted you, shaking her head. “You’re alright.” Was all she said, still smiling, but it didn’t take long for her smile to drop. She seemed to be just as interested in the news as you were, and truth be told, it wasn’t exactly an everyday thing that you hear about some octopus guy robbing banks and bashing it out with Spider-Man. “So many delinquents out and about now, huh? Stealing from the people… it’s a shame.” You couldn’t refrain from nervously chuckling, shrugging off her poised words as you asked her for the money she owed.
“Yeah.. but what can we do about it, you know?” You shrugged off your own words as she handed you the money- and you did the rest of the usual check out stuff with her. Your eyes made their way to the clock nearby, it was almost midnight. You looked a bit stunned- your shift ended very soon, and you blinked a couple of times in disbelief. “You’re never out this late, G! What’s got you checking out..” you slowed your speech as you read the bigger book infront of you, before continuing, “..recipe books.. this late at night?”
Trying not to sound too worried again, your question didn’t seem to phase Ms. G as she simply grabbed her books, laughing you off.
“A lady can’t do her midnight shopping without peace anymore?”
Her voice was light as she teased your nosiness, but the two of you seemed to laugh yourselves off as you wished each other goodnight and a safe travel home.
As time seemed to slowly tick by, you made it a point to begin cleaning up early, dusting off some of the shelves in a nervous-esk frenzy. You idly thought back to your night tonight- it was already a rather busy one, which surprised you. You flicked your eyes back up to the clock on the wall- reading it. It was past midnight now, and getting close to the end of your shift… but you couldn’t leave until your friend came to pick up his shift first. He was always on time, so you didn’t worry too hard, but you still felt a bit nervous. Something about tonight was too lively.
And as you trekked back to your spot behind the lone counter- you heard the door swing open gently- the bell ringing intensely.
“Good morning,” you spoke up, not looking up for a second as you began to put your duster away. You felt slightly nervous as you heard no one return your words, which wasn’t exactly unusual, but you really could not shake the odd feeling in your gut.
You could probably name off several excuses as to why someone wouldn’t respond to your half assed joke this early in the technically-morning, but you decided not to make that list in your head, instead, you finally caught a glimpse of your customer. You couldn’t stop yourself from staring at him.. you were intrigued. He seemed quick with finding what he wanted, and without much effort did he carry a couple of heavier math and science related text books. They were noticeably more or less on the statistical side, hypotheticals and what not. The thud they had made when they made contact with the counter stunned you for long enough- the large figure making its way up to your counter rather quickly, repositioning himself as he spoke to you absentmindedly.
“That’s all.” He said for you- the authoritative tone of voice throwing you off your guard again as he managed to delay your interaction time.
You looked up to the hulking figure- taking notice of his prominent oval-shaped glasses, which managed to cover and hide his eyes due to their intense tint. He even raised his brow at you, though it was hard to spot. You nodded silently, apologizing as you rung up his books. You idly thought why a man like this needed these kinds of books.. but you weren’t getting paid to judge. you informed him on his total— which reached a little above thirty dollars— and watched as he shoved his gloved hands into his pocket, quietly humming to himself.
At this point, you felt your eyed case the man nervously. Usually you tried your hardest not to read up on customers, but this one was so different, and you couldn’t stop yourself from staring.
His outfit consisted of darker colors, like he was dressed to hide in the shadows. The main jacket he wore was thicker- and a darker green in coloration, with a dark brown leather undercoat tucked underneath the first coat. You took notice in his gloves, glasses, and his hat, too. It was a striking appearance you didn’t expect to see, he looked like he belonged in a black and white noir movie, almost.
You didn’t say anything as you watched him pull out a thick stack of cash, but you were sure he caught your wide-eyes expression, because you could see him struggling to fight off a smirk.
The both of you seemed unpleasantly surprised.
He shuffled through the pile of money almost professionally as he handed you roughly fifty dollars.
“Do you want your change, sir…?” You tried not to sound lame.. but this guy definitely didn’t seem normal. As you held the money, something about it all just felt very… odd. This whole situation, this guy—
His expression seemed cold for a second longer, before he held up a fingered glove, tutting it as he shoved the rest of his own money back into his jacket’s pocket. “The extra is a tip.” His voice was harsher this time, more calculated- so you decided not to argue with him about how you technically weren’t allowed to take tips from customers.
You rung up the money quicker than you ever thought you could- your hands shaking slightly, holding onto the extra cash for yourself. You slid the books towards him as best as you could- struggling slightly at the heaviness before he simply picked them up with little resistance, his brows still furrowing as he quietly thanked you.
You gave him his receipt, and he was off. You watched his back carefully, taking in the dramatic way he walked out of the store with his books, disappearing into the night.
wow, that guy looked familiar, though you didn’t know from where. You tried not to think about how suspicious it was— a guy dressed like that carrying thick wads of cash in his pocket— but this was New York. Really anything was possible if you had the balls to pull it off.
Just as you pocketed the money the stranger had given you as a ‘tip’, you heard your friend enter from the break room behind you, clearly filled with all smiles, obliviously and completely unaware of the odd stranger that had just left. “Shifts all mine now,” Jeremy said simply as he patted you on the back with a hefty shove. “Get outa here.” He urged you, and you didn’t take much time to split.
Tonight was a mix of emotions, to say the least, and your brain couldn’t stop from filing back to that guy who had returned his poetry books, and the last guy who bought from the store. There wasn’t much more to think about with them- they were just strangers, after all. But these encounters were so odd to have in one day.
As you made your turns down the somewhat lively streets- store lights and lamps from above lighting your way as you made your way to your train station, you felt your eyes continue to grow tired. The ride home tonight was going to be a peaceful one, no matter what was on your mind.
For now, though, you just wanted to get home.