Yukari took a deep breath before entering the library. Just her luck. There were several people inside. She started walking towards the librarian’s desk but swerved towards a bookshelf. She looked behind her and saw IA, who waved at her.491Please respect copyright.PENANALfmnYgG9Sk
Oh god, she waved at her.491Please respect copyright.PENANAxLsMUsEi6y
Yukari just started nodding with the exaggeration of a bobblehead. After almost half a minute of this, she turned her head and focused on the bookshelf. 491Please respect copyright.PENANA5Ok57ID7WP
She wasn’t looking for any book in particular, but she needed to do something to stop herself from staring at the librarian. The more she stared, the more the memory of the previous week’s fantasy would be able to crawl into her brain.491Please respect copyright.PENANALfu9A65Xo4
After a minute of staring into space, she realised she was in the mathematics section. She scrunched up her nose. If anyone were to say that being good at something makes you like it, she would throw these hefty books at them. 491Please respect copyright.PENANA3lPBaQCyVP
She looked down at the book in her hand and remembered the main character’s struggle to talk to the ghostlike woman.491Please respect copyright.PENANAJjJfamMaBD
She turned around and lurched towards IA, debating whether to walk like she usually did or in a casual, breezy way.491Please respect copyright.PENANApLOUsw1i3u
IA smirked at her. “Do you like maths?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAKbedzroNo3
Yukari snorted like a horse. “Of course. I love me some numbers. Trig is seriously underrated. Yeah.”491Please respect copyright.PENANA0y4pxdkSA8
IA chuckled. “Calm down.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAsszWapG51M
Yukari held her head. IA eyed the book in her hand and reached for it. Yukari bit back a gasp when cold fingers brushed against her hand.491Please respect copyright.PENANAcl7l5o90lT
“Did you like it?” IA asked. Yukari, still looking down, nodded. “Who was your favourite character?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAPnKPWKIb21
“Why make me choose?” Yukari replied. “Tsukino Shion is a really relatable main character, but Kanbara Sora is a lot like… hey, how did you know my name? My name’s a lot like Shion’s.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAnuHcPGBB4C
“It is?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAWPgq4zAEDZ
Yukari stepped back. She squinted her eyes at IA, who had her head tilted like a dog again.491Please respect copyright.PENANA9Aw6Am3Bpd
“I’m Yuzuki Yukari. You… didn’t know?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAElEcMY2p35
IA stood up and bowed. “I’m sorry for not asking for your name earlier. I keep getting…distracted whenever we talk.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAG1cOnW01TY
I keep getting distracted whenever we talk.
I keep getting distracted.
Distracted.491Please respect copyright.PENANAQA5bwXtlXo
491Please respect copyright.PENANAVvnIB9DaJL
Yukari felt like something exploded in her head, sending a blast of heat that reached from her neck up to her ears.491Please respect copyright.PENANAITvOy4RUKG
She coughed. “So, uh, books. Gotta love ‘em. And music… music’s pretty… dope. It’s like oxygen. Everyone needs it in their lives.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAkC8lYx3S81
She mentally kicked herself.491Please respect copyright.PENANA7RWVUiiegj
IA sat back down and typed into the computer. “Are there any good books here?” She covered her mouth. “Forget I said that,” she said with her hand still on her mouth. She took it off and sighed. “Yuka… Miss Yuzuki, do you like jazz music?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAxRuA02VeXd
“I haven’t really listened to it. Why?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAZ1KuKSeot5
“Well, you mentioned music and I remembered this lesbian romance novel about a spoiled pop star who meets a struggling jazz musician. The descriptions of the songs are really good. It’s like you can actually hear them, even though they’re just words on paper. Would you be able to come to my place again to pick it up?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAc1dRBlb2Af
IA’s eyes widened in realisation. “Oh, is it okay to recommend you new books? You’re probably sick of reading lesbian romance novels since you’ve got a boyfriend.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAchO8TwRqc9
Yukari bit her lip. “What’s my boyfriend got to do with it?”491Please respect copyright.PENANA8b0osB4hlA
IA scratched the back of her ear and looked away, frowning. “Never mind.”491Please respect copyright.PENANACrCJzInQQ0
“I’m fine with reading that sort of stuff. Recommend away.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAFal5vW1n0Y
IA beamed at Yukari, who, under her powerful gaze, started fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.491Please respect copyright.PENANA9VS9fsRPnA
Yukari asked, “Do you like jazz?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAKAD6PjpSPm
“I didn’t care much about it at first, but after reading the book, I started getting really interested in it. Isn’t it amazing how books can do that? It’s like every book is a new interest or hobby waiting to be discovered.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAklnSzyxdN0
The sky turned indigo and IA locked up the library, once again taking Yukari to her car. 491Please respect copyright.PENANAr7UztRiER4
At the apartment, IA handed her a book with two women holding hands, one kissing the cheek of the other. In one woman’s remaining hand was a microphone and for the other woman it was a trumpet.491Please respect copyright.PENANA2Zc5q99qMG
IA turned on a CD player in the room. The notes of a trombone and double bass filled the room.491Please respect copyright.PENANAaedGQmcOvQ
“Do you have anywhere to be? Would you like to read here for a bit?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAmW61FY0uM7
“What are you going to do?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAmpHWMvGlJo
IA picked a book from one of the piles called ‘Club Majesty’. “This will do for me.”491Please respect copyright.PENANA5OdQLRZKtN
Yukari sat on the one couch in the apartment, taking off a pile of books that rested on it. IA slumped into the couch, opening her own book while existing in the grey area between sitting and lying down.491Please respect copyright.PENANACv9wKHTlbl
The language of the romance novel in Yukari’s hands was a bit more intricate than the previous novel IA gave Yukari but it wasn’t too difficult to read.491Please respect copyright.PENANAPGl9QSmVKD
The jazz music in the background lulled Yukari into a trancelike state as she let the story envelop her. She felt like she was sleep-reading and yet she was able to take in the story as if she had the concentration of a lawyer looking for holes in a witness’ story.491Please respect copyright.PENANAEn0vre6ZaH
She was eventually broken out of her trance when IA rolled onto her back and raised her legs up against the couch’s back. IA bit her lip and stared at the book like it was written all in the most difficult of kanji characters. Yukari had to force herself to breathe, something she forgot to do as she watched her. She blushed as she stared at her lips.491Please respect copyright.PENANA3ldkrGafIL
She chuckled as she looked at the page IA was on. “I thought a librarian would be able to read the furigana.” She almost pointed out that furigana was usually in books for kids but didn’t want to get kicked out of the apartment.491Please respect copyright.PENANARmhkY3q41Q
IA said nothing, turning the page. It took her only half a minute before she turned the page again. 491Please respect copyright.PENANAelJP9TEmZt
Yukari took a closer look at the new page before IA once again turned it. It was a bizarre chase scene involving a car chasing a pig with a sack full of cash on its back. It was-491Please respect copyright.PENANANnWJrdKF9H
IA turned the page. “Hey, it was just getting good,” Yukari blurted out. She held her head down. “Um… sorry.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAyHoQvMDwmv
IA turned her head and lightly poked Yukari’s forehead. “Silly girl. No need to apologise. Maybe you can borrow this one from me next time.”491Please respect copyright.PENANALbLRdSzwBu
Yukari smiled. She took a few moments to gain the courage to poke IA’s foot.491Please respect copyright.PENANAsaQgI4swcU
IA kicked the air, cackling like a middle-aged woman after one too many glasses of Syrah. 491Please respect copyright.PENANAI0pA8ihVDb
She dropped her book and pounced on Yukari, tickling the underarms. This developed into a bonafide tickle match.491Please respect copyright.PENANA3YkQaRemrq
Yukari laughed so hard she snorted, which caused both women to laugh even harder. After they stopped, they stared at each other silently. IA leaned in closer.491Please respect copyright.PENANAhdAY2BLjUg
Yukari felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. A mysterious shiver swam down her body and her cheeks were as hot as newly toasted bread. She breathed in and out slowly.491Please respect copyright.PENANADJwjUvJsuH
IA’s eyes grew before she shut them and backed away.491Please respect copyright.PENANA7T82ONHy1a
“Um, sorry, I… uh… you should go back to… whatshisname… your boyfriend.”491Please respect copyright.PENANA8APDyGtvdo
Yukari stood up and bowed. She grabbed her book and gave IA one last small smile before leaving the apartment.491Please respect copyright.PENANAOpDzxDcLMt
She went straight home instead of Roro’s place. There was no way she was going to read a book with that kind of cover in front of him.491Please respect copyright.PENANAnqSSkdoCoF
Her phone buzzed and she frowned when she saw the message.491Please respect copyright.PENANAkCXdZqMJ35
How’re you doing, beautiful? Wanna hang out?- Roro row your boat491Please respect copyright.PENANA0ArCQASJab
She didn’t reply. Her fingers tingled, yearning to tell him about everything, but she put her phone back in her pocket to prevent herself from oversharing. This was her battle to fight.491Please respect copyright.PENANAD3ep6KARsX
She read the book she was lended on her bed, hiding it under the covers whenever she heard her parent’s footsteps close in on her. Her parents never opened the door.491Please respect copyright.PENANA1MPIuh3nSb
The book was a lot longer than the previous one so she stayed up until 3 A.M finishing it. When she finally finished it, she started pulling at the roots of her hair.491Please respect copyright.PENANAeJSYBv8B2I
She hadn’t done any homework.491Please respect copyright.PENANAXGgwYFxn6w
She managed to complete her homework after a few hours and went to school with bags under her eyes. Her hands shook whenever she used them and she jumped out of her skin when Roro put a hand on her shoulder.491Please respect copyright.PENANAJKqP1XXj1A
“Are you okay?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAhewPWqIitS
Yukari nodded and looked away from him.491Please respect copyright.PENANAEIXn3YBun8
Life began to form a pattern. Go to school tired, avoid Roro’s queries, return IA’s book to her, go to her place to find a new one, read it until the early hours of the morning and for god’s sake don’t let your parents know, do homework, get two hours of sleep at best, repeat the cycle. This happened for a good three weeks.491Please respect copyright.PENANAtzDJMUgo6n
Each time Roro kissed her during lunchtime, Yukari felt the magic a little less. She started reminiscing over the days when the two of them were friends.491Please respect copyright.PENANALTHSaWxuY0
Yukari began to notice a few things about IA. Her apartment had an unplugged microphone and a keyboard. Her fridge was covered with sketches of monsters with crowns on them, ranging from medusa to demons and all from the same artist. The magnets that held them up were souvenirs from Greece. She had a to-do list with the most basic of functions such as ‘brush your teeth, you dingus’ and ‘if you don’t eat breakfast, you will starve to death before you get to meet a cute girl’. In the latter one, a line went through the words ‘before you get to meet a cute girl’. Yukari felt as if she had been split in half, one side uplifted and the other brought down to the depths of wherever the demon in that drawing came from.491Please respect copyright.PENANAC06H1dlMsj
After those three weeks, Roro took her aside after class and brought her to the empty music room.491Please respect copyright.PENANA0z3t3K9Wr8
He coughed an ‘ahem’. “Now that I have your attention, I want to ask you something. What the hell is going on with you?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAzwFt4vPdgF
Yukari looked at the door behind her and stepped backwards but Roro grabbed her arm. His grip was gentle. 491Please respect copyright.PENANAgnpGugbYeg
“Please… whatever’s going on, please let me know. Did I do something wrong?” Yukari gulped, saying nothing. “Please, just talk to me.” 491Please respect copyright.PENANAAuZCDkrWyB
Yukari rubbed her eyes with her forearm. “I’m sorry. It’s not your fault.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAWzdm0fINcJ
“Then is there anything I can do to help you? You’re not yourself anymore.” He said that last sentence with the face of a rabbit seeing a buzzard and his voice was hoarse, as if it was a struggle to say anything.491Please respect copyright.PENANAeSmQE1zkQ2
Yukari took her arm away from her face and allowed tears to just fall down freely.491Please respect copyright.PENANAAl1fF73MBT
“It’s something I have to figure out on my own.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAM60JF4OrMM
“But I can-”491Please respect copyright.PENANAQHIybSADrO
“Not when the problem’s got to do with you!”491Please respect copyright.PENANAAx1VIizXHp
“But you just said it’s not my-”491Please respect copyright.PENANAASW2aTWYgD
“It’s my fault. If only I wasn’t so selfish.”491Please respect copyright.PENANANFqJjl5Ov8
“What’s going on with y-”491Please respect copyright.PENANAHg1N8U7g3a
“I like someone else!” 491Please respect copyright.PENANAcuuxp6z5Ta
Roro let go of her and stepped backwards, his hands quivering. Yukari sat on the piano chair and held her head in her hands. Her body shook as she cried. Roro sat next to her, trying to ignore the discomfort of sitting on the corner. He held his hand in the air for a while before placing in on her head and stroking her hair.491Please respect copyright.PENANAbUAbJkdoUy
“Who’s the lucky guy? Is he in our class?” His voice was slow and ponderous, as if he was trying to hold in his own tears.491Please respect copyright.PENANAyrqzUsFBfQ
“It’s… a girl. You know the new librarian?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAo58t13TWZ6
Roro took his hand off her hair, recoiling from shock.491Please respect copyright.PENANATh4BbPITZn
“Wait, so did you… I don’t know… pretend to like me so you don’t have to admit you like girls or something?”491Please respect copyright.PENANAM1UD8NCJJ2
Yukari shook her head, still looking down. “I liked you. Liked. Past tense. I’m…” She took a deep breath. “...bisexual. I’m really sorry. I should still like you, but… this girl’s just taken over my emotions and… I feel like there’s no room in me for any romantic feelings for anyone else.” She kept repeating the word ‘sorry’ in between sobs.491Please respect copyright.PENANAuj6LDidmqF
Roro was silent for a while. He stood up and wiped his tears away, looking down at the ground and silently wishing the floor would collapse and take him with it.491Please respect copyright.PENANArwxWoQL90p
“I… never pegged you for one of those girls. It doesn’t seem like the type of thing you’d be into.”491Please respect copyright.PENANAEhLKkLDZV5
Yukari looked up and saw Roro silently leaving the room.491Please respect copyright.PENANAEZaZmDgokP
He didn’t talk to her for the rest of the day. When she returned another book to IA and they headed to her apartment, she burst into tears in her car.491Please respect copyright.PENANATzhobR30B7
She told her about the breakup but didn’t explain the reason for it. IA stopped the car in a parking lane and reached over to hug her, stroking her hair much like Roro did, though this time Yukari actually noticed it and felt her cheeks heat up.491Please respect copyright.PENANAXYrZ7KN2FL
The two stayed there for a few moments, the only sounds being their breaths. It was just her and the ghostlike librarian who seemed more real with each passing day.
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