Between The Books-Michael Clifford

Ten

"Oh my God, Leo! You have to hear about my week. There's no way your week can be weirder then mine." I say, walking into the library and up to his desk.

"My girlfriend's mother is pregnant, by her next door neighbor." Leo says.

"Fuck! Really?!"

"Nah, I just wanted to see your face. What happened?"

"Shit! I was going to say, YOURS is worse. Give me five minutes to clock in and dump off my crap. Is Ronnie back there? I left my name tag at home."

"That sucks. He's not in the office, but he is out lurking somewhere. If you go straight down the middle aisles, you'll probably miss him. He prowls around the outer aisles mostly. He likes to spy on the girls who always study in the back corners."

"Ok, wish me luck."

I head up the steps into the stacks and hurry down the center to the back wall. Just as I turn the corner, there's Ronnie. He's looking down at his phone, so he doesn't see me. I duck back into an aisle and try to go around him, coming out by the office.

Sweet ninja skills. I open the office door and see Doris is sitting at her desk. Doris loves me. I know this by the friendly, eat-shit-and-die look she always gives me. I walk over to the computer Ronnie likes us to use when we clock in and out. It's just his way of feeling all powerful. Moron.

I drop my stuff in my locker and walk back out of the office. I got the whole scoop on Ronnie last Saturday night. Between Leo and Tyler's stories, and my own Ronnie sightings, I came to the VERY obvious conclusion, Ronnie's a perverted idiot who only got his job because his daddy's the Dean of the English department.

I walk back through the stacks and down to the lobby. Leo is talking to some guy and Tyler's checking an older lady's books in. I walk around the huge desk Tyler and I share, and log into my computer. Then I walk across the lobby to the Berry Cafe to get coffee.

As I walk back through, I see Leo's alone.

"Ok, so I went out Wednesday night with Laney, my roommate you haven't met yet, her boyfriend, Nate, and Jax. We went to The Basement to see Shooter, a band Jax knows." I take the lid off my coffee for it to cool.

"So far my made up story is winning." Leo says.

"Ok, I'll give you the highlights. So Jax is busy most of the night with his band buddies, leaving me to either watch Nate and Laney make out, or hang with Wade, the bartender, who I secretly wanna have the dirtiest sex with."

Leo grins. "Ok, getting better."

"I meet this girl, who turns out to be the girlfriend of the guy Jax wanted me to meet. Guess who the guy is?" I say, blowing on my coffee.

"Um, that guy you were slobbering on about last week."

"Close, Leo! So I'm at the bar talking to Wade...oh because I had just found out Laney is cheating on her boyfriend, who had found out and dumped her, with an English prof...."

"Max Shaffer?" Leo is nodding.

"What?! How'd you know?"

"Oh, Max gets around. He's a good guy, but he doesn't really commit to girls for very long. I'd tell your roommate to either try to get her boyfriend back, or just be in it for the sex."

Leo knows all.

"Ok, good to know! Ok, so I'm standing at the bar telling Wade about Laney, and about me crushing on Michael...oh and ALSO I told Wade I had unholy thoughts about him...about Wade! Those EXACT words!"

My coffee has cooled to a nice semi boiling temperature. Just enough to take that first sip, the one that melts the skin off the roof of your mouth.

"I'm sensing there's some horrifying climax coming?" Leo says, laughing at me.

So maybe I'm a little animated.

"Wade is telling me to relax and it's then that Jax walks up with Scutter and his girlfriend!"

"Jayce Scutter? He's the lead singer of Lickit! Oh...and that's Michael's band. Fuck, was Michael there?"

"No, BUT he was in my room a couple hours earlier, as I stood with my head stuck in my sweater! He'd brought my notebook from class that I dropped....oh yeah, so there's that. He's in my history of civ class too! He was an ass about it, about the notebook, I looked like an idiot, and that was all BEFORE we went out!"

"Ok, you're losing me. You and Michael made out?"

"No! I wish! Leo, PAY ATTENTION! Here's the way it all ended. Jax and I are going to see Lickit play tomorrow night, and you're coming with me!"

"I am?"

"Absolutely. Laney's a walking hormone, which is exactly NOT the person I need around me when I'm in the same room as Michael. She'll just encourage me to dump Jax and JUMP Michael! Bring Stella! It'll be fun."

"Ok."

"Really?!"

"Yeah, this sounds like it's gonna be an amazing show, and I don't mean the band!" Leo says, laughing.

"Asshole." I say turning around...and crashing right into Michael.

Red sweatshirt. Black ripped skinny jeans. Yum.

"Really, Star?! Is there any chance I could just have 24 hours without you?" He says, glaring at me.

"Excuse me?!"

He remembered my name.

"You were a bitch in class yesterday, a half naked babbling idiot, last night, and now here you are again, calling me an asshole. You need to back the fuck off me. Find someone else to annoy." He looks past me at Leo, then heads into the library, leaving me completely stunned.

"Oh, my. So you really like this guy, huh?" Leo asks, handing me my coffee.

"No, Leo. I DEFINITELY do not. Whatever I THOUGHT I was feeling about Michael, is done."

"Hang on girl. Don't brush him off just yet. He might be worth the work." Leo says, smiling.