Our new year

C#27

Keiran quickly covered his face with a book he was holding in his hands. He was trying his best to hide from Belle.

It was the last week of summer holidays and Keiran was in desperate need of spending some time with Belle. But he knew very well that Belle wanted to work till the last day of summer vacation. There was no point of keeping fake hopes in his heart.

After days, Keiran finally came up with an idea. He planned to pay a visit to the library everyday whenever Belle's shifts starts. He would hide in the library by sitting in the corner tables and observing Belle the whole time. At least it felt like he had spend a day indirectly with Belle.

On the other hand, Belle was clueless about the plan.

Whenever Belle would come closer towards his table to arrange some books on the racks, Keiran would try to hide his face with a book so Belle wouldn’t recognize him. Or, sometimes hiding under the table. He was liking this cat and mouse game too.

"Ah! Thank god." Keiran sighed in relief.

Belle didn't see him sitting here. Keiran put down the book he was holding. He was looking at her. He hated the environment of libraries. It was so unlike him, but from the moment he started spending his time here when Belle was around, he started liking the peaceful environment a lot.

Keiran was looking at Belle who was lost in her own world. Keiran folded his arms on his chest and inhaled. He was analyzing her. Belle was wearing a black v-shirt with black jeans and flip flops.The overall outfit was too casual but the way she was carrying it made it look so nice. Her hair were tied up in a messy bun. The fringes were resting on her forehead in a messy way, but even then she looked pretty.

She's carrying this casual outfit so nicely. How would she look in a fancy dress? came into his mind.

"Beautiful! Of course." He answered his own question.

A smile formed on his lips when he thought about it. He was smiling and imagining her wearing a beautiful dress. His eyes slowly moved towards in her direction. His eyes became wide open and adrenaline rushed through his body.

Belle was walking in his direction!

"Oh my god! Oh my god!" Keiran blabbered. He quickly stood from his chair and rushed and hid behind a large rack of books near the table. He placed his hand on his chest and he could feel the rising and falling of his chest under his hand.

After remaining still for few minutes, Keiran poked his head from the corner and looked for Belle. He realized that Belle was gone back to her original position, which meant he wasn't busted.

Keiran tiptoed back to the table and sat down on the same spot. He picked up the book again and pretended to be reading the book.

In reality, he had no idea what the book was about; he picked it up randomly from a book shelf.

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He reached for it in his pocket.

What are you doing?

It was a text message from Belle. He immediately looked up from the book and glared at Belle. She was holding the phone in her hands and her eyes glued on the screen. Her expression looked like she was waiting for his reply. She was standing on the same spot behind the table.

Uhm reading a book.

Keiran typed quickly and after pressing the button, he glued his eyes on her, waiting to see her response.

Belle’s eyes beamed with surprise and she started typing on the touch screen. Keiran looked at her and then on the screen when his phone.

Oh! You never told me you can read books upside down.

As soon as Keiran read the text, he quickly checked the book he was holding. He realized that he was holding it upside down the whole time. Keiran slowly looked towards Belle. Belle was looking at him with narrowed eyes.

'I'm so busted', Keiran thought. The look on Belle's face clearly showed that Keiran should leave immediately.

Keiran slowly approached towards the exit without looking at her. He was staring at the ground. He felt hot air when he came out of the library. He slowly fanned his face with his hands in order to breathe properly. Keiran was about to sit in his car when someone called his name. He turned around and saw Belle standing in front of the door.

"Oh! Hey," he greeted.

"Where are you going?" Belle asked, stepping closer to him.

He took some time to reply. "Home . . . Do you want me to drop you home?"

Belle smiled shyly in response and nodded.

The ride was quiet. Keiran finally broke the silence. "You should keep your hair open most of the time."

Belle looked at him in confusion. The topic about her hair came out of nowhere. "Uhmm, okay?"

"It suits you a lot." Keiran looked at her and then fixed his eyes on the road.

The inside of car felt hot and Belle could feel her cheeks burn. The silence was making it hard for them to breathe. Belle looked out of the window hoping for no more eye contact. The moment was making her uneasy and awkward.

Keiran, on the other hand was smiling. He was enjoying the moment because he knew moments like 'driving with Belle' were rare. He was feeling as if he should be given a Nobel Prize because he praised her without converting the whole conversation into a disaster.

"For how long did you know I was there in the library?" Keiran asked when a sudden thought about what happened earlier flashed in front of his eyes.

"The moment you entered the library." Belle laughed. Her eyes were still fixed on the window analyzing the view that was passing by.

"Oh boy! I thought you had no idea about me sitting in the corner," Keiran said and scratched his forehead in embarrassment.

"I'm not blind. What was the point of hiding anyway? You should have told me." This time her eyes looked at him with curiosity.

Keiran chuckled and said in a fake cheerful tone, "We have reached home."

"You didn't answer." Her tone sounded just like a stubborn teenager.

"Yeah and I won't answer it until you agree to go on a dat- I mean friendly dinner with me." Keiran stopped himself from saying date.

"Not fair, Keiran." Belle rolled her eyes.

"Yes? Or no?" He ignored what she said. A smirk formed on his lips when Belle didn't respond.

"Be ready on Friday at 7:30pm," he informed with a devilish smile.

Belle said, "I'm hating myself for being so curious and stubborn."

She got out of the car. She looked at him through the car window.

"Don't be late," she said with an annoyed expression. "Goodnight."

"I'm never late. And don't tie your hair, please!" Keiran shouted as Belle entered the house.

As Belle closed the door, she smiled when she heard him shout the last part.

"We will see about that.”
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Xoxo

Thanks to KateHP for editing this chapter.

Updated:7-march-2015