Over and Over Again | ONC 2023

Chapter 7

Aurelia sneezed, nearly dropping the skyscraper of hardcover books she was carrying. She inspected the closest wooden shelf – the books had a thin coating of dust over them. "I should probably clean those," she murmured to herself.

People rarely ever came into this corner of the library; either students who chose the most obscure topic for an essay or teenagers looking for a place to make out.

Elaine, the sweet, elderly librarian peered down the aisle from behind a shelf. "Aurelia, would you be a dear and turn on the security system when you head out?" she asked. "I have to leave a bit early, it's my granddaughter's piano recital tonight."

"Of course, I'll see you tomorrow," Aurelia said and waved.

Aurelia had worked hundreds of different jobs over the centuries from nearly every industry you could imagine. A librarian was one her latest favourites.

Flipping through these books felt like reading old journal entries. It was comforting, being surrounded by what were essentially memories made up of ink on paper. She had lived through most of the things you could find in the history section; wars, world leaders, amazing inventions, advancements in technology, and several more shelves worth of information.

It was simultaneously melancholy; rows and rows of reminders of her never-ending life.

The clock chimed and the automated message announcing the library was closed played over the intercom. She could hear faint footsteps and talking as the stragglers trailed out.

The library quickly fell silent as Aurelia was left alone. She hastily finished the rest of her tasks, leaving the more tedious work for the next morning.

There wasn't much on her mind besides finally relaxing when she got home. Despite having ended things with Grace only eight hours ago, their relationship felt like a blurry, distant memory – already beginning to fade.

Regardless of the breakup, Aurelia was exhausted. The local elementary school's kindergarten class had visited for a field trip that afternoon. Eileen was busy, leaving her to watch over the hyperactive little balls of energy on her own. She could have sworn they were all seated on the reading carpet when she read them a story about a caterpillar, but she still found messes throughout the library after they left. It didn't help that the building was massive. She spent over an hour reshelving books thrown onto the floor, throwing away empty juice boxes and candy wrappers, picking up broken crayons, and erasing pencil marks in books.

Aurelia's breath turned into a puff of fog the moment she stepped outside. The evening air was chilly, reminding her that summer had faded away, much too quickly, and they were approaching the heart of autumn. She wrapped her scarf tighter around her neck and zipped up her coat. Just as she locked the library's doors, she heard quick footsteps approaching her. 

"I'm so sorry to bother you Miss, but are you still open?" 

She turned, and all of the air suddenly left her body.

"U-uh," Aurelia stammered, completely caught off guard. She felt a wave of emotions hit her – as to which ones they were, she had no idea. There was something about this man, something strange, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

He furrowed his brows. "Are you alright? I didn't mean to startle you."

"No um," Aurelia cleared her throat and straightened her posture. "The library is closed for the night. We open at eight tomorrow morning."

He rubbed the back of his neck and nodded. "I figured, it's just my niece who needs a book."

Aurelia hadn't even noticed the girl standing next to him. She was probably eight or so, with curly red hair and bright green eyes.

"She has a book report due tomorrow that she didn't tell me about until an hour ago," he explained. He looked at the little girl sternly, though Aurelia could tell there was no real malice in his tone. He clearly adored her.

She looked up and gave him an innocent smile. "I um, forgot?" she said.

Aurelia chuckled softly. "Alright, you can come in, but just for a few minutes."

"Thank you so much, Miss," he said gratefully as they followed her inside.

"Aurelia."

"Max," he said with a small smile.

"I know which book I need!" the girl announced. You can wait here, Uncle Max!" She bolted away before either could protest.

Under normal conditions, Aurelia would have spoken up. Running and shouting weren't allowed in the library. At the same time, these conditions were anything but normal.

Doing her best to avoid looking at him, she sat down at the front desk and tried to get a head start on the next day's work. Nothing beyond the usual tedious administration tasks, but it was exactly what she needed. Her brain was about to implode if she didn't keep it occupied.

She could feel his gaze on her; steady and heavy, but she kept her eyes glued to her computer.

What sort of black magic did this seemingly complete stranger possess?

The girl appeared again, now carrying a wobbly tower of books. Aurelia could see her eyes, barely able to peek over the thick book at the top of the stack.

"What happened to one book?" Max asked and gave her an amused grin.

"Well I saw this other book I've been wanting to read, so I had to get the rest of the series!" She rolled her eyes as if it was the most obvious answer in the world. "Plus the spin off series."

Max laughed and shook his head. "You're just like your dad when we were kids."

"Thanks again, Aurelia. I really appreciate it," he said and took the books from the little girl. She looked at the library card he slid across the counter.

Maria Baker

Aurelia felt her heart stop. This went beyond the odds of a mere coincidence or deja vu; something was up and it sent nervous shudders down her spine.

Max handed the books to Aurelia. Their fingers ever so slightly brushed against each other as she took the books.

She immediately bit down on her lip to hide an audible gasp. It felt as if a bolt of electricity zapped through her fingertips the moment their hands touched. She wanted to deny any abnormalities – it was probably just static electricity.

Right?

She finally looked up at him, straight into his eyes.

Stunning, hazel eyes that she would recognize anywhere.

Even he seemed taken aback and paused for a moment. "Do we know each other?" he asked slowly, drawing out his words as he seemed to be searching the tip of his tongue for a name. "You look familiar."

I think we met a hundred and fifty years ago.

"No, I don't think so."