The Magic of Stories | ONC 2024 shortlist

10 - The chicken or the egg

With a sense of elation, I did my morning round of the shelves and rearranged the sitting cubes. Satisfied with my work, I let my gaze travel over the room. The library was ready for today's visitors, and so was I.

As usual, the hours before noon turned out to be the quieter part of the day. To make the best of this time, I followed Marjorie's instructions and unpacked a box with new arrivals, fitted them with a label, and added the titles to the catalogue. A few piqued my interest, and I was tempted to check them out for myself, but resisted. I already had three books at home. That was enough for the week. Once I had registered all the recent additions, I checked if I could find them in the catalogue on the public terminal and was delighted when my search worked. Next, I went through the rows with my trolley to sort out books in need of a new binding or restoration before the rising tide of customers kept me busy until lunch time.

By then, the rain had stopped, and while the streets were still wet, I went for a walk instead of visiting my new favourite restaurant. Even with their prices on the reasonable side, I couldn't afford to eat out every day. So I had brought a box with leftovers from dinner I planned to eat on a park bench somewhere. My hands buried in my pockets, I strolled through the allies towards the city park next to the university. It offered a great view over the old town, and I had fond memories of the summer when I spent countless hours learning my exams up there.

February wasn't the perfect time of the year to eat outdoors, but despite the cold, a few students occupied the benches, discussing and laughing. I felt a pang of nostalgia when I settled on a free one nearby, listening in to their carefree conversation. Back in my student days, I had never appreciated how much freedom and spare time I had. Life as an adult was far more complicated, and I wished I could have another year with no other worries than which courses would fit best for my schedule and when I'd find a moment to sneak away with Oliver.

Oliver. Why couldn't I ban the man from my thoughts for good? I had a job now, was about to make new friends, and knew it was time to move on. Instead, I came up here at the first opportunity, where I risked running into him every minute—especially on a Thursday when he was bound to leave the institute any minute. Right, I better left before it happened. I slammed the lid onto my lunch box and stowed it in my backpack in a hurry. But it was too late.

Before I could zip my pack, he came walking straight towards me in the company of a brunette clad in a fashionable coat and shoes that weren't meant for this weather. Had he already replaced the blonde from two weeks ago? I lowered my head, staring at my hands while I listened to their approaching steps crunching in the gravel.

"Lynn, is that you?"

No way to ignore him now. "Oh, hey Oliver, nice to see you, too."

A deep vertical fold formed between his brows. "What are you doing here? Stalking me?"

Heat shot into my cheeks, a dangerous mixture of anger and embarrassment flooding my mind. "This is a public park. I can eat my lunch wherever I want."

"Sure, sure, but do you even know how creepy it is sitting right in front of the institute? Stop waylaying me, or I'll call the police next time."

This was so unfair. I jumped up, ready to defend my honour, but he just took hold of the young woman's arm and walked her away. "Ignore her, Chérie. She's just a frustrated ex-student."

The girl he called by the nickname I'd believed he'd reserved for me glanced at me over her shoulder. "Who was that?"

"No one, ignore her." The mixture of pity and disgust I could read flickering across her face brought me close to tears.

Why had I come here of all places this town offered? I should have known better than risking to meet the man again and renew my heartbreak.

No longer hungry and fighting my emotional turmoil, I headed straight back to the library, where I sat down at the front desk on the empty premises. Perhaps I should go to the coffee shop to wind down? I checked my phone for the time. Almost going on one o'clock, so I'd better stay here or I would be late for the afternoon shift. Why wasn't Marjorie around when I needed someone to cheer me up? By now, she probably was out of her surgery. I hoped she was fine.