It's Like Music In My Ears

CHAPTER 4: THE BOND (frankly)

The next day, I was back in the library, waiting for Melody. I’d picked a table near the back, away from the few students who were actually there to study. My nerves were starting to get to me—what if she decided not to show? What if yesterday was a fluke, and she wasn’t really interested in hanging out?

But then I saw her walk in, and all my doubts faded. She spotted me right away and made her way over, offering a small smile as she sat down across from me.

“Hey,” she greeted, settling into the chair.

“Hey,” I replied, a little awkwardly. “So, uh, how was your morning?”

We started off with small talk—classes, how the cafeteria food was somehow getting worse, random stuff like that. But after a while, the conversation began to run dry. I was about to say something—anything—to fill the silence when I noticed Melody’s lips moving. She was humming, almost to herself.

It took me a second to recognize the tune, but when I did, I couldn’t help but stare. “Wait… are you humming ‘Seigfried’ by Frank Ocean?”

She looked up, caught off guard. There was a brief hesitation before she nodded. “Yeah, I guess I am. You know it?”

“Know it? Of course, I know it!” I leaned in, suddenly animated. “You listen to Frank Ocean?”

She bit her lip, glancing away for a moment before nodding again. “Yeah, I do. He’s, uh… he’s kind of my favorite musician.”

My eyes widened, and before I could stop myself, I bolted up from my chair. “ME TOO!” The words came out louder than I intended, echoing through the quiet library.

From across the room, Mrs. Jenkins, the ever-watchful librarian, shot me a glare. “Shh! This is a library, Francis!”

I quickly sat back down, trying to stifle my laughter as Melody did the same. She covered her mouth, but I could see the amusement in her eyes.

“Sorry,” I mumbled, my cheeks warming. “I just—Frank Ocean’s my favorite, too.”

She shook her head, still smiling. “It’s fine. I just didn’t expect that reaction.”

“Well, why didn’t you tell me yesterday when I asked about your favorite music?” I asked, genuinely curious.

Melody hesitated, glancing down at her hands. “I don’t know… I guess I thought it was kind of weird, you know? Not everyone listens to Frank Ocean, and I didn’t want you to think I was, like, trying to be all deep and stuff.”

I blinked at her, a little stunned. “That’s exactly why I didn’t say anything, either! I didn’t want you to think I was trying too hard or something.”

We both laughed at that, the tension from earlier completely gone. It was like this shared love for Frank Ocean had created some kind of unspoken bond between us.

Just as I was about to say something else, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw Jace standing there, a mischievous grin on his face.

“What’s up, man?” he asked, his tone casual, but I could tell he was curious about what was going on.

I quickly glanced at Melody, who looked just as surprised as I was. The sudden appearance of Jace seemed to shift the dynamic, and I wasn’t sure where things would go from here.

I quickly stood up, trying to make my exit from the table as smooth as possible. "Uh, give me a sec, Melody. I just need to talk to Jace for a minute." She nodded, looking a bit puzzled but not overly concerned.

I led Jace to the far corner of the library, away from Melody’s earshot. "Dude, what are you doing here?" I whispered, trying to keep my voice low.

Jace raised an eyebrow, clearly amused. "What do you mean, what am I doing here? We meet up at the library every day after school. Don’t tell me you forgot."

I ran a hand through my hair, realizing he had a point. "Right, right. I just—" I struggled to come up with a good excuse. There was a brief silence, the kind that makes you feel like you’re caught in something.

Jace looked me up and down, his gaze narrowing slightly. "Are you starting to like her or something?"

"What? No!" I shot back, maybe a little too quickly. I could feel my face heating up again, and I cursed myself for it.

Jace wasn’t buying it. He crossed his arms, a skeptical look on his face. "You sure about that? Because it doesn’t seem like you’ve got everything under control here."

I sighed, trying to sound as convincing as possible. "Look, it’s not like that. I’ve got this, okay? Just trust me."

He didn’t look entirely convinced, but he gave a small shrug. "Alright, man. If you say so."

I took a deep breath, knowing I needed to smooth things over with Melody. I walked back to the table where she was waiting, her fingers tracing random patterns on the wood.

"Hey, sorry about that," I started, feeling more awkward than I wanted to. "I totally forgot that I had to meet up with Jace around this time. I didn’t mean to ditch you."

Melody looked up, her expression softening. "It’s fine, Francis, really. I’ll just go hang out with Kacy and Adelle. No big deal."

"Are you sure? I didn’t mean to waste your time."

She waved it off, smiling. "It’s nothing. We’ll hang out some other time."

Jace, who had been standing a few feet away, gave a quick wave. "Nice seeing you, Melody."

She smiled back at him and then turned to me. "Bye, Francis."

"Bye," I echoed, watching as she left the library, her footsteps barely making a sound on the carpeted floor.

As soon as she was gone, I turned to head back to our usual spot with Jace, but not before catching Mrs. Jenkins glaring at us from the counter. Her glasses were slightly lowered, her expression stern, as if we were the most troublesome kids she’d ever dealt with.

"Let’s sit down before Jenkins throws us out," I muttered to Jace as we took our seats, trying to push away the lingering thoughts of Melody that were still running through my mind.