In The Library

Through Millie's Eyes

“You’ve got a secret admirer.”

Felix’s words continued to ring through my head. That’s what he told me after he swept my books off the table, pecked my cheek, and dragged me out of the library. Of course, at the time, those words didn’t register as I responded.

“What is your problem?” I exclaimed, slapping his arm repeatedly until he finally let go of my wrist. He immediately let go of my wrist and dropped my books. He used his free hand to soothe the spot I hit while I made a quick dash to pick up the books he dropped carelessly onto the floor. 

“Ow, what the hell Millie! That hurt,” he complained childishly.

“Don’t be such a baby,” I told him as I checked if my books were alright and dusted off any speck of dirt.

“You are always so focused on your books. I bet you didn’t even hear a word of what I just told you.” 

I looked up from my books to see my annoying cousin look at me with a grin so large on his face that it would put the Cheshire Cat to shame. I quirked my eyebrow at him in response. “What are you talking about?”

“You. Have. A. Secret. Admirer,” Felix said and then flicked my forehead.

I rubbed the spot he flicked and gave him my best glare. “That’s absurd.”

“Oh Silly Millie,” Felix tutted puckishly. It was irritating. “It’s a shame you’re so oblivious when you have your books. You missed an amusing display of a teenage boy’s jealousy.”

“What?” I questioned, clearly not following.

“You know though,” he began as he rubbed his chin, blatantly ignoring me. “I bet you don’t even know there’s a boy sitting a few tables from you.”

“Boy? What boy?”

“See, typical you,” Felix said, ruffling my hair as if our age difference was much bigger than our actual one year difference. “Dirty blond with green eyes. But you can worry about when you go back but not tomorrow. I’m rarely in town so I’m gonna have you all to myself all day tomorrow my dear cousin.”

That was two days ago. True to his word, Felix did hog me for the whole day yesterday. He didn’t even spare me a moment to even think about what he told me or even touch any of my books. But as I walked closer and closer to the library thoughts of what Felix said to me that day kept nagging at me. 

When I got to my usual table I noticed Mrs. Tierney eyeing me as she always did whenever I came into the library. Honestly, she loved me and hated me at the same time. She loved me because I loved books. She hated me because books I loved books too much.

But aside from Mrs. Tierney and the occasional few that came and went to the library, there was no one else. No dirty blond guy with green eyes. 

I guess Felix was just messing with me. No surprise there really, I thought as I sat down at my seat with a humph. This is typical Felix after all. Getting kicks from feeding me a whole load of bull. You’d think I’d have learned by now.

I decided to just brush it off as I opened up my copy of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society to pick up from where I left off. I only managed to read two pages when I noticed a movement at the corner of my eye. Just a few tables away from me there was a boy, maybe my age, with a book in his hand making his way to a seat on an empty table. He had dark blond hair.

He was pretty tall, I realized, before he sat down. Maybe a little more than half a head taller than me. His dirty blond hair was a little choppy as it spiked up and a bit to the left of his head. His body was lean but his shoulders, they were broad. I couldn’t see his face but I had a nagging feeling his eyes were green. I blushed at the thought.