The Boy That Hates Books

A Cafe Booth And An Unwanted Guest

In which that empty red booth in the middle of Vixen's Cafe is accompanied by possibly the loneliest boy in the world. And of course...a boy who hates books.

And there the lights swung and flickered. There the chewing gum stayed lodged beneath the table, stuck to it like the eyes that were stuck to the unwelcome guest. Unmoving. Unwavering.

The twins held their breaths for longer than what was deemed to be humanly possible, before hatred opened like a long forgotten wound inside their eyes. Alice and Austin were usually kind people, who were loved throughout every inch of the Valley. But they, like most, were bound by a dark past.

This past they had managed to conceal temporarily, building up their lies like a small tower. But the boy that sat in that oh-so lonely booth would make this tower come tumbling down.

Vixen glided in, seemingly out of nowhere, and paused in front of this one red booth. Alice's eyes traced his every move, and Austin followed her lead. Vixen had no idea who he was about to serve.

You see, the most peculiar thing about this one red booth, in the middle of The Highway Cafe at 11pm at night, was that sat upon the table was a book. Austin couldn't decipher the name of it from where he was sitting, and Alice wasn't taking any notice. But that one book took Vixen's attention and held it there waiting, still as the night.

"That yours?" Vixen asked, slinging a rag over his shoulder and meeting the boys eyes.

For a brief moment, the boy wondered why the girl he was here for had knocked this waiter to the ground without a second thought. That coffee was definitely going to stain, and by the look on the waiters face, the boy could tell he was in pain.

Everyone has a motive, so she must have one too.

"Nope," the boy replied, "I hate books."

"That's funny," Vixen looked flustered, "it must've been the girls."

"Yeah," the boy replied almost immediately, "I'll return it to her tomorrow."

And he would. He promised himself that.

"Mhm, so what would you like to order..."

Their voices faded, becoming unheard beneath the thickening silence. Alice and Austin sat in the booth beside the window, where Kirsten had sat with them moments before, breathing hushed and palms sticky with sweat.

These next two words that you are about to read, clarified everything to the twins and everything that will happen in the many more chapters of their story. Absorb these two, simple words because they are the furthest thing from meaningless. They have huge importance or as he would say, they are the definition of important.

"It's him."