Wallace:
I studied myself in the mirror. People always think guys don't care about their appearance, and I always liked to think that I didn't either, but in all honestly it was something I troubled myself with far too much. My nose was weird, to say the least. It was kind of crooked and had a weird bump on the bridge where there was usually a dent. I never had braces, so I had a gap between my two bottom teeth. It's not like I hated myself. I actually always prided myself on having dark, brown eyes. Looks aren't everything, I knew that, but when the world is filled with people obsessed with the way their body looks, it's hard not to think about it yourself.
I looked down at my hands and flipped the sink on, splashing some of the running water in my face. Bridget had been at school all day so I went out for a run around town. It was better than tagging along for coffee with Mom and Mrs. Clements. There were still a few hours before Bridget got home from sports practice, and I was thinking about stopping by a bookstore I saw along my run.
Walking out into the kitchen, I grabbed a water bottle from the table and asked my mom if I could go out again.
"Well wait, when Bridget gets home we are going to go out to eat," she said, putting her hand on my shoulder as if to stop me.
"Yeah, I'll be back before then."
"Well, I mean, sure. Just text me to let me know where you are."
After downing the water bottle, I set out again on another run. It was only about a mile away from Bridget's house, that was barely anything. Her town was so much more walkable than back home, and I ran track and cross country, so it would only take me about five minutes to get there. It was a little shop hidden between a taxidermist and an entrance to some apartments above. I probably wouldn't have actually noticed it if it hadn't been me tripping over a dog right in front of the place. I didn't think about stopping in then, so I came back. I opened the door and the classic sound of a jingle bell rang above. The smell of old books welcomed me. The shop was narrow, but it looked like it extended back pretty far, and even had an extra room behind it. The books were stacked up messily, almost as if there was no organization to the place. Exactly how I liked it.
"Welcome to Shakespeare and Earl Grey," a voice said. I looked to my right and noticed the desk. It was a counter actually, with a coffee maker on the back, and a mirror across the entire wall. A girl's back was to me, but I could see her face in the mirror. She made eye contact with me and smiled. "I'll be with you in a moment." Then she disappeared through the stacks of books. I let myself examine the place for awhile until the girl came back. "What can I help you with?"
She was a stout girl. Her hair was cut in a bob, and she had really bright red lipstick on to match her skirt. She was cute, really cute.
"Uh," I said, searching my head for words. "Yeah," I said.
She smiled and a whisper of a laugh escaped her lips. "I asked what can I help you with."
"Oh, sorry," I said. "I heard 'can I help you'."
"It's fine. Honest mistake."
I looked at her for a few more seconds.
"You said I could help you?"
"Right. I was uh..." I said the first thing that came to my head. "I was wondering if you had books on linguistics."
She bit her lip and tapped her finger on the counter to think. "Actually I think we just got a book in. I'll go get it." She left again, and I waited again. When she returned she held a small paperback with a white cover. "This is about different dialects in America. Is that kind of what you were thinking of?"
"That's exactly what I was thinking of," I lied as I reached out to grab the book.
"I'm glad I could help. Did you want any coffee or tea or anything?"
"I'm okay, thank you," I said.
"No problem. Let me know if you need anything else."
I took the book with me and went back to the corner of the shop. I settled down under the fiction S's, my back resting comfortably somewhere around Steinbeck. I found a little spot in the shelf across from me and where I could peer through and watch the girl behind the counter. She would stack books, clean cups, and at one point the phone rang and she answered it with a smile. I never opened the book she gave me. I didn't know anything about linguistics, it was just the first thought that came into my head. My head is terrible at working properly when I'm around cute girls. After an hour of staring at the girl, I set the book down and got up to leave. Bridget would be home soon, we were going to go eat somewhere.
"Thank you," I said as I headed toward the door.
She jumped when I said it. "I forgot you were here," she smiled really widely. "Anytime."
And I jogged home.
The next day I went back at the same time. I brought some money with me this time to get a coffee. When I got there, she wasn't the one behind the desk, it was an older woman. She greeted me, and I disappointingly acknowledged her. Running my hands over the books, and peering back toward the back room, I didn't see any sign of the girl. I looked at the books for awhile to make it seem less strange than if I just left right away. When I turned to leave, however, the door opened and she walked in with two textbooks in her hands, a backpack hooked on her shoulder, and this time she was wearing glasses. She stepped up behind the counter and dropped her stuff with a groan.
"I swear, chem honors was a stupid idea. Like, we didn't actually get to the lab today! She just talked about safety and stuff all day and yeah I know that's important and yeah like I don't want to die but the test is in two days and we needed today to finish the lab because this lab is going to be on the test and now everyone is freaking out and oh my god." She talked a lot faster than I thought she was capable of.
"Sounds like a fun day," the older woman said. I realized the girl looked just like the woman. They must be mother and daughter. The shop was probably family run.
"And now I have a paper to write!"
"Leigh, don't freak out. Stay calm."
"I need some caffeine," she said with a sigh and grabbed a mug from the cabinet.
"Did you find everything okay?" The mom asked.
I suddenly forgot she could see me there. I wasn't just watching them from behind the shelf.
"Yeah," I said.
The girl who I think name is Leigh turned around to see me. I suddenly felt really self conscious about my exercise pants and T-shirt, and my face which was probably really red. I get red instead of sweaty when I exercise, and this time I stopped by the store on my actual run. I smiled at her and she smiled back. I really wanted to touch her hair. It was back in a ponytail, but it was so short that the front part fell around her ears. She turned back around and flipped on the coffee maker which made a loud hissing noise.
"Yes, thank you." I said, and walked out the door. That girl was so pretty.
