February Night

Chapter 9

The air was fresh that morning when Lucy left the house to go for a run. She wasn't a huge fan of running but she hated fitness centers even more. So, running was the easiest way to stay fit. Usually, she took Roxy with her, but Luke had already been out for a run too this morning, before she even woke up and had taken the dog with him. This time, it would be only her.

Starting slowly, Lucy made her way down the street and was pleased that there weren't as many people around as she had expected. She avoided to be outside alone when it was dark so she only went for a run when the sun was out already. But then most people were on their way to work as well. Today, she was lucky.

Lucy had been running for almost half an hour when suddenly a bookstore caught her eye. She stopped and wondered why she hadn't discovered it yet. Curiously, she went closer to sneak into the little store. It was a small one and it seemed as if there weren't any customers in there. She couldn't even see the owner or anybody else who worked in here. Lucy decided to go inside.

She slowly walked by all these bookshelves and let her eyes wander over the backs of the books. Sometimes, she even reached out a hand and let her fingers slide over them. A smile appeared on Lucy's face when she finally pulled out one of the books and flicked through it. She had spotted some real treasures already and decided that she would have to come here once she'd have more time to spend.

"Hello, dear. May I help you with something?" Startled, Lucy spun around, almost dropping the book. She had been so lost in her own thoughts and in the books, that she'd forgotten she wasn't the only one in the room. There was an elderly woman standing and smiled at her. Her long, grey hair was pulled into a pony tail and her light blue eyes examined Lucy.

"Oh, uhm...I'm just looking around a bit", Lucy stammered; she hadn't expected to be appealed.

The woman nodded. "Tell me when you need some help." She shot another smile Lucy's way and then went back to her counter, where she sat down on a chair and opened a book. For a moment, Lucy examined her before she turned her attention at the books once again.

~

The next days, Lucy showed up at the little bookstore almost every day before or after work to wander through the bookshelves and look at all the books. Lucy couldn't exactly tell why she liked to come to that bookstore so much, she just felt comfortable in here. It was quiet and the air was filled with the smell of books. She loved that smell, since she had been a little girl. And this bookstore remembered her a lot of her favorite one back in New York. Sometimes, there were even some more customers in here and Lucy could see the elderly lady at the counter being busy putting the books they bought into bags. She had a smile to spare for every single person that came in, no matter if they bought something or not.

One day, when Lucy came in, she saw the bookstore owner sitting on her chair, with closed eyes. She looked tired and exhausted. No wonder, she must be at least seventy and still runs that store, Lucy thought as she slowly came closer. The lady opened her eyes just at the time Lucy put her hands on the counter.

"Hi, can I help you?", the lady said, smiling, and got up from her chair.

"Oh no, please, you don't have to get up!", Lucy hurried to say. But the lady waved Lucy's comment aside with a move of her hand.

"It's alright, dear", she said. "Although...sometimes it would be nice to have someone looking after the store from time to time, when I feel too exhausted", she added, sighing. Lucy bit her lips. She had always wanted to work at a bookstore, although everyone had told her that she was crazy – she had been to university and studied languages. She could have had a better job than working at bookstore. But books just made her so happy and she couldn't imagine something better than being surrounded by all those stories day by day. Maybe this was her chance now? Lucy cleared her throat and tried to figure out how to start.