Pieces [Wattpad's Editor's Choice]

17: MiSsInG bAcKbOnE

"You look different."

Isaac's eyes studied my face as I approached him slowly. He leaned against the railing leading up the stairs of the library, a single notebook wedged between his thigh and forearm. His other hand gripped a strap of his backpack. He wore a white dress shirt but no tie, as well as some neatly pressed khakis. It was Sunday, yet he still dressed like he was heading into the office as a tech support, network administrator, I don't know, some professional-esque geek.

"You mean I look classy and not trashy for once? Thank you. It's all the coconut oil and Ethan repellent I wear these days." I put one foot on the same step as him, but left my other foot one step down and stared up at him.

I'd tamed my waves earlier today by braiding them into two French braids that rested on my shoulders. I had some mascara on, but that was it makeup-wise; sometimes I didn't like wearing mascara because it always scraped my glasses every time I blinked. I sported a red shirt that said Let's Netflix and Chill from Luna on my last birthday (just because) and some black leggings.

I glanced at the double-doors of the library. A few lights illuminated the aisles as late evening approached and the sky darkened. Lots of students shuffled aimlessly throughout the library; it was Sunday, aka Dawn of Procrastination for college students. Sundays at midnight were usually the deadline to submit assignments, 11:59 on the dot. I still had time; I'd start mine after taking Arrow home.

"Can we not go inside?" I said. "It looks busy." Every visible aisle contained so many students, they had to shimmy across bookshelves just to get to the end of the aisle. Additionally, all the tables were covered in textbooks, notebooks, laptops, coffee. Some people even lay on the floors hunched over textbooks while others casually walked over them.

Isaac looked over his shoulder, pressed his lips together in thought, and then nodded. "Sure. There are tables out here, if you don't mind being bothered by the moths around the corner."

"Psh, I bicycle, swim, hike, and camp in the summer. I consider myself a busy-bee, not a pretty little flower. And have you even been listening to me the past week? I'm gonna be a part-time entomologist. Moths are my passion." I rolled my eyes and made my way up the remainder of the stairs and around the corner towards the metal tables.

Isaac and I sat at a table closest to the railing that separated the library from the rest of campus. Trees lined the outside of the railing and normally provided shade when it was too hot and bright out. Tonight, the leaves rustled slightly with the warm wind and made the area smell like cherry blossoms, even though there weren't any.

"Right now we're learning about organs and their functions." Isaac opened his book to where it was marked with a pencil. He sat across from me on the metal table, his feet crossed at the ankles. "Specifically the heart. That's what our quiz is on."

"If our quiz is on the anatomy of the human heart, no amount of studying will help me pass."

"Ha-ha." He opened his notebook to a clean page and wrote the date in the upper-right hand corner. He studied the numbers like they were a combination to something, but he wasn't sure what. Then his eyes slowly met mine.

There was something strange in that look of his. Sometimes it seemed as if he was always a little uncertain, which was a strange look to have for someone who believed he knew everything. Maybe it was...insecurity? Vulnerability? I couldn't place it. But whatever it was, it was a result of something that weighed heavy on his mind a lot.

"Speaking of which," he said, his voice low. "Where's lover boy? Mr. Erostein-and I say that the way I prefer spelling it, as e-r-o-s."

I exhaled heavily and leaned back in the metal chair, my elbows propped on the arm rests and my hands linked on my stomach. I glanced to the right of me where a glass panel of the library was, offering the perfect view of aisles and aisles of books and college students standing between them. I didn't see Arrow anywhere inside, but that's because the language books were on the second floor.