Checked Out

New Condition

New Condition:

            His skin rubbed against the slippery texture of spines as he went down the line, leaving a little imprint of fine dust as his fingers trailed and drummed along the fine prints. Books were pressed against each other in an orderly fashion that could only be described as alphabetical.

            He loved the sound of books. They were magical to his ears because they offered him an escape from the real world. No one would imagine to look for him here. In the back corner of the library, in the last row of hollowed wood, spaced out to hold stitched up pages of a story.

            He loved the concepts of stories, though he never dreamt of adding his own words to these sacred ledges he called monuments. The carpenters must be lucky, he thought. To be able to assemble the edifices that held his favorite people.

             His shoes suddenly came to an abrupt halt against the chafing of the carpet. It held him back long enough for his eyes to notice the slot that was no longer empty space, barely wider than half an inch. But it was half an inch of difference that caught his attention.

            One moment the book was there. In the next, it was gone.

            He had created a disturbance in the corner of his universe, but he did not seem to care. There were more important matters at hand. He looked down at his hands. It held the newest addition. He could taste it on his tongue like a wet summer's rain. He loved the sweetness of it. The smell of pine wood. The flick of a wrist that signified the turn of a finely sliced page.

            It was addicting. He could not put it down.

            The lady at the checkout desk gave him a warm smile that reminded him of the cookies his grandma used to bake. They were so soft and filled with gooey goodness that melted all the way down his throat. Every single time. Every single bite. He meant to get the recipe and repeat the same trick, but somehow he never got around to it. After all, he wasn’t meant to be a magician.

            He watched politely as her hands paled against the new cover and as the book shook between her fingers. He didn’t say anything. It added more wrinkles and cracks to those works of wonder as she pulled the hardcover back and held it under the limelight. It deserved to be in the spotlight. She had her moment once, and so did he. It was time to move on.

            He paid her with an easy smile between his lips as he pulled away from the counter, his pockets full of loose change.

            The lady had seen him come and go numerous times over the years. She had lost track of the time since he was a little boy. And the man behind the counter was only a reminder of the boy she once knew.

            It was a kind reminder, she thought, as she watched his back grow smaller and smaller into that of a child’s. How familiar it was as if he was approaching her like time had never passed.

            She smiled, knowing that she would see him soon. He was reliable like that.

__________

Author's Note: Dedicated to all those who love to read.

August 16, 2014