Endless obsession

Chapter 3

      Sleep didn't come easily, then again it never does lately. I was up and dressed long before my alarm went off. Maddie had text me last night to let me know she wouldn't be going in until later today. So I was driving solo today.

     After checking the time for the 6th time in two minutes, I decided to head out. Class didn't start for another hour and a half but I wanted to check out the schools library. I left my apartment, making sure the door was locked behind me.

     Once in the parking lot, I started my car and made my way to school. The parking lot only had a few cars in it when I arrived, probably just teachers and janitorial staff. The library wasn't hard to find, it was one of the biggest out buildings on school grounds.

     I was beyond impressed with the inside of the library, it was absolutely massive. There were 3 floors and the books seemed to go on forever. I was just aimlessly wandering around the library when I noticed Mr. Gardner sitting in the lounge area off to the side. He looked up at me and waved. I smiled and went over to join him.

    " Good morning Alex, how are you? I'm surprised to see you here so early." He said with a bright smile.

     I smiled back, taking a seat on the couch across from him. " I'm fine, I woke up early and couldn't get back to sleep. I wanted to check out the library before class."

     He nodded, lowering his eyes to my hands. I always fidgeted with my fingers when I was nervous, I guess he noticed. It was a bad habit I developed due to anxiety.

     " Are you nervous?" He asked matter-of-factly.

     I quickly put my hands down roughly on my lap and shook my head rapidly. He chuckled, closing his book. I raised an eyebrow at him as he stood up. He walked around the table in the center of the lounge area and sat next to me. He took one of my hands in his and stroked my fingers with his thumb. It felt like an electric shock just pulsed through my whole body. I looked up at him and my heart began to race.

     " You're damaging the skin around your finger nails Alex." He said quietly, running his thumb over my fingers again. " You need to find another coping method for your anxiety."

     I shivered and pulled away instinctively. Is he.. flirting with me? Mr. Gardner chuckled and got up, moving back to his seat.

     " I have a bachelor's degree in Psychology as well as a Master's degree in English. I'm trained to recognize these types of signs Alex." He said calmly.

     My eyes went wide. Shit, he could probably tell just from looking at me yesterday something was wrong with me. A slow nod was all I could muster. Every word in my vocabulary seemed to have abandoned me.

      I took a deep breath and tried to steady myself. " Is that why you emailed me last night?" He nodded, causing me to sigh in relief.

     " You sound relieved." He laughed, " Did you misunderstand what I'd written in some sense?"

     I started to blush, " N-No. Not exactly, I mean.. not on purpose anyway. I'm sorry."

    " There's no need to be ashamed Alex. I'll admit the last line of my email did strike me as a little too forward when I read it over again. I apologize for that." He said sincerely.

     I could feel my whole body temperature rising. He was so modest, which made him even more attractive. I stood up and threw my backpack over my shoulder.

    " It's fine really, no harm done. I have to go, I'll see you later Mr. Gardner." I smiled before quickly spinning on my heal to leave.

     I turned back to look at him and saw him wave. I quickly threw open the door and ran away from the library. Once I was back to my car I hopped in and slammed my door shut, locking it. I took out my phone and pulled up my contacts. Once I found who I was looking for I hit dial. I tapped my foot in agony as I listened to ring after ring. I was about to hang up when someone finally answered.