Over the past few weeks, Olive and I had taken to sitting in the normally empty children's section of the library, when I wasn't at the front desk, to talk books, family, anything really.
I plopped myself down into one of the big red beanbag chairs next to Olive and ruffled her bright curls.
"So what's happenin' in the old olive jar?" I smiled and she giggled at my comment.
"Nothing much." She responded. "My mom bought this for me." She held up a brand new hardback cover of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'engle.
"Oooh." I cooed and gently stroked the jacket with my finger tips. "You know, Calvin O'keefe was my first crush." I said, referring to one of the story's characters.
Olive let out a laugh. "You're so silly." She breathed. "Do you have a phone?"
"Um, yeah. Why?"
"I just want to look up something about this book. Can I see it?"
"Alright." I agreed and dug my phone out of my pocket to hand to her.
Silently, her tiny fingers tapped away at the screen and suddenly looked up.
"Who's Luke?" She blurted suddenly.
"What?" I felt the blood drain from my cheeks.
"Luke." She said simply. "He just texted you and says he's sorry then asked if you wanted to go and have dinner with his family at six."
"No. Tell him no." I said quickly.
"Is he your boyfriend?" She raised her eyebrows suggestively.
"Ugh, no." I scoffed. "We used to be friends in High School but now we're not and its his fault and I don't want to see him."
"He says he'll see you tonight at six, and he added a smiley face at the end." Olive commented.
"What? Olive! I told you to say no!"
"Whoops." She shrugged and handed my phone back. "I guess you're gonna have to get out something cute to wear, because you have a dinner date." She said with a smile as she got up from her chair and wandered off into the fantasy section.
***
I stood in front of my full-length mirror impatiently pulling at the seams of my dark red fit and flare dress that I usually wore when I wanted to look nice but not too dressy.
"Looking good honey." My mom commented as she poked her head through my bedroom door.
"Thanks." I sighed in frustration and threw myself onto the edge of my bed.
Carefully my mother took a seat next to me. "I know this makes you nervous, baby, but it'll be good for both you." She comforted me as she gently rubbed my forehead, a gesture she had been doing since I was a child.
"And don't be too mean to him." She teased in a whisper.
I rolled my eyes sarcastically. "A girl can only try, mother."
She laughed as she pushed herself off the bed. "Whatever you say. You better get going, though, or pretty soon you'll be rude and late."
"Well I'm already halfway there." I mumbled. My mother just chuckled and left, her footsteps sounding loudly as she descended the stairs.
Grudgingly, I pushed myself off the bed and pulled on a pair of tan flats. Pulling a brush through my hair one last time, I checked myself in the mirror and headed out of my bedroom and down the stairs.
"Put this on, its chilly out there." My mom handed me a simple white cardigan to protect me from the cool evening air.
"Thanks, mum." I said gratefully and slid the sweater over my bare arms.
