Bewitched

Chapter 10

I'm in hell, that's the only rational explanation for why my dearest oldest friend has abandoned me with a women who've I've continuously embarrassed myself around. 

"So," I say with an absurd amount of bravery, "The tea is very delicious, don't you think?"

And with that amazing display of courage I resume my staring contest with the floor.

"Sweet," she comments and continues ripping up her chocolate muffin. Suddenly she pauses and asks, "We haven't spoken all that much, have we?"

This grabs my attention and I look up at her and she rewards me with a small smile

"No, I guess we haven't."

"Well, we've got time to correct that." She grins at me. "So... What's your favourite type of rock?"

This startles a laugh out of me. "What?"

She blushes, "Your a terramancer. You probably know enough about rocks to have a favourite."

"Makes sense." I smile at her. "Well if you were asking about the three main rock types in the rock cycle, I guess my favourite would be metamorphic rocks.  They form when rocks are subjected to high heat, high pressure, hot mineral-rich fluids or a combination of those factors. Metamorphic rocks are squished, smeared and folded, but they never get hot enough to melt. If they did they did they'd become igneous rocks," I say with a self-conscious chuckle and look up at her. 

She's leaning on her arm and staring up at me with a soft smile. "That's all super interesting, but that doesn't explain why its your favourite?"

"Well," I start and pull my chair closer to her to explain, "With igneous rocks they melt to from and sedimentary rocks form from the pressure surrounding a whole bunch of odds and ends and the way they form you can't really see what it looked like before, you can only see the way they've reshaped themselves. But metamorphic rocks show everything. All the stages of its life all laid out one on top of the other." I gesture wildly trying to get my point across and she laughs and rests her hand on top of mine to stop it moving.

"They're an open book," she says. "That's probably how Maggie sees everyone."

"As metamorphic rocks?" I laugh. "Probably. Now its your turn though to answer a question. I'm going to be a little more creative than you though and ask you something unrelated to plants." She laughs.  "Why did you move here?"

"Ooh, starting out with the big questions, are we? Well to summarise my reasons, I was bored. Day in day out, in was all tea parties and balls and fancy dresses and small talk. I wanted something more, I wanted to do something." Her eyes are alight and she's wildly gesticulating with one hand. The other hand is still resting on top of mine. "I wanted to be someone apart from my family. I wanted to be someone new, someone with friends, someone who does something they care about. So I moved here and got my shop and met Maggie and you and I feel like I'm finally starting to live."

I flip our hands until I can hold hers. "That actually sounds really familiar. A couple of years ago I got so frustrated with my parents controlling my life that I left. I lost my place in the succession, my inheritance and my family won't even look at me anymore. But I got to keep my title," I give a soft bitter laugh and she grips my hand tight. "They still invite me to parties and try arrange me marriage that would benefit them, but they don't even look at me anymore. Its like I'm a ghost. But they worst part is I don't regret leaving. Leaving was the best thing I ever did. I'm happier now than I ever was with them."

"But?"

"But sometimes I miss them so much it feels like I'm more ache than person. My mom and I used to be so close and its like by leaving I ruined everything."

She tucks me against her and sighs, " 'Sometimes the best decision hurts the most', that's something my mom used to say."

"Sounds like a wise woman."

"Sure, if you ignore the context of her advising me on which ball dress to chose."

I laugh and it feels like a weight has lifted off me. She joins in and its the best sound I think I've ever heard.

"My turn to ask a question." She says once the last of the laughter has faded. "Why a librarian?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I ask and she just shakes her head. "Knowledge. There's so much to learn and its all just sitting there waiting for someone to read it. Its knowledge for knowledges sake. All that information, how could I not want to know it?"

"Why not just visit the library a lot? You don't have to be a librarian to have access to its information."

"No, but as librarian I can have access it to it at all hours. I can spend three days non stop huddled around books on one specific topic without worrying about when they have to be returned. And I have first access to everything. Even before they're opened to the public I have them."

"So its pure selfish gluttony?"

"Exactly. My turn now..." I trail off. Sometime during our conversation we had drifted closer. I was so close I could count the freckles on her nose.

I lean closer and pause a hair's breadth away from her lips. She closes the gap with a soft brush against my lips. I cup her face and deepen the kiss. She grips the front of my shirt and tugs my closer. I lose my footing and crash us against a wall.

"One kiss enough to sweep you off your feet?" She laughs and nips my bottom lip with her teeth.

"I'm easily wooed," I respond and she laughs and switches our positions so I'm pinned against the wall.

She tastes like chocolate muffins and smells like strawberries, I think she is going to be the death of me.

I think I hear something, but I'm quickly distracted with her hands in my hair. I'm kept standing only by the pressure of her body pressing me to the wall, if she moved I'd collapse. I half-swallow some indecent sound and she laughs against my mouth.

There's a loud whistle and we jump apart. We'll she jumps, I sort-of collapse.

"Look at you lovebirds!" Maggie croons. "I thought my genius plan would at most result in a friendly handshake, but look at you two closer than strands in a rope."

Ilana looks uncertainly up at her and Maggie's whole face softens. "I'm happy for you two, honest." She walks closer and clasps us both tightly on our shoulders. "What could make me happier than the happiness of my two best friends? But," she says giving us both a push towards the door, "The shop opens in two hours and two disheveled people still in last night's clothes aren't exactly ideal for business. Go enjoy your last moments of peace, because when I'm done with work I expect you two to fess up every little detail."

Maggie grins at us and I give her a quick tight hug, before stepping outside. Ilana follows me and slips her hand into mine.

"I should probably set up my store too. Wanna come with? " She smiles up at me nervously.

"Of course. I still need to ask my question"