Chapter 3 ÉMIE

Émie Carter:

The pain didn't allow me to sleep. I waited for my parents to leave and went to the bathroom to assess the extent of the damage to my body...

I stared at my reflection in the mirror, and it was dreadful. The left side of my face was bruised and slightly swollen, but nothing that an ice pack couldn't fix. My thighs were also scratched, and my whole body ached. Luckily, it was raining, so I could bundle up well and cover my body better. For a moment, I found myself thinking about the guy from the car; perhaps I should have accepted his help, as I'm feeling terrible. After a quick shower, I made a sandwich and stuffed it into my bag. I let my hair down, grabbed my coat, and headed to work.

"Good morning, Miss Carter. Well... since you're already here, we were wondering if you could stay after closing today to remove the dust from the books and shelves. Payment will be made right away." Well, at least I would earn some extra money today.

"Of course I want to, besides, you know that I'm always here when you need me," Mrs. Emília was generous with me, she was a mysterious woman with a stern face, but she was sweet.

It was the first time she paid me so well for a somewhat mediocre job. There were two envelopes with 200 dollars each, which was almost half of my salary, and if I save well, I can leave home soon.

"Your salary will also increase, dear. You do the hard work with love, as if being cooped up in here all day was the best thing in the world. I don't know anyone better to take care of this library than you," her small eyes disappeared when she smiled.

Indeed, it was the best place for me to be at the moment. But it wasn't where I wanted to be forever; I still held out hope for a positive response from one of the universities. A scholarship would be enough for me, I wouldn't think twice...

The rainy day attracted many people, and as a courtesy, I made coffee and tea to serve whoever wanted some. I was pouring a cup of tea when I turned and met those pair of perfect green eyes.

"Good morning," my eyes read his good morning before his lips, it was unsettling, but I was still under the influence of the medication I took before leaving home. "What would you recommend for today?"

"I suppose you have good taste, but if you want something to cry over on a rainy day, reread Romeo and Juliet, I know you've already read it!" He looked intelligent, and that was sexy, along with his smooth, husky voice, it was also exciting.

"Why does rain evoke sadness in you?"

"It's not the rain, it's life itself." I placed the book in front of him and stopped at the counter, observing the constant stream of people coming in and out. "Would you like tea? Or coffee?"

"Tea, please!"

While pouring the hot water into the cup, I glanced over to where he was sitting and saw him reading the first pages. Who is this man, after all? His glasses made him even sexier, with an intellectual look and... well, he was handsome. I placed the cup on a saucer and carried it over to him.

"Here you go!" I placed it on the table and turned away, feeling his hand holding mine the next moment.

"Keep me company! If it's not bothering you, of course."

I sat in the chair next to him and grabbed a random book, as it would be impossible to read near someone, that was a terrible insecurity I always had. He smelled good, a mixture of wood and alcohol. Finally, someone wanted to rent a book and needed the seal, and I had to do it. I got up quickly, and before I could step away, I felt him touch a strand of my hair, bringing it to his nose; it all happened very quickly. I walked to the counter and sealed the book for the lady who had a terrible look on her face.

"Here you go, enjoy!" She smiled, thanked me, and left.

I looked around, and he was no longer there; the book was back on the shelf, and his cup was in the sink. How did he do all this so quickly?

(...)

The day seemed not to pass; in the afternoon, few people came, and after 3:00 p.m., no one else appeared. It was a Thursday, like any other, and just as melancholic. I closed the doors and thanked for closing; it was ugly, and the wind was making me freeze more and more. I lit the fireplace and felt the atmosphere warm up. Without haste, I started removing the book by book, putting them in a box in order and placing them next to the shelf. About half an hour later, there were about five empty shelves, and there were a total of 17 shelves, not counting other antique pieces that also stored books. I took a deep breath and went to work. My nose itched every second I felt the dust entering my nostrils, so to avoid that, I put my shirt over my face, and thus I could clean most of the shelves without sneezing and without dust. After a few hours, everything was in its proper place, and finally, I checked the time, and it was already past 11:20 p.m. "Damn!" I cursed, and I was sure I had missed the last bus; walking home wouldn't be so bad... when you're totally fine physically, and I feel "broken." It had started raining, even weakly, it was soaking me. There was no way to leave like this. With no choice, I went to the bus stop; it was the only place I could shelter from the rain.

Thunder rumbled incessantly, the strong wind nearly toppling trees, and without a coat, I was shivering from the cold. A lightning bolt had just struck very close to where I was, which scared me because besides the thunder, there were now lightning bolts and hail.

The car approaching the bus stop made me tremble all over, but when the window rolled down and he showed himself, I felt relieved and internally thanked that it wasn't anyone else.

"Get in the car, I'll take you home." I thought about hesitating and saying no, but I couldn't bear the cold anymore, and I was very hungry.

I crossed over and got in, sitting in the back seat with care not to wet the car seat. I placed my bag on my lap, and he drove on silently.

"I wasn't nice that day, I was in pain and stressed. Thank you for taking me home instead of to the hospital," I said in a low voice. Honestly, I didn't expect him to respond, but I was surprised!

"I did the bare minimum, if even that!" He spoke with a slight disdain in his tone. "I should have taken you to a hospital, I imagine the pain hasn't lessened, am I right, Émie?"

"No. It's decreased a bit. It's just that I spend so many hours lost in books that I don't even notice anything different in my daily life."

"Must be a great job you have, but not as good as actually enjoying life. What led you to work in that library?" His question was somewhat unanswered because I never thought about why; I just saw it as a convenient job when I was hired.

"I needed a job, and they gave me one." He looked at me and shook his head afterward, as if I was telling him something funny.

"Your tone of voice gives away that you're lying!" The car braked suddenly, throwing my body backward and then forward with the momentum. I felt his careful yet intimidating pair of eyes on me. "These bastards should look behind instead of stopping all of a sudden," he muttered quietly, but it was audible due to the silence between us.

"I'm not lying... I really needed a job, and luckily, they needed someone who could also do overtime, and here I am."

"Why didn't you look for something else?" Besides being curious, he was also arrogant, and I didn't even know his name.

"Do you think anyone would hire a problematic person? I don't think so..."

"You don't seem problematic to me; I could be wrong, but that's what I see when I look at you." What was that? A compliment or something?

"Indeed, I'm not, but my parents are!" As we turned the corner, I noticed that he didn't stop, so I decided to speak up; I didn't want to arrive home late. I didn't want to hear any more useless things. "If you don't mind, you can stop here, please!" Before opening the door, I felt his touch on my hand, and I quickly turned to him.

"If you don't mind, I'd rather drop you off at home. You could catch pneumonia and die."

"That's not very convincing."

"Is Miss looking for words to convince her, Miss Émie?"

"No. I don't even know your name. You shouldn't even be here. If you don't mind, I have to go. Thank you for the ride!"