Library

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After eating the sandwich and preparing all the requirements I needed for the registration, I called my Mom beforehand and informed her I was already taking my leave to Evanston to register for the incoming exams.

She apologized for not being there to see me off and I just assured her it wasn't necessary. She told me to be careful at driving and constantly update her of my whereabouts if I have already arrived at Evanston or when I already have registered.

After listening to all her versions of reminders of taking care of myself and being extra careful, we said our goodbyes, and I finally went on my way and left, also giving an awkward goodbye to my father as I left the house.

I rode a taxi from home and fetched my car.

From there, I drove my way to the city library.

As I was driving on my way to the library, my phone rang beside me. The familiar tone resonated throughout the space of my car. My eyes didn't leave the road and instead I instinctively reached for my phone, grabbing it and tapping the screen answering the call.

"Leigh!"

At the sound of his voice, my lips instantly formed a thin line.

'𝘐𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭?'

Taking a deep breath, I turned on the speaker mode and placed it down the passenger seat beside me.

"What do you want?"

"Rude."

"Nothing? Fine, I'll hang up now, then."

"Hey! It's just—" a momentary pause "—what are you up to?"

That caught my attention. I glanced at the phone for a split second before immediately bringing my attention back to the road again.

It was a trivial context. Nothing seems to be wrong when you don't meticulously pay attention, yet it seems like he wanted to tell me something but just debated on not telling me at the end.

'𝘋𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨?'

"Is something up?"

The familiar light-hearted chuckle echoed. It didn't catch me off guard this time, but that didn't stop those weird and unfamiliar sensations that were occurring inside my stomach.

"Aw, you're worried?"

'𝘕𝘰𝘱𝘦, 𝘐 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬. 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨'𝘴 𝘶𝘱. 𝘏𝘦'𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘩𝘪𝘮.'

"Shut up."

"No, I won't. You didn't answer my question earlier. What are you up to?"

"I'm going somewhere."

"Where are you going?"

"Evanston."

A pause loomed over the other line longer than I had anticipated that I almost thought he disconnected from the line already.

"In Illinois?" He said in reply after a while.

I shifted in my seat and turned left, the view of the library entering my peripheral as I did so.

"Yes, where else would Northwestern University be?"

Another momentary pause, I knitted my brows and glanced back at the phone for a second seeing that it was still lit up on an ongoing call before quickly bring my eyes back to the road.

'𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘶𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮? 𝘏𝘦'𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘥𝘥, 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘭.'

"You're planning on studying there?"

As I entered the premises of the parking space, I immediately found a decent spot and parked there.

"Yeah."

"I never told you?"

"No, you just kept telling stuff about the entrance and scholarship exams but you never mention which university."

I took the phone from the seat and grabbed the Bluetooth ear buds connecting it to the device.

"Well, you didn't ask."

Facing the back seat, I reached for my bag and borrowed text books, also hearing a brief yet loud snort coming from the phone.

"Sure."

I raised an eyebrow, an amused smirk morphing onto my lips as I pulled the key out of the ignition and securing my text books and sling bag into my hold before opening the door.

"Come to think of it, you also never told me where you were studying. You know, before you randomly dropped out." My smirk widened.

"I have an excellent reason for that, Miss Alvarez, and as for my school, I—"

"Helio! Make me a seesaw!"

The sound of the unfamiliar voice startled me for a second before I pondered, registering and recognizing who the voice was from. Voices rather.

"What the? They're already here?"

A small smile formed on my lips before I let out a small chuckle, entering the library as I did so.

"Them again? Fine, then go on and tend them. They'll need your full attention. Good luck and don't die."

"Hey! I can handle my nieces and nephews just fine—Ow!"

Yelling enthusiastic children together with the simultaneous impact of objects coming into contact with something echoed from my ear buds as I made my way to the librarian's desk.

While striding off to the desk of the familiar-looking woman, probably in her mid-forties, I did my best to hold back a chuckle and kept quiet by biting my lip.

"No, don't touch that! Stop hitting me with the wood Cris— Lia! No! Put that hammer down!"

Before I knew it, I couldn't hold it anymore, and a chuckle escaped my lips that was loud enough to echo throughout a place that was basically deadpanned quiet.

My hand slapped up to my mouth instinctively, instantly muffling the fit of laughter that was threating to spill out of my mouth.

I caught some people's attention, and I just gestured an apology to them, especially at the librarian who was sitting behind her desk, glaring at me ominously as a warning to shut my mouth up or just get out if I wasn't planning to do so.

"Hello? Hello?— Give me back my phone, Troy! —Helloo?"

At that, the call ended with a click.

After doing my utmost best to swallow the fit of laughter that was threatening to spill, I fixed my composure and retreated my hand from my lips and strode my way to the glaring librarian.

I smiled at her as I laid the text books down in front of her.

She still looked displeased, but at least she wasn't focusing on me anymore.

As she was stacking the books and taking a form, I probably need to fill up. My phone dinged out of nowhere, causing the librarian to glare at me again for the hundredth time for the past five minutes.

I murmured a quick apology to her before grabbing my phone and checking what the notification was about.

𝘈𝘪𝘳𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘙𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴: 𝘚𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘺 '𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺'𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘧𝘶𝘭.

Rolling my eyes in no one in particular, I turned the device off and shoved it in my back pocket, facing the librarian, a form laid out on the desk in front of me.

But before I could write something on the form, another ding of two consecutive notifications resonated the area, followed by a very annoyed, glaring, and grunting lady in front of me.

I slumped down and bowed my head, grabbing my phone once again in my back pocket, frantically pressing the silent mode before checking the message again.

𝘈𝘪𝘳𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘙𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴: 𝘚𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘸?

𝘈𝘪𝘳𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘙𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴: 𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺?

It was my time to glare at my screen now, silently fantasizing of shoving this idiot down six feet underground, but instead of actually doing anything of those, I just stowed the device away, grabbing the pen and filling up the form.

After logging up my information, she turned her back on me, silently urging me to get lost from the library before she kicks me out.

Whispering another apology, I thanked her before walking out of the place, and finally get to breathe properly when I finally got out.

While I was just about to open my car door, a buzz vibrated from my back pocket, stopping me in my tracks. I puffed out a breath before grabbing my phone and answering the call, knowing very well who it was already.

"What?"

"I haven't even done anything! Why do you sound so angry again? Or is it just you sound angry all the time?"

"Oh shut up, I was in the library and I almost got kicked out because you texted me."

"How's that my fault?!"

I groaned in unison of opening the car door and slamming it shut, throwing the phone and sling bag on the passenger's seat beside me.

I turned the ignition key, waiting for a minute before roaring the engine to life.

"That's it. I'm not answering any of your calls or texts for the rest of the day."

"Hey! I didn't even know you were in a library!"

"Yeah! Don't care! Good bye! I'm hanging up!"

"Hey! Leigh wai—!"

I didn't let him finish, and I ended the conversation with a click.

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