Yukari took a deep breath before entering the library. Just her luck. There were several people inside. She started walking towards the librarian’s desk but swerved towards a bookshelf. She looked behind her and saw IA, who waved at her.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj69yV6Ncx1
Oh god, she waved at her.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaesUlMiGDt
Yukari just started nodding with the exaggeration of a bobblehead. After almost half a minute of this, she turned her head and focused on the bookshelf. 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwMz7wKy8Q
She wasn’t looking for any book in particular, but she needed to do something to stop herself from staring at the librarian. The more she stared, the more the memory of the previous week’s fantasy would be able to crawl into her brain.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQAVqesk7Vp
After a minute of staring into space, she realised she was in the mathematics section. She scrunched up her nose. If anyone were to say that being good at something makes you like it, she would throw these hefty books at them. 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡViZ0oXIPnH
She looked down at the book in her hand and remembered the main character’s struggle to talk to the ghostlike woman.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY1aaBE2Pcn
She turned around and lurched towards IA, debating whether to walk like she usually did or in a casual, breezy way.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9O2CXeQFbp
IA smirked at her. “Do you like maths?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtaMgpPxXnI
Yukari snorted like a horse. “Of course. I love me some numbers. Trig is seriously underrated. Yeah.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmIQ2nqXuGC
IA chuckled. “Calm down.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVc4JoamQKB
Yukari held her head. IA eyed the book in her hand and reached for it. Yukari bit back a gasp when cold fingers brushed against her hand.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOxVhzjwnky
“Did you like it?” IA asked. Yukari, still looking down, nodded. “Who was your favourite character?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDdhdTsBa4e
“Why make me choose?” Yukari replied. “Tsukino Shion is a really relatable main character, but Kanbara Sora is a lot like… hey, how did you know my name? My name’s a lot like Shion’s.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡovlmQCnjvd
“It is?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS8QmqfKQXr
Yukari stepped back. She squinted her eyes at IA, who had her head tilted like a dog again.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEV2Yc5kwDG
“I’m Yuzuki Yukari. You… didn’t know?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdKj0rA2KQQ
IA stood up and bowed. “I’m sorry for not asking for your name earlier. I keep getting…distracted whenever we talk.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoeKNWXDX8p
I keep getting distracted whenever we talk.
I keep getting distracted.
Distracted.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLVEDKJ6WOh
699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy95mKA7wAv
Yukari felt like something exploded in her head, sending a blast of heat that reached from her neck up to her ears.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCSb658fGkG
She coughed. “So, uh, books. Gotta love ‘em. And music… music’s pretty… dope. It’s like oxygen. Everyone needs it in their lives.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwhjZgAPvxq
She mentally kicked herself.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGTxSTR7Gm7
IA sat back down and typed into the computer. “Are there any good books here?” She covered her mouth. “Forget I said that,” she said with her hand still on her mouth. She took it off and sighed. “Yuka… Miss Yuzuki, do you like jazz music?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJWW7gJbP90
“I haven’t really listened to it. Why?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf6pLuF9sAV
“Well, you mentioned music and I remembered this lesbian romance novel about a spoiled pop star who meets a struggling jazz musician. The descriptions of the songs are really good. It’s like you can actually hear them, even though they’re just words on paper. Would you be able to come to my place again to pick it up?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcQdSlj5UW8
IA’s eyes widened in realisation. “Oh, is it okay to recommend you new books? You’re probably sick of reading lesbian romance novels since you’ve got a boyfriend.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4SGw2heLlE
Yukari bit her lip. “What’s my boyfriend got to do with it?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlbWwgv0RMk
IA scratched the back of her ear and looked away, frowning. “Never mind.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5f4fyLXtws
“I’m fine with reading that sort of stuff. Recommend away.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡonwxn9RsEB
IA beamed at Yukari, who, under her powerful gaze, started fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3knmrT0Y0e
Yukari asked, “Do you like jazz?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo26LqhjgCQ
“I didn’t care much about it at first, but after reading the book, I started getting really interested in it. Isn’t it amazing how books can do that? It’s like every book is a new interest or hobby waiting to be discovered.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cisd9crH0
The sky turned indigo and IA locked up the library, once again taking Yukari to her car. 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpmfY3vVqv5
At the apartment, IA handed her a book with two women holding hands, one kissing the cheek of the other. In one woman’s remaining hand was a microphone and for the other woman it was a trumpet.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0DAnwX0o2L
IA turned on a CD player in the room. The notes of a trombone and double bass filled the room.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpcRAnRhoqS
“Do you have anywhere to be? Would you like to read here for a bit?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZfypvLbQ5
“What are you going to do?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAssDrxmXpN
IA picked a book from one of the piles called ‘Club Majesty’. “This will do for me.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbJHaRVglOQ
Yukari sat on the one couch in the apartment, taking off a pile of books that rested on it. IA slumped into the couch, opening her own book while existing in the grey area between sitting and lying down.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBVvPZ8m24b
The language of the romance novel in Yukari’s hands was a bit more intricate than the previous novel IA gave Yukari but it wasn’t too difficult to read.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUp3Rmjhw9I
The jazz music in the background lulled Yukari into a trancelike state as she let the story envelop her. She felt like she was sleep-reading and yet she was able to take in the story as if she had the concentration of a lawyer looking for holes in a witness’ story.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNqIM7O8MN
She was eventually broken out of her trance when IA rolled onto her back and raised her legs up against the couch’s back. IA bit her lip and stared at the book like it was written all in the most difficult of kanji characters. Yukari had to force herself to breathe, something she forgot to do as she watched her. She blushed as she stared at her lips.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi3olyFH6BG
She chuckled as she looked at the page IA was on. “I thought a librarian would be able to read the furigana.” She almost pointed out that furigana was usually in books for kids but didn’t want to get kicked out of the apartment.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJuyUZrpjL7
IA said nothing, turning the page. It took her only half a minute before she turned the page again. 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFntZhUGTyw
Yukari took a closer look at the new page before IA once again turned it. It was a bizarre chase scene involving a car chasing a pig with a sack full of cash on its back. It was-699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ66XhnPdbTN
IA turned the page. “Hey, it was just getting good,” Yukari blurted out. She held her head down. “Um… sorry.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlC4TA3gunr
IA turned her head and lightly poked Yukari’s forehead. “Silly girl. No need to apologise. Maybe you can borrow this one from me next time.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzIAD8Lqy9p
Yukari smiled. She took a few moments to gain the courage to poke IA’s foot.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ62IFvGk06A
IA kicked the air, cackling like a middle-aged woman after one too many glasses of Syrah. 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡux8RPYExUO
She dropped her book and pounced on Yukari, tickling the underarms. This developed into a bonafide tickle match.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYNnbShXMiw
Yukari laughed so hard she snorted, which caused both women to laugh even harder. After they stopped, they stared at each other silently. IA leaned in closer.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdYxQRc950w
Yukari felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. A mysterious shiver swam down her body and her cheeks were as hot as newly toasted bread. She breathed in and out slowly.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdUrJK6CJMh
IA’s eyes grew before she shut them and backed away.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6fSiyizINQ
“Um, sorry, I… uh… you should go back to… whatshisname… your boyfriend.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0xRpjz5ih
Yukari stood up and bowed. She grabbed her book and gave IA one last small smile before leaving the apartment.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CF0AAPSqH
She went straight home instead of Roro’s place. There was no way she was going to read a book with that kind of cover in front of him.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMQxZ5hhx3Q
Her phone buzzed and she frowned when she saw the message.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTj4LaymU9N
How’re you doing, beautiful? Wanna hang out?- Roro row your boat699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMEhruJuZZ7
She didn’t reply. Her fingers tingled, yearning to tell him about everything, but she put her phone back in her pocket to prevent herself from oversharing. This was her battle to fight.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkSqfwKg7FK
She read the book she was lended on her bed, hiding it under the covers whenever she heard her parent’s footsteps close in on her. Her parents never opened the door.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJZSCz24Uy
The book was a lot longer than the previous one so she stayed up until 3 A.M finishing it. When she finally finished it, she started pulling at the roots of her hair.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89FqhAeWno
She hadn’t done any homework.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU5yl3stjZP
She managed to complete her homework after a few hours and went to school with bags under her eyes. Her hands shook whenever she used them and she jumped out of her skin when Roro put a hand on her shoulder.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ89qVo18tOI
“Are you okay?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgj0uip5WK3
Yukari nodded and looked away from him.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2WWszGIiIO
Life began to form a pattern. Go to school tired, avoid Roro’s queries, return IA’s book to her, go to her place to find a new one, read it until the early hours of the morning and for god’s sake don’t let your parents know, do homework, get two hours of sleep at best, repeat the cycle. This happened for a good three weeks.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYuEXT8w2JV
Each time Roro kissed her during lunchtime, Yukari felt the magic a little less. She started reminiscing over the days when the two of them were friends.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRFH2fTpBlc
Yukari began to notice a few things about IA. Her apartment had an unplugged microphone and a keyboard. Her fridge was covered with sketches of monsters with crowns on them, ranging from medusa to demons and all from the same artist. The magnets that held them up were souvenirs from Greece. She had a to-do list with the most basic of functions such as ‘brush your teeth, you dingus’ and ‘if you don’t eat breakfast, you will starve to death before you get to meet a cute girl’. In the latter one, a line went through the words ‘before you get to meet a cute girl’. Yukari felt as if she had been split in half, one side uplifted and the other brought down to the depths of wherever the demon in that drawing came from.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpWwGKR7d97
After those three weeks, Roro took her aside after class and brought her to the empty music room.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8YO0hKG0S
He coughed an ‘ahem’. “Now that I have your attention, I want to ask you something. What the hell is going on with you?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWtjcoLqVu2
Yukari looked at the door behind her and stepped backwards but Roro grabbed her arm. His grip was gentle. 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxp1bs6cmZZ
“Please… whatever’s going on, please let me know. Did I do something wrong?” Yukari gulped, saying nothing. “Please, just talk to me.” 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbOzFIYPoM5
Yukari rubbed her eyes with her forearm. “I’m sorry. It’s not your fault.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbVsmCINjZw
“Then is there anything I can do to help you? You’re not yourself anymore.” He said that last sentence with the face of a rabbit seeing a buzzard and his voice was hoarse, as if it was a struggle to say anything.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPIXZozM1L1
Yukari took her arm away from her face and allowed tears to just fall down freely.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMlPaFIxOD6
“It’s something I have to figure out on my own.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT7l3sNArcR
“But I can-”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjoTqpIlF7p
“Not when the problem’s got to do with you!”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsqMvx2mMwn
“But you just said it’s not my-”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshlWDg39ej
“It’s my fault. If only I wasn’t so selfish.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVsj75CaeEY
“What’s going on with y-”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAiYbJp4tzc
“I like someone else!” 699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCHWGTCSCi
Roro let go of her and stepped backwards, his hands quivering. Yukari sat on the piano chair and held her head in her hands. Her body shook as she cried. Roro sat next to her, trying to ignore the discomfort of sitting on the corner. He held his hand in the air for a while before placing in on her head and stroking her hair.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW1R1eA6uEM
“Who’s the lucky guy? Is he in our class?” His voice was slow and ponderous, as if he was trying to hold in his own tears.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4eEEkRf0g
“It’s… a girl. You know the new librarian?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY0hXE53nkm
Roro took his hand off her hair, recoiling from shock.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP1LkMS5v9p
“Wait, so did you… I don’t know… pretend to like me so you don’t have to admit you like girls or something?”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb85eP5KkPO
Yukari shook her head, still looking down. “I liked you. Liked. Past tense. I’m…” She took a deep breath. “...bisexual. I’m really sorry. I should still like you, but… this girl’s just taken over my emotions and… I feel like there’s no room in me for any romantic feelings for anyone else.” She kept repeating the word ‘sorry’ in between sobs.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphCIbEabXp
Roro was silent for a while. He stood up and wiped his tears away, looking down at the ground and silently wishing the floor would collapse and take him with it.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6IcZiWxZti
“I… never pegged you for one of those girls. It doesn’t seem like the type of thing you’d be into.”699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZc4ZSp5kQg
Yukari looked up and saw Roro silently leaving the room.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiLCcsbiVTz
He didn’t talk to her for the rest of the day. When she returned another book to IA and they headed to her apartment, she burst into tears in her car.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw9I8Qt0eJh
She told her about the breakup but didn’t explain the reason for it. IA stopped the car in a parking lane and reached over to hug her, stroking her hair much like Roro did, though this time Yukari actually noticed it and felt her cheeks heat up.699Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ibJEAE2tp
The two stayed there for a few moments, the only sounds being their breaths. It was just her and the ghostlike librarian who seemed more real with each passing day.
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