ETHEREAL STORIES

GLIMMER

A sniffle, a shuddering breath and a quiet laugh eased its way into my ears while I was walking down the street. I turned to see if there was something in the darkness but there was just emptiness there and that started a shiver in my nerves.

Normally I am quite brave and jump into the fire kind of girl, but today was different, today felt wrong, today I felt the release of adrenaline in my bloodstream, waiting for the chance to escape from whatever was coming.

There it was again!! I heard that quiet laugh, a few whispered words, a quiet warning, a quiet sniffle which made it's way into my ear and made me shudder. It was a rather lonely night to be walking home in my poorly lit neighbourhood. I always returned this late from the book meet which was held once a week at my friends place.

I heard quiet footsteps and another shuddering breath which made me clutch my duffle bag tight to my heaving chest. I hadn't realised that I had completely stopped walking, my legs felt like jelly and for the first time in my life I prayed to Po from the movie Kung Fu Panda to give me strength, as the smell of pine and winter invaded my senses with a hint of rot.

Earlier in the day...

I had just finished the last chapter of the fantasy book selected for the month by our book club, it was 11am and I was proud of myself for keeping up with the deadlines for all my assignments and reports.

I decided to visit the urban bookstore before I did anything else for the rest of the day. My neighbourhood has this crafty and tiny urban bookstore, where the owner, who is an old, chubby and cute woman, handpicks all the books personally that she sells at her store. I am always satisfied with whatever book she gives me to read, as it almost always has a fantasy background with a dusting of romance.

As I entered the shop, I couldn't find her at the desk, hence I decide to walk around the shelves and look around the store. As the shelves grabbed my attention with their vintage coloured spines, I was completely engrossed in the "makes you swoon shelf" when I heard a soft laugh.

I turned around so quick, I almost twisted my neck and I looked around but saw no one. I dismissed the laugh when Dana, the owner came through the entrance with the accompanying jingle of a tiny bell.

Dana, the chubby, cute old woman was one of my closest friends in town. She saw me and lightened up, barrelling into me, she caught me up in one of her warmest hugs. I loved her as I loved my departed mother and she had been my caretaker when I was all alone after my parents died in a car accident. She pulled me towards her desk which was now washed in the afternoon sunlight.

She put a stack of old vintage books on the table and gave me a mischievous smile, I was used to her smiles and a giggle escaped out of me and I asked her why she was smiling.

"Take this!" she almost shrieked and passed me a dark wood brown hardcover book, the spine was filled with letters and they spelled 'GLIMMER'.

"What is this? A fairy tale? You know I don't like such stuff" I whined and she just looked at me with the motherly care look "Trust me sweetheart, just read it"

I never said no to her choices so I just took the book and the first thing I did was smell the pages and oh my bookshelves!! It smelled heavenly and there was something different about this book. It had that well read smell and yet the smell of fresh snow and pine filled my senses.

I looked at Dana with a smile and then stuffed the book in my duffle bag.

I was early to the café, as always, the staff knew me well and as I took a seat at the corner table beside the window to wait, Julia brought the special coffee for the day, gave me a friendly wink when I tried to pay for it and went away.