The Flynn Effect

06 | study date

Jo

MOLTEN-RED LEAVES SURROUND the sidewalk that lead to Ellie's Second-hand Books and Print Shop. The wind is a soft whisper that lazily rustles the leaves together and the clouds above are clustered together like wool of sheep. White with undertones of light grey, it depicts a typical early October evening in Lakeville.

Ellie's Second-hand Books and Print Shop is a quaint bookstore with flowery shrubs hanging off the signpost and two glass walls divided into mini squares with wood. The rest of the front is made of wood and I can already see an array of books in bookshelves from the inside. A little giddy feeling settles at the base of my stomach just as a girl, about two years older than me, steps out. Her skin is about three shades darker than mine, a beautiful dark brown and her short hair is in tight curls atop her head. She doesn't notice me standing but she has an exhausted look on her face as she squats to the ground and rubs off the words in chalk on the small blackboard before writing what seems like a new pricelist.

I don't know why but I wait for her to finish up and when she does, she disappears behind the door again. I brush off every invisible dust from my jeans and head towards the store. A brown neon light beams 'Welcome' as soon as I open the door and walk into the warmth of the store.

They're a few people lingering around the bookshelves and there's a low buzzing sound of a coffee maker blending into the background. A crack and staple sound erupts from a corner and I look there to see an old printer being operated by a young guy. He hits the lid of the printer and sighs, pulling his beanie further down his forehead as the printer finally gets to work with a continuous humming noise.

"Hi and welcome to Ellie's Second-hand Books and Print Shop. What can I help you with?" It's the same girl from earlier who stands behind the counter and speaks to me. Her dark eyes are drooping and a yawn racks through her body.

I hesitate. "Um, I- the job. The sign outside says you're hiring."

Her face lightens up immediately and before she gets anymore words out of her mouth, another voice interrupts.

"I'm guessing you're Josephine?"

I whirl around to face the woman who stands in front of me. Her brown hair is short, barely reaching her shoulders and her warm brown eyes look like they conceal a lot of secrets. Regardless, she's tall, beautiful and she spots a mole beneath her lip.

"Yeah, that's me," I respond, unsure of how she's knows my name.

"I'm Talia. Your grandmother speaks about you a lot. She told me you needed a job and told me what you looked like," she explains and nods with a pretty smile. "A pretty apt description."

I almost roll my eyes albeit the smile on my lips because I know how animated grandma becomes when she talks about other people.

"It's really lovely to meet you in person," she says and I blush a bit.

"Thank you. You too."

"Well, there's no point beating around the bush anymore," she places her hands on her waist. "You're hired. Eloise will show you the ropes. I hope you have a nice time working with us."

I can't contain my excitement. "Thank you. Thanks a lot."

She waves me off and I turn around to meet the girl behind the counter, Eloise, who looks like she might hug me anytime soon.

"Josephine, it's nice to meet you. Can I call you Jo?"

"Sure."

"Good. Anyway, like she said, I'm Eloise and that boy over there is Otis," she explains pointing to the boy in front of the printer. He has turned around now and he silently waves at me before going back to his business.