Between The Pages

Chapter 13

A dusty old smell hit Riya as soon as she entered the library. As if that wasn't bad enough, that old grumpy librarian gave her a horrified look. Thanks to her friend though, Riya had seen this look enough number of times to budge by it. Ignoring the stare, she walked straight to the librarian.

"The things we do for our friends, seriously." She muttered under her breath.

Before the old lady could understand a thing, Riya poked her tongue out and fled inside the library. The same dimly lit hallway with shelves full of books greeted her. Amongst the many other things, this was one thing she really hated about the library. There was literally no change at all. It was the same over the years.

A two storey brick structure which no one bothered to paint. It's blue door with a structure depicting a number of books installed on its archway. The same old grumpy librarian to greet. Ten rows of shelves lined towards the far wall. And in between them, a couple of tables to sit.

Absolutely nothing changed.

Even before entering the library, Riya was hundred percent sure that she'd find Natasha seated at one of those tables. But to her surprise, her friend wasn't there. Instead, a boy had taken her place. No, not only a boy but a really handsome boy. Wavy hair, frameless glasses, a watch on his wrist; Riya was instantly attracted towards him. She had to talk to him.

"Hi," she whispered tentatively.

Just when she was sure the boy didn't hear and was about to say again, he looked up. Sunlight from a window behind her flashed on his face and it lit up. Literally. He blinked a couple times before finally looking up to her.

His lips parted in a smile as he nodded at her. Guessing it at his way of saying a hi, Riya made the next move.

"Did you happen to see a girl around here?"

He blinked a couple of times again before raising his eyebrows towards her. Realizing the situation, a blush crept on Riya's cheeks.

"No, no, not me. I...I mean I'm a girl too. It's my friend. She was supposed to be here."

Though why she was stammering was beyond her though process. That had never happened before. Always an open book, making new friends hadn't been tough for her at all. May it be boys or girls, she mixed up in an instant. She took pride in turning introverts to extroverts in a handful number of days. Although her best friend was a stab on her reputation, there was a reason people called her a chatterbox.

"She went to bring a book."

The boy's voice brought her back to senses. A little embarrassed by the fact that she was staring at him all this time, Riya quickly dispersed herself from his presence.

She found Natasha hunched on her knees in the third row. As usual, her friend was busy selecting a book. That was another thing Riya didn't understand. Why can't these people just pick up a book and start reading? They were just a bunch of words after all. Why waste so much time in selecting the perfect one for themselves?

But then, she knew readers had always been a peculiar brand. No one understood them till date and she was sure future won't be any different too.

"Hey, Nat."

Busy skimming through some crime novels, Natasha was horrified to hear a voice behind her. That was one of the side effects books had on her. More often than not she tried to place herself in the role of main character and most of the times, that would lead to her getting completely oblivious of the world around. Even the faintest of sound was enough to scare her at such moments, and Riya's booming voice meant extreme horror.