BETWEEN THE LINES

229 11 2
                                    

originally published may 22, 2022

pairing: steven grant x fem!librarian!reader

request: How about Steven and a librarian!reader, who's also sort of like Steven? A bit insecure, shy, etc. He meets her when going to research more Egyptian history or something. It's post-Moon Knight so, Steven has a little more confidence than before. - @blackwidownat2814

summary: steven has a crush on a little librarian.

word count: 2,412

warnings?: fluff, general awkwardness, pet name (love), not proofread

Why are you even going to the library?, Marc asked as Steven caught his reflection in Gus's fish tank

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Why are you even going to the library?, Marc asked as Steven caught his reflection in Gus's fish tank. Steven, suddenly aware of the state of his hair, started combing his fingers through it, trying to make it look somewhat presentable. Don't you have a million books here?

"It's always good to support your local libraries," Steven dismissed, giving up on his hair. He was almost certain he was making it worse. "The more ya use them, the more fundin' they get. They're very important to the community."

And that's why you keep buying a billion more books?

"Didn't you just say I had a million? Make up your mind, Marc," Steve said. "Anyways, got lots of books to check out. Laters, gators."

Steven had started going to the library years and years ago to research more into Egyptian history and the mythology. Back then, he was really struggling to make ends meet with a job that just barely paid minimum wage. So, he couldn't really afford to buy the books he was interested in. The library was his only choice. And it was the library where he fell in love.

Not with the books, though.

With you.

You were a recent graduate with a Master's in Library Science. An American, he had realized quickly when he heard your accent, though it was clear enough that you had been living in England for quite some time. He'd wondered if you'd also gotten your bachelor's in England, too. Regardless, you had only recently started working at the library, nervously flitting through the shelves, trying to organize them.

"Last librarian didn't care one bit about making sure this place run smoothly," he'd heard you muttering to yourself as you pushed a cart around. "Clearly didn't care about the patrons either. Who the hell has this many James Patterson novels? Do people even still read these? Not a single person's checked one out in the last month I've been here. And yet they take up a whole damn shelf! We could put so many better things there! Ugh, I should put some of these in the sale pile, bet no one would even notice to care."

Steven had cleared his through, waving slightly to catch your attention. You jumped when you saw him, nearly tumbling over your cart. "Oh dear! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to give ya a fright. It's just my first time at the library, ya know, and I don't really know my way around and it's been a long time since I've been in one, so I'm not quite sure where to begin looking, or if you'd even have any, but, um, do you happen to have any books on ancient Egypt? The history of it, I mean?"

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