I'm Normally Perfect (re-upload)

Chapter Three

The following week I spent more time observing her than working—prior to our brush in the hallway she had been a character on television, two-dimensional, now she was in all three spectacular dimensions. Perhaps this was what people saw in reality. I knew how tall she was (several inches taller than I) and the scent she wore. I took my first journey to the shops on Saturday to buy something that smelled of jasmine, and she was shopping alongside me in my mind. I found a small bottle of perfume, and let her smell it, she wrinkled her nose cutely and shook her head, 'That's far too strident.' I picked up a bottle of eau de toilette and offered it to her. 'Oh, yes, that's just about got it.' I also bought a couple of jasmine candles. I wouldn't light them because of the prohibition regarding naked flames in our rooms, but I wanted them, as she seemed like a candle sort of person. I also spied a display of embroidered linen handkerchiefs and had a brainwave, after I made my purchases I found a loo and sprayed a handkerchief with the scent and kept it in my pocket.

On my way back to the college I came upon a bookshop, Blackwell's, and never able to resist a bookshop stopped in to look around. As I gazed at the overwhelming number of tomes at my disposal a shop assistant asked, 'May I help with anything? You seem a bit lost, dear.' When I turned to her I saw that she was tiny and fairly bursting with life.

'Uh, I-I've never seen so many books in one r-room before.'

'And you never will again. Our shop is in the Guinness Book of World Records as having the most books on display in one room, they're spread over three miles of shelving.' She laughed in response to my slack-jawed expression. 'What do you need?'

'A-Actually, I was just browsing.'

'All right.' She smiled again and left me to wander around in bibliophilic joy.

It continued to weigh on me that some unapproved person had been in the professor's office and that most anyone could go there and speak with her. I considered inventing a reason to visit, then realised I didn't really want to meet her, A. A. Pristin, I wanted to meet Lavinia Brookmyre, as she was the one I was so connected to. Unfortunately, they shared the same office so I decided it would be best to drop in when Professor Pristin was away. The following week was the final week of term then we had a month-long break, I couldn't wait the four days before Monday, and certainly not an entire month, which left only one day, the next day. Usually, she was away from 3.00 until a bit after 4—I'd go then. I hoped she didn't lock her door as I hadn't the foggiest clue how to pick a lock, and that would be going too far anyway. Simply walking into someone's office without permission seemed less of a criminal act than breaking and entering.

Deciding to go on Thursday meant that I had less than twenty-four hours to properly prepare for my second field trip in as many weeks. I spent my evening planning when to leave the library and how long I could safely stay in her office. I wished I knew which direction she headed to get to wherever she went and decided to give myself enough time that no matter which way she went I would not see her. Once again I felt unprepared and realised that I only saw her when she was in her office—I knew nothing else about her. Our insulated existence was enjoyable, but I was beginning to feel left out of the rest of her life. As if she didn't want me to know anything more about her than what she teasingly revealed, and that hardly seemed fair. Well, that was about to change.

Next day I waited anxiously at my table until she began packing up. I slowly counted to one hundred to give her a head start then made my way—knees shaking—to her college, again under the guise of running an errand for Professor Burrows. No one I passed paid me any mind and to my relief there was no one in sight when I exited the stairwell, but when I arrived at her door I knocked. The only answer was from Lavinia, 'Enter, please,' inside my head so I turned the knob and...the door opened. I breathed a sigh of relief.