Hidden Behind A Notebook

Chapter 3

Julia searches all her morning classes looking for her notebook. She knows she had it this morning, she had never misplaced it before, let alone in school where anyone could pick it up, and - 

She mentally cringed at the thought of someone reading her notebook. She had enough people teasing her for her clothes and teeth and body, she didn't need people to talk about her secret thoughts that way. 

Making her way through the lunch line, she got a simple wrap and an apple. She sat in her usual place outside where she wouldn't be bothered. 

"Oh my God! She totally just dropped her book in German class and it was so funny," she heard a voice say too loudly. She knew she shouldn't assume it was about her, but she also knew that it was pointless to even hope for such a thing because it was about her. It always was.

"Did you see her this morning? She ran into this one guy and dropped all her stuff," another voice said. Having had enough, Julia put her headphones in and turned on her music. The first song to play was "If I Were" by Nothing More. Content with not being able to hear anyone around her, she ate quickly then rushed to the library, the one place she felt solace.

*   *    *    *

"Taking in a deep breath , she smells a scent not only wonderful, but also one bringing her content. The smell of ink covered pages. The smell of new books. The smell of old books. The smell of almond, vanilla, and grass. These smells can only be found in her favorite place. The spacious room is filled with adventures awaiting someone to go on them. She grabs one off a shelf just low enough for her to reach.

Glancing once at the front, she opens it and is immediately greeted with a scream. Taking on the persona of a young boy, she finds the source of the scream, discovers who his true friends are, and finds his little sister. All through the beginning to the last pages of the story, eye brimming with tears, she is focused solely on the mystery. Though the journey was a short one, her attention never strayed far from the sidewalk leading to the end.

This was the only room she could leave reality and be someone else for a day, a month, a year, sometimes even a lifetime. No wall surrounded her heart or soul; she was open and vulnerable here. Ready to accept others' adventures as her own, each one causing her to change the slightest bit. Though she was someone else in each story, she learned more about herself each day.

One can only truly uncover themselves after having been someone else for a while."

He looks around the library hoping to find her. He knew that he was invading her privacy by reading her notebook, but if he hadn't, he wouldn't have known where to find her. It seemed she loved the library and all the books in it, so he figured she had to be here.

Th only people he saw were Christina and her "squad" who seemed to only be here to gossip. He knew the notebook couldn't belong to her. That was when the door opened revealing a lost Julia. He noticed headphones in her ears and a pencil in between her fingers. 

His instincts told him to talk to her, but he knew he shouldn't. Instead, he watched her head straight to the mystery books. Thinking back to the journal, he wondered if it was her. All through the beginning to the last pages of the story, eye brimming with tears, she is focused solely on the mystery. Is that her favorite genre? But then she passed the mystery books and walks to the romance aisle.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, he thought to himself, Of course. I was hoping she'd be different than most girls, but I guess not. Suddenly feeling like a stalker, he looked away just as her eyes lifted to his. He walked to the exit when a quiet voice called to him.

"Daniel?" she looked at him with silent questions in her eyes. He noticed she had taken her headphones out.

"Hey, Julia," he greeted politely.

"Do you like reading?" she asked.

"Sort of." Actually he despised it. He was just curious where this conversation was heading.

"I love it. It shuts out reality for a bit, don't you think?" A ghost of a smile made its way onto her face. He wondered when the last time she smiled was and felt the sudden urge to make her smile. He pushed that thought away quickly, though.

"I suppose."

"Well, if you don't like reading, what do you like doing?" She surprised him by saying. Was he that easy to read?

"I mostly just draw and stuff." He was suddenly feeling uncomfortable by the turn in this conversation and wanted nothing but to leave.

"Can I see some of your drawings?" she questioned lightly her voice laced with honest curiosity.

"No," he said harshly. Looking at the hurt on her face he instantly regretted how cruel he was being. "Sorry, it's just no one's ever seen them, and I don't like to share them."

"I know exactly how you feel," she told him with the same lost expression she had walked in with. Turning away from him, she grabbed a book off the shelf and walking away, threw a goodbye over her shoulder.

Daniel stood dumbfounded staring after the girl whom he had just been talking with.

"She'll be the death of me," he muttered to himself.