The Next Door Neighbour

Chapter 10//Déjà Vu

Shailene's POV

SHAILENE'S PARENTS MUST HAVE MADE A DEAL WITH CHAOS before she was born. That was the only plausible reason as to why she was so disorderly, why she wreaked havoc everywhere she went. Her parents must've wanted something from Chaos, maybe a request: stay out of our lives forever because we don't want you. And Chaos said, "Sure, sure. For the small fee of your first-born child, I'll leave you alone forever." She liked to imagine that her parents made the deal (after buckets of tears and shouts of "how could you ask for our child, you evil monster," etc etc, of course). She liked to think about how Chaos must've felt merciful; after all, he let her parents keep her, just as long as he could run rampant in her life, in her.

He kept his promise. Shailene was as chaotic as ever. She was disorderly, rowdy, a total head-in-the-clouds mess, and according to Brayden, "loud as fuck." And no matter how quiet she tried to be, no matter how calm and orderly, she always seemed to get into trouble (and it was almost always undoubtedly her fault).

This time the chaos happened in the library, because libraries, apparently, are where the fun stuff happens.

Books were everywhere. Truly, everywhere. The impact of two girls colliding had sent books tumbling out of arms and flying off the shelves. Up, up, and down with a thud. The floor was peppered and the shelves were disarrayed. Many curious eyes raked over the scene, and some glared daggers. A few people grumbled and shushed. But the two girls? They just laughed.

"I'm so sorry," Shailene cried at the same time the other girl sputtered, "Oh shit, my bad."

Immediately, Shailene crouched down to gather the books, and the other girl did the same. As they piled books into their open arms, Shailene scrambled to think of something to say, but all she could scrape up was sorry, sorry, sorry, sorryyyy.

"Sorry," she whispered, inclining her head to look at the girl, a poor victim to Shailene's flailing limbs and overall distractedness. Her wavy black hair fell just above her shoulders. She had thickly lined dark brown eyes and black browline glasses. Her lips were painted a matte plum, and a silver ring glinted in her nose. The girl's whole vibe was grungy and indie, and Shailene was instantly intrigued by her. She seemed like a cool girl. She seemed like someone who could get away with using the word "rad."

"Don't worry about it," she insisted, grinning. "It happens more than you'd think." The pair stood up and began returning books to the shelves. Shailene took in her outfit. The girl wore chunky black boots, fishnets, jean overalls, a white crop top, and a baggy, dark green flannel on top. "I'm Lily, by the way. Lily Cruz."

Shailene extended her hand. "Shailene Avery. I'm very glad I ran into you today."

Lily snorted. "That was a terrible joke, but I can appreciate it — Oh, those don't go there." She gestured to the pile of books Shailene had just placed on the shelf. "I was filing the books before you came in," she explained. Shailene followed her to a different section of stacks.

"You work here?" she asked.

"Volunteer, technically," Lily answered. "But yes, everyday after school this is where I am. The people-watching aspect is a win."

She nodded. "I love the peace and quiet of libraries, but I think I'm too loud for them."

Lily winked. "As long as you don't come crashing in like that everyday, I'm sure the library could handle you."

Shailene laughed quietly. "Doubtful. I'm sure I'll be banned from coming here ever again," she joked.

"I wouldn't let that happen," Lily answered. "But don't worry. I'll let you know if the librarians start hanging up ban signs with your face on them." She furrowed her eyebrows. "What brought you in here in such a rush anyway?"