"Mary..?" Chloe was surprised to see the borrower hiding in her bookshelf. The borrower started backing away in fear, hitting the bookshelf with her back. The brunette hated seeing her so scared, it felt like the first time they saw each other all over again.
"Are you okay?" the human kept a sweet and soft tone, worried that the borrower may be hurt. Mary lowered her head and she tried to breathe, she tried to find her words, but she failed.
After a while, Chloe took a little step back, realizing that she was maybe too close to the little girl. "Hey, it's okay," she tried, keeping her tone low. Chloe had no idea if the borrower was afraid of her or if she was feeling overwhelmed by something else.
Mary slowly calmed down, feeling a lump in her throat. "I-I... I'm s-sorry" Mary said, her voice small and trembling. Chloe was even more worried. The little girl seemed to change her attitude every time. At times she seemed to trust Chloe, other times she seemed deeply terrified.
The borrower was still uncertain about how to act around the human, she could either forget how different they were or remember how much power the brunette held against her.
"Did something happen?" Chloe tried to understand what was going on, and she felt her heart sink when she noticed Mary jump slightly when she talked. The borrower tried to swallow the lump in her throat and talk.
"I-I just... d-didn't want to be a-alone," she admitted, still keeping her gaze low and hugging herself, afraid of what Chloe would say. The brunette felt a wave of affection hit her as soon as she heard those words. The sight was heartbreaking.
"It's okay, you can be with me if you want," Chloe immediately said, trying to catch the borrower's gaze. Mary hesitantly looked up, meeting those big brown eyes.
"R-Really? I'm n-not b-bothering you?" she asked hesitantly and Chloe immediately shook her head. She could see those bright puffy eyes looking at her with such uncertainty. She wanted to hold the blonde to her chest and never let her go. She was adorable.
"Of course not, do you want to come to the desk?" the human asked, pointing at the desk with her head. The borrower simply nodded, sniffing and trying to dry her face with her hands.
"Do you want me to help you or you can go on your own?" Chloe asked her a bit hesitantly. She did trust the borrower on being able to climb on her own, but she still wanted to make sure she didn't need any help.
Mary looked up and then bit her lower lip, immediately looking down. "I can go on my own," she answered softly, taking the crunch she had forgotten on the shelf and starting to climb down.
Chloe decided to linger a bit more near the bookshelf, worried that Mary could fall and hurt herself. However, the borrower was able to get down at last, and she avoided looking up. She was still terrified of seeing Chloe at her full height.
The brunette decided to go sitting at her desk, after taking the book she needed, and she waited patiently for the borrower to climb up the desk. Mary got behind the desk and after a few attempts, she was able to get the fishing hook in a stable position.
She climbed up, slowly and trying to be as careful as she could. When she got to the top, she immediately met Chloe's surprised gaze. The human immediately smiled at her when she saw her. Mary sat down on the edge for a moment, catching her breath.
"It's surprising how fast you can climb up and down even with a broken leg," Chloe commented, resting her cheek on her hand while she looked carefully at the little girl. Mary was taken back by the compliment and she just shrugged shyly.
"I grew up having to climb my way everywhere, so I'm used to it?" she answered simply and the brunette just smiled at her. She sat back and bit her lower lip.
"Wait," she started, before getting up and going to her closet. Mary watched with much curiosity the human getting something from the closet and going back to her desk.
Chloe folded carefully one of her t-shirts in the smallest way she could and she placed it next to Mary. "Here, so you can sit somewhere comfortable," she explained, and the borrower was very touched by her gesture.
She gave her a little smile, before standing up slowly and then sitting in the center for the t-shirt. "Thank you," Mary said, looking up and keeping her smile, Chloe smiled back before going back to study.
The human had to admit that having the borrower with her was a bit distracting, she wanted to talk with her more than study. So now and then her eyes would go on the little girl that was focused on the book in front of her.
Chloe noticed how Mary started to change position until she laid down completely. With her back facing up, she placed her crossed arms on the cloth and she hid her face between her arms.
Mary was adorable, her long blond hair fell gracefully on her shoulders and her blue eyes started to close. Chloe decided to talk in a softer tone, and apparently, that helped the borrower fall asleep completely.
The brunette had to place a hand on her mouth and keep to herself her excitement. Mary was the cutest thing she had ever seen and she will never stop thinking that.
She kept studying silently while the borrower rested. When Mary woke up again, it was afternoon, and the only thing she could hear was the wind outside the window. She was so comfortable she was tempted to go back to sleep right after, she didn't even open her eyes yet.
The little girl moved slightly to lay on her side and she curled on herself, making a content sigh right after. She then heard an amused giggle and she remembered where she was.
Mary widened her eyes and she sat up immediately, receiving a surprised look from the brunette in front of her. "Sorry, did I wake you up?" Chloe asked, keeping a low voice. Mary couldn't believe that she fell asleep.
She was right in front of the human, and she let her guard down like that. And yet, the human seemed not to mind at all. Mary bit her lower lip and she tried to adjust her messy blond hair.
"No, I was already awake," she said, her voice full of sleep. Chloe couldn't help the smile on her lips when she heard her talking like that. Mary yawned and rubbed her eye to wake herself up.
"You are so cute," Chloe couldn't help the whisper that escaped her lips, and Mary immediately felt her face burning at that. The borrower looked away and tried to hide her face with her hair.
"Well you woke up just in time, I finished for today and it's time for dinner and our movie night," she said, excitement was obvious in her tone. Mary smiled immediately, she was glad she could spend more time with the human and not be alone.
She enjoyed Chloe's company a lot. "I will go to the kitchen then?" Mary asked hesitantly, already taking the crutch and standing up on the desk. Chloe still wondered why the borrower would always take the longer path and avoid letting her help her.
However, she figured the little girl didn't like being held or touched in general. The brunette nodded in answer, and she watched the borrower disappear behind her desk after a while.
After having had dinner together, Mary went to the living room and then to the arm of the sofa, as the human washed the dishes and made popcorn.
The borrower got to her spot, and she sat there to catch her beath and held her right leg with a grimace. She was so excited about that night that she almost ran to the couch and she forced a little too much her leg.
"Do you want an aspirin?" Mary nearly fell off the couch in fright when she heard Chloe's voice. She hadn't heard her coming, which was difficult given the girl's size.
Chloe found herself giggling, and sat down on the sofa, placing a huge bowl on the sofa. "No, it doesn't hurt so much," Mary replied embarrassed, looking away. The human kept her distance, the bowl divided them.
"Are those the ... pop something?" Mary asked curiously then, eyeing the white things. The human nodded. "Popcorn, taste it," she said before grabbing one and handing it to the borrower.
Mary took it in her hands, it was almost as big as her head. She took a bite, it wasn't too salty, and it wasn't bad. "Wow, that's good," she said almost surprised, expecting a different flavor.
"I'm glad you like them, I'll let you taste other foods in the future," Chloe winked, before retrieving the remote and turning off the light. Mary widened her eyes and looked at her hesitantly. She hated the dark.
But when the television was turned on, she felt safer being able to see the outlines and colors of the objects around her again. "You've never seen a movie, right?" she asked after sitting down and grabbing a blanket to cover herself. The borrower shook her head in response.
"I never focused too much on what was on there, so I technically never watched one. How do they work?" she asked curiously looking at the screen full of writings and images.
"A movie is a story that is told through scenes, and there are many different genres of movies based on the story they tell. I would say to watch an animated movie, you usually start with those" she explained, starting to look for a suitable film.
"And what should I do?" Mary asked starting to panic, looking at the human. Chloe turned and smiled at her to reassure her.
"Nothing complicated, you just have to listen and watch the story, a movie is for relaxing" she tried to calm her down, and Mary nodded, leaning her back to the headboard behind her.
The human started the film, and the borrower sometimes found herself asking questions. By the middle of the film, she came to understand how these worked, and she was completely engaged. When the movie ended, Mary frowned.
"So what? Where is the rest of the story?" she asked, watching the credits. They had eaten half a bowl of popcorn, or rather more Chloe than Mary had.
They had watched the Beauty and the Beast, and now the borrower was looking questioningly at Chloe, who didn't hold back an amused smile.
"There is no continuation, the story ends like this," she said, shattering the borrower's hopes. "But how can it be over? They should, I don't know, start a family, have children, grow old, what happened to the witch who cursed him? What if she comes back again?" she asked frantically thinking about it.
Chloe put her cheek to the headboard watching as the borrower continued to create theories upon theories. "You travel a lot of fantasy, the movie ends here, but it doesn't mean you can't imagine a continuation," she said and Mary looked at her spellbound.
"But I would never be able to make a movie," she replied with a raised eyebrow. Chloe shook her head, chuckling.
"That's more complicated, but even just telling it or just imagining it in your head allows you to continue it however you want," she said and Mary thought about it, looking at the screen.
"Wow .. how many movies are there?" she asked as the human took another handful of popcorn. "A lot, more than you can ever imagine," the borrower just nodded, focusing again on the brunette.
"Do you want to watch another one?" she asked, sensing the borrower's curiosity. Mary lowered her head, running a hand behind her neck.
"If you don't mind..." she said with an innocent smile. Chloe smiled at her and shook her head.
"Of course not, I'll show you one about a mermaid," she said conspiratorially, and Mary quickly turned to the screen. "Mermaids? What are they?" she asked and Chloe giggled.
"You'll find out soon" they spent the evening like that. By the time they got to the fourth movie, Mary felt tired and put her hands on her arms to warm up.
She tried unsuccessfully to keep her eyes open as she watched the scenes and eventually fell asleep. Chloe yawned with a sigh, the movie was over and it was getting very late, she was about to say goodbye to the borrower when she noticed her already asleep.
She smiled softly at the scene and put the bowl back on the table in front of her silently. Chloe didn't want to wake her, so she settled into the corner of the sofa pulling her legs to her chest. she covered herself with the blanket and then also covered the borrower, who rolled over in her sleep and stretched out better, placing her cheek on one hand.
Chloe continued to smile as she adjusted the blanket to cover Mary. She hesitated a moment before removing her hand. She had wanted to touch her all that time, she didn't know why, but being able to touch the borrower was too tempting.
Chloe gently brushed the girl's cheek with the tip of her index finger. The contact was practically non-existent, yet it gave her a good feeling in her chest. She took her hand away, to avoid waking her, then adjusted herself and fell asleep on the sofa.
9/05/2021