i was locked in the library trying not to panic, and when i say locked i mean locked, no escape
every door, every window, every air vent
okay i haven't actually tried the air vents, but I was seriously considering it
i wasn't desperate enough...yet
my friends would realize what had happened and they'd come back and get me, i just had to wait
it all started when I had to go to the bathroom
well before that there had been a lot of soda that sabrina had smuggled into the library
i had drank more than half of the bottle when jacob sat down next to me
it wasn't until the windows darkened to black that the librarians asked us to leave, and we made it all the way to the underground parking garage where the fifteen of us were dividing into four cars that i realized i wasn't going to make it down the street, let alone all the way to the canyon campfire.
"i have to pee" i announced after i plopped my bag into jacob's trunk
my friend luna rolled down her window
and her car, parked next to jacobs's was already running
"i thought you were coming in my car addison"
she gave me a knowing smile
she knew i wanted to go with jacob
i smiled too "i'll be right back theres no toilet at the bonfire"
"there are a lot of trees" jacob said rounding the car and slamming his trunk shut
it echoed through the nearly empty garage
in his car i could now see three heads in the backseat and a fourth in the passenger seat
they all beat me to it
i would have to go with Luna after all
no big deal, I'd have plenty of time to talk to jacob at the bonfire
it wasn't in my nature to be bold, but with my limbs all jittery from nearly two liters of caffeine and luna's warning about avi stealing jacob out from under me buzzing in my head, i felt powerful
i rushed back down the long hall, up the stairs, and through the glass walkway that overlooked a courtyard
when i made it to the main floor of the library half the lights were already out.
the library was too big and needed more bathrooms
i pushed open the heavy wooden door and quickly found a stall
the box holding the paper seat covers was empty, looked like I'd have to squat
as I was zipping my pants back up, the lights went out
i let out a yelp then laughed
"funny guys" noah, jacobs best friend, had no doubt found the breaker
it seemed like something he would do
the lights remained out, though, and no laughing followed my scream
they must've been on motion detectors
i waved my hands, nothing
i inched forward, feeling along the door, trying not to think about all the germs clinging to it, until I found the lock and slid it open
a streetlight shone through an upper window, so i was able to see just enough that i could wash my hands
i wiped my hands on my jeans
my reflection in the mirror was only a shadow, but i leaned forward anyway to see if my makeup was smudged
from what i could tell it looked fine
out in the hall only a few random overhead lights were on
the place was completely shut down
i picked up my pace, the library at night was creepier than i thought it was
the long glass hallway sparkled as snow began to fall outside
hopefully the snow wouldn't affect the bonfire, if it stayed light it would make it perfect
a perfect night for confessions
jacob wasn't going to freak out when I told him, was he? no, he's been flirting with me all night
he even picked the same era as I had for the history essay, i didn't think that was a coincidence
as for the cabin with the girls after the bonfire, the snow would be perfect, maybe we'd get snowed in, that had happened once before
at first it stressed me out but it ended up the best weekend ever, hot chocolate, sledding and ghost stories
i reached the door to the parking garage and gave the metal bar a shove
it didn't budge, i pushed a second time
nothing
"jacob! noah! you're not funny!" i pressed my nose against the glass, but as far as i could see both ways there were absolutely no cars or people
"luna?"
out of habit, i reached for my cell phone, but it wasn't in my pocket
i put my bag with all my stuff, cell phone, clothes, jacket, purse, snacks, camera, medication, and everything in jacob's trunk
shit
i ran through the entire library searching for another way out, but there wasn't one
six doors to the outside and they were all locked
so there i was, back leaned up against the door to the parking garage, its cold seeping into my skin, stuck in a big empty library, caffeine and anxiety battling it out in my body
a panic worked its way up my chest and took my breath away
calm down, they'll be back, i told myself
there had just been too many people getting into too many different cars, they all thought I was with someone else
once the four cars reached the bonfire, someone would notice i wasn't there and they'd come back
i calculated the time that would take, thirty minutes up the canyon, thirty minutes back
i'd be here for an hour
well, then they'd have to find someone with a key to open this door, but that wouldn't take much longer
they all have phones, they could call the fire department if they had to
okay, now i was getting dramatic, no emergency departments would have to be called
my pep talk helped, this was nothing to get worked up about
i didn't want to leave where i was for fear my friends wouldn't see me when they came back, or i wouldn't see or hear them, but without my phone or my camera I had no way of passing the time
i started humming a song very badly, then laughed at my effort
maybe i could just count the holes in the ceiling panels or... i looked around and came up empty how did people pass the time without cell phones?
"skies are blue, birds fly over the rainbow" my singing wasn't going to earn me a record deal anytime soon, but that hadn't stopped me from belting out a few songs at the top of my lungs
i stopped, my throat raw, it had been at least an hour
my butt was numb and the chill from the floor had crept up my body, making me shiver
they must turn the heat down on the weekend
i stood and stretched, maybe this place had a phone somewhere
i hadn't thought to look until now, i'd never had to look for a phone since always had my phone with me
for the seventh time that night I walked back through the glass hallway
everything was white now, the ground was covered in snow, the trees frosted with it
i wished i had my camera with me to capture the contrast of the scene, the dark lines of the building and trees against the stark whiteness of the snow
but i didn't, so i kept walking
i started in the entryway, but couldn't find a phone anywhere
there might have been one in the locked office, but a big desk blocked my view, plus even if i could see one, i obviously didn't have a key
past a set of double glass doors was where half the books were kept, the other half were behind me in the children's section
it was darker in there, and i lingered by the doors for a while, taking in the space before me
large, solid shelves filled the center, surrounded by tables and seating areas
computers
along the side wall were computers, i could send an email or a direct message
it was even darker once i stepped all the way inside, some table lamps were spread throughout the area and i reached under the shade of one to see if they were for decoration or if they actually worked.
it clicked on with a warm glow, by the time i made it to the computers, i had turned on three lamps
they didn't shine much light with all the darkness in such a large space, but they were good enough
i sat down in front of a computer and powered it on, the first screen that lit up in front of me was a prompt to enter the library employee username and password
i groaned
luck was not on my side tonight at all
i heard a creaking noise above me and looked up, i don't know what i thought i'd see, but there was nothing but darkness
the building was old and probably just settling in for the night, or maybe it was the snow or wind hitting an upper window
another noise from above had me walking quickly to the hall, i jogged up the stairs and reached the front door
i pulled on the handles as hard as i could
the doors stayed firmly closed
i looked through the narrow side window, cars drove by on the main avenue in front, but the sidewalks were empty
no one would hear me if I pounded on the glass, i knew this, i'd tried earlier
i was fine, there was no one in the library but me, who else would be dumb enough to get trapped in a library all by themselves with no way out
i was so bored and didn't know what to do
distraction
i needed a distraction, i had nothing with me though
wait a minute, books! this place was full of books
i would grab a book, find a faraway corner, and read until someone found me