dear life // open

The library sounded like a welcome change from the frigid December air that waited outside. Wandering the halls, Ania had never gone to the library, and had gotten quite lost. She thought about trying to ask someone for directions, but chickened out the moment a body approached her. Bumping into dead ends and fruitless rooms, Ania had nearly given up when she saw the sign that pointed her in the right direction. Paying closer attention to her surroundings, Ania eventually made it to her destination. Taking a deep breath, her mind was overcome with the peace that surrounded a library. The only sounds she could catch were the rusting of pages and a faint cough every now and then. Losing herself in the aisles of the shelves, Ania ran her fingertips over the spines of the books, delighting in the different textures that each one possessed.

She stopped on a title that caught her eye, 'Dear Life,' it read. Picking it up, she thumbed through the pages before hugging it carefully to her chest. Browsing the rest of the selection absentmindedly, she had not noticed when a librarian had approached her. He asked her if she needed help finding anything, and her breath caught in surprise. Turning around quickly, Ania gave an embarrassed smile and watched with relief as he drifted away. Exhaling, she turned once more to the shelves, quickly picking out a couple more books to look at. Emerging from the safety of the wall of books, Ania saw that most tables were either full or half full. Not wanting to disturb them, Ania made herself comfortable, pressed into a corner against a shelf. Looking around, it didn't seem that anyone was heading for this particular section. Opening one of her books, Ania lost herself in the pages.

Her eyes had grown rather hot from staring at the page for so long. Her concentration was broken when she heard shuffling in her immediate vicinity. Blinking rapidly to clear her head, Ania took a quick glance upward and saw an unfamiliar person looking at her. Her head ducked back down quickly and she stared at the page without seeing anything. Why was he looking at her? Did she look funny? Was she not supposed to be in this spot? A million thoughts ran through her head and she snuck another peek at the person. It looked like he had blonde hair, and was a bit unkempt. On purpose maybe?

Holding her breath, Ania glanced back up to look at him more. He looked pretty tall, though that could just be her angle. He didn't look like the type to lurk in a library, most of the people in here just looked a bit nerdy. This looked like the type of person who hung out with elites. Her expression betrayed her interest as she stared with wide eyes. Almost automatically, her head began to invent possible scenarios of why he was in the library. Perhaps he was a rich prince who had been forced to attend. Or maybe he was the son of a wealthy businessman and was in search of sailing books so he could escape the tyranny of his father! A small smile slid onto her face as she imagined the possibilities. Tucking her hands under her chin, Ania let her hair fall over her face as she daydreamed about the adventures her mind had placed this stranger in. "Hmm..."

Ania's attention refocused in time to watch this stranger look around. It appeared that he was searching for a place to sit. Perhaps he didn't want to bother the people either? She wondered how effectively she could catch his attention in such a setting. Wasn't it a bad thing to talk in libraries? Coughing gently, Ania thought for a moment before she flailed her arms a little bit. "Um!" He was looking at her, wasn't he? Well, he was looking in her direction. Surely he could hear something.
"Do you ... Want to sit over here?" Her voice carried something of a forced whisper. Her cheeks heated up a bit when the thought struck her that she might get in trouble for talking. Glancing around with a guilty expression, Ania looked back up at the stranger with a silent question, unwilling to catch negative attention.

The strange person seemed to accept her offer when he began to draw closer. He breathed a response to her, a quiet greeting. A small smile curved her lips upward, and she repeated the word back. A small note of panic could be seen in her expression when he mentioned getting in trouble for whispering. "But, isn't it bad? To talk in libraries, I mean?" Another nervous glance around. "I don't want to get you in trouble, either ..!" Sitting up a bit straighter when he smiled, she wondered what was so amusing. Surely he didn't take speaking in libraries so lightly ! Then again, a smile didn't hurt his features any.

Ania felt like she was going to have a heart attack. A stranger had passed by the pair, browsing for a book. Only when the person passed did she let out a small sigh of relief. It had always been pressed upon her that talking in libraries was taboo, and she took that very literally. Oh, it was so difficult to communicate in a library.

Ania squinted at this stranger with ill-hidden mistrust. Sleeping? What if this librarian only wanted people to think that. Anyway, it was probably safer to not make any sudden movements or noises. And hey, she could always shove the blame on this person if it came to the worst. Or hide behind him, whichever came first. Slowly, Ania began to relax. He didn't seem too concerned about anything, and he seemed kind, in an odd way.

Glancing down at the book she had been reading moments before, she found herself more interested in this other person. Stretching up a bit taller, Ania gave a faux stretch to see what he was reading. She was able to catch a glimpse of tiny people around the page, and his finger traced another tiny figure. She couldn't see any words clearly, and quickly grew bored. Her eyes flickered up to his face as he introduced himself. Oh. Ania's face took on a light touch of pink when she realised that she hadn't introduced herself properly. "Oh! Um, I'm Ania. It's ... Nice to meet you." The object that attracted her before caught her attention once more, and she found herself scooting a bit closer. Glancing upwards into Hadrian's face, she pointed at the book he held. "What are you reading?"