The only place in the world
There was only one place in the world able to make Betty Cooper feel fully herself, beyond any unfortunate circumstance that would continue to infest her from a distant and painful past. The bookshop in which she worked for almost two years smelled of ink, vanilla, burnt wood and wet earth. Betty had continued to take care of that little magical and precious universe not only because the old owner of the Blue and Gold allowed her to take home all the books she wanted, allowing her to write and publish her news articles on the library's blog.
But also because, over time, that place had become a safe haven for her to hide when the rest of the world did nothing but disappoint and deceive her; it had turned into a real home to be trusted and to return to when outside, the dark and gloomy sky seemed so strong and so immense that would crushed her against the frozen floor of the road, even capable of rewriting the laws of universal gravitation.
And so, while the seasons continued inexorably to cross each other and the incessant tolling of the clock to mark the days that passed without regrets, the bookshop continued to maintain a climate of quiet and harmony to which Betty was now particularly devoted.
However, one Monday like many others, returning to work after the usual weekend break, Betty noted with singular dismay that her beloved and special bookshop was going to be hopelessly desecrated forever.
