Chapter 3: At the library

October 5, 2009

The weekend was largely uneventful for Shaggy and Maggie, who did their usual stuff, such as doing house chores or working on their homework.

However, the siblings remained puzzled by what exactly had spooked Scooby in the park that Friday night.

In fact, they noted that Scooby has since refused to be taken out for a walk in the park at night, preferring to do so while the sun hasn't set yet.

Other than that, the weekend went by as usual and soon, it was back to school on Monday.

Much of the school day went by as usual for Shaggy, who once again got tripped over by Thomas on the school bus.

And during lunch time, Maggie once again gave her brother an earful for his willing to let Thomas pick on him on the school.

Of course, this particular Monday stood out in some respects compared to other Mondays.

While Shaggy doesn't have any extra-curricular activities on Mondays, that day was also the day he and his classmates in his English class were assigned a major essay to write.

The assignment in question requires the student to find academic sources related to the chosen topics for the essay as stipulated under the assignment guide, and so Shaggy decided to go to the school library after school ended to tackle the essay head on.

He sighed as he sat down on a desk in the library, not sure where to start on his research essay.

Looking up towards the library computers, he sighed again and shook his head. There's no way he'll use the school library computers to do his school research.

First off, they're old and are still using the Windows 2000 operating system, and the screens are the old-fashioned bulky computer screens that takes up a lot of space on a computer desk.

Second, the internet connection is horrible. Shaggy once tested things out by going out of the building for a jog while a webpage was still loading, and after jogging around the block and neighbourhood and returning back to school, the web page was still loading.

He sighed and shook his head as he remembered that particular day when he did just that. It was one of those days where he had stayed at school after classes to study and finish another assignment.

Anyways, he was thinking of getting started with the essay when the library door opened and in came the prettiest girl in school, who he recognized as Daphne Blake, the youngest of the Blake family.

Arching his eyebrows, Shaggy looked on as the redhead moved past the librarian, nodding at her as she went, before making her way to the desks.

Shaggy noticed the folder and pencil case the redhead was holding, and he assumed that she was here to also work on her English assignment.

After all, he and Daphne shared the same afternoon English class, though they never interacted with each other.

However, he felt that it was probably a good thing he never interacted with Daphne. In fact, part of the reason why he was glad he never interacted with Daphne was that he was frequently picked on by girls like her.

That has been the case since he started attending school, way back in the day when he was in New York. In fact, that's also how he got his nickname "Shaggy".

It was a mocking nickname given to him, based on his shaggy-styled hair, from one particular attractive classmate in Grade 4, but the nickname stuck as Shaggy found himself preferring the nickname over his given name.

Shaggy also knew from past experiences that girls like Daphne have a tendency to stick together as a group, hanging around together and not being exactly at the top of their respective classes when it comes to grades.

Even so, Shaggy noticed that Daphne seemed to be...quite different than the typical attractive girl he has encountered.

Unlike many of the attractive girls he had encountered, Shaggy never sees Daphne hanging out with girls of her type in school.

Also, Daphne was usually silent in their shared classes, but whenever she has something to say, it was always something that is worth listening to.

He noticed Daphne smiling at the librarian Mrs. Gale and the smile she received in return from the glasses-wearing librarian.

Mrs. Gale was as tough as nails, and it was difficult for anyone to get to the bottom of her skin.

In fact, it took six months of his attending Coolsville Central High School, as a freshman, before Shaggy could get the librarian to say anything else other than when his books are due.

He shrugged before returning to his business and opened his binder.

Shaggy may be a distance away from her when he arched his eyebrows, but Daphne noticed his facial expression as she walked into the school library.

She shared English and Chemistry classes with the beatnik, though she never interacted with him in either class.

Noting his reaction, she shrugged to herself, not that she minded knowing what exactly was in Shaggy's mind.

He was most likely thinking that he thought she's like those other attractive girls in school, those that prefer looks over books.

It was a stereotype she has gotten used to, not that she blamed him for making the assumption in the first place.

Even so, there was a feeling that began dwelling on her as she spotted Shaggy.

A feeling that he may be different than the other male students who would likewise make a similar assumption if they see her walking into the library at this time of the day.

Either way, unlike a handful of her friends in her small circle of friends, she is here to learn with the goal of her graduating from Coolsville Central and be accepted to a prestigious university out of town.

With the famous Blake name in town, Daphne has find it difficult for her to make a name for herself as long as she lives in Coolsville.

Her father George Robert Nadley Blake is a businessman and as the owner of Blake Enterprises, one of the largest businesses in the state and one of the city's largest employers, he is also one of the most wealthy citizens of Coolsville.

While her father does care for her, George can also be a distant father figure for Daphne.

That distant feeling came after her mother Elizabeth was diagnosed with a disease, and in spite of the best efforts of doctors, she eventually succumbed to the disease when Daphne was 13.

As the youngest of three daughters, Daphne has felt an enormous weight of expectation on her.

Her oldest sister Daisy Blake has recently completed her masters studies in dentistry and is currently interning at the Coolsville Don Messick Memorial Hospital under the supervision of one Dr. Wendy Rogers.

Her second oldest sister Delilah Blake is currently in her final year of studies at the United States Military Academy, West Point. A first class cadet, she holds the position of regimental commander within the brigade she is assigned to.

With her two older sisters achieving a lot in their lives, Daphne has felt the pressure of her father having high expectations on her to achieve as much as her sisters have before her.

Placing those thoughts aside, Daphne nodded at Mrs. Gale, the librarian, before making her way to find a vacant table.

The library was rather small with three small tables, two of which were taped off, to be replaced. As a result, Daphne ended up moving to Shaggy's table when she made her way into the library.

Shaggy was jotting down some thoughts on a blank sheet of notebook paper summarizing his thoughts when Daphne gently knocked on the table.

"Pardon me, but do you mind...?" Daphne asked him, gesturing at the empty chair across the desk as she spoke.

For some reason, she felt a bit shy and her cheeks flushed when she asked Shaggy, and she ended up trailing off mid-sentence.

Shaggy looked up, and he was quick to reply, "Oh, you can sit here if you want."

He said it without thinking. The words just flew out of his mouth, and he almost thought he sounded ridiculous when he said that and hoped that Daphne didn't notice the nervousness in his voice.

Daphne only smiled in response, and Shaggy was relieved that she didn't notice his nervousness.

Daphne thought that Shaggy sounded nervous as she placed her belongings on the desk. She glanced at him, noting that he was busy scribbling down some notes.

Even though Shaggy kept his feelings masked behind his goofy smile, Daphne can see the nervousness inside him and tell that he's resisting the urge to look up at her.

For some reason, she find his reaction cute and figured that this may be why she had the feeling that he's going to be different than the other boys she encountered at school.

She shrugged before heading over to the bookshelves to find a book to read.

A few minutes went by before Shaggy heard the door open and looked up. In came a short girl with short, auburn hair and wearing a thick pair of glasses and carrying a pile of books.

(Shaggy's Point of View)

All the thoughts I had with regards to Daphne scattered when I saw Velma Dinkley walk into the library and carrying that pile of books.

Velma shares physics with me, though I never interacted the girl. In fact, by the means of her daily habits, I highly doubt Velma ever interacts with anyone in school besides the teachers and those that are in the science fair with her.

Watching her coming to the desk and putting her books down, I took a closer look at her glasses.

Man, I swear that you can burn ants with those thick lenses from her glasses.

It was then that Velma looked up and briefly saw me.

"What?" She asked.

I immediately retreated as I racked my brain for an excuse.

"Uh...I'm just checking the time on the clock on the wall behind you." I quickly said.

Velma's eyes narrowed. "You could've checked your watch."

"Ah..." I said when I looked at my watch and decided to carry on with the act by reaching over to try to adjust the minute hand of it. "I just realized it was...uh...broken."

"Huh." Velma said before she returned to what she was doing and didn't pay any attention to me afterwards, and I sighed.

That was a close-call.

(Third Person)

A few moments went by before the library door opened again and in came Fred Jones, accompanied by the Thomas Iverson.

The librarian looked up and upon seeing Thomas, immediately stopped the duo.

"Mr. Iverson." The librarian addressed the jock following Fred, and the two boys stopped.

"What can I do for you?" Thomas asked uninterestedly.

"You do realize that your checked-out novel has been overdue by two weeks, right?" Mrs. Gale asked.

"Oh yes, that." Thomas scratched his head, and Shaggy, who was observing them from his desk, can see that Thomas was racking his brain for an excuse. "Well...er, I might have placed the novel in my locker or someplace...ma'am...and, er..."

"Just because you're the son of the mayor doesn't mean you're exempted from not returning books before their due date, Mr. Iverson." Mrs. Gale said sternly.

"Perhaps." Thomas said. "Though...my father does know people who does is responsible for performance evaluations in the school board, so if you give me trouble, my father is gonna give you trouble."

Shaggy shook his head when he overheard Thomas making that comment. He immediately wished that he had brought his MP3 player and earphones to school so that he can listen to music.

Also witnessing the encounter were Velma and Daphne, and like Shaggy, they both shook their heads as Thomas boasted that he doesn't have to worry about returning an overdue book to the library with his father being the mayor.

Some minutes went by before Fred and Thomas walked by the desk, and Fred proceeded to take a seat right between Shaggy and Daphne while Thomas took a seat right between Shaggy and Velma.

As he took his seat, Thomas ruffed Shaggy's hair.

"You know what time it is, Shaggy?" Thomas asked.

Not looking up from his writing, Shaggy asked, "What time is it?"

"Time for you to get a haircut!" Thomas said before laughing at the pun. "Get it?"

Daphne and Velma both frowned at Thomas' remark and they shared a look at Fred, who shrugged at them.

"More like its time for you to get a new watch." Shaggy said calmly. "Or better yet, time for the people of Coolsville to lighten up and see through your father's lies."

At the remark, the girls both arched their eyebrows and Thomas stopped laughing.

"Say what?" He asked.

"You heard me." Shaggy said as he continued writing.

Without warning, Thomas got up from his seat and grabbed Shaggy and slammed him onto the nearby column, causing the others to gasp.

"Don't you ever spread any gossip or filth about my father." He said to Shaggy, holding him by the collar as he spoke. "Because if you continue to do so, my father's got connections that can spell trouble for your family."

At that moment, Fred quickly rushed over and tugged his shoulder.

"Let him go, Tom." He quickly said.

There was a pause but Thomas refused to let Shaggy go. It was then that Mrs. Gale walked over.

"Hey!" She said as she walked over. "Mr. Iverson! This is a library! Not a fighting club or wrestling ring!"

"So?" Thomas asked. "What are you going to do about it?"

"You do realize that Vice Principal Grimes doesn't give a rats rear end on the school board, eh?" Mrs. Gale asked.

She was referring to the vice principal in charge of discipline, and Grimes has a reputation of being no-nonsense and is willing to up his nose at Crystal Cove County Public Schools.

At Grimes' name, Thomas paused before turning to Shaggy and finally let him go.

With two fingers, he pointed them at his two eyes, then at Shaggy's eyes, making it clear that he will be keeping an eye on him.

Thomas then made his way to the back of the library without another word, and Shaggy returned to his seat, rubbing his neck as he did so.

"Are you alright, Norville?" Mrs. Gale asked.

"Other than feeling like I've gotten a sore throat, Mrs. Gale, I believe I'm fine." Shaggy replied.

"I'm reporting this to Vice Princiapl Grimes." Mrs. Gale said as she headed for the door. "Mr. Iverson there thinks that just because he's the son of Mayor Iverson, he can have things his way and this can't go unpunished for long. I'll be back shortly."

The others all nodded as the librarian left the library before returning to what they were doing.

As they did so, Daphne and Velma briefly looked at Shaggy, who was furiously scribbling down his thoughts on a sheet of notebook paper.

The redhead noticed that rather than crumpling the paper up when he wrote a point that he realized doesn't fit what he was thinking, Shaggy simply wrote a large "X" right beside the point and carried on scribbling down notes as if he never made the mistake before.

She nodded thoughtfully, mostly to herself, before she returned to do what she was doing.

Even though Shaggy had his eyes on his paper the whole time, he can felt her eyes were on him.

He shrugged to himself as he continued to scribble down notes on the sheet of paper.

There were a few points that he thought doesn't reflect what exactly he was thinking about, and he simply placed a large "X" beside them instead of crossing them out, in case he started to have second thoughts on them.

He knew some people simply crumbled up the paper whenever they made a mistake and tossed it into the bin.

That sort of thing was never his style. His strong environmental consciousness would never allow him to do just that, especially whenever he thinks of the number of trees being cut down in order to make paper everyday.

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