Alphonse offered Julia his arm as they left the coffee shop and headed to a two-story building at the other end of the street. She accepted with a smile and they made their way down the street to Central Books.
The red brick building was old, probably built in the 1880s, Alphonse thought. Books of all shapes and sizes filled bookcases as well as the windows of the store. It reminded Alphonse of Sheska's house: a few tables, some lights and a couple of lanterns, but no other furniture: just books as far as the eye could see. An older man greeted them, and Julia asked him where to find books on alchemy. He pointed to an aisle off to his left, and Julia headed there.
Alphonse shoved his hands in his pockets and followed her. A sweet, musky smell permeated the air in the shop, and Alphonse knew that, scientifically, it was from the organic compounds in the books like cellulose from wood pulp reacting to light, heat, or water. It was a smell he remembered from the days he and Edward spent in their father's study.
Alphonse heard noise from the aisle to his right, and he found Julia pulling books from shelves, but then returning them with a dissatisfied look on her face. Then she pulled a book with a dark green cover and black spine off the shelf. Julia started thumbing through the pages, and a slow smile spread across her face.
She looked up and realized Alphonse was next to her. "Oh, sorry. I could get lost in here." She held up the book. "I found it. This book-or a copy of it-belonged to my parents. This should make for interesting reading tonight."
"How many alchemy books do you have?" he asked as they walked to the front of the store.
Julia smiled. "Enough to say that I have a fairly large unread library at home."
"Find what you were looking for?" The older man asked.
Julia looked down at the book, then sideways at Alphonse. He met her gaze and smiled shyly.
"Yes," they both answered.