Note: Written for the Hello challenge at the yuridrabbles livejournal community.
Pairings: ClaudinexCecilia
Warning: Minor spoilers for the first half of Claudine..
The door creaks open, the sound reverberating in the silence. The air is heavy, permeated with the musty smell of books, and I drink it in greedily. This is my first time in this library, but I feel at home here already.
I browse the shelves, eagerly scanning the rows of books for titles I haven't read. My father's library is extensive, but this one is hardly small either.
As I'm bringing my selection-- a book of Rimbaud my father has yet to acquire-- to the desk, I see her. She's behind the circulation desk, idly skimming a book that awaits reshelving, when she looks up. Our eyes meet, and I am mesmerized; the world fades away and I see nothing, nothing save the soft blue of her eyes, shining with intelligence and a sort of gentleness. I remain thus for a frozen moment, staring unabashedly, knowing she returns my gaze in equal measure.
The creak of the door opening pierces the silence once more, and the spell is broken. Suddenly nervous but unwilling to show it, I approach the desk, feeling cut off from the world in a different fashion now as the blood roars in my ears and my heart beats erratically in my chest. I feel unstable, unreal. I don't care for it at all.
Our hands brush as I hand her the book, and I carefully don't react. She examines the cover.
"So you like Rimbaud?" she asks, the hint of a fond smile touching her lips.
"Yes," I reply, smiling back in what I hope is a cool, confident manner. "He's a favorite of mine."
And so it begins, once more.