This story, if you haven't noticed, is a very short story. It's why I'm updating every day. It's in the running for probably the shortest story I've ever written.

At his small apartment he glances through the titles with a strained eye. All night he's stresses over the puzzle, that for the first time he can't solve. After a couple of hours into the early morning, he falls asleep on the couch, still hunched over the table.

He wakes up to the bright light jabbing his eyelids. A hurried glance at his phone prompts him to groan, "3pm? I slept through the whole day?!"

Marshall hops off the couch for a quick shower, an even quicker sandwich for the go and to catch the bus to his (luckily) later shift. All the while, he occasionally spares a begrudged glance at the paper. Once it stops in front of the building, he blinks in surprise. A thought from seemingly nowhere appears, granting him grace. The first letter of each and every one of the titles tack right above each other in order spell out:

I'm dating someone.

An array of mixed emotions attack him as he trudges off the vehicle and into the insulated place. The first thing he does is place a book on twenty questions in her area, dog-earing the page to the particular question, 'Can I have some more information on the topic?' He returns to his normal duties after that, in anticipation of the reply.

Later, Bonnibel is standing by his check-out earlier than usual. He notes her clear nervousness, the girl shifting from foot to foot, frequently fixing her hair and biting her lip. He checks out her back-to-normal selection, acting oblivious of the question presented earlier. Out of nowhere, she sets lastly on the counter a brightly covered book. "I forgot where this goes" she mumbles with a reddening face and runs out faster than, well, she's ever done.

Marshall pulls back the blank cover to see in big bold letters:

Gay Pride Month and origins.

Both eyebrows rise on his face at this time, as does when everything clicks into place. He exhales and scratches the back of his neck. To heart he was and is a playboy, taunting whoever whenever he could. So really, disappointment isn't much of a matter with this revelation. If anything, it makes more sense to the boy of why she turned down all of his advances; while that can also contribute to the fact that she just doesn't like him like that. He realizes that not all girls want a relationship with him, to be put frank.

So he gets it. No need to prod at the topic. Yet on another side note, the book brings him some discomfort. He stares at the title a tad bit longer, before turning to put it away. Once it's proud rainbow color is out of sight, he breathes a sigh and returns to the topic at hand.

Marshall nods to himself with the thought. Yeah, friendship seems better fun with Bonnibel anyways.

He ends the day with a new sense of things, but a conflicted mind. His worries now just lay on whether he'd see Bonnibel again.

Despite the pranks.

Despite the indirect insults(though while playful)

Despite everything he may have said or done that might've been trivial, she really did brighten his day.