Getaway Car

II. Sparkling Blue Eyes

Amelia works at the 53rd Street Library, a New York Public Library branch west of Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, just across the Museum of Modern Art. She’s the Assistant Chief Librarian.

She specializes in American music and recorded sound, with particular emphasis on 20th-century music. She oversees one of the world’s largest sound archives, which contains audio recordings and other materials that document the earliest days of recording through to today’s digital media.  

She holds an MA in Music History and Literature from Boston University and a Ph.D. in Musicology from Cornell University. Basically, she hustled hard over the years to get to where she is now.

It’s no surprise that books are her passion, that’s why she put up with the job even if her first salary wasn’t enough to cover her bills and expenses. Of course, her dedication and love for books paid off, she’s held the Assistant Chief Librarian position for over five years now.

The library allows people to bring food but only in the laptop bar. It was lunchtime and she usually gets food delivered into her office, but she decided to go out to get some fresh air and to stretch her legs for a bit.

The café’s just near so it wasn’t a problem if she stayed out long for her lunch break. She dined outside where it had a view of Central Park. The weather’s nice out and there weren’t a lot of people since most were at work or in schools.

Amelia's attention was the scenery around her while she strolled back to the library when she didn’t notice she collided with someone who was apparently glued to their phone.

Her eyes zeroed in on the phone that fell to the pavement.

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry!” she apologized, grabbing the discarded phone.

“No…no, it’s my fault. I wasn’t look–”

The person stopped mid-sentence when she saw Amelia.

“I wasn’t paying attention…too,” Amelia breathed out the last word. She froze after seeing the woman in front of her.

For a split second, they just stared at each other. The woman recognized Amelia's face very well; from her brunette hair to her expressive doe-eyes, and to her naturally full cheeks. Even if they weren’t in the best circumstances, the woman noticed and appreciated how beautiful Amelia looked. And she’s one-hundred percent sure the brunette won’t recognize her because she had her mask on.

“Hey…I know you.”

The woman was shocked at what Amelia had said, “Huh? I…I haven’t met you before…”

Amelia squinted her eyes as she kept on staring at the woman’s sparkling blue eyes.

“I’m sure you’re the girl in my car two nights ago.”

“Listen, Lady…I don’t know what you’re talking about. I have to go,” she snatched her phone from Amelia's hand and briskly walked away.

Amelia followed the woman with her eyes, her mouth slightly agape.

I’m sure that was her, she thought to herself as she continued her walk back to the library.