All About Blues

Chapter 14

Azul spent her days catching up with her classes. Seems she had missed a lot in her 3 days of absence resulting for her to somewhat regret it. But she also thought that she couldn't really help it, as if she did not take that rest she may have to rest in an hospital bed not just for days nor months but perhaps years.

"Are you sure you would wait for me here? My off is at nine, that would be 4 hours from now." Piper told Azul who just arrived in the bookshop, unaddressed— even insisting to Piper that she'd be around for her all through her shift for them to get back their dorm together.

"Of course, I would love staying for 4 hours here with you." She said smiling genuinely while roaming her eyes around. Seeing the pile of books excites her, although she has been in the bookshop for numerous times her eager of indulging herself in those books still emerges in her heart that as if it was her first time doing it.

"If you want anything I am just in the counter. I usually eat around seven or eight so better be near around that hour as we'd be heading in the quarters behind, we are not really allowed to eat here." Piper discussed "Also we are only given 25 minutes to take our dinner."

"You still carefully abide one of her rules?"

"Of course! I mean, I must!"

"She's not around, no one is— like you are literally alone in your shift."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Why not— at least, this time— do not follow one of those rules. Like spend your dinner for 30 minutes."

"Why on earth you could come up with a lot of stupid things in an instant?" She questioned jestingly "Like seriously, that's so random."

"Y-Yeah, but I am serious here, Piper."

Piper gave her a deadpan look but she hasn't been shaken and just furrowed to her creating that expression that indicates her insistence to it. Piper rolled her eyes and droned over "I would never do that."

"Why?"

"Because why would I? I just love this job, I love this place and I like Consuelo as well. Also if you think that since she is not around and I am alone in my duty so I am capable of doing what I want— you are wrong." She glanced at the cameras all around the corners that her eyes could see and one by one she pointed to it by her index finger. "See those cameras? They are monitored by Consuelo as it was connected in her phone, so if ever I would have some inconvenience or if I did not abide on her simple rules she would still know!"

"That sucks." Azul groaned and even rolled her eyes, Piper could not help but to chuckle.

Azul has always been repugnant, she is fond with it. She never really aim to upset someone or that it brings her pleasure upsetting or getting the worst out of someone, she just happen to like testing a person— without really having mere reason or purpose. She likes it when she finds out something about someone without her asking about it, just them showing it.

Fortunately, she was behaved in the 4 hours of staying in the shop. She spend the time reading a book and for some time catering the entrants. She did not joined Piper on taking dinner as she was all focused on what she is reading, in the most corner of the shop— was where she stayed, that she no longer could entertain or even know if there were costumers who entered. Piper also did not know where she exactly was and even planned to search for her but she was complacent that Azul was just around the shop and did not really got out.

When the clock struck 9, Piper began preparing for her off and was about to search for Azul when an entrant had her paused...

"What are you doing here?" She asked to Klay, who was standing innocently right in the doorway. Piper has already been told about about Klay disliking Consuelo's bookshop that she did not expected Klay to even visit there after Azul appears.

"Can't I be here?" Sarcastically, he responded and walked through the counter where Piper was yet standing.

"No but I was told that you don't like it here." She retorted and encountered him. "The only thing that I could ever think as your reason for being here is me, but not really me— but to ask me about Azul." She crossed her arms right in front of her chest and furrowed at him.

"I would not deny that." He passed by her to lean on the bar island of the counter. "You told me that she already appeared— like a mushroom—"

"She hasn't reach out to you?" He shook his head. "She told me she would do so. I mean, I told her about you getting so worried about her disappearance and then she said that she would contact you any sooner."

"She did not." He released a silent and suppressed groan. "But it doesn't really matter, I just want to know if she is okay."

"Why won't she be?"

"She was sick the last time she is with me, I'm just making sure that nothing serious happened to her after that."

"She is fine, but if you really want to make sure you can find here around here"

"W-wait... what?!"

"She is here." Piper darted her gazes through the jungle of shelves "Inside there certainly, I don't know where she exactly was. The shop isn't really that big so you can easily find her around the corners."

"Why is she even here?"

"She just came here and told me she'd wait for me until my off and now is my off but it seems like I'd be the one waiting for her." Piper snickered and even rolled her eyes, Klay also chuckled along "Search for her already I would start closing the shop."

She walked past him and Klay just then do as she said and started searching for Azul. He went inside the tall shelves and the smell of the books instantly lingered to his nostrils through inside his nose that he could not help but to crunch his nose. The minuscule and barely visible dust, insects and other organisms that a bare eyes is not able to see— he could sense them all, and that alone makes him shiver. But he managed to maintain composure albeit the discomfort that the old place with archaic stuffs have brought to him.

Sooner upon searching he found her, in an odd situation. She is sitting in the ground, head's leaning upon a shelf behind her— sleeping sound. And Klay couldn't help but to grin over, he pulls his phone out his pocket and took a snap. Afterwards, he walked closer to her and kneeled.

"Hey..." He tried to shake her a bit but Azul remained unconscious. For the second time, he added much force. As when he figured out that Azul is totally unconscious, he tried to put his index finger right below her nostrils then scanned her face and proceeded on opening her eyes by his very hands— he figured it out, she passed out.

He cussed under his breath. For a brief moment his mind went blank and he do not have any idea what to do next, but then he calmed himself down sooner. He thought about calling out Piper but he immediately shrugged that thought off and just then proceeded on carrying Azul instead.

Azul do not weight heavy that he did not had a hard time carrying her off and even managed to strode faster, almost running. As soon as he got out the aisle of shelves he just then encountered Piper.

Piper instantly approached Klay as soon as she perceived what her eyes have caught.

"What happened?!"

"I think she passed out."