Episode 2
716 Words
Three Months Earlier
Clairo Yu believed there were two kinds of people in the world.
The first kind highlighted their books.
The second kind committed crimes against literature.
As she stood in the fiction aisle of Evergreen University's library, she was currently holding evidence of the latter.
Someone had written in the margins.
Not neatly, either.
The notes crawled across the pages in black ink, interrupting paragraphs with opinions no one had asked for.
Clairo should have been annoyed.
Instead, she found herself smiling.
"You're smiling at a vandalized book."
The voice startled her.
Clairo turned and nearly dropped the novel.
A girl stood at the end of the aisle with a stack of books balanced against her chest.
Tall.
Dark curls.
Grey hoodie.
Amused eyes.
Clairo recognized her immediately.
Everyone on campus knew Toni Corvin.
Not because she was famous.
Not exactly.
But being captain of Evergreen's basketball team came with a certain level of visibility.
Even people who didn't care about sports knew who she was.
Clairo certainly did.
Mostly because her roommate never shut up about her.
"Oh my God," Maya would say whenever Toni appeared on her phone screen. "If she looked at me for longer than three seconds, I'd start planning our wedding."
Clairo had always found that ridiculous.
Now she understood the concern.
"Vandalized is a strong word," Clairo said.
Toni stepped closer.
"Someone wrote in a library book."
"They left thoughtful commentary."
Toni laughed.
The sound caught Clairo off guard.
Not because it was loud.
Because it felt genuine.
"Thoughtful commentary?"
Clairo held up the book.
"Look."
Toni leaned in.
Close enough that Clairo caught the faint scent of laundry detergent.
Her stomach performed an embarrassing little flip.
"Okay," Toni said after reading the note. "That's actually kind of funny."
"Thank you."
"You wrote it, didn't you?"
Clairo gasped.
"I would never."
"Sure."
"I respect books."
"Clearly."
Their eyes met.
For a second, neither looked away.
Then Toni smiled.
A small smile.
The kind that seemed reserved for people she actually liked.
It made something strange happen inside Clairo's chest.
Something warm.
Something dangerous.
She ignored it.
"Psychology major?"
The question caught her off guard.
"How did you know?"
Toni nodded toward the book tucked beneath Clairo's arm.
The title was practically Psychology Student Starter Pack.
Clairo groaned.
"I should've known."
"You have the tote bag too."
"Okay, now you're judging me."
"A little."
Clairo laughed despite herself.
The conversation should have ended there.
Most conversations with strangers did.
A few jokes.
A polite goodbye.
Then everyone continued with their lives.
Instead, Toni shifted the books in her arms.
"What are you reading right now?"
The question surprised her.
Not because it was unusual.
Because Toni sounded genuinely interested in the answer.
Clairo glanced down at the novel she was holding.
"I just finished a romance."
Toni winced dramatically.
"Oh no."
"What?"
"You're one of those people."
Clairo narrowed her eyes.
"One of what people?"
"The people who still believe in love."
She said it like it was a diagnosis.
Clairo couldn't help laughing.
"And what's wrong with that?"
Toni considered the question.
For a moment, something unreadable crossed her face.
Gone almost as quickly as it appeared.
"Nothing," she said.
The answer felt rehearsed.
Like she had wanted to say something else.
Before Clairo could ask, Toni glanced at the clock on the wall.
"Damn."
"What?"
"Practice."
The disappointment that flickered through Clairo surprised her.
They had been talking for less than ten minutes.
That shouldn't have been enough time to miss someone.
Yet somehow, she already did.
Toni adjusted her backpack.
"It was nice meeting you, Psychology Major."
"That's not my name."
"I know."
"Then why are you calling me that?"
Toni started walking backward down the aisle.
The grin on her face was impossible to ignore.
"Guess you'll have to tell me next time."
And then she was gone.
Clairo stood there longer than necessary, staring at the space Toni had occupied only moments before.
A ridiculous smile tugged at her lips.
She hated that Maya was going to be right.
Because for the first time in a very long while, someone had managed to leave before Clairo was ready for them to go.
And she had a feeling she would be seeing Toni Corvin again.
- Writer
