6. Strange book

"Oh, Miss Davies," She quickly let her hand out of his light grip as the principal suddenly showed up behind him. "You must be here for...?"

"My punishment. Mr. Mark... gave me detention this morning." Her head hung low as she said her reason for being there.

"I should go." Andre spoke up afterwards. "See you around." He whispered to her with a light smile before leaving the both of them.

See you around? He meant her, right? See her around? He wanted to see her around-

"Well then," The principal cut her thoughts off, "I don't even want to know what you did. Just... go to the library and deal with it." Then, he turned and shut the door behind him.

Okay, so the library was bearable even though she really didn't like books. She would just clean it and leave. What's the worse that could happen?

She had gotten to the library only to meet it... neat and tidy.

"See? It isn't that bad." A rare smile accompanied her words as her eyes moved round the library.

"You're here for your punishment?" The librarian, Miss Kate, whose eyes were on the system in front of her with a neutral face as always, asked her from her desk. She had never changed expression since she started working here. Well, she was unmarried and she didn't look any bit 'young'. Ouch!

"Yes."

"At the back." She pointed her index finger towards the last rows of shelves.

It can't be that bad right?

With one foot in front of the other, she moved slowly towards the direction she was told to go.

She halted at the last two shelves standing beside each other. Empty!

On the floor in front of her were two scattered piles of books opposite each other. They were obviously former occupants of the empty shelves.

The first pile of books on her right had a piece of paper lying on top of it.

'Put these on the shelf. IT MUST BE IN THE RIGHT CATEGORY!' Was written on it. A neat enclosed box sitting beside the huge pile also had a piece of paper tapped on it. 'These too. IN THE RIGHT CATE-'

Oh, please! She wasn't dumb, c'mon!

Ahh, right. They thought she was.

On the other pile was also a piece of paper that said, 'They go into the empty box right beside it. NEATLY.' An open empty box was beside it indeed. Ugh!

She sighed and dropped her face in her palms. She stayed that way for a while before taking a deep breath and dropped her bag.

Alright. Let's do this!

Half an hour gone and she was finally finished with arranging the pile of books on her right, on the shelf. Now, it's time for the other- Damn, she forgot the box!

She slapped her forehead in frustration.

Fifteen minutes and she was done with it. It was quite easy because it was already arranged accordingly in the box.

Now, IT IS time for the other pile!

She squatted and started with the ones at the bottom of the pile. The way she was doing it was like a robot who had been programmed to just pick and drop. Pick and drop. Pick and drop.

She paused suddenly. A particular book had caught her attention. It wasn't like the other books. It was just... black! No title. No picture. No description of what the book was about. Nothing! Just a dark hard cover.

She had her head tilted while observing the book. What a strange book.

She decided to check what it looked like on the inside. Maybe this was just a new design or something.

"What are you doing?" Holy sh-!!!

Just as she was about to lift the front cover open, a voice suddenly spoke, flipping the shit out of her. It was Miss Kate. Still with the straight face.

Isa cleared her throat as she looked up at the librarian while still squatting.

"Uh... exactly what was said on the piece of paper...?" It was more like a question to her because why ask when she herself directed her over here!

"And you aren't finished yet?" The woman blinked.

"No?" She blinked as well. Blink-o-war!

She narrowed her eyes at the squatting girl, "You have fifteen more minutes. Or you're gonna have a sleepover right here." And then she turned and left.

Well, it wouldn't be her first time.

She turned back to the book and after a couple of moments staring at it, she grabbed her bag and shoved it in, zipping it close afterwards.

Some minutes later, she came out carrying a box that was obviously filled with the pile of books that were previously on the floor. She hurriedly but gently dropped it on the desk of the librarian who was in the same state and position when she first walked in here.

"I'm done with it." Isa's voice came out low.

"Is it neatly arranged?"

"!!!" It was obviously not!

Miss Kate's fingers paused on the keyboard for a second as she sighed a little.

"Just... be back here tomorrow and get them arranged." She told the girl standing across her desk, her eyes still on the screen.

Isa nodded in agreement as she mumbled a 'thank you' before leaving.

As soon as Isa closed the door behind her, Miss Kate's eyes went straight to the door and after confirming it was indeed closed and Isa had truly left, she stood up immediately with so much urgency that the chair moved a few inches back. She rushed over to where she kept her bag - underneath the desk - and brought it out. She plunged her hand into the bag immediately, searching hurriedly for something- Aha!

She brought the first item out - a small hand mirror - and then the second one - a lipstick - and placed them on the table. She dropped the bag close by and rose the mirror with her left hand, holding it to her face, and held the lipstick in her right hand.

"This one has to work!" She said to herself, applying the lipstick on her lips. It just must work!

She arranged her brows, tapped her cheeks and pressed her lips against each other to smoothen the mixture wax, oil and pigment on it. She dived her hand in the bag again and brought out a perfume bottle. She sprayed it around her self and straightened her dress. Then she put everything back into the bag and walked towards the door with the bag hanging on her arm. She halted at the door and raised her hand towards the back of her hair. She let the hair loose and it came down in waves. She was definitely ready for this date!

~•~

Meanwhile, Isabella had left the school premises before she brought out the strange book she had taken... well, stolen from the library. With so much curiosity, she flipped the front cover open... but there was nothing. Just a blank black page just like the front cover. And so was the second. And third. And fourth. And fifth! She turned the book to open it from the back. The same thing! What in heavens' name is going on?

Strangely, she had the urge to check the middle of the book, but how was she to know the middle when there were no numbered pages! She sighed and decided to just open randomly.

And voilà! There was something on the page she had opened. It was... a picture. Of a house... a very old house standing behind a very tall gate. It was hard for her to decipher anything because everything was in black, but there were written words below the picture. It was faded but she could still make out some of what was written.

"Crestville..." She narrowed her eyes as she managed to call out the one she could see clearly. Crestville... Had she...? Nahh...

Suddenly, a taxi stopped right in front of her as the driver shifted his head towards the window, now looking at her "Going anywhere, Miss?" He was a middle aged man for sure with slight wrinkles on his face.

She looked at him and then at the book and then back at him, "...Do you know any..." She bent close as she lowered her voice, "... Crestville?" She blinked at him as she waited for his response.

"Well... yes. But, it's a little bit farther from here." Her eyes widened on hearing him and then narrowed on the house in the book. So, this house exists somewhere? And in this town?! Oh... she so wanted to see it now.

"It's fine. Can you take me there?" Her eyes twinkled for the first time in a long time. Maybe because this was going to be like an adventure. At least something to spice up her boring life.