I sit at the desk and slowly check in books. I try my best not to look at the clock, knowing that dong so would just frustrate me more. These shifts are short but they draaaaag on. One can only check in so many books before they get tired of it. People rarely come to me for help. No one really uses the computers and no one ever checks out books. In fact, I'm almost positive no one even knows where the library help desk is.

I stare at the dwindling pile of books, knowing that once they finish I'm stuck here for the next hour and a half with nothing to do. Just as I go to grab the next book, I hear someone clear their throat. I look up and am confused to find Asa standing a few feet away with his large phone in his grip. He's dressed in casual apparel- a white t-shirt sweater, black joggers, and matching sneakers. His face is slack and he looks like this is the last place he wants to be. You and me both.

"Hello," I greet him, unsure as to why he's here. Does he need help? Or did he see me and feel the need to say hi? I highly doubt the latter so I assume he needs some kind of assistance.

"Ivy, right?" he responds with the same bored look on his face.

"Yes," I confirm with a short nod.

"I need to find a book," he informs me in a dry tone. He takes a long stride over to me and slides his phone across the desk. My fingers stumble over the keys as I type the information into the computer and press search. For some reason, I feel nervous under his scrutinizing gaze. I can't help but wonder what's going through his mind. He probably thinks I have no sense of style; he always catches me on my off days. When I finally find the book he's looking for, I relay the shelving information to him in hopes that he'll nod and scurry off. He doesn't even try to act like he understands; rather, he blinks at me for a few seconds before sucking his teeth. "That made no sense."

I roll my eyes but stand up with intentions of showing him where it is. I start in the direction of the shelves but he remains in his spot. I pause and wait for his footsteps to come but they don't, so I look back at him and raise my hands. "Are you coming or what?" I ask in a slightly impatient tone. His shoulders slump and he lets out a small grunt before trailing behind me. I run my finger along the spines of the books until I reach the one he's on the hunt for. He doesn't even bother checking and just tucks it under his arm. Satisfied, I return back to the desk to check it out for him.

"Can I see your Student ID?" I request with my palm extended.

"Why?" he questions skeptically with slightly furrowed brows.

"So I can steal your identity, of course," I retort before motioning to the book. "Don't you want to check this book out?" I trail in an attempt to diminish his suspicion.

He takes his wallet from his pocket and hands the plastic card to me. I swipe it and look at the information that comes up on the screen. Asa Carmichael. I wish it said more, like his grade for example. Maybe I should've worked elsewhere where the information was more plentiful. Or maybe I can stop being a creep and finish this transaction.

I stamp the book and hand it back to him, along with his ID. "It's due in a week," I inform him as he picks it up.

"Okay," he replies. I give him a nod before he turns and leaves me alone at the desk. I glance at the clock and sigh when I discover that only ten minutes have passed.

When I get off of my shift, I meet my best friend Aaliyah outside of the library for lunch. I haven't seen much of her because every day this past week she's gone home right after her classes. She surprised me by proposing lunch for Thursday so I obviously agreed, having to push it back a few hours because of work. She doesn't seem to mind judging by how she greets me with a tight hug.

"So..how's life treating you?" she asks as we walk to the dining hall closest to us. She places one of her long, thin braids behind her ear and I put on a large smile.

"Great..." I answer as I count the amount of steps I take per sidewalk block. She looks at me dubiously and laughs.

"That sounded so believable, Ive," she scoffs as she shoves her hands in the pocket of her windbreaker "Lay it on me."

"Classes aren't too bad. I just have a lot of reading, which I mostly do at work," I explain as I motion to the large building behind us. "I'm just...bored."

"Join a club," she suggests, which earns an eye roll from me.

"All the clubs this school offers are for STEM majors, theater kids, or singers," I tell her with a slow head shake.

"Start a history club. There are definitely more nerds like you walking around," she encourages me before her carved out eyebrows wiggle rapidly on her forehead. "Maybe you'll even meet a history loving boy."

"I already had one of those," I remind her, which gets a dry laugh in response.

"Screw him," she mumbles. "Speaking of boys, are you talking to any? Hopefully better ones than Drew?"

I contemplate telling her about Asa before realizing there's nothing to tell. He's good looking and that's it. "No," I respond dully. She exhales loudly and I can tell she wants to grab my shoulders and shake me.

"Forget about Drew! You were too good for him, anyway-," she continues to rant but I cut her off.

"I'm over him, Aaliyah. I just haven't found anyone I'm interested in," I explain yet again. Since the break up two months ago, she's been trying to convince me to move on without realizing that I already have.

She sighs in slight relief before waving her hands through the air. "Well, you need to find some. I mean, what's the point of living on campus if you're not talking to boys?" she scoffs dramatically. "You live here! You can bring boys back to your dorm!" Aaliyah is a freshman this year so she has this ideal college lifestyle in mind. It's especially prominent because her parents won't allow her to live on campus, so she only gets glimpses into college nightlife. Soon enough, she'll realize that college is barely anything like the movies.

"You say that as a commuter. If you lived here, you'd understand how difficult it is to get someone back to your dorm. First, all guys want is sex. So if you want something meaningful, you've got to spend a lot of time searching. Plus, those beds are small as hell," I list the reasons on my fingers. "Not to mention, you've got to get your roommate to leave-."

"Don't you room with Danica?" she cuts in as if that's supposed to be a plus for me.

I give her an exhausted look. "Yes, I do," I respond with a long sigh.

"Then just tell her to get lost," she oversimplifies as we reach the dining hall. Aaliyah's a year below me and Danica so she has no idea what Dani's has been doing. I never thought to update her about it last year because it never outright affected me. Now here I am stressing about going back to my own dorm on a daily basis in fear of walking in on her.

"I'm the one that's always getting lost," I inform her and her head snaps in my direction.

"Seriously?" she gasps with wide eyes. "Danica?"

"Yes," I answer with a strong nod. "Danica- the old student body president and local girl scout troop leader."

"Oh...gross," she grunts with a wrinkled nose.

"I know," I complain as I massage my neck with both hands. "She was doing it last year, too. I don't know why I even agreed to room with her this year. One of my many regrets thus far..."

"I can't believe it..." she hisses in disbelief. "Where do you go?"

"The library," I explain and she frowns sadly at me. "My friend says I can go to her apartment but I just met her a few weeks ago so I feel like I'm overstepping. I try to stay in the room after 6, though, so Danica doesn't have a chance to sneak anyone in." She shivers in disgust before we break apart to get our food.

Aaliyah finds a table and sits down before me. When I take the seat across from her, she casually nods behind me. "Okay, don't look now but there's a boy back there. I'm pretty sure you'll find him cute. He's your type," she informs me casually as she pushes around a meatball with her fork.

"When can I look?" I ask and she glances behind me and quickly nods. I peek around and see Asa sitting with a girl and a guy. I immediately turn back around and slowly shake my head.

"What? You don't think he's cute?" she gasps. "He's your type! He's light skinned with brown curly hair and nice lips. Is that not your type anymore?"

"That's Asa," I tell her quietly as if he can somehow hear me from twenty five feet away.

She squints at me as she racks her brain for meaning behind my words. "Is that some slang or something?" she questions as she searches my face curiously.

"No, that guy- his name is Asa," I clarify as I briefly point over my shoulder.

"You know him?" she inquires as a large grin spreads across her lips. She immediately takes on a suggestive expression and leans in excitedly. "Did you hook up with him? Tell me what happened!"

"Remember the friend that said I can sleep at her house whenever Danica kicks me out?" I backtrack before eating a baby carrot.

"Yeah," she replies, urging me to continue talking.

"They live together," I clarify with a hand over my mouth as I chew. Her demeanor changes and she looks slightly annoyed now.

"So he's her boyfriend?" she inquires with a tilted head.

"No, she's a lesbian. They just live together," I explain and she blinks in surprise. "They're best friends."

"So you're telling me that your friend gives you open access to her apartment where that fine specimen also happens to live?" she asks as she swings her hand around in the air.

I shrug as I take in her words. "I guess," I agree.

"Girl you better move in," she hisses as she lightly slaps the table. She peeks over my shoulder again and nods in approval. "He's so fine."

"I know," I agree with a long sigh before nudging around the spinach leaves in my salad. "But he's kind of an ass."

"Kind of?" she pries and I give a weak nod.

"He's not friendly. He's sarcastic and sassy. He barely acknowledges my presence," I try my best to explain. "He's physically my type but not his personality."

"Oh yeah, you prefer guys with no personality- like Drew," she feigns understanding. When I give her an eye roll, she scoffs noisily. "Whatever. You'll find someone else. At least he's nice to look at."

I turn around once more to get another glimpse but gasp when I see that he's staring right back at me. He looks from me to Aaliyah and back again with squinted eyes. I immediately twist back in my seat and shade my face with my hand, which earns a loud cackle from Aaliyah. I gape at her with wide eyes as I search for words to explain my frustration. "Thanks for the warning," I hiss as I feel his gaze burning a hole in my back.

"I didn't know you were going to look back," she excuses while attempting to stifle her chuckles. "You should've waved."

I give her the middle finger before turning my attention back to my food. She nods behind me with a smirk on her lips and I scowl in response. There's no way I'm turning around for the rest of this meal. "I hate you," I grumble in response.

"Thanks," she winks.