As Caroline lead him to the back of the store, she could feel her hands begin to shake as the nerves took over. She was never good with new people, especially attractive people.

"So you like Ayn Rand?" The man asked her as they walked.

"Uh, yes, the first book I read of hers' was Anthem," She began to ramble, her love of books quickly taking over, "I really like the dystopian genre, they're like cautionary tales for today's society. So, I quickly fell in love with her novels."

"I completely agree," the man brightened, "The warnings these authors give can truly make you think, one wrong decision and we could end up in a novel like 1984 or Anthem. They really show how low humanity can get."

"Exactly!" Caroline exclaimed giddily but then widened her eyes at the excitement in her voice, "Sorry," she said before stopping in front of the bookshelf. "Here are all of our dystopian novels, The Fountainhead should be right..." she ghosted her fingers over the row of books before pulling one out, "here!"

He smiled as she placed the book in his hands, "Great, thank you," He said as Caroline felt her heart leap. She really liked his smile.

"You're welcome," she smiled back. She could feel herself begin to sweat, despite the cool January air that seeped in through the cracks of the old building, "D-Do you need help with anything else?"

"Any recommendations?" He asked, "I'm always up for reading something new."

Her mind immediately drifted to their poetry section, "Do you mind if it's poetry?" She asked before something behind Neil caught her eye, a flash of dark hair disappearing behind a bookshelf. Nancy.

"Not at all," He told her as she began to walk towards the shelf that held some of her favorite works.

"The classic poets are always great, a good source for inspiration. If you're looking for something more symbolic, I highly recommend Poe or Emily Dickinson," she reached up and grabbed a book from the top shelf, something she could do with ease.

"I thoroughly enjoy her works, though I fear my adoration has turned itself into mimicry," Caroline furrowed her brow, looking at the woman on the cover.

"What do you mean?" The man asked.

"Emily Dickinson was a recluse, she didn't even leave her home when she was dying to get medical help," The blonde woman let out a breath, "And I only leave the building for food,"
She frowned, putting the book back in its spot and shaking her head, "But you probably don't care about that, feel free to stay and read in the nook, I'm sure Mercutio wouldn't mind the company."

At the sound of his name, the cat lifted its head from the pillow he lay on, "Thank you," He paused a moment, looking at her name tag, "Caroline."

"You're welcome, feel free to shout if you need any more help," Caroline told him, and then turned towards the counter, ready to confront Nancy for eavesdropping.

Reaching the front of the store, Nancy greeted her with an innocent smile as she changed the record on the turntable, the Turtles began singing about a woman named Elenor. Caroline shot her a knowing look.

Nancy motioned for her to come closer as she whispered, "You think he's cute, don't you? He's totally your type."

"He's out of my league, Nance," Caroline whispered before Nancy began to laugh.

"Out of your league? Caroline, you're basically the same person." The two of them turned back to look towards the book book, where the man sat. Mercutio was curled up in his lap as he read- He was reading the book of Emily Dickinson poems. Caroline smiled to herself slightly as Nancy grinned, "See even Mercutio loves him."

"Mercutio loves anyone that's willing to feed or pet him," Caroline rationalized more to herself than Nancy. He wouldn't go for some awkward recluse as herself. She frowned slightly, "I have to pick out my book of the week," she told Nancy before turning to get lost in the rows of shelves.

She skimmed row after row, looking for any book that she had deemed interesting. Finally settling on Romeo and Juliet, because the image of the mysterious stranger with Mercutio in his lap didn't seem to want to leave her mind.

Popping up from the floor, she was jumped when she noticed the man was right beside her, "These are pretty good," the corners of his mouth quirked up after seeing her jump, "I didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh, sorry, I guess I was kind of spaced out," she scratched at her arm, "Are you ready to check out?"

"Uh," he looked at the books in his hand, before looking at his watch and taking a sharp inhale of breath, "yeah."

"Nancy can help you at the counter up front," she smiled and he nodded, heading to the front of the store. Caroline followed suit, placing the copy of Shakespeare's work on her display. Mercutio had followed the two of them to the counter, hopping up onto it as the man set his books down. He scratched the cat's head before reaching for his wallet and handing Nancy the money for the books.

As he was leaving the store, Mercutio darted our after him, weaving between his legs to try to prevent him from leaving the area, "Cutio!" Caroline called, rushing out the door to scoop him up.

"I think he likes me," The man chuckled, scratching behind the cat's ear as he snuggled into Caroline's arms.

"He normally doesn't do this," Caroline shook her head, "Sorry about that..." Caroline lingered, trying to catch his name.

"Neil," The man grinned, awkwardly shifting on his feet,  "and no worries."

"You have a nice day Neil," Caroline smiled, backing into the shop, but not before hitting her head on the doorframe. She cursed silently to herself as she heard Neil chuckle and walk away.

"Mercutio you just love seeing me make a fool out of myself, huh?" She asked the cat as she closed the shop door.

The cat mewed at her before jumping out of her arms and heading to his corner.