Chapter Text
The corner library is a haven not only for book lovers and workaholics alike, but for the select few who yielded to the art of stillness. Naturally, it provides vellichor and nostalgia; solidarity and near-seclusion. Shortly after the door opened and the entry bell chimed her presence, Dorran perceives within herself a surge of emotion, as if entering a space so mortally human it mirrored the mind was a cue.
At this visual threshold of knowledge is where Ellis has been waiting for the past ten minutes now, knee bobbing up and down as she thumbs through her school-issued copy of To Kill a Mockingbird. Not a single word is remembered. She had to pull out all the stops with her aunt for this "study session" to go smoothly, of course each thought of hers quickly turns to mush. (Besides the obvious 'where is she?' and 'into a headlock she’ll go.')
Unaware Dorran’s just spotted her silvery hair and crescent studs, Ellis swipes to unlock her phone. She opens a certain contact—one she’s mere seconds from blocking.
Meria 🦋:
do you know its cruel to keep a gal waiting
its capital punishment ykand if anxiety made me implode?? wyd then???
It doesn’t take long for those three dots to appear and do a little jig together, then blink out of existence.
Dodo 🌙🕊️:
Mama a girl behind you.
Ellis immediately glances back, expecting to see strangers reading or studying at nearby tables. Dorran is a chronic jokester, after all. Instead, said girl is right in front of her, clad in pajamas, grinning from ear to ear. (It’s blinding.) "I warned you."
"Whatever," Ellis mumbles cleverly, placing her phone face-down. Once the initial shock wears off, heartbeat steadying to a more normal pace, she presses a palm against Dorran’s chest and lightly pushes her away.
Dorran lets out an over-the-top gasp. "You hate—"
"You’re not even fashionably late," Ellis interrupts, watching Dorran roll her eyes and finally sit next to her. She ensures she’s being gazed upon before making a show of looking at Dorran’s house slippers and bunny-themed pants.
"You can’t rush greatness. And you rushed me plenty!"