He wasn't there today, and she felt strangely hollow. The emptiness surprised her—not because she missed him, but because she didn't want to. The library had always been her sanctuary: a place of quiet corners, half-sipped coffee, and the gentle rustle of turning pages. It was never meant to revolve around a person. Certainly not someone she barely knew.
But somehow, he had slipped into the rhythm of her days—an accidental presence that became intentional. At first, it was harmless. A crush, she told herself. A fleeting fascination. If he happened to be there, it was a bonus. If not, she'd still have her books, her peace, her reasons. But now… now it was different.
Today, without him, the silence felt less like peace and more like a void. She caught herself glancing at the door too many times, making excuses to step outside, hoping for a glimpse that never came. It wasn't even that she could recognize him easily—she usually didn't have her glasses on, which made things blurrier and more romantic than real. He could walk past her, and she wouldn't know. Maybe that was the point. Maybe she didn't want to know him. She just liked the idea of him.
And wasn't that more dangerous?