Thoughts from the Librarian

    Why is it so hard for anyone nice and social to come to the library? I mean, it's really not that hard. All they need to do is walk in and say, "Hi Miss Scott, I need to check out a book," and then we'd get to talking and what do you know? I'd have a new friend. But no, no one comes in here. 

    That's me by the way. No one. The poor librarian, Miss Scott. The days here seem to go on forever. The only kids that I see coming into the library are the awkward geeky kids that only talk to themselves. It's really quite irritating. What I really want is for someone to come in and talk to me, whether it be student or teacher. I really don't have very many friends here. I guess that makes sense though because this is only the third week of my first year teaching here. "Here" is McGraw High School located in North Idaho. The teachers here seem nice, but I have yet to get to know them, which would be so much easier if I wasn't an introvert.

    I just moved here from a slightly larger town an hour south of here, so I don't have any friends at all. Look at me, such a sad sack. But don't worry, hopefully my life will get better. I like to think it will. My regular day is wake up ridiculously early, go to school, and go home. Sometimes I'll get crazy and go to the grocery store. But something about today feels different, maybe I got enough sleep, or maybe someone slipped me some drugs; either way, today was going to be different.
    I walk into the library and as per usual the same geeky boys sat at the same boring table. I began to have doubts about today being great. Just as I thought that, a teacher walked through the door; a handsome teacher. He walks right up to me, and I lose all control of conscious thought. I'm pretty sure I look like an idiot. Do you know what he said to me? Neither do I, but I'm pretty sure he asked about signing up to reserve the computer lab today. I gestured to the list to the right of me, still daydreaming about him, the next thing I know he's walking out the door. 

    I can't believe I just did that! Why can't I just be a normal person and speak to really cute boy? It's ridiculous. I sit the whole day, minus lunch and when someone was talking to me, thinking about him. His gorgeous blue eyes, short brown hair with longish bangs, his tall stature, and his smooth voice, or at least I imagined a smooth voice. 

    I walk over to the fiction section to the left of the front desk, eyeing the books. All of a sudden, last period of the day, thirty students shuffle noisily through the front door, talking and laughing loudly. Last through the portal to the real world (which is what I call the door) comes that same teacher. He kind of awkwardly shuffles through his messy folder and pulls out a stack of papers.

    "Okay guys, I'm going to pass out your assignment, follow the directions exactly, I will not answer questions so if you have one, ask the person next to you. But remember, this is a library, and we don't want to heart the book ears," he says. This last statement really catches my attention. 

    On my way back to my desk I glance at the computer lab schedule, and what do you know? there's a name in the seventh period slot. Mr. Cain. So that's his name! I had to get to know him so looking at his hands already tells me he's single, or at least not married, which is good for me. He starts humming a song I don't know. In an effort to make it look like I'm not staring I sit down at my computer and open to Facebook, plug in my headphones, and turn on some music, it's not like I have anything better to do. 

     Oblivious to me, he walks over to the front desk while I'm mouthing the words to my favorite song. Out of the corner of my eye I see him leaning on the chest high table, elbow on the wood and face resting on hand. He clears his throat and I look up, startled. As my face turns bright red I pull out my ear-buds.

     He says, "Hi, I'm Luke," and he extends the hand he was leaning on.

     I shake it and say awkwardly, "I'm Jane."

     "Well it's nice to finally meet you, this morning you seemed..."

     "Out of it? Yeah, crazy morning," I really didn't want him to know I was day dreaming about him. 

     He laughs, "yeah, out of it. I'm the choir teacher, by the way." 

     "Oh, I guessed that; I saw these kids in the back to school concert."

     "Yes, well we will get better, I promise," he smiled to reveal his beautiful slightly crooked teeth.
     "Oh, they really weren't that bad," again I smiled, not knowing what else to say. You see, I get awkward around boys that I'm not related to, especially cute ones.
     He laughed, "You don't have so kind. They were horrific," he said that just loud enough that the students in the row of computers closest to the desk overheard.
     One of them remarked, "Hey! we really weren't that bad!"
     Mr. Cain replied, "You weren't bad for the first concert of the year, but you WILL get better." 

Pirates 2: The Confrontation

    It was hard to believe that it was only six short months ago that Adam and Jenny left England and arrived in America. They had gotten a small cabin in the woods just outside New York City. On their way there they had spent three months together in a small room. Love was bound to happen, and it did, only Jenny didn't feel the same way. She just wanted to be friends and focus on the next couple years. Adam's feelings, however, did not go away. He has been in love with her for the past five months, and that wasn't going to go away any time soon. Adam hoped and hoped Jenny would come to see how much he cared for her, and eventually care for him the same way; for now Adam was forced to hide his feelings, and treat her like a sister, as that's what everyone thought they were.

    They both knew that it was only a matter of time before Captain Rogers and The Scavengers found them. Adam had been formulating a plan in case they did find them. He had created a "go bag" that they could grab along with some clothes in the event they had been found.

    Today was especially worrisome because a boat was arriving from England in the morning, and Adam knew there might be a pirate ship not far behind. The go bag was ready by the door just in case. 

    Jenny had gotten a job at a local seamstress shop. She was learning to make dresses, and consequently, there were many crudely sown dresses laying around the cabin. Many of them were missing arm holes or having holes where they should not be. Adam was worried she would never be good. 

    He walked into town that morning after breakfast, headed to his job. He conveniently got a job working at the harbor, this way he would know when another group of people would arrive from England. He also heard all of the gossip from boat captains. Adam learned there was an unidentified pirate looking ship headed here, the reason way the long time residence of America hated the British, and how to properly load and unload boxes from a ship. He just arrived at the docks when he overheard some crew from a docked shop talking about the British ship arriving that day. They were saying someone said they saw it being attacked by pirates the day before; when they saw it they raced back here to warn everyone. Seeing as how they were an unarmed shipping vessel, they would have been of no help. The ship, badly damaged. was easily seen now, headed to the third row of docks.The sails had cuts and holes in it, the deck was destroyed and blood was splattered on the wood. Because of the damaged sails, the crew, and probably some passengers were rowing the large ship with oars below deck. No one was standing on the top deck, waving and staring bright eyed at their new home; in fact, the only man anyone could see was the captain, who was steering the massive broken vessel. 

    The people at the dock stood in awe, mouths open, at the mutilated ship. Adam, however, was more interested in the what, if anything, came after. He was staring past, trying to make out the distant figure through the fog, trying to discern whether or not his eyes were playing tricks on him. In minutes the figure became a ship. Adam recognized the ship to be the unmistakable pirate ship that he used to pillage on. He ran of the dock, toward his home. He ran through town knocking into people, pushing, shoving, and shouting. He jumped over barrels, wagons, and any other obstacle that was in his way. Throughout the town, people yelled at him as he pushed through.

    Once he reached the cabin, he grabbed the go bag, some more food, and ran to his bedroom for clothes. Jenny ran in the door, having heard Adam digging through his closet, she ran into his room, at the door she exclaimed, "Adam!" out of breath she stammered, "did you see?"

    "Yes, now go grab some clothes. 

    She ran to her room and flung open her closet doors. She started grabbing and cramming clothes into a small bag that she grabbed off the top shelf of the closet. Adam ran into her room, and nagged, "We need to go, NOW!" 

    She finished shoving clothes into the bag and quickly walked into the kitchen, confused and out of breath. "Did you know this was going to happen?" she asked him, as he put his jacket in a suitcase.

    "I suspected it might, why?"

    "You were all ready for it. You knew exactly what to do. And the means you anticipated this."

    "And?..." Adam was confused about the significance of this conversation, "you can't tell me you didn't at least wonder if they would ever find us."

    "I preferred not to think about it."

    Adam stuffed Jenny's coat into the suitcase as well and handed the lighter one to her, "Well luckily I did. So let's go. We have a long journey ahead of us." 

    They walked as calmly as they could out the front door. This was the last time they would ever see their home again.

*****

    The town was in chaos. People were running ans screaming; the items people carried scattered the ground. Groceries, clothes, and papers lay waiting to be trampled on. 

    The pandemonium seamed to be emanating from the docks. They both knew why. one of there friends came running by, she stopped and said in horror, "There's pirates, MURDERING people on the dock!" 

    "What?" Jenny was surprised; she thought that they would just come looking for Adam; their friend ran r away with a face of horror.