Between Pages

[aoza]

Between Pages
kyuhyun/seohyun for bollywoodrecord
romance & fluff (au), 3663w, pg

a/n: this is a birthday oneshot for aqsa. bb, have a wonderful day! i hope you like this, even though this was a last minute thing. :) i wanted to give you something within my reach and what's better than a fluffy fic from one of the founding members of our "angst circle"? please realize that i must love you very dearly if i'm willing to write something somehow fluffy for you. anyway, just excuse all of the grammar/typing errors! i'll edit once i'm not so lazy anymore. xD *showers with love* enjoy!





Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves, vanity to what we would have others think of us.

She didn’t fit the atmosphere of my little corner when she first walked on in-all glitter and makeup and heels clacking on my perfectly polished hardwood floors. She didn’t seem to like to read much, as far as I could tell by the way she wrinkled her nose at the neat rows of books I’d had lined up on cabinets, arranged by author and then by collection and date of publication.

But she dismissed most of the newer books and went for the older, much-loved classics. And I decided she might not be so bad.

It was a slow moving day. People poked their heads in and out much rarer than I would have liked, but for the most part business was well. I didn’t own the space (the owner was too old and bed-ridden to handle anything anymore) but managed it by myself all these years to fondly call it mine. I reached the quota every month and had a smattering of regulars coming in one or twice a week. The girl with the loud heels and glittering blouse was the only new customer during the whole week and so far, in the past thirty minutes, had not caused me any trouble yet.

She was over at the classics still, perusing the section so diligently I almost thought I’d misjudged her for the way she dressed and moved.

I smiled to myself at this particular musing, shaking my head a little as I returned to the passage I’d left off at her arrival. Interesting characters always appear at book stores and I’ve seen quite a few in my time owning this shop. I shouldn’t be so surprised a flamboyant-looking person would have an interest in the classics. There were stranger things, of course.

Like pigs flying or falling in love with a person you’ve only read in books. Something like that.

“Hey, Book Keeper. It’s okay to check out the books from this cabinet and then bring it back, right?” An unusually soft, melodious voice caught my attention. I looked up from my own book and blinked. It was her.

She slapped a well-worn copy of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice over my counter, her manicured nail-art ridden fingernails tapping impatiently on the cover. I raised an eyebrow at her choice.

“What?” She challenged, meeting my gaze with her own, her eyes glittering almost dangerously. She had beautifully deep brown eyes. I could get lost in them if I let myself. “I haven’t tried reading this before and I’m curious. Am I not allowed to enjoy the contemporary classics?”

For the life of me, I’ve no idea what propelled me to speak out of turn. “No, you’re allowed. I’m just surprised is all.”

Her brown eyes narrow into slits, her lip tightening into a straight line. “Surprised how?”

“It’s a good surprise, don’t worry. More girls like you should read more.”

“Girls like me huh?” she replied, rolling her eyes. She looked like she was going to leave without the book before she thought better of it and turned back, fixing me with a look. “Then I guess, more guys like you should go out more. It’s too stuffy in here. The air in here’s clogging your brain cells with ideas of stupid stereotypes.”

I considered her for a moment. She sounded so serious in her suggestion but her gaze held mirth I wasn’t so sure I should feel good about. It was a look that made my chest tighten in anticipation for-what exactly? Before I let myself analyze it any longer, I turned to shrug good-naturedly in response. Avoiding her gaze only for a moment to pull out a ledger to note the title of the book she was about to check out.

(If she were serious about that as well. Sneaking another look at her made up face and smirk told me that she was.)

“Anything over at the section you were just at, you can check out of the store for five days at a time.” I told her, turning the ledger over for her to sign, “Did you want a borrower’s card or something?”

“Sure. Whatever.” She says and then leaves the second I hand her the newly issued card. Her heels clicking softer and softer as she disappears from my view.

I glance at the name she provided on the ledger.

Seohyun.

I find myself smiling.

Pretty name.

He is a gentleman, and I am a gentleman's daughter. So far we are equal.

It’s another slow day when Seohyun came back the next day.

Gone are the clicking heels I found myself hearing at odd hours of the day and instead they are replaced by ratty boots on her feet. Her face is still made up; all dark and smoky around her beautiful brown eyes. Her lips are turned down, an angry shade of red that I wasn’t comfortable seeing. The color contrasted too much from the milky shade of her skin, practically porcelain from my view at the counter-staring at her from where she stood shifting in a too-short jet-black skirt and oversized shirt ensemble by the door.

“Isn’t it a little early in the afternoon to be wearing that kind of get-up?” I asked; my tone surprisingly as smooth and easy-going as I hoped it would be at better moments. Like now. “Did you come back to return the book you borrowed?”

Seohyun shook her head, bounding towards me loud on her boots before stopping to lean over my counter. Her eyes pining me in place as her forearms braced over the wood. I could almost make out the seams of her clear contacts.

“Nope. Who the fuck reads old English that quickly?”

I shuffled a step back, wiping my (suddenly sweaty) hands on the front of my jeans.

“I do. So do English and Literature scholars. And I’d like it a lot if you didn’t curse so loud in here. I’ve kids a few steps back at the Fairytale section and I would prefer they don’t go home asking their mothers what that f-word stands for.”

She moved to shrug, unperturbed at the thought of somehow polluting children’s minds. “They’ll live,” she said, cocking her head to the side, “I’m here because some jackass wanted an afternoon delight and I wasn’t eager to get any. He got a little handsy and rough so I ran out of there before he could recover from my kneeing him. Guys are really weak in the balls, huh?”

Shocked as I was by her crass language and the too-easy admission of the events of her day, I wasn’t sure why I found myself laughing at her words at all.

Maybe it’s because I figured she was as tough as she looked and knew instinctively that she could take care of herself perfectly well. She had to be, right? To be wearing all that make-up and glittering things in this neighborhood-she had to be braver than her looks give her credit for.

“It’s a delicate area. Bundles of veins and nerves. I’ve got book on Anatomy if you wanna leaf through it.” I told her, nodding my head as she tipped her head back and laughed. Her brown eyes now brighter than ever as the earlier annoyance of her situation flittered out of her mind. “As long as you only knee the ones who deserve it, I don’t mind you coming in here to blow off steam. Just keep the cussing to a bare minimum, yeah?”

“Sure, Book Keep-”

“It’s Kyuhyun.”

Seohyun stared at me as the knowledge of my name sunk in.

“Kyuhyun, huh?” she repeated, testing the sound before gracing me with the first of her most genuine smiles.

Angry people are not always wise.

“She’s a little high and mighty, don’t you think?”

Seohyun’s voice accompany me as I note the books in my shop, the tips of her heels clicking steadily with every step she took beside me. I don’t have to look over to know that she is referring to a character in the book she is reading, the pages parted at the middle. I don’t even have to ask who she means because she tells me so a beat later,

“Elizabeth’s a bitch. Darcy was just being a good and honest friend.”

“You’re calling a fictional character a bitch? Really?” I deadpanned, raising an eyebrow. She swatted me with gentle flip of her hand, rolling her eyes as I chuckled at her expression. There was clear exasperation on her face, brought about by whatever feelings the book she was reading was bringing out of her at that moment. I couldn’t decide whether I liked the fact that she was cussing characters with such a loud, determined tone or the fact that she was only like this because she was actually enjoying a classic book despite the other interest I slowly learned she preferred over reading.

It’d been a week since she entered my shop in her clicking heels, borrowing a book that was not one I had expected her to choose. Seohyun told me she liked more aggressive activities-like shopping and watching combat sports, like riding in cars with boys and fooling around with them. It never occurred to her to be more private around me though I highly suspected that it was just the way she was. The Seohyun I slowly got to know wore (too-large or too skimpy) garish clothes, bright accessories and clicking footwear. She was flashy, loud and always honest.

Traits, all of which, I also slowly began to (love) enjoy.

“But she is! Being honest isn’t a crime, you know.” She continued ranting, leaning back against the shelf I was currently taking note off, the volume of her voice bouncing off the walls of my thankfully empty book shop. “Darcy was just doing right by his best friend by looking out for him. Sure, I get that Jane is really shy but all that demure-lady crap of hers won’t get her anywhere with Bingley!”

“So what you’re saying is Jane’s in the wrong for being coy?”

“Yep.” She replied, popping the ‘p’ on the word. She said it as though it was the most obvious thing in the world and I wonder for a moment why she was so adamant on the issue.

I turn to look at her pointedly to gauge her reaction then, tapping the pen I had in my hand over the shocking bright yellow of her oversized smiley shirt. “Why?”

“Just-” Seohyun began but cut herself, shaking her head and changing gears in a manner of nanoseconds before I can even react, “Look… if I were Bingley and I was crushing on some dude, I’d want to know if I had a chance or not. And if my friend thought it wasn’t going to work, I’d like to hear it sooner rather than later.”

I’m still trying to process her words when she continued rambling: “I have this girlfriend, Yoona, who can practically pass as my twin if only she wasn’t so goddamn sweet. She was so nice all the time, it was unnerving that once when our friends and I dared her to talk to someone at a party, she ended up liking the guy she spoke to. He was God-awful-a bastard really-but he was older and got us alcohol when we wanted them so none of our friends complained about him except for me. I hated him because he was playing it all smooth and cool and leading her on when all I could see was a giant neon sign blaring ‘ASSHOLE’ on his forehead. So I told Yoona what I thought, pointing out all of the pros and cons of their relationship but she didn’t listen and instead lashed out and went out with him when he asked. Two weeks later, that piece of trash dumped her after taking her to some cheap motel where she refused to put out.”

Seohyun heaved a long, deep breath as she finished, her brows knotted together and her cheeks splotched pink from exertion. It was obvious to me that the memory she’d just shared still made her angry but I knew better than to make her stop from speaking her mind. Instead, I listened diligently-brushing my shoulder against hers in a sign of comfort I hoped she would take with grace.

She flashed me a small, sheepish smile at my effort and my spirits lifted.

“Anyway, my point is Darcy expressed his opinion as a friend. It was Bingley’s decision to stay away so really, Lizzie has no right to go-all bitch on Darcy for being honest.”

I considered her words. “What happened after though? With your friend?”

Seohyun shrugged, closing the book. “She got over it with a little bit of my help. She learned to stand up for herself and be more expressive. She actually has a new guy but I don’t know who he is yet. She won’t say but I saw them once walking home together and he was practically a whole foot taller.”

“A happy ending then even though she didn’t listen to you first?” I said and when she nodded, I pushed forward, “Then don’t you think Darcy should let Bingley handle his affairs on his own? Lizzie lets Jane do her thing and she’s in the same state of prejudice as Darcy. Why can’t he do the same?”

“Because he’s proud, I guess,” Seohyun replied, shrugging. “Are you indirectly giving me a lecture right now?”

“No… but is it working?”

She wrinkled her nose at this, nudging me with an elbow with a wry smile. “A little,” she admitted, rolling her eyes as she once again opened her book and picked up where she left off. “Go back to work, Book Keeper Kyu.”

I laugh as I do.

The distance is nothing when one has a motive.

She doesn’t show up the next week after that or the days that follow. Her overdue bill climbing steadily with each passing minute she doesn’t walk through my shop’s door.

I try not to worry but I do, thinking of all the horrible ‘what ifs’ because this is a rough neighborhood and Seohyun is a little more appealing to the wrong kind of people along the street. I heard the catcalls every time she left my shop an hour before I actually close, and I see the leering looks men gave her as she walked by, cheekily smirking at them with subtle sway of her hips.

I wish, as I loaded new books onto shelves and listen patiently for a soft clicking of heels, that I could have scolded her a little bit for the way she dressed. Maybe then I would have a little bit more peace of mind.

(But more importantly, I wish that I knew where and how she was because the waiting makes me nervous and I miss the fabulous Seohyun I know.)

Her bill run up to $200 but I still don’t see or hear her coming at all.

Where is she anyway? Doesn’t she know she should returns the things she borrows on time?

(Doesn’t she know I miss her?)

A doe-eyed girl arrived today to pay for Seohyun’s overdue book, and even without introducing herself I know in my gut that she is her friend, Yoona.

She is delicate, just as Seohyun described her, quiet and polite and unreasonably beautiful. I want to ask her how Seohyun is but I feel awkward doing so. Instead I tell her the amount of the fine and ask her to tell Seohyun that books should be returned on time.

Yoona paid for the fine graciously with a smile, shaking her head as she softly explained how ‘Seohyun always forgets to return anything she borrows if she loves it so much-by the wear and tear of this book, I’m willing to bet she was rather attached to this quite a lot’ before turning to leave with a tall man waiting patiently by the door.

My hands skim the book’s spine, thinking of how much more weathered it looked now than before Seohyun came and took it away. My chest squeeze at the thought of her and I shake my head, slipping it back into it’s proper place in the shelf.

I turn on my heel. I don’t look back.

Till this moment I never knew myself.

I’m convinced that her book is taunting me.

Technically it’s the copy of Pride and Prejudice wasn’t hers per se but I thought of it as much since the Seohyun had borrowed it in the first place.

The weathered book has been lying within my desk for days now after I took it out of the shelf and hid it from public view. I didn’t want anyone else to borrow it before she returned (if she ever did). I wanted to keep it safe. It’d become so special to me.

I’m thankful it’s another quiet day or else I’d go mad thinking about it sitting under my papers for so long.

I touch the spine with my fingers as I pull it out, holding it up to the light to scrutinize the yellow of its dog-earred pages. I think of how ridiculous I’m being for worrying over nothing.

Seohyun’s not coming back. She got bored. Girls like her get bored with stuff like this-like reading and classics and-

Me, I think miserably, unable to pretend my feelings were not more than friendly. And with the thought, I toss the book across on the counter. The weight of the classic tumbled off the edge fairly quickly, landing on the floor with a soft thud.

I groan as I walk over to pick it up, only to notice a piece of loose paper peeking out of its’ pages.

The paper is new and bright pink, with the most elegant messy scrawl I’ve ever seen.

Book Keeper Kyu-

I’ve been keeping a secret from you.

The truth is that… I like you.

And that I’ve already read ‘Pride and Prejudice’ a thousand times. I know that Wickham is a prick and that Mrs. Bennet is a lovable pain in the ass. I know that Bingley goes back to propose to Jane. I know that Lady Catherine is an old bat. And I know Darcy and Elizabeth end up together in the end.

I’ve only just been pretending not to know because you seemed so interested in me when I walked in to pick up a book. I’ve passed by your shop for weeks before I actually went in and you never noticed even though your desk is near the windows and you always (always) read facing the sun.

I have to admit I was little bummed you didn’t notice me right away, or really care about me until I started staying later to read in front of you… I always try to look nice for you. I even wear the heels you like so much because you said it sounds a little like music when I walk. But I guess you don’t care for the makeup or the clothes, huh? You like a girl who reads-that’s just the kind of girl that guys like you like right?

I guess what I’m trying to say is I’m sorry I haven’t been so honest about myself. I really wanted you to like me but you’ve never once asked me out and like Bingley, I’m a little disheartened.

I won’t bother you anymore, so here’s your book back. I do like it a lot. And you. Especially you.

-Seohyun

The book lied forgotten as I stared out into space. I wish I’d said something-about how I like her hair, her looks, her loud antics and her everything-earlier.

I wish I’d known I felt this way before she disappeared.

We are all fools in love.

She fit the atmosphere of my little corner when she walked on in-dressed up in a modest school uniform, dark knee-high socks and black flats. She seemed to like to read a lot, as far as I could tell by the way she perused the neat rows of books I’d had lined up on shelves, touching them lightly with her fingertips as her eyes read the titles behind her thin-rimmed glasses.

I liked that she dismissed most of the newer books and went for the older, much-loved classics. Stopping only to pick out a book I would have chosen for her if she’d asked. A weathered copy of a contemporary romance, of social circles and gossip, of pride and prejudice…

“It’s okay to check out the books from this cabinet and then bring it back, right?” She asked, smiling a little brighter as her hands slid the novel across my desk. “I promise I won’t take so long. I love this book.”

“You can’t check out that book and return it,” I said, my face contorting onto a wide smile of my own as she beamed at me-her face fresh and her eyes still a beautiful brown.

Turning the cover over, I pointed at the inscription on the blank page-her name etched in my writing. “It’s yours.”

I’d missed her that much.

“I’m only wearing this because I’ve cram school till a week before my last year of high school starts.” Seohyun explained, tapping her nameplate with a wrinkle of her nose. “But you like this look more, don’t you, Kyuhyun?”

I shook my head, taking her hand in mine. I read the name on her plate. Seo Joohyun.

Pretty name. Even prettier girl.

“No. I like you more.” I said, smiling as her cheeks flood with pink, “Joohyun.”

We pick up where we left off.

The prejudiced book keeper and his proud girl finding ever after.

a/n: Wondering how in the world I ended up with such a brash Seohyun? Let's just say a certain member of the Angst Circle wrote a badgirl!Seohyun and I just fell in love with the concept... ♥