Right, new city, new things. And this certainly is new. And I didn’t think I would be here. I wasn’t even sure how it started. I remember a coffee shop and an encounter at a library but that’s it. Not that I was complaining. That encounter had led me here, on this bus, going to the same library with that same someone. I do keep forgetting that. The fact that all this happened with that same someone. That same her. Feels like I've known her my entire life.

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I think this had all started in that library. We reached for the same book and laughed about it. Then it clicked in our heads that we were the same people from the previous day in a coffee shop, both reaching for the same cup. That, of course, sparked a conversation. And now, after an exchange of social media, we’re sitting on this bus route, heading back to the library so we can study together. She told me that she was studying engineering at university and I told her that I was bored. She laughed at that. That was when I knew there was something. Why did there have to be something? Not that I was complaining. A something with her could mean great things.

 

She’s sitting close to me, much closer than she should be comfortable with. But she is. I'm distracting myself by staring out the window. I'm in the aisle seat. I have to stare past her. Her hair is loose over her shoulders, falling over her glasses. It was a look I hadn’t seen before, not that I had seen many of her looks. It’s only been a few days. Outside the bus, the streets passed quickly, a blur across my eyes. Not that I was focusing on them. I was too busy being distracted by the girl beside me. Her hands were folded delicately in her lap, one finger rubbing over a ring. The ring was gold and looked old, much older than she was. I guessed it was a family ring.

 

My attention was suddenly torn from her as the bus came to a stop. The world outside stopped being a blur and came to halt. There sat an elderly woman who was waiting for a bus that wasn’t ours. Behind her was a post office, in her hand lay an envelope, freshly stamped. It wasn’t long until the bus lifted itself from the road and began to move away, pulling away from the elderly woman. She noticed me staring and giggled. My attention was instantly drawn back to her. Somehow it was more adorable than the first time I had heard it.

 

“What?” I asked, laughing myself. She shrugged and looked back out the window.

 

“Nothing,” she sighed. “Just didn’t expect you to have such an interest in elderly women.”

 

“I was just looking out the window,” I defended. She giggled more. God, she was cute.

 

“If you say so,” she said. I laughed a little more, my eyes lingering on the back of her head before looking back outside. It returned to its blurry state. By now it was boring. She was much more interesting. We were silent for the rest of the journey. We stepped off the bus and walked into the library. Instantly, she turned to me, said something about meeting back in two hours. If we could find each other, then we would sit together. I nodded as she spoke but took very few of her words in. She was talking very quickly. Then, once she was done, she turned and vanished into the library, leaving me standing awkwardly near the entrance. Without anything to do, I started to wander the aisles, browsing the spines, picking one or two and pretending to read whatever it was about. My mind wasn’t exactly engaged.

 

The two hours passed and I walked back to where she had told us to meet. She was already there, eyes searching the library for me. I stayed hidden for a little bit, seeing how she would react. She looked nervous, checking her watch every so often to check the time. After a few seconds of watching, I emerged and waved. Her eyes landed on me and a smile appeared on her face, stretching across her cheeks. She then came towards me, a slight skip in her step. I hoped to God I wasn’t misreading any signs. The books in her arms wobbled precariously, forcing her to move herself unnaturally. Her attention was now on them. Acting quickly, I dived forward and placed a hand on top of the pile, stabilising it. She grinned at me. She sighed her thanks and gestured to the door, motioning for us to leave. I nodded as the two of us left the library.

 

The street was surprisingly busy. Dozens of people walked around us, getting on with their day, not paying attention to the two young adults that had got in their way. Across the road, the other street was empty, void of any kind of life. She, however, did not notice. At full speed, she walked to the bus stop, her eyes scanning the times printed up. I joined her side, trying to push the odd occurrence aside in my mind, paying attention to the board. But before I could read the large title, she spun to me, her finger underneath a time already.

 

“Only got a few minutes,” she said and then she turned and sat beside an elderly gentleman. I smiled and nodded, sitting next to her. She was right, it only was a few minutes. When the bus arrived, we were the first one and she walked straight to where we had been sitting earlier. I didn’t know if it was the same bus, and I don’t think it mattered, but she was seated in the chair before I arrived and was smiling at me intently until I sat beside her. Then, with her book still in her arms, she shuffled a little closer to me, not enough to be noticeable to other people, but enough. A grin stretched across my face as I tried to pretend I hadn't noticed. Her eyes, however, were glued to her lap and her lips squeezed tightly together as if trying to contain a smile. It didn’t work. Now, we were both grinning like madmen as the bus pulled away into the road.

 

The journey seemed quicker this time but just as silent, not that we needed words to say what we wanted to. It was clear to both of us at this point that we both knew what was going to happen. An overwhelming sense of something filled me. I couldn’t quite place my finger on it. I think now, looking back, it was a sense of wonder. That a girl like this could even be remotely interested in a guy like me. It wasn’t like we knew each other that well. We’d only met a few days ago and hadn't had a proper chat at any point during this meetup. But, in all honesty, I didn’t care. I was here with her and that’s all that mattered. Her and her weird assortment of books.

 

It seemed like there was less time to think than on the way there. Our stop came quickly and we got off, then standing awkwardly as the bus pulled away again. Our eyes met. We knew what was coming. Or at least I hoped I knew what was coming. Trouble was, we now had to go separate directions.

 

“So,” I said.

 

“So,” she said back.

 

“Had a great time,” I tried to start but the sentence trailed slightly. She smiled at me and nodded, flicking her bangs out of her eyes.

 

“Same here,” she said. “Got some good reading material.” She gestured the pile of books and we both laughed. This was much more uncomfortable than I thought it would be. A moment passed. “Well, I should-” She turned to go, eyes still not leaving mine. I now realised we were quite close together.

 

“Um, yeah,” I stumbled. I had to ask but my courage had failed me. “Of course. Won't keep you.” That wasn’t what she wanted to hear but the words couldn’t escape my throat.

 

“Yeah. Okay then,” she mumbled as she turned away, head down slightly. With her eyes away from me, my confidence surged and a wave of warmth rushed over me. My eyes widened and I opened my mouth.

 

“Coffee? Maybe? At some point?” I yelled. She spun on her heel, a smile on her lips and her eyes wide. She giggled and shook her head. My heart dropped a little.

 

“Took you long enough,” she sighed, skipping back to me. Then she stood, craning her neck to look up at me. “Sounds good,” she continued. “Busy tomorrow but maybe the day after? Meet here? Midday?” It was like she had it all planned out. I grinned and nodded.

 

“Sounds good,” I said. “Looking forward to it.” She bit her lip and pulled away but something flashed across her eyes. Before I could think, she leaned up and kissed my cheek before falling back to her feet and turning and walking away, only looking back once to see my reaction, not that there was much to see. My eyes were wider than before and my mouth open. I could still feel her lips pressed against my cheek, her warmth lingering in the bitter winter air. Gradually, my mouth closed but the smile stayed pressed against it. Sighing contently, I turned and began my walk home, hands in pockets, eagerly waiting for the day after tomorrow to come.