Burning

Chapter ONE

Was what she saying important?

With both headphones jammed safely in her ears behind her hair it was impossible to tell. She watched one crinkled hand point at her and then the bookshelf and tried not to giggle. From her position it looked like the old librarian was spitting some pretty risqué lyrics. The girl bobbed her head at what was apparently the wrong time and spittle began to blossom at the corner of the old lady's pink crusted lips. Was it the instructions on how to get a crunchy old troll in pancaked makeup to let her out of this miserable arrangement? Maybe. Maybe it was her spilling her guts about a murder. Most likely it was something about how the librarian considered her to be lazy, inattentive, and rude.

A finger poked her sharply in the leg. The girl pretended to brush her hair in front of her ears and carefully pulled one of the headphones out.

"-going to finish them, Miss Parker?"

Another poke, then she felt the fingers attempt to tickle.

She kicked her friend and forced her expression to remain neutral.

"Oh for sure." She smiled.

The librarian's scowl deepened. "I expect it will only take you to the end of next week even with your work ethic."

The girl's smile twitched. "Sure." She agreed again. "Whatever you need, Ms. Hopkins."

The woman clomped off. Or, up, was more accurate. Her 'office' was in the upper part of the house-turned-library. She strongly suspected the office was actually her bedroom and she just went there to nap most of the day.

"Coast clear?"

"Just about..." she heard the creaky door slam. "Yep. Come on out."

"You know you didn't have to kick me, Gabby. Oh wait I mean Missss Parker."

"Melody you were starting to shake the table giggling. You're terrible at being sneaky."

Melody rubbed her knee. "I don't deserve this type of abuse. Especially when I've come all this way to help you!" Her green hair was staticky.

"Help me? Dude, you spent all afternoon trying to get me to catch almonds in my mouth and drawing frowny faces on my homework. Which I don't appreciate by the way- can you just make an X? I don't need a paper full of tiny, crying heads to make me understand I don't understand the homework."

"Um it's called multitasking, Gabby. I was correcting your homework and practicing speed drawing for art class. What about you?" Melody picked up a stack of books and set them next to a teetering pile. "How many bar codes have you traded out?" She picked at a faded one. "12 in four hours?"

Gabby groaned and dropped her face into an open book.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to get absorbed inside." She explained through squished cheeks. "Then I'll never have to come back here again. I'll just get to adventure in some fantasy land."

"Did you read it first because I doubt that's what you've found. I don't think you've managed to find anything worth reading yet. Really want to risk getting trapped in there and learn how fast farm tools rust in different areas of the country for the rest of your life?" Gabby sat up again in horror and shoved the book away. "But seriously, how much longer do you have? Everyone else finished their volunteer work last month."

"My sentence goes right up to Christmas eve."

Melody patted her hand. "Sucks."

"Only because that lunatic," she jabbed her finger towards the second story. "Hates me. What was she saying, anyway?"