𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐑; ethan landry

chapter eight

CHAPTER EIGHT
"running, screaming, crying and pain."

"WAS THAT ALL you need?" Juliet asked, back pressed against the shelf as her head tilted towards him. Ethan smiled as he looked away from the cover, the book lying flat in his palms.

"Yeah, I think so," he grinned with a nod, ignoring the other students brushing past them in search of their own studies. She nodded as he led them away, weaving through the shelves of the college library and to the front desk. 

"Oh- Ethan, wait!" Juliet whisper-shouted through the silence of the building, pulling on his upper arm as she turned around. He looked down at her with furrowed brows and parted lips of confusion as she quickly walked away from him, eyes searching the aisles she sped past.

"Julie!" He called out quietly, letting out a sigh as she continued to walk away from him. He jogged over to her to catch up, warily eyeing their surroundings as she continued to glance over the hundreds of books. "You can't just run away like that, the killer could be anywhere!"

"Relax, even I'm not scared right now. We're in a library, Ethan, there's a bunch of people around," she mumbled as her eyes narrowed on a certain aisle, grabbing his upper arm once more before pulling him in the direction of it.

"I'm just saying!" He said quickly, muttering apologetically as she dismissed it with a smile and shake of her head.

"Yeah, thanks for the reminder," she teased, a small laugh escaping her lips as they turned down one of the shelves.

"What are you even looking for, anyway?" He asked curiously as his eyes moved from her cheeks to the books lining the walls around them with knitted brows.

"My teacher recommended this book on the study of youth experiences and what not, like how socio-economic status and and social standards affect the children throughout the world and- sorry . . . it's just sociology," Juliet rambled before coming to an abrupt stop, her cheeks flaming as she turned away from the boy to look at a shelf with embarrassment.

Ethan merely smiled, having been at peace when listening to the girl talk about her studies. "It's okay, I think it's cool," he said softly, resting against the shelf with his hip beside her. She spared him a glance while an ever-growing grin spread across her cheeks.

Once the girl finally picked the book a part from the others, the two checked out at the desk before exiting the building with borrowing slips, shoving them into their books before walking down the familiar paths home - to Juliet's home.

The police and forensic team had cleaned up her and the other girl's apartments that morning, clearing away the bloodshed and tragic memories from one and the torment and strewn objects from the other. Both were in states when the teams arrived, but upon Juliet's late arrival, the apartment looked almost better than it originally was.

"Please, make yourself at home," she said with a smile, gesturing to the living room after pushing open the door with her back. The previous night had been filled with running, screaming, crying and pain - there being no time to return back and get a decent sleep. The two had lacked in it, that much being evident by the slight darkness blooming beneath their eyes and the drowsiness hanging between the two in the air.

While Juliet moved towards the kitchen counter, dropping her keys, phone and book onto the surface with a tired sigh, Ethan fell onto the couch with the blanket draped over the end of it. He threw his arms back beneath his head, adjusting himself on the comfortable surface as he let out a relaxing breath, all while blissfully ignoring the amused stare he was receiving from the girl across the room.