Love Letters
Joel Murray
I
found her walking through the library. Her arms
were folded around a large book as she strolled up and
down the stacks of dust and paper. She turned the
corner and her skirt bounced giving a quick glimpse of
the back of a knee. Her socks were folded down. I
pulled a volume off the shelf and looked over empty
words at her form. Dark hair hung softly onto light
shoulders exposed by a loose sweater. She absently
tugged the collar and removed another book. I
followed her where she knelt to look at the cover of a
removed spine. I could see her long lashes downcast
as she reorganized a strand of hair behind her ear.
The book I opened crackled with age. She looked up
quickly. She did not see me over the books. She
retreated, and I placed the letter into the pages
before returning the tome to the shelf. A puff of
dust and footsteps pounding the other way.
First published: February 2000
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