Micro Fiction Monday: Weakness

“Need any help?”

I closed the book as I looked up, careful to keep my finger between the pages. “No, thanks, I’m good!”

The employee looked at me warily. “Okay. Let me know if you do.”

I nodded and smiled, turning back to the shelf as though I was still contemplating my purchase. “Absolutely!”

He stuck around a little longer this time. I ran my fingers across the spines, even pulled out another book and compared it to the one I had. As soon as he was out of sight, I shoved it back into place and opened the one I had spent the last hour and a half reading.

I don’t normally do this, I swear. But the library waiting list was like a mile long, and payday wasn’t for another week...I had every intention to buy the book. Just, y’know. After I had spent numerous hours reading it in the store.

Pretending not to read, though, is really, really hard when it’s a very, very good book. I tried to move around inconspicuously, but it was never long before an employee turned up, eager to make a sale. The last one—a boy with shaggy hair and a silver earring his left ear—had already approached me three times. 

“Hey.”

Make that four. I flushed and slammed the book shut again. “Sorry, I was just—“

The employee shook his head and thrust a slip of paper at me. I blinked. It was a receipt.

“Take this with the book into the coffee shop,” he said. “Quick. Before my manager sees.”

I took it slowly. “Wow. Um. Thanks.”

He smiled. “Just let me know what you think when you’re done. I’ve been wanting to read that all week.”

He walked away, leaving me stunned in the mystery section.