26. Calliope
Calliope
I'm only three weeks on the job, and the Library has already been vandalized twice.
What is a librarian who can't protect her library?
It sounds like the start of a lame joke.
Even though it's his day off, Tyler comes in to help.
I look up the best way to scrub spray paint from bricks and head to Dandy Stuff.
I tell Winnie about the issue while trying to hold back tears as I buy the cleaning supplies from her.
Then I run home to get a bucket and my waterproof, winter gloves.
I return to the Library prepared to bundle up and start a process I'm sure will be hours and hours.
But when I get out of my car, I freeze. The graffiti is already halfway scrubbed away from the wall.
Bax, Seth, and Connor are there, cleaning it up, but they aren't the only ones.
Clara, Sunny, Winnie, Rose, the Mayor, and her husband are also scrubbing away.
They're all going hard at it, which explains why the wall is so much closer to being clean than it would have been if I had done it alone.
I hesitate, my eyes wide as I take in the scene before me.
"Why…" Words escape me. They tangle in disbelief.
Connor pauses, his scrubbing forgotten, and walks over to wrap his arms around me.
"Don't you guys all have to be at work and stuff?
" I whisper. This can't seriously be happening.
There's no way they were all here just for me.
"We have employees who can cover for us," Connor says.
I look around at the girls.
"I think we can all say that this is more important.
Our stuff can be put on hold while we help you get rid of this garbage," Rose says.
As the only beta in the group, it means something that she's willing to give up her time for me when these problems aren't hers in the same way.
Her designation is more common, making her position less tenuous.
This vandal and the political beliefs behind them want Alphas to be in charge, betas to be in more menial roles, and omegas to remain in the domestic sphere.
So, for a beta to be here means the world.
For any of them to be here means the world.
Tears prick, and the edges of my vision blur.
"Thank you," I say, wiping my eyes. Why haven't I been able to stop crying since I moved here?
I've been thinking about the answer for a while.
It's not a sadness that prompts the tears.
It's the weight of my past. I've been carrying around an overwhelming tide of low-level distress.
It's settled deep within me and taken root.
After so long merely surviving and holding every stress in my life by myself, my heart is finally learning to breathe again.
My body is expressing its shock in tears, shedding the layers of hurt I didn't know I was still holding onto.
In this moment of vulnerability, I realize that the tears aren't just a sign of grief, but a release of the hurt, a way to welcome the possibilities for my future.
This new chapter is frightening, yet beautiful.
Winnie's scrubbing a particularly profane word which makes me wince since I've realized that she never even swears. "What about your store?" I ask.
"I closed for the next two hours. It's the off-season. I'm sure I'll miss being open for the one guy in town who needs nails."
They're all doing so much for me.
The Mayor steps up. She's a tall, broad alpha of a woman.
About as tall as Seth with golden skin, straight black hair and almond shaped eyes.
She extends her hand, introducing herself.
"I don't think we've officially met. I'm Mayor Hana Liu.
This is my husband, Rob." Rob waves from his place on the wall.
He's a fit beta man, taller than me with dark brown skin and close cropped black hair.
"I know, congratulations on your wedding. I'm Cali."
Mayor Liu smiles and the expression is surprisingly soft for such an imposing woman.
"When Mr. Evergreen called, I was appalled.
I knew I had to come down and help. I hope you're all right.
If you ever need anything you can always call me.
" And she hands me a card. It's thick card stock and shiny.
Clearly expensive. I thank her and pocket it, and she goes back to scrubbing in what I assume is a very expensive suit.
Whether that's all politics or true caring I can't tell, but I'm grateful for the help either way.
Connor kisses the top of my head and returns to his part of the wall.
As I get everything set up to start on my own piece, I look down the line.
These people, this place, make me feel fuller than anything else ever has.
It feels like home after only three weeks.
I will not let some jerk push me back into bad habits or dictate my life.
This is my library, and I will protect it with everything I have.
Later that night, the guys practically beg me to move some stuff into their house.
They don't want me to stay alone, and I don't want to either.
Their presence calms me. They help me load some stuff into Bax's truck and we end up at their house.
I'm tired in my soul from the events of the day.
We snuggle on their alpha-sized sectional couch and watch The Fellowship of the Ring .
Because it's the extended cut, I fall asleep before anyone leaves The Shire.