Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
AUDREY
Audrey ran up to her bedroom and promptly screamed into a pillow. There was no way she said that to Brianna. But she had, and now, she had to live with it.
Oh, God, Brianna probably never wanted to see her again.
This was a disastrous idea, and they barely even talked about anything other than cars during the lesson.
Audrey was glad to know her hours of watching driving lessons on YouTube weren’t for nothing, but it wasn’t exactly the opportunity to get to know Brianna better that she had hoped for.
The look on Brianna’s face earlier…Audrey couldn’t tell if it was the blank face of shock or terror, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to find out.
Would Brianna tell Nathan what had happened?
What was there even to tell, really? The more she thought about it, the more she realized it would all be fine. She had said something slightly unhinged, but it was accidental, and if one really thought about it, it was a compliment. Who wouldn’t want to be praised for doing a good job?
Audrey could not think of the word praise and Brianna in one sentence together.
It was validating. That was the right, appropriate word.
Validation.
No longer screaming, Audrey sat up in her bed with a newfound resolve.
It was fine if the driving lessons didn’t continue.
She had tried something new; that in and of itself should be a win.
She hadn’t wanted to admit it, but her family was a little bit correct in their earlier assessment of her habits, or lack thereof.
Slowly coming to peace with the fact that she could never face Brianna again, Audrey turned to her latest read.
That was, until her phone buzzed with a new text.
Brianna
sending this now so I don’t forget… when are you free for the next lesson?
Audrey was resolute not to smile at the message and failed.
I’m pretty flexible. I wfh 9-5, so I can do evenings or weekends
That was probably the worst way to inadvertently say you had no friends, and Audrey prayed Brianna wouldn’t prod her about it.
Cool
I thought about the lesson, and I think I was too unprepared today. I probably should do some more research or watch a few videos before we begin again. Is that okay?
While she didn’t know Brianna well, it seemed Brianna had a habit of over explaining herself.
Even when being perfectly reasonable, Brianna seemed to always provide an explanation.
Audrey remembered this trait from when she’d linger when Nathan and Brianna would work on group projects; Brianna would spend so much time providing explanation and explanation, only for Nathan to agree to whatever she said.
Audrey wanted to say something to show she cared and noticed, but it was hard to do that in such a casual, short conversation.
Of course; it’s more than okay
They’re your lessons. You can control the pace
Oh, God. She needed to ban the word pace from her vocabulary too. It must’ve been all the romance novels she’d been reading, filling her head with innuendos. Audrey tried to quickly shift the conversation to something a normal person would say.
Just let me know when you’re ready to drive again, and I’ll be there
Thank you. It’s much appreciated
Phew. Another disaster averted. Though she didn’t know when it would be, Audrey couldn’t help but look forward to their next lesson now that she had successfully maneuvered herself out of this disastrous first one.
As much as Audrey was curious about how Brianna was doing and whether she could help her with research, it took several days for her to see Brianna again.
Admittedly, it was the weekend, and she had not expected Brianna to be working at the library. Audrey had only meant to go return her book and grab a new one, and if the hot librarian happened to be there, it would only make the trip much more worth it.
It was worth it and then some as Audrey watched Brianna talk to a customer from the second floor reference desk.
She seemed to be in her element, animated and gesturing with her hands.
Audrey watched as Brianna wrote something down on a slip of paper and handed it to the young patron, who waved and walked away.
Surely it was library-related, not a personal note.
Brianna wouldn’t give out her number like that to a library patron.
Deciding she was being far too creepy, Audrey decided to go say hi. As she walked up, Brianna removed her glasses, wiping them with a cloth.
“One moment,” Brianna said and Audrey hummed in agreement.
Brianna smiled when she finally had her glasses on and looked at Audrey. “Oh, hi.”
“Hello. How’s your day going?” Audrey asked, trying to be normal. She really loved how Brianna’s eyes looked in their frames, as if the glasses displayed a perfectly polished piece of art.
“Good. It’s always fun chatting with regulars.”
“I bet. The last one was fairly cute.” Audrey couldn’t help herself, and she mentally kicked herself for saying something so bonkers.
“Yes, as is her son,” Brianna noted calmly, as if it was a perfectly reasonable thing for Audrey to have said. “They’re in my weekly story times, and I couldn’t wait to tell her about a new book that just came in.”
Audrey nodded, trying to regain a sense of normalcy. She decided to pivot to her original purpose for being at the library.
“Speaking of new books, do you have any recommendations? I just returned my last read and need something while I wait for my holds to come in.”
Brianna’s face lit up at the question. She stepped out from behind the information desk and began talking animatedly. “Yes, oh my God, of course I do. What kind of books do you like?”
Audrey couldn’t help smiling as she answered. “Well, I’m pretty open-minded in terms of genre or setting, but I have to admit, I prefer not to read about straight people.”
“Very understandable.” Brianna nodded and started towards the fiction section.
Audrey had to fight the urge to ask whether it was just understandable or relatable, but she decided to stay silent, as Brianna was continuing an excited ramble, pulling out books from every other shelf and adding them to a pile Audrey was carrying.
When the pile had reached seven books, Audrey had to interrupt.
“Thank you. I think these will all be a good start,” she said.
Brianna looked back at the pile and blushed slightly, seeming to realize what she had done. “Sorry. I tend to get carried away when I’m talking about books.”
“That’s okay… It’s nice to see you in your natural element.”
“Thank you,” Brianna said. She turned back to the shelf before pulling out one more short book to add to the pile. “I know you have enough already, but this one is fun. It’s an arranged marriage billionaire romance, and the author is local to Toronto, where the book takes place.”
“Oh, that’s cool,” Audrey responded. She had never heard those words in sequence together, and she wasn’t sure if she’d like it. But if Brianna said it was good, there was little doubt Audrey would check it out.
“I should get back to the desk now,” Brianna said and then promptly left before Audrey could say anything else.
Audrey ended up checking out a few of the books and grabbed lunch on her way home, knowing exactly what she needed to do to see Brianna’s adorable excitement again. It was time to get reading, clearly.