Sarah was finishing up her rounds when she heard the bell over the door ring. She turned around to see a man, mid-thirties or so, walk into the store and start perusing the books on the front display.
“Anything I can help you find?” she asked. Her voice carrying over the bookshelf she was peeking through.
“Is this place run by ghosts?” he asked, followed by a chuckle. “At least the spirits here seem to be helpful.”
Sarah walked out from behind the bookcase with a smirk on her face and her hands on her hips.
“We don’t get much humor in here these days,” she said. “I’m Sarah.” She stuck out her hand to shake his. “This little nook of a bookstore is mine. Is there anything in particular you’re looking for?”
“It’s nice to know I wasn’t hearing voices, or being haunted. I’m here to find something for my niece. It’s her birthday tomorrow and all I know about her is that she likes to read.” He leaned up against a shelf. Sarah noticed it was the mystery section.
“How old is she? You’re leaning up against a nice selection of mystery novels.” She took a few steps backward as to lead him away from the bookshelf. The last thing she needed before the end of the day was a shelf tipping over.
“She’s in the sixth grade? Or she will be? I can’t remember. She reads way above her grade level, that I do know. She was borrowing books from her mother’s collection when she was still in elementary.”
“Sounds familiar. I was like that growing up. Which probably explains why I chose a life where I could be surrounded by books all the time. Let me think.”
Sarah walked up and down the aisles. She wasn’t sure what she was looking for but felt certain she’d know when she saw it. Growing up she couldn’t stop reading. Her favorite was reading on her grandparent's porch, which her family would visit every Sunday for dinner. Her grandparent’s had a wrap-around porch with a swing towards the back of the house on the right side. After dinner she’d always bring a book out there and read while listening to the creaking of the swing as she swung slowly forward and backward. Sometimes her grandmother would even join her, the chair could easily fit two, and read over her shoulder. If there was ever a funny line they’d laugh at it together, even creating inside jokes with one another that the rest of the family couldn’t decipher.
“Does your niece read with anyone?” asked Sarah. “And, pardon but, I don’t know your name. I usually only see my regulars here and so talking to someone in my store without a name just doesn’t feel right.”
“I can assure you I have a name,” he replied, followed by a sly smile.
“I’m glad to hear that. Care to share it with me?”
“It’s Dave. But my niece calls me…”
“She calls you what?”
“I don’t know if I should say.”
“Well now I need to know.”
“Uncle Doody.” He let out a defeated sigh.
Sarah raised her eyebrows and nodded, before letting out a hearty laugh.
“Sorry,” she said. “I don’t mean to laugh. It’s just I wasn’t expecting that. What’s the story behind that? I’m hoping it’s a good one.”
“It’s been a running joke for years. Back when she was a kid she had a hard time pronouncing my name, and,” he paused for a moment to scratch the back of his head, perhaps to stall, “I suggested she call me Doody until she could pronounce it. It’s one of my life’s biggest regrets.”
“Oh I’m sure it is. You’re a cheeky one,” she said. “Well, luckily for you I can pronounce your real name. So, Dave,” she picked a book off the shelf and showed it to him, “how about this one?”
“What’s it about?”
“A princess, a castle, a dragon. The knight comes running in, but… do you mind spoilers?”
“I won’t be reading it if that’s what you’re asking.”
“The knight comes to her rescue but gets cornered by the dragon. It’s then up to the princess to save the knight.”
“And that takes up all those pages?”
Sarah looked to the book in her hand. The novel was almost 500 pages long.
“It’s a big dragon,” she said. A smile stretched across her face.
“I suppose that makes sense. I’ll take it.” He pulled out his wallet and walked over to the register. “You’ve got some business cards out. They look nice too.” He picked one up. “Oh, my apologies. It says here you close at six. I didn’t realize that when I walked through the door. You were probably getting ready to shut the place down for the night.”
“I was,” replied Sarah. She walked behind the counter and scanned the book, “but it’s okay. Glad to help a customer find a gift for someone close. I really hope your niece enjoys it. I know I did when I was her age.”
He looked down at the screen where he was to swipe his card.
“Not too expensive either,” he said. “Leaves me enough money to grab a meal after this.”
Sarah noticed his face turn bright red after he mentioned the meal.
“Care to join me?” he asked.
Sarah smiled and placed the book into a bag.
“Only if you don’t mind me talking about all my favorite books throughout dinner.”
“I’d be delighted to hear about them all. Wait, how many are there?”
“Over fifty.”
“I guess we’ll start with appetizers then.”
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