HE read the book when she held it up and frowned a little. not because the book didn’t sound interesting, but just because the book made her sad so there had to be something going on there. honestly seeing her cry was sadder than feeling sad yourself. though he really wasn’t sure if that made sense or not.
his mouth formed an “o” when she explained a bit. he still wondered why it was so specifically relatable, but he told himself she probably didn’t want to talk about it since it sounded so personal. so instead he smiled and nodded at her question. “ yep! loved the ending just like you said! ”
Elle didn’t consider herself to be a private person, but unless people explicitly asked, she didn’t vocalize her problems or past.It just wasn’t in her nature.
“Glad you did!” she responded, genuine happiness causing her voice to sound more normal and her eyes to dry slightly. “Tell me honestly; did you drop it in shock? I did when I found out about her sister.”
her idea does, indeed, prove to be effective. he follows along silently, once more going over what exactly he’s in the mood for—- maybe some kind of sandwich… or an omelette… her voice pulls him out of his food trance, where he giggles and shakes his head, “oh, that’s alright. i’m poncho,” he introduces himself and gives her hand a gentle shake. “it’s very nice to meet you, elle.”
“Same to you, Poncho,” she smiled before her curiosity got the better of her as they sat down. “Is that a nickname? Or do you just have very creative parents?” She wondered, and part of her hoped, that he had a “difficult to pronounce” name so he went by something easier, like she did. But that was a long shot, and she knew it.
“Hey!” Lily smiled, she had been looking for ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’, but it was okay that the other didn’t notice. “It’s fine, really, What are you reading?”
Elle smiled as she recognized the woman. Lily, the mayor’s daughter. She had come in a few times before. Elle lifted her book so Lily could read it. “This is like the fourth time this year I’ve reread ‘Pride and Prejudice,’ but I don’t care,” she giggled.
“excuse me miss, i believe you dropped something.” finally, he caught up with her. milo had been following the blonde woman for almost ten minutes, twisting and turning through the streets of apple peak. a book had fallen from her bag as she walked out of the tea kettle, and milo having been behind her at the time felt it was his duty to return it. that task was harder said than done, however, because good jesus was she quick. milo had never been the best at physical activity, especially cardio, so the ten minute chase had him quite out of breath by the time he was able to reach the woman and tap her on the shoulder.
he held the book out, panting heavily, “you dropped it back at the tea kettle. i know if i dropped a book i’d want it returned, so here you go.”
Elle was always walking fast between her destinations. Ever since she got her store, she felt she had a responsibility to make sure everything was going well. That’s why she only took hour lunches, like her employees; just because she owned the place didn’t give her the right to act like their queen.
She heard the words “excuse me” and turned around, practically trained by working to respond quickly to that phrase. Her eyes widened as she saw the man holding out her copy of “Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock.” She gasped and took it from him, holding it close to her heart. “Thank you so much!” she responded, genuine appreciation evident. “I would’ve been crushed when I got back to work without it.”
She then noticed how heavily he was panting and reached into her purse for her light blue water bottle; it was cold since she just put ice in it in the Tea Kettle. “Here, it’s the least I can do,” she offered, holding out the water bottle to him.
Dorothy wasn’t a big reader and as a result wasn’t a big library go-er either. Still, it probably should’ve occurred to her that bringing Toto was a bad idea. She walked into the shop, Toto running in front on his leash. When the owner greeted her Dorothy smiled and replied with a cheery “Hello.” before Toto spotted Elle’s white cat and begun a chorus of loud high-pitched barks. “Oh God.” Dorothy scooped up the little dog in her arms. “Toto! Quiet, please.” She scolded, her cheeks flushing red, she turned to Elle, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have brought him in. I just wanted to look around.”
Elle giggled a little before picking up Marshmellow and petting him, trying to soothe his hisses. “It’s completely fine,” she assured the brunette. “As long as they don’t hurt anyone, books or people, all animals are welcome here.” Once Marshmellow seemed appeased, she put him back down on the windowsill. “Looking around for anything in particular?”
MUCH to a lot of people’s surprise ( at least as far as he always assumed ), jay loved reading. he grew up living for the next adventure and the next story and as soon as he learned all he had to do was rely on a bunch of pages, he was addicted to finishing one after another. for a long time he read only when no one else was around, but eventually he was just reading openly. sometimes he risks tea stains and reads at work. as a whole this sort of filled the hope that one day he’d be able to make something out of it at a university. but for the time being, he was just reading and saving money when he wasn’t buying books.
so he became something of a regular at the book store. more than enough of one for the cat and him to develop a mutually respectful dislike. when he entered the shop he was greeted with the usual hiss, but elle’s voice was sad. his eyebrows knit together in a mix of confusion and concern. “ what’s wrong elle? ” he eye-ed the book near her. “ readin’ something sad? ” though part of him had a feeling it was more than that.
She chuckled, wiping her eyes again with the back of her hand. She carefully placed a bookmark in between the pages and closed the book, not wanting to cause damage to it with her tears. She held it up so Jay could read the title “Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock” for himself.
“This is the first book that’s made me literally cry in a while,” she admitted before sniffling. “It’s so sad, but incredibly relatable. Well, at least to me.” She chuckled once more before asking “So, you finish my last recommendation already?”
it’s so loud in granny’s, and it’s a good thing; nobody will be able to hear the loudness of his poor, poor, hungry tummy. he’s here alone, but that doesn’t bother him; in fact, being alone is, admittedly, quite nice. his hands are folded behind his back, the smell of food insanely appetizing and he simply can’t wait! he’s going over the menu in his head when the blonde in front of him turns to face him, his brown eyes flicking over. he smiles, before speaking, “of course!” he hums. “that wouldn’t bother me at all. um, you can speak to me if—- if you would want to,” he spares her from another ‘of course’ and settles for a smile. “i wouldn’t mind.”
Elle smiled and nodded before raising her hand, trying to politely get the hostess’ attention. The waitress noticed and started leading them to the nearest open table. Elle then turned her head to face her new companion. “I completely forgot my manners, I’m sorry, I’m Elle,” she introduced, holding out her hand.
Elle was at the climax of a new book. Well, it was new to her, but it was from twenty eleven. It was a beautiful book, and Elle was thinking about how it seemed to be a modern Catcher in the Rye.
She was at the climax, and the feelings of hopelessness and self-loathing in Leonard Peacock’s dialogue was causing her to cry. She sniffled before she heard the bell to the door ring and she quickly wiped her eyes, recognizing one of her regular customers. “Oh, hey Jay.”
Of course Elle had decided to eat at Granny’s today, at peak business hours. The line was almost out the door and all the tables were full. She was near the front, but she knew they would be looking for bigger parties, rather than a woman alone. Elle sighed before she had an idea. She turned to speak to the red haired man behind her. “Excuse me, hi, I’m so sorry to bother you, but I thought maybe if we said we were a party of two, they’d seat us faster? I won’t talk with you at all if you’d prefer, I just only have an hour for lunch.”
Elle had been so into her book that she had neglected to hear the bell to the door ring at Turn the Page. She only realized someone was inside when she heard a book close. She placed her bookmark in between the pages before walking over to where she heard the noise. “Hi!” she greeted. “So sorry I missed you when you walked in, is there anything I can help you with?”
Losing muse for Merida was sad, but I’m SUPER excited to bring you guys my Elle! TW death, bullying, depression
Elle’s parents brought her and her baby sister to america when Elle was seven. Growing up in the american school system quickly taught her that kids did NOT like things they couldn’t pronounce, so Eun-Jeong became Elle.
She doesn’t mind though, she likes both of her names
Elle was NOT a popular child. She was bullied mercilessly for her dialect before she worked on americanizing her speech. Not only did this lead to her talking less, it caused her to close herself off from everyone for a long time. She felt like she wasn’t worthy of love, and closing herself off would be best for everyone around her. It was only over when she and her sister had a few heart-to-hearts that Elle became more sure of herself.
When Elle was eighteen, her parents died in a plane crash on their way back from their second honeymoon. She was immediately thrust into responsibilities she was unprepared for, aka helping her sister finish school.
For that reason, she put her own education on hold and started working two jobs to support her and her sister. She didn’t get a full nights sleep until her sister graduated high school.
Once she had enough money saved, she finally opened her own book store, like she always wanted. “Turn the page: Our gates are always open”
now onto more fun facts and less clunky exposition XD
(credit to Holly for the idea) Elle has a fat grumpy white cat named Marshmallow, who she brings to work every day. Customers are encouraged to hold him if they need a cute animal to make them feel better. At first he hates it, but most of the time, if you're a regular customer, he warms up to you. (ha ha ha pun)
Elle is the biggest lipstick lesbian ever. She’s always wearing a dress and high heels, and she’s always experimenting with eyeshadow colors.
Summer is her favorite season because people don’t look at her funny for wearing pretty sundresses in the snow, which she does. She’s never bothered by cold for some reason.
I’ll probably be jumping into peoples IMs to plot soon, but I have to post Randalls intro as well. lol Feel free to hmu if I dont get to you fast enough! :P
