People gawked at Natalia as she entered the bookshop, as though people like her simply couldn’t belong in such a space. She didn’t blame them, however, she didn’t belong. Though, she chalked that up to the fact that she wasn’t exactly a fan of the stuffy atmosphere. The only reason she was there was for Leif.
She waited until it was close to the end of his shift to meet him. The faerie stood just inside of the door, holding a small picnic basket filled with treats. It was something her mother did when she was younger, something she liked to do every now and again. Once her sight set on him, her smile practically glowed. Had she ever gotten the chance to have children, she would have wanted them to be like him, she was sure of it. It might have seemed odd to most people that she was meeting him. In truth, Natalia was painfully lonely. She didn’t have many friends, if any at all. She needed someone to stand in for her lack of family and connections. “Hey there, squirt,” she said, a playful tone dripping from her words. “I hope the long, exciting day of books didn’t tire you out too much.”