Books Have Mouths

[Adam Castle]

Adam, being an occasionally exceptional teacher, sent his students to the library once in a while to look at stuff for whatever their work was. Some came back and told him there was nothing in the library, then handed him ten perfectly plagiarized pages of someone's work, identical errors and all. He gave them identical zeroes.

It never did occur to him that they were telling the truth, so, when to his surprise, the only book in the library was an old, tattered and mostly useless edition of networking tips wedged into the fiction section, he'd decided that their zeroes would remain for not telling him sooner.

Thumbing through the pages produced dust in his nostrils and he closed the book a bit too hard, effectively choking him and triggering someone's asthma in the next aisle. He'd apologize later, but for now, signing it out of the library and tossing it into the trash seemed brilliant if possible. He stretched across to shove it back into place.  

Or he would have, had it not fell from his arms, bounced off the rungs of the ladder, and landed with a thud in someone's head, triggering a chain reaction of books colliding with the floor, garnering looks from every corner.

At the bottom, he could see the book had fallen apart.

Oops.

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina enjoyed hanging out in the library. It was her favorite place inside the school to be. She’d never owned many books growing up, because money was saved for rent, food, and Aikido, among other things, so she’d spent time in the library whenever she’d wanted to read. There was a distinct lack of Spanish books in Bellefonte, but she supposed that was a good thing in a way, as it forced her to learn English all the quicker. Besides, being in a library still reminded her a little bit of home, even if this place was vastly different from what she was used to.


    As she was walking through the fiction section, looking for something to keep her entertained over the summer, a book fell on her head and she swore loudly enough for most of the library to hear. Selina then rubbed her head and glared up at the clumsy idiot who’d dropped a book on top of her and had made such a mess, “Really? How stupid do you have to be to-” she paused as she realized the man she was looking at was a teacher. Shit. Still though. He’d dropped a damn book on her head, how forgiving could he expect her to be?


Adam Castle

[Adam Castle]

Adam slid down the ladder and looked around the room before picking up the destroyed book and shoving it into his shirt before turning around the the unfortunate victim of his clumsiness.

"You have to be a specific level of stupid. Rarely, though, is that level of stupidity attained by others." He said, taking his glasses off and wiping them with a handkerchief before putting them in his top pocket and extending a hand to her in greeting.

"Terribly sorry for that little mishap. You see, I only hit on students, not hit them. Any injuries sustained will be taken care of by me." He held out a card for her to have.

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina stared at him in a state of shock for a few seconds before gingerly taking his hand in hers and shaking it. She almost didn’t register the second half of what he’d said, but when she did, she quickly drew her hand back and glared at him, “If you hit on me, you’ll be paying for your own injuries-” she started before gritting her teeth and stopping herself from putting herself in a vulnerable position. She took a calming breath and her gaze turned cold, “What I meant was, that I’ll report your conduct to the school administration,” she continued as if that was her intent all along.


    Damn, she really had to work on not immediately resorting to violence. She ignored the card he held out to her, as she wasn’t even hurt that badly and sighed. The teachers here… were they all just the rejects from other universities or what?

[Adam Castle]

She was a pretty one, but Adam wasn't on the prowl right now. Sadly, it appeared that his body only knew how to seduce.  It was working on and off for him and he wondered if he was developing a second ability.

She was also quite feisty, and he wondered if she was the bearer of a Spanish temper. She had the look about her.  He tossed the card over his shoulder and received a yelp in return. Oooh, papercut.

"Sincerest apologies. I meant no harm with my words, which is exactly what they are, words. Let me kiss your hand as a form of apology, which is a custom I picked up somewhere, but I don't recall where." He said, bowing low.

 He buried his face in a book as the librarian walked by, asking where the culprit of the disturbance was, and pointed in the opposite direction, winking at the girl from behind the book.  "Seriously though, I'm not a bad guy. It just looks that way. What's your name, accessory to noise?"

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina found herself simultaneously amazed and stupefied. How on earth had he ever gotten hired? Did this school have any standards whatsoever or did they just pick up willing people off the street? “No need,” she responded coldly at his offer to kiss her hand. Seriously, was he just not picking up on her responses or what? “And my guess is you picked up this ‘custom’ from some shitty movie that you took way too seriously.”


    Selina sighed and said nothing as the teacher blatantly lied about his actions. After the librarian passed, Selina studied him and shook her head, “I’m Selina Taylor. And sorry, but I can’t seem to recall your name either at the moment, avoider of responsibility.” She didn’t really keep track of the teachers she didn’t interact with, but some still seemed to expect her to recognize them on sight. Their problem, not hers.

[Adam Castle]

He thought about it for a second. "Yes, that may be the case. Or I could just be, for lack of a better term, a dick."

He smacked his forehead. "Right. Adam Castle. I teach communications. And I don't recall seeing you in any of my classes before." Or the classes he'd been to anyway. He should probably work on his truancy.

Adam felt as if he was being judged. Normally, people judged him about his competency as a member of staff, and more importantly, an educator.

"If you're questioning why I teach here, the answer is that it's my alma mater and there was pretty much no one else available to do the job. If it's any consolation, I don't do much teaching." He chuckled lightly and sighed. "Not that I don't teach. It's just I got a robot to do it for me. Because why settle for less than the best in technology, right?" He smiled nervously.

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina nodded, “I think that describes you incredibly well, actually,” she agreed with a wry smile. At least he was honest about being a dick? She felt like that was something positive in a way… Actually she really had no idea what to think and it was starting to bother her.


    Selina nodded once more, “That’s right, because I haven’t taken them,” she replied as she studied him in interest.


    Selina laughed at his explanation, “Why so defensive? I didn’t say a word,” she teased as she shook her head. Her expression turned semi-serious as she looked him over, “You really are… just… how have you held onto your job for so long? I mean, I understand a shortage but… surely there’s some sort of limit?” she asked to herself as much as to him. “Do you sexually harass your students on a regular basis, or were you joking?” she wondered as she tried to figure how on earth this man was a teacher.

[Adam Castle]

He gave her a small grin. "Doesn't it? I mean, it sucks, but, it belongs, in a way." He shook his head.

He quirked an eyebrow. "I presume you're not the technical type then. Honestly, I don't blame you. A bit complicated. I would have stated it was probably a requirement in most curriculums, but this isn't a normal school."

He laughed sheepishly. "Indeed, you didn't. It's just a regularly asked question for some reason." He should probably start getting a better image of himself around campus. What if Farah heard?

"Well, yes, there might be. But as you can see, the school is in need of a serious shakedown, and until that time comes, well, you are all stuck with me. And, goodness, no, I'm a respectable-ish member of staff. I would do no such thing."

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina let out a laugh at his agreement. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t quite manage to hate this guy. “Well, at least you’re aware of it. That’s something, I suppose,” she teased with a grin of her own.


    Selina shrugged, “I’m only a freshman, and I took as few hours as I could manage for the first two semesters, so it’s quite likely that I’ll have you in the future.” She’d wanted to get most of her prerequisites out of the way, but she also wasn’t going to drive herself crazy trying to adjust to a new country, college life, as well as a surplus of college courses in her very first year. Selina wasn’t planning on burning herself out before she’d even had a chance to get acclimated to Bellefonte.


    Selina smiled, “I can’t imagine why,” she teased. She almost felt bad about being so openly critical, but part of her was still on edge about the whole ‘hitting on students’ thing.


    Selina eyed him with open suspicion at his last statement, but shrugged. So long as he didn’t try anything with her, he wouldn’t have to worry. Selina felt a vague ache at the place where the book had hit her head and studied him in renewed interest, “By the way, what was it that you were trying to do with that book you dropped on my head?”

[Adam Castle]

"Ooh, a college freshman. Neat-o. Well, I'm always happy to see a new face, so it'll be a blast." He didn't know how much longer he'd be there as a teacher, but it would probably be when they found someone else to teach. The teaching field was rather competitive these days.

"Neither can I."

He patted the area where the book had been shoved into his shirt, and felt more dust come out. "Research. I was looking for a book on how to dispose of a dead body, just for the fun of it and came across this old thing. Apparently, books have ears and it didn't take a liking to my touch so it jumped out and fell on someone who thought it would be saved by. Troublesome things, books are. And what business did you have here?"

[Selina Taylor]

    “Well, not sure how much we’ll actually see each other if what you said is true, but I’m sure the robot will do an excellent job,” she offered with a smile.


    Selina grinned at his question and shook her head, “Disposing of a dead body, actually. Just thought the library would be a perfect place for hiding irrelevant deadweight,” she added with a laugh. “I’m also looking for something to read over the summer, or at least keep me entertained for a while,” she answered with a shrug.


    “Got any suggestions that aren’t likely to jump on my head when you approach?” she asked with a wry grin. He was an interesting sort that was for sure. Almost against her better judgment she found herself starting to like him. Perhaps it was because he was so… un-teacher like that she was feeling more at ease around him than around most others she’d met. She could almost pretend he was a strange student if she tried hard enough.

[Adam Castle]

He nodded, proud that TAYCE was making a good impression. "Of course he does. He knows everything I know, and a bit more. In hindsight, that was a pretty smart move. Yay me." He pat himself on the back for emphasis. It wasn't often you would see laziness rewarded.

"We could be partners then. Just, you know, don't get rid of me." He smiled nervously. He wasn't sure whether to take it as a joke, because he wouldn't put murder or manslaughter past any of the mutants there.

"Hmm...summer reading...well, I'd say that it would be up to your taste, but the Brotherhood of Travelling Shorts is a good read. Maybe Hairy Porter, but that's magic." He tapped the bridge of his glasses. "There's also some comics. I often tend to wonder if they're written by mutants."

[Selina Taylor]

    Selina chuckled, “You’re a true innovator, you are,” she teased. “You seem like you’d probably get along with a guy I know. Karsen’s pretty creative with machinery as well,” she added with a smirk. That toy he’d made had become a favorite of hers recently. She had no idea if these two were acquainted or not, but it seemed like they both worked in the same type of mechanics.


    Selina grinned at him, though perhaps it was more of a baring of teeth. He could probably interpret it either way, “So long as you keep your hands to yourself, I don’t think we’ll have a problem,” she agreed. She was still wary about that whole 'hitting on students' thing he’d brought up.


    Selina smiled, “I’ve heard some good things about the Brotherhood of Travelling Shorts, though they also say it’s bro-lit and not exactly something us women would appreciate. Too silly and overly dramatic, or something,” she offered. “Not real literature like Tea Club. 'First rule: Talk about the Tea Club.' Such a great line. It’s one of those rare and truly enlightening novels about the human condition.”