Of All the Antique Shops in All the Towns All Over the World, She Walks into Mine
Or: What to Expect from Accidental Hero
My girlfriend wasn’t serious. We broke up a few months ago, and now I have daydreams. They are fanciful and elaborate, mostly fixating on a girl I barely know, named Verity.
Perhaps mystery is the key to Verity’s allure. I know nothing about her, she hasn’t dated anybody at school and doesn’t join in with any groups. She’s never been seen at a party and I doubted she knew my name.
Until today, when our general studies master put us into pairs for a project, and assigned me to work with Verity.
I was speechless. Verity maintained her usual demeanor: a chilly look for me and a half smile for our teacher. She resumed taking notes from the whiteboard. Patrick, my tennis partner and close friend (for lack of a better term), caught my eye to make a lewd gesture that sparked a snicker from the class. Embarrassed by his juvenile behavior, I quickly looked away.
Verity ignored the undercurrent and maintained a cool poise. When the bell rang for end of class, she gathered her books and moved alongside my desk.
“If you think it is pointless working on a project when we’ve already sat our exams, I understand,” she spoke without preamble.
I gawped at her lovely face, framed by coppery hair. “No, I think it could be fun.”
“I don’t know about fun,” she interrupted, “I put full effort into everything I do.”
“No — er yes!” I blustered like an idiot under the weight of her ice-chip stare.
“Good. Let’s make a start tomorrow. Are you free at eleven o’clock?”
I nodded.
“The antique shop on Mill Street,” she said. “Meet me inside.”
It might be a rocky start, but this partnership is set to transform Ben and Verity’s lives.
My serialized novella, Accidental Hero, weaves two captivating threads. In the present, easy-going Ben must up his game and leave his carefree crew if he wants to connect with Verity. Through their research, heartbreaking details of World War I emerge, alongside a poignant love story that blossoms over time.
Like Many Good Mysteries, It Began in an Antique Shop
The floorboard creaked as I stepped further into the antique store. Why did Verity tell me to meet her here? The smell was old. Musty, laced with incense. Behind me, air swooshed with movement. My erotic mind took over.
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I love those two!🙂