Marta's Stolen Joy

The day started out like any other: I woke up early, got dressed, had breakfast, and headed to work. I was a librarian at the local high school. I checked in at the front desk, made some small talk with my coworkers, and got down to business.

As a librarian, I'm surrounded by books all day. I spend my days shelving books, checking them out to students, and helping students find the perfect book for their projects. The library is a haven of silence and peace and calm. People come here to get away from the hustle and bustle of the school. They come here to escape reality for a little while and dive into another world or learn something new or *whatever.* It's always been a favorite place of mine.

I noticed him right away as soon as he walked into the library. He was your standard tall, dark, and handsome guy---well-built with short brown hair that had just enough length to run your fingers through if you were so inclined. He had striking green eyes that picked up the color of his shirt (some sort of light blue plaid) really well---I could see the bright blue color from the corner of my eye and remembered wondering if he was wearing contacts or dyed his hair. The most interesting thing about him was his clothing; he wore some sort of black leather jacket over a white hoodie that was covered in pockets (I don't know what women see in men who wear pocketed hoodies but, hey...) He wore some dark jeans with boots on his feet and a plain black t-shirt underneath his jacket---there wasn't much going on there fashion wise but it worked for him because he looked good in everything he wore.

He had an air of confidence about him that seemed to radiate off of him when he walked in. My heart skipped a beat as he approached the desk where I was currently sitting at because I knew what was going to happen next: he would flirt with me. It happened every time---just one look from me and they were drawn to me like moths to a flame. And it happened again; he smiled at me and asked if I could help him find something.

"Sure!" I said enthusiastically, getting up so fast my chair fell backwards onto its back legs "Let me see...what are we looking for?"

"Oh," he said softly "I'm not sure..." He looked down at the floor "It's for my...girlfriend." His voice trailed off as though he couldn't bear to finish saying it---the word seemed painful for him to say "She's interested in uh...well...she likes romance novels..." His head hung low as though embarrassed by what he'd just said almost as if it were dirty "And she uh...she has this fantasy about having her boobs tied up." He turned crimson red before continuing "I don't know where she got that idea but she wants me to do it." His cheeks turned redder still "And she says she can't do it herself because she's too afraid of hurting herself." He looked down at his hands on his lap "So I wanted to find something that might teach me how." He looked up at me with those gorgeous green eyes that shone brightly despite his obvious embarrassment "Can you help me?" His face turned even redder once again when he realized what he'd just said; he looked like an adorable tomato standing behind the counter of my desk---all cute and rosy colored.

My heart melted instantly upon hearing his story; how sweet! My boyfriend is definitely getting lucky tonight even though I didn't have any idea what this person was talking about---not only did this handsome stranger want to be tied up by his girlfriend but also help her get tied up? That sounded like fun! So naturally I decided to tease him; you know, make things interesting...

"Well sir," I said coyly "That certainly sounds like an interesting fantasy..." My eyes danced mischievously; they locked on his "You know," I continued "I used to have fantasies like that too..." My voice trailed off casually as though we were having idle chitchat about nothing more than the weather outside