Page 4 of Love in the Stacks
Huh. I guess she does know my name.
“Team up with Adam? Herb—” Nicole starts, but he puts up his hand to stop her.
“You’ll need to coordinate with the subject librarians, of course, but you and Adam will run point. Come see me in my office in about an hour,” he says. “We’ll talk more about it then.”
He wraps up the meeting, and as everyone files out, he claps me on the shoulder and says, “Walk with me to my office.”
I follow him down the hall and as we step into his office, he closes the door. “Have a seat.” He gestures to me with a smile. I do. He sits across the small, round table from me. “I’m sure you have questions about me asking Nicole to work with you on her graphic novel project.”
“Well, just one,” I replied. “Why?”
Herb grins. “Not something you’re enthused about, huh?” Enthused is maybe not the word I’d use, no. Terrified maybe. Overwhelmed. Nervous. But also … excited?
“Well, it’s not that. I just don’t really know anything about graphic novels,” is what I say out loud.
“Maybe not, but you do know … campus expectations. Rules. Even though you’ve only been here a couple of years, you understand the more … political dynamics of Harkness and how to get things done delicately.”
“I guess that’s true.” I shrug, thinking of a year ago when I created a communication plan around the library dropping all print journal subscriptions in lieu of electronic only. A lot of faculty members had a lot of strong opinions, but the bottom line was that the print journal issues didn’t get used and took up space. We just didn’t need them anymore. “Is Nicole’s project one that needs a delicate touch?”
He sighs. “I hope not, but I suspect so. I’m concerned about a growing … inclination of college leadership to micromanage our collections. The provost asked me recently for a title list of all the new books we added to the collection so far this year. I toldhim it would take me time to pull that together and he wasn’t in a rush, but I don’t know.”
“Micromanage?” I ask. “Do you mean like censoring? Like if there was something on the list he didn’t like, he’d tell us to get rid of it?”
Herb looks uncomfortable. “I just don’t know. There’s been nothing overt, it’s just a gut feeling I have. I don’t want to set Nicole’s project up for failure, especially because graphic novels will be more difficult to defend from an academic necessity standpoint.”
“So, you want me to … what?”
“Just keep her reined in. Make sure that the titles she has in mind are ones we could defend to the provost, if need be. Ones that can be explicitly tied to the curriculum.”
“Like behind her back?” I shift in my seat.
“No. Oh, no. I’ll give her the same explanation I’m giving you. I’ll let her know that you’re good with rules and keeping things above board, for lack of a better term, and that’s why I want you involved.”
“Okay,” I agree, my arms folded across my chest.
“We just need to color inside the lines here. Try not to push the envelope…” When Herb starts talking in clichés, I know the meeting is over. I stand to leave.
I close myself back in my office and pull up the cataloging system on my computer screen, intending to make some progress on a batch of e-books we just purchased. Of course, that’s a bit ambitious given the events of the last hour and soon I’m totally up in my own head.
Not only will I now be working closely with Nicole on a project that she’s passionate about and that I know nothing about, but I’malso supposed to play the role of what, the enforcer? I can’t see how she won’t resent me for it, and resentment is the last thing I want from her. This should be my chance to get to know her, to let her get to know me.
Finally. I chuckle to myself as I think,She doesn’t know me from Adam. Heh. But now she could. I reach up and rub the back of my neck as I think about that possibility. I’ll be honest, I know I don’t make the best first impression. I come across as quiet and serious, probably nerdy. Usually, I’m totally content being who I am. I own my stoic personality, my quirky interests, and my less-than-hip wardrobe. My small inner circle of family and friends don’t mind either, but it’s been a while since I’ve even wanted anyone new to join that circle. So, the thought of opening myself up, especially to someone like Nicole, who might very well be the coolest woman on the planet as far as I’m concerned, is really freaking scary.
Chapter three
Nicole
Ireturn to my office after meeting with Herb. I’m feeling … slightly discouraged. While technically I got the green light for my project, or at least to officially propose my project, Herb’s concerns around it make me uneasy. It feels like he assigned Adam to babysit me. His explanation about college leadership breathing down our necks doesn’t make me feel better. Herb doesn’t trust me to do this project in a responsible way.
And I hardly know Adam. We’ve spoken maybe a handful of times. He’s usually so quiet and serious. Given our profession, I assume he’s also a bit nerdy, which is certainly not a negative. It’s not like I’m the coolest woman on the planet. Frankly, I’ve never given Adam much thought until now. We’ve rarely interacted in the year I’ve been working here. I’m just not sure how well we’llwork together and that makes me anxious. Not that I need a specific reason to be anxious. It’s pretty much my default setting.
I pull out my phone to text my sisters in our group chat.
Nicole:
Pitched the graphic novel idea, and Herb gave the okay, but assigned me a babysitter [eye roll emoji]
Olivia:
