A/N: Okay, so this story came to me the other day. I really want to continue it. Not sure how much I'll put up here but I'm looking for some constructive criticism. It's the first draft, so might be some spelling and grammar mistakes, so don't worry about those. Thanks! Hope you enjoy reading!

The first time that I met Lynn was in the Multicultural Center at school. She smelled of lavender and freshly brewed coffee. I had just taken out a book and settled into one of the oversized chairs next to the large windows that overlooked most of campus. I was a frequenter to this lesser known area of school. It was one of the only places at the University where I could go to get my full dosage of sunshine without feeling the frigid air outside. I had just finished my morning geography class and was killing time before painting started.

Lynn had come in shortly after I had been sitting. She sat not too far from me, and I studied her quietly and discreetly, as I did all newcomers. She wore faded jeans that seemed to hang too low on her boney hips and she wore a loose white blouse. Her bracelets and accessories seemed to make too much noise when she moved, and I wondered how she couldn't feel weighed down with all her bracelets and the large locket around her neck.

She must have caught me staring because suddenly I was gazing into her green eyes and she was staring right back, a slight smirk on her face. It only lasted briefly before she squinted and pursed her lips.

"I've never seen you here before," she said skeptically, as if she had just realized my presence.

I wasn't entirely sure of how I should respond to her statement considering I sat here nearly everyday at this time. Apparently, my silence was enough of an answer for Lynn though, because she just smiled and shrugged before continuing with a small chuckle, "Shows how much I pay attention, right?"

The question was said more as a statement, not to be answered. Not that I would have known what to say to her anyway. She leaned back in her chair a bit, not taking her eyes off me, before reaching for the notebook and pencil that she had set down next to her on the chair.

I attended the University of Minnesota Duluth by default. I like to think that most of the students there did the same. To me, living in a city that's annual high temperature is 45 degrees Fahrenheit, is less than ideal. I went to school with little urgency. It was mostly for me to get away from my mother and for her to make sure that I was staying on track the whole time. The city always seemed too small for me, and the school too big. It didn't fit me right, but I made it work.

Duluth is a small city in northern Minnesota that would basically be like any other small northern town if it wasn't located on Lake Superior and didn't have the lift bridge that every loyal Duluthian takes such pride in. It was filled with small tourist traps and a property crime rate higher than the national average. I never understood the "cool summers" or why anyone would want to live where walking anywhere other than to the lake had to be uphill.

Although, I always seemed to have such disdain for the city that I lived in, I had come to enjoy it in the year and a half that I had lived there. I didn't own a car and had begun to like the small treasures the city had to offer me.

I didn't run into run into Lynn again until nearly two weeks later. It was a dreary January afternoon and I was busy in the library, killing time before my bus came. I was fingering a book when she came up silently behind me.

"You know, if we keep running into each other like this, people may start talking," she whispered in my ear from behind. I jumped slightly before turning to face her. I noticed, now that we were standing, that she was about an inch or two taller than me. She took a step back, silent and seemingly waiting.

"Hello," I said. Not very inventive or anything, but I didn't know what she wanted me to say to her, a complete stranger. Lynn always had something to talk about really, and it was always something worth talking about.

"And she speaks!" Lynn exclaimed, sweeping a stray piece of hair behind her ear. She was wearing a green scarf around her head and her long hair was rolled up in it, bits and pieces trying to escape hung about her face, "I'm Ashlynn," she continued, holding out a hand, "but everyone just calls me Lynn."

I took it apprehensively and replied, "Elle."

After letting go of my hand she turned around and placed one of the books she was holding up on the shelf before turning back around and staring at me expectantly, with a somewhat aggravating smile on her face.

"What are you doing here?" I asked her, slightly unnerved.

"I," she began, "came to return some things I borrowed. What are you doing here?" She asked, leaning in closer to me, curiously. I backed away slightly.

"I am just looking for a book," I told her before turning around and walking down the aisle away from her, continuing my search. Lynn, however, was not yet deterred. She followed quickly, the beads hanging from her knee-high moccasin boots jangling.

"What kind of book are you looking for?" She asked me.

I continued to glance at shelves, letting my eyes scan them and thinking of a way to slip away from her, "I'm just looking," I kept my answer short.

"Well, then, you should read this one," she said. Her stride helped her keep up with my fast pace and she stopped abruptly when I turned around. I looked up at her, exasperated, but she only smiled, holding out a small book in her hand.

Looking down, I saw the black book between her fingers and read, "Jonathan Livingston Seagull?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"It's a good book," she assured, holding it out further until I took it, before crossing her arms and leaning against a shelf. Lynn had wooden peg earrings swirled through each ear and a floral tooled leather bag slung around her torso.

"Well, thanks," I said, gesturing to the book and giving her a smile, hoping she'd find her closure.

Luckily, she took the bait and sighing deeply, stood up straight again.

"Well, I have stuff to do, but you should tell me what you think when you're done," she told me. I looked at her quizzically and she pointed, "reading the book," she explained further.

I only nodded, "Of course," was all I could say before she gave a little wave and smiled.

"See ya," she said and turned to leave.

I looked down at the book she had given me, fingering the white silhouette of a seagull flying on the cover. Glancing at my phone I decided to check the book out only because I had no time to pick another before my bus would arrive.

There was no use denying that Lynn was interesting. And there certainly wasn't any use denying the fact that I was quite intrigued by her. Lynn was different by any person's standards.

She wore clothes she handmade and too much jewelry. She smelled of lavender and loved to talk. Her hair was a deep chocolate and hung to her lower back. When you were close to her, you could see a splatter of light brown freckles over the top of her nose and even in the middle of winter, her sun kissed cheeks were always glowing.

I always found it amazing the way she was always so sure or herself, confidence oozed from her. She seemed to have a long past for her age, a wisdom beyond her years. Her fingers were decorated with pewter and turquoise rings that made noise when she'd toy with the large locket that hung around her neck. She kept a small leather satchel hanging from her belt loop.

She seemed to carry her life with her everywhere she went. Trinkets, beads, patterns, feathers, and scarves; All in all, Lynn was too much. Her appearance was loud and lived-in, her ideas were often outrageous, and for some outlandish reason, I had to know her.