Chapter 4 — Second Floor Library Girl

The proposal to renovate the reading room was returned in the first activity period of the day, but not because Ms. Hanh did not like it.

“You guys write very well,” she said, placing the stack of papers on the table. "It's so complete that the school board will ask who will do each task. You need to add the name of the person in charge, the time and how to check."

Bao raised his hand. “Is it okay if my name is listed as the person in charge of rice paper?”

“No. Rice paper is not on the list.”

“You are ignoring an important source of energy.”

Minh Chau took the paper and added the column "person in charge". She assigns tasks according to her strengths: Lam is in charge of classification, Phuc checks shelves and electricity, covers communications and finds chairs, Ngoc writes proposals and monitors the budget. When reading the Ngoc part, Ms. Hanh asked:

“Do you have experience managing money?”

Ngoc paused. She thought about the family accounts, the meetings where she heard adults talk about revenue, the expense sheets presented by the secretary. She had seen many numbers, but had never bought a light bulb herself with the group's money.

“I will learn,” she said.

Phuc did not look at her, but the tip of his pen stopped on the paper.

“Then clearly state who you need to check,” Ms. Hanh said. “No one does it alone.”

Ngoc corrected: "Bao manages small expenses; Ms. Hanh approves; Phuc checks supplies."

Bao looked at her. “Do I get to manage the money?”

“You are someone who cannot sit still when there is food,” Ngoc replied. “You will remember where the money went.”

“Offensive but valid argument.”

After school, the group meets on the second floor. Phuc brought a roll of wire and a screwdriver, Bao brought three plastic chairs borrowed from the cafeteria, Lam brought a color chart, and Ngoc brought a repair proposal. Ms. Hanh signed for them to use the room for two weeks for testing.

“The rules are only six lines,” Ngoc said, sticking the paper on the board.

1. In the reading room, everyone has the right to find a seat.

2. Borrowing books must include your name and expected return date.

3. Report late returns, do not hide books.

4. Do not take photos of others without asking.

5. Food placed on the bookshelf.

6. If you make a mistake, let's find a way to fix it.

When he finished reading, he pointed to line five. “Is bread considered food?”

“Bread is food,” Phuc said.

“But what if I eat quickly?”

“It's still food.”

“What if I eat very quickly?”

“More like food.”

Ngoc circled the year line. “No negotiation.”

Bao clasped his hands. “This library is dictatorial.”

Lam said: "At least it's a dictatorship with rules."

Phuc pulled out the chair and checked the shaky chair legs. “Line six needs to add 'don't fix the electricity yourself if you don't know'.”

Ngoc added. Bao asked if it was possible to add line seven "allowed to laugh a little". Ms. Hanh allows it, as long as she doesn't laugh at the person reading.

They started with ceiling fans. Phuc climbed onto the chair, Ngoc held the chair's leg, Lam gave the tool. Bao stood under the command with the voice of someone who had never corrected anything.

“Phuc, turn left.”

"I know."

“Jade, hold on tight.”

“I'm keeping it.”

“Lam, record it so you can make a video later.”

“No one needs a video of Bao commanding the fan.”

Phuc opened the fan cover and took out a large handful of dust. Dust fell on Ngoc's shoulders. She held her breath, then sneezed continuously.

Bao said: "The fan chose the richest person in the group to take revenge."

Ngoc wiped her face. “I'm not rich.”

Lam looked at her shoes. “You wear shoes with new soles.”

Ngoc bent down. A patch of dust covered the white color. “It's not new anymore.”

Phuc said from the chair: "It doesn't matter if you're rich or not. Dust doesn't discriminate."

The words made the group silent for a moment, then Bao nodded hunchback. “Dust is a rare equalizing force.”

The fan has been removed for cleaning but cannot be reinstalled. They have to wait for the electrician. Phuc moved to check the shelves. One fence is bent, a few nails are loose. He measured the distance and made a list of supplies.

Ngoc went with Bao to the administrative office to buy notebooks and labels. The amount of money Ms. Hanh provided was just enough, but they discovered that the book price had increased more than expected. Bao opened his wallet to count the money, twelve thousand was missing.

“I can make up for it,” Ngoc said.

Bao looked at her. “Don't take it easy.”

“Only twelve thousand.”

"Little money is still money. If you make up for it, next time whoever is lacking will find you."

Ngoc didn't think Bao would say that. She was used to having small deficits resolved immediately by adults. Here, twelve thousand could be someone's breakfast or car fare.

“So what to do?” she asked.

Bao turned to the cafeteria gate. “I sell three packages of rice paper.”

“You said you sell bread.”

“Rice paper is a side activity.”

In twenty minutes, Bao offered three packages of rice paper to his juniors, with a promise not to be too spicy. Ngoc holds the book and records the revenue. Having enough twelve thousand, they returned to buy supplies.

“You can take this seriously,” Ngoc said.

“I've been serious since I was hungry.”

On the second floor, Phuc was able to fix a chair leg. He saw the new book and asked where the money was. Bao told. Phuc looked at Ngoc.

“You didn't give money?”

"Are not."

"Good."

Ngoc was a bit uncomfortable. “You say it like you're planning to do something bad.”

“I say it because I know you can solve it faster than everyone else.”

“Faster doesn't mean wrong.”

“But sometimes it's so fast that others don't have time to contribute.”

Ngoc wanted to respond, but he bent down to tighten the nail. The sentence hanging between the two of them was not really a blame, nor was it advice. She recorded it in the book next to the expenses.

That afternoon, the group tried opening the room for thirty minutes for students to register. Only fourteen people arrived, but they filled three well-lit tables. A friend asked why he couldn't pull his chair close to the window. Phuc explained that the aisle must be left empty. Ngoc wrote that need in the "improvement" column, not crossing it out because it was inappropriate.

Lam realized that the genre label was placed too high, and short people couldn't get it. She pulled the shelf down and marked the new location. Minh Chau asked the borrower if he wanted to receive news when the book was returned. Ngoc said you shouldn't promise when you don't have a system, but you can write down your needs to try using a paper board.

Bao discovered a friend sneaking in soft drinks. He was about to grab it, then remembered the rules. He pointed to the board and said: "You put it outside the door for me. If there's no place, I'll find a place." The other person apologized and put the bottle in the box. Ms. Hanh saw it, didn't say anything, but wrote a mark in the observation book.

Before closing the experiment, each person had to write down one thing that bothered them and one thing they wanted to keep. The notes contained more than just compliments. Some people wrote "low chair", "don't know how to borrow books", "afraid of being looked at when reading comics". Ngoc glued them into two columns. Phuc said if they only read the column they want to keep, they will think the room is good.

In the evening, Ngoc opens the job board and divides it into hours. She worked so fast that Phuc had to hold her hand when she was about to write his part.

“You don't need to do it all.”

“I was just recording.”

“You're putting your name on four things.”

Ngoc looked at the board. It's true that she took on the responsibility of placing curtains, designing instructions, checking supplies, and writing reports.

“I want to be sure everything is fine.”

“No one can be sure.”

“You say that a lot.”

“Because it's true many times.”

Ngoc removed her name and divided the work between Lam and Minh Chau. She was not used to the feeling of leaving part of the work in someone else's hands. But when Lam received the design board, she immediately made a diagram that was more beautiful than Ngoc thought. Minh Chau sent a list of cheap curtains from stores near the school.

Ngoc sat still for a few seconds.

“See,” Phuc said.

“I haven't said anything.”

“Your face is talking.”

“My face has no subtitles.”

"Have. The subtitle is ‘why didn’t I think of it sooner’.”

Ngoc smiled. The second floor is still hot, the fan is not running yet, but the room already has the sound of people coming in and out. She began to understand that the library did not need to be made into a perfect place before opening its doors. It can both open and learn to serve readers.

Before locking the door, she added the last line in her workbook: “Allow plans to change when people have reasons.”

Phuc can read, not tease. He just nodded and put the key in his pocket.

That night, Ngoc opened the expense sheet on her mother's old computer. She divided each item into three colors: approved, need more questions, and no source. The light bulb is located in the first box; curtains in the second panel; A small dehumidifier is located in the last box. She wanted to buy the machine right away, but forced herself to write down the reason and who had the right to decide.

The next morning, she brought the board to Ms. Hanh. Ms. Hanh did not correct any numbers, just asked why Ngoc put the "unsourced" part at the end. Ngoc said because she was afraid others would see it first and think the plan was weak. Ms. Hanh said the opposite is true: a reliable plan is one that knows what it is missing.

Ngoc moves that box to the top of the page. After reading it, Minh Chau suggested adding an inspection deadline so that the "need to ask" part doesn't stay there forever. Lam asked for the right to edit the color palette, and Bao asked for a column stating "who will be responsible if forgotten". Ngoc added both.

The next test session had something unexpected: a student dropped a book card into the slot of the table. Bao was about to pull hard, but Phuc stopped him because he might break the table leg. They had to remove the wooden surface, take the card and reinstall it. Ngoc wrote down the incident not to blame the person who dropped it, but to know that the gap in the table needed to be covered.

By noon, the group had a list longer than originally estimated. Ngoc looked at it, for the first time not panicking. She understands that management is not about making problems disappear before others see them; is to give the problem a name, someone in charge, and a date to come back and check.

Phuc gave her a small piece of paper: "Try opening another hour tomorrow?" Ngoc wrote below: "Only when there is someone on duty and there is a plan to close." He nodded. The two of you don't need to discuss it for long. The second floor is teaching them that enthusiasm also needs a brake.