CHAPTER 10 Hide and Seek

　　Oris' POV

　　Ah, the library. My sanctuary. My solitude.

　　After today's events, I felt the need to spend some time in my favourite room in the house. Surrounded by books, this to me was absolute heaven. The scent of the leather bound literature, and the dust which gathered on them, to me this was my safe place.

　　Pulling one of my favourite pieces of literature to study from the shelf, I placed it open on the desk and took a seat. I began to thumb through the pages slowly, taking in the information as I read.

　　I had studied this book a thousand times, but I never lost interest. Greek Mythology was something I had always shown particular interest in, and today I needed to relax with some of the book's knowledge. I knew these paragraphs nearly by heart now, but the comfort they brought me was irreplaceable.

　　My concentration was disturbed by the sound of a giggle from down the hallway. I instantly recognised the voice of my niece, dear little Gracie.

　　Gracie ran into the library, a wide grin on her face as she beamed at me "Uncle Oris!" she said in a loud whisper "I'm playing hide and seek with Elsie, I need somewhere to hide,"

　　I felt my cheeks flush. Elsie, she was coming this way?

　　I closed the book and began to prod and poke my hair, making sure my long locks pulled back into a ponytail was fixed neatly to look presentable to her. Pulling my glasses from my face, I gave them a swift wipe to make sure no smears were visible.

　　"Over there Gracie," I stood up and directed her toward a cupboard "You'll fit inside here no problem, I won't tell Elsie where you are,"

　　I definitely wouldn't give Elsie any hint on Gracie's whereabouts, I wanted to keep her to myself as long as possible.

　　"Okay Uncle, but this hiding place better not suck," Gracie said, I gently pushed her into the cupboard, and she squeezed neatly between piles of books "It smells old in here,"

　　I chuckled "Be quiet now Gracie, or Elsie will find you," I closed the door, leaving it slightly ajar so Gracie could get a bit of air.

　　Fidgeting on my feet, I tried to calm my mixture of both excitement and nerves as I heard Elsie's footsteps drawing closer toward the library. My eyes on the door, and as she stepped inside, I felt my heart flutter as soon as she came into my sight.

　　"Elsie," I said, trying to not sound too excited "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be looking after Gracie?"

　　Elsie raised a brow and smiled at me "Oh, yes," she laughed "I seem to have lost Gracie, have you seen her? I've tried everywhere in the house," her words amused me with her joking tone.

　　"I haven't seen Gracie today," I replied "Perhaps she's in the garden," my shoulders shifted as I contained my laughter silently.

　　Gracie giggled from the cupboard, loud enough that the sound caught both of our attention, and I saw Elsie's eyes slide to the hiding spot Gracie stood in. She returned her gaze to me and smiled. Her green eyes twinkled and I felt my stomach flutter, she was so utterly beautiful.

　　"What are you reading?" Elsie asks suddenly, her eyes on the book at my table "I love to read,"

　　"You do?" I asked, my interest in this woman grew fonder each time we held a conversation "I like to study Greek mythos in my spare time," I paused and laughed nervously "It's pretty nerdy I know,"

　　"Oh not at all," Elsie replied, her eyes widened "I love Greek Mythology! All those incredible Gods and their stories," she took the seat opposite mine at the desk and pulled the book toward her, opening it she began to flick through the pages "Which is your favourite?"

　　My heart pounded in my chest, never in my life had I ever imagined I would meet someone who shared my biggest passion. I took myself back to my seat opposite Elsie, and my eyes never left her. I watched her face beam as she read through the pages of the book.

　　"Aphrodite," I responded "Such beauty, passion yet vengefulness within her," I paused as I studied Elsie with such admiration "And her beautiful flowing red hair,"

　　Elsie's eyes shifted from the book to me "Interesting," she paused "I was always drawn to Hades," she laughed "Maybe I like a bad boy!" she winked at me, and I felt another flutter inside my stomach.

　　"Would you like to talk some more about this subject?" I asked, my confidence building as I spoke "When you are free of course, I would enjoy chatting Greek with you," I laughed, rubbing my head nervously.

　　"That sounds lovely," Elsie replied with a smile "We should form an activity club here in the library, the Greek Geeks,"

　　My cheeks became warm again as they flushed, how was Elsie so wonderful? I had to remain calm and try to act like a normal person if we were planning to hang out together more "Greek Geeks," I laughed "Maybe we should wear T shirts with the name on,"

　　Elsie laughed in retort and I felt relief, afraid she would think I was a complete loser for even suggesting such a thing "That sounds great Oris," she smiled, pushing the chair away she stood to her feet "Well if you find Gracie let me know," she rose her voice to make sure Gracie heard.

　　"Oh, I will!" I replied just as loud "She's great at hiding, so you may be a while,"

　　We both caught the sound of the giggle from the cupboard as Gracie began to lose her concentration.

　　"It seems that way," Elsie paused as she looked at me "It's a shame she's not here because I was going to take her for ice cream. Oh well, looks like I'll have to go by myself,"

　　"ICE CREAM!" Gracie yelled as she pushed her way out of the cupboard, nearly tripping up as she did, but managed to keep her balance. She ran over to Elsie and hugged her legs "I want ice cream!"

　　Elsie laughed, scrubbing Gracie's head, she then took her eyes to me "Uncle Oris, are you coming for ice cream too?"

　　Elsie didn't have to ask me twice, more time spent with her was something I couldn't refuse "Ice cream sounds perfect!"