Zak POV.
What is it?
What is it about her?
I'm staring hard at Elle who is across the room, with her feet upon the couch with Gracie draped across her legs whilst her laptop is balanced on her lap.
"Stop it." She says making my eyes look up to her face. "I can feel your stare. It's... Distracting."
I smile, I can't help it. It's like an involuntary reflex when she is around.
She reaches up and adjusts her ponytail, before stretching her arms and going back to work.
Maybe it's the easiness of being around her? Her aura and calmness.
Or the way she is quiet content with Gracie being asleep on her?
Or the way the sun mirrors off her hair?
"Voice overs won't do themselves."
She sings making me smile again.
"You're gonna bust my balls today?"
"Do I have to?" She asks looking over at me.
God I hope so..
The playful look in her eyes makes me want to abandon work and do ungodly things right in the middle of the lounge. Glass front doors or not. Who cares who comes over, it's their fault if they see more than they should.
"You've got a naughty look in those eyes." She says, calling me out instantly.
"It's what you do to me."
She laughs "All that charm."
"I try my best." I answer before letting her go back to work.
I adjust the laptop on my lap, trying to make myself a little more comfortable whilst also eyeing Elle over the top of it. That way, I'll be able to look away quicker if she looks over.
Work, how can I work?
Even though she is here, sat before me, I'm still watching her.
She didn't need to know that I spent half of last night reading about seizures, watching videos on what I should do if one happens or that I'm here, right now looking at monitors when she has already told me that she doesn't need another one.
I hadn't know Elle that long, but it irked me that Mia would be the first point of call if anything happened. With my job, I knew it was fruitless to have me as it too, but I wanted an in. If Elle had a seizure whilst I was away, I wouldn't know and right now that wasn't sitting right with me.
"Oh, sorry babe." Elle says to Gracie as she reaches down and plucks her bag off the floor. Gracie lifts her head, looking a little annoyed at the awakening, but eagerly settles herself back down when Elle puts her bag back onto the floor.
I watch as she unravels the wire to the ear buds and sticks one in. "I've got some audio typing to do.. I'll wear these so I don't distract you from staring too much." She teases.
"I am trying." I tell her.
"Uh-huh. How is that going for you?"
"Harder than I thought." I admit as she smiles, with a shake of her head, the other ear bud goes in, cutting off our communication for a while.
I knew Billy would be busting my balls if I didn't do it, but whilst Elle was here, I wanted to do something other than work. I wanted to spend time with her, and I guess this was a form of that.
Maybe I just wanted her attention on me?
Work Zak. Let's get this done, let her work and then you've got her to yourself.
It takes me a little longer to become motivated to do the voice overs. I also have to get up and grab the mic from the kitchen and because I'm there, I stand at the kitchen island and go through the notes before doing them.
It's surprising how much I cover in the episodes, from introductions to evidence to finally the equipment we use. So with over three episodes to cover, getting my head in the game was important.
****
"Because Aaron is feeling this, he decides to turn on the spirit box. Get ready to hear an absolutely incredible response to his question. This is known as an intelligent spirit." I speak into the microphone, watching my sound waves map onto the screen.
I stop the recording just as a hand rubs across my back, making me look over to see Elle looking at the screen.
"Hey."
"Well hey there." She smiles. "So this is the voice overs huh?"
"Yeah. These are the soundwaves of my voice, they are recorded here, then laid over the footage so that it plays in time with the footage for the audience." I tell her, sighing as she rubs my shoulders for a little while.
"Looks technical."
"Not really. Not after doing it for so long. You finished work already?" I ask.
"Yep. I just came to see where you disappeared to."
I look down at the notes on my screen, wondering how I can put them off.
"Ah.. You do them," She points. "I'm going to sit in the garden whilst you work."
"You don't have to do that." I answer, feeling the loss as her hand falls away.
She walks over to the fridge and grabs two bottles of water. "I do. You need to work, I've done mine and I am not going to distract you from yours."
Elle slides me a bottle across the counter before pointing between me and the laptop. Before she can escape, I grab her wrist and pull her between me and the kitchen island. "Stay."
"You have to work." She answers leaning back against my chest.
"I can work around you."
"You could... But you're not. I am not going anywhere, apart from the garden, which you can see out the window."
I grumble and push my head over her shoulder, inhaling along the side of her neck as I do, just to prove I can work with her here.
Elle watches as I tap the keyboard and hit record, wrapping my arm around her to keep her still with me.
"We now capture a deep voice that appears to be saying 'evil'."
When I hit stop, I watch her in the laptop screen smile. "Okay, show me what I need to press and we can do them, together."
I try to hide the megawatt smile I must have across my face as she elbows me gently. "We need to relocate too."
As you can expect, I follow as she picks up the laptop and the microphone before taking them into the lounge and putting them on the coffee table. She sits on her knees before patting the floor beside her.
I put the waters down and climb in the space behind her, rather than the space beside her, once I'm settled and she is sat between my legs, I pull her back against me. "That's better."
"We got a clinger!" She teases me.
I don't care, whilst she is here, I want her within arms reach, at all times.
"So, you press this one." I tell her, showing her the button on the screen. "That one starts the recording. Then you press it again to stop the recording."
She nods. "I think I can do that."
"Look at us, team work."
"Makes dreamwork, now have a little drink and we will start. Is this document all the notes you've made for voice overs?"
I nod. "A lot, right?"
"Whats an.. Ovilus?"
"The Ovilus takes environmental reading and converts them into a language we can understand. The spirits can change the environment such as the electromagnet frequencies and temperature for the Ovilus to read and then convert into words."
"Real science."
"We have scientists working with us. They create our equipment."
"Wow.. Can you show me all the equipment one day?"
"Really?"
She nods "Yeah, it sounds really interesting. Maybe you can let me use it too?"
I tilt my head to see her face, because I want to make sure she isn't joking around with me. "I don't know about that..."
Her head whips around "Why not?"
"Well once you open that door to the spirit world, you don't know what is coming through.."
"But you do it."
"I've done it for years."
"Exactly.. Which is why I want you there. You'll be able to keep an eye on me. I know I'm in safe hands."
I feel a tug within me and feel my refusal evaporating just looking at her.
Maybe it's her eyes?
Maybe she is a supernatural being?
"I guess I could."
She squeals excitedly before passing me the bottle of water. "Drink up. We got work to do."
I do as I'm told, because right now, seeing the smile on her face seems to be all I care about.
******
"Are you trying to put me to sleep?" Elle mumbles.
"Hmm?" I ask looking away from the laptop screen to find that I've been stroking her hair.
"You.." She hums rubbing her head against my chest. "You are lulling me away. Proving it very hard for me to keep awake."
"I didn't realise.." I answer taking my hand off her head.
She captures my hand in hers, removing my ring and rubbing the indentation it had left. "What are you doing now?"
"Laying the voiceovers onto the footage."
She grumbles and puts my ring back into place. Somehow, throughout me working, Elle had put her legs over mine and taken to nuzzling against me. I had felt her forehead press against my throat and arm go around my back but I hadn't realised she was still like it until I stopped playing with her hair.
"I'm nearly done." I promise.
"Don't rush. I'm enjoying this." She answers quietly making me smile gently.
I glance at Gracie, led on the couch, knowing that she was well past her walk.
"You wanna nap whilst I walk Gracie?"
Elle shakes her head "Nope. I wanna come with you. But first I gotta pee."
I unravel her from me and watch as she gets up, wobbling a little from being all scrunched up.
"You good?" I ask.
"Hmm. Thanks."
As she walks away, I finish up before jumping up off the floor and getting Gracie's leash and my phone.
When Elle comes back, she stops by her bag, taking a tablet. "Freakin' forgot." She says washing it down with her water.
"You okay though? Any problems?" I ask.
"No, but I should take them on time. I'm an idiot for not setting an alarm."
"Partially my fault for throwing your morning off."
"No, I can't hold you for that. I should have a routine by now."
"What time are you suppose to take it?"
"11am."
"A little overdue." I answer looking at the time.
Elle stretches herself out. "Yeah I'd say. Think it will be fine. I haven't done anything strenuous and I had a grand mal the other day, I should be okay for a little while." She then holds out her hand. "I wanna hold the leash."
"Sure thing."
As Elle puts Gracie onto the extendable leash, I discreetly put a daily reminder into my phone and set an alarm to go with it. Whilst she is with me, she will not forget and if she isn't with me?
Well I'll just have to remind her.
***
I'm not sure when or how it happens, but I've managed to let her convince me to use the museum as a training ground for her and the paranormal.
"Your face says it all." She laughs gently "You're regretting it already."
"I'm at a loss how you managed to work it. Very clever..."
She grins. "It's the perfect place. Cameras, it's a sound building, you know what's there and I can use the equipment with you beside me."
"But even I have bad days at the museum." I inform her.
"I know, you said.. But I really want to see the world through your eyes."
"And you need to put yourself in harms way for that?" I worry.
"No, I'm not. You're going to be with me, aren't you?"
"Absolutely."
"Then no harm will come to me, will it?" She asks batting her lashes up at me.
"This feels like manipulation." I tell her as she creeps in closer to me.
"But you're enjoying it so much."
"Hmm." I reply as she kisses my cheek and bounces away to pick up the ball Gracie dropped.
I'm a sucker and I was beginning to suspect that she knew that, after convincing me this much.
With an athletic grunt, Elle throws the ball across the green and waits as Gracie bolts after it, clapping when she gets it and heads back our way.
"She's a clever dog. God I love doing this."
"She is my zen, after a lockdown, this is all I do."
Elle nods "It's very therapeutic."
The ball is brought back, picked up and thrown again. Leaving Gracie to retrieve it once more.
"Tomorrow night sound good?"
"Hmm?" I ask looking over to Elle.
"Me, you, museum. Tomorrow night?"
I try to open my mouth and say no. I want to put her off for a while, maybe until she forgets the idea. But as soon as she invades my space, waiting for an answer, I can feel my refusal evaporating.
She's a witch. A sorceress. A devil in disguise..
"Sure."
It's four letters but the light behind her eyes, the excitement and the way she throws her arms around me, makes me think I've given her the golden ticket.
Maybe I have, the golden ticket to fuck everything up in her relatively peaceful world?
A tug on my shirt causes me to lean down slightly and I'm soon rewarded with a kiss, this time forgoing the cheek and landing on my lips. I pause because I told her that I wasn't going to do that until she believed me.
Her little grumble at my lack of effort has my arms curling around her and mouth responding in a millisecond. Her fingers lull me in, as they slither up through the back of my scalp and tugging my hair a little, lighting a fire within my chest.
She's a witch. Sorceress. Devil. Addictive.
I wanna pick her up or put her down. I want to drown her with attention and show her just how much I'm into this.
A hard breath leaves me chest when she pulls away, looking up at me with those honey toned eyes. I'm about to speak when she looks at the sky.
"Rain."
It comes out barely a whisper, but as soon as she has said it, the sky opens up leaving us both running for some shade under the tree. I make it there first with my long legs, pulling her into me as she laughs.
"Wow that happened fast!" She says looking around until she spots Gracie already under the tree with us.
Grabbing her attention again, I lean down and give her a kiss once more. Because I can't help myself. Before pulling away and wiping a water droplet off her face.
"Tomorrow.." I say quietly. "You, me and the museum."
Maybe I had to have faith in myself, like she already had in me. Trust myself not to let her in harms way. The museum was the perfect place after all..
She is with me, so what's the worst that could happen, right?