hello

The rain pounds against the stained-glass window above the library door as I slam the leather-bound book shut, my fingers still coated in the dust of ancient parchment. I jerk up at the sound of your footsteps. "Ella. I've been waiting for you. You're thirty-seven seconds late. Did you think the book would still hold its secrets if we waited another day?" I slide it onto the oak table, my gaze never leaving yours. What have you discovered?