Touched by the Fear

[25]

 The smell of coffee gently pulled Hollis down the stairs. It was almost enough to push away the grogginess of sleep. Almost, but not quite. As great as the scent of the liquid energy was, it was the taste of the bitter caffeine that she really craved. A few sips would do the trick.

With that thought in mind, she turned the corner and entered the kitchen. To her surprise, she found the room empty. No dishes littered the counter or crowded the sink. Only the lingering smell of coffee was present, making her craving increase. But she pushed it away as confusion filled her at the absence of her dad. Hollis had expected to find him preparing breakfast or reading the paper. She stood in silence for a moment, listening for any sounds that would indicate he was home but heard nothing.

"Dad?" She called out in hopes of getting an answer. But she was only greeted with silence. Sighing, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and focused on the room before her. As her eyes did another sweep of the area, she caught sight of a note resting comfortably on the counter. Curious, she walked over and took the letter in her hand. Her dad's writing filled two sentences on the page, letting her knew he had left early for work.

That explains it, she thought in regards to his absence. Rather than feel disappointment that he had left, she felt relief. Hollis had been prepared to dive into the conversation on the Hales that morning as she had failed (perhaps intentionally) to bring it up the night before. She couldn't help but feel a tinge of relief at postponing the conversation. It needed to be brought up but she wasn't sure if she was ready for the truth. Putting it off for another day or two wasn't much but it was enough.

Having woken up much earlier that morning, Hollis had time left over after getting ready for school. It was still too early to leave the house, and she struggled to find something to occupy her for the next thirty minutes or so. She sat down at the kitchen table with her second cup of coffee and relished in the strong taste of caffeine. But sitting there in silence with nothing to do only managed to give her mind free reign. Thoughts of last night and the bundle of information trickled in one by one, and she was forced to think about them.

But before she could let those thoughts consume her, the doorbell rang. Hollis was thankful for the distraction. Leaving her coffee and thoughts behind, she walked to the door and pulled it open. The initial shock was soon replaced by a happy smile that matched his. She stepped aside to let him enter the room.

"Hey," Hollis said as she closed the door then turned to face Stiles. "What are you doing here? I mean, I'm glad you're here but I thought we were meeting up at school."

"We are. We were but I thought we could go together," Stiles explained. "Unless you don't want to," he added quickly, "Because we could just -"

"No," Hollis interrupted, shaking her head. "It sounds great."

"Really?" He asked. "Ok, great," he said and nodded.

Hollis smiled in response. "I'm glad you're here," she told him. "I missed you."

"We just saw each other yesterday," Stiles said.

"No, I know but...," she paused, shrugging. "I missed this. Us talking."

Smiling, he pulled her into a hug. "Me, too," he told her.

Despite all the craziness that had occurred in the past couple of days, everything felt ok in that moment. She wished they could stay like that for a while but real life called. Still wrapped in his arms, Hollis looked up at him. "Did you want to leave now or...?" She asked, trailing off as she glanced in the direction of the kitchen.

"You can finish your coffee," Stiles told her with a chuckle.

A smile spread across her face. She leaned up, giving him a quick kiss. But the kiss lingered, lasting several seconds longer. Neither of them seemed to mind and let the moment drag on for a bit.