G/t Short Stories

Storm

Duncan tossed and turned all night. Normally, he would be exhausted after a big game but after finding out about the little people that lived in his walls, his mind raced with so many questions. Questions that he wasn't allowed to ask. 
Of course, the storm that raged outside didn't help soothe him either. Thunder shook the house and the rain pelted hard against the roof. It sounded violent out there, but it would pass by morning. Duncan only hoped his thoughts would pass by that time too. 
His eyes wandered towards his alarm clock: three-thirty AM. A sigh escaped his lips, there was no way he would be up by eight. His throat felt dry, maybe a glass of water would clear his mind. Throwing off his blanket, Duncan sat up and put on his pj pants. There was no point in putting on a shirt, but he should at least be decent in case his dad gets up. 
He wandered down the hall and into the kitchen, the flashes of lightning lit up the way. Duncan couldn't help but scan the counter for any tiny people sneaking around. But there was no sign anyone was around. He sighed in frustration, he knew he shouldn't be looking for anyone, they didn't want to be seen, Duncan should just give up on finding her. 
He grabbed a glass from the wooden cabinet and filled it with water, but just before he brought the glass to his lips a loud crack of thunder erupted from the sky, violently shaking the house! That's when he heard a sharp cry came from the coffee pot.
Duncan froze in place, fearing he had imagined it. But that sounded so tiny, so scared, and so much like her. He knew he couldn't ignore his curiosity. 
"Grace?" He pulled the coffee pot away and saw a tiny teenage girl in a long flowing blue night dress huddled in the corner. Her long blonde hair draped over her face and she was visibly shaking in her boots, probably terrified of being caught again by Duncan. After about a minute of silence, Grace looked up, her blue eyes locked onto his hazel ones.
"Duncan? W… what are you d… d… doing up?" Her eyes trailed down to his bare chest. "And w...without a shirt on?"
"I should be asking you the same thing." 
"I…" Grace looked away from Duncan, as if she was debating whether or not to reveal why she was down here. But she caved in and fidgeted in her bag to reveal some coffee grinds inside. "I forgot t…t...to borrow some coffee earlier… and wanted to g...get some for the m...morning." 
Borrow… Duncan heard her use that term before. Although, it wasn't really borrowing as it was stealing, but he wasn't going to debate with her about that. 
"Okay…. But why were you screaming?"
Before she could answer, thunder erupted again. Grace shrieked and threw her arms above her head, as if she was shielding herself from falling debris. It all made sense now. 
"It's okay," Duncan reassured. "It's just a thunderstorm." 
"I thought I c… c… could make it b… back before it started." Grace shivered. 
The storm wouldn't die down for another hour and Duncan knew his dad would be waking up soon. If Grace couldn't move soon then she would easily get caught again. He had to get her back home. 
"Is there a place I can take you?" 
"What? N… no!" Grace's eyes widened. "You're n… not even supposed to know I'm here." 
"But you can't stay-!" 
The door creaked open and footsteps could be heard down the hall. It was his dad, and he was getting close. Without thinking, Duncan grabbed the tiny girl. He tried to be gentle but she still yelped and struggled to break free. 
"Sorry about this." Duncan whispered, then he shoved Grace into his pocket and laid his hand over her protectively. 
"Duncan? What are you doing up?" 
Duncan turned around to see his father standing behind him. People would always tell him that he was the spitting image of his father, he couldn't deny it. Short blonde hair, sharp jawline, and a muscular body built to carry the football team. The only thing missing was the beard, guess his mom gave him a permanent baby face. 
"Uh, hey dad… I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd get a drink." 
"Is it because you missed the score for the team?" He asked. 
"Uh, yeah…" 
Dad quietly nodded his head and put his hand on his son's shoulder. "Don't beat yourself up over it, we've all had our bad days. You can always do better next time."
Duncan smiled. "Thanks dad." 
Another crack of thunder rumbled in the sky, Duncan could feel Grace flinch at the sound, he could feel her trembling so Duncan rubbed his thumb against her arm in hopes of keeping her from screaming. Thankfully she suppressed her fears, but Duncan knew he needed to get back in his room before the thunder could sound off again. 
"I better try to get some sleep now." Duncan stumbled out of the kitchen before his dad could say another word and quickly made his way into his room. Once in, Duncan let out a sigh of relief and fished Grace outta his pocket.
She looked up at him with wide blue eyes. "Please don't do that again." 
"Sorry, I panicked." Duncan admitted. "Are you okay?"
More thunder erupted, making Grace cower in fear. "I just want this storm to be over!" 
"I suppose you still won't tell me where I could drop you off, huh?"
Grace just shook her head. 
Duncan let out a sigh, but smiled and walked to his bed. "Well then, I have no choice but to keep you here with me until the storm blows over." 
 "W… what?" Grace's cheeks flushed. "I can't stay h… here all night w...with you." 
"I'm not forcing you to stay, but I can't have you out in the open if you're too scared to move right now." He laid down and deposited the tiny girl in the space next to him. "You'll be safe here."
 "I s… suppose you're right." Grace flinched as the thunder continued to rupture. 
Duncan draped his hand over her and continued to rub her arm.  "Leave whenever you feel like you can…" A wave of drowsiness suddenly hit him. "I'll just rest… for a little bit."
Duncan's eyelids felt heavy, very quickly he started to nod off. But before he did, he could see a cute smile creep up onto Grace's face, giving him peace before he drifted off to sleep.