Every Storm Runs Out of Rain

Chapter 20

Stetson yawned and glanced over at the clock. 6:26 a.m. He bolted upright.

"How did I manage to sleep in so late?" he muttered aloud as he pulled a t-shirt over his head. After he finished dressing, he unplugged his phone from where it was charging on the nightstand and shoved it in his back pocket. He didn't know what the plans were for the day but what he did know is that he was late. And he despised being late to anything.

When he walked into the dining room, his mom and dad were finishing breakfast. He scanned the room but didn't see Shay.

"Mornin', momma. Mornin', daddy. Have either of you seen Shay?" he asked. They glanced in his direction. His mother nodded and finished swallowing before she answered.

"She was still sleeping when I checked on her 'bout fifteen minutes ago." He huffed.

"That was me fifteen minutes ago too. I haven't slept that long since I was..." he thought for a minute. "I don't even know." His mother sent him a warm smile.

"It's alright, Stet. Your daddy was just talkin' about taking you to the auction up in Sulphur Springs. I figured I would keep Shay with me." He hesitated. Shay was mad enough about his perpetual absence and he was sure this wouldn't help. But then again, since when did his father ask him to go anywhere with him.

"You got anything particular in mind or are you just browsing?" Stetson asked.

"I figured I'd see if they had a seeder for Kyle's tractor. He was talking about looking for an older model since he's determined to show Trent that older equipment works just as well as newer stuff." Stetson smiled. Trent had been best friends with Kyle since their freshman year in high school. He was honestly glad to hear that they were still friends.

"I'm not sure if I can go or not." he said. Both of his parents looked at him in surprise.

"You've got other plans?" his father asked as his mother grabbed a spare coffee cup, filled it, and urged him to sit down. He plopped down into the seat and stared at the near-black coffee still swirling in his mug.

"I don't feel like I've been doing a very good job of being a father." Neither of his parents made a comment to his brief statement so he continued. "Shay was pretty upset with me last night for being away so much. I don't know how to keep her happy anymore." He leaned his elbows on the table and put his head in his hands. Defeated. He felt completely and absolutely defeated. He managed to repair one part of his life and another started failing.

"You know," his father cleared his throat, "a man wasn't made to raise kids alone, Stetson. It's hard tellin' how you boys would've turned out if I hadn't had your momma to help me out." Stetson thought of his father's words. Then he glanced up. At some point, his mother had managed to slip noiselessly out of the room.

"I don't know how to fix that." Stetson said. Hank nodded.

"Generally starts by meeting a gal you like and lettin' her know how you feel about her." Hank prompted with a smile. Stetson laughed bitterly.

"That's never worked out well for me, dad." The older man nodded once again.

"What about Heather?" Hank asked.

"What about her?" Stetson returned.

"I just thought that maybe you and her seemed to be getting along pretty well. Figured maybe you were starting to feel more than friendly toward her." Hank said. Awe man! I don't want to tell him. He sighed. Maybe he should. After all, his father clearly knew how to catch a good woman. The thought made him smile.

"I went and talked to her the other day. I don't think she feels the same way I do." Hank made a show of rolling his eyes-something Stetson had never seen him do. He almost laughed at the sight. "She straight-up told me she thought I was lonely and looking for help with Shay."