Perched at the edge of her bed, Hollis stared down at her laptop with mild interest. The glow from the screen lit up her face as she browsed the pictures she had uploaded from her camera. She scrolled through the album with Mrs. Carrillo's words from last week echoing in her head: pair a picture with a short story. It was a good idea but Hollis was still doubtful she could do it. But, then again, she wouldn't know for sure if she didn't try and trying was the least she could do. Having her work featured in the literary magazine had been something she had wanted once upon a time and, deep down, she still wanted it.
There has to be something here, Hollis thought.
The minutes ticked by, and she looked through several albums with dozens of pictures inside. Stifling a yawn, she ran a hand through her hair. Tired, Hollis was ready to give up but before she could, her eyes landed on an album from three months ago. She opened it hesitantly, knowing what she would find inside. Pictures of the wrecked Honda stared her in the face. Although it was still hard to look at, the pain had lessened some. She went through picture after picture before she stopped on a specific one. It was the one with the scratches, the one that wouldn't let her forget. Hollis zoomed in, wondering if a mountain lion could have done that.
"I doubt it," Hollis muttered to herself.
Curious, she opened a new tab and typed in 'animal attacks in Beacon Hills'. The myth her dad had told her stirred in her mind, making her wonder how much of it could be true. All myths and legends started with a single fact before they grew out. Although she didn't believe in the supernatural, she was still curious. Not only that but she was getting nowhere with her writing and a distraction was very much needed.
When the results came up, she stared wide-eyed at the amount of animal attacks that had happened in Beacon Hills over the last couple decades. Her curiosity peaked, she read through several first hand accounts, accounts that happened to delve into the myth of supernatural creatures in town:
'It was no mountain lion,' said Sara Johnson (34).
'It was like something out of a horror movie! Glowing eyes, big teeth that could rip you apart,' reported Debbie Burgess (66).
'Mountain lion?' Ross Lloyd (43) said, 'more like a werewolf!'
"Yeah, right," Hollis said, rolling her eyes. "People will believe anything."
"What will people believe?" Grant asked, amusement in his eyes.
She glanced up to find her dad in the doorway. "Oh, nothing," she said, embarrassed. "I was just looking into that myth you were talking about. Werewolves and all things supernatural. I can't believe people actually believe this stuff. It's insane."
"Says the writer in the family," he said, stepping into the room. "I thought you were supposed to believe in the impossible."
Hollis shrugged, briefly looking down at the laptop. "Anything can happen in writing, dad, that's what makes it interesting. But we're talking about real life here. It's just not...possible."
"Alright, alright," he said with a chuckle.
Tilting her head to the side, she eyed her dad. "Do you believe all this?"
Grant scratched his chin, lost in thought. "Well...no," he answered. "But, then again, what do I know?"
With a laugh, she rolled her eyes.
He laughed with her but, as their laughter died down, a silence filled the room. After a few seconds, he cleared his throat. "So, uh, are you ready for that talk?"
Biting her lip, uneasiness filled her stomach. "Yeah," she said and closed her laptop, placing it beside her.
Grant pulled up a chair and sat down, his gaze shifting from her to the room. "So, where should we start?"
"At the beginning. I need to know everything."
"Right, of course." He nodded. "Well, your mom and I made a great team. We had a lot of the same ideas.... Visions for what we wanted from life ranging from our careers to how we wanted your life to be."
"So, what happened?"
"Life happened," Grant stated with a shrug. "An opportunity presented itself one day. It was a job in Seattle that would have provided a great life for us but, like I said, life happened. Your mom didn't want to leave, to start over. Addison had just landed a position at the college that she always wanted and then you were starting middle school in the fall and...your mom didn't want to uproot us. She didn't think it was fair to herself or to you for us to move. I didn't blame her but..."
"But you took the job anyway, didn't you?" Hollis asked.
"Yeah." He ran his hand over his face and let out a sigh. "I was hoping that she would change her mind. I really wanted that job, Hollis. I wanted the life that job could have given us. But Addison was furious when she found out. She refused to leave, and we fought on and off for weeks. I don't really remember everything from my last night here but words were said and... I left. I got to Seattle, started work by the end of the week and I stayed."
She looked at him wide-eyed. "How could you not even call, though? I get that you guys fought but I... That's what I don't understand."
"I was mad at Addison, Hollis. It had nothing to do with you. I need you to believe that."
Hollis nodded. "No, I do," she said honestly. "But..did you guys ever talk? Or was that it?"
"At first, I wanted to give her some space so I stayed quiet for a week. Then a week turned into a month, and it just didn't feel right calling after that," he told her with a resigned sigh. "But your mom and I did talk eventually. We met up to talk things through but we couldn't fix what I broke. We decided to divorce and your mom didn't think it would be a good idea for me to see you. I agreed with her." He noticed the look on her face and continued quickly. "You had moved on from asking about me, and I didn't want to turn your life upside down anymore than I already had."
She listened intently despite the dozens of thoughts and questions swimming around in her head. Rather than voice them, she stayed quiet.
"I kept in touch with your mom over the years. She updated me on how you were, what you were doing. I wish I could've been there for you but I always knew what was going on in your life. I was absent but, in a way, I was still there."
"I can't believe mom didn't tell me any of this. I had a right to know. It should've been my decision on whether I wanted you in my life or not," Hollis said, shaking her head. "How could she not tell me?"
"Don't be mad at her," Grant told her gently. "She did what she thought was best. I was the one who screwed things up and, unfortunately, you paid the price."
Hollis stayed quiet, unsure of what to say to the explanation. It was a lot of information to take in; information that she hadn't been prepared to hear. She had imagined the whole thing so differently. In her mind, her dad was the villain who left his family but hearing the whole, grim truth, it turned everything she had believed in upside down. It was a lot for her mind to process. To accept.
When she continued to remain quiet, Grant spoke up. "Hollis, are you ok?"
With a sigh, she nodded. "I think so. It's just a lot, you know? But...thanks for telling me the whole story."
"Yeah, of course," he said, smiling. "If you want to talk about it some more-"
"No, I'm good," Hollis interrupted. "I think I just need some time to think it all through."
Grant stood up and walked over to her. He hesitated before he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, the smile still on his face. "I'll leave you alone for a bit."
When he left the room, Hollis let out a big sigh. The truth was what she had wanted and now that she had it, she felt overwhelmed. With the thoughts consuming her mind, she reached for her laptop; she needed a distraction right now. As the laptop came to life, the results from her previous search welcomed her. Hollis tried to focus on something else but her mind buzzed with the recent facts she had just learned.
For the next few minutes, she read other people's accounts of run-ins with the supernatural. Although it peaked her interest, she found it all hard to believe. Eventually, she closed the laptop before she could see the next post featuring the Hale fire.
She reached for her phone and looked through her contacts then, hitting the 'call' button, she pressed the phone to her ear.
"Hey. Can we meet somewhere?"
The parking lot was empty when Hollis pulled in. Glancing out the window, she caught sight of the school building that stood ominous against the dark sky. The street lamps illuminated the area, giving off just enough light for her to see the light blue Jeep that was parked a few feet away. At the sight of it, a smile tugged at her lips. She pulled up beside it then stepped out into the cool night air. With a light tap on the window, Hollis climbed into the Jeep and was enveloped in the music that flowed through the speakers.
"Hey. Thanks for meeting me," she said.
"Yeah, no problem," Stiles said. "I always have time to meet up and, you know, talk. With you, I mean."
Hollis smiled at his answer. "Well, it goes both ways, you know."
Stiles grinned and drummed his hands on the steering wheel to the beat of the music. "So, uh, why did you want to meet up?" He asked. "Not that I mind because I don't! I'm just...curious."
"I just needed to get out of the house for a bit," Hollis answered with a shrug. "Well, that and I wanted to hang out."
Wide-eyed, Stiles pointed to himself. "With me?"
"No, with the janitor at the school," She answered, rolling her eyes. "Yes, with you."
"Oh, right. That's-that's...cool." He smiled sheepishly. "But everything's ok? You talked with your dad, right?"
"Yeah, we did. We're working past everything so it's nice," she answered. "But I imagined it all so differently that it's just a lot to take in at once, you know?"
Stiles nodded to her words, listening intently. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really." She looked down at her hands then back up at Stiles. "I guess at some point I will but after I process it all. Besides, I want to talk about something other than my problems," she said with a soft laugh. "So, how was lacrosse?"
"Uh, good," Stiles answered, nodding. "Jackson dislocated his shoulder after he ran into Scott." He noticed her expression and quickly continued. "Scott's fine. Just a few scrapes and bruises."
"Ok, good," Hollis answered, relieved. "I feel bad about Jackson, though. I know he's an ass at times...well, most of the time, but that still sucks."
"Yeah, apparently it's pretty bad," he said. "But I can't say that he didn't deserve it."
The next hour went by quickly. It was filled with Hollis and Stiles talking about anything and everything. Leaning against the door, Hollis rested her head against the window and listened to Stiles talk.
"So, I drag Scott outside, right? And I swear that there's this giant dog that just wants to kill me out there. Scott and Deaton search the alley. We hear the growling and see this big shadow coming near us. So, of course, I'm terrified of the thing," Stiles said and glanced over at her, a grin on his face. "But what steps out of the shadows isn't this big, monstrous dog but a little poodle, yapping away."
Hollis laughed into her hand, picturing the entire thing in her mind. When her laughter died down, she looked over at Stiles with an amused smile. "Well, I'm sure it was very terrifying."
"It was!" He insisted. "Scott still hasn't let me forget that. He always brings it up."
"Well, it's too funny to forget," she said. "I'm sure I won't forget it, either."
"Great. Thanks, Hollis," he said with a sigh but smiled in her direction.
Smiling, she glanced at the dashboard where she caught sight of the time. "Is it really that late already?" She questioned, digging her phone out of her pocket. The screen lit up the interior of the car, showing that it was a quarter to ten. "I should probably get going but I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah, of course!" He answered, nodding. "I, uh, I had fun."
With her hand on the door, she turned to face him as a smile grew on her face. "Yeah, so did I," she said. "We should hangout again." Hollis opened the door and a cool breeze entered the car as she stepped out. "Get home safe."
"You, too," Stiles said. "I'll text you later," he said, although it came out as more of a question.
Smiling, she nodded. "Bye, Stiles."
AN: Did you guys like the last two chapters? Let me know in the comments and please don't forget to vote! Fun fact: 'Touched by the Fear' is ranked #332 in Original Character out of 3.8K stories. That's amazing! Thank you to everyone who's supported this story either by reading, commenting, voting and adding it to their lists.