Part 2

Stephanie had just sat down for her break when Abigail entered the Bistro, striding towards her. She hovered over the table and smiled down at Stephanie, waiting for acknowledgement. Stephanie huffed and rolled her eyes. Without looking up, she motioned to the empty seat in front of her.

'Busy, busy,' Abigail drawled. She scanned the room and sat down. The Bistro was buzzing with holiday shoppers taking refuge from the cold. Stephanie had stripped the shop of Christmas lights and replaced them with star-themed decor for the New Year. The air tasted of coffee and chai, and patrons were met with a waft of sweet pastries if they were lucky enough to walk past the kitchen. Abigail's assessment was accurate, if not a little reductive.

Abigail waited with raised brows. Stephanie looked up from her phone and groaned.

'I get the feeling it's not all these amazing customers that's got you down,' said Abigail.

Stephanie opened her mouth and closed it, as though she had to reassess her options.

'It's just that,' she started, then stopped, biting her lip. Abigail leaned forward and nodded her encouragement. 'I invited Sam to the party next week and, well, he kind of turned me down.'

Abigail leaned back and mused, 'I see.'

'I thought things had gone pretty well with those two dates,' said Stephanie. 'And now with Linda gone, I had hoped we could pick up where we left off. But he's been a bit -'

'Unavailable?' Abigail interrupted. She sat back in her seat, crossed her arms and her eyes narrowed.

Stephanie frowned and resisted an eye roll. 'I was going to say "distant". I mean, I get it, he's probably still reeling from the chaos of Linda, but come on.'

The corner of Abigail's mouth lifted. She seemed amused, and something about her expression suggested she knew more than she was letting on. Stephanie raised a brow.

Stephanie continued. 'A week before Linda arrived, he said he liked the direction we were heading. He asked me out, he made me dinner, he initiated the conversation about, well, us.'

'Cassie made your dinner,' Abigail reminded her. 'And wasn't Nick chaperoning that date?'

Stephanie looked at her with wide eyes, pleading, and cocked her head to one side.

Abigail leaned in again, even closer this time, and her eyes narrowed. She spoke, enunciating each word. 'Look, all I'm saying is, do you ever wonder if maybe you're trying too hard, maybe doing too much?'

'Again, please, don't pull any punches for my sake,' said Stephanie.

'I think his "distance", whether intentional or not, it's not what you're after and -' said Abigail, as she stood from the table. 'Quite frankly, not what you deserve.'

Stephanie sighed and tapped her fingers on the table, as she watched Abigail leave the Bistro. She then took her place behind the counter, just as Cassie and Sam entered. Sam bellowed at something Cassie had said, and Stephanie felt a surge of jealousy move from the pit of her stomach to her tightening chest. Over the past few months, she had witnessed their stolen glances and the way they looked at each other in awe. They gravitated to each other in rooms full of people, they spoke about one another with the highest regard. The consulted each other like equals, with whispers that spoke the loudest of volumes. Who could compete with that? Stephanie let out a deep breath she was holding and forced a smile. Cassie greeted her at the counter while Sam swivelled away.

'Hi, Stephanie,' she cooed. 'Can I get a tea, one plain bagel and one carrot cake, please?'

Stephanie's eyes fell on Sam, as he secured a table by the couch. Cassie looked over her shoulder to follow her gaze.

'Oh, Sam's helping set up the party,' said Cassie. Stephanie nodded slowly, avoiding her eyes. Cassie tilted her head, eyebrows knitted. 'Is everything okay?'

Stephanie gave a tight-lipped smile and shrugged. 'It's probably something we should talk about when we're not in present company,' she said. Cassie placed one hand on top of hers on the counter.

'Well, whatever it is, I'm here to listen.'

'Thanks, Cassie,' said Stephanie, as she placed her other hand on both of theirs and squeezed. 'You're a good friend.'

She paused and, after a moment, pushed her shoulders back, held her head up and chirped, 'A good friend who needs her cake.'

Cassie laughed and nodded in thanks. 'And tea. Please. I've just come from City Hall.'

'Is everything okay with the party?' Stephanie asked in a rush. 'Is it the caterers?'

'Oh, nothing that won't sort itself out,' replied Cassie. She peered at the cakes on display and pointed. 'I think I'll take that one.'

'Coming right up.'

When Cassie sat down, Sam leaned forward and in a low voice asked, 'What was that about?' He pointed his chin to Stephanie's direction.

Cassie narrowed her eyes at him and pouted slightly, shaking her head. She gestured the sealing of lips.

'Well,' Sam chuckled, and sank into the cushion. 'Uh, I should mention that she asked me to go to the party with her.' He looked up at the ceiling, his expression torn. He rapped his knuckles on the table. When Cassie didn't respond, he lowered his gaze to gauge her reaction. The waiter interrupted their brief silence, and Sam moved in on the cake.

Cassie took a slow sip of her tea, eyeing Sam over the rim of the cup. 'What's stopping you?'

Sam stiffened and frowned. He sliced another piece of the cake and chewed and chewed, pondering his response. Cassie waited for Sam, his eyes fixed on the plate between them.

They were, once again, interrupted by a teenage waiter, delivering Sam's bagel. Cassie continued to sit in silence.

Sam let out a deep breath, staring down. It felt like a full minute had ticked by before he had the courage to look up at Cassie. 'I told her the truth, at the time,' he said.

'Which was that you weren't intending to go?' Cassie asked and Sam nodded, biting into another spoonful. 'What's the truth now, Sam?'

He swallowed hard, returned her stare and said, 'Well, I'm trying to figure that out.'

Sam rubbed a hand over his face and groaned. Cassie offered him a sympathetic nod to continue.

'Between Linda coming and going, trying to recover time with Nick, and, well -' Sam stopped, scanned Cassie's face, and proceeded slowly. 'My mind altogether focused on other things, I just don't know.'

'Well,' Cassie said with a tone of finality, setting down her tea. 'From my experience, it's always better to know where someone is at, even if it's not what you're wanting to hear.'

'I can't imagine that ever being a problem for you,' quipped Sam. Cassie frowned at him and he conceded. 'Sorry.'

'I'm just saying if roles were reversed, wouldn't you want to know?'

Sam leaned back, set his spoon down and gave a measured response. 'I'll tell her soon.'

Cassie offered a small smile that didn't reach her eyes, and nodded in agreement. She picked up the other spoon, looked down and split off a piece of cake. Sam watched her steady actions, wishing desperately for the ability to read her mind. They sat in silence as the bistro buzzed around them, with customers shuffling in and out.

Still not looking at him, Sam lowered his head and leaned across the table to catch her eye. 'I will let her know, Cassie.'

She smiled softly. 'You're a good guy, Sam.'

The main strip filled with excited townspeople wrapped up in winter coats and scarves, sharing Christmas stories and comparing sales they managed to nab over in Blairsville. In shopfronts, employees packed away Christmas trees and replaced them with fairy lights and silver decals. Some displayed advertisements for "Under the Stars", which intiated conversations about Greyhouse. Others queried the likelihood of it going ahead in the face of freezing temperatures.

Sam and Cassie walked down the road, with thermoses in hand. Cassie stopped a few times and admired the changing decor. Sam stood back and watched her delight on display. They planned to drive to the department store to pick up fibre optics, wood panels and candleholders, but Cassie insisted on him first taking in the changing holiday season.

On the way to Greyhouse, they spotted Nick and a few of his friends loitering by a fountain. He was seated and slouched over his phone, as his friends spoke over him and between themselves. When Cassie looked up at Sam, he had his eyes fixed on Nick and frowned.

Sam called out to his son. Nick looked up from his phone to see which direction it had come from, and he rolled his eyes at his friends when they pointed out the pair. He stood up, walked towards them and met in the middle.

'Hi, Cassie. Hey, dad.'

'Hey, Nick.' Cassie smiled at Nick while Sam straightened, his hands on hips, and raised an eyebrow.

'I feel like I've hardly seen you, son.'

'Well, I've been out.'

Sam looked beyond him to the group. 'I can see that. What have you been up to?'

'Hanging,' Nick said and shrugged, avoiding his dad's gaze.

'I have a few days off from the practice. I was hoping to spend some time together.' Sam phrased it like a question.

Nick furrowed his brow and spoke slowly. 'No offence, dad, but we've done loads over the last couple of days.' He paused and looked up. 'I kind of just wanted to get out of the house.'

'We could do that,' Sam offered, motioning outwards and looking around. When Nick shook his head, he almost cracked a smile. Sam relaxed his shoulders and dropped his hands by his side, a hint of resignation.

Cassie watched the exchange and stepped back in an attempt to excuse herself. Sam signalled to her with two fingers in the air, requesting a moment. She halted.

'Yeah, sure. Can I go now?' Nick asked, looking back at his friends. 'We're going to play some video games at Jordan's.'

Sam rolled his eyes and chuckled. '"Go out", he says, as they spend their day indoors in front of a screen.' Sam paused and smiled down at his son, then gave him a pat on the back. 'Go, go. Have fun, be good.'

'Thanks, dad,' said Nick. 'I'll be home for dinner.'

'I was counting on it.'

Nick strolled over to his friends and, as they collected their belongings, he turned back and waved goodbye to Cassie and his dad. They returned the gesture, then turned to each other with an amused look on both their faces. Sam's eyebrows raised, and Cassie's expression brightened.

'Progress. Not so broody,' she mused.

'You're telling me,' he replied. 'You know, sometimes, just sometimes, I see the kid who thought I was pretty cool, once upon a time.'

Cassie cocked her head and said, 'He adores you, Sam. It's, well, growing pains.'

Sam nodded, his brows knit together as he stared after his son's friends. When he broke from thought, Cassie grabbed his arm lightly and pulled them towards Greyhouse. He chuckled and followed her lead.

'We've got a party to decorate,' she said. Sam stopped and contemplated the sentiment, watching as she walked a few steps ahead.

'We do,' he said, a soft smile on his face. He caught up and looked straight on. He resisted the urge to scan her face, though he desperately wanted to know — did she like the sound of that as much as he did? It was the question he wanted to ask, but he wasn't sure that it was something that could be spoken, not yet anyway.

When Sam and Cassie entered Greyhouse, they were smothered by the scent of cinnamon and sugar. There were two trays of muffins on the countertop, and Grace was pulling a third out of the oven. She paused, sensing them enter the room.

'Hey,' she said, her back still towards them.

'Oh, hi, honey. This is a nice surprise. I thought you wouldn't be home until later?' asked Cassie. Sam helped remove her coat and took her gloves.

Grace turned to them with a forced smile and shrugged. 'Plans change.'

Cassie stepped towards her while Sam hung back. 'Do you want to talk about it?'

'There's nothing to talk about,' she replied, returning to her baking.

'Well, the three trays of muffins might say otherwise,' replied Cassie. She looked back at Sam and pointed to the teapot, a question in her eyes. Sam politely declined and went around to the other side of the counter, observing the delicacies.

'It's fine, mom,' said Grace, as she placed the last tray beside the others. 'I'm feeling a bit tired, though, so I might just head upstairs.'

Cassie frowned, but she gave her daughter space and moved towards the kettle. 'Okay, but aren't you going to enjoy these?'

'They smell great,' Sam offered, his eyes bright.

There was a pause as Grace looked between her mom and Sam. Then, a crease in her brow, which she blinked away when she noticed they mirrored her expression. The way they entered the room and moved around each other ignited worries in Grace. She shook her head, pushing away the curious thoughts and even more curious tightening in her chest.

'Please, go ahead. I'll have some after I unwind,' said Grace. With that, she picked her bag up off the table and left them in the kitchen. She brushed past George as he entered. George, not so privy to Grace's mood changes, beamed at the pair.

'I hear you've been roped into the party preparation,' George said to Sam. He was carrying a box of tools and fairy lights, which he then set down and started to untangle.

Sam looked over at Cassie, still staring after Grace. He turned to George with his hands raised in surrender. 'I promise, I've come willingly.'

'Blink twice if you need saving,' George replied in a loud whisper. When he hit a knot too difficult to untangle, he gruffed and tossed it back in the box.

Throughout the interaction, Cassie held back and Sam caught a distant look in her eyes. Despite the lighthearted exchange with George, a sinking feeling formed in his stomach. Whatever was going on between mother and daughter was somehow related to his being around Greyhouse.

Shaking the sensations away, Sam stepped towards the box to assist George, which allowed Cassie her private moment. When she excused herself, Sam tried to give her a comforting smile. He would have preferred to reach out and touch her, communicate his remorse in another way. The moment had passed, as she left George and Sam to work.

Upstairs and crossed-legged over the covers, Grace was sat, scrolling through her phone. She sensed her mom's presence before she heard the light tap on the door. There was a moment of hesitation, a moment of selfish desire to avoid the conversation, but it was short-lived as she invited her mom in. Cassie lingered over the doorway until Grace looked up and gave a tight-lipped smile.

Cassie stepped towards the large bed; her movements measured, slow, hesitant. She scanned the room and admired the work that Grace had curated over the years: art posters, school reminders, and pictures with friends. On her bedside table, framed photographs of a younger Grace with her dad, with the family, with Cassie. When Cassie sat down on the edge of the bed, Grace tossed her phone aside and straightened.

'What's up?' She asked. She would feign ignorance and let her mom take the lead.

Cassie shifted closer to her daughter and shrugged. She went to reach for Grace's hand, but she paused and chose to wait until she was ready.

'There's a lot going on here. The planning, the preparations,' Cassie mused.

It was Grace's turn to shrug, as she averted her mom's gaze. There was an uncomfortable pause, a tension in the air. Cassie waited.

'It's been coming for a while now,' Grace sighed. 'And I guess I can't be angry because I did say it's okay. I just thought we'd have a bit more time together.'

Cassie tilted her head and gave her daughter a soft smile. 'I get the sense that we're not just talking about the party.'

Grace stayed silent, her eyes following an intricate pattern across her duvet. Cassie continued, 'You know, I'm not going to say things aren't going to change because they will. But there are some things -' she paused and took her daughter's hand. 'There are some things that will always, always stay the same.'

Grace continued looking down, picking at the gold thread with her other hand. She scoffed, 'Like what?'

'Oh, honey. Like how important you are to me, how much you mean to me,' she cooed and lowered her head to capture her daughter's eyes. 'Like the love I'll always have for you.'

The wind picked up outside and they sat in silence, listening to the soft tap of the trees against the window. Grace pondered her next move, Cassie waited for her daughter. Grace heaved a big sigh, frowned, and then looked at her mom with concern across her features.

'Are you and Sam together?'

Cassie tilted her head and squeezed Grace's hand. 'No,' she said. 'No, we're just friends. He's helping with the party.'

Grace nodded slowly, not convinced. She continued after a pause, 'Because I meant it when I said that dad would want you to be happy.'

Cassie frowned and looked down at their hands. She remembered. Grace was referring to their conversation before the Heritage Ball.

'I do. I also really, really want you to be happy. You've done so much to make everything so good, so easy for us.' She stopped and looked out the window. 'I just feel so sad around this time of year and it feels like there's nothing I can do about it.'

'You miss him a lot.'

Grace nodded and Cassie continued, 'And seeing someone else around for the holidays makes it that much harder.'

Grace's eyes welled up with tears. 'I just wanted more time with you, that's all,' she said, repeating her earlier statement. Cassie grabbed both hands this time and pulled her into a hug.

Grace rested her head on her mom's shoulder and breathed in her scent. The chamomile and rosemary mixed with sweet perfume was a smell so reminiscent of her childhood that it pushed her over the edge. A few tears trickled down her cheek and onto Cassie's sweater. She then wrapped her arms around her mom's waist and hid her face. Cassie's heart ached knowing there was nothing she could do or say to make the hurt go away. So she held her daughter, caressed her hair and whispered words of love and affirmation.

After moments that felt like years, Grace pulled back and wiped a few tears from her face. She sniffled and looked up at her mom with a soft smile.

'I'm sorry, mom. I should've told you sooner,' said Grace.

Cassie, still holding Grace by the arms, shook her head and implored, 'No, honey. I'm sorry. Things have been so busy around here. There hasn't been a lot of opportunity, but I want you to feel like you can talk to me. Anytime. About anything.'

'It's not your fault,' said Grace, cracking a small smile. 'I'm a teenager. We hide feelings and blow up when that doesn't work,' she teased. There was a small shift in the air. A moment of repair.

Cassie pressed her forehead against Grace's. 'Best teenager in the whole world.' Grace hummed in mock agreement, but Cassie could count the streaks where her tears had fallen moments before.

Grace laughed through her sniffles. She pulled back and smiled up at her mom, still holding hands. 'Thanks, mom.'

'Why don't we go away somewhere, in the New Year?' Cassie offered. 'You and me and the open air. Or closed air, indoors and rom-coms?'

Grace stared into her mother's honey brown eyes, long enough to make out her silhouette in them. Her chest expanded, as she noticed the tenderness of those loving, depthless eyes. Grace pursed her lips together and gave a slow nod. After a comfortable silence, she squeezed her mom's hand. 'I'd like that.'

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed. Please leave a review if you did.

AN: Poor Grace! It's hard to get the voices right. I hope I did them justice. I think writing about any teenage experience is tricky, especially a grieving and conflicted one. The final part comes out next week.