CXIV
As soon as Eleven had unbuckled her seat belt, Henry assured her that he would wait for her. In the face of her protests, he only needed to point out the ominous gray clouds overhead.
"Take your time," he had told her later. "I'm in no hurry, and I won't let you walk back with a storm brewing."
And that's how, now, he finds himself with the car seat reclined and with a book in his hands—lest it occurs to him to let his thoughts run free right now. In general, it is a somewhat uncomfortable experience to read in the car and with the premonitory humidity of the storm harassing him, but it is not impossible, either—especially if he closes the windows and turns on the air conditioner.
Yes, to tell the truth, he could have continued his impromptu reading session if it weren't for one tiny detail.
…
A very tiny detail that has been knocking on the window with very tiny knuckles for approximately five minutes.
Resigned, Henry lowers the book to his lap and turns the window knob, causing his only defense against the annoying little girl to fade away.
"May I help you with something, little miss?"
"Hello. What's your name? Are you coming to visit?"
The question takes him by surprise. "Excuse me?"
"Mom says we gotta be nice to visits. But I couldn't say hello to you because you didn't come to say hello to us." She turns back toward the Wheeler family door; Henry then understands that she must be Mike's relative, possibly his sister.
"Well, my name is Henry, but I only brought my cousin to visit."
"Who's your cousin?"
"Her name is Jane, and she is Mike's… classmate."
The girl's thoughtful expression changes instantly: a big smile takes over her face. "Jane! Jane is great! She always answers my questions and plays with me, even when Mike says I'm being annoying."
He's never thought of Eleven as someone who gets along well with children—especially given how particular she is about interacting with teenagers her age—but he supposes it makes sense when he sees how protective she is toward Poe and her excessive empathy toward all living beings…
Noticing him absorbed in himself, the girl calls him: "Mr. Henry?"
Henry responds with the first thing that comes to mind: "Well, Jane is really great."
The girl smiles at him again. "My name is Holly," she tells him. "You want to come in?"