Dread 0.2

"You are back!" she exclaimed loudly with a happy grin, all her previous emotions buried under the rug.

"And you are late," He didn't sound angry or worried, but curious. How she could tell apart his emotions from a monotonous speech was beyond her because he excelled in making the poker face. She was sure nobody could win against him in bluffing.

"I was held back by Mrs. Norbel, nothing much happened." She made her way across the porch and walked past the lobby entrance. A nice aroma assaulted her nose, it smelled like salted veggies and red sauce pasta, which was her favorite so her steps found their way to the kitchen automatically. "What's the deal with the pasta? I thought you hated the sauce."

'Where were you all day?', 'Who were you meeting?', 'Why do you hide things from me', all these were questions which were taboo to ask according to her experience in the household for the last 17 years, so she skipped over to the more simpler topics scattered around them.

She heard the door being closed and latched properly, and a deep voice resounded from the enclosed lobby, "You like pasta."

A man of a few words her father was indeed, he only ever spoke lengthy when stressed or scolding her for her conduct.

She turned to look at her father as he approached her from behind, his face calm and composed as usual.

"I like pasta but I told you to never bother with it, I can make it on my own."

His pale lips curved upwards slightly to form a smile directed at her but his hard coffee eyes were watching the food being cooked on low flames. "It is not a question of what I know you can or cannot cook, it is a matter of forming a stronger bond with you."

Pierce didn't know how to respond to that so she instead took the plates out from the lower drawers and started keeping them on the table, but being a klutz, the last one slipped through her fingers. "Oh!" she gasped and reached for the falling plate quickly, but before it could touch her fingers her father's inhuman reflexes saved it in time.

"Be careful," he chided her softly, it always made her wonder from where he got those reflexes almost as if he had practiced it for years. He did say he was a football player before he graduated but that was it, the only information she ever got out from him and it didn't even state anything about his inhuman senses. He had once worked as a manager for a sales company in his younger days but that had been quickly replaced with the teaching profession. Now he taught in colleges and took many trips to organize various events worldwide. He even had his own fan-club for Christ's sake.

Pierce saw her father segregate their snacks into three parts and make three separate sauces. "Are we having a guest today?"

"The guest is sitting upstairs."

"Dad, you never really bring anyone home, who is this person. Don't tell me it's a woman."

Her father rarely disapproved of her but it was moments like these when she got to see his frustration. "And why would I do something so preposterous?" Even with the tone his voice was still eerily monotonous.

"...sorry, you rarely stay at home and I would be lying if I say you aren't popular."

Looking at his guilty daughter playing with her fingers like a small child, Judith's heart went out to her. He loved his daughter more than anything but his job didn't allow him to enjoy his family life, it was just sad.

He relented back to being the calm dad, "The guest we are having is a boy, my friend's son about your age, 17 or 18 approx."

Pierce was silent for a while. Only a small while.

"You," she started incredulously, once the answer fully sank in, "brought a boy here my age... You said it yourself that it was inappropriate for a girl to be in the same house as the boy until marriage."

"You don't have to worry about that. Come give me the plates, I will take it to him..."

"Yes bu-"

"He is from a respectable family Pierce, I trust him to be polite and well behaved," "... you too," he added on a second thought and with that he went gliding effortlessly across the lobby and up the stairs.

Pierce couldn't believe what was happening, one minute she was smelling pasta which her dad likely made for her and not the guest to strengthen their bond as he had hinted and the other minute he was distributing her favorite pasta into three plates where one was likely to be given to another.

So she quickly dialed Gracia's number and walked out to her garden for privacy, her steps almost silent as she did so. The phone rang for sometimes making Pierce practically buzz with anxiousness, 'Pick up the phone, pick up the phone,' she kept on chanting. Just when she was going to drop the call, she heard the voice on the other line ask, 'Whom do I need to punch this time?' the greeting was solely reserved for her, because she got in so much trouble.

"Gracia, you wouldn't believe what just happened..."

After a while of discussion, Gracia was laughing at her friend's expense, 'You know, your father is a really weird guy, no offense but even the rules he makes are so old fashioned.'

"Heyyy, it is for my own benefit you know, he cares for me an-"

'Alright chill, I was just telling the facts here, you yourself know that I am right. Nobody makes so many ground rules for their daughter where one states, 'You will come back home before 6' I mean really? 8 sounds better, you are no more a child you are already 16.'

"17." Pierce corrected offhandedly.

'Ya, see what I mean, we will be graduating next year or so, you know how that makes these rules sound really odd right? And what's with 'Don't even shake hands with the boys', that's crossing the line, what if someone new meets you and tries to greet with a handshake, will you just drop it because you are told to? It will be downright rude and weird, trust me on this, I was there when you actually did the exact same thing. No wonder girls try to tease and bully you because of them. No going out on friday nights, no invitation to your friends even on your birthdays. I stick with you because I am understanding but others aren't me girl.'

"...I know okay, but my father says that in his family such traditions are followed so who am I to break it, I like it when I am not scolded."

'Either you are a wimp or a really mature and sensible daughter.'

Pierce laughed softly, "Both I suppose."

'Take a look at your guest and let me in on some juicy gossip the next time we meet, okay?'

"Alright, Bye then."

'Bye! Keep me updated.'

Switching off the flashing screen, Pierce returned back to the dining plus lobby hall. It was still vacant except for herself, she could hear murmurs coming from upstairs but that was it. Knowing her father it would be difficult to interact with the guy without looking suspicious, so she decided to just wait and see what would happen. She didn't know the reason he was here, but she had an inkling that the reason wasn't good. Her sixth sense was making her skin crawl with dread, 'Why is that?'

Since young age Pierce had a vague power which she carelessly named 'sixth sense' before even knowing that the term did exist in the literal world. She would always feel the emotions of the people around her more intensely than the rest and it was just odd sometimes when she could predict her future based on the emotion she felt the most. Gracia called it the human instinct and she was right but most of the time Pierce wondered if it was something more than that.

Today she felt dread, a sinking feeling in her stomach where she just wanted to hide away in her closet and never come out... she felt sadness too, which was downright depressing her. When she thought about it practically, she felt herself drowning with mortification, "No wonder people call me weird, I just don't make sense sometimes."

Since her father was still busy with the guest, Pierce decided to slip to her room with the food in hand. It was strictly against her dad's code to eat in bed, it was what sick people did according to him. So quickly but silently she stepped up the stairs with slight tremor coursing through her veins as she knew she was going to defy her dad to his face. 'I hope he doesn't gets angry with me later, but I just don't feel like entertaining anyone today, plus somehow I feel my senses doing these ridiculous somersaults.'

As she made her way up, with each step she took she started to get a strange vibe from the guest room, like various small threads of silver were trying to encase her in some sort of a cocoon, it had a fearful presence but at the same time was very warm and comforting. It seemed as if she was called upon by these imaginary threads.

It may had been out of curiosity when she stepped down to walk towards the imaginary threads, it may also had been the familiar warmth and comfort she felt radiating from them or maybe she was just being plain stupid but she did make her way to that white wooden door that stood between her and the source of those threads.

It had never once happened before, such notion of imagining threads and trying to follow it was something out of the horror or sci-fi movies, so she just felt plain creepy while inching closer to the door trying to twist the handle just within her reach. And like always she was caught up in the middle of her move when the door was opened to reveal the face of her father looking down at her with a confused gaze, which was quickly replaced by a blank one. "What are you doing here Pierce?"

That was a question she herself was trying to answer, "Um, I guess I was just coming to see you."

Wow she was just brilliant with lies.

"Did something happen?"

Pierce shook her head, "No, I just wanted to go to the store, thought will let you know first. It is still light out there so I was thinking it was better to come back before night falls, was in a hurry." She was sure she didn't need to explain herself so much but it was better this way than being questioned by him instead. He had an uncanny ability to get out the truth no matter what the situation or who the person was, he would have been an excellent investigator or a spy.

"Alright, but what do you need this urgent."

"An assignment notebook." Couldn't she be any more dumber?

"Well sure then, but be safe and keep that plate in the sink when you are done, no need to carry it around like that."

"Okay, bye!" Pierce called out loudly as she was already halfway through the stairs. 'I can't even lie properly without fumbling and shifting awkwardly, and I was still carrying this plate.' She sighed loudly as she reached down again, took her purse from the lobby desk, slipped in her slippers and quickly ran out of the house in a hurry.

She didn't know why she wanted to get away when her father caught her nor why she wanted to go back again to find that comfort and solace radiating from those threads. 'What thread Pierce, what thread. It was just your vague imaginations running wild.'

"And I forgot to eat my food completely, he will notice that for sure." She remembered the tasty dish lying cold on the table. "God please don't let that table be the shoe rack."