Chapter 1

The sudden noise caught me by surprise. I looked at the door for a moment, thinking it was a figment of my imagination. The loud knocking repeated, breaking the quiet of the morning.

For a second I thought about ignoring the sound, figuring the uninvited visitor would go away.

"I'm coming, just a second." The words slipped out of my lips instinctively in response to a third set of knocks. Even while I was saying the words I wondered why I had opened my mouth.

Now set on an unintended course, I put my coffee mug down on the kitchen counter. My mind focused on wondering who could possibly be calling at 10:30 on a Saturday morning.

I stepped into the bedroom past the starting to stir form of my sleeping husband. A grumble of words came out the lump which, to the casual listener, would be gibberish.

"It's okay. I got it." I said as I grabbed my robe from the end of the bed. "It's probably just a salesperson or something."

I pulled the robe on as I stepped back out the bedroom, pulling the door closed behind me. I didn't think he'd stay asleep for much longer, but at least I made the effort.

Getting to the front door, I quickly checked the peephole, expecting to see two middle-aged people dressed in suits, clutching pamphlets meant to save my soul.

Instead I saw a blonde haired teenage boy, dressed in a bright yellow t-shirt with the letters GHS over the right breast pocket. I took a deep breath expecting the call now to involve some fund-raiser for the boy's high school. I was mentally phrasing my reply as I unlocked the door.

"Good morning." I did my best to smile pleasantly as I spoke, wanting nothing more than to hurry the conversation along so I could get back to my coffee.

The boy stood outside silently staring at me. It would have been creepy if I didn't recognize the expression on his face as one of surprise. Obviously I wasn't the person he was expecting to see.

"Yes?" I asked now, trying to jostle his mind along to whatever it was that brought him to the door. Now I was thinking that this was no more than a mistaken address.

"Good morning!" He replied, his mouth move faster than the words came to his head. "Do you have any milk?"

I frowned at this, not out of displeasure, but that none of my rehearsed answers were suitable as a reply.

"Yes." I replied, the slight surprise showing in the sound of my voice.

The boy looked at me dumbfounded again. As if he also had no idea where this conversation was going.

"May I borrow some?" His fingers began to twitch against his sides as his nervousness increased.