Hugs and Kisses
Chapter Two: Strangers

For all of you who may have read the book by Dean Koontz that takes the same title as the one I have chosen, I will let you know now that they have absolutely nothing to do with each other. And now, with that being said, I think I'm ready to start this story...

But before I do (I guess I wasn't completely ready yet) I'll share with you where I got the idea for this story from. Honestly, it was a rather comical thing. You see, my father had set out an old computer on the curb to be picked up the city trash department. The computer had to be at least ten years old and my father could hardly get it to turn on. (I don't even know why he bothered trying in the first place.) But anyway, it had been sitting there on the curb for about three days and then all of a sudden, this guy in rags comes up to the curb. He just picks up the old computer, puts it in the back of his bike where he's pulling along some other stuff in this wagon, and rides off. As humbling as the sight should have been, I couldn't help but snicker a little, which then turned into full hearty laughter. And then this idea came to me, leaving me no time for me to regret my actions and feel ashamed of the laughter.

NOW I am ready to start this story. (And this time I mean it.) I hope you enjoy it, because I most certainly did!

(Begin.)

He was so destitute, without the slightest bit of hope for living. There was no even the sparkle of life in his eyes. His clothes, not yet rags but nothing anyone would happily wear in public, consisted of old dark blue jeans, a red t-shirt with no tag, a seemingly shapeless black jacket thrown over his shoulders, and black no-name sneakers with no socks. His black hair was completely unkept and was sticking out in every possible direction. It was overgrown and obviously matted in some places and was nearly completely covering his light hazel eyes.

He was the saddest picture that Alice could ever remember seeing. Slumped against the front wall of the Starbucks, one could have mistaken him for a dead man. But despite his morbid looks, Alice caught a glimpse of the man's eyes and in them she saw something so amazing that made her want to stop in her tracks and just stare at them. But her mother bid her to ignore the pathetic waste of life as the two of them entered the coffee shop.

Once inside the shop Alice's mother, Barbara White, let out a visible shiver at the memory of the ragged creature. "Honestly, the city ought to do something about all of these ... hobos running about the place. They really are quite an eye-sore, the miserable things!"

"Mother, you talk like they aren't even human," Alice replied in more of an inside voice and no so flamboyant. Compared to Mss. White, Alice was always rather soft-spoken. In fact, compared to most people Alice was usually the quiet and reserved one. She never liked to raise her voice as her mother did at the slightest bit if displacement and many people took her quiet nature as being shy - which she was more often than not. Even though she was usually quiet, she was quite the intellectual. Alice could always be found reading whatever she could or writing the first things that came to her mind. She loved to learn new things as well, and made sure to keep an open mind to most things, which many would say is nearly the exact opposite of her mother.

"Well they might as well not be human," Mss. White said. "They lazy about the place and don't contribute to society like everyone else. Why, if I had my way I'd have them all sent to the electric chair!" At first, Alice thought to comment on the fact that the electric chair was no longer practiced in most states in this day and age. People found it much more human to kill someone with a lethal injection. But she decided against it, as she very seldom raised her voice against her mother no matter how much they disagreed on a subject. And on this subject the two greatly differed in ideals. Instead, Alice went to the front counter to place their orders. Mss. White was right behind her.

"I'll have a Carmel Mocha Cappuccino with whip cream and a light caramel drizzle; sugar free thank-you. Oh yes, and use soy milk, not whole," Mss. White said ahead of Alice.

"Yes ma'am," the young male cashier said as he rang up her order. "And for you?" he asked, now directing his attention towards Alice.

"Um, I think I'll have a Vanilla Bean, no whip cream please," Alice ordered with a smile; but the cashier didn't immediately take her order. He found himself staring at Alice. Though she was a soft-spoken and shy girl Alice was rather stunning, and a much better sight than her mother was. Alice was steadily growing taller than her mother (something she had been doing since birth) and was now three inches over her, making her a desirable 5 foot 4 inches. Alice had a figure that could easily be the envy of many calendar models. Long slim legs and a flat mid-drift only helped to accentuate her breast, not overly large, but nicely shaped. The outfit she wore only helped to make her appearance all the more appeasing. Her dark blue Aeropostale jeans formed around her legs and butt almost perfectly and her white button-down blouse fit around her bosom snuggly and dared to bear a bit of belly. Over the blouse she wore a brown leather jacket for which the cuffs of her blouse were curled around the ends of the sleeves. Overall, Alice was a slim and fit figure, with a beautiful face that was even more beautiful when she smiled. She had bright blue eyes, lips that were full but not too large, and extraordinary lavender hair that was now in a curly ponytail that was resting over her shoulder.

The cashier had been caught off guard by the 23-year-old's looks, and did not return to reality until he noticed the evil eye that Mss. White. "Oh, um, yes! Vanilla Bean, no whip cream! Got it!" the cashier said as he quickly rang up their toll. "That'll be 3.96," he said. Mss. White readily paid for the two drinks and the two took their seats while waiting for their order.

"Well that was a lot less than I thought it would be," Alice commented with a shy smile. She knew that the cashier had only charged for her mother's drink. She didn't know him, but she was pretty used to special service every once in a while wherever she went.

"If you ask me, that boy was looking for something in the wrong place!" her mother replied sourly as she passed one more cautious look towards the cash register. They boy who was once behind the register was already working on their drinks quickly and had sent someone else to take the other customer's orders.

"I think he was cute," Alice said, but only half-hearted. Though the situation was something that she and her mother could go on talking about for quite some time, Alice's mind couldn't help but wonder to two lonely hazel eyes just outside the coffee shop.

(Break)

24 hours. She told herself that if she ever went back there, it would have to be after and only after 24 hours had passed...at the least. For some reason, she desperately wanted to go back to the Starbucks that she had gone to yesterday with her mother. She had wanted to go back ever since she left the day before. The feeling daunted her last night, occupying her mind every time she had a bit of free time on her hands. By the time she went to bed, she was trying to figure out why she wanted to go back so soon fell asleep on that note.

When she woke up the next morning her mind was clear of the want to return to the coffee shop. But it quickly returned to her before she finished her breakfast, only this time with a much greater intensity. By noon Alice found herself pacing back and forth in her living room, her mind rattled with indecision. For some reason that was far beyond her explaining, she felt compelled – almost a need – to return to the Starbucks. But she could not figure out why for the life of her. After about half an our of the continual internal turmoil that she was going through, Alice White decided that she had to go back to the coffee shop. She just absolutely had to! But there was a catch; she wouldn't allow herself near the place for at least 24 hours. She didn't know why she decided on 24 hours, but it just seemed right. And 24 hours was only 2 hours away, precisely at 2 o' clock.

For a while she debated on whether or not she should call her mother and ask her to join her, but decided against it. Whatever she needed to do once she returned to the Starbucks was something for her and not for her and her mother.

The minutes seemed to be creeping by too slowly. If Alice didn't do something to pass the time, she knew that she'd drive herself crazy. But she couldn't think of anything to do. She knew that if she tried to drive anywhere that she would take herself right to Starbucks without a second thought. And her mind was too agitated for her to possibly work on her story, despite the approaching deadline. So all in all...she was stuck.

(1 hour and 55 minutes later...)

Alice burst from her house, moving so quickly that she nearly forgot to lock the door behind her. When she turned around to lock it, she realized that she had caught her cat's tail in the door and she was now wailing in pain. "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry Missy!" Alice cried as she freed the cat and let it go scampering across the drive and onto the hood of Alice's black SUV to tend to its poor tail. Alice then quickly locked the door and did not resist her urge to run to the vehicle. As soon as the door was opened, her cat leapt into the driver's seat and then hopped over to the passenger seat. Alice quickly followed her, closed the door, fumbled with the keys before finally getting the right one into the ignition, switched it on, and finally stopped to take a few deep breaths.

Alice knew that she couldn't go driving around in the state that she was in, less she wanted to seem like a maniac on the prowl for unsuspecting J-walkers. After calming her heart and steadying her breath, Alice finally backed the car out of the driveway. Though she was in a serious hurry to get to the coffee shop (and she still didn't know why) she didn't want to ruin her spotless automotive record by running over the neighbor's mailbox or hitting the dog across the street that was never chained. Alice told herself that she had to keep her cool while on the way to the Starbucks. It was just a few blocks away and she would be there in five minutes, and then she would know what was driving her so forcedly to go there. All she had to do was be patient and drive safely. She didn't want to die in a wreck before she found out what was pulling her back to the coffee shop; that would surely be a twist of irony.

In no time, Alice found herself in the parking lot of the Starbucks. She had gotten there a lot sooner than she had thought she would, but still, it was already two minutes past 2. Turning the car off, she took in a deep breath, realizing that she was finally here. Her anxiety had calmed while she was driving and now that she was finally there, she was a little hesitant. Alice got out of the car and looked around, wondering if she would see what she was looking for, but no such luck. She still felt a knot of nervous tension in her chest. But despite this she was ready to get it over with. So she put her anxiety and apprehension behind her and made her way for the front entrance of the Starbucks.

Alice didn't have the faintest idea as to what she should expect, but she figured that once she stepped into the Starbucks she'd be hit with some sort of amazing revelation. All she could do was wait till she was there.

The parking lot was in the back of the building and spread forward to partially cover the side as well, so Alice had to walk down the sidewalk to get to the front of the building. As soon as she came around to see the large Starbucks sign hanging on the top of the building, she was hit with her revelation much sooner than she expected. There, slumped against the front of the building, was the man she had seen yesterday with her mother. If he had not removed his jacket (because the day was far too warm to be wearing one) she would have thought that he had not moving one bit since yesterday. Alice's breath caught in her throat when she first saw him and it made a small gasp that no-one would have heard unless they were walking past her.

Alice stood there, transfixed by the destitute man, not knowing what to think or what to do next. Then she remembered the man's amazing light hazel eyes. They seemed so dead and joyless, but even still, as dull as they were, they were beautiful. She remembered thinking about that man and his wonderful eyes the entire time she was with her mother, even after they left Starbucks and went to the mall. It surprised Alice that she hadn't thought of him once she got home. And now here she was, no more than 3 yards away from the man. His hair was still black and messy; his clothes were still close to becoming rags.

With amazing grace despite her pounding heart, Alice made her way to the front door of the Starbucks coffee shop and stopped once she was next to the man. Then she knelt down next to him and tried her best to smile sweetly, but that task was made difficult by the smell coming off of him that threatened to chase her away. At first the man did not even seem to notice that Alice was next to him. He just continued to stare ahead into space. For a while Alice just knelt next to the man, watching him, seeing how he acted or what he did. But it was quickly becoming clear to Alice that all he did was stare. After a while her legs began to hurt from the strain of kneeling for so long, so she just sat down next to him. Wondering how long this was going to take - whatever if was that she was doing - Alice's mind wondered to her cat, Missy, who remained in the car, not feeling the want or need to follow her master wherever she was going.

When Alice sat down next to the man he finally acknowledged her presence and slowly turned his head to look at her. His eyes were still dull - though nevertheless beautiful - but now Alice could tell that there was a great deal of sadness in his eyes as well. Alice once again tried a smile, but he still did not respond to it. Then Alice finally ventured to speak.

"Hi, my name is Alice," she said with a polite smile. As soon as she spoke, the man's eyes twinkled and his look went from sadness to something like surprise, and maybe even the faintest light of hope.

"Um, M-Michael," the man said, but his voice was seemed so scratchy and out of practice that it came out more like a croak. Seeming a bit embarrassed, he cleared his throat and tried again. "My name. It's Michael." Alice's smile broadened when he answered her. His eyes were still slightly widened, still wondering who in the world this crazy girl was and why, out of all the people in the world, did she decide to talk to the likes of someone as low as him. In truth, Alice didn't know what she was doing either. But she did know this much: no matter what she was about to do, she knew that she wasn't going to turn back!

(The End)