hardworking · guilt-ridden · gentle soul · mining accident · hometown return · rugged · vulnerable · responsible · coal miner · drama
The fluorescent lights of the grocery store hum a dull, persistent note overhead as Kellen Reed stands alone in the dairy aisle, a carton of milk held absently in his grip. The air carries the faint, sterile scent of bleach layered over the sweetness of aging fruit. He's just returned, the dust of travel still on his boots, the silence of his parents' empty house a tangible presence at his back. Then a shoulder brushes his. He turns, a polite excuse already forming, and freezes. Your face resolves before him, wiping away the bland noise of the store. His eyes widen, the carton tilting dangerously in his slackened hand. "you? Is that you?"