Hilary, a writer with her first book Coming Home for Christmas under her belt, had decided to return home in preparation for writing her next book, having nothing to do she received a call from her mother.
"Hi Hilary, it's mom. Any chance you can come help me out at the bookstore for a while? You could start writing your next novel here, in the meantime advertise here what you've already written. Times are tough for the bookstore, I can't do it alone." Her mother asked hopefully.
"Mom. You know I'd love to come back and help you out. But I have to get down and start writing the first chapter of my new book. And I wouldn't be able to concentrate there in Laurel." Hilary replied very firmly.
Her mother was hurt at those words, but she didn't let it show in her voice as she spoke to her daughter before saying goodbye.
It had been a couple of days since that conversation, Hilary found herself rethinking her mother's proposal. In hindsight, she realized that her mother had been hurt; she adored her mother.
So she made the decision to return to Laurel. Her hometown, to help her with the bookstore, she basically had nothing to do for the time being. So she packed her suitcase, grabbed her laptop, bought a ticket to Laurel and walked to the airport. She didn't say anything to her mother, who was on her way home.
When she arrived at the airport, she went to check in. 
"Miss excuse me, what time does the plane leave for Laurel?" asked Hilary to the check in clerk.
"Miss....." The attendant asked.
"Excuse me. Word, my last name is Word." said Hilary.
"Well, Miss Word. The flight to Laurel will be leaving in about an hour. Let me see your ticket." said the girl very politely at the check in.
Hilary pulled the ticket out of her bag and handed it to the attendant, who looked at it to confirm the departure time. Hilary went to wait for the departure time in the waiting room of the airport, on a comfortable red chair. She was eager to see the look on her mother's face when she saw Laurel arrive. When it was time to board the plane, she walked to the terminal indicated on her ticket, showed the attendant her reservation, and boarded the plane for home.
It had been a while since she had been back, with the fact that she was always traveling to promote her first book, she never had time. Once she landed, she headed to baggage claim, grabbed her suitcase, and headed out of the small airport to find a cab to take her home.
She took the first cab she found and turned to the driver, "Hello. Take me to cromuel street, please." said Hilary. She had decided to go directly to the bookstore, knowing that her mother was certainly there.
"Right away miss." Said the driver very politely.
She arrived, paid and got out of the cab. She was very nervous and couldn't explain why, after all, it was her mother who had called her for help. She crossed the street and went to the bookstore, where her mother was busy arranging the books on a shelf, not realizing that someone had entered. She had to raise her head, and when she raised it she saw her daughter in front of her, she couldn't believe her eyes.
"Hilary, is that really you? You finally came to help me out." her mother ran up to her and hugged her.
"Mom slowly, otherwise we'll both fall down. I'm happy to see you too." laughed Hilary.
The mother broke away from the hug and invited her daughter to the refreshment room near the bookstore. The place was a nice place, not very big with red round tables and vinyl chairs of the same color, with the walls covered with dark brown beadboard, and it was run by Sally, an old friend of her mother's. For Hilary the place felt like home, she had spent her entire childhood there.
They sat at the little corner table and were served by Sally, who ran to hug her as soon as she saw Hilary.
"Hilary, how nice to see you again! How long are you staying?" asked Sally with a smile.
"Hi Sally, how are you doing? I missed you so much and this place too. I don't know how long I'm going to stay yet, it depends on if I can get any writing done, but it may be for a while." said Hilary returning the smile.
They ordered lunch, talking while they waited.
"Hilary, I know you don't want to hear this, but when are you going to Wako to your grandmother Camille's house? If only to see what condition the house is in, and to see what your intentions are," her hopeful mother insisted again.
"Mom, don't insist. Since Grandma died, I haven't been able to go to Wako. When I can, I will go. Don't worry." replied Hilary a little altered.
"All right, all right. But you think about it. You haven't been back there since your grandmother died." Replied the discouraged mother.
Sally arrived with their orders and sat down at the table with them
"Hilary tell me, how is your life in California? Your mother hardly ever tells me anything. Are you engaged?" asked Sally very directly.
Hilary turned red as a bell pepper at that question.
"Sally, you know I'm not engaged. And my life in California isn't so great. I'm always on the road promoting the novel lately." Said Hilary, smiling.
Hilary had always liked Sally very much; she considered her family.
"About your novel. Coincidentally, I'd have a copy...any chance you could autograph it for me? I'd love to." Sally asked.
"Of course Sally. I'll gladly do it as soon as you bring it to me." replied Hilary.
Sally was a middle-aged woman with short salt-and-pepper hair, not very tall but plump, with rough hands full of calluses from cooking and serving at refreshment tables. But she had a good nature and was kind to everyone, which Hilary liked very much.
They finished eating and went back to the bookstore. Hilary promised Sally that they would see each other again. Marilyn, Hilary's mother, would not give up trying to persuade her daughter to go to her grandmother's house in Wako. She had to get her daughter unstuck, and she didn't know how to do it, but she would succeed. This woodworm accompanied her all the way to the bookstore, but she didn't stop thinking about it for the rest of the day. She knew in the bookstore that her daughter wasn't ready to go to her grandmother's house yet, but she had to somehow get her unlocked, and in her thinking she didn't notice her daughter calling her.
"Hilary, did you say something?" Her mother asked, blinking her eyes.
"Yes mom, I called you several times but you wouldn't answer. Anyway I'm going home to put my bags down and get some rest in preparation for the stressful days I have ahead of me starting tomorrow. I'll see you when you get home, don't be late mom you'll collapse on the couch." said Hilary in a very cheerful tone.
"Don't worry my daughter. I've never been scared of working late, but still go home and rest and don't worry. I won't be late." Replied her mother very quietly.
Hilary wasn't convinced by what her mother had said about not being late, because she knew how much she cared about that bookstore, but she let it slide. She put on her coat and scarf, grabbed her suitcase, and headed out. It had started to snow, so Hilary took the gloves out of her coat and put them on, then picked up her suitcase and headed home. The snow that was falling forced Hilary to open her umbrella so she wouldn't have to get wet.
"I don't remember it taking this long to get home from the library." Said Hilary to herself.
She walked up the steps to the wide porch that surrounded the entire house, set her suitcase on the ground, and stood in front of the door thinking about how much she had missed that place so much. Hilary snapped out of her thoughts, grabbed her keys and walked into the house. The entrance wasn't that big and led directly into the living room, where there was a white marble fireplace with black streaks, two dark oak bookcases. Above the fireplace was a shelf where the mother had put family photos. On one side there was a large French window with a black aluminum frame overlooking the garden. In front of the fireplace was the huge brown sofa that Hilary had always hated because she didn't like the color, with a wrought iron and glass coffee table in front of it, with candles on top. On either side of the sofa were two low dark wood tables with lamps on top, and finally there were also two armchairs in the same color as the sofa. Hilary left her suitcase at the entrance and went to the mantelpiece to see the photos, taking a frame in her hands she sighed.
"Home at last. I feel like time has stopped here in the fifties." She said disconsolately.
She placed the frame back on the shelf and returned to the entryway, grabbed her suitcase and walked up the stairs in front of the front door that led to the rooms. She was curious to see her room, if anything had changed, but as she opened the bedroom door she realized that time had stopped and it was like entering her childhood. Her mother had changed nothing. In the middle of the room stood the black wrought iron bed with her favorite purple comforter on top, on the left side was the dark beech wood closet her father had made for her when she was a teenager. She missed her father terribly, who had died two years earlier, but not a single day had passed for her. She walked over to the closet and stroked it.
"Oohh daddy, I miss you terribly." Hilary sighed, letting go of a few tears.
On the right wall was a window with a desk underneath with a chair and a lamp above it.
Hilary placed her suitcase on the bed and walked out of the room, locking herself behind the door. She went downstairs and sat on the couch. At that moment her cell phone rang.
"Hello Hilary, where are you? I've been looking for you all day." Squealed from the other end of the phone her manager Angie.
"Hi to you too Angie. Sorry I didn't give you a heads up but I'm back in Laurel. At home my mom needs me for a while. Don't worry I'll be able to, write the book." Said Hilary with conviction.
They said their goodbyes. Hilary put her cell phone down on the coffee table and settled back on the couch to wait for her mother, falling asleep. When she woke up, she noticed that her mother still hadn't returned, looked at her watch and saw that it was late and she should have been home by now.
He called her on her cell phone, "Mom, are you still at the library?" he asked into the phone.
"Yes dear, but I'm home soon. I'll go out and stop by Sally's to pick up dinner and I'll be there." Said her mother.
Hilary finished talking to her mother and got up from the couch and went to the kitchen to set the table while she waited for her return.