For several heartbeats, Ollie hesitated with his fingers hovering near the hollow of his throat and the laces of his tunic. His heartbeat matched the quickened pace of a horse moving at a trot, not ready to gallop away but no longer calm within his chest, and his mouth went dry as he found the words that he'd prepared for this moment slipping away like tiny fish through his fingers.
"I can cut your tunic off," Lilee offered, reaching for the scissors. "If you're worried about your lady-friend seeing, there's nothing there I haven't seen before, and she can stand aside," Lilee offered helpfully.
"No, no that isn't it," Ollie stammered as he drew a deep, shuddering breath. "Ma, Pa, there's something… Something I have to tell you before you see," he said as he looked from one set of pale, worried eyes to another.
