Always nice

Eric glances down at Stacy's outstretched hand, then back up to her face. The way the light reflected of her cheeks was quite becoming - the shadows placed perfectly along each soft edge. His eyes meet hers for a moment. They'd already met. They'd already shook hands. But perhaps tonight they really were meeting each other for the first time.

Finally, he accepts her handshake. His rough palm envelopes her hand and he grips with a strong touch but not harsh. It was a grip that could be as hard as steel, trained to control a wild mustang... and it was a hand that could be as soft as silk, trained to soothe a horse's spirit.

Perhaps he allows the handshake to linger longer than necessary before he withdraws. "Eric Henson. Nice to meet you, Stacy." His eyes were still on hers. It wasn't a challenging stare, but it was one that he had chosen not to back down from first. There was depth in those moonlit eyes... there was a story behind the sparkling gaze that Eric couldn't quite see. But he knew now there was more than just a tough cop out to get anybody who she thought crossed the line.

"It's hard not to love it here," he agrees. His hands go back to his pockets. "A place like this... sorta just grows on a person." And yet he'd spent the majority of his time on the road. Perhaps he loved it here so much that he didn't want to be a detriment, so staying away had been his way of helping. He was just a dumb truck driver. What did he really have to offer here?

"I'm sure your presence has helped ease some minds around here," he concludes. "Always nice to have another someone on our side."


Being teased back by Ashlee felt different. Dylan wasn't sure why, but maybe it was just the simple fact that he hadn't had much good clean fun in a while. Being with his family... then being in this setting... he just wasn't used to it. But he had to admit to himself that it did feel kinda good. Sticking his tongue out at Ashlee, he finds he is in fact able to play the Draw 4 he'd been holding on to, as payback. While at times that move might make the battle more fierce, for some reason, this time it just serves to create more laughter at the table.

The evening carries on and one by one, players begin to drop out as they start to call it a night. Eventually, it's just Jeff, Jade and Dan, Dylan and Ashlee - though Jade begins to yawn.

"UNO." Jade stifles yet another yawn as she plays her next to the last card. She leans her head on Dan's shoulder, careful not to look at his cards.

"Whoa! No falling asleep on the job," Jeff chides.

"Won't do any good to tell her that." Dylan nods with authority on the subject. "Only way to keep her awake is to put ice down her shirt."

Jade's head snaps up. "One time! One time! And it's following me the rest of my life!"

Dylan comes close to a grin again as he looks at Jeff. "She fell asleep right in the middle of a board game. Couldn't believe it. So what else could a little brother do?" He shrugs. "The ice worked. She upset the whole board so we had to start over, but hey, it woke her up."

Jeff laughs and shakes his head. "I believe it." Lifting his cup, he sighs. "Aw... the coffee is gone. I said when I ran out, I'd go to bed."

"In your wired state?"

"I'm always wired." That was quite the opposite of the truth, but sometimes Jeff liked to ignore his poor health and just pretend he was invincible again. He taps his palm on the table. "Come on. Somebody win so this old man can go to bed."

Dylan tosses down a Skip. "Well, it isn't gonna be Ashlee. Sorry." His eyes give her a sidelong glance.

Watching Dylan and Ashlee, Jade can't help her little smile. Her brother was actually engaging in the activity and Ashlee was cute the way it seemed she'd taken to him. Jade could be mistaken, but it seemed to her that the younger girl might just have a bit of a crush on Dylan. At least Dylan didn't seem to mind, and, on the contrary, was responding well to the open friendship that was obviously being offered. And at this point, seeing Dylan interested in anything at all was an improvement.


Seeing Katie's tear broke Con's heart. He wished he had an answer. He wished he could fix things for his friends. He and Jason had been the best of friends for a long time... and reality was starting to hit him too... and he didn't like it either. Even so, he knew that what he was feeling was only a part of what Katie did. She was losing her love... a chunk of her life.

Abandoning his food, Con slides out from the table only to turn and slide back in to Katie's booth. Putting an arm around her, he envelopes her in a hug. "Jase is gonna be okay," he reasons softly. "One way or the other." Maybe that thought wasn't comforting to her, but it was to him. Whether Jason got well here, or whether God took him, he would be okay. It was just the thought of having a great big hole here that hurt so much.

As he can feel a burning behind his own eyes, Con gives Katie an extra little squeeze. "What can I do for you? How can I help?"


Rick knocks on the front door and hears a low bark but nothing else. "Hotshot?" he calls and knocks again. He tests the doorknob. Locked. He'd try to make his own way in if it weren't for the big dog he knew was waiting on the other side. He got along with Trooper, and the dog wasn't vicious but Rick didn't want to surprise him either. "Jase?" he calls again. Finally he hears foosteps and the door being unlocked.

Jason looks out at Rick a bit drowsily, his red eyes proving he'd been asleep. He pushes the screen door open, not even questioning why Rick was there. "Hey."

"Hi." Rick enters the house and gives Trooper some scratching behind the ears. "I, um... well, I heard that... it..."

"Con talked to you." Jason turns and limps back to the living room. It was all very obvious. He'd gotten quite sick earlier that morning and he knew that Con would tell Rick about it. Easing down on the couch, he puts his foot up on the coffee table, slaps the ice pack on his knee and leans back, closing his eyes. Hearing Rick join him, he doesn't open his eyes but simply holds out his arm, inside up, knowing that an injection was coming.

Rick sighs. "Am I that predictable?" Not receiving a response, he simply administers the antidote. He'd taught Katie how to do it so he wasn't needed every day, but today he wanted the opportunity to check out everything himself.

Jason doesn't even flinch as the needle pricks him. "Where's Katie?"

"At lunch with Con."

"Planned?"

"Yeah." Rick knew he couldn't lie to Jason so there was no point in trying. He sits sideways on the couch and just looks at his young friend for several moments. "I didn't want her to know I was here and worry her."

"She'll know - you gave me the antidote."

"Yeah, but at least it will be after the fact." Rick picks up his bag and finds the pain medication. "How's the knee?"

"Hurts."

"Anything else?"

Jason finally opens his eyes and lets his head turn to Rick. "Everything."

Rick had been afraid of that. "Like what?"

"I ache from my head to my toes. I have a splitting headache that won't go away. I got stomach cramps so bad that I don't even want to eat. Even my teeth seem to hurt." Jason shifts his gaze to the blank television. "Want me to go on?"

Rick hated hearing it, but he needed to know. "Yes."

"All my joints hurt... and this morning I woke up with chest pains."

Another sigh comes and Rick nods. It wasn't going to get any easier than all this. "Jase, I... we could make you more comfortable if you'd be willing to take a room up at the hospital."

Jason swallows hard. "No."

"But it might buy us some time and I could get you on an IV and something stronger to help with the pain and-"

"I don't want to die in a hospital." Though Jason's words were quiet, they were enough to cut Rick off. Jason fingers a loose thread on the couch cushion. "Please don't make me die in a hospital bed with white walls, loud doctors and people crying over me."

Rick holds his emotions in check. "You're not going to die."

"Rick, it's-"

"We're going to fight it. We're going to find the answer, and you're going to live." Rick grits his teeth. "If it's the last thing I do, Jason, I swear I'm going to find the cure."

Jason turns his head and gives him a defeated gaze. "You and I both know I don't have much time left. How about just letting me have some peace, huh?"

"But..." Rick's shoulders drop as he stares back at Jason's pale face. He really couldn't blame him and he knew it. If he was in Jason's position, he might argue for the very same reasons, and if he did, he would want others to treat him with enough respect to leave him be. But that didn't make this any easier. Rick hands Jason a thermometer. "At least let me check you over so I can document the progression."

That, he would do. Jason takes the thermometer and pops it in his mouth under his tongue. If Rick found a cure after he was gone, then maybe it would help someone else down the line or even help in some way with Katie...

...Left alone again in the quiet house, Jason lies in bed where Rick had convinced him to go. He'd managed to keep down a piece of toast and a little bit of juice but that was it. He did have a fever now, a sign that infection was spreading. The pain meds had kicked in and were helping a little bit, but not enough to help him stay comfortable. No matter which way he tossed or turned, the only thing he wanted was to curl up next to Katie... to feel her fingers run through his hair... to listen to her soft hum... to hear her soothing heartbeat. And yet it was Katie that this thing was hurting the most.

Tears sting Jason's eyes before he buries his face in his pillow. And for the millionth time, he asks God why.