Intervention

A bit of color hits Wyatt's cheeks at Aerith's comment, though he laughs. "Alright then - tomorrow night it is. Since I know where you live, how about I swing on by about seven o'clock?"

Plans made, Wyatt turns to his food as Mabel brings it out. It wasn't like him to go out on a date with someone like this, so soon after meeting them...but there was something different about Aerith. Something that kept him completely relaxed around her as if he'd known her all his life.


Con grins. "Yeah. A better job. Anything's got to be better than that. I'm glad Phil can work with that guy, but I sure can't. I'm just happy to be rid of him."
He thinks for several moments and shrugs. "I don't know what I can find around here...I see they're hiring out at that construction site where they're building that new housing addition at the west end of town. I might check that out."


Scott opens his eyes groggily. After Rick had checked him over, he'd insisted he rest for a while in the infirmary, but apparently a "while" had turned into several hours. It was late afternoon already.

Rolling over and sitting up, Scott almost groans. He hadn't thought he could feel worse - he'd been wrong. Maybe getting up and about this morning had been too much. But he couldn't change it now.

Making his way slowly out of the infirmary, he opts to finally go home. Katie had said to call her, but he didn't want to bother her, and his car was still here from the day before anyway. If he took it easy, he could make it alright.

It takes longer than normal, but Scott finally gets home. After taking care of Domino the best he can, he heads for the couch, flipping on the tv to help lull him back to sleep.


...A loud pounding wakes Scott up. The tv was still on, and it takes him a moment to get his bearings. Domino is barking at the front door. Who was here?

Rising, Scott gingerly makes his way to the door, unlocking it, and shooing Domino away with his foot.

The last thing he remembers is opening the door.


Carson looks up from where he's cooking a steak on the stove as he sees Jason enter the apartment. "Thought you might've run out on me," he comments. He'd come home about supper time to find evidence that Jason had been there during the day, but had left again.

Jason throws him a disgusted look, and continues his route to the spare room.

"You're going to eat something before you conk out," Carson hollers after him. "I'm not dragging you to the hospital if your sugar does a nosedive."

Jason stops and turns around. "And what do you care?"

"Hey, I'm not going to be held responsible for neglecting someone's health," Carson states flatly. "You do whatever you want to yourself, but I'm looking out for me." He nods to Jason. "Where you been?"

"Out."

Carson rolls his eyes. "How do you like your steak?"

"I don't."

Carson sighs and sets aside his fork as the steak sizzles. "Can you be any more difficult? Look, you're not going to feel any better moping around all the time. So buck up."

"If you don't like the way I act, then maybe I should just leave."

"Jason, how old are you?"

"Going on twenty-two."

"Then why don't you start acting like it?" Carson puts his hands on his hips. "Right about now, I'd guess you were five."

Jason grits his teeth. Katie's words had haunted him all day long...the images of their encounter that morning had followed him closely, and he'd been unable to erase them from his mind. "You have no idea what I'm going through." He spins on his heel to leave the kitchen.

"Oh, no you don't." Carson goes after him.

Jason whirls around and takes a swing at him, but Carson is too quick, ducking, and once again gets Jason in a chokehold. Dragging him backward through the kitchen, he shoves Jason into a chair, forcing him to be at the table. "Now for the last time, you're eating something."

Jason glares up at him. "Great. Then you can clean up my puke when I'm done."

"That's an easier job than getting along with you," Carson retorts.


Domino barks again and nuzzles Scott's hand, then moves to lick his face. She whines at her motionless master, but receives as much response as she had the last several hours she'd tried to rouse him from the living room floor. Taking his shirt in her teeth, she gives it several yanks, but it does nothing. She moves to sniff again at the wound on the side of Scott's head that had finally stopped bleeding. Barking again, she cocks her head at him, then looks to the open front door that exposed the evening's descending darkness.

Domino trots to the open door, then turns around again, surveying the chaotic mess of the ransacked house. A breeze through the door blows several papers around.

She whines again then suddenly bursts out the door and jumps down off the steps, running to the street. She looks left and right, tilting her nose in the air. She'd only been on one ride recently, and takes off at fast clip in that direction. Perhaps it was unexplainable instinct. Perhaps a simple sixth sense. Perhaps a glimpse of special God-breathed intervention...


...Laura's car was not in the driveway. She'd worked late tonight, then had gone to spend some time with her brother. The house was dark. A little black and white dog trots wearily up the walk. It was dark now - the sun had already said it's goodnight to the world.
Domino scratches at the door, smelling the familiar scent that kept her on the porch. Whining for a moment, she throws her head back and lets out a howl. She stops and listens to see if it worked, then repeats the howl, not giving up, even when a neighbor shouts from across the street.