Milkshake

Rick watches Jess leave and a silent prayer is lifted. No one should have to go through what she was. And it happened too many times...too many women were put in that position...too many times they were hurt. And the emotional scars were far worse than the physical ones.

Sighing, he turns back to his work, though picks up the phone first to call Angelica's office. "Angelica...Jess is ready to talk whenever you are. She's in her room...be gentle."


Kyle grimaces at Misty, but the twinkle in his eye proves his humor as she takes the bill. He mouths to her, "I'm paying for supper tonight."

Getting up, they pay and leave the restaurant, heading to Kyle and Phil's. Kyle is quick to gather a few things in his backpack, though he takes a little longer than planned, needing a short rest when he's alone in his room to catch his breath after another coughing fit. The red flag in the back of his mind goes up, but he tries to ignore it. He was fine...

Finished, he slings his bag over his shoulder and comes back out to the living room to find Misty and head on out once again, this time going to her place, then finally back to TJY. It's late afternoon by then, and Kyle sends Phil a message to let him know where he is, then follows Misty on in to the infirmary.

Tossing his bag in the corner, he flops down on the edge of the bed and looks around the room, boredom already lingering in the back of his eyes. He would stay here because he had a different goal in mind...but if it weren't for that, he knew he would have refused to stay here. It was just a little cough...why should Misty be so worried about him all of a sudden? Maybe he'd simply caught a cold.

Rick rolls his chair back from his desk far enough to see into the other room, and lifts his eyebrows. "Well hi there, Kyle."

Kyle gives a little wave and a smile.

"Anything wrong?"

Kyle thumbs to Misty and shrugs, rolling his eyes.

Rick thinks for a moment, wondering if Kyle would be wearing that smile if Misty had told him what they'd discovered. He opted not to say anything in case she hadn't yet. He respected her timing. "How's the voice?"

Kyle shakes his head and grimaces, but shrugs again. He holds out his hand and rotates it back and forth, showing Rick that it wasn't the worst, but it was iffy.

Rick nods. "Well, just take it easy." He calls a little louder. "Misty, if you need anything, call me. When you have a minute come in here too, I want to show you something." He rolls back to his desk again, out of sight.

Kyle sets his hands in his lap and sighs. This was going to be a long evening.


Bret lays back on the blanket, tucking his hands under his head and staring up at the clouds in the sky. The drive had been long, the trek had been harder than anticipated, and the trail had been longer than figured. But he and Charlotte had made it to the small plateau where the view was amazing.

After eating their picnic lunch of sandwiches, it was already late afternoon, but the desire to hike all the way back down just wasn't there yet.

Bret closes his eyes and takes a deep breath of the fresh air. It was chilly today and having a jacket on felt good, but the sun was warm. He was used to physical work, but being able to relax up here had made him tired and taken away the want to leave.

"Heads we go back down in fifteen minutes," he mumbles. "Tails we stay here indefinitely."


Jason's head shoots up at Katie's offer to go with him. The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. "Would you?" His face reddens slightly. "I mean...the company sure would be nice and..." He stops, knowing that he needn't try and explain. Katie knew him too well to question his motives. "...and I guess I just don't want to go alone."

In a way, Jason felt the need of someone else's company. He hadn't felt that for a long time...he'd always been too proud to admit the need of someone else...too sure of himself to say that extra company would be nice. But he was finding that if he was truly honest with himself...being a loner wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

Katie's words to him made sense too. He knew his mom loved him no matter what...and though she might be disappointed, it wouldn't be in him. He'd just jumped on the wagon of sidling around the truth too quickly, and hadn't been able to get back off.

Giving a little weary grin, he shakes his head. "I guess you're still my hero, aren't you." He pauses, searching Katie's face. "Thanks. We can make plans after this harry weekend is over." He quickly changes the subject, his mind bouncing to the first obstacle that needed to be overcome. "I know Kyle wants this concert to go on as a trap for those goons, whether that's what he says or not, so if we live through it, we can make that trip to Texas. As far as tomorrow night goes...would you mind recruiting the security?"


Carson heads across the TJY parking lot, a small sack in his hand. The sun was starting to set, and he was banking on most of the people to be gone for the night. Stopping near the door though, he glances around and sees Misty's car. She was working late.

His shoulders drop a little. He didn't want another discussion like he'd had this morning. Maybe he could get away with just slipping in and out without even seeing her. It was worth a try anyway.

Getting inside, he receives a few strange looks from those still lingering on the main floor, but he heads straight down the hall toward the spare room. The infirmary door was open, but he passes by it, not even daring to pause or look inside.

Reaching the guest room, he taps lightly on the door. "Jess?" He knew she'd probably been miserable all day...he knew she'd probably eaten very little if anything...he knew she probably wouldn't be hungry for supper. But he'd wanted to check on her. It was the least he could do, not to mention it gave him something to do other than sit alone at Mom and Pop's.

The paper sack crinkles in his grip. "I got a strawberry milkshake here with your name on it."