In The Dark
Title: In The Dark
Author:
callieach
Rating: PG
Characters: mostly just Ned, with a teaspoon of Chuck and a sprinkle of Olive (& don't forget that dash of Digby!)
Spoilers: None
Prompt: #3 - Light and Dark
Disclaimer: Puh-lease. I'm not even close to owning these guys (though I definitely wouldn't refuse a Ned.)
Summary: A thunder storm doesn't help the way things are going at the Pie Hole...
-
It’s one of those days when everything has the potential to go wrong at the Pie Hole. Olive has a fever of a hundred and three. Ned literally walked her back up to her apartment and sent Digby in to keep her company in bed. Digby didn’t seem to mind and Olive seemed to like Ned taking interest in her, even if it was just because he didn’t want his patrons to catch the flu. Ned himself, was therefore without a waitress. Chuck suggested they split the task for the day. “Come on, it’ll be fun and exciting.”
It might have been fun and exciting if Olive’s body hadn’t decided to overheat on the day of a thunderstorm. People in the rain like hot coffee to go with their hot pie. Too bad Olive was the only one who’s any good at brewing the beverage.
Ned feels guilty needing Olive, even if it’s not in the way she wants him to need her. But he is determined to let her rest, so he and Chuck fake their way through a day of coffee and pie.
Some time after dinner, there’s a flash of lightning outside that seems too close. Ned watches sparks fly from the power line across the street as he sets down two pieces of peach pie. The lights inside the Pie Hole flicker once, then go out. The street lamps outside mimic them.
The radio Chuck likes to turn on isn’t playing any more. Now there’s just white noise and wind and rain. And the quiet exchanges of: “Has the power gone out?” Of course, it has.
“Let me see if I can find some candles,” Ned announces to the restaurant. It’s darker than he can ever remember the Pie Hole being, and that worries him. Who knows what could happen in the dark? Besides, he knows exactly where the candles are: behind the counter, under and to the left of the till, with the flashlight. What he doesn’t know is where Chuck is.
The layout of his pie shop is as familiar to Ned as anything else in his life, and he finds his way easily to the counter. He’s just rounding the end when he brushes something. Skin. His heart skips a few beats. It’s impossible to know if he’s just administered a fatal touch or not. Now blood is pounding in his ears. He’s worried, he’s over-reacting. “Sorry,” he says.
There’s an uneasy laugh and an unfamiliar voice that answers. “That’s okay.”
Ned feels his heartbeat return to normal. It wasn’t Chuck. She’s not dead again. Yet.
“Hey, I found a flashlight!” This voice is Chuck’s, and a safe distance away. The beam shines up to the ceiling, illuminating her features in its course.
The words ‘There you are’ are on the tip of Ned’s tongue when she says just that, pointing the flashlight at him. He wipes his sweaty palms on his apron and even laughs a little as the light blinds him.
Author:
callieach
Rating: PG
Characters: mostly just Ned, with a teaspoon of Chuck and a sprinkle of Olive (& don't forget that dash of Digby!)
Spoilers: None
Prompt: #3 - Light and Dark
Disclaimer: Puh-lease. I'm not even close to owning these guys (though I definitely wouldn't refuse a Ned.)
Summary: A thunder storm doesn't help the way things are going at the Pie Hole...
-
It’s one of those days when everything has the potential to go wrong at the Pie Hole. Olive has a fever of a hundred and three. Ned literally walked her back up to her apartment and sent Digby in to keep her company in bed. Digby didn’t seem to mind and Olive seemed to like Ned taking interest in her, even if it was just because he didn’t want his patrons to catch the flu. Ned himself, was therefore without a waitress. Chuck suggested they split the task for the day. “Come on, it’ll be fun and exciting.”
It might have been fun and exciting if Olive’s body hadn’t decided to overheat on the day of a thunderstorm. People in the rain like hot coffee to go with their hot pie. Too bad Olive was the only one who’s any good at brewing the beverage.
Ned feels guilty needing Olive, even if it’s not in the way she wants him to need her. But he is determined to let her rest, so he and Chuck fake their way through a day of coffee and pie.
Some time after dinner, there’s a flash of lightning outside that seems too close. Ned watches sparks fly from the power line across the street as he sets down two pieces of peach pie. The lights inside the Pie Hole flicker once, then go out. The street lamps outside mimic them.
The radio Chuck likes to turn on isn’t playing any more. Now there’s just white noise and wind and rain. And the quiet exchanges of: “Has the power gone out?” Of course, it has.
“Let me see if I can find some candles,” Ned announces to the restaurant. It’s darker than he can ever remember the Pie Hole being, and that worries him. Who knows what could happen in the dark? Besides, he knows exactly where the candles are: behind the counter, under and to the left of the till, with the flashlight. What he doesn’t know is where Chuck is.
The layout of his pie shop is as familiar to Ned as anything else in his life, and he finds his way easily to the counter. He’s just rounding the end when he brushes something. Skin. His heart skips a few beats. It’s impossible to know if he’s just administered a fatal touch or not. Now blood is pounding in his ears. He’s worried, he’s over-reacting. “Sorry,” he says.
There’s an uneasy laugh and an unfamiliar voice that answers. “That’s okay.”
Ned feels his heartbeat return to normal. It wasn’t Chuck. She’s not dead again. Yet.
“Hey, I found a flashlight!” This voice is Chuck’s, and a safe distance away. The beam shines up to the ceiling, illuminating her features in its course.
The words ‘There you are’ are on the tip of Ned’s tongue when she says just that, pointing the flashlight at him. He wipes his sweaty palms on his apron and even laughs a little as the light blinds him.