Sugar and Spice - Part 1
Part 1
It is now fifteen years, two months, twenty-five days and three hundred eighty-four minutes since that night that Jensen left both his boarding school and his father’s house behind, henceforth to be known as “now”. Although he moved from place to place in those first years, he finally managed to find somewhere he belonged: working in a restaurant in San Francisco. He had started working as a busboy at eighteen, and now, at twenty-eight he was the head pastry chef and owner of his own restaurant, The Cupcake.
The Cupcake looked exactly as it sounded; it truly was a giant cupcake. It was a two story cupcake, a small mini-mansion that had been converted into a combination of restaurant and spacious studio apartments a few years back. Jensen didn’t know exactly how it had come to resemble a chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting and rainbow sprinkles, but it was San Francisco after all. Located on a street corner near Union Square, they had a steady flow of tourists drawn in by the sight of a cupcake in the middle of a city and regular customers who stayed for the delicious baked goods. The restaurant was downstairs, with a cozy, somewhat modern décor. There were two apartments upstairs, and both were occupied. One by Jensen. When he moved in there at the age of twenty-four he finally had a home of his own, one that was filled with the smell of baked goods around the clock, and he began to sleep well for the first time since his mother died.
The other apartment belonged to Danneel Harris, his bubbly co-worker who worked as a waitress, sous-chef, co-manager, and janitor at the end of the day. Danneel made her way to The Cupcake a few years back and just never left. Although she had come to him with virtually no culinary skills whatsoever, she had learned greatly from the pastry chef, and now was an excellent pastry chef herself. Danneel filled The Cupcake with conversation and happiness in a way that Jensen would never have managed on his own. She was a great friend to him, helping him take care of Sadie and Harley, making sure he didn’t stress out over the restaurant, and giving him a social life of sorts. Between the two of them, they had a successful business that was profitable thanks to their fantastic baked goods and excellent service. Recently they had given in to the demands of the job, and had finally hired a new employee, Katie Cassidy, to help out part time. Katie came in most days in time for the lunch rush, but she was a big help to Danneel on days when Jensen couldn’t stay at The Cupcake until closing.
And then there was Nathan Fillion, Jensen’s unofficial business partner of sorts. He too was someone who had entered Jensen’s life and just refused to vanish. He was a private investigator who mostly handled murder cases, the more unusual the better. Mr. Fillion had the additional distinction of being the only person (alive at least) who knew about Jensen’s additional… talents.
Jensen was throwing away the trash in a dumpster behind The Cupcake when his life and Nathan Fillion’s business collided. Nathan had been chasing a serial killer across the roof when the guy tripped and went flying over the roof, crash-landing on the dumpster below. Although the impact of the crash killed him, his body bounced off of the dumpster and landed on the bewildered pastry chef, whose touch instantly brought the killer back to life. Confused and dazed, the murderer got back on his feet and began to run away, but Jensen quickly grabbed him, leaving him dead once more. Jensen had hastily gone inside The Cupcake to hide, never realizing that Nathan Fillion had witnessed everything from the roof above.
The next day, a confrontation between the two had resulted in the strangest of business deals. Nathan brought him cases that the police were unable to solve, the odd homicides where no one could possibly know what had happened except the murder victim. That’s where Jensen came in. He used his abilities to bring the victim back to life for up to one minute, during which they’d ask him or her who the murderer was, or at the very least, what they remembered from their last moments. And then when that minute was up, the victim died again, and the two men used their information to solve the murder and gather any reward that’s offered.
Although some circumstances were a bit less than ideal, Jensen was still pretty happy with his life. He had Danneel to help him take care of Sadie and Harley, and over the years he had even become better at lying about why he could not touch them (severe allergies was the best excuse by far. No one ever seemed to question the odds of anaphylactic shock.) In addition to that, he was able to bake all day long without getting in trouble, and even if he didn’t really like taking money from the families of murder victims, he loved that he didn’t have to hide his abilities around the clock, thanks to having Nathan around. And the money came in useful, letting him upgrade appliances, get better supplies, and keep The Cupcake in excellent condition without forcing himself into debt.
Most days, Danneel finishes up earlier and takes the dogs out for a walk. Then when Jensen closes up the restaurant for the day, he goes up to her apartment to get them before going home. Today was no different for the most part, at least until he was already waiting for her inside her apartment.
The voice of the newscaster drew his attention from her chaotic, messy living room to the television next to him. He rarely watched the news, finding that news of the world’s problems didn’t sit well with him, given what he was capable of doing. He was about to look away, but he found himself looking at a face he had once known as well as his own: Jay’s. Jensen quickly turned up the volume to hear what the newscaster was saying.
“Unfortunately, the search for college graduate Jared Padalecki has ended with the discovery of his body by the crew of the cruise ship. At this time the cause of death is not being released, but we’re certain his family will take comfort in knowing that he has been located.” The photo changed to one that was clearly more recent. Jared looked like he was in his mid-twenties, and he’d grown from the thin boy Jensen had known, into an unbelievably tall guy. In the photo he was standing next to his uncles, Aldis and Chad, who both looked as crazy as ever.
Danneel came back into the room with the dogs and saw what he was watching. “Isn’t that so sad? They’ve been airing updates on him all day. I guess it’s finally over now that they know he’s dead. It’s a shame; he was a total cutie.”
“Yeah…” Jensen replied. “I guess it really is over.”
~*~*~*~*~
“You check out the news recently? The big headline’s the murder of that college graduate who was just found dead yesterday.” Nathan said bluntly when Jensen joined him at his table.
Jensen sighed tiredly, unsurprised that Nathan had heard about Jared’s death. “Yeah Nathan, I heard about it.”
“Well what do you know about that small town that Jared Padalecki came from?”
“I know a lot about it. I grew up there; Jared and I were neighbors and best friends.”
“Well that’s convenient, since he’s our next case.”
“…What?”
“The boy was murdered, Jensen. His uncles, the former “Magnificent Magicians” have asked for any information, but the travel agency Jared used is offering $20,000 for the capture of the murderer. No one knows what happened to Jared, and he’s scheduled to be buried later today. It’s the perfect time for you to go do your thing.”
“Wait. You want me to bring Jared back and then kill him again?”
“Well yeah. He’s been murdered, so we should ask him what he remembers about the moment before he died.”
“You’re actually asking me to bring back my best friend and then kill him?”
“You could look at it as putting him to rest if that helps.”
“No, it doesn’t help! He’s not just another dead body, Nathan! He was my best friend.”
“Jensen, I know this has to be difficult for you, but it needs to be done. If you want, I can be there for support or whatever you need, but I need you on this one.”
Jensen knew that logically what Nathan said made sense. But the idea of bringing Jared back and then losing him again… “You’re right,” he finally said. “It needs to be done. I can do it. It’ll probably help me out too, since I hadn’t talked to him in over ten years…” Jensen said, struggling to convince himself that it was a good idea.
“Damn right it needs to be done. Do you have any idea how much free press I’ll get if we solve this case? All of California is watching the news trying to learn what happened to Jared Padalecki. Apparently it was his first time out of the town you two grew up in, let alone his first time out of the country. He worked his way through college, and graduated, and then died on his celebration trip. And the surviving family members? I don’t even know what to make of them.”
“Yeah, Uncles Aldis and Chad take some getting used to.”
“You know them then?” Nathan was already calculating the different ways that he could use Jensen’s past in this case. It was definitely going to benefit them in solving Jared’s unfortunate murder and collecting the sizeable reward.
“I don’t know them that well, but Jay- Jared used to tell me stories about them. Apparently they were pretty famous twenty years ago, as the magicians you mentioned. I know that they loved magic tricks, illusions, and slight of hand until Chad got injured in a freak seagull attack.”
“A freak what now?” Nathan asked incredulously. He knew he couldn’t have heard that correctly.
“Freak seagull attack. I think he was rehearsing for their act, which involved a seagull for some reason. I don’t know how exactly the bird managed to damage his eye, but that’s why he wears the eye-patch. Jared’s mom used to say that that’s why Aldis stayed with him after that, because he was automatically part pirate with the addition of the eye-patch.”
“Seagull attack.”
“Yes.”
“Seagull. Attack.”
“Yes already. Just what is so hard to understand about a seagull attack?”
“The part where that could happen to me anytime I step foot outside in the city. Remind me never to go to Alcatraz Island; I hear that place is home to the seagull cong. I’d never make it out of there intact, and I like my eyes. My eyes are useful. My eyes are gorgeous.”
“Uh huh. Sure. So you want to talk to Aldis and Chad before we go to the funeral home?”
“I think that would be the best plan of attack.”
“Just don’t upset Chad. He may have one eye, but you do not want to see how good his aim is with a shotgun. It’s kinda scary.”
“Say what now?”
“What? What are we talking about?” Danneel asked, sliding in next to Jensen.
“Death by seagulls,” he replied.
“Oh,” she said, nodding in comprehension. “That’s a bad way to go. I still think being trampled by a herd of kindergarteners would be worse though.”
~*~*~*~*~
Jensen found himself standing on the front porch of Aldis and Chad’s home (and Jay’s too) with Nathan only a couple of hours later. As he brought his hand up to the door to knock, he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering back to the last time he’d been standing there, and the events of that fateful day.
“Will you knock on the door already? The funeral’s in a couple of hours- we don’t have all day.”
“I am knocking. Just remember to be nice to them, they’re good people.”
“I’m always nice.”
“You’re never nice.”
The door opened, and once again Jensen found himself presented with a shotgun. “Who are you and what do you want?” Chad asked.
“Chad! What the fuck did I tell you about manners!?!?” Aldis yelled from behind him.
“You said I couldn’t shoot anyone if the news crews were still around. They left three hours ago, ergo, shotgun.”
“Did you just say ergo?”
“Shut up! Again I ask, who the hell are you two, and what do you want?”
Nathan pushed Jensen forward and tried to hide behind him sneakily. Jensen inwardly rolled his eyes at Nathan, but he was just relieved that Nathan hadn’t attempted to say anything to Jay’s uncles.
“Hi Mr. Murray, Mr. Hodge. I don’t suppose you remember me, but Jay and I used to be best friends as kids. I lived next door-“
“Jensen!” they both exclaimed. “Well of course we remember you. You were Jared’s best friend forever, even after you moved away. You’ve really grown up since we saw you last,” Chad said.
“Come in,” Aldis said, opening the door wide. “Sorry we didn’t just invite you in, but things have been a bit chaotic the last couple days as I’m sure you can imagine. I take it you’ve heard about Jared?”
The four men headed inside to the living room. As Jensen walked in, he could see that much of the house had remained the same. There were some odd pets, like the box turtle and what looked like a school of baby piranhas, and there was still an eclectic mixture of furniture in the room as if Chad, Jared and Aldis had argued about everything before finally giving in and each taking over a section of the room.
“Yeah, I heard about Jay last night. I just can’t believe he’s gone.” Jensen replied quietly.
“It’s been hard for us too. Jared’s been with us the whole time- he even took a lot of his college courses online, since he said he wasn’t ready to move out yet. But we just can’t make any sense of this. Who would want to kill Jared? He was the nicest boy! He never really changed from the boy you were best friends with, you know.”
“Yeah? I’m not surprised to hear that.”
“Anyway, who the hell are you?” Chad asked pointedly at Nathan.
“My name is Nathan Fillion. I’m a friend of Jensen’s. And I’m also a private investigator. I look into many of the cases that the police have trouble solving. The murder of your nephew doesn’t strike me as being particularly unsolvable, but since he was Jensen’s friend, I am looking into Jared’s case as well.”
“You know we’re not offering a reward, right? We’re not exactly rolling in money,” Chad asked.
“I am aware of that, sir, but I’m doing this for my friend, not for the money.”
“Alrighty then,” Aldis replied, “You’ve convinced me. What do you want to know?”
“Why did Jared choose to go on that cruise?”
“Jared always wanted to travel, so he started putting aside money from his various jobs. He did some gardening, some carpentry, ran errands for some of the elderly neighbors, installed electronics in the neighborhood, and basically helped out in any ways he could. As for why that cruise, well I think the trip was recommended to him by the travel agent he met with. I don’t remember what her name is, but I know her company is Paradise Getaways,” Aldis said.
“And Jared wasn’t going on the trip to meet with anyone?”
“Everyone he knew is in this room,” replied Chad. “He just wanted to do something different since he had finally graduated. Any other questions? The funeral’s in a little while, and we still have some preparations to take care of.”
Realizing their visit was at an end, Jensen asked the question that he had been dreading. “Mr. Murray, Mr. Hodge? Do you think I could go see Jay?” He took a breath to try to calm his nerves. “I really want to see him again, and tell him I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise.”
“Of course you can, Jensen. He’s at the town funeral parlor by the cemetery. I’m sure you remember where it is. I don’t think any of us could forget after that day.”
“I agree. I don’t think I’ll ever forget a single thing about that day.”
~*~*~*~*~
Nathan and Jensen sat in the car outside the funeral home. “You ready to do this?” Nathan asked.
“No actually, I don’t think I’ll ever be ready to do this. Jay was my best friend. We did everything together, and then in one day, everything changed for both of us. How am I supposed to go bring him back, ask him about his murder, apologize to him, and kill him again?”
“If I had your magic mojo I’d do it for you. I don’t though, so it’s gotta be you. And what exactly are you apologizing for anyway?”
“When we were kids, and I was leaving, I promised him that I’d see him again. Those couple of days between my mom dying and my dad making me pack up my entire life, were some of the worst days in my life, and Jared helped me through them. I just wish I had been a part of his life during the last fifteen years. I missed my best friend.”
“So go tell him that. Or rather, go tell him that after you ask him about his murder.”
Instead of replying, Jensen got out of the car and trudged towards the front door of the building. Walking up the front steps, Jensen was hit by a wave of déjà vu. He felt like he thirteen years old again, reliving his last, futile attempts at reviving his mom. Back then he’d just discovered his abilities and his limitations. Though he found himself in the same place again, he finally had the chance to fix everything that was wrong in his life-he just didn’t know if he could actually do it. He knew it was selfish to want Jay to stay with him, but even he couldn’t really justify it to himself. As thoughts of his mom, his abilities, and Jay swirled through his mind, Jensen entered the funeral parlor. He vaguely heard the funeral home director ask him who he was there to see. Jensen barely managed to whisper “Jared Padalecki,” before he was ushered down a narrow hallway until he found himself in a room with a coffin belonging to his friend.
Nathan, having followed him into the building, grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it before asking, “Are you sure you want to handle this one alone?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I think I have to,” Jensen replied numbly.
“Okay then, I’ll be right outside,” Nathan responded. He walked out of the room and shut the door quietly. The funeral director raised an eyebrow at him in question, and so he briefly explained the situation. “My friend just wants to say goodbye to his friend by himself; they hadn’t seen each other in years, and he doesn’t want an audience there when and if he breaks down.”
“Oh, I understand completely,” the funeral director responded. Nathan gave the shifty looking director a strange look before he turned his attention back to the closed door before them.
Inside the room, Jensen was still having trouble trying to get the nerve to just look inside the coffin, let alone revive Jared. When he finally opened the coffin, he just stared at the man inside, trying to find the young boy he’d known and loved in him. The hair was the same, floppy, unruly, and completely adorable. Jensen suspected the dimples would still be out in full force if Jay smiled, and he knew that if they were both standing, he would now be the shorter of the two. All of these comparisons actually helped him make his decision, and after carefully setting the timer on his watch for one minute, he gently reached in and placed his hand on Jared’s cheek.
The traditional flash of light occurred, and Jensen suddenly found himself being choked as Jared reacted instinctually and grabbed him by the tie, slamming his head into the top of the open coffin in the process. Jared let go of his tie while trying to get out of the coffin, and Jensen took the opportunity to stumble away from the coffin.
“Jay! Take it easy!”
“…Jensen?” Jared replied in disbelief, “Jensen, is that really you?”
“Yeah, yeah it is. Sorry I didn’t make it back home sooner. What’s the last thing you remember?”
“I remember I was on the cruise ship, and I dropped my room key into the ice dispenser’s grate. And then some fucker grabbed me from behind and tossed a bag over my face to suffocate me. I kinda remember being dragged somewhere, but then everything else is cold and blurry. What the fuck? Did I die? Because I am pretty sure that this is the funeral place back home. I couldn’t forget that place if I tried. Well? Did I die?”
Jensen blinked at the rush of words from Jared before asking, “Can I talk now?”
“Yeah, sorry. Waking up in a coffin is a bit of a shock. What happened to me?”
“Well you’re right about what happened. Some person did kill you when you were on your cruise. They threw you overboard with the bag on your face. Do you have any idea why anyone would have wanted you to die?”
“I have no clue! The only person who might know is my travel agent, Lauren. She’s the one who suggested the cruise to me. She thought it would be the perfect way for me to get out of California and see the world. So she’s the only one who might know more about who was on the cruise or what the deal was with those kangaroos.”
“Kangaroos?” Jensen looked at his watch anxiously. Thirty seconds had already passed, and he just didn’t know how he was going to let Jared go now.
“Yeah, I had to take these two kangaroo figurines with me. Lauren said they were going to be used on board the cruise ship for some party halfway through the trip, but I never did learn the details. If I got killed over those damn kangaroos, I’m going to be pissed. So what happens now?”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Well I’m in some sort of temporary limbo or something right? And why’d you want to know about why I died?”
“A private investigator friend of mine is looking into your murder, trying to get justice and all that jazz. And you’re not in limbo. You’re alive. Technically you’ll die again when I touch you, so I guess maybe you’re right, this is kinda like being in limbo.”
“Touch me? So I guess a kiss is out of the question then,” Jared said with a grin, dimples showing just like Jensen remembered.
Jensen was down to the last ten seconds of their time together. “You were my first kiss, you know. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise to you, Jay.”
“As far as I’m concerned you did keep your promise. I’m seeing you right now. The details of the situation don’t really matter after all. And you were my first kiss too,” Jared replied with a soft smile. “Oh and Jensen? Thanks for calling me Jay again. I haven’t heard that in a long time.” He paused, just looking at Jensen before speaking again. “So if I have to touch you again anyway, how about one last kiss?”
Jared leaned down ready to kiss him as the clock ticked down the last few seconds. Before Jensen could even lean up for the kiss, he found himself saying the one thing he had tried to talk himself out of even thinking. “Jay, what if you didn’t have to die?”
“Well I think I’d like that a lot. I mean, it’s not like I chose to be dead right this minute or anything like that.”
“Okay,” Jensen replied. “So just don’t touch my skin or anything, or you’ll die again. Ummm… they’ll probably be checking the coffin before they take you to the cemetery, so just pretend you’re dead and lie there, and I’ll make sure I get you out of the coffin before they actually bury you, okay?” Jensen couldn’t believe that he was actually doing this, that he was actually helping Jay escape death and gain a new life. But when he looked into Jared’s eyes, he knew that he would never regret this decision.
“Okay, I trust you. I’ll see you in a little bit,” Jared replied as he climbed back into the coffin.
~*~*~*~*~
James Lafferty, the funeral home director was not the sort of man you would want handling your last affairs on Earth. If anything, he was the last man you would want consoling your loved ones and handling your personal effects. It wasn’t that he treated the dead callously, or that he chose inferior materials to mark their remains. No, in those respects, Mr. Lafferty excelled at his work. The only problem was that he thoroughly robbed you and your family without drawing attention to his thefts. His thievery was only now coming into the open, despite the hundreds of angry letters that he had received from families of the deceased over the years. But the thefts are another story entirely.
For now, only one thing need be considered and that is a very simple rule. If the pastry chef brings back a life, he has one minute in which to send the life back, otherwise, another will take its place. So, though he never witnessed it, two other animals died when he saved the lives of his beloved dogs. And of course Jay’s mother was the casualty when young Jensen unwittingly brought his mother back for too long.
When Jensen and Jared made the decision for him to stay alive instead of dying once again, someone within proximity had to die to take his place. And so, time was up for James Lafferty, funeral director. As he sat in his office, examining the latest additions to his collection of stolen goods to resell or keep (as if he’d ever consider selling a solid gold pocket watch), he felt a strange sensation come over him. He tried to write it off as allergies, but a moment later it became food poisoning; and then within a few seconds he jerked once, and fell to the side, already dead.
~*~*~*~*~
Jensen heard a loud thud as soon as he came out of the room with Jared and his coffin. He winced, knowing it meant his minute was officially up and someone else had now died because of the selfish decision he had made. He rushed towards the sound and found James Lafferty the funeral director dead in his office. Calling for help, Jensen quickly headed back to Jared, not trusting his plan any longer. He knew the sooner Jared got out of that coffin, the safer he’d be. Unfortunately, in the time it took for him to check on the funeral director, Jared and his coffin had already been loaded into a hearse en route to the cemetery.
Cursing his luck, his brain, and everything else he could think to blame, Jensen headed for Nathan, knowing that he’d have to face him sooner or later. Luckily Nathan was near the crowd of people now looking at Mr. Lafferty. Jensen grabbed him and dragged him out of the building into the driveway of the funeral home.
“Nathan, can I borrow your car?” Jensen asked quickly, not wanting to waste any more time.
“Why the hell do you want to borrow my car, and how did the funeral director guy die so suddenly? I could have sworn he was just fine when I met him a few minutes ago.”
“I think I want to go to the burial. I just don’t want to force you to wait around over here when I know you’d rather be chasing down leads.”
“Well, you’re right about that. I really don’t want to hang around this town any longer. Do you have any idea what there is to do for fun around here?”
“You kinda have to make your own fun. Nothing happens out here most of the time.”
“No wonder you left this place ages ago. What did the victim say?”
“What?” Jensen asked in complete confusion.
“Your friend, Jared. What did he have to say about his murder?”
“Oh, right. Nothing super helpful. He said that he was grabbed from behind but that he didn’t have his room key on him, since he’d just dropped it. He thinks he was dragged somewhere on board the ship. And he thinks the travel agent, Lauren, might know more than she’s letting on, since she’s the one who sent him on the cruise with the kangaroo figurines.”
“Kangaroos.”
“Yeah, ceramic or metal or something surprisingly heavy. He wasn’t too sure, but he was quite clear on the fact that she told him to bring them with him. I figure that may be our best lead. Maybe someone else was after the kangaroos.”
“Kangaroos. Who the hell smuggles fake kangaroos onto a cruise ship? What sort of masterful crime is that?”
“I can honestly say that I don’t get it either. I mean, smuggling figurines in general doesn’t make sense unless there’s something else inside, since you could totally ship that by Overnight Mail or UPS or something like that,” Jensen replied.
“First the uncle with the seagulls and the piranha at their house, and now fake kangaroos with the dead nephew. Are there any animals not involved with this family?” Nathan finally asked in exasperation. “Honestly, I am all for strange crimes. Strange crimes pay for my meals, my clothes, and my somewhat extravagant lifestyle. But this case is just all kinds of crazy.”
“So… can I borrow your car?” Jensen asked again, reminding Nathan of what the conversation was about in the first place.
“I take it there’s a bus out of here?”
“It should be leaving within the next fifteen minutes from the station down the block.”
Nathan tossed him the keys, and turned to leave the front driveway of the building. “Don’t mess up my car or I swear I will kill you so thoroughly that even your magic finger can’t help you.” With that he headed out, ready to leave the strange town he found himself in. If there was a bus then his ass was going to be on it. The sooner he got out of here, the sooner his life could return to normal. Well as normal as it could be with a friend and business partner who could bring the dead back to life.
As Nathan walked out, Jensen ran for the car, hoping that he reached Jared before he was actually buried.
~*~*~*~*~
Luckily Jensen had no trouble finding Jared or his grave, but unfortunately for him, the grave was still being dug, so he couldn’t just get Jared out and run, like he had planned. So, he added to his list of crimes committed that day and set fire to the van belonging to the gravediggers before running up the hill to where they were working.
“Sorry to bother you,” he said, panting for breath. “But is that your van at the bottom of the hill?”
“Yeah it’s ours,” one of the workers replied. “Why do you care about it?”
“Well, it looks like it’s on fire,” Jensen replied as calmly as he could.
He stepped aside as the men went barreling down the hill to their van, leaving Jensen alone with both the half-dug grave and Jared’s coffin. Slowly, Jensen opened the lid of the coffin and found himself staring at Jay’s grinning face.
“You ready to get out of here?” he asked his best friend.
“Absolutely,” Jay replied.
~*~*~*~*~
It was no problem for Jared to climb out of the coffin before the gravediggers could get back to their work. When they walked down the hill, the men were still trying to put out the fire that Jensen had started.
“How did you manage to create that big a fire anyway?” Jared asked him as they meandered down the side of the hill, trying to look innocent.
“Well, they had a gallon of motor oil, a bucket of varnish, and some aerosol spray. I may have mixed some things around before getting a lighter involved,” Jensen mumbled in embarrassment.
“Oh really? You may have mixed some things around before committing arson to get me out of my coffin?”
“Well yeah.”
Running out of the cemetery without drawing any attention to themselves had been tricky but not impossible. All it had taken was for Jensen to go and pretend to be a distraught mourner who had lost his way in the cemetery. In that time, Jared snuck out through the front entrance, signaling Jensen in the process. Ten minutes later, Jensen managed to get out from the cemetery too, after they explained to him that he just had the wrong time for Jared’s funeral.
Of course, Nathan had called his cell phone at least five times during that time and Jensen had no excuse to give him. Nathan could be compared to a bloodhound with good reason; when on the search for the truth in a case, he was relentless and could identify lies over the phone as well as through face-to-face conversation, hell, even by reading the newspaper. He believed himself to be one of the greatest detectives ever, and his record for solving cases didn’t serve to deflate his ego either. Jensen eventually settled on telling Nathan that he was going to run some errands before going home to decompress from the events of the day. Although Nathan sounded skeptical, he did accept Jensen’s response as being truthful. It helped that he was already back in the city to do some detective work of his own, so he couldn’t stay on the phone to grill Jensen any longer.
“Well, it seems he bought that, so we’ve got some time before he starts digging around again. In the meantime, we need to get you some new clothes. I am pretty sure all of my stuff will be way too short for you, and I’m sure you don’t want to be stuck wearing the same suit tomorrow as well, right?”
“You’re right, I feel a little weird shopping when a few hours ago I was dead and in my coffin. It’s a little surreal to say the least. But yeah, let’s go get me some clothes. I am guessing we can’t go home and get some of my own stuff?” Jared said hopefully. Although he knew that it might not be the best idea to go home now while his uncles were still grieving his death, he just wanted to go home.
“I know you must have a ton of questions and I promise you I’ll do my best to answer them, but I have no idea how to explain any of this to your uncles, especially when I was just over there a couple hours ago with Nathan. Anything I say will probably lead Chad to shoot me.” Jensen wasn’t looked forward to the explanations, especially the minor detail of fact that he killed Jay’s mom.
“How were they when you saw them?” The one worry Jared had had at the time of his death was what would become of his uncles. They didn’t like to socialize with people that often, especially after Uncle Chad had lost the use of his eye. The eyepatch, plus Chad’s easily irritable nature, had left the two of them with few friends outside of their little family.
Jensen thought about it before answering. At the time, he had been so consumed with thinking about his own emotions that he hadn’t really thought about how hard Jared’s death must be for Chad and Aldis. “I think they’re doing as well as can be expected. Uncle Chad greeted me at the door with his shotgun, but they seemed pretty happy to see me. I guess they were hoping that I’d hear about what happened to you and go see them. Aldis was telling stories about you while Chad sat there staring suspiciously at Nathan, but I think they’re hanging in there. I do think they may be better off if we can figure out who killed you in the first place, though. And why, of course- I think that may be what’s upsetting them the most.”
“God, it’s so weird to hear us talking about my murder. I was murdered. I was dead. I really need a drink right now.”
“We’ll add large quantities of alcohol to our shopping list, okay?”
“Sounds like a plan. Let’s get outta here.”
~*~*~*~*~
Getting Jared back to the apartment without Nathan finding out had proved difficult, but it turns out it was even trickier getting him past Danneel. Danneel was his best friend, but sometimes her meddling, and her ongoing goal of finding him a boyfriend drove him crazy. A few months after she started working at The Cupcake, she had told him that she thought he was hot. He told her he was gay, and she said she’d find him a good boyfriend. Every few months, she renewed her quest to find him that perfect guy.
“Danni! Can I just get the dogs and go?” He really didn’t want Danneel to have any clue of what had happened that day. If he even mentioned Jay’s name, the entire story was going to come out, and that was going to cause some major problems in the long run. Although he hated lying to her, it had never gone well for him when he tried to explain his ability.
“Why are you in such a hurry? Do you want to stick around for some coffee? I really don’t mind!”
“No, I just want to get Sadie and Harley and go home.” No matter how much he loved Danneel and valued her friendship, Jensen just could not deal with her energy and inquisitive nature tonight. Not when he was exhausted, not when Jared was hiding in his apartment, not when he had to face the fact that he had knowingly let another person die.
“C’mon Jensen, you need to go out and have fun sometimes. You’re an amazing guy! Guys would be fighting each other trying to cut in line to get a chance with you.”
“Danni…”
“Give me one good reason why you won’t even think about going out tonight.”
“I just got back from the funeral of my best friend from childhood.”
“Seriously? You’re kidding me right? You’re willingly disclosing information from your childhood? Wait, did you say funeral? Oh my god, Jensen! I am so sorry. Who was it? Is it anyone I’ve met?”
“Danni, it has been a really long day. Could we just do this tomorrow? Do you have to grill me right this minute? I just want to go home, make some dinner, take it easy tonight, and sleep.”
“Alright, fine. Tomorrow, you are in full disclosure mode. Be prepared for interrogation, Danneel-style. I will get whatever information I require of you, mark my words. Do you find this arrangement agreeable?”
“Are you seriously asking me if I am okay with being interrogated tomorrow? Because the answer to that is a definite no, as it should be. I will merely be tolerating the interrogation because otherwise you’re never going to do your work, and then I’ll have to fire you.” Jensen really couldn’t believe the direction the conversation had taken, but after almost a full year of owning The Cupcake, he really should have expected the illogical segues. He just needed to remind himself to be thankful that Danneel had yet to burst into song during this conversation.
“Minor technicality. Besides, boss man, you know I can multitask! I can totally do all of my work while questioning you incessantly, which is what I will be doing tomorrow. Also, The Cupcake would be out of business in a week if you fired me. You don’t have the patience to go through the interviewing process again, and therefore, you would have to cook everything, serve everyone, and then clean up all by your lonesome self. Oh hey, I meant to tell you, your dogs seemed lonelier than usual today. Are you sure there aren’t any allergy meds that would help with your freaky allergy?” Danneel looked concerned once more as she looked at the dogs sitting at her feet. Although Jensen was one of her best friends, she really didn’t understand him or his strange aversion to petting his own dogs.
“I haven’t found anything that will allow me to have actual contact with them except for multiple pairs of disposable gloves. It sucks, but it works okay for us most of the time,” Jensen said with a smile.
He opened the door and the dogs headed out, careful not to brush against Jensen as they passed him. “Goodnight Jensen,” Danneel said as she watched him head over to his apartment.
“Night, Danni. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he replied as he opened the door to his apartment.
< hr>
When Jensen, Sadie, and Harley were finally inside his apartment, Jensen let out a huge sigh of relief. He smiled when he saw Jared removing the tags and labels from all of his new purchases, which had expanded from the clothing department to also include a toothbrush, shampoo, shoes, and a few other things Jay had deemed necessary for his sanity, including a vast array of candy.
Jensen let the dogs move ahead of him as they went to check out this new arrival. “Hey! I remember you used to have two dogs when we were younger. Sadie and Harley, right?” Both dogs barked at the mentions of their names, and Jared’s eyes widened in surprise. “They aren’t the same Sadie and Harley are they?” Yet again the dogs seemed happy with his realization and recognition. “They’re the same? Them too?”
“Jay… they were the first ones I brought back. It was before I knew what I could do or how to control it. I wanted to tell you, but it all happened the day our moms died, and I never got a chance to talk to you about it.”
“How about you make us some dinner and you tell me about it now?” Jared replied, realizing that there was more to this story than he had originally believed.
In response, Jensen got up and started gathering ingredients. He wasn’t that hungry yet, but knowing Jay, he was starving. Dying and coming back to life had to give you an appetite too. He started chopping up ingredients to make a salad, until Jared stepped in offering to help. With Jared making the salad, Jensen turned to boiling the water for pasta. While the water heated up, he started mixing ingredients to make a creamy pesto sauce to go with the mixed penne pasta. Jensen also made garlic bread to go along with the meal, while Jared dug some wine out of one of the cupboards and set the table for two.
When everything was ready and there was nothing left to keep him from the conversation, Jensen put the food on the table. The two of them served themselves before digging in, both hungrier than usual thanks to the long day they had each had. Neither Jensen nor Jared wanted to spoil the delicious dinner with the heavy conversation they knew they were going to have, so neither of them really spoke much apart from compliments on the food.
After they finished eating, Jared cleared the table as Jensen put the leftovers in the fridge. With the dishwasher running, and everything put away, there truly was nothing left to delay the conversation. Jensen sat down on his sofa chair while Jared sat on the couch. “So… what do you want to know?” Jensen finally asked.
“When did all of this start? Was it really the day our moms died?”
“I don’t actually know. I know that that was the day I figured out about all of this. I didn’t know that I had any abilities before I brought Sadie and Harley back. It might have started earlier though. It can work in pretty insignificant ways.”
“How can you consider bringing someone back to life insignificant?”
“Well it isn’t always something as big as a person or a dog. I can bring rotten fruit back to life so that it looks as though it were perfectly ripe. I can turn a dead leaf that’s brown in late winter into a perfectly green summer leaf. I can revive flowers and bugs, people and plants, fruits and vegetables, anything that was once alive.” It sounded weird to Jensen, as he heard himself explaining everything to Jared. It was something he had been living with for so long that he could barely recall that initial awe of learning about his abilities.
“So you can just bring anything to life?”
“Yeah. If I touch something that’s dead, then it comes back to life. If I touch it again, it dies again for good.” At the back of his mind, all Jensen could think about was how if he ever touched Jay again, he would die.
“So you can’t really control it then?” Jared asked in fascination.
“No, it isn’t something that I can turn on and off whenever I want to. I mean, I can’t even pet my dogs without wearing gloves, or I’ll end up killing them again,” Jensen replied sadly.
“You think I’d have trouble touching them?”
“No, I doubt it. Sadie and Harley crash into each other all of the time without having problems of any sort, so I am sure you can pet them and play with them too.” Jensen whistled to the dogs and they came over to the two of them. Jared slowly reached his hand out towards the dogs tentatively, ready to pet them. Jensen watched as the dogs nudged his hand with their noses. It was amazing to see the three of them interact, each afraid that something was going to happen if they touched properly. Eventually, the dogs gave in first, licking Jared’s face and sitting on the couch next to him with their heads propped up on his legs. The three of them looked so comfortable that Jensen felt a pang of regret at what he was unable to experience. But even the regret wasn’t enough to keep him from smiling at the scene before him.
Jared and Jensen talked late into the night until both of them were interrupting the conversation with their yawns. Jensen quickly made up the bed and then went to his closet for extra pillows and blankets before he came back into the living room to make up the couch too. Jared came into the room in his pajamas and said, “You don’t have to get the couch ready for me, you know. I’d probably be comfier on the floor; couches tend to be a little small for me to sleep on.”
“The couch is for me, Jay. You sleep in the bed.”
“What? Jensen, I can’t take your bed from you!”
“You’re not,” he replied with a smile. “I’m giving it to you. I can sleep comfortably on the couch, you can’t. Just take the bed, Jay. I’m sure you could do with a good night’s sleep after the last few days you had.”
“Are you sure? Because I wasn’t exaggerating. I really can sleep just fine on the floor, Jensen.”
“I’m sure,” Jensen said, climbing into his couch bed. “Sleep well, Jay.”
“Goodnight, Jensen,” Jared replied with a soft smile. He quietly left the room and climbed into the bed that Jensen had prepared for him. As both Jensen and Jared drifted off to sleep, they dreamt of what it would be like if they could actually touch one another again like they had as kids.
~*~*~*~*~
Oatmeal Chocolate-Chip Cookies originally from Cook’s Illustrated, but tweaked by Danneel Harris
Makes about 18 large cookies (perfect for serving with ice cream!)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
3 cups oats
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I always use semisweet chips)
1. Preheat oven to 350°, and line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper. (I like to use a silpat-nonstick silicone mat-myself.)
2. Whisk flour, salt and baking powder together in a medium bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, by hand or by mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add both sugars and beat the mixture until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time. (This is definitely easier with a mixer.)
4. Stir dry ingredients into butter-sugar mixture with a wooden spoon or a large rubber spatula. Stir in oats and chocolate chips.
5. Place dough onto parchment-lined cookie sheets by large spoonfuls (about 2 tablespoons each), leaving at least 2 inches between.
6. Bake until cookie edges turn golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Slide cookies (on parchment) onto cooling rack. (I transfer them straight from the silpat to the rack.) Let cool, and store in airtight container.
~*~*~*~*~
Prologue - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Epilogue - Master Post - Art
It is now fifteen years, two months, twenty-five days and three hundred eighty-four minutes since that night that Jensen left both his boarding school and his father’s house behind, henceforth to be known as “now”. Although he moved from place to place in those first years, he finally managed to find somewhere he belonged: working in a restaurant in San Francisco. He had started working as a busboy at eighteen, and now, at twenty-eight he was the head pastry chef and owner of his own restaurant, The Cupcake.
The Cupcake looked exactly as it sounded; it truly was a giant cupcake. It was a two story cupcake, a small mini-mansion that had been converted into a combination of restaurant and spacious studio apartments a few years back. Jensen didn’t know exactly how it had come to resemble a chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting and rainbow sprinkles, but it was San Francisco after all. Located on a street corner near Union Square, they had a steady flow of tourists drawn in by the sight of a cupcake in the middle of a city and regular customers who stayed for the delicious baked goods. The restaurant was downstairs, with a cozy, somewhat modern décor. There were two apartments upstairs, and both were occupied. One by Jensen. When he moved in there at the age of twenty-four he finally had a home of his own, one that was filled with the smell of baked goods around the clock, and he began to sleep well for the first time since his mother died.
The other apartment belonged to Danneel Harris, his bubbly co-worker who worked as a waitress, sous-chef, co-manager, and janitor at the end of the day. Danneel made her way to The Cupcake a few years back and just never left. Although she had come to him with virtually no culinary skills whatsoever, she had learned greatly from the pastry chef, and now was an excellent pastry chef herself. Danneel filled The Cupcake with conversation and happiness in a way that Jensen would never have managed on his own. She was a great friend to him, helping him take care of Sadie and Harley, making sure he didn’t stress out over the restaurant, and giving him a social life of sorts. Between the two of them, they had a successful business that was profitable thanks to their fantastic baked goods and excellent service. Recently they had given in to the demands of the job, and had finally hired a new employee, Katie Cassidy, to help out part time. Katie came in most days in time for the lunch rush, but she was a big help to Danneel on days when Jensen couldn’t stay at The Cupcake until closing.
And then there was Nathan Fillion, Jensen’s unofficial business partner of sorts. He too was someone who had entered Jensen’s life and just refused to vanish. He was a private investigator who mostly handled murder cases, the more unusual the better. Mr. Fillion had the additional distinction of being the only person (alive at least) who knew about Jensen’s additional… talents.
Jensen was throwing away the trash in a dumpster behind The Cupcake when his life and Nathan Fillion’s business collided. Nathan had been chasing a serial killer across the roof when the guy tripped and went flying over the roof, crash-landing on the dumpster below. Although the impact of the crash killed him, his body bounced off of the dumpster and landed on the bewildered pastry chef, whose touch instantly brought the killer back to life. Confused and dazed, the murderer got back on his feet and began to run away, but Jensen quickly grabbed him, leaving him dead once more. Jensen had hastily gone inside The Cupcake to hide, never realizing that Nathan Fillion had witnessed everything from the roof above.
The next day, a confrontation between the two had resulted in the strangest of business deals. Nathan brought him cases that the police were unable to solve, the odd homicides where no one could possibly know what had happened except the murder victim. That’s where Jensen came in. He used his abilities to bring the victim back to life for up to one minute, during which they’d ask him or her who the murderer was, or at the very least, what they remembered from their last moments. And then when that minute was up, the victim died again, and the two men used their information to solve the murder and gather any reward that’s offered.
Although some circumstances were a bit less than ideal, Jensen was still pretty happy with his life. He had Danneel to help him take care of Sadie and Harley, and over the years he had even become better at lying about why he could not touch them (severe allergies was the best excuse by far. No one ever seemed to question the odds of anaphylactic shock.) In addition to that, he was able to bake all day long without getting in trouble, and even if he didn’t really like taking money from the families of murder victims, he loved that he didn’t have to hide his abilities around the clock, thanks to having Nathan around. And the money came in useful, letting him upgrade appliances, get better supplies, and keep The Cupcake in excellent condition without forcing himself into debt.
Most days, Danneel finishes up earlier and takes the dogs out for a walk. Then when Jensen closes up the restaurant for the day, he goes up to her apartment to get them before going home. Today was no different for the most part, at least until he was already waiting for her inside her apartment.
The voice of the newscaster drew his attention from her chaotic, messy living room to the television next to him. He rarely watched the news, finding that news of the world’s problems didn’t sit well with him, given what he was capable of doing. He was about to look away, but he found himself looking at a face he had once known as well as his own: Jay’s. Jensen quickly turned up the volume to hear what the newscaster was saying.
“Unfortunately, the search for college graduate Jared Padalecki has ended with the discovery of his body by the crew of the cruise ship. At this time the cause of death is not being released, but we’re certain his family will take comfort in knowing that he has been located.” The photo changed to one that was clearly more recent. Jared looked like he was in his mid-twenties, and he’d grown from the thin boy Jensen had known, into an unbelievably tall guy. In the photo he was standing next to his uncles, Aldis and Chad, who both looked as crazy as ever.
Danneel came back into the room with the dogs and saw what he was watching. “Isn’t that so sad? They’ve been airing updates on him all day. I guess it’s finally over now that they know he’s dead. It’s a shame; he was a total cutie.”
“Yeah…” Jensen replied. “I guess it really is over.”
~*~*~*~*~
“You check out the news recently? The big headline’s the murder of that college graduate who was just found dead yesterday.” Nathan said bluntly when Jensen joined him at his table.
Jensen sighed tiredly, unsurprised that Nathan had heard about Jared’s death. “Yeah Nathan, I heard about it.”
“Well what do you know about that small town that Jared Padalecki came from?”
“I know a lot about it. I grew up there; Jared and I were neighbors and best friends.”
“Well that’s convenient, since he’s our next case.”
“…What?”
“The boy was murdered, Jensen. His uncles, the former “Magnificent Magicians” have asked for any information, but the travel agency Jared used is offering $20,000 for the capture of the murderer. No one knows what happened to Jared, and he’s scheduled to be buried later today. It’s the perfect time for you to go do your thing.”
“Wait. You want me to bring Jared back and then kill him again?”
“Well yeah. He’s been murdered, so we should ask him what he remembers about the moment before he died.”
“You’re actually asking me to bring back my best friend and then kill him?”
“You could look at it as putting him to rest if that helps.”
“No, it doesn’t help! He’s not just another dead body, Nathan! He was my best friend.”
“Jensen, I know this has to be difficult for you, but it needs to be done. If you want, I can be there for support or whatever you need, but I need you on this one.”
Jensen knew that logically what Nathan said made sense. But the idea of bringing Jared back and then losing him again… “You’re right,” he finally said. “It needs to be done. I can do it. It’ll probably help me out too, since I hadn’t talked to him in over ten years…” Jensen said, struggling to convince himself that it was a good idea.
“Damn right it needs to be done. Do you have any idea how much free press I’ll get if we solve this case? All of California is watching the news trying to learn what happened to Jared Padalecki. Apparently it was his first time out of the town you two grew up in, let alone his first time out of the country. He worked his way through college, and graduated, and then died on his celebration trip. And the surviving family members? I don’t even know what to make of them.”
“Yeah, Uncles Aldis and Chad take some getting used to.”
“You know them then?” Nathan was already calculating the different ways that he could use Jensen’s past in this case. It was definitely going to benefit them in solving Jared’s unfortunate murder and collecting the sizeable reward.
“I don’t know them that well, but Jay- Jared used to tell me stories about them. Apparently they were pretty famous twenty years ago, as the magicians you mentioned. I know that they loved magic tricks, illusions, and slight of hand until Chad got injured in a freak seagull attack.”
“A freak what now?” Nathan asked incredulously. He knew he couldn’t have heard that correctly.
“Freak seagull attack. I think he was rehearsing for their act, which involved a seagull for some reason. I don’t know how exactly the bird managed to damage his eye, but that’s why he wears the eye-patch. Jared’s mom used to say that that’s why Aldis stayed with him after that, because he was automatically part pirate with the addition of the eye-patch.”
“Seagull attack.”
“Yes.”
“Seagull. Attack.”
“Yes already. Just what is so hard to understand about a seagull attack?”
“The part where that could happen to me anytime I step foot outside in the city. Remind me never to go to Alcatraz Island; I hear that place is home to the seagull cong. I’d never make it out of there intact, and I like my eyes. My eyes are useful. My eyes are gorgeous.”
“Uh huh. Sure. So you want to talk to Aldis and Chad before we go to the funeral home?”
“I think that would be the best plan of attack.”
“Just don’t upset Chad. He may have one eye, but you do not want to see how good his aim is with a shotgun. It’s kinda scary.”
“Say what now?”
“What? What are we talking about?” Danneel asked, sliding in next to Jensen.
“Death by seagulls,” he replied.
“Oh,” she said, nodding in comprehension. “That’s a bad way to go. I still think being trampled by a herd of kindergarteners would be worse though.”
~*~*~*~*~
Jensen found himself standing on the front porch of Aldis and Chad’s home (and Jay’s too) with Nathan only a couple of hours later. As he brought his hand up to the door to knock, he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering back to the last time he’d been standing there, and the events of that fateful day.
“Will you knock on the door already? The funeral’s in a couple of hours- we don’t have all day.”
“I am knocking. Just remember to be nice to them, they’re good people.”
“I’m always nice.”
“You’re never nice.”
The door opened, and once again Jensen found himself presented with a shotgun. “Who are you and what do you want?” Chad asked.
“Chad! What the fuck did I tell you about manners!?!?” Aldis yelled from behind him.
“You said I couldn’t shoot anyone if the news crews were still around. They left three hours ago, ergo, shotgun.”
“Did you just say ergo?”
“Shut up! Again I ask, who the hell are you two, and what do you want?”
Nathan pushed Jensen forward and tried to hide behind him sneakily. Jensen inwardly rolled his eyes at Nathan, but he was just relieved that Nathan hadn’t attempted to say anything to Jay’s uncles.
“Hi Mr. Murray, Mr. Hodge. I don’t suppose you remember me, but Jay and I used to be best friends as kids. I lived next door-“
“Jensen!” they both exclaimed. “Well of course we remember you. You were Jared’s best friend forever, even after you moved away. You’ve really grown up since we saw you last,” Chad said.
“Come in,” Aldis said, opening the door wide. “Sorry we didn’t just invite you in, but things have been a bit chaotic the last couple days as I’m sure you can imagine. I take it you’ve heard about Jared?”
The four men headed inside to the living room. As Jensen walked in, he could see that much of the house had remained the same. There were some odd pets, like the box turtle and what looked like a school of baby piranhas, and there was still an eclectic mixture of furniture in the room as if Chad, Jared and Aldis had argued about everything before finally giving in and each taking over a section of the room.
“Yeah, I heard about Jay last night. I just can’t believe he’s gone.” Jensen replied quietly.
“It’s been hard for us too. Jared’s been with us the whole time- he even took a lot of his college courses online, since he said he wasn’t ready to move out yet. But we just can’t make any sense of this. Who would want to kill Jared? He was the nicest boy! He never really changed from the boy you were best friends with, you know.”
“Yeah? I’m not surprised to hear that.”
“Anyway, who the hell are you?” Chad asked pointedly at Nathan.
“My name is Nathan Fillion. I’m a friend of Jensen’s. And I’m also a private investigator. I look into many of the cases that the police have trouble solving. The murder of your nephew doesn’t strike me as being particularly unsolvable, but since he was Jensen’s friend, I am looking into Jared’s case as well.”
“You know we’re not offering a reward, right? We’re not exactly rolling in money,” Chad asked.
“I am aware of that, sir, but I’m doing this for my friend, not for the money.”
“Alrighty then,” Aldis replied, “You’ve convinced me. What do you want to know?”
“Why did Jared choose to go on that cruise?”
“Jared always wanted to travel, so he started putting aside money from his various jobs. He did some gardening, some carpentry, ran errands for some of the elderly neighbors, installed electronics in the neighborhood, and basically helped out in any ways he could. As for why that cruise, well I think the trip was recommended to him by the travel agent he met with. I don’t remember what her name is, but I know her company is Paradise Getaways,” Aldis said.
“And Jared wasn’t going on the trip to meet with anyone?”
“Everyone he knew is in this room,” replied Chad. “He just wanted to do something different since he had finally graduated. Any other questions? The funeral’s in a little while, and we still have some preparations to take care of.”
Realizing their visit was at an end, Jensen asked the question that he had been dreading. “Mr. Murray, Mr. Hodge? Do you think I could go see Jay?” He took a breath to try to calm his nerves. “I really want to see him again, and tell him I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise.”
“Of course you can, Jensen. He’s at the town funeral parlor by the cemetery. I’m sure you remember where it is. I don’t think any of us could forget after that day.”
“I agree. I don’t think I’ll ever forget a single thing about that day.”
~*~*~*~*~
Nathan and Jensen sat in the car outside the funeral home. “You ready to do this?” Nathan asked.
“No actually, I don’t think I’ll ever be ready to do this. Jay was my best friend. We did everything together, and then in one day, everything changed for both of us. How am I supposed to go bring him back, ask him about his murder, apologize to him, and kill him again?”
“If I had your magic mojo I’d do it for you. I don’t though, so it’s gotta be you. And what exactly are you apologizing for anyway?”
“When we were kids, and I was leaving, I promised him that I’d see him again. Those couple of days between my mom dying and my dad making me pack up my entire life, were some of the worst days in my life, and Jared helped me through them. I just wish I had been a part of his life during the last fifteen years. I missed my best friend.”
“So go tell him that. Or rather, go tell him that after you ask him about his murder.”
Instead of replying, Jensen got out of the car and trudged towards the front door of the building. Walking up the front steps, Jensen was hit by a wave of déjà vu. He felt like he thirteen years old again, reliving his last, futile attempts at reviving his mom. Back then he’d just discovered his abilities and his limitations. Though he found himself in the same place again, he finally had the chance to fix everything that was wrong in his life-he just didn’t know if he could actually do it. He knew it was selfish to want Jay to stay with him, but even he couldn’t really justify it to himself. As thoughts of his mom, his abilities, and Jay swirled through his mind, Jensen entered the funeral parlor. He vaguely heard the funeral home director ask him who he was there to see. Jensen barely managed to whisper “Jared Padalecki,” before he was ushered down a narrow hallway until he found himself in a room with a coffin belonging to his friend.
Nathan, having followed him into the building, grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it before asking, “Are you sure you want to handle this one alone?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I think I have to,” Jensen replied numbly.
“Okay then, I’ll be right outside,” Nathan responded. He walked out of the room and shut the door quietly. The funeral director raised an eyebrow at him in question, and so he briefly explained the situation. “My friend just wants to say goodbye to his friend by himself; they hadn’t seen each other in years, and he doesn’t want an audience there when and if he breaks down.”
“Oh, I understand completely,” the funeral director responded. Nathan gave the shifty looking director a strange look before he turned his attention back to the closed door before them.
Inside the room, Jensen was still having trouble trying to get the nerve to just look inside the coffin, let alone revive Jared. When he finally opened the coffin, he just stared at the man inside, trying to find the young boy he’d known and loved in him. The hair was the same, floppy, unruly, and completely adorable. Jensen suspected the dimples would still be out in full force if Jay smiled, and he knew that if they were both standing, he would now be the shorter of the two. All of these comparisons actually helped him make his decision, and after carefully setting the timer on his watch for one minute, he gently reached in and placed his hand on Jared’s cheek.
The traditional flash of light occurred, and Jensen suddenly found himself being choked as Jared reacted instinctually and grabbed him by the tie, slamming his head into the top of the open coffin in the process. Jared let go of his tie while trying to get out of the coffin, and Jensen took the opportunity to stumble away from the coffin.
“Jay! Take it easy!”
“…Jensen?” Jared replied in disbelief, “Jensen, is that really you?”
“Yeah, yeah it is. Sorry I didn’t make it back home sooner. What’s the last thing you remember?”
“I remember I was on the cruise ship, and I dropped my room key into the ice dispenser’s grate. And then some fucker grabbed me from behind and tossed a bag over my face to suffocate me. I kinda remember being dragged somewhere, but then everything else is cold and blurry. What the fuck? Did I die? Because I am pretty sure that this is the funeral place back home. I couldn’t forget that place if I tried. Well? Did I die?”
Jensen blinked at the rush of words from Jared before asking, “Can I talk now?”
“Yeah, sorry. Waking up in a coffin is a bit of a shock. What happened to me?”
“Well you’re right about what happened. Some person did kill you when you were on your cruise. They threw you overboard with the bag on your face. Do you have any idea why anyone would have wanted you to die?”
“I have no clue! The only person who might know is my travel agent, Lauren. She’s the one who suggested the cruise to me. She thought it would be the perfect way for me to get out of California and see the world. So she’s the only one who might know more about who was on the cruise or what the deal was with those kangaroos.”
“Kangaroos?” Jensen looked at his watch anxiously. Thirty seconds had already passed, and he just didn’t know how he was going to let Jared go now.
“Yeah, I had to take these two kangaroo figurines with me. Lauren said they were going to be used on board the cruise ship for some party halfway through the trip, but I never did learn the details. If I got killed over those damn kangaroos, I’m going to be pissed. So what happens now?”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Well I’m in some sort of temporary limbo or something right? And why’d you want to know about why I died?”
“A private investigator friend of mine is looking into your murder, trying to get justice and all that jazz. And you’re not in limbo. You’re alive. Technically you’ll die again when I touch you, so I guess maybe you’re right, this is kinda like being in limbo.”
“Touch me? So I guess a kiss is out of the question then,” Jared said with a grin, dimples showing just like Jensen remembered.
Jensen was down to the last ten seconds of their time together. “You were my first kiss, you know. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise to you, Jay.”
“As far as I’m concerned you did keep your promise. I’m seeing you right now. The details of the situation don’t really matter after all. And you were my first kiss too,” Jared replied with a soft smile. “Oh and Jensen? Thanks for calling me Jay again. I haven’t heard that in a long time.” He paused, just looking at Jensen before speaking again. “So if I have to touch you again anyway, how about one last kiss?”
Jared leaned down ready to kiss him as the clock ticked down the last few seconds. Before Jensen could even lean up for the kiss, he found himself saying the one thing he had tried to talk himself out of even thinking. “Jay, what if you didn’t have to die?”
“Well I think I’d like that a lot. I mean, it’s not like I chose to be dead right this minute or anything like that.”
“Okay,” Jensen replied. “So just don’t touch my skin or anything, or you’ll die again. Ummm… they’ll probably be checking the coffin before they take you to the cemetery, so just pretend you’re dead and lie there, and I’ll make sure I get you out of the coffin before they actually bury you, okay?” Jensen couldn’t believe that he was actually doing this, that he was actually helping Jay escape death and gain a new life. But when he looked into Jared’s eyes, he knew that he would never regret this decision.
“Okay, I trust you. I’ll see you in a little bit,” Jared replied as he climbed back into the coffin.
~*~*~*~*~
James Lafferty, the funeral home director was not the sort of man you would want handling your last affairs on Earth. If anything, he was the last man you would want consoling your loved ones and handling your personal effects. It wasn’t that he treated the dead callously, or that he chose inferior materials to mark their remains. No, in those respects, Mr. Lafferty excelled at his work. The only problem was that he thoroughly robbed you and your family without drawing attention to his thefts. His thievery was only now coming into the open, despite the hundreds of angry letters that he had received from families of the deceased over the years. But the thefts are another story entirely.
For now, only one thing need be considered and that is a very simple rule. If the pastry chef brings back a life, he has one minute in which to send the life back, otherwise, another will take its place. So, though he never witnessed it, two other animals died when he saved the lives of his beloved dogs. And of course Jay’s mother was the casualty when young Jensen unwittingly brought his mother back for too long.
When Jensen and Jared made the decision for him to stay alive instead of dying once again, someone within proximity had to die to take his place. And so, time was up for James Lafferty, funeral director. As he sat in his office, examining the latest additions to his collection of stolen goods to resell or keep (as if he’d ever consider selling a solid gold pocket watch), he felt a strange sensation come over him. He tried to write it off as allergies, but a moment later it became food poisoning; and then within a few seconds he jerked once, and fell to the side, already dead.
~*~*~*~*~
Jensen heard a loud thud as soon as he came out of the room with Jared and his coffin. He winced, knowing it meant his minute was officially up and someone else had now died because of the selfish decision he had made. He rushed towards the sound and found James Lafferty the funeral director dead in his office. Calling for help, Jensen quickly headed back to Jared, not trusting his plan any longer. He knew the sooner Jared got out of that coffin, the safer he’d be. Unfortunately, in the time it took for him to check on the funeral director, Jared and his coffin had already been loaded into a hearse en route to the cemetery.
Cursing his luck, his brain, and everything else he could think to blame, Jensen headed for Nathan, knowing that he’d have to face him sooner or later. Luckily Nathan was near the crowd of people now looking at Mr. Lafferty. Jensen grabbed him and dragged him out of the building into the driveway of the funeral home.
“Nathan, can I borrow your car?” Jensen asked quickly, not wanting to waste any more time.
“Why the hell do you want to borrow my car, and how did the funeral director guy die so suddenly? I could have sworn he was just fine when I met him a few minutes ago.”
“I think I want to go to the burial. I just don’t want to force you to wait around over here when I know you’d rather be chasing down leads.”
“Well, you’re right about that. I really don’t want to hang around this town any longer. Do you have any idea what there is to do for fun around here?”
“You kinda have to make your own fun. Nothing happens out here most of the time.”
“No wonder you left this place ages ago. What did the victim say?”
“What?” Jensen asked in complete confusion.
“Your friend, Jared. What did he have to say about his murder?”
“Oh, right. Nothing super helpful. He said that he was grabbed from behind but that he didn’t have his room key on him, since he’d just dropped it. He thinks he was dragged somewhere on board the ship. And he thinks the travel agent, Lauren, might know more than she’s letting on, since she’s the one who sent him on the cruise with the kangaroo figurines.”
“Kangaroos.”
“Yeah, ceramic or metal or something surprisingly heavy. He wasn’t too sure, but he was quite clear on the fact that she told him to bring them with him. I figure that may be our best lead. Maybe someone else was after the kangaroos.”
“Kangaroos. Who the hell smuggles fake kangaroos onto a cruise ship? What sort of masterful crime is that?”
“I can honestly say that I don’t get it either. I mean, smuggling figurines in general doesn’t make sense unless there’s something else inside, since you could totally ship that by Overnight Mail or UPS or something like that,” Jensen replied.
“First the uncle with the seagulls and the piranha at their house, and now fake kangaroos with the dead nephew. Are there any animals not involved with this family?” Nathan finally asked in exasperation. “Honestly, I am all for strange crimes. Strange crimes pay for my meals, my clothes, and my somewhat extravagant lifestyle. But this case is just all kinds of crazy.”
“So… can I borrow your car?” Jensen asked again, reminding Nathan of what the conversation was about in the first place.
“I take it there’s a bus out of here?”
“It should be leaving within the next fifteen minutes from the station down the block.”
Nathan tossed him the keys, and turned to leave the front driveway of the building. “Don’t mess up my car or I swear I will kill you so thoroughly that even your magic finger can’t help you.” With that he headed out, ready to leave the strange town he found himself in. If there was a bus then his ass was going to be on it. The sooner he got out of here, the sooner his life could return to normal. Well as normal as it could be with a friend and business partner who could bring the dead back to life.
As Nathan walked out, Jensen ran for the car, hoping that he reached Jared before he was actually buried.
~*~*~*~*~
Luckily Jensen had no trouble finding Jared or his grave, but unfortunately for him, the grave was still being dug, so he couldn’t just get Jared out and run, like he had planned. So, he added to his list of crimes committed that day and set fire to the van belonging to the gravediggers before running up the hill to where they were working.
“Sorry to bother you,” he said, panting for breath. “But is that your van at the bottom of the hill?”
“Yeah it’s ours,” one of the workers replied. “Why do you care about it?”
“Well, it looks like it’s on fire,” Jensen replied as calmly as he could.
He stepped aside as the men went barreling down the hill to their van, leaving Jensen alone with both the half-dug grave and Jared’s coffin. Slowly, Jensen opened the lid of the coffin and found himself staring at Jay’s grinning face.
“You ready to get out of here?” he asked his best friend.
“Absolutely,” Jay replied.
~*~*~*~*~
It was no problem for Jared to climb out of the coffin before the gravediggers could get back to their work. When they walked down the hill, the men were still trying to put out the fire that Jensen had started.
“How did you manage to create that big a fire anyway?” Jared asked him as they meandered down the side of the hill, trying to look innocent.
“Well, they had a gallon of motor oil, a bucket of varnish, and some aerosol spray. I may have mixed some things around before getting a lighter involved,” Jensen mumbled in embarrassment.
“Oh really? You may have mixed some things around before committing arson to get me out of my coffin?”
“Well yeah.”
Running out of the cemetery without drawing any attention to themselves had been tricky but not impossible. All it had taken was for Jensen to go and pretend to be a distraught mourner who had lost his way in the cemetery. In that time, Jared snuck out through the front entrance, signaling Jensen in the process. Ten minutes later, Jensen managed to get out from the cemetery too, after they explained to him that he just had the wrong time for Jared’s funeral.
Of course, Nathan had called his cell phone at least five times during that time and Jensen had no excuse to give him. Nathan could be compared to a bloodhound with good reason; when on the search for the truth in a case, he was relentless and could identify lies over the phone as well as through face-to-face conversation, hell, even by reading the newspaper. He believed himself to be one of the greatest detectives ever, and his record for solving cases didn’t serve to deflate his ego either. Jensen eventually settled on telling Nathan that he was going to run some errands before going home to decompress from the events of the day. Although Nathan sounded skeptical, he did accept Jensen’s response as being truthful. It helped that he was already back in the city to do some detective work of his own, so he couldn’t stay on the phone to grill Jensen any longer.
“Well, it seems he bought that, so we’ve got some time before he starts digging around again. In the meantime, we need to get you some new clothes. I am pretty sure all of my stuff will be way too short for you, and I’m sure you don’t want to be stuck wearing the same suit tomorrow as well, right?”
“You’re right, I feel a little weird shopping when a few hours ago I was dead and in my coffin. It’s a little surreal to say the least. But yeah, let’s go get me some clothes. I am guessing we can’t go home and get some of my own stuff?” Jared said hopefully. Although he knew that it might not be the best idea to go home now while his uncles were still grieving his death, he just wanted to go home.
“I know you must have a ton of questions and I promise you I’ll do my best to answer them, but I have no idea how to explain any of this to your uncles, especially when I was just over there a couple hours ago with Nathan. Anything I say will probably lead Chad to shoot me.” Jensen wasn’t looked forward to the explanations, especially the minor detail of fact that he killed Jay’s mom.
“How were they when you saw them?” The one worry Jared had had at the time of his death was what would become of his uncles. They didn’t like to socialize with people that often, especially after Uncle Chad had lost the use of his eye. The eyepatch, plus Chad’s easily irritable nature, had left the two of them with few friends outside of their little family.
Jensen thought about it before answering. At the time, he had been so consumed with thinking about his own emotions that he hadn’t really thought about how hard Jared’s death must be for Chad and Aldis. “I think they’re doing as well as can be expected. Uncle Chad greeted me at the door with his shotgun, but they seemed pretty happy to see me. I guess they were hoping that I’d hear about what happened to you and go see them. Aldis was telling stories about you while Chad sat there staring suspiciously at Nathan, but I think they’re hanging in there. I do think they may be better off if we can figure out who killed you in the first place, though. And why, of course- I think that may be what’s upsetting them the most.”
“God, it’s so weird to hear us talking about my murder. I was murdered. I was dead. I really need a drink right now.”
“We’ll add large quantities of alcohol to our shopping list, okay?”
“Sounds like a plan. Let’s get outta here.”
~*~*~*~*~
Getting Jared back to the apartment without Nathan finding out had proved difficult, but it turns out it was even trickier getting him past Danneel. Danneel was his best friend, but sometimes her meddling, and her ongoing goal of finding him a boyfriend drove him crazy. A few months after she started working at The Cupcake, she had told him that she thought he was hot. He told her he was gay, and she said she’d find him a good boyfriend. Every few months, she renewed her quest to find him that perfect guy.
“Danni! Can I just get the dogs and go?” He really didn’t want Danneel to have any clue of what had happened that day. If he even mentioned Jay’s name, the entire story was going to come out, and that was going to cause some major problems in the long run. Although he hated lying to her, it had never gone well for him when he tried to explain his ability.
“Why are you in such a hurry? Do you want to stick around for some coffee? I really don’t mind!”
“No, I just want to get Sadie and Harley and go home.” No matter how much he loved Danneel and valued her friendship, Jensen just could not deal with her energy and inquisitive nature tonight. Not when he was exhausted, not when Jared was hiding in his apartment, not when he had to face the fact that he had knowingly let another person die.
“C’mon Jensen, you need to go out and have fun sometimes. You’re an amazing guy! Guys would be fighting each other trying to cut in line to get a chance with you.”
“Danni…”
“Give me one good reason why you won’t even think about going out tonight.”
“I just got back from the funeral of my best friend from childhood.”
“Seriously? You’re kidding me right? You’re willingly disclosing information from your childhood? Wait, did you say funeral? Oh my god, Jensen! I am so sorry. Who was it? Is it anyone I’ve met?”
“Danni, it has been a really long day. Could we just do this tomorrow? Do you have to grill me right this minute? I just want to go home, make some dinner, take it easy tonight, and sleep.”
“Alright, fine. Tomorrow, you are in full disclosure mode. Be prepared for interrogation, Danneel-style. I will get whatever information I require of you, mark my words. Do you find this arrangement agreeable?”
“Are you seriously asking me if I am okay with being interrogated tomorrow? Because the answer to that is a definite no, as it should be. I will merely be tolerating the interrogation because otherwise you’re never going to do your work, and then I’ll have to fire you.” Jensen really couldn’t believe the direction the conversation had taken, but after almost a full year of owning The Cupcake, he really should have expected the illogical segues. He just needed to remind himself to be thankful that Danneel had yet to burst into song during this conversation.
“Minor technicality. Besides, boss man, you know I can multitask! I can totally do all of my work while questioning you incessantly, which is what I will be doing tomorrow. Also, The Cupcake would be out of business in a week if you fired me. You don’t have the patience to go through the interviewing process again, and therefore, you would have to cook everything, serve everyone, and then clean up all by your lonesome self. Oh hey, I meant to tell you, your dogs seemed lonelier than usual today. Are you sure there aren’t any allergy meds that would help with your freaky allergy?” Danneel looked concerned once more as she looked at the dogs sitting at her feet. Although Jensen was one of her best friends, she really didn’t understand him or his strange aversion to petting his own dogs.
“I haven’t found anything that will allow me to have actual contact with them except for multiple pairs of disposable gloves. It sucks, but it works okay for us most of the time,” Jensen said with a smile.
He opened the door and the dogs headed out, careful not to brush against Jensen as they passed him. “Goodnight Jensen,” Danneel said as she watched him head over to his apartment.
“Night, Danni. I’ll see you tomorrow,” he replied as he opened the door to his apartment.
< hr>
When Jensen, Sadie, and Harley were finally inside his apartment, Jensen let out a huge sigh of relief. He smiled when he saw Jared removing the tags and labels from all of his new purchases, which had expanded from the clothing department to also include a toothbrush, shampoo, shoes, and a few other things Jay had deemed necessary for his sanity, including a vast array of candy.
Jensen let the dogs move ahead of him as they went to check out this new arrival. “Hey! I remember you used to have two dogs when we were younger. Sadie and Harley, right?” Both dogs barked at the mentions of their names, and Jared’s eyes widened in surprise. “They aren’t the same Sadie and Harley are they?” Yet again the dogs seemed happy with his realization and recognition. “They’re the same? Them too?”
“Jay… they were the first ones I brought back. It was before I knew what I could do or how to control it. I wanted to tell you, but it all happened the day our moms died, and I never got a chance to talk to you about it.”
“How about you make us some dinner and you tell me about it now?” Jared replied, realizing that there was more to this story than he had originally believed.
In response, Jensen got up and started gathering ingredients. He wasn’t that hungry yet, but knowing Jay, he was starving. Dying and coming back to life had to give you an appetite too. He started chopping up ingredients to make a salad, until Jared stepped in offering to help. With Jared making the salad, Jensen turned to boiling the water for pasta. While the water heated up, he started mixing ingredients to make a creamy pesto sauce to go with the mixed penne pasta. Jensen also made garlic bread to go along with the meal, while Jared dug some wine out of one of the cupboards and set the table for two.
When everything was ready and there was nothing left to keep him from the conversation, Jensen put the food on the table. The two of them served themselves before digging in, both hungrier than usual thanks to the long day they had each had. Neither Jensen nor Jared wanted to spoil the delicious dinner with the heavy conversation they knew they were going to have, so neither of them really spoke much apart from compliments on the food.
After they finished eating, Jared cleared the table as Jensen put the leftovers in the fridge. With the dishwasher running, and everything put away, there truly was nothing left to delay the conversation. Jensen sat down on his sofa chair while Jared sat on the couch. “So… what do you want to know?” Jensen finally asked.
“When did all of this start? Was it really the day our moms died?”
“I don’t actually know. I know that that was the day I figured out about all of this. I didn’t know that I had any abilities before I brought Sadie and Harley back. It might have started earlier though. It can work in pretty insignificant ways.”
“How can you consider bringing someone back to life insignificant?”
“Well it isn’t always something as big as a person or a dog. I can bring rotten fruit back to life so that it looks as though it were perfectly ripe. I can turn a dead leaf that’s brown in late winter into a perfectly green summer leaf. I can revive flowers and bugs, people and plants, fruits and vegetables, anything that was once alive.” It sounded weird to Jensen, as he heard himself explaining everything to Jared. It was something he had been living with for so long that he could barely recall that initial awe of learning about his abilities.
“So you can just bring anything to life?”
“Yeah. If I touch something that’s dead, then it comes back to life. If I touch it again, it dies again for good.” At the back of his mind, all Jensen could think about was how if he ever touched Jay again, he would die.
“So you can’t really control it then?” Jared asked in fascination.
“No, it isn’t something that I can turn on and off whenever I want to. I mean, I can’t even pet my dogs without wearing gloves, or I’ll end up killing them again,” Jensen replied sadly.
“You think I’d have trouble touching them?”
“No, I doubt it. Sadie and Harley crash into each other all of the time without having problems of any sort, so I am sure you can pet them and play with them too.” Jensen whistled to the dogs and they came over to the two of them. Jared slowly reached his hand out towards the dogs tentatively, ready to pet them. Jensen watched as the dogs nudged his hand with their noses. It was amazing to see the three of them interact, each afraid that something was going to happen if they touched properly. Eventually, the dogs gave in first, licking Jared’s face and sitting on the couch next to him with their heads propped up on his legs. The three of them looked so comfortable that Jensen felt a pang of regret at what he was unable to experience. But even the regret wasn’t enough to keep him from smiling at the scene before him.
Jared and Jensen talked late into the night until both of them were interrupting the conversation with their yawns. Jensen quickly made up the bed and then went to his closet for extra pillows and blankets before he came back into the living room to make up the couch too. Jared came into the room in his pajamas and said, “You don’t have to get the couch ready for me, you know. I’d probably be comfier on the floor; couches tend to be a little small for me to sleep on.”
“The couch is for me, Jay. You sleep in the bed.”
“What? Jensen, I can’t take your bed from you!”
“You’re not,” he replied with a smile. “I’m giving it to you. I can sleep comfortably on the couch, you can’t. Just take the bed, Jay. I’m sure you could do with a good night’s sleep after the last few days you had.”
“Are you sure? Because I wasn’t exaggerating. I really can sleep just fine on the floor, Jensen.”
“I’m sure,” Jensen said, climbing into his couch bed. “Sleep well, Jay.”
“Goodnight, Jensen,” Jared replied with a soft smile. He quietly left the room and climbed into the bed that Jensen had prepared for him. As both Jensen and Jared drifted off to sleep, they dreamt of what it would be like if they could actually touch one another again like they had as kids.
~*~*~*~*~
Oatmeal Chocolate-Chip Cookies originally from Cook’s Illustrated, but tweaked by Danneel Harris
Makes about 18 large cookies (perfect for serving with ice cream!)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
3 cups oats
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I always use semisweet chips)
1. Preheat oven to 350°, and line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper. (I like to use a silpat-nonstick silicone mat-myself.)
2. Whisk flour, salt and baking powder together in a medium bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, by hand or by mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add both sugars and beat the mixture until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time. (This is definitely easier with a mixer.)
4. Stir dry ingredients into butter-sugar mixture with a wooden spoon or a large rubber spatula. Stir in oats and chocolate chips.
5. Place dough onto parchment-lined cookie sheets by large spoonfuls (about 2 tablespoons each), leaving at least 2 inches between.
6. Bake until cookie edges turn golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Slide cookies (on parchment) onto cooling rack. (I transfer them straight from the silpat to the rack.) Let cool, and store in airtight container.
~*~*~*~*~
Prologue - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Epilogue - Master Post - Art