Endings, as we know, are where our story starts. But sometimes, most endings are actually an end.
The pie maker and the girl named Chuck sat at the Pie Hole for one last time. The stucco pie crust roof was deteriorating, the sign was on the fritz once more, and the interior wasn't what it used to be. The cherry lights had been out for quite some time now, the booth's vinyl was peeling, and the kitchen was in desperate need for repairs.
"Take one last look at it," Ned said, scanning the room. "She'll be closed officially tomorrow." He sighed at Chuck, who was sitting at the bar. The pie maker thought about all of the things that happened inside the Pie Hole. All of the cases that Emerson had brought in, the sabotage that occurred when Balsam's Bitter Sweets came to town, and the countless amount of times when Olive tried to flirt with Ned. Chuck smiled softly at the pie maker; she could tell that Ned was sad to let the place go. It had been forty-nine years since Ned had fist brought Chuck to the Pie Hole; when he told her that they couldn't touch, not even for an emotional Heimlich.
"I'm going to miss the Pie Hole." Chuck said finally, and this was true. She hopped down from the stool and went to the door. "Come on, let's go home." She smiled softly at the pie maker and waited for him to follow. Ned followed her out the door and to their apartment upstairs. Once they reached the floor which held their apartment, Ned looked at the door to the apartment where Olive used to live. Once she and Randy were married, she moved out and quit the Pie Hole. There was an eerie silence that emanated from the empty apartment. The pie maker unlocked the door to his home, stepping inside. The interior hadn't changed much in the time that he and Chuck had lived there. Furniture was taken out and added, things broke, and the wall décor stayed the same.
The day wore on; Chuck and the pie maker were now in their separate beds. They had grown to accept the distance that had to be between them. Chuck read aloud to the pie maker, "Don't try to comprehend with your mind. Your mind is very limited. Use your intuition." Ned smiled as she read, he loved hearing her voice. He began to nod off, for he felt exceptionally tired. Chuck noticed that he was falling asleep, and she ceased reading, smiling to herself. "Goodnight." She whispered to the pie maker, turning off the light and falling asleep.
Morning broke through the curtains, Chuck awoke with a smile; she slept soundly through the night. She turned to see if Ned had woken up. She saw that he was still asleep, but she noticed something off about him. The colour had drained from his face; he was pale with a blue undertone. Chuck automatically knew. She had been on enough cases with Emerson to know what had happened to her beloved pie maker. Quickly she got up and went over to the pie maker, tears forming in her eyes. "Ned?" she whispered, her voice breaking. She laid her head down on the blanket, crying. She looked up to face Ned once more, taking a deep breath, she leaned forward and kissed his forehead.