Hey everyone! I should really be working on my current stories, but I was rewatching psych episodes the other day, and this idea came into my head. It's loosely based off of the episodes santabarbratown parts one and two (hence the title) if you're a fan of the show, but only a few plot points are the same. Anyway, please enjoy!
2002, Ed and Edna's Scrap and Junk:
Eight year old Jay dug through the kitchen cabinet of his family's rv looking for a snack. Unfortunately their tiny living space was so outrageously disorganized that he didn't find any food. It was probably in the tool box. Jay could always count on finding fruit snacks in there.
What he did find was his father's welding mask (which made sense considering the soup cans usually ended up with Ed's welding tools. Jay slid it over his face and turned towards the mirror. Someday he wanted to be an inventor like his father... only better. He didn't want to have to be involved in the scrap business as a side job to make ends meet.
Jay pulled the mask off and picked up a picture which sat on the counter of Ed and with his three scrap business coworkers: Garry, Al, and Poe. Jay knew that these men were like brothers to Ed. He even referred to them as his uncles when they visited the junkyard. Maybe having a team like that wouldn't be so bad, people he could trust. Jay set the picture down and looked to the future with sheer optimism.
Present Day, the monastery:
"Ugh! Chore days are the worst!" Jay groaned. He slid a feather duster across the top of Wu's bookshelf and coughed on the dust stirring in the air.
"Agreed," Nya sighed as she swept the floor in the room they were both cleaning, "You'd think Master Wu would at least have the common decency to schedule chore day and sunrise exercise on different days."
"Less chit chat, more working!" Zane grunted as he went flying past the couple with the toilet brush and a bottle of Clorox.
"What's got his britches in a bunch?" Jay asked.
Nya leaned in closer to Jay and whispered, "Pixal and I were talking last night; she thinks Zane's going to ask her to be his yang tonight. He's probably just nervous."
"I didn't know that, he hasn't said anything, at least to Kai or else the whole monastery would know by now," Jay replied.
"What?"
"When I asked your brother for help planning, he kept blabbing about it to just about everyone who would listen. Even the mailman knew! I thought for sure Kai was going to tell you before I got the chance to ask you," Jay laughed.
"He didn't," Nya replied, "But he did start asking oddly specific questions about our relationship. Honestly, I'm not sure how I didn't figure it out."
Jay's phone began buzzing in his pocket, "Hold that thought, my dad's calling me... Hey, Dad! What's up?"
Nya returned to sweeping as Jay talked to Ed, half listening to Jay's side of the conversation, half thinking. She was glad she hadn't figured out that Jay was going to propose. The surprise made it all better. Their official yin-yang ceremony was in a week almost. It would be a quiet celebration with the team and their parents, a reminder that while they weren't quite old enough for marriage yet, they were pledging to keep going steady together until that day.
Jay pulled the phone away from his face, "Hey, Nya, want to go to my parents' for dinner tonight?"
Nya nodded, "That sounds great!"
"Great," Jay said, bringing the phone back to his ear, "We'll be there around five thirty."
(Time skip)
"Ma! Dad! We're here!" Jay shouted as he and Nya entered the scrap yard.
Oddly, the rv seemed to be deserted, which chapter set Jay on edge. He always assumed the worst when his parents didn't respond right away.
"Over here, son!" Ed called from behind a pile of assorted bike parts.
Jay and Nya walked around the pile and found Ed and Edna with another man about their age.
"Uncle Al?" Jay asked.
"Jay! Long time no see!" The man, Al pulled Jay into a hug, patting him on the back.
"This is certainly a surprise!" Jay laughed as Al let go.
"Yeah, well your parents here were helping me find a part I need to finish a vehicle. Your Aunt Suzzie and I searched our entire scrap yard and couldn't find a single thingamawhatsit!"
Jay turned to Nya, "Nya, this is my Uncle Al. He's not actually my uncle, but he works with my parents, and he's over here all the time."
"Nice to meet you," Nya grinned as she shook Al's hand.
"You must be the girl Ed and Edna say stole Jay's heart."
"Did Jay tell you that their yin-yang ceremony is next week?" Edna chimed.
"That serious, huh?" All raised an eyebrow.
"They grow up too fast," Ed sighed.
"Before you know it, you'll have grandkids running around this place. My little grand daughter is three already. She's just the greatest thing that's happened to Suzzie and I since we had Carter."
"Well, I'm sorry we couldn't find that part, Al," Ed said, shaking Al's hand, We'll look more tomorrow, but I figure we should probably go eat dinner with these kids before they finish growing up on us."
"Okay, take care, guys," Al replied, "Nya, it was nice meeting you."
Al left, and the four of them made their way back to the rv where the smell of Edna's pot pie in the oven filled the surrounding atmosphere.
"So, how are Uncle Poe and Uncle Garry doing? I haven't heard from them since moving out," Jay asked as everyone sat down.
"Poe's passed on sadly. Garry actually retired," Ed replied.
"He moved up to Hopeful Lane in Ninjago City," Edna added as she set the pot pie on a pot holder, "We don't see him much more now."
"I know where that is," Jay replied as he and Nya shared an all too knowing look.
"Well, I'd say retirement is treating Garry pretty decently," Edna remarked, "It was surprising to everyone, the scrap business is ruthless, nobody would've thought he could afford a place up there."
"He must've invested or something," Ed concluded, "Now, can we start eating? That pot pie isn't going to stay hot forever!"
(Time skip)
Nya awoke the next morning and slid into her bathrobe. The guys all enjoyed sleeping in, so Nya and Pixal often used the early hours for much needed girl talk. Wu usually was outdoors meditating, so the two best friends had the monastery to themselves.
Pixal was already waiting when Nya opened her door, "Good morning," Pixal said wearily as the girls made their way down the hall towards the kitchen.
"I take it the date last night didn't go too well?" Nya guessed as the girls entered the kitchen. Nya started a pot of tea for them. Neither girl drank caffeine, but both enjoyed peppermint herbal tea in the morning, almost to the point that together they could beat Wu at daily tea intake, as if anyone was keeping track, which they were.
"It went terribly," Pixal sighed, "Zane kept acting distracted like he was mad at me or something, but I do not know what I did!"
"As, I'm sorry, Pix," Nya frowned and put her hand on Pixal's shoulder, "I'm sure it wasn't anything you did. Maybe Zane just..." she trailed off trying to grasp at some reason, any reason why Zane would be acting so off, but she couldn't figure anything. Zane was never like that. His behavior just didn't make sense. Discouraged at her inability to console her friend, she picked up the teapot and began pouring two cups.
Pixal picked up her cup, "I was wrong in my prediction that Zane was going to ask me to be his yang," she sighed, "I cannot believe I got my hopes up. Perhaps I was so caught up in the preparation for yours and Jay's yin-yang ceremony that I wanted the same for Zane and myself."
"Pix, don't beat yourself up about this! Zane will ask you in due time," Nya smiled, a lightbulb going off in her head, "Maybe the reason Zane was acting so off was because he was going to ask you but got too nervous?"
"That would be so sweet!" Pixal determined, "Let us hope that is the case!"
The girls made their way into the courtyard. Wu had left the newspaper that had already been dropped off by the main door when he left to meditate. Nya picked it up and began reading the headlines, "Uh-oh," she frowned.
"What is it?" Pixal asked, leaning over Nya's shoulder to see what she was reading.
"Sorry to cut girl time short, but I really need to show this to Jay!" Nya said frantically before racing back inside leaving Pixal alone both confused and surprised.
Well, I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter. More will be up soon. Sorry to leave everyone on a cliffhanger right off the bat, but I can't help myself.
Now for some general updates:
Number one: This summer I'll mainly be focusing on this story and Forever By Your Side (and possibly my Oneshot collection when the mood strikes). There's no real update schedule (as ya'll already know), and then when I start college I really have no idea when I'll update, but I still hope to keep doing so. This summer I plan to keep writing while I have time and take advantage of little responsibilities.
Number two: I'm sorry if anyone found the fact that Ed's coworkers names are Garry, Al, and Poe a really cheesy play on words. This was actually first done in a Series Of Unfortunate Events, and I loved those books as a kid, so I had to take the opportunity to make that reference.
Number three: Theory time! Since the yang thing last season was never fully explained, I took the liberty to come up with a meaning for it myself, here it is. Some teens who are in long term relationships will make the yin-yang promise. It's basically a pledge to keep going and staying pure until they're older and get married. It basically would be like a really small ceremony with parents, siblings, and maybe a few really close friends (in this case the ninja team), where participants make their pledges, a pastor reads a few passages, and everyone prays for the couple together. Then they'd be cake afterwards (of course!). Let me know what you think of the theory, and I'm interested to hear others takes on this.
That's all for now! I hope you all have a great day. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you all soon!
#God's Not Dead!