And a happy Friday to you all! I hope you guys are enjoying this story. It's been super fun to write. And where I am right now, it's finally getting to the good stuff...


The next morning, Crutchie pulled himself up before the sun had even dawned. He glanced at JT's sleeping form across the room, thankful to see that the other boy was still asleep. The nightmares had started back up again. Every year, roughly around the time he had been kidnapped by Gabriel and company, Crutchie's dreams would turn dark and gripping. This morning, thankfully, he didn't remember any of the images that had clawed and ripped and tore him out of bed. All that remained was a clutching stone of fear that froze Crutchie's stomach.

"I'm fine. I'm fine. It's all over," Crutchie murmured to himself, pulling a fresh shirt on. It was the truth. He was fine: his wrist had healed quite nicely a month after those horrid events and he was still breathing, which was a definite positive. Plus, Gabriel and Manuel were in jail and there was no way they could get to Crutchie ever again. "I'm fine," he whispered once more, placing his Stetson on his head and exiting the room.

When Crutchie made his way to the dining room, he was greeted with a, "You're up early."

Crutchie glanced at Jessie. "You're not one to talk."

Jessie acknowledged that that was a fair point. "But," she continued, "I'm almost always up at this time. You usually sleep in a little longer."

With a shrug, Crutchie sat down at the table. "Just wasn't exactly interested in sleeping in anymore," he commented lightly, reaching for the pot of coffee in the center of the table. That was a benefit for getting up early: this time he could actually partake of the coffee without having to steal from Jack.

"Nightmare?" Jessie asked, her voice careful.

"Yes, but, Jessie, it's fine. It wasn't anything bad. I don't even remember what it was," Crutchie quickly explained. He knew that Jessie was often prone to blame herself for the nightmares that still plagued Crutchie. And it was stupid, because Crutchie had clarified time and time again that he didn't blame her. If anyone was at fault, it was Gabriel. Not Jessie.

"Mm," Jessie hummed softly, her eyes fixating on the table.

"Honest, Jessie. I'm fine. We're both fine. We've been fine for years," he reassured her.

Words carefully enunciated, Jessie explained, "I had hoped that the nightmares would have stopped by now. It's been four years…" She still wouldn't look up and Crutchie felt guilty for even telling her why he was up earlier than usual.

"It's no big deal. I've been working with nightmares for years before I met you." Crutchie hesitated, before adding, "I-it's not anything new, r-really." He hated how he had stuttered, his fear shining through; Jessie was sure to have noticed that. There was a moment of silence and Crutchie hoped that maybe Jessie was accepting that he would always be living with the aftereffects of his life. He had accepted his lot in life ages ago. Nearly everything that had happened to him had only added fuel to the bad dreams: his mother, the Refuge, Ms. Briarwood and that dreaded switch, Phillip and his cronies, everything that had gone down with Gabriel. Crutchie wasn't fool enough to hope that he would ever sleep freely again.

"I don't have nightmares," Jessie blurted out. "I—I don't and—"

"That's great, Jessie. I wouldn't want you to experience those."

"But, we both went through the same thing, yet I feel like nothing bad happens to me because of it. I'm fine and you're—"

"Fine, also," Crutchie supplied.

Jessie stared at him, before looking away, smiling tiredly. "This'll just turn into a fight, won't it?"

"I prefer the term 'friendly argument,' but, yeah, it sure looks like it." Crutchie smiled back at her. "Really, though. I know you don't believe me or understand, but if nightmares are the only thing that I have to go through, I'll count that as a good thing. It's nothing I can't handle, Jessie."

"Okay," Jessie agreed softly. "Okay, I'll believe you. But, if you do need to talk to someone about… you know… I'm here." She smiled and this time it was wider and more genuine. "I've been through the same things."

"You're right. I do recall an annoying redhead—"

"Crutchie," Jessie quickly interrupted, "you must be losing your mind. JT wasn't there." She grinned sarcastically at him, further proof that, at least for now, she wouldn't dig at the nightmares, would allow Crutchie to work through it on his own.

"Okay, good one," Crutchie agreed, laughing. "You know," he said, his voice growing more serious, "Jessie, you and Jack are the two people I trust the most. After… everything, I didn't think I'd find someone that I could ever trust or, well, love. I doubted I would ever have a family again. But, then I met Jack. And now I know you. Jessie, you're my best friend."

Jessie glanced down at the table, softly agreeing, "Yeah… You're my best friend, too, Crutchie." Silence stretched between them. It wasn't the normal, companionable silence that Crutchie was accustomed to. This was stiff, almost icy.

Crutchie watched her, suddenly fearful that he had said the wrong thing. Of course, he mentally berated, she only thinks of me as that weird kid her father took in. Best friend? Never. I should never have told her. All I've got is Jack. And that's okay. I don't need Jessie. She's just a good friend. Before Crutchie could think of something to say to ease the sudden tension between the pair, Jack entered the dining room, cheerfully oblivious to the tense silence.

"Hey, Jessie. Crutchie. How's it going?"

Crutchie had never been so happy to see Jack before in his life. Well, no, that wasn't quite true. The day he had gotten out of the Refuge and returning from Gabriel's abduction were two instances that stood out as moments that he was probably happier to see Jack, but still. This was up there. Once again, Jack was coming to the rescue. "Great," Crutchie replied happily, thankful to move on from whatever awkwardness he had inadvertently created. "You?"

"Pretty good," Jack said, sitting down. He glanced between the pair of them, noticing how both Crutchie and Jessie were pointedly not looking at each other. "Um, did I interrupt anything?" he asked, slightly confused.

"What? No!" Crutchie exclaimed. "We were just talking a little before you came in. Nothing interesting." Jessie nodded her agreement.

Jack shrugged. If Crutchie really was having issues, he would come to Jack. After his near-death experience, Crutchie had been quick to talk to Jack. He had explained, one night, his voice muted with memories, I just never want to feel like there are things left unsaid between us, in case I die. It had scared Jack a little, the thought that Crutchie could be in a situation where he would even need to think like that, but there had been benefits to the confession. Now, Crutchie told Jack just about everything that mattered. There were no more secrets between the best friends. So, if Jessie had truly done something to bother Crutchie, Jack figured he would hear about it soon enough. Or, everything really would be just fine and Crutchie would have no need to talk to Jack.

"Okay," Jack agreed. "You don't have to get so defensive. I trust you." Jack had no clue what he said, but he must have said something wrong, because both Crutchie and Jessie stiffened at the comment.

"Oh, good, you're all out here already," Claude said, entering the dining room. "So, Jack, I think this will be a job for you," Claude announced, sitting at the table. Crutchie noticed that today, especially, the older Holloway truly looked his age. For the most part, Crutchie had been of the opinion that Claude looked youthful. Today, however, the wrinkles around Claude's eyes were more distinguished, more lined. They were all getting older, not just Claude, and it was strange to Crutchie, who, in the past, when imagining his future, had only envisioned a boy selling papers on the street to disinterested New Yorkers. He was twenty now and he just felt as if he couldn't possibly be this old, shouldn't be this old.

"Should I be worried?" Jack joked. "Singling me out like this?"

"No, of course not," Claude reassured. "This fellow just… I don't know how much he would appreciate Jessie or Crutchie coming to him. He's quite the… uh, traditionalist."

Jack raised his eyebrows. "Um, okay. What am I doing, again? And why aren't you going?"

"Diego Martinez purchased two of our steers, so you'd just be bringing them along to him. I'm meeting up with Tim today, so I wouldn't be able to deliver them," Claude explained, "but Martinez is still adamant he needs the steers today. If you wouldn't mind taking them over, that would be fantastic, Jack."

"Yeah, of course. I don't mind. But you don't think he'd like Jessie or Crutchie?"

Claude shook his head, almost disapprovingly. "Martinez has never been a fan of women ranchers and I'm not sure he would respect Crutchie enough. Normally, I don't even do much business with him, but he is willing to pay more than I would have asked for the steers." Claude shook his head once more. "I can't turn down money like that."

"Okay, should I start out now?" Jack asked, getting up from his seat.

"No, he won't expect them until around midday."

"And the Martinez's live...?"

"Just past the Cook's homestead. About five miles east. You can't miss it," Claude informed. "But, if you could work on the ranch with Jessie and Crutchie until then, that would be perfect."

Jack nodded. "Yeah, of course." He turned to Jessie and Crutchie, who, Jack was surprised, were still somewhat stiff around each other. "Are you guys about ready to go?"

Jessie nodded immediately. "Yes. Let's get out there."

Crutchie frowned, but stood up also. "Okay," he agreed.

Jack glanced between the pair, but didn't spend much longer worrying about them. They were good friends; it would, undoubtedly, be completely worked out by dinner time.


Crutchie settled down under one of the trees on the ranch, leaning against the trunk. He glanced out, across the land, but no one was in sight. "Ah, well," he muttered to himself. "It's not like I expected anything else." For the past couple years, Crutchie and Jessie would meet up to eat lunch together. Jack would join every once in a while, but it was generally just the pair of them. Crutchie had hoped that Jessie would show up so he could ask her what exactly he had said that had bothered her earlier. He had gone over every line, every syllable, but nothing struck him as something that would have caused the rift. He had said he thought of her as his best friend and Crutchie would never have thought that that would have caused a problem, or else he never would have said anything. And now…

"I'm practically two minutes late and you've already started eating without me. Now I know how you truly feel about me," Jessie wryly remarked, sitting down next to Crutchie.

The bite of sandwich lodged in Crutchie's throat as he glanced at her in surprise. Swallowing thickly, Crutchie explained, "I thought, after this morning…" before trailing off.

Jessie shrugged, taking a bite of her own sandwich, but she made no move to speak.

"Are we okay?" Crutchie asked. "I didn't want to make you uncomfortable or anything. I had just thought that, after everything, maybe you would consider me your best friend, but I totally understand." Crutchie laughed humorlessly. "I mean, it's not like you even chose for me to live with you and I understand that you would—"

"Crutchie?" Jessie interrupted, turning to face him.

"Yeah?"

"Shut up."

Crutchie grinned. Maybe things were just fine between them. "Got it."

Jessie chewed on a bite of sandwich for a long moment, before starting, "Look, I'm sorry about this morning. It just took me by surprise. I had thought—" She fell silent. "Why do you even want to be friends with me? I nearly got you killed."

"That was four years ago," Crutchie pointed out. "And I wasn't entirely keen on being friends back then. But, I know you now. You're funny. And kind—when you haven't fallen in love with a homicidal kidnapper. I don't know, I just feel like I can be completely open with you about everything. I've only had that once before, with Jack. I don't know where I would be without the pair of you."

Jessie's face twisted somewhat as she took another bite. "I think of you as my best friend, too," she admitted. "I'm not super good at friends. I've been told my personality is too abrasive." She glared at Crutchie when he chuckled. "I think that's one of the reasons I liked Gabriel so much. He was one of the few people who actually appreciated me for who I am." She snorted. "And then he tried to kill you, which sorta put a damper on that relationship. So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that you are my best friend. I'm just not used to someone saying that to me."

"Well, that's their loss," Crutchie asserted. "I think you're great."

"Great," Jessie said softly, smiling.

The pair fell into companionable silence, until Crutchie asked, "So, I was just curious, but what did Phillip say to you when he wanted to speak in private?" Crutchie wiggled his eyebrows at Jessie. "Did you kiss?"

"Ugh, I'd rather Gabriel kidnap me again," Jessie groaned. "No, nothing like that. Well, I suppose it is like that," she amended, thinking. "He wants to marry me."

Crutchie hooted, laughing. "Didn't see that one coming."

"But, it gets worse," Jessie continued. "I'm not sure how much he even likes me. I mean, he says he does, but then when he was talking to me, he explained why he wanted to marry me. And it's not the expected I-couldn't-live-without-you or you're-perfect trope. No, apparently he had some uncle who bit the dust and left a ranch and a ton of money, on the condition that he gets hitched. I guess I'm just the only eligible maiden available," Jessie muttered, swinging her hand to her forehead in mock distress and helplessness. "And now my prince wants to rescue me in order to win his inheritance."

"How romantic," Crutchie intoned, jokingly serious. "You can't turn a proposal like that down."

"I know, that's what I was thinking," Jessie agreed. She shook her head, before frowning. Jessie glanced at Crutchie. "I would never marry him, though."

"Well, duh," Crutchie responded. He noticed that Jessie was still watching him carefully. "Why? Did he say anything else? I did notice that you looked angry when you two came back to the dining room."

Jessie half-shrugged. "He said I needed to get out of the house. That I should be spending time with people of more class than an orphan and a crip." She glanced at Crutchie once more. "His words, not mine," she clarified, turning back away to survey the ranch land. "Anyway, he explained that, yes, my family had once been of a certain caliber, but once pa started taking in street urchins, it all went downhill. He offered to bring me back to where I once was in society."

Crutchie was silent for a moment. "Do you… do you agree with him?"

"Hell, no, Crutchie. You and Jack are two of the best people I've ever met. If Phillip had approached me about this four years ago, yeah, maybe I would have agreed. But, not now. Not now that I know you and Jack."

"That's good, then."

"Yeah, it is."

"So, are you going to marry him?"

Jessie laughed. "Never. With my luck, he'd try to kill you, too."

"That has been a problem as of late," Crutchie agreed.

"It's not exactly looking like I have great prospects of marriage," Jessie remarked lightly, tugging at some of the grass by her side.

"So?" Crutchie challenged. "Neither do Jack and I. We're doing fine."

Jessie shrugged. "It's not the same. Everyone expects me to get married. Just settle down and pop out a couple of babies. What if that just isn't me?"

"Then, that's fine. And if you do find someone you'd want to 'settle down and pop out a couple babies' with, then that's fine, too." Crutchie smiled. "I guarantee your family wouldn't care. And who cares what the rest of Santa Fe thinks? Everyone said I couldn't be a rancher with my leg and look at me now. Proving 'em wrong, one day at a time."

"As I recall," Jessie began, "you were one of those that said you couldn't be a rancher. Weren't you the one who ran all the way back to New York because you didn't think you could do it?"

Crutchie waved his hand, brushing the comment away. "Irrelevant. All I'm saying is that you can do whatever you want, short of abduction and murder, and the people who matter to you won't give a damn. We'll all love you for being you, Jessie."

Jessie stared at him for a moment, before whispering. "You sure do give some good advice."

"It has been said."

"You know, I'm glad you didn't die back when Gabriel took us," Jessie said, resettling herself against the tree.

Crutchie laughed. "Me, too, actually. I have a horse now and I would've totally missed that if I were dead."

Jessie rolled her eyes. "Yep, that horse is the only reason to keep on living."

"Okay, okay, fine. I have all of you Holloways. And Jack. And the kids at the school. But, you must admit, Jessie, Dustin is a pretty cool horse."

"I'll give you that. Dustin is a fine horse."

"And, just so we're clear, I'm glad that Gabriel didn't kill you either."

Jessie smiled. "Oh, good. I was worried that you regretted standing up to him at the end."

"Can you believe that actually happened?" Crutchie asked. "It feels so unreal. We were abducted, almost killed. And then you managed to beat him over the head and we escaped. It sounds like one of those crazy stories JT likes to make up."

"Life is strange."

"That it is."

"I don't think I would trade those experiences, though," Jessie confessed.

"Neither would I."

"Huh. That makes two of us."

"Good."

"Good."

Crutchie hummed softly. "Life is pretty good."

"Yes," Jessie whispered. "Yes, it is."


Reviews and constructive criticism are always welcome! Tell me what you think about this chapter; I really love hearing everyone's opinions.

Anyway, I've got a question that I don't know if you guys actually know the answer to. But, I'll try anyway. Is there a way to request fan art? Like, is that even a possibility? I have these great ideas for a cute/sad (I mean, come on guys, you know me...) picture of Jack and Crutchie but I have the artistic talent of a myopic guinea pig. So, if anyone has any advice or if you're an artist (!), I would be greatly interested in your advice.

That's it. Have a fabulous week. Ostrich, out!