One-shot. This is a little story I thought of a few days ago. I was going to write it later, but it demanded to be written first. There's no plot to speak of, just some fluff. Enjoy!

Legal: Scarecrow and Mrs. King and its characters do not belong to me. They belong to Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions.

The Pickle Job

"Nothing looks good," Amanda said to herself. She had looked through the freezer, the refrigerator, and the pantry for something, anything to satisfy her craving. Lee and her mother had purchased many of her favorite foods. Suddenly, she knew what she craved. She had had some cravings earlier in her pregnancy, but nothing as intense as her present yearnings.

She climbed the stairs and went into the bedroom. Lee was sleeping soundly. With a fond smile, she sat beside him and caressed his forehead. She gently shook his shoulder. "Lee, wake up. I need you to do something."

He came awake suddenly and blearily looked at her. "What… Amanda, is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine, Sweetheart. I'm craving bread and butter pickles."

"Bread and butter pickles? But, honey, you don't like bread and butter pickles."

Amanda switched on the lamp. "Lee Matthew Stetson, I want bread and butter pickles."

"Uh, okay." Lee stumbled out of bed and slipped into his clothes. "I'll be back."

"I'll be here."

Lee hurried to his car and looked at the dashboard clock. It was one-thirty. Where the hell was he going to find something open at that time of the night. He tried to think logically. A 7-11. They were always open. Hopefully, they had the pickles."

He made the trip in a few minutes and entered the store. "Where are your pickles?"

"Aisle three."

He walked down the aisle, looking for his quarry. Locating the store's collection of pickles, he scanned the shelves, his heart sinking. No bread and butter pickles anywhere.

"No luck?" the clerk asked.

"Nope," he said as he left the store.

Lee was starting to panic. It was now one-forty. He had no idea what would be open. Would Safeway be open? He had no idea. It wasn't in the habit of grocery shopping at this time of the night. There was only one way to find out.

He was almost to the store when behind him, blue lights lit up the car's interior. "Damn! Not now,"

He pulled into a parking lot and stopped the car, rolling down the window. He automatically pulled out his wallet and took his driver's license and insurance card out. Reaching over to the glove compartment, he retrieved his registration.

The officer stepped up to the window, shining a flashlight into his eyes. The man was trying to determine if he had been drinking or if he was dangerous. "Out kind of late, aren't you?"

He wondered if the guy would believe him if he told the truth. He might as well tell him. "Well, officer, my wife is pregnant, and tonight she got this craving for bread and butter pickles."

"Bread and butter pickles… That's interesting. Is that why you were going fifteen miles over the speed limit?"

"Yes, sir." Come on, man, he thought, just give me the ticket. "I have my orders."

The policeman chuckled. "It was lemons with my wife. She wanted lemons in everything for a while. I'm going to let you off with a warning, Slow down a little bit, so you get to enjoy your little one. Good luck to you."

"I'll do that. Thanks for letting me go."

The policeman walked back to his squad car and turned off the overhead lights, then pulled away. It was two o'clock. Was he too late? Two blocks later, he pulled into the Safeway parking lot, encouraged by the lights n the store. He trotted up to the automatic doors. The door did not open, and his body bumped into it. At that moment, a worker appeared at one of the cash registers. Taking a chance, Lee rapped on the door.

The young man saw him and approached him. Unlocking the door, he partially opened it. "I'm sorry, we're closed."

There was only one thing to do; beg. "All I need are some bread and butter pickles." He dug out a ten-dollar bill from his pocket. "I can pay cash. Come on, man, please? It's important."

The man seemed to come to a decision. He opened the door. "The pickles are on aisle six."

"Thanks!" Lee took off at a trot and turned up aisle six. He skidded to a stop in front of pickles. "Ahah, there they are." He grabbed a big jar of pickles and took off for the check-out counter. Arriving there, he handed the cash to the man.

"Keep the change."

"You're wife must be pregnant."

"How'd you know?"

He looked Lee up and down. "Why else would you be in here buying pickles at two in the morning."

Comedian, he thought. But he was grateful. "Thanks for your help."

He turned, and once he was out of the store, he took off at a run to the Corvette. Making sure he did not speed, he headed back home. He laughed as he passed the same squad car. The policeman flashed his bright lights as he passed the vehicle. In a few minutes, he arrived at the house.

Carrying the pickle jar, he made his way into the house. Amanda was already in the kitchen, standing at the counter. He held up the jar. "Success," he said.

"Oh, good." I

He saw she had prepared two pieces of wheat bread and coated each piece with what looked like butter. As he opened the jar, he looked at her in puzzlement. "Butter?"

"Well, they are bread and butter pickles," she said as she placed a layer of pickles on one piece of bread. "Would you like a sandwich?"

"Uh, I don't think so. I think I'm going to head back to bed,"

"I'll be up in a while."

He nodded as he turned around. As everyone else was asleep, he went upstairs as quietly as he could manage and changed back into shorts and a t-shirt. He began to see the humor in the situation.

Soon, Amanda returned to their bedroom. Removing her robe, she climbed into bed beside him. He raised his head and leaned on one elbow. "Feel better?"

"Oh my gosh, much better.." She kissed him; her mouth tasted sweet from the pickles. "Thank you, Lee, that was a kind thing you did,"

"Hey, anything for my Amanda. Just think, it could be lemons."

"What?"

"I was, as the saying goes, exceeding the speed limit, and I got pulled over."

"Oh, no. I didn't want anything to happen to you."

"It worked out okay. The guy let me go with a warning. I told him I was after bread and butter pickles for my pregnant wife. He said it was lemons with his wife, that she wanted to put lemon in everything."

Amanda laughed as she hugged me. "I love you, Mr. Stetson."

"And I love you, Mrs. Stetson."