Saturday dawned with a cloudless sky, and a choir of birds woke MK up from a fitful sleep. She was glad to have to wake up and get ready to go, she didn't like the nightmares she had. How could she? She didn't really know what was going on besides not being able to do anything and catching a few discernable words, one of which was her name. Was it really a dream, or was it a memory? She shook the notion out of her head, and went downstairs. She found Paula talking with someone she hadn't met before.
"I know what you're going to say, Mr. Overland, I'm behind on my bills again. Really, I am trying."
"I know you are, Mrs. Wiggins, and . . . and who may I ask is this?" He noticed MK as she tried to sneak past.
"Oh, my customer, Mr. Overland, as you were saying . . .?"
He held out a hand to MK, "Not very many people come this way. I'm Jackson Overland, at your service." She had taken his hand and, with a nervous grin, shook it.
"Oh hi, I'm Mary Katherine, but you can call me MK."
"Mary Katherine, huh? Lovely name."
"Oh, uh, thanks. You own Mr. Overland's Antiques and Oddities, right?"
Jackson smiled, "Indeed I do. I don't open for another hour, though, so I figured I'd come by and take care of business."
"Well, don't pay me any mind, I'm just heading out for some sight-seeing."
"Oh, mind if I join?"
"Um . . . I don't know, Sarah May and Jamie are showing me around, and don't you have business to take care of?"
"Sarah May Bernards and Jamie Bennett? Nice people, you'll have fun, and my store can wait for a bit. As for the business with Mrs. Wiggins, that's real quick, actually. I just wanted to let you know that this will be your last payment to me, and I'll give you a full year to pay it off," he grinned at the awestruck Paula.
"R-really? Y-you mean it?" Jackson nodded, his grin getting bigger. Paula gave a little scream and hugged Jackson, just about picking his skinny form off the ground and twirling him around before letting his feet reconnect with the ground.
"Um, OK, glad that you like the news," he stated as he patted her back, still grinning widely.
"Like it? I love it! Mr. Overland, that's the best news I've had in years!"
Jackson laughed, "Then take the day off and go enjoy some time with that nice kid of yours." He glanced at MK, "I think it's time we all had a bit of fun." He left Paula and opened the door for MK, "Shall we be off? I don't want you to be late." MK nodded and led the way out, Jackson taking her in his car. There was silence on the drive over, MK's dreams still haunting her in the daylight, and unsure of what to say to probably the richest man in town. They reached the diner at exactly nine o'clock, Sarah May and Jamie already there.
"Hey, Mr. Overland! What are you doing here?" Jamie exclaimed as he rushed to give Jackson a hug.
Jackson laughed, "Oh, I ran into MK here at the Wiggins, and I invited myself to your little outing, I hope you don't mind."
Sarah May shook her head, "Not at all, you're always welcome."
"Great, and you have the use of my car for longer distances."
Jamie gasped, "You mean we get to ride in your fancy car?"
Jackson chuckled as he ruffled Jamie's hair, "Yup."
"Awesome! Can we hurry it up and eat breakfast so we can go?" Jackson and Sarah May laughed.
"Jamie! Slow down, one thing at a time!" chuckled MK as she got her son to sit down. They quickly made their order, and talked while they waited for it.
"Mr. Overland, don't you need to open up your shop later?" Sarah May asked.
Jackson shrugged and winked, "Yes, it just depends on how much later you're talking about."
Sarah May rolled her eyes, "Well, I was thinking of having a picnic in a spot Jamie picked out, then finishing up with dinner here."
"That sounds great."
"Sounds like fun!" grinned Jackson.
"Really, Mr. Overland, shouldn't you get back to your shop?"
"Nah, it can wait till Monday. It's not everyday I get to enjoy the splendor of Cedar Grove or the company of friends."
Sarah May raised an eyebrow, "Oh, alright, I guess we'll have to skip your shop . . ."
Jackson burst out laughing, "You do realize that I own the place and that I can let you in, right?"
Sarah May blinked in surprise before letting out a breath, "Oh, fine, but I expect you and Jamie to behave yourselves, ya hear?"
Jamie and Jackson glanced at each other and grinned before turning back to Sarah May, "We promise!" Sarah May merely rolled her eyes and groaned while the two guys chuckled.
"So, where's this place you picked out for a picnic, Jamie?"
Jamie grinned and winked, "It's a surprise, but I can tell you this, it's one of my favorite places and after today, your three will be the only people to know about it."
"Really? Wow, I feel so honored Jamie. But did it have to wait until your mom showed up to show us?"
Jamie glanced at Jackson and snickered, "You already know about it, and I couldn't get Miss Bernards to come sooner because either she was busy, or my mom had something planned."
Sarah May smiled apologetically, "Sorry about that."
"Oh, it wasn't your fault, I understand that things come up and things don't always go the way we planned."
"Wow, Jamie, you sound so, so grown-up," sniffed Sarah May.
"Yeah, but don't grow up too fast, or you'll miss all of the fun of childhood."
Jamie laughed, "Don't worry, Mr. Overland, I won't." The chatter died down as a pile of pancakes, eggs, and bacon entered their vision when the waitress set down plates of food.
"Mmm . . . I don't know about you, but looking at that is making me hungrier than I already am. Smelling it doesn't help either." The others laughed.
"Alright, Mr. Overland, we get the idea. let's go ahead and eat, I'm becoming curious about Jamie's special spot," remarked MK.
"Good," stated Jackson between mouthfuls, "I think you'll like it." His blue eyes twinkled as he took another bite. "So, besides my shop and Jamie's special spot, is there anywhere else we're going?"
"Oh, just the shops around town, and a few of the natural wonders of Cedar Grove."
"Like where, exactly?"
Sarah May grinned, "Oh come on, I want to keep a few secrets to myself."
Jackson rolled his eyes and groaned, "Oh, alright, but if I'm providing transportation, I kinda need to know."
Sarah May laughed, "Don't worry, when it comes time to use your car, I'll let you know."
Jackson raised an eyebrow, "We're walking?"
Sarah May nodded, "At least for some of it, Cedar Grove isn't exactly that big."
MK chuckled, "She's right, it might be one-sixth the size of Los Angeles, if not smaller, and you definitely need some kind of transportation to get anywhere in Los Angeles."
"So, do you prefer Cedar Grove over Los Angeles?" Jamie asked, glancing at MK.
MK shrugged, "I don't know yet, ask me once I've seen more of the place."
"OK, well, I'm done, let's go!"
"Jamie! We're not even done yet!" Sarah May berated him. Jamie glanced down at their plates, they still had some food left on theirs, compared to his practically clean plate.
A side grin played on his face as he sat back down, "Sorry, Miss Bernards, but I really want to show mom, I mean, MK around Cedar Grove!"
Jackson glanced between Jamie and MK, "Wait, you don't want him to call you mom?"
"Just because I'm his biological mother doesn't mean I deserve being called mom anymore than his adoptive mom."
"Actually, you kinda do deserve it more than Mavis . . ."
"Jackson!"
Jackson shrugged as he continued, "But that's just me. And besides, shouldn't he get to decide if he calls you mom or not?"
"That should be between me and him, it's not particularly any business of yours."
"That's true, but considering I've known this kid for the past nine years and not you, kinda makes it my business." MK eyed him, but didn't get to say anything else as Sarah May jumped in.
"Well, it looks like everyone's done. Shall we get going?"
"Yay!" cheered Jamie as he bolted for the door. "Come on you slow pokes! My childhood is wasting away!" Jackson laughed as he put a few bills down on the table before following Jamie.
"We hear ya, but that's part of the reason why you shouldn't wait around too long for us slow pokes," grinned Jackson as he ruffled Jamie's hair. Jamie tried to get back at him, but he wasn't tall enough. However, MK was, and tussled Jackson's white hair before letting Jamie take her by the hand and lead her to the first store.
The women were mainly doing the shopping at Fancy Fabrics, Jackson and Jamie hung back, joking about a few of the designs and playing around with the fabric. MK bought a few pieces of clothing and a tailored dress that had yet to be made, and after much convincing to stay around for the Halloween ball. Next up was #12 Dance Studio, which was also a shoe store, and got shoes to match the dress. Jamie and Jackson played around with the shoes and Jackson pretended to dance, slide around was more like it. After getting the students to laugh, Sarah May and MK managed to drag the two tricksters out the door. Jackson was having way too much fun at the next shop, Once Upon a Hat. They spent some time in there, glancing over the many hats and shawls that the owner, Oscar Adams, had made, before heading off to lunch. Jackson drove them part of the way there, but they had to get out and walk the rest of the way. Jamie took the lead with MK, leaving Sarah May and Jackson far behind.
MK glanced back at them, chuckling over some joke, "Are you sure Sarah May should be in love with some guy she doesn't know? It looks like she and Jackson are getting along quite well."
Jamie sighed as he patiently explained, "No, they don't remember their past lives, Princess Merida belongs with Chief Hiccup, and Jack Frost belongs with Rapunzel!"
"R-Rapunzel? Doesn't she marry a prince?"
"Maybe you should borrow A Faraway Land from Miss Bernards and read the whole thing, everything connects, and everybody."
"Yeah, OK, maybe, but the way Sarah May and Jackson are talking, they would work really well together." Jamie rolled his eyes, there had to be some way to get his mom to understand. But that could wait another day, right now, MK was impressed with his favorite spot.
"Wow, Jamie, you've really outdone yourself! This miniature castle is amazing!" Before them stood a kid-sized castle, with a moat and a working bridge. Sarah May was just as amazed when she and Jackson came around the corner.
Jamie grinned, "Thanks, but Jackson did help with a lot, and gave me several ideas."
Jackson gave a little wink. "Well, come on, we don't want the food to spoil before we eat it!" Jamie led the way into his little castle, the adults were glad to find that they didn't have to stoop quite so much as many passages were open to the sky. Jamie took them to the dining hall, where they had a cold lunch, before showing them around the replica, even a few rooms equipped for a slumber party.
"This is just so cool!" exclaimed Sarah May at the end of the tour.
Jackson grinned, "Glad you liked it." Sarah May grinned back as she reached into her pocket, but was surprised when it came out empty-handed.
She gasped, "Oh no, I must have dropped my phone in the car! Does anyone have the time?"
Jackson took out an old pocket watch and glanced at it, "Yeah, it's almost two o'clock."
"Already? There's still so much to see!" Sarah May grabbed MK's arm and dashed back to the car, Jackson and Jamie trailing not far behind.
"Th-that's alright, maybe we could finish this tomorrow?" panted MK when they reached the car.
"Well, let's at least check out a few more stops before I have to head back to the hospital," explained Sarah May as Jackson and Jamie bounded up with the picnic pack. Jackson unlocked the car after everyone took a breath, and they piled in. Sarah May found her phone sitting on the cushion in the passenger seat, her eyebrows raised as she glanced at it.
"Sarah May, what's wrong?"
"The hospital called and left a message. Hang on a sec, this might be important." She put the phone to her ear as Jackson pulled out of the parking lot.
"I do need to know where to go next," pointed out Jackson.
Sarah May gasped, "The hospital! We need to go to the hospital, now!"
"What, why?"
"The coma patient, he's gone missing!"