And Along Came Jake

by Vaca, Christopher

  "Yes sir." He responded, staring down at the ground.

  "Well son, I've got to hand it to you. You sure did fix this place up right!" He exclaimed.

  "Now listen here Jake Patterson!" Mr. Brierly started, furrowing his brow, remembering he should be angry. "If I find out you so much as laid a finger on my little girl, I'll––"

  Mr. Brierly's lecture was cut short, as Jake's stomach made an awfully loud growling sound. "Boy, was that your stomach?" He asked, making a funny face.

  "Yes sir!" Jake said, putting both hands on his stomach to try and hide the embarrassing sound.

  "Come on boy!" Mr. Brierly took off his hat, scratched the top of his head, and took a deep breath. "Let's go back to the house and get you some proper food. After that, you need to get on your way, and never come back here again!"

  Jake didn't say a word, just nodded and silently walked with Mr. Brierly back to the house. As the two walked, Mr. Brierly was insistent on telling Jake the story of how his father bought their land for such a great price.

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  When Mr. Brierly and Jake walked through the front door, the first thing they saw was Madison sobbing on the couch with her mother by her side. Seeing that Jake was still alive, she quickly wiped the tears from her face, and tried to hide any evidence that she'd been crying. Mrs. Brierly stood up and put her hands on her hips.

  "Nate Brierly!" She said. "For the love of Pete, why on earth have you brought this filthy boy into our beautiful home? Now I'll have to scrub this place from top to bottom." Jake's eyes moved from Mr. Brierly then at Madison, who were both beginning to crack a smile.

  "Nate!" she called, frustration in her voice. "May I see you in the kitchen?—excuse us children, Nate...NOW!"

  Mr. Brierly followed his wife into the kitchen, and the two discussed Jake staying for dinner. As they quietly bickered Jake walked over to the couch and sat next to Madison. They snickered while listening to her parents whisper their arguments back and forth. After a few minutes, Mr. and Mrs. Brierly returned.

  "So it's settled!" Mr. Brierly said, clearing his throat. "Jake will be joining us for dinner, then he'll get his things, and leave.

  "Well," Mrs. Brierly threw her hands in the air. "I suppose I'll take out another one of my good plates for this little hoodlum. I can't serve dinner with a mixed matched set, now can I?"

  "Everything's gonna be okay, dear." Mr. Brierly said, grinning.

  Mrs. Brierly stormed out of the living room and into the kitchen, mumbling to herself how she never thought she would have to serve such a boy as Jake Patterson.

  "Madison, honey!" Her father said, as he knelt down beside her. "I'm sorry for yelling like that, but I was so angry that you would do such a thing, without telling your mother or I. It makes me wonder what else you've done behind our backs." He stood up, pointed at her and continued "Madison Nichole Brierly, because you have violated our trust, you're grounded for the next week, and your chores will be doubled for that time period. Do I make myself clear?"

  "Pa, I never––."

  "Do I make myself clear?" He repeated, raising his voice.

  "Yes Pa, I understand, but––"

  "Madison! We're done talking about this, Jake's gonna have a proper supper with us, then take his belongings from the old barn and leave. Ain't that right Jake?"

  "Yes Mr. Brierly." Jake answered in a low voice.

  "Dinners on the table, come and get it!" Mrs. Brierly announced.

  The four quietly sat down at the table, and started to pass the food around. It was awkward at the dinner table, as Jake and Madison began to slowly pick at their food, eating little bites here and there. Mr. and Mrs. Brierly ate in total silence, both giving Jake an evil eye every now and again.

  "So, tell us Jake." Mr. Brierly finally said, breaking the silence. "Where did you learn to fix things? You did a good job in that old barn."

  "I donno." He shrugged and continued playing with his food, keeping his eyes on his plate. "From my dad, I guess."

  "Tell us Jake…" Mrs. Brierly scoffed "What of your parents? They must be extremely ashamed of you. Wait until I tell your father the horrible things you've done!"

  "You can't tell my father, Mrs. Brierly." He said softly, as he inspected his fork.

  "Don't tell me what I can and can't do, young man!" She exclaimed, adjusting her posture. "I most certainly can, and I most certainly will be telling your father once I find out who and where he is!"

  "No ma'am, you can't." He shook his head and continued playing with his food.

  "And why not, may I ask?" her agitation increased with each response.

  "Because," he said, now looking her straight in the eye, "because he's dead, Mrs. Brierly. My father's dead."

  An instant silence fell over the dinner table, as Mrs. Brierly looked down at her food, quickly mixing her mashed potatoes with her peas.

  "Well, I'm sorry. Jake—I didn't know." Her voice lowered.

  "It's okay, he died about two years ago."

  "And your mother?" She asked in a more sincere voice "Is she—you know?"

  "My mother's still alive, but she's not well." He replied, already well aware of the direction of the conversation.

  "Is she sick?" she inquired.

  "You may as well tell em' Jake!" Madison said, "or they'll never stop asking questions."

  "Madison Nicole Brierly!" Her mother exclaimed as she lightly slapped her on the hand.

  "Well, it's true Ma!" Madison said rubbing the sting.

  Jake sighed, shoved his plate away, began fidgeting with his hands and proceeded to tell them about his father's death, as well as his mothers present condition.

  "Well," he began, "next week will be two years since my father died. He was a master builder, and he'd often bring me to work with him. One day, he was working on a roof that had to be completed in a hurry. I was in school that day, my mother was home getting ready to bring him lunch. When Ma got to the job site, she could see a group of people huddled around someone lying motionless on the ground. Fearing the worst, she dropped my Pa's lunch pail, running over toward the commotion. One of my father's co-workers saw my mother running and stopped her just before she could get a clear view. He told her, her husband had fallen from the roof and cracked his head on some building materials that were scattered about. At that exact moment, my mother completely lost it, and kinda went crazy; she wouldn't eat, sleep, or could barely do much of anything. She started drinking a lot, and everything continued downhill from there. I stayed with her for about a year, but she got to a point where she stopped caring for me, and didn't seem to want anything to do with me anymore. That's why I ran away, and came to Blackwater all alone. I've been here a year or so, sleeping where I can, getting food any way I'm able, and trying to go to school for some sort of education."

  Jake picked his head up, to see tears streaming down both Madison and Mrs. Brierly's faces. He also noticed Mr. Brierly's eyes beginning to water. Mrs. Brierly immediately changed her demeanor, and wiped her eyes.

  "Jake, my dear." She said "I had no idea—you know, I think my family and I tend to take too many things for granted. I mean, I've always had a certain perception of you. But now, after I've gotten to know you a little better—well I'm very ashamed of myself, that's all—I mean, everyone's told me I tend to have somewhat of a snobbish attitude at times, but that's all going to change, right here and right now!" She cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and regained her composure. "Jake my dear boy, you are more than welcome to stay in that old barn just as long as you'd like."

  "Abigail!" Mr. Brierly snapped, choking on some water. He wiped his chin and slammed his napkin down on the table. "May I see you in the living room for a moment?—Please excuse us children, Abigail—NOW!"

  While Mr. and Mrs. Brierly were in the living room quietly bickering yet again, both Jake and Madison smiled at each other, then started giggling.

  After a few minutes of quiet disagreement, Madison's parents walked back into the d
ining room and sat back down. "Okay Jake," Mr. Brierly said. "We'll allow you to stay at the old barn with a few conditions."

  "Okay sir, no problem!" Jake said as he smiled and nodded his head.

  "Don't you even want to know what the conditions are?" Mr. Brierly asked.

  "Oh...yes sir." He chuckled.

  "Jake!" Mr. Brierly said in a stern voice, "We're going to allow you to stay in the old barn if you will agree to a few conditions, but if you break one, just one of these conditions at any time, you will be out so fast you'll think Smitty was chasing you down the street. Am I clear?"

  "Yes sir!" he replied, smiling, remembering all the times he cunningly outwitted Smitty.

  "Condition number one," he said folding his arms, "you will get a job a-s-a-p; this will keep you busy and out of trouble. Condition number two: Since we are allowing you to stay on our land; you will be given chores, and be expected to do them every day. Condition number three: you will go to school regularly, when the school year restarts in the fall, to continue your education. If you can keep those conditions, you may stay at the old barn as long as you'd like. You may also come and eat supper with us every night, just make sure that you're not late. Abigail serves dinner at seven o'clock sharp, you got it!"

  "Yes sir!" Said Jake

  "And as for you young lady," pointing towards his daughter. "If you and Jake are to visit one another, you will do so here in the house, under our supervision. If I ever catch you anywhere near that old barn without our permission, Jake will be out, and you will be grounded until you're thirty. Is that clear?"

  "Yes Pa, I understand." She sighed and rolled her eyes.

  "Good" interjected Mrs. Brierly, "it's all set then. Now Jake, you and Madison clear the table and wash the dishes. After you're through, you need to go back to the barn and get some sleep, because tomorrow you need to start looking for a Job."

  That being said, Jake and Madison did as they were told, cleaned the table and washed the dishes. Jake walked back to his little barn, laid his head down, and began to think about his new living arrangements and conditions, and how this could be a great opportunity for a fresh new start.

  Chapter 3

  —

  Big Paul

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  Jake's peaceful sleep was rudely interrupted early that next morning, as Mr. Brierly kicked open the barn door banging two feeder pans together, yelling from the top of his lungs.

  "Rise and shine, let's go Jake! We're losing daylight, come on now! The animals are hungry, and the crops ain't gonna tend to themselves! Let's go, let's go, let's go!"

  Jake slowly sat up, shook his head and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He was still trying to comprehend exactly what was going on.

  "Aww come on Mr. Brierly!" He said in a groggy voice. "We've got all day. It's barely six a.m. Can't I just have five more minutes of sleep?"

  "Five more minutes?" A puzzled look crossed Mr. Brierly's face. He started banging the feeder pans together again. "My crops could die in five more minutes! Get up, get up, get up!" He continued banging and shouting as he stormed out of the barn.

  After he was completely out of sight, Jake laid back down and fell right back to sleep. He must've only closed his eyes for just a few seconds, when all of a sudden, a bucket of cold water dumped on him, causing him to jump up, gasp for air, and wildly look around.

  "Why'd you have to do that, Mr. B?" Jake pouted, wiping pieces of wet hair off his face. "Okay, okay, I'm up, I'm up!" He grumbled.

  "That's more like it!" Mr. Brierly nodded, and placed the empty bucket on the ground. "Now get dressed, grab the bucket, and head to the big barn to give Madison a hand. She'll tell ya what all needs to be done!"

  "Get dressed...grab this...meet Madison...blah, blah, blah." He mimicked under his breath, as Mr. Brierly walked away.

  As Jake neared the big barn, he saw Madison mixing dry feed, in a large basin with her hands. "Over here Jake!" She called "Hurry up, I need that bucket!"

  "Okay, I'm comin'!" he replied walking faster. He hoped Madison would explain the chore-list, as he was completely unfamiliar with all this crop and farming stuff.

  "Well, well, well..." Madison teased, "Look who finally decided to wake up!"

  "Give me a break, I'm not use to waking up this early." He sighed.

  "So" Madison said "I heard you had an early morning shower… did ya like it?" Before he could say a word, she handed him a large scoop and continued. "Okay, take this scoop, and fill the bucket with feed!"

  He took the scoop and slowly started filling the bucket. He wasn't working slow on purpose, or even to get on Madison's nerves. He was simply uninterested, and his actions showed it very well.

  "Today Jake!" She yelled. "You need to hurry, there's still a lot to do!" She demanded, hands on her hips. "Look…the faster we get this stuff done, the sooner we can go do whatever we want, got it?"

  "Got it!" He nodded in agreement, and began to work a little faster.

  After Jake filled the remainder of the bucket, they started walking towards the chicken coup. "So," he asked "We ain't gotta do this kinda stuff all day?"

  "Well" she replied "My dad does this kinda stuff all day but I––" She paused, cracked a smile and continued, "I mean, we just have a few chores in the morning, take care of the dishes after supper, and that's basically it. It's pretty easy, but it does change a little during the school year. We'll have to wake up a bit earlier and take time for our studies, but other than that, it's not so bad."

  Madison unlocked and opened the wire gate of the chicken coup. "Okay Jake, get in there and start spreading the feed around. But be careful for the rooster, he's a feisty one!"

  "Everything's under control Maddie, just leave it to me!" he assured, making him seem fearless.

  As the feed fell to the ground, the chickens and rooster instantly pecked at the ground, following Jake wherever he went. Just then, Mr. Brierly walked over to Madison, who was leaning on the wire fence. "Did you remember to warn him about the rooster?" He asked.

  "Sure did Pa!" She replied "But he doesn't seem too concerned about it. He said that he had everything under control."

  "Oh he did, did he? Well, this is gonna be good!" He chuckled.

  "See, I told you!" Jake smiled. "I'm a professional at this already."

  Jake decided to show off, as he began stomping his foot, taunting the rooster.

  "Whatcha' got little chicken, whatcha' got?" He teased, testing the animal's patients.

  As he started to walk away, he looked over and smiled at Madison, giving her a wink. "This is a piece of cake." He scoffed. "I can do this all day!"

  Suddenly, Madison's eyes widened, and she began pointing behind him. "Jake, look out!" she yelled.

  Jake smiled and slowly turned to look behind him. His expression changed as he dropped the bucket, sending feed flying throughout the coup. He began running around the inside of the chicken wired fence, pleading for help.

  Madison and Mr. Brierly were laughing so hard they both fell to the ground. Tears of pure joy and laughter began streaming down their faces. While Jake tried dodging the roosters attack, the chickens pecked away at the pile of feed, hastily dumped on the ground.

  Just then, Mrs. Brierly walked up, letting everyone know breakfast was almost ready. When she saw Jake, and the rooster hot on his heels, she immediately joined her husband and daughter in laughter.

  Jake was finally able to opened the gate and let himself out, but fell to the ground, trying to catch his breath. "What's—what's wrong with that darn chicken?" He huffed with exhaustion.

  This made the Brierly's start laughing even harder. They tried to say something funny, but all that came out were broken words and pure laughter. Madison continued giggling, and tried to correct Jake's error.

  "Jake, it's not a chicken, it's a roo—it's a roo—it's a––" Madison couldn't finish her sentence, and continued to cry with laughter, at Jake. "That was priceless Jake, just priceless!" Madison chuckled.

>   "I'm so glad my near death experience was able to amuse you!" He said, picking himself off the ground, and dusting off his clothes. "But if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go to the house, wash up and have breakfast."

  "Aww, come on Jake!" laughed Mr. Brierly. "You can't tell me that wasn't funny."

  Jake slowly cracked a smile, started to laugh and fell back to the ground. "Did you—did you—did you see that chicken?" He said "It almost—it almost killed me!"

  They all laughed, as Madison tried to tell Jake it wasn't a chicken that attacked him, but a rooster. As they walked back to the house, the Brierly's continued to joke and carry on. Jake Patterson looked up toward the sky, closed his eyes and smiled as he felt the morning sun on his handsome face. He was trying to submerge himself in the moment, something the Brierly's may or may not have taken for granted.

  Jake was basking in one of life's simple pleasures, something he realized he hadn't felt in quite a long time. Could it be something that he unknowingly lost? Or maybe, it was something he chose to forget? Whatever that something was, it didn't matter now, he was just happy to feel like part of a family again, or at least as close as he possibly could.

  His deep heartfelt thought was suddenly interrupted by a sharp slap to his back from Mr. Brierly, who put his arm around Jake and gave his shoulder a good squeeze.

  "Well Jake, I hope you learned a lesson back there. And, I hope you've got a big appetite son, because Abigail sure can cook a hearty breakfast!"

  Jake didn't say a word, looked up at Mr. Brierly, smiled and nodded his head as they walked into the house, and sat down at the breakfast table. While they were eating, Mr. Brierly remembered another important discussion topic.

  "Okay Jake," he said "After you finish here, you need to go into town and start looking for a job!"

  "Aww, come on Pa!" sighed Madison, smacking her lips together. "I thought I was getting help with my chores this morning?"

  "You'll get the help tomorrow honey. Jake really needs to find himself a Job!" Her father repeated.