I Like Your Muffins.

Who: Jamie, Pandect, and Amy
Where: Just A Bakery
When: Midmorning

Amy was sitting in the passenger side of Pandect's big orange truck trying to keep a stiff upper lip. Her fancy mouse was curled up, looking harassed in an empty nail box filled with some of the wood shavings Amy had saved. It was a mouse, surprisingly clean and neat looking (although the farm boy in Pandect wanted to throw it to a cat, he knew such an action would not be appreciated) the color of caramel. "At least your mouse is fine."

"He could have been squished, those awful burglars," she said. Pandect agreed, but he was soothed somewhat that Amy had called him as soon as she got home and saw that her window had been broken and her mouse's cage thrown against the far wall. The sheriff had Amy give her statement and had his deputy take pictures of things. She couldn't find anything valuable missing at least, her stereo was still there, it was just that her room was a mess. It was best for Amy to get out of the apartment, both the sheriff and Pandect agreed on that, and Pandect was going to get Amy settled in his own room, to sleep off the night shift while he cleaned her place up for her. It was the least he could do for the poor girl.

"At least you couldn't find anything burgled," Pandect said as he parked his truck in front of Just a Bakery. With Jamie's track record of giving away baked goods Pandect almost felt bad about taking advantage of the man's charity like this, he'd make sure to make his own purchase to make up for it.

Jamie had spent a large majority of the morning painting. Painting the ceiling. So it wouldn't be boring.

Yeah.

He'd settled on a sky... but a purple sky. Purple was always her favorite color, though the closest they could ever get to seeing one was a sunset. She liked those too. So at the moment, he was painting and blending and getting dripped on. It was looking like a sky with clouds. Clouds that had the vague shape of certain... animals. What fun were clouds if you couldn't talk about what they looked like, after all?

At the moment, he was completely focused on painting. And not getting paint in his eye.

Pandect opened the door for Amy, who was still holding the cardboard box containing her mouse (he had doubts about bringing it in, but it was just kind of curled up there so he didn't think it would go on any crazy adventures in Jamie's bakery. Amy smiled a little at Jamie's bell and at Jamie himself who was currently making like Michelangelo. Clearing his throat Pandect somewhat awkwardly led Amy to the counter (she had the most innocent way of leaning into him that he didn't really know what to do about, he wasn't used to touching) and cleared his throat. "Hello again Jamie, I hope you don't mind me coming in again, but my friend is in need of some baked goods."

Hearing the bell, Jamie didn't move a twitch, he just kept painting, only blinking when a drop a paint fell onto his face.

"Go for it. Get what you want." He stayed there, still decorating the ceiling. The only thing that might make him mad would be if Pandect decided to rob him and burn the bakery down. But he doubted that would happen.

Pandect cleared his throat again awkwardly and looked down at the mouse lying prostrate in the box like swooning heroine in some Victorian novel, "Does your mouse want a cookie too?"

Amy giggled, "Don't you know you should never give a mouse a cookie?"

Recognizing the cadence of someone quoting something, but not the quote Pandect offered a very small tilt upward of his lips, about as smiley as he got and reached across for one of Jamie's white cardboard boxes. "Well, mon Amy," Pandect played with Amy's name in that way that she liked. "What can I get for you?"

Jamie motioned vaguely for a moment with his brush towards the display of baked goods, "Cookies. Muffins. Cupcakes." He offered as a suggestion to the girl. "Hi, by the way." He greeted as he went back towards the ceiling.

Amy blinked at Jamie and (oh dear) blushing up at Jamie who was focused wholly on the painting of his ceiling, and by extension the paint dripping on him from above. That blush made Pandect feel like an old chaperon and a little protective, although he knew that was foolish since he was sure that Jamie was a good man, and if nothing else oblivious. "Hi," she said a little breathlessly. Oh dear. "I think I might want to look a little bit before we go," Amy said (it was rather clear what she was interested in looking at), and then that sweet little brain of hers replayed what she had just said and she turned bright pink. Pandect contemplated banging his head on the glass display. But it wouldn't help.

Jamie glanced over at the girl for a moment, perhaps a tiny bit confused at the tone of which she greeted him. But, ah, it wasn't really his business, he guessed. She was probably having a tough morning. So he just casually rubbed his chin with the back of his hand (which was the only part not covered in paint.) and went back to painting. "Yeah, take your time."

"Ahem," she said. (Oh non, Pandect had nothing against love, he was all for love but he just knew he was going to get trapped into some sort of awkward older brother position and that was not a position he enjoyed, especially when it was in between those doe eyes and the object of their doe eying) "What do you suggest...?" Amy elbowed Pandect sharply in the ribs.

"Jamie," Pandect said with a wheeze, scooting out of range.

"Jamie," she finished. Well, on the bright side she didn't look like she was about to cry anymore. She just looked slightly besotted.

Be oblivious, Pandect thought hard in Jamie's direction. Be oblivious.

"Uhh..." Jamie stopped for a moment, pondering, wiping paint off his cheek with the back of his arm. Personally, he really enjoyed lemon poppyseed muffins. It was probably the closest thing he'd ever get to doing drugs. Except maybe rum raisin ice cream. Mm...

He glanced over as he responded, "Muffins are pretty good." Annnnd... the way she was looking at him got a raised eye look from him. Not in a condescending way, just in a sort of, '...eh?' way...

"I like muffins too," Amy said. "Don't I like muffins Pandect?" Amy elbowed him again.

Pandect rubbed his ribs, "I'm sure you do." He tried to ease away but she had apparently suddenly gotten shy and latched onto his arm for moral support. The fancy mouse was waking up and eyed Pandect, Do look at me, he thought. She's blushing all by herself.

"Are those lemon muffins?" she said, it was awkward to be attached to a flirting girl he thought of as a sort of baby sister, he turned his eyes heavenward and accepted his fate. "With poppy seed?"

"Uh. Yeah." Jamie took a few steps off the step ladder and set down the paint brush. He felt kinda rude going back to painting when he had company, wasn't very good hosting.

"I can make something else if you'd rather, though."

"Oh no!" Amy gushed, her enthusiasm causing her to bounce up once on her toes and rock Pandect side to side. "Lemon poppy seed muffins are delightful. Are they delightful Pandect?"

"Yes Amy," Pandect says to the ceiling.

"So, um, those are pretty clouds," she was making eyes, Pandect could hear it in her voice. She was definitely making eyes. And using his arm as her security blanket. "On the ceiling I mean. I like purple, its my second favorite color."

Jamie nodded slowly. She seemed pretty excited. Maybe she really liked muffins? Which he could totally understand, naturally.

"Yeah. Thanks." He joined the cloud looker group, staring up at the ceiling, smiling a little, his eyes glazed over in thought for a moment. "My daughter's favorite color was purple."

"Oh," Amy deflated on Pandect's arm. "You're married."

Pandect cleared his throat a little (Why was he doing this? Why was he doing this?), "Actually I believe Jamie is single." He tried a experimental pull to see if he could get his arm loose. He couldn't.

"Oh, you have a daughter then?" Amy's whole face lit up. It didn't surprise him that Amy was fond of children, she was so childlike herself.

Aw, damn.

Jamie looked down at the ground, "Ah... no." He didn't say it sadly, it was just... a statement, really. He really didn't want to be a downer.

"Oh," she said going very still then finally (thank you saints) released Pandect and handed him her mouse whom had become bored with this one sided flirtation and had swooned again. She put her arms around Jamie's shoulders gently and squeezed him once, her face a bright pink, and leaned back. "I'm glad she's still part of your life then. We can never really lose someone if we love them. Not all the way." She paused a moment and then kissed him quickly on the cheek briefly before freezing solid and fleeing to Pandect's truck.

"Uh... Tha--?" ...Huh? Jamie looked confusedly at the fleeing girl, his confusion (luckily) covering up his initial embarrassment at the close contact. He glanced over at Pandect, questioning him with his eyes for a moment.

"...uh. I. ...Guess you'll be taking it to go?"

Pandect sighed the sigh of the deeply burdened and handed the cardboard box to Jamie (he wasn't sure what the young man would do if handed a mouse in a box, even a mouse that was in a swoon) and started putting in lemon poppy seed muffins. "Yes, I..." Pandect cleared his throat awkwardly. "I believe she is..." He could see Amy huddling by his truck in a paroxysm of embarrassment, motioning wildly to him as if this was his fault. Is what? What could he say? "I don't understand girls that well," he finally said, handing Jamie a crisp twenty (all his money was still crisp). "I can only wish you the best of luck."

Jamie looked down at the mouse, maybe still a little confused... and gave it a little one handed wave.

He shrugged. "I don't either." Really. The last person he'd been together with was... forever ago. And thinking about how long it was since he's had a girlfriend kinda made him feel old. Jamie waved off the money.

"Don't forget this." He held out the mousey.

"Ah yes," Pandect said. "I'm not sure what Amy would do to me if I left him." He took the box of baked goods in one hand and the mouse in the other and headed out to his truck where Amy was trying to give him some sort of message with her eyes. "Yes mon Amy?" he said.

"Shh," she hissed, "He might hear you. Can I have Buster back?"

Pandect let her have the mouse and unlocked the truck door for her so she could hop in and try to sink into the seat. "So," she said as he was pulling out. "Did he say anything about me? Any thing... nice?"

He banged his forehead once against the steering wheel.

It helped a little.