Trails

Chapter 13: Planning

The next morning, I wake up to the smell of frying bacon. "Rise and shine, Ben." I yawned. I crawled out of my messy bed and went over to his side of the room.

Ben slept soundly under the covers, his brown hair covered his eyes as he quietly breathes through his nose.

I was about to wake him up, until I saw ear buds plugged into his earholes. Attached to the buds were a string of gray wires clipped in a small IPod.

It was a white device, almost a decade old. On the screen were a list of old songs from Philip Collins to Billy Joel.

He's listening to music in his sleep? I wondered.

Shaking away my thoughts, I shook Ben from his slumber.

"Wake up, Ichabod Crane." I said annoyed.

"Fine," he moaned. He rose out of bed and wiped the dried tears under his eyes.

He's crying? I thought.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "Were you crying all night?"

"Hey kids, time for breakfast!" Aunt Jessica called.

Ben shimmied out of his bedcovers, taking off his ear buds and setting them on his pillow.

"Do you want to brush your teeth first?" he asked.

"No," I answered kindly. "You'll go first."

Ben smiled as he walks over to the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

While he's inside, I picked up his IPod and studied it for a moment.

That's when I noticed a something scrawled in black sharpie.

"Property of Aaron Justine," I read.

According to Ben, Aaron was a cop friend of his family. After his parents died in a car accident, Aaron helped get Ben out of juvie, giving him a fake identity and a new life.

But just as soon as Ben fled out of New York, Aaron was shot and killed in the line of duty.

Curious, I donned the ear buds and pressed Play.

Bring Him Home instantly poured into my earbuds.

Oddly, the tenor's calm voice made me picture Ben and Seth's parents spending time with their sons. I could easily see their father lifting a tiny Ben in the air while the mother cradled Seth.

All of a sudden, I felt someone taking off the ear buds. The sadness and the pain that Ben been through left a hole in my heart.

"What were you doing with my IPod?" a calm British voice asked.

I turned to see Ben, standing in front of me.

"I was just...listening," I said nervously. "Why do you have Aaron's IPod?"

"He lent it to me," he answered.

"Oh," I said flatly.

He sighed as he stuffed the IPod into his suitcase.

"Look Cole," he said. "You know I'm completely honest with you, right?"

I nodded.

Ben bit his lip then gazed into my eyes.

"If this is about what happened last night-" he began.

"No," I interrupted, blushing intensely. "It's okay if you didn't like it."

"I did enjoyed it," Ben admitted. "But we promised ourselves that we need to keep our relationship professional as possible."

"Lives are at stake," we both said unison.

"I know," I groaned. "You like to keep saying that."

Ben rolled his eyes then kissed my forehead.

"I'll meet you downstairs," he promised. "After breakfast, we'll search through the yearbooks."

Ben winked at me and disappeared downstairs.

Show off, I thought.

Not wanting to solve a mystery starving, I brushed my teeth and raced downstairs. As my warm feet touched the wooden surface, I saw Aunt Jessica cooking a massive breakfast.

Despite wearing her stuffy pajamas, she wore a thick, yellow apron around her waist as she scrapped the scrambled eggs onto the plates.

Her strawberry blond hair tied into a thick ponytail as Aunt Jessica took out four pieces of uncooked bacon and set them on the burning pan.

I gave her a puzzled look. While Aunt Jess waited for the bacon darken, I asked her a question.

"Didn't you say that breakfast is ready?" I reminded.

She flipped the slabs of bacon with a silver spatula on its backside then increased the heat.

"I did," she replied. "We're having blueberry cheesecake, eggs, and bacon today."

Blueberry cheesecake? I thought. That's when I understood: we're having the dessert since we didn't get the chance yesterday.

"It's on the table," Aunt Jess says, still glaring at the pan.

"Meanwhile, take the plate of eggs over to the table. Your boyfriend already set the table."

"Eww," I whispered, not wanting Ben to hear. "Aunt Jess, he's my ex-boyfriend now."

She shuts off the heat and placed the strips of bacon on a white napkin.

Her hands pressed the soft fabric as hot grease soaked into the towel, like a sponge.

"I can see it in your eyes that you love this boy." Aunt Jess teased.

"I am a fortune teller, you know."

I rolled my eyes in annoyance. "You were a fortune teller," I corrected. "Until you convinced a man that he'll have a happy marriage."

A wave of memories fell upon Aunt Jessica's face.

"Oh, right." she chuckled nervously. "I guess that  was my fault."

I took the heaping blue plate of eggs off of the white countertop and set it on the table, where Ben ate his dessert.

As soon as he sees me, Ben gave me a polite smile and asked how I am doing.

"Good," I answered. "Here's some eggs if you want any."

Ben finished his cheesecake and cuts the fluffy yellow pile with a fork and knife.

As the bacon roasted perfectly, Aunt Jessica puts the strips on a brown ceramic dish and delivers it to the table.

"Here it is," she beamed, sliding the plate next to the eggs.

"Thank you," we both said.

I starting taking a few strips of bacon and scrambled eggs and plopped them next to the blueberry cheesecake.

While eating, Ben swallowed his ration of eggs and looked at me.

"After we search through the yearbooks," I began. "What should we do next?"

"I'll go to the hospital," Ben said. "Meanwhile, you're going to the university and search for clues."

"But we also need to create a murder board," I reminded.

"I could take some pictures and send them to you."

Ben chewed on his piece of bacon slowly before swallowing.

"Good idea," he says. "As soon as we get back, we'll have a full murder board."