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“We made it!” Jack said, watching the festively decorated Farmers Market come into view. People scattered throughout shopping for fruits and vegetables, homemade baked goodies and all the little holiday inspired handmade crafts.
Jack excitedly hopped out of the Impala the moment Dean parked. The hunter hadn’t cared to come, still in a funk from the bad hunt. Besides, everything was ridiculously overpriced, and the whole idea was cheesily cliche, but Jack asked him specifically. And he had effectively mastered those damn puppy dog eyes, so he couldn’t refuse.
“It seems so.” Dean sighed as he hurried to catch up to Jack who was already scanning over the little blocks of red and green herbal soaps on the first table.
He watched him wander and, before he knew it, he was smiling, absolutely fondly… though he might never admit to that… as Jack chose at least a small item from almost every seller. The young man would hand them the money each time, always giving a little extra, and smiled bright as he told them to keep the change.
How god-like. Dean laughed to himself as they continued through the market. When they were nearing the end the scent of apple pie began to waft through the air, hitting Dean instantly. “Oh, yeah!” He sighed as he followed it. The table was adorably decorated. A sign reading Mama J’s Pies hung above the table , with lights strung up, and faux snow over the table cloth. The pies were sitting on a tree shaped stand, wrapped in pretty paper with bows. “How much?” Dean asked, smiling at the woman, whom he assumed was Mama J.
The woman eyed him for a moment, seemingly deep in thought. “Well… These are $15.” She said finally, motioning towards the pie tree. Dean didn’t even hesitate grabbing his wallet. “But…” she continued, causing Dean to pause and stare at her confused. The woman watched as Jack joined Dean at the table, wide eyed and grinning, with his bags full of goodies. “I think you would much rather have one of these.”
She reached down and grabbed a large wrapped basket. The foil wasn’t transparent so they couldn’t see what was inside. Sitting it on the table she looked back up at Dean who was clearly confused. “Well how much is this one?” He asked assuming it would be quite a bit more, due to the size.
“Oh this one is a gift. And in my personal opinion, perhaps the best pie you will ever have.” She smiled and winked at them. Dean waited for the catch, but one didn’t come. “So what do’ya say?”
Dean looked at Jack and shrugged. “Well, you can’t argue with free, right?”
The woman handed the basket over and waved them off. The two looked around for a little while longer, then headed to the car.
“Alright, Jack. Open her up, I want a piece.” Jack laughed at Dean’s inability to wait when it came to pie and pulled the bow loose. He opened the foil and peeked inside, not knowing if he should laugh or run because Dean was about to be upset. “What…” the hunter asked, seeing the surprise on Jack's face.
“Well, technically, it is pie.” Jack said, pulling the basket out and revealing the contents to Dean. “Just slightly… undercooked?” His lips twitched at his joke, as Dean stared at the basket.
10 green apples. Multiple jars, varying in size, decorated with holiday ribbon, and filled with the dry ingredients for the crust. A glass pie pan with little snowflakes on it. A recipe card with the directions to make it. And a note.
The best inheritance a parent can give his children is a few minutes of his time each day.
Dean realized the woman must have thought Jack was his son, and they were spending the day together at the Farmer’s Market. Which, the more he thought about it, wasn’t too far from the truth.
“So Jack, wanna learn how to bake a pie?” He asked and smiled when Jack’s eyes happily lit up.
~✶~
“This is gonna be a bitch to clean.” Dean laughed looking at the flour everywhere , including all over himself and Jack.
Jack pulled the pie from the oven and deeply inhaled the sweet scent. “Worth it!” He sighed, sitting it on the counter. They waited for it to cool as Dean grabbed plates and a knife.
It wasn’t long before the others had followed the smell into the kitchen. Cas smiled at the sight of Dean and Jack donning matching aprons. They had done little, if anything, to protect their clothes, and the image made his heart swell.
Once everyone had their piece, they dug in. “Wow!” Sam said, impressed.
Dean and Jack proudly watched everyone enjoying their handiwork. It might not have been the easiest pie, or the cleanest… or even the tastiest… but it was, without doubt, the best . After all, like all the best things in their life, they had made it together .