Standing Outside the Fire

66

[Heaven Can't Wait]

Rexford, Idaho

EXT. CABIN - NIGHT

INT. CABIN - NIGHT

A woman's voice sounded over a phone; a sweaty, disheveled man, Joe, was pacing around inside the cabin, listening to her.

"Sir?" the hotline counselor said. "Sir, can you hear me? Please – please just say something. Are you still there? Keep talking, and I can help you through this. Please, sir, if you can hear me, stay on the phone. It may feel hopeless right now, but, but you called the hotline for a reason. There's some part of you that still wants to live – some part that knows suici–"

Joe hung up the phone. He opened a drawer in a dresser, sighed heavily, and pulled out a gun. He pointed the gun to his forehead, and gasped heavily, then looked at a picture of a woman and a child and sobbed again. He lowered the gun slowly, and dropped it back in the drawer. Suddenly he heard a sound behind him, and whirled around.

A man stepped forward and Joe asked, "Who are you? Did the lady from the hotline send you?"

"No," the intruder, who was wearing a small cross earring in his left ear, said. "You did."

The intruder put his hand toward Joe's head.

EXT. CABIN - NIGHT

A reddish/white light shined and Joe screamed. A liquid splashed onto the window.

GAS 'N SIP

Hands poured coffee. Hands closed the change drawer.

Hands wiped the front of the freeze machine. Two men chatted.

Castiel was walking from behind a counter, wearing a bright blue staff vest, and carrying a cup of coffee – he was working in a convenience store.

Castiel closely watched the two men, chatting at the coffee-stand. One man was stirring his coffee. Castiel watched and stirred his coffee. The man licked his stir stick. Castiel licked his own stir stick. The two men continued to have their conversation.

The men were laughing.

"I know, and that play in the second quarter?" man one said.

"I mean, what team is he playing for?" man two asked.

"Not ours."

The man aimed and tossed his stir stick into the garbage. The other guy and Castiel both watched.

"High-five! " The men high-fived.

Castiel turned to a garbage can near him. He aimed, leaned forward slightly, and tossed his own stir stick into the garbage. He gave a small smile of triumph when he made it.

A delivery man walked in.

"Morning, Steve," the delivery man said briskly to Castiel.

"Bill. High—" Castiel began as he held up his hand for a high-five as the delivery man walked past, ignoring it, "—five." Castiel closed his hand and lowered it.

The delivery guy dropped a load of newspapers on the counter and turned around, leaving and nodding at Castiel on his way out. Castiel walked over to the stack of newspapers and began unbinding them.

A woman, Nora, said, "Sorry I'm late."

Castiel looked up.

Nora continued. "I had to... drop the baby off at daycare—then hit every red light on the way here." She looked around. "But guess I shouldn't have worried. Place looks great. Coffee urns?"