Regret	Regret

 by Jodie Louise

  

 Author's website: http://freespace.virgin.net/jodie.mouse

 Disclaimer: they are all borrowed

 Author's Notes: thanks to SHAY who planted the seeds for this story

 Story Notes: well, Gardino is dead

 

 

 The first time he saw Louis Gardino it had freaked him out. Well, after
all, Louis was supposed to dead. 

 So when Louis -- (well, Jack supposed) materialised -- behind him in the
shower of all places it had almost caused him to have a heart attack. 

 "Hi Jack, how's things?" Louis had asked. 

 And Huey had turned around at hearing the oh so familiar voice and pulled
the shower curtain around himself in an attempt to cover his nudity. Louis
had never seen Jack naked in all the years of their partnership -- it felt
-- kind of freaky. 

 Finally Huey remembered how to speak. 

 "You're supposed to be dead." 

 "I am." Louis had replied grinning. 

 "Jeez, Louis." Jack had said because there was nothing else to say. 

 They stared at each other. Then laughed and neither could remember who
had started it or what was so funny anyway. 

 So it went on. Louis was Jack's constant companion. 

 And when the New Guy turned up -- Louis' replacement, except he couldn't
be a replacement, not really -- Louis had still stuck around. It was kind
of like having two partners. One a pain in the ass and the other a shining
beacon. 

 Of course they had to adapt. A partnership could never be same if one of
you were dead -- and then there was Dewey as well. But all in all it
worked out good. In a way, better. Because now that Louis was dead they
talked all kind of shit. From stories to do with High School to Huey and
Dewey's current cases. 

 They had always talked when they had been partners but this -- well it
was somehow different. And for a while Jack managed to forget that he'd
felt like his heart had been ripped out and thrown in the trash as he
watched Louis be lowered into the ground. 

 When he thought about it Jack decided that having a dead Louis around was
better than no Louis at all. And now it was all too late to say all the
things he should've said when Louis was alive. 

 Why had Louis chose Jack anyhow? When you were dead you could choose who
you hung out with -- couldn't you? Why hang out with him? 

 Sometimes Jack wondered what Louis would say if he told him the truth.
Wondered what would happen if he admitted that he was in love with Louis
whether he was dead, alive or inbetween. 

 Knowing that Jack could never say this broke his heart all over again. 

 But may be he didn't have to say. Perhaps they had both been blind and
were only now becoming able to see. 

End Regret by Jodie Louise: jodie_mouse@yahoo.com

Author and story notes above.