As John went into the kitchen to prepare a steak, salad, and baked potato for each of them, Jared carefully laid a fire in the fire-place, which was equipped with a wood stove insert. Making sure the dampers were properly set, he lit the fire and turned on the stove's blower system. Because the cabin was a small one, the stove was able to act as the primary heat source for the entire apartment.
So efficient was the stove, in fact, that the whole cabin felt as warm as toast within a matter of minutes. After making some further adjustments to the dampers to bank the fire, Jared settled back in the big leather sectional sofa that formed the centerpiece of the den. He snuggled into the rich leather upholstery and grinned in delight and contentment as the stove continued putting out just the right amount of heat. The cabin was well insulated, so Jared knew he probably wouldn't need to add any more wood to the fire that night. Even if he did, there would probably be enough coals and embers in the firebox to get the fire right back up and going again without any difficulty.
Remembering that the stove also served as an auxiliary heat source for their hot water supply, Jared got up and carefully checked to make sure that the controls for the hot water subsystem were also properly set. As he finished this task, John came in from the kitchen. "OK, cowboy, supper's on," he announced. "Hey, what are you doing?" he added curiously. "Not to worry, amigo," Jared explained, "I'm just making sure the auxiliary hot water supply controls are properly set." Reassured, John nodded his approval, and the two youths headed into the kitchen to have supper.
Once the meal was over, and the dishes were taken care of, John and Jared went back into the den, and sat down on the leather sectional directly in front of the stove's heavy glass window to watch the fire. They chatted for a bit about the events of the long day that was now winding down.
In the course of their conversation, John picked up a magazine from the coffee table in front of them. The magazine had a picture of Justin Guarini from "American Idol" on the cover. Both boys were fans of the curly-headed singer, having watched him all the way to his second-place finish on the TV series. Running his fingers through his thick, but straight, chocolate brown crewcut, John said, "Boy, I wish I could have a head full of curls like he does--only more so!"
Jared, whose hair was jet black, but styled the same way as John's, grinned wickedly as he replied, "How much more so?" "Oh, mebbe a foot high, then coming all the way down to my knees!" John replied with a laugh, not realizing what his best friend was about to do.
He stiffened in astonishment as Jared commanded, "I wish for both of us to have hairstyles just like Justin Guarini's, except that our curls stand up a full twelve inches above our heads, then come all the way down to the backs of our knees!" As the buckle, which Jared was wearing, glowed white-hot in response, both boys screamed as their scalps tingled as though an electric current were passing through them.
As the effect finally subsided, and the buckle returned to its normal appearance, the two teens gaped at each other in utter astonishment. "DUDE!" John cried, "IT WORKED!" Both John and Jared had heads of tightly-wound curls that were bigger and longer than they had ever seen. Whooping with glee, the two cowboys high-fived each other, then ran their fingers through each other's hair.
John wanted to try some more experiments, but Jared reminded him of their promise to Tom to proceed with caution. "Besides," Jared pointed out, "it's getting late, and we have a full day ahead of us tomorrow. Let's head for bed, and we can try some more wishes tomorrow, OK?" John nodded his agreement. With that, Jared double-checked the damper settings on the stove, then closed the cover over the glass view screen and set the blowers on automatic. Then, the two cowboys said good night and headed for their respective bedrooms.
As he snuggled between the sheets on his futon, Jared had a huge grin on his face. No doubt about it, he thought to himself--the fun with the wishing buckle was just beginning! A few moments later, Jared and John were both fast asleep.