The Right Choice

Chapter 21

"One minute to go guys. Come on! You can do it." One of the waiters yelled and began clapping. As soon as he did so, the entire restaurant roared and cheered loudly. Whistles and deafening screams could be heard through the crowded space. It was sheer mayhem. The focus of it all was these two individuals seated in the center.

Jessie stood in front of the large table where Aaron sat next to another man. Both of them were attempting to complete the 'Triple Terror' challenge.  The two were for the lack of any other word, attacking the food in front of them. The challenge was to finish eating three large Triple Treat burgers in three minutes. The prize was bragging rights, free t-shirt and their name on the Terror Hall of Fame. ‘Not exactly worth it is it.’

How on earth were you supposed to eat three burgers which were probably a half a pound each in weight plus loads of onion gravy in three minutes? Just the thought of it was making Jessie feel nauseated. Now how they got to that point was another story.

After waiting around for a bit, they finally got a table to sit. As Jessie waited for Aaron to finish his phone call, she couldn't help but try to find if she could spot any difference in the restaurant since the last time she was here. It had been quite a while so her curiosity was well justified. As she looked around, Jessie was caught off-guard. The place was exactly the same.

The kitschy art pieces still adorned the walls along with pictures of celebrity guests. The walls were still painted with crazy colors. The different colored lights created almost a psychedelic surrounding. The atmosphere of the place was still as friendly and welcoming as before. The waiters still greeted everyone with a hug. The manager still went around handing out free food to random tables. The cashier machine was still the old one which ringed every time someone opened it. The place was packed with people; right from high schoolers to regulars to tourists. It was still a fun place to be.

"So, where were we?"

Jessie's attention returned to her date. He seemed to be very excited about something. She asked, "I dunno. You tell me. That phone call seems to have put you in a very good mood."

"Yeah, that was my brother. He always has some insane idea which he wants me to join in on. Puts a smile on my face each time." Aaron replied with a smile.

"You have a brother?" Jessie eyed him with suspicion. "I thought that you were an only child."

Aaron replied, "I am an only child. But Matt, he is one of my mom's ex-husband's son. I'm not sure which one though, I keep forgetting. Anyway, he's the only one closest to me in age, so we get along pretty well."

Jessie was impressed. It takes quite an understanding to still stay on good terms with someone like that. You’d have to be really generous and have a strong sense of maturity to do this. She smiled inwardly. Aaron was ticking all the good points in her mental notes.

"I can't believe that you're still in touch with him," Jessie said. "I mean, your parents are no longer together. So, it's not like it's an obligation."

"I know," Aaron slowly said. "It's just that I've always wondered what it would be like to have a normal family. You know, mom, dad, brothers and sisters." He shifted in his seat and leaned towards Jessie. "But I've never had that. Hell, I've never had a complete family for longer than three years. The only one I did have one was when my Mom married Matt's father."

Jessie was listening intently. She sat patiently listening to him speak. Each time the word family came up, his eyes sparkled. She didn't realize until then how important it was to have that in your life. It's hard to appreciate having one until you lose it or don’t have one.

"Matt and I are practically the same age. He didn’t have any siblings either, so we became more like best friends then brothers. At one point, people thought that we were twins. But we have our differences. For example, he is far more adventurous than I am."