Jyri needed to try a cheeseburger. He couldn’t keep living off of bread, pears, plain noodles, cheese sandwiches, and potatoes. And steak whenever he ended up at a restaurant with someone. Oliver was beginning to catch onto him.
“You know, there are other foods here,” Oliver said one day. He had walked into the kitchen while Jyri was fixing himself a cheese sandwich for dinner. “You already eat those every day for lunch at work. But dinner too?”
“Jyri doesn’t like food unless it’s bread,” Faye shouted from the couch. Ran sat next to her.
“That’s not true!” Jyri snapped. “I eat other stuff.”
“Oh right. Pears.”
“I was going to make an omelet,” Oliver said. “Do you want one?”
“No thank you,” Jyri said. Oliver had made them before, and the smell of it made Jyri feel ill.
“You sure? Have you ever tried one? You should try one. Come on, I’ll make you one.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“What do you mean you’re not hungry? All you’ve eaten today-”
“Leave him alone!” Ran shouted.
It was so out of character for Ran to speak up that Oliver stopped pressing the issue out of shock. And hadn’t bothered Jyri since.
But still. Jyri needed to add something new to his diet. And a cheeseburger sounded like the most appealing option. So one day, after work, he dragged Ran with him to get one.
“There’s a restaurant within walking distance that has them,” Jyri said as they hurried down the street.
“What’s the hurry?”
Jyri slowed. “No rush, I suppose. I’m just nervous.”
“Nervous? What’s going on?”
“There’s something I’ve been wanting to try since I first saw a picture of it in a menu at the restaurant Brittney took me and Faye to.”
Ran stopped dead in his tracks. “Wait. You want to try a new food?” He beamed. “That’s great!”
Jyri knew Ran would understand the significance of this event. Faye would just laugh and make snarky comments. Plus Ran would eat anything edible, so he’d scarf the rest of it down if Jyri couldn’t eat it. “I don’t know if I’ll like them or not. And I don’t want to try them in front of others in case it’s something really gross and I end up spitting it back up on my plate.”
“What is this thing anyways?” Ran asked.
“A cheeseburger.”
“Cheeseburger… I might have seen those on TV.”
“You have?” Jyri smiled. “Do you know what the meat is?”
“I don’t know, but I’ve wanted to try one too.”
Jyri looked up at the sign that read “The Silver Grill” in bright text. “Here’s the place.”
The two were seated in a booth immediately by a young woman, who handed them each a menu. Though Jyri already knew what he wanted. He just didn’t know whether or not he’d like the cheese on it.
“How about this,” Ran said. “I could get mine without cheese, and you can get yours with cheese. Then you can try both without having food go to waste.”
“You’re a genius,” Jyri said, grinning. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
The waitress returned shortly after to take their order, in which they both insisted on the burgers being plain. The waitress walked away, and Jyri spotted him from across the room.
Jasper! Sitting across from a woman. What was he doing here? Would he notice Jyri? Jyri hoped not. He really didn’t want to talk to him while trying a new food.
“Is something wrong?” Ran asked.
“Jasper’s here,” Jyri said.
“Your pain in the ass boss?”
“Keep it down.” Jyri glanced over to make sure Jasper hadn’t noticed them.
“Where’s he sitting?”
Jyri gave a slight jerk of his head to the right. “There, with the girl.”
“Whoa… Is that his girlfriend?”
“Maybe. Stop staring!”
“Sorry. She’s really pretty.”
“I guess.” It was rare for Jyri to find a girl to be “really pretty.” In fact, he couldn’t recall the last time he even thought a girl was pretty. Maybe Jessica, he thought. Though he didn’t like her in that way, no matter what everyone else seemed to think. Was it normal to find someone pretty without being attracted to them?
“Thinking about Jessica again?” Ran asked as he picked up a fork off the table and studied it.
“No. Why would I be thinking about her?”
“Because I mentioned a girl being pretty, and Jessica’s the only girl I’ve ever heard you talk about.”
“Only because Jessica is the only woman I’ve ever been friends with. If she were a man, you wouldn’t be making these ridiculous assumptions.”
“Okay, okay. She’s just your friend.”
“Thank you,” Eager to change the subject, Jyri added, “What’s Jasper doing now? Has he looked over here yet?”
“I don’t think so. He’s too busy listening to the girl. Why, he looks like a great listener.”
Jyri snorted. “Probably faking it.”
Just then, the waitress stopped by with the food, gave the cheese-less one to Jyri, and the cheese one to Ran. “Enjoy your meal,” she said.
“Thanks, you too,” Jyri said. Then, smacked his forehead when she walked away. “You too… She doesn’t have a bloody meal to enjoy!”
Ran took a bite of his cheeseburger, and nodded. “Not bad. I think you’ll like these.”
Jyri looked down at his meal, at the “burger.” There was a pile of long, yellow things next to it. “What do you suppose those are?” he asked quietly, poking at one.
“I think they’re called fries.” Ran picked one up with his fingers, and bit into it. “They’re good. Kind of reminds me of potatoes.” He studied the inside of it. “Actually, I think they are.”
That sounded safe enough. Jyri picked up his fork, and attempted to poke it into one.
“Eat it with your fingers,” Ran said. “You’re supposed to eat this whole meal with your fingers.”
Jyri’s jaw dropped. “That’s barbaric!”
“That’s what Jasper’s doing.” Ran gave a slight jerk of his head towards Jasper’s table, and Jyri snuck a peek. Jasper seemed very interested in the burger in his hands. And if he was eating it with his hands…
Jyri picked up his burger, and took a deep calming breath. The bread on it warmed his fingers. And the smell of the meat was pleasant, for a change. Most food smells turned him off, but this was a good sign. He would have to start off with a tiny bite. People always made fun of him for only taking the smallest of bites when trying things. And when he wouldn’t like it, they’d always tell him that didn’t count. How could he have tasted it? And that he needed to take a bigger bite of it. Nevermind the fact he’d always have a gagging fit from just his tongue touching the food. Nevermind the fact it was never something he wanted to try anyway, but was pushed into.
But Ran never gave him trouble for it. Ran was the only one who seemed to understand, despite being capable of eating anything edible. “Small bite. You got this.”
Jyri took a deep breath, and took the tiniest of bites. The ground meat felt weird in his mouth, but the taste was actually… good? Jyri swallowed and took a normal-sized bite. It was juicy, and delicious, and…
“This is amazing!” Jyri said, louder than intended, and immediately covered his mouth. Thankfully the restaurant wasn’t too crowded, and he only caught a waiter smiling at him as he walked by.
Ran snickered into his hand.
“Please tell me Jasper didn’t hear that.”
“Given how both he and his girlfriend are staring at us right now, I’d say they did.”
Jyri groaned, but took another bite of the burger. Then another one.
“Maybe he didn’t recognize you.” Ran took a bite of his. “Yeah, these are good. Wanna try it with cheese? They stopped staring.”
The two swapped burgers and Ran took a bite of the cheeseless one, while Jyri took a bite of the one with cheese.
“It’s even better with cheese!”
Ran smiled. “Finally. You’ve found something you like.”
“Love,” Jyri correct, as he took another bite. “I love this.”
“Try a fry,” Ran said. “They’re good too.”
Jyri put his burger down long enough to take a small bite of fry. He nodded. “Not bad. I think I’ve found my new favorite meal.”
“Good.” Ran picked up another fry, and the two continued eating in silence.
This was an absolute miracle. Finally, Jyri could add something new to his limited diet. He was almost done with his food when a voice drew him away from it.
“Hello Jyri, funny meeting you here.”
Jyri looked up from his fries to find Jasper standing in front of his table. He swallowed a fry, surprised that Jasper got his name right. “Yes, it is.”
“Do you know the woman I’m with?” he asked. The woman in question still sat at the table, staring at some gadget in her hand.
Jyri shook his head.
“Good.” Jasper smiled, but there was no friendliness behind it. “Listen. Could you not mention this to anyone at work? Seeing me here, I mean.”
“Oh-okay.” Jyri bit his lip. “Umm...”
“Because if Shawn finds out about this, I will make your life miserable. Understand?”
“Why does it matter if Shawn finds out?” Ran asked. Which surprised Jyri, because Ran never talked to anyone other than Jyri and sometimes Faye.
“And who are you?” Jasper asked Ran.
“My little brother,” Jyri answered. “His name’s Ran.”
Jasper nodded, eyes still on Ran. “Do you have any work experience?”
Ran stared at him, wide-eyed. “No.”
“Not a problem. How would you feel about working for me? Being my personal assistant?”
That didn’t sound like a pleasant job role to Jyri. But Ran furrowed his brow, as though considering his offer. It would be good for him to have a job. And it would mean more money. A personal assistant though?
“He can’t be working for you all day every day,” Jyri said.
Jasper flicked his hand. “No, nothing like that. I mean, at the office. During our regular work hours. All he’ll be doing is fetching me things throughout the day so I don’t have to get up. I am so swamped these days, I could use the extra help.”
“I’d be working where Jyri works?” Ran asked.
“Yes, though not with him.”
“I can try it,” Ran said.
“Good.” Jasper smiled. “You can start tomorrow. Now, don’t forget what I said about not having seen me here.”
“Then how will I explain to Oliver how Ran got this job?” Jyri asked
Jasper scratched his jawline, and glanced back at the woman, who observed the exchange from afar. “You can tell him I was here. But with a couple of men who I am friends with. Not a woman. That woman over there? You never saw her.”
It sounded suspicious. But Jyri didn’t care about Jasper’s personal business. “Sure.”
Jyri kept his word, and only mentioned bumping into Jasper outside of the restaurant, and that Jasper offered Ran a job. They broke the news to Faye as soon as they walked through the door.
“I start tomorrow,” Ran said joyfully. He and Jyri stood behind the couch in the family room.
“Great,” Faye said, eyes glued to a news program on the TV. It was how she spent most of her free time. Sprawled out on the couch watching shows. To be fair, the couch was her bed.
“And Jyri tried a cheeseburger, and loved it!”
That caught Faye’s attention. “Really?” She turned her head towards Jyri. “You loving a food? Now that’s some breaking news.”
“It was really good,” Jyri said, ignoring the jab. “I’m going to eat cheeseburgers all the time now.”
Oliver appeared in the room. “Did I hear something about eating cheeseburgers all the time?”
Jyri nodded vigorously. “I just tried one for the first time today and it was amazing.”
“You’ve never had a cheeseburger?”
Jyri chewed his lip. Cheeseburgers must be a popular food here, and him not having had one must make him stick out even more in Oliver’s eyes. “Umm...”
Ran came to the rescue. “Our parents never allowed them. They never allowed anything. That’s why we’re clueless.”
"Really?" Oliver ran his fingers through his hair, brow furrowed. “Were they in a cult or something?”
“Yes!” Jyri jumped in at the chance to easily explain all suspicions away. “A cult. We escaped a cult.”
“We were part of it since we were children.” Faye's voice shook. “The adults had us trapped in this house that we weren’t allowed to leave.”
“There were no computers or TVs." Jyri hunched himself forward, eyes on the couch. “All we had were books on fantasy creature.”
“Jesus.” Oliver stared at the three of them. “I’m sorry. Why didn’t you say so from the beginning?”
“We were too embarrassed about it,” Faye said with a sniffl.
Of course, not a word of this was true. But Oliver seemed to believe them. “Where is this place? Are there more children locked away? This needs to be reported.”
Ran, Faye, and Jyri exchanged worried glances.
“The house burned down with many people in it,” Faye said quickly.
Ran nodded. “It’s gone.”
“We don’t like to talk about it,” Jyri said, rubbing his eye. “It brings up too many horrific memories.”
Oliver swore under his breath, and walked back to his room. Jyri and Ran took seats on the couch next to Faye.
“I think we should work on this story,” Jyri whispered. “It’s the perfect cover up. A cult. I can’t believe I never thought of it.”
“Of course it’s why we know nothing and have no identification and can’t say where we’re from,” Faye said. “We don’t know, because we grew up in a cult that never told us anything other than how to worship fairies.”
“Material objects were forbidden,” Ran said.
“I’m going for a walk.” Oliver’s voice caused the three to jump. “I’ll be back whenever.”113Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYNHpK1Voz1
and then Add to home screen.