Steak House

Chapter 2: Beef Machine

As the afternoon sun rose high in the sky the next day, Bentley stepped in front of the new steakhouse, Beef Machine. Bentley cringed as he read the name. Who was dumb enough to name their restaurant Beef Machine?

Despite the terrible name, Bentley headed inside and saw quite a bit of customers. Of course, it wasn't as busy as Jeremey's Steakhouse. He took a menu from the stand and sat at a booth. Unlike Jeremy's Steak, there were waiters and cooks. A waiter, a tall man with small eyes and slicked-back hair with a curled mustache, approaches Bentley, holding a small notepad and a pencil behind his ear. "Ready to order?" the waiter asked. "Can I get the Triple Deluxe Machine?" Bentley asked. Bentley cringed internally as he said the name of the burger. Seriously, these names are terrible! "Of course, anything else?" The waiter questioned. "No, that'll be all, thanks." As the waiter headed back into the kitchen, Bentley felt his eye twitch as he looked at the restaurant and its decor. Everything was bright and tacky and seemed mismatched. Unlike Jeremy's Steak, Beef Machine was overly decorated in ugly colors. As Bentley continued to glance around, he noticed just how greasy parts of the wall were. He touched the section with his finger and immediately felt like throwing up since there were dust and grease on his finger. He quickly wiped his finger on the underside of the tablecloth. Still, as he couldn't fully eliminate the greasiness, he scrubbed at his finger with a napkin and some water furiously under the table.

Bentley groaned as the waiter brought a giant burger from the kitchen towards Bentley. It looked nasty and was dripping with fat. The patty looked like it was about to fall apart, and the lettuce was noticeably turning yellow. Bentley cringed even more as he saw the brightly painted toothpick sticking in it.

The waiter placed the burger in front of Bentley and returned to serving other customers. Bentley stared nervously at his Triple Deluxe Machine. It was bigger than he could hold. He saw large pieces of bacon and ham nearly slipping out. Bentley ripped off a piece of bacon and saw it wasn't charred or crispy. Bentley sighed and tried taking a bite of the burger. The taste was just barely exceptional, not excellent like Jeremy's. It would be plain and dry, like a desert if not for the ungodly amount of greasy fat and sauce. When Bentley noticed the waiter staring at him from afar, he quickly gulped down the burger. As Bentley was chewing, he could feel the release of oil from the beef. It was so oily and disgusting. Bentley ate quickly and paid for his meal. He walked home quickly, wanting to drink a glass of water to refresh his mouth from the greasiness. 

It was afternoon by the time Bentley arrived home. When he entered his home, his mother rushed towards him and said, "Thank goodness you're home! Have you seen your brother today?" Mrs.Hopson sounded panicked since Evan was supposed to return home this morning from his sleepover. "No, I haven't. What's going on, Mom?" Bentley looked worriedly at his mother as she started tugging the end of her ponytail. "Evan has been missing since this morning! His friend, Dan, said he left in the morning!" Mrs.Hopson exclaimed. With worry in her heart for the safety of her younger son, she quickly rushed towards the phone and dialed 911. Bentley was shocked. Did his brother run away? Has Evan been kidnapped? Bentley prayed in his heart that his brother was safe. "Hello? Police? Yes, I need immediate help; my younger son is missing!" Mrs.Hopson was sobbing at this point. Bentley helplessly stood beside his mother as she continued telling the police what had happened. "No, why would he run away?! My son is only 10!" Her voice was trembling as she tried to reason with the police. "Yes, I'm sure. Why would he go anywhere else before coming home first?" To Mrs. Hopson, it seemed the police were unwilling to start searching for Evan. Something the police said caused Mrs. Hopson to gasp and let out a despairing wail before slamming the phone. She collapsed onto the group and could only uncontrollably cry as Bentley tried his best to comfort her. "What did the police say..?" Mrs. Hopson could only shake her head and cover her face with her hands as she continued to cry. And she remained there until evening.