At the restaurant, we sat in a booth in the far corner, away from the windows. I figured that he's want to have dinner without interruptions.
"So what's good here?" He looked over the menu.
"Pretty much everything but if you're brave enough, there is always the volcano tacos." I was curious to what he'd like.
"What is it?"
"They used coarsely chopped tofu, mixed with red pepper spice and a bit of volcano pepper. Lettuce, tomato, onion for a garnish with jalapeño pico d gyo."
"Sounds interesting. Have you had them?"
"I have. Once your mouth stops sprouting flames, the flavour is good." I smiled.
He chuckled. "Maybe I'll pass this time. I kinda need my voice."
"When's your next show?"
"In a week. We have shows in Russia, Ukraine and Poland."
"That's a long trip. I hope that you stay healthy."
"Me too. Every time we tour for a long time, I seem to get sick."
"Then I recommend lots of rest and tea with honey."
"Okay doctor."
It was easy to talk with Jared. He had a calming personality one on one.
"Favourite apps for my baby's Saviour?"
A tall, dark haired man stepped to the table and set down a plate of sautéed mushrooms and mangos.
"You know me so well. Thank you Cujo." I smiled up at my friend.
"Cujo?" Jared asked with a look of bewilderment.
"I used to wrestle in school. I was pretty fierce." Cujo explained.
"Cujo, Jared. I met Cujo when he adopted a Saint Bernard puppy." I told Jared.
"My baby. What can I get you guys?"
"I'll just have some of the herbed vegetable soup with the spelt roll."
"That's good for a cold night." He wrote it down and waited for Jared.
"Think I'll try your garden burger. It sounds good." Jared read off the menu.
"I guarantee you'll love it. Back in ten." He turned and went to the kitchen.
The garden "burger" was made from soy, tofu, onions, oats, rice and seasoned with garlic and herbs. If was one of my favorites. The soup was an herbed broth filled with carrots, tomatoes, rice, onions, celery and basil. So good.
"So what is it you do? What keeps you busy?" Jared sat back as we waited.
"I work for animals." I shrugged.
"For animals?"
"We try to rescue and collect animals. There's so many people that hurt them."
"You work for the ASPCA?"
"Not directly. We're an independent non profit. A lot of the local call us the Dog Cops. We watch for abuse and fighting."
Jared's face lit up. "That's impressive. I'm so into animal protection. Would you tell me more about it?
I was surprised that he was so excited. I didn't want to take up his time, boring him with details.
"Not tonight. No talking about work. Just fun."
"Okay but I'd really like to hear about it." He agreed.
"You may be bored."
"Doubt it."
"I warned you."
True to form, Cujo brought our food ten minutes after we'd ordered. Just perfect as always. Jared enjoyed his, saying it was probably one of the best began burgers he'd had.
After we finished and paid, I said goodnight to me friend and we were off again.
"It hasn't warmed up any." Jared pulled his jacket tighter.
"Alright I won't make you walk." I looked down the street for a cab.
"Where are we going?"
"Someplace where you'll have a great experience."
"Really. There's very little that I haven't done."
"If this is one of those things, I'll run through downtown in my boots and a swimsuit."
"At this time of year? That could be dangerous."
"Then I hope I'm right."
A white car stopped in front of us. We got in and I told the driver the address.
"So how long are you here for?" I wondered as I sat back.
"I leave for Russia on Wednesday." He answered.
"You're always busy huh?" I laughed.
"Not always. I like to have things to do."
"And you're doing a movie in the middle of your tour?"
"It's beginning to wind down. A few more dates, unless we get requests we can't ignore. Then some rest and maybe start working on new music.
"Can you do that? I mean can you really rest and do nothing?"
"I'm going to try."
We were silent for the rest of the drive. I couldn't wait until he saw what I had planned.
