Rollercoaster (The Circle Series - Part 3)

Chapter 24

*~*One Year Later*~*

"Honey?" Ari called out from the bedroom. When met with no answer, she crawled from the warm bed and wrapped the soft fleece blanket over her shoulders. She padded out quietly and found Ethan still on his laptop filling out his university admission paperwork. "Babe?"

"Oh...hey Scooby," Ethan looked up from the keyboard, "Feeling any better, sweetheart?" He held out his arm and drew her against his side.

Ari leaned into her young husband's side and laid her head on his. "A little but I'm really hungry. Starving actually. Any chance you could run out for food...pleeeeeeease?"

"Um...sure thing," he nodded but frowned a little, "but will you end up throwing it up again? If this flu sticks around another day, I'm taking you to the doctor's. Just let me save this." He finished the sentence he was in the middle of and then saved his place before closing the laptop.

She smiled cutely and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, hunny bunny." Ari curled up on the sofa and checked her phone. Only ten text messages from her Dad today plus one from her Mom telling her to message her Dad.

"So what do you want?" he asked, shrugging into his jacket and finding his keys and wallet.

"I've been dying for some fried chicken and queso. We need more Tab cola or I'll end up raiding Uncle Lema's fridge."

"You know Dad will forgive you anything," Ethan chuckled and kissed her forehead from behind, "Wait a minute?! Did you just ask for," his face screwed up in disgust, "fried chicken and queso, babe?! Ugh!"

Ari glanced up at him and blinked innocently. "Yeah! The crunchiness and cheesy goodness." She licked her lips and smiled.

"That's just fucking gross," he said, "but okay. Just don't ask me to participate in the mix. I'll be back soon, okay?" Ethan made his way upstairs, heading for the garage. He waved to his parents in the living room as he walked past.

Leesha looked up from the movie she and David were watching and cocked an eyebrow. "Where are you going this late?"

"Ari's hungry," he replied with a shrug, "so I'm heading out. She hasn't been feeling well and hasn't been able to keep anything down for a couple of days so I figure if she's hungry, she must be feeling better. Know anywhere that I can get fried chicken and queso at this time of night?"

"Fried chicken and WHAT?!" David exclaimed.

"Hmm...weird combo but I've had stranger ones. We should have the cheese and Rotel in the cupboard for queso. Need me to whip some up?"

"Since when do you whip anything this late?" Dave whispered to his wife.

Leesha tossed her half of their blanket over David's head and stood from the couch. "Nando's in Red Bank should still be open. I'll take care of the queso."

"Thanks, mom," Ethan said and kissed her cheek on her way past him, "You two need anything?"

"Yeah! More Tab cola. Your little wifey has been in my studio fridge!" David grabbed his wallet from the coffee table and held out two 20s to his son.

"She said she'd been drinking it," he nodded, taking the proffered money, "I'll get some more. It's weird though, coz she doesn't normally drink that shit. Guess it must be the flu doing strange things. Thanks, dad. See ya soon!"

Once out of ear shot, David hobbled into the kitchen with his cane behind his wife and watched her take out a large saucepan. "Fried chicken and queso? That's as strange as your smoked sausage, cheese and egg fry up. You remember that shit? You went through eggs by the dozen. Bacon too." He laughed and popped open a bottle of beer from the fridge.