Rollercoaster (The Circle Series - Part 3)

Chapter 25

"Damn, woman," David said as he stretched in his chair. "That was the best." Leesha leaned over and scratched his belly playfully. "Whatcha think, Jonny? My old lady's lasagna kick your's in the ass?"

"It's good," Jon admitted, "but it's only a close second." He patted Julie's leg and winked at her. "What do you say, Ari? Is mom's better or Auntie's?"

Ari looked up, startled out of her drifting thoughts to the new lives within her, "Um...don't make me choose, Dad. Mom uses the family sauce though. Have you ever watched Auntie make her sauce? She gets fresh tomatoes. FRESH TOMATOES! All from scratch. No jars or cans."

"Don't let your Uncle Tony hear you say that," Jon smirked, "He'll argue with you till he's red in the face, that the family sauce is fresh."

"Tomato red?" Ethan and David asked in unison and fist bumped each other.

"Very much so," Jon laughed.

"I'm not offended in the slightest, Ari," Julie joked, "If Tony's gonna supply the sauce and it helps Dad cook, then I'm okay with that." She winked at Jon who let out a sound of outrage.

Leesha shook her head and started to take up the empty plates. "Well I'm just happy that you all like it. Started as my grammy's recipes and I made tweaks to it. Like the paprika and cayenne. She never used those spices."

"So I guess no one has room for dessert?" Julie asked as she rose from the table to start clearing it before she brought out her pavlova. She sent Ari a pointed look from behind Jon's back as she walked around the table.

"You two are gonna kill me," David joked and accepted a sweet, serene kiss from his wife.

Jon inhaled a sharp breath and shifted in his seat, Julie stopped mid-stride for a nano-second and Ari and Ethan looked at each other. David's diagnosis of stomach cancer and subsequent treatment meant that he'd become slightly thinner, dropping to 140 lbs from his well-maintained 180.

His one luscious curls had since fallen out but, with the help of a dear family friend, he'd received a custom-made wig. While only slightly lighter than the blonde he'd had for so long, the hair was real and styled daily into loose curls. Today, he had paired it with a bandana.

It was an elephant in the room that was largely ignored for David's sake, preferring to continue life as though nothing apart from old age was going to take him from the family.

"So," Julie spoke first, hoping to break the pall that had fallen over the gathering, "I managed to save some of the whipped cream for the pav but it might be a little on the light side."

"What happened, mom," Ari asked, "You bought a new container today when we were out, didn't you?"

"Your father happened," Julie smirked at Jon and promptly left for the kitchen to put dessert together, followed by a teary Leesha with dirty plates.

"Gross, dad!" Ari chuckled, "Did you just eat whipped cream by itself? You know you'll get fat."

David snorted and sprayed wine from his nose and mouth across the table. "Oh fuck me," he muttered and held his stomach as he let out a deep belly laugh.

Jon, to his credit, kept a straight face and nodded sagely, "Yes...yes, I did. And your mother was delicious."

"OH MY GOD, DAD!" Ari squealed.

"Hey now, baby," Ethan growled to Ari, "You like that too, remember? We still have a can in the fridge downstairs." It was Jon's turn to grab for his napkin as he fought off a cough from swallowing his wine the wrong way.

"That's my boy!" David cheered and shakily stood from the table, slowly making his way to the kitchen for more wine and to check on Leesha.

"Fuck, I need a smoke," Jon muttered, "I'll be back for dessert."