Page 33 of On the Way to You
I cleared my throat, wringing my already damp hands together. “My name is Cooper and this is my friend, Emery. Say hi, Emery.”
He waved, his smile tight as he watched me.
“Emery and I are on our way up to Washington, but our car broke down, and now we’re in a predicament trying to get back on the road.”
“No, we’re not,” Emery argued under his breath.
Again, I ignored him.
“Now I know you all have places to be, and I know the last thing you expected was some…” I laughed, gesturing to myself. “Some little girl from Alabama standing on a chair, asking for your help, but here I am.” A few people chuckled, and I used those laughs as fuel for hope. “Some of you may have heard of Big Earl’s Wing Challenge.”
Whistles and hollers rang out from various booths, others looking around confused. I could tell just from that who the locals were and who was passing through.
“Well, my friend Emery here is ready to take the challenge. But,” I added, holding up one finger. “That all depends on y’all. You see, right now you’re just getting dinner — which is great, I can tell just from the way it smells — but for a small donation to get us back on the road, you could have dinneranda show.” I glanced down at Emery before holding up my hand to hide my mouth from him, pretending to whisper, but loud enough that everyone could hear. “And between you and me, Emery here’s a wuss, so it woulddefinitelybe a good show.”
More laughs surrounded us as Emery crossed his arms over his chest, shaking his head at me, though I saw the smile he hid.
“So, what do you say, folks?” I hollered, standing straighter and holding the empty bucket into the air. “Are we going to have to hitchhike our way across the great US of A, or are y’all ready for a show?”
I expected a roaring round of applause and cheers, but instead I was met with silence, someone coughing near the front door as everyone else looked around, most of them avoiding my eyes. My cheeks flushed red with heat and I glanced at Emery, who was still shaking his head.
He was right. This was insane.
Emery reached a hand up, ready to help me down from the chair as I offered an embarrassed smile to the ones still looking at me. But just as I stepped down, a loud whistle came from the back of the restaurant.
Emery and I both turned, along with the rest of the joint, to find an older man seated in the far back booth holding up a twenty-dollar bill in his hands. He wore a Navy Veteran hat and a grin.
“Let’s get him a bib, boys.”
His buddies cheered, all of them digging into their wallets for cash, too.
And that’s all it took.
Every booth joined in on the cheers as the hostesses cleared off a table in the center, seating Emery down and prepping the table with wet naps. I took the bucket through the crowd, gathering the cash as Emery watched me. I gave him a thumbs up sign with smile too big for my face as I held up the bucket for him to see. He just laughed, tucking the bib they handed him into his shirt with a promise for paybacks on his lips.
Twenty wings in, Emery hated me.
The entire restaurant was gathered around him, chanting his name and promising him beers to celebrate the win. His beautiful lips were slathered in different colored sauces, his hands covered in the same, and his eyes were murderous on me, though he was still smiling.
“Come on, guys. Keep up the energy!” I encouraged, and more people chanted his name as he picked up the twenty-first wing, getting hotter with each bite as he neared the Inferno.
“This is impossible,” he said when he finished that one, staring at the four left in the basket in front of him. “My mouth is on fire.”
His eyes were red and watery, his shoulders slumped until the guy with the Navy hat clapped him on the back and rubbed some life back into those shoulders.
“Come on, kid! You can do it!”
The crowd cheered with him, and I just laughed as Emery shot more daggers straight at my forehead.
He cursed.
He screamed.
He nearly cried.
But by God, he did it.
When he opened his mouth and showed the last of the twenty-fifth wing was gone, the restaurant erupted into a battle cry of sorts as two waitresses rushed in, one with a tall glass of milk to ease the burn and the other with his victory t-shirt. They snapped a picture of him with us all standing around, and even though I knew he was hurting, he smiled through it all.