Chapter 13
Once they found the dongle, they figured they ought to wait until they got home to plug it in. Who knows what craziness would happen, what strange new superpower it may grant. They flew over to where the Funkmaster Shades concert was being held. The band was named after their leader, Funkmaster Shades. They were a sort of funk-rock band that Galaxy-Man absolutely loved. Funkmaster Shades was Galaxy-Man's favorite band growing up, and it is rumored that Funkmaster Shades inspired him to where his trademarked black sunshades. Galaxy-Man aspired to be a rock star when he was younger, until he realized he didn't have any talent.
They arrived in a large field in Funkmaster Shades' hometown of Stubs Nebrasky, not to be confused with Nebraska. Nebrasky was a small town where nothing very interesting ever happened. Other than a bronze statue of Keith Richards next to the Walmart, there weren't many sights to see. Due to his parole, Funkmaster Shades wasn't allowed to leave the town to go on tour, so he played exclusively in Nebrasky.
When they arrived at the concert, the field was covered with cars. People had come from all over the world and all walks of life for the concert. There must've been 20,000 cars there. There were no seats, so people sat on the hoods of their vehicles. It was very cold that day, so everyone there brought blankets and pillows. It was an interesting sight seeing thousands of people snuggled up on top of their cars. There were so many. Galaxy-Man was lucky to find a place to park the Whomper as big as it was. He was a bit early so he found a good spot.
“Wow,” said Galaxy-Man, “big turn out this year.”
They had forgotten to buy tickets, which everyone was supposed to show at the main gate to get in, so a man walked over to the ship and tapped on the door.
“Uh-oh,” said Cherry. “We didn't buy tickets. They've probably been sold-out for like 10,000 years.”
Galaxy-Man walked over to a pile of junk and picked up three cameras. “Not to worry, not to worry,” he said confidently. Everyone grabbed their cameras and tried their best to look official.
They walked over to the door and Galaxy-Man opened it.
“Lemme see some tickets, hombres,” said the man.
“Oh, we're photographers,” said Galaxy-Man.
“Yeah, we're from that Rolling Steezy, yo,” added Cherry.
“And your cat?” asked the man as he pointed at Stevie.
“She's a service cat,” said Cutty quickly.
“A service cat?” asked the man. He was not amused.
“Yeah, funkledunk,” said Cherry, “can't you see that my dad is blind? Look at those black shades.”
Galaxy-Man walked over and started feeling the man's face. "Let me see your face," he said, pretending he was blind.
The man raised his brow at hearing this. “A blind photographer?”
Cherry knew she had just dug herself a hole. “Um... yeah, he-”
“You know what?” said the man as he shook his head. “I've just about had it with this weirdo town. You're telling me that a blind photographer from Rolling Stone magazine who wears a cape and drives a pirate ship comes flying out of the sky to see a rock concert, and he brought his cat?”
“Actually I'm not here to see the concert,” said Galaxy-Man. “I can't see anything!” he laughed.
The man just shook his head and walked away. “You know what? I don't care. Take all the shoddy pictures you want, bud. I'm going home.”
“What a junkwagon,” said Galaxy-Man once the man had left. “When did wearing a cape become weird?”
Across the street from the field was a quaint but nice restaurant he had found on Google Maps. Galaxy-Man arrived early so they could go out to eat before the show. He figured there was time for a nice dinner, only this would be a special dinner because it would just be Galaxy-Man and Cutty. This would be their first time alone together actually. Cherry agreed to hold down the fort while they were away, though, she was a bit worried about them leaving. Galaxy-Man had taken a shower, put on nice clothes, and did the unthinkable – he brushed his hair. He couldn't remember the last time he did that. He looked very suave. He wore a tuxedo that Cherry didn't even know he had. But of course, he kept his beloved shades.
Once they were ready to go, Cherry walked outside the ship with them to see them off. “Don't forget to bring protection, Dad,” said Cherry.
If Cutty were drinking water, it would've spew from her mouth.
“What the heck, child?” asked Galaxy-Man. “It's just dinner, man.”
“There's lots of weirdos out there,” explained Cherry. “I don't want you guys to get mugged or something.” Needless to say, there was a bit of a misunderstanding with the word “protection.” Cherry seemed genuinely worried for them. It was kinda sweet actually. Sometimes it was easy to forget that Cherry was only nine years old.
“Oh, we'll be fine,” assured Cutty.
“Take your sword, Cutty.” suggested Cherry. “Just in case?”
“I don't think they'd let me bring a sword in,” replied Cutty. “Besides, I don't wanna scare people.”
“Don't worry,” said Galaxy-Man. “We'll be totally fine. I promise.”
“Okay,” said Cherry, still a bit worried.
“And keep a close eye on Stevie please. You know how she just loves to get stuck inside the couch ALL the time.”
Cherry laughed and smiled.
“I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her.”
“Bring me your leftovers please.”
Galaxy-Man gave a thumbs up and smiled. “You got it, Daughter-Man.”
Galaxy-Man and Cutty walked across the street over to the restaurant. It was a pizzeria called Pete's a Pizza, home of the Pete's a Pizza Pizza.
Cutty read the sign as they walked into the parking lot. “Pete's a Pizza?”
“You think that weird kid from earlier changed his ways and became the owner of a pizzeria?” Galaxy-Man joked.
“It sounds like he became the pizza itself.” The name was only a coincidence of course.
Galaxy-Man held the door open for Cutty like a gentlemen and the two walked inside. It was pleasantly warm inside and warmly lit as well. The establishment had great atmosphere. It was the sort of restaurant with stuff on the walls. There were old advertising signs, the obligatory red tricycle, horseshoes turned up so its good luck wouldn't pour out, clocks, swords, paintings and a ton of other stuff. It wasn't going for a particular theme, but it looked nice regardless. It looked like an antiques mall turned pizzeria. There were a lot of people inside, but things weren't too loud. The best word to describe the restaurant was lovely.
“This is nice,” said Cutty as she looked around at all the stuff on the walls. It was a fun place to look around.
Inside however was something none of them expected to see. It was a familiar face! It was Nomad, who appeared to be working there.
“Well if it isn't the amazing Galaxy-Man,” he said.
Galaxy-Man was happy to see his old friend. He walked in close for a fistbump. “Nomad, what are you doing here, man?”
“Well, the dimmer switch idea worked out pretty well and I was able to open a new restaurant. I figured since Funkmaster Shades only does concerts here that a restaurant only made sense. There's a lot of hungry people out there and I figured the best way to get rich during a gold rush was to sell shovels. But I bet you guys are hungry so I'll shut up.”
Nomad had purchased the building some time ago and converted it into a pizzeria. Originally, it actually was an antiques mall.
They started walking towards the back of the restaurant to an open table.
“That's awesome, man,” said Galaxy-Man as they walked. “Congrats, dude, but why are you here working on Christmas?”
“Oh I've got no other place to be I suppose. I think that Christmas isn't so much about where you go or what you do, but more about who you spend it with.”
“You say that as if you knew I'd be here,” said Galaxy-Man, jokingly.
“Well,” said Nomad. “I had a hunch to be honest, but I was talking about my customers in general. They're like family to me, so everything is half-price tonight and you get a free candy cane with each meal.”
Nomad escorted them to a nice booth and lit tea candles at the table. “Just the two of you tonight, huh?” he asked as he placed menus and napkin-wrapped silverware on the table. “Where is Miss Cherry Limeade tonight?”
“She's back at the ship,” said Galaxy-Man. “Probably drawing us a picture for when we come back.”
“She was so worried about us,” said Cutty. “It was kinda cute.”
“Well, the world can be a dangerous place,” said Nomad. “It's natural to feel a little worried at times, though, sometimes the most dangerous thing to do is take too many precautions. You miss out on a lot when you don't take any risks.”
His words resonated deeply with Galaxy-Man. “That's some mad deep knowl' right there, man.”
Nomad just laughed and smiled. “So what can I get you guys to drink?”
“Can I get water with lemon?” asked Cutty.
“Certainly,” said Nomad brightly, “if you promise to be careful. Water is the leading cause of drowning after all.”
“Ha!” blurted Galaxy-Man loudly.
Nomad softly chuckled. “And what will you be having young man?” he asked.
“I want a suicide mixed with bad wine,” he answered.
“You got it,” said Nomad. “I'll be just a sec.” He walked away into the kitchen.
The two began to look over the menu.
“It really is strange,” said Cutty.
“What is?” asked Galaxy-Man.
“That we happen to run into him here, on this particular planet, in this particular town, at this particular hour.”
“Well, we were all drawn here by the concert, so it wasn't totally by chance.”
“Still a bit weird.”
Galaxy-Man laughed. “He's a pretty weird dude. Hey, have you decided on anything yet? Everything looks so good here. I love it when menus have pictures.”
“I think I'll have pepperoni and mushrooms.”
“You want a pizza to go under that?” joked Galaxy-Man.
Cuttty laughed. “You're too funny. Hey, can I ask you something?”
“Apparently so. Nah, what's up, Cutty-Buddy?”
Cutty hesitated. “Um, is this a date?”
Galaxy-Man was a little surprised by the question. “I mean, it doesn't have to be.”
“No no, it's fine. I just... haven't done this in a while.”
Galaxy-Man carefully arranged his silverware to give his hands something to do. “You know, I hadn't even questioned if we were a couple to be honest. I just really, really like hanging out with you. Lord knows Cherry loves you. She ain't got no mom, and I think she really looks up to you as a mother figure. I guess what I'm getting at is... I'm glad we're friends.”
“Me, too.”
Nomad came back with the drinks and a couple of straws. “How are you folks doing?” he asked. “We have one water with lime for the lady, and a little bit of everything for the gentleman.”
“She asked for water with lemon, dude,” said Galaxy-Man.
“Did I say lemon?” asked Cutty. “I meant to ask for lime. Oh my gosh, that's so weird.”
“Huh, how about that,” said Nomad. He flipped through a little notebook so he could write down their order. “You guys ready to order?”
“I want two slices of pepperoni with mushrooms with a side salad,” said Cutty.
“I want a bowl of cereal,” answered Galaxy-Man jokingly.
“Ah, all out of milk I'm afraid,” said Nomad.
“Darn, guess I'll have an entire Pete's a Pizza pizza with everything on it then, and extra pineapples. Ooh and breadsticks for me and my BFF to share.”
Nomad smiled. “Best friends forever. The way I see it, a friendship that ends never really began. Alrighty, I'll be back with your pizzas in just a bit.” He then walked away into the kitchen.
“I'm telling you,” said Galaxy-Man, “everything he says is just pure gold. That guy should write a book or something.”
Galaxy-Man was a bit nervous being alone with Cutty for the first time. They had talked on the phone a bunch but had never gone on a real date before. For Galaxy-Man, Cherry was his wingman, always keeping the conversation going and giving him confidence. Without her there, Galaxy-Man was feeling the pressure, but he began to get into his groove. He decided to bombard her with questions so there wouldn't be any awkward silence. “I've got a question for ya,” he said. “What's your favorite book, movie, show, likes, pet peeves, song, video game, cartoon, food, sport, and color?”
Cutty's eyes widened. “That seems like way more than one question.” She looked at Galaxy-Man and softly smiled. “Ask me again, one at a time, silly.”
“Wait, what was the first one again?”
“I think you said book. Hmm, probably the first Harry Potter.”
“Oh, I didn't know you were a Potter head. Yeah, the books were so cool. I like the part where he did magic on that one dude and he-” He stopped. He could no longer hide the fact that he hadn't actually read the books. “I totally haven't read the books.” He laughed guiltily as he scratched his neck.
Cutty just smiled. “It's okay, dude. We don't have to like all the same things.”
Galaxy-Man really opened up that night. Over dinner they talked about all sorts of things and even stayed for dessert. They learned a lot about each other. Cutty learned that Galaxy-Man's favorite book was Twilight, his favorite movie was You Can't Take It With You, his favorite show was ThunderCats, he had a fear of centaurs, lawnmowers and waiting rooms, his favorite sport was badminton, and that he sometimes called his mother Galaxy-Mom. She asked what Galaxy-Man's real name was, but he wouldn't go there. The secrecy of his name was sacred to him. Galaxy-Man also learned a lot about Cutty: that her full name was April Brunhilde Cutty, favorite band was One Direction, her favorite movie was The Land Before Time, she had a fear of spiders, snakes and horses, her favorite color was dark blue, and that she didn't like slasher films.
While they were both a bit nervous at first, they had great chemistry. They were very different, but quite fond of each other. They had a wonderful time, but the night was far from over. They waited for Nomad to come back with the check.
He walked up to the table, but he was empty-handed. “How was it?” he asked.
“Fantastic,” replied Cutty.
Galaxy-Man was a tad drunk at this point. He got up and put his arm around Nomad. He had a habit of putting his arm around people when he was drunk. “Lemme tell ya,” he said to Cutty, pointing at Nomad, “This fool right here knows his way around a kitchen. That was the best dang pizza I've ever eaten.”
“Oh, just an old family recipe,” said Nomad. “They made it and I simply wrote it down.”
“It was really good,” said Cutty, who was completely stuffed.
“What do I owe you, man?”
“No, no,” said Nomad. “This one's on me.”
“You're kidding,” said Cutty.
Galaxy-Man gave Nomad a sincere hug. “You know I love you, right?”
Nomad smiled and patted him on the back. “I'm just doing my part,” he said.
After many drunken hugs and praises, it was finally time to leave. They put their leftovers in a box for Cherry and headed back to the Whomper.