It was Saturday, and it was almost noon. Jason had been at The General Maxwell Mall since 10 o'clock. And he was hungry. The aroma of pizza baking drifted into his nostrils and made it very hard to concentrate. It was no use playing combat games at the computer store any more. The only thing Jason wanted to do now was to eat. He wanted pizza. And he wanted an icy cold lemonade. He abandoned the game aisle to locate Ben.
Jason and Ben were at the mall for the day. They carefully planned their time. Belle dropped them off at 10 o'clock, and they headed straight for the puzzle store. From there, they went to the computer store. On the way, they stopped at the music store. Jason wanted to look at the acoustic guitars. Ben wanted to check out some new rock releases. Then they browsed through the tie store. Ben thought that would be fun. They would eat lunch. Then Jason would help Ben shop for a belt and a baseball DVD. After that they would go to the space movie. Then Ben's dad would pick them up at 4:30.
Jason walked down the long aisle of peripherals. He was thinking about the stainless steel chess set he noticed at the puzzle store. It cost $250. That was a lot of money for a chess set. But he really wanted it. He liked the feel of the pieces, so smooth and cool. And so heavy. They stayed where you placed them. They took control of their squares. They couldn't be knocked around like the plastic set he had or the wooden ones he played with in the tournaments. These stainless steel pieces had power. They held their ground in a majestic way. He wanted that set. He knew if he played with it, he would be in command. But it would take a long time for him to save up that much money. He couldn't ask Dad for help. He had budget problems. He talked about that almost every night. If he cut lawns and shoveled snow . . .
The flatbed scanners got his attention. Might be neat for photos, he thought. He stopped to study one that scanned color. Then his stomach rumbled. I'll check it out later, he thought, as he continued searching for Ben. He walked toward the PC aisle. He stopped to quickly examine his reflection in a monitor. He smoothed out the both sides of his hair, patted down his cowlick, and kept walking. When he turned the corner, he spotted Ben. He was trying out a small pair of stereo speakers. Jason stood nearby waiting quietly for Ben to notice him.
Finally, Ben removed the headphones and spotted him.
"Wah-want to get ssssss-suh-suh-something to eat?" Jason asked.
"Yeah," Ben answered hurrying from the display. "Let's go. I'm hungry."
"Muh-me, too."
They headed for the food court. All they had to do was follow their noses. The aromas were calling. Friendly, comforting cinnamon from the warm, gooey, frosted bun store. Pungent spices and meaty juices from the grilled hot dog cart. And herbs and sizzling cheeses from the pizza counter. Ben zeroed in on the charcoal broiled scent of "Super Burgers." Jason followed. He wanted pizza, but he wanted to be with Ben more. He didn't mind eating a burger.
"Look at that line," Ben said. "Hurry!" The line leading to "Super Burgers" snaked all the way back into the dining area. Jason and Ben stepped into line behind a sailor. He was so tall, they had to take turns leaving the line so they could see the menu posted high above the counter.
"I'm going to have a hamburger with pickles, tomato, catsup, and mustard. No sprouts!" Ben announced after only a brief review of the menu. "No!' he exclaimed peeking around the sailor one more time to restudy the menu. "I'll have a cheeseburger with salsa." He popped up on his toes while making his announcement. He clearly expected to enjoy that burger. Then he remembered Jason. He signaled he wanted to know what he was going to eat.
Jason was still considering the choices. But it wasn't only the food he was considering. He was thinking about the words he had to say when he ordered. He wanted to say as few as possible. He learned long ago that the less he said, the less he stuttered.
"Jason?" Ben asked. He wanted an answer.
"Uh, Oh, Um, uh-uh a bacon burger," Jason said. He liked bacon, and bacon burger was only two words. And he could say "b's" easily.
"Cool!" Ben remarked. "They're great. Real juicy. I had one last week. How about that computer store?" Ben liked to keep changing subjects. It made him feel like he was in charge.
"Yeah."
Jason's short reply gave Ben an opportunity to say all he wanted. "I thought
the speakers were pretty awesome," he remarked. "You should try them. You can hear super bass. I found a neat digital camera. But the games were really cool. I'd like to buy the karate one. But I need a new monitor and probably new speakers to get really great audio and visual. I want that game, but I want it to be cool. I don't think I can buy any of them for a while, though. That's really expensive stuff. That place was great. They didn't push me around. They let me look at what I wanted to see. Some of the sales people even gave me demos. . . "The sailor ahead of them was paying for his order. Jason nudged Ben, who probably could have kept going for hours. It was his turn.
"Next," the clerk called.
"I'll have a cheeseburger with salsa, double fries, and a chocolate shake," Ben said as he hurried toward the counter.
"That'll be $5.95," the clerk fired back. She thrust out her hand for the money Ben was pulling from his jeans pocket. After he placed six dollars in her palm, she counted the money and gave him change. He checked the change, grabbed a tray and straw, and moved to the end of the counter to wait for his order.
Jason's stomach muscles tightened.
"Next," the clerk called. She was tapping her ultra-long, painted-blue fingernails on the counter.
Jason inched forward. He kept his head down and silently rehearsed his order. When he reached the counter, he choked up. "Uh-uh-uh-ah-ah-I-I-I-I'll. . . ," he stuttered. He took a deep breath and forced out, "Uh-I-uh-ah-I-I-I'll have a-a-a- buh-buh-buh-buh-bah-bacon bur-bur-burger."
He took another deep breath and silently congratulated himself. I got it out, he thought. I did it.
"Anything else?" the clerk asked staring at the cash register.
"Fuh-fuh-ffffff-fuh-fffffff-fuh-fffffffries." He squeezed so hard to push out the "f" that his face got hot.
I never had so much trouble saying "f" before, he worried. Dr. Allen said they were easy for her. Maybe I won't be able to talk the way she does. Maybe . . .
"$3.99, please," the clerk said. She was shifting her body from one leg to the other, still looking at the cash register, and drumming her nails on the counter.
Jason remembered he was going to order lemonade. But he didn't want to stutter any more words out. He handed her a five-dollar bill. He counted the change, took a tray and a couple of napkins, and walked to the end of the counter to pick up his order.
Ben was sitting at a table nearby. "Great burger," he grinned through a mouthful as Jason sat opposite him.
Jason pulled the visor of his baseball cap down so he didn't have to look at him. "Yeh-yeah," Jason answered, looking into the burger basket.
Ben took another huge bite of his burger. Then he downed a couple of fries before taking a long drink from his shake. When he finally looked up, he noticed Jason was still staring at his burger.
"Aren't you hungry any more?"
"Yeh-yeah. Shhh-sh-sure." Jason still was staring at the basket. But he wasn't seeing it or what was inside. He was thinking that maybe he would always stutter. He was thinking that maybe he would never learn to talk like Dr. Allen . . .
"Didn't you get something to drink?" Ben asked putting down his shake.
"NNNNO!" Jason shouted. That did it. He wasn't angry at Ben. He was angry at himself. He stuttered like a freak. He didn't order what he wanted. He ordered what he thought he could say, then he stuttered anyway. He couldn't figure it out, and he was afraid he would never change.
As soon as he shouted, he knew it was wrong. Ben was just trying to be friendly. Mrs. Kingsley was right. He didn't handle his anger well. He knew he was a jerk for shouting at Ben. That made him more angry with himself. His face got smoking hot.
Ben finished his food. All the while, he didn't say one word.
Jason knew he had to do something. "I stuh-stuttered real bad back there."
"I know."
"You-you know?"
"Yeah, I heard you while I was waiting for my order."
"Oh."
"Do you still want to go shopping and everything?" Ben asked noticing that Jason was keeping to himself more than usual.
"Yeah," Jason answered picking up his hamburger. Why not, he thought. He was stuck here until 4:30. He took a bite, then grabbed a napkin to wipe the juice running down his chin.
"I told you they're real juicy," Ben smiled. He jumped up. "I'm going to get a cookie. I'll be right back."
Don't hurry, Jason thought. He wanted to be by himself. He didn't know what to say to Ben after all that.