He Got the Wrong Man

Chapter 1“Do you remember the Larsens?” Ellis Collins nodded at his mother while pulling ingredients from the refrigerator. He couldn’t understand why his mother suddenly wanted to talk about their regular customers when it was nearly dinner time at the restaurant. The last time he checked, the tables were filling up fast, and they had many orders to fill. Aside from Ellis and his mother, there were three other cooks in the kitchen. On any other day of the week, the five of them could easily prepare the food, but Friday evenings, plus Saturdays and Sundays, were one of the busiest periods at the restaurant. “What about them, Mom?” Ellis asked while carrying the ingredients over to the island counter. He had many things to slice and dice, and he honestly didn’t have the time to spare for a casual conversation. If it had been anyone else other than his mother, he would have ignored that person completely. He would never do that to his mother because he loved her very much. “Jacob and Mandy are wondering if you have any plans next Monday.” Ellis rushed to the refrigerator to get more onions while his mother ran after him. “I have to work on Monday—” “You can take Monday evening off.” After making his way back to the island counter, Ellis briefly glanced at his mother. “Why? What do Jacob and Mandy want with me?” “A date.” Ellis almost choked on his spit from the shock. “Mom! I’m gay, so I’m not into women. Mandy is a woman, isn’t she? Besides, Jacob and Mandy are even older than you and Dad, aren’t they? I’m single, but I’m not that desperate. Besides, I don’t wish to become the third party between a married couple.” His mother was horrified, and her facial expression displayed her feeling loud and clear. “Oh, my God! No! Nothing like that. They’re hoping that you will be interested in going out with their son.” Ellis was relieved upon hearing that, but he was also confused. He and his parents had moved to San Antonio, Texas, right before his senior year in high school. They had resided in San Antonio for about six years now. Ellis wouldn’t claim to know the Larsens extremely well because back then, he had been preoccupied with his studies and trying to graduate from high school. After that, he had attended The Culinary Institute of America for four years, so he only worked part-time at the restaurant. Moreover, most of the time, he had been in the kitchen so he rarely got to see the customers. He was now a full-time chef at the restaurant, and he still didn’t get to interact much with the customers. Not even the regulars. However, he knew enough about the Larsens because his parents had struck up a friendship with Jacob and Mandy. He had met Jacob and Mandy’s sons, Brandon and Brett, a few times over the past six years when they accompanied the older couple to the restaurant. “Which one? Brandon is a married man. He and Sarah have two sons. Brett and Clara had their wedding reception less than six months ago. You, Dad, and I were there, Mom.” His mother stared at him in bewilderment for a few seconds. Then, judging by her facial expression, something must have dawned upon her, and she chuckled. “Not Brandon and Brett. I was referring to Braylon, the youngest son.” Ellis was astonished. “I never knew Jacob and Mandy had three sons.” “That’s because you were rarely at the restaurant, and when you were here, you hid yourself in the kitchen.” “I wasn’t hiding,” Ellis protested. “I had things to do.” “Whatever. So, can you make it on Monday evening?” Ellis hesitated. “I don’t know, Mom. I don’t even know the guy.” “That’s the point of going out on a date with him,” his mother retorted while rolling her eyes. “You will get to know Braylon and what he’s like.” Ellis couldn’t argue with that. “How old is he?” “Twenty-seven, four years older than you, and he’s tall. Very tall.” Ellis suppressed his amusement. Since his mother was a mere five feet and two inches in her socks, which was six inches shorter than him, she seemed to consider everyone above six feet as being very tall. “What is he like?” Ellis asked while he moved toward the stove where he turned on the flame. “His personality and character, I mean.” “I don’t know Braylon well. Each time we’ve met, he didn’t speak much, but he would answer politely when I attempted to engage him in a conversation.” “Do you have a good feeling about him?” His mother nodded. “Oh, yes. I like him. Plus, and don’t tell your father this, I think Braylon is very handsome.” Ellis snickered at the mischievous expression on his mother’s face. “I’ll carry that secret to my grave, Mom. I swear!” “Perfect,” his mother said with a grin. “Are you interested in the date then?” Ellis wasn’t one hundred percent sold on the idea of a blind date, but he figured it would do him no harm to see Braylon at least once. “Sure. What’s next? Should I contact him? Or will he give me a call?” “No need for that. You and Braylon will have a wonderful date on Monday evening at seven o’clock right here at the restaurant.” Ellis was horrified. He didn’t want his parents and the other employees at the restaurant to witness his blind date with Braylon. After all, many things could go wrong, and he would be mortified. “No! Anywhere but—” “Nonsense. The restaurant will be the best venue for the two of you.” “Mom, just give me Braylon’s number—” “Oh, the servers are yelling for me. Goodbye, Ellis.” “Mom!” Ellis sighed in defeat when his mother pointedly ignored him and hastily walked away. Score one for his mother, but he hadn’t lost yet. He would get his mother much later that evening. He could also corner her the next day or on Sunday. He was determined to do his best to get her to change her mind. Maybe he would seek his father’s assistance. Between the two of them, the success rate would be much higher. In the meantime, he would get the food ready and forget about everything else. * * * * “I heard from Dad that you have a blind date this coming Monday.” Braylon briefly peeked at Brandon, his oldest brother, and nodded slightly. “Yeah.” After that, he continued to watch the movie on the television while Brandon plopped onto the empty spot on the couch next to him. It wasn’t that the movie was particularly exciting. In fact, Braylon didn’t like it at all, but it had been a long and tiring day, and he needed something to distract him. He was an electrician like his father. Brandon and Brett, his other brother, were both plumbers. The four of them got to work in the same location every once in a while, and that day happened to be one of them. Since it was Friday, Braylon didn’t return to his own apartment at the end of the day. Instead, his father had invited him, Brandon, and Brett to the house because their mother wanted to eat dinner with them. His parents had called up Brandon’s wife and children, along with Brett’s wife, to come to the house. He loved spending time with his family. He truly did. However, after an exhausting day on the job, he wished for some peace and quiet. Unfortunately, his nephews were especially active and noisy that evening. He checked the time on his smartphone and decided he would stay for another half an hour or so before leaving for home. “Good for you. You’ve been single for a while now.” “I guess.” Braylon honestly didn’t care about not having a significant other in his life. It was nice to have a boyfriend or a girlfriend, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world if Braylon didn’t have a romantic partner. He was content with his current status. A part of him felt lonely at times. That was the reason he never objected when someone in his family attempted to introduce a prospective partner to him. “Ellis is a good man,” Brandon said. “His name is Ellis?” Brandon stared at Braylon in silence for a second or two before he burst out laughing. “Bro! Are you kidding me? You will be going out for a dinner date with the guy on Monday, and you can’t even recall his name.” Braylon was a bit embarrassed upon hearing that. “I forgot.” Brandon guffawed even louder. “Damn, bro! Please try to at least remember it from now on. Otherwise, it will become really awkward when you two meet.” “Okay.” Braylon thought the conversation was over, but apparently, he was wrong. Brandon sighed as he grabbed Braylon’s shoulder and squeezed it lightly. “Listen, man. I’d interacted with Ellis a few times in the past. I like him. He’s cool. I think you will like him, too. Try to act a bit more…uh, friendly.” Braylon frowned at Brandon. “I’m always—” “Most of the time, yes,” Brandon interrupted. “You’re my baby brother so I know you well, but most others, including Ellis, don’t. You give off this rather terrifying vibe. You dislike chatting with anyone unless the conversation is absolutely necessary. Even then, you look as if you would rather scratch your throat bloody with a piece of broken glass and stab your tongue than to open your mouth and talk.” Braylon couldn’t deny that. Brandon was right. “Fine. I’ll do my best.” Brandon was quiet for a moment as he stared at Braylon. Then he chuckled. “You will be going out on a date with Ellis. It will be fun. Don’t look as if you’re about to be executed by a firing squad or something.” Braylon nodded. “What’s Ellis like?” It was a simple question, but Braylon was taken aback by the number of details that came out of Brandon’s mouth. By the time Brandon was finished, Braylon knew quite a lot about Ellis. Estimated height and weight, hair and eye colors, academic history, and occupation. Brandon even knew about Ellis’s ex-boyfriends. Apparently, Ellis had seriously dated two men so far, and he had broken things off with his last ex-boyfriend around five months ago. Coincidentally, Braylon had been single for about six months. After listening to Brandon for more than twenty minutes, Braylon began to have a rough idea of what Ellis might be like. Ellis sounded a bit more interesting now, and Braylon’s curiosity was piqued. He was astonished when he realized that he was honestly looking forward to the blind date. If Ellis turned out to be as wonderful and intriguing as Brandon had made him out to be, Braylon certainly wouldn’t mind getting to know more about the man.