Chapter 22: The Plate of Embarrassment and the Future Cheesecake, Part 3

Wow, I couldn't wait to see what they planned to do with these mangoes.

Their aromas alone brought a beguiling fragrance to the entire household.

Oh, so they're making several plates of mango graham pie royale?

It was understandable. There were so many mangoes, and not using even one of them would be a waste.

Since they would make so many pies, I volunteered to assist them to lighten their loads.

I would help them in tasks such as scooping up the mango pulp, lining up the pie plates with crushed graham crackers, and putting the pies inside the refrigerator.

My mom would then tell me…

"In just eight hours, the pies will be ready. So once we wake up next morning, we'll finally feast on them!"

I excitingly replied, "Yay!"

My aunt added, "And we'll make sure we'll share those pies with our neighbors. Again, we didn't want the mangoes to go to waste in the first place."

And as expected, the next day…

We had our first taste of the mango pies for breakfast.

The recipe itself was fool-proof, and thus our palates were left with great satisfaction and enough energy to start the day.

After we've had our breakfast, we wasted no time handing out the excess pies to our neighbors.

They were so grateful that the stock mangoes we've accumulated in the past few days were finally put to good use.

With that sweet memory still lingering in my mind, I finally decide on a mango-based dessert that has the essence of the mango pies my mom and aunt baked (with my timely help, of course), albeit presented in a glass.

And I call it...

The Hybrid Mango Smoothie Parfait.

As the name indicates, it's a combination of the mango smoothie and the mango parfait.

The smoothie will go on the bottom of the glass, while the parfait will go on the top.

It will be the perfect end to a really satisfying meal, I hope!

***

Another day, another performance wrapped up.

Since we get kind of tired of going to the bar every single day, Leigh and I just join Aurora at the usual table she's sitting in.

But before we can start the conversation…

We come across an Asian beauty.

A beauty that is sure to capture the hearts of both genders – with a height of around 5'7", shapely features, and long, flowing hair.

Exotic enough for her origins, but relatable enough for us Westerners.

And we're astonished that this lass decides to sit in our table!

Before we can ask her, she lets out her very first words to us, in flawless, unaccented English.

"Good evening, distinguished country singers known as Brave Ad 65 and your friend. Let me introduce myself. I am Aoi Momozono, a Japanese tourist currently staying here in Atlanta temporarily."

As per usual Japanese etiquette, she bows before sitting on the chair situated across ours.

We all greet her in return, "Nice to meet you, Momozono-san."

I then ask her, "Are you visiting Atlanta to see us perform?"

She answers succinctly, "To be honest, this wasn't in my original travel plans. It just so happened that on social media, people are abuzz with praises for a certain country bar and restaurant. I was quite surprised that it almost slipped under my radar."

Leigh just comments, "Well… it's fortunate that you've chosen this place to unwind. It's a pleasure to meet foreign tourists every now and then."

"Thank you very much. I especially liked your performances. How should I say it… it's packed with energy. The same kind of energy I find in idol groups back in my home country."

It's then my turn.

"Actually, Momozono-san, J-pop is one of the many influences in our music. We actually discovered the genre by coming across some J-pop CDs in a thrift store some years ago."

"I see. How those CDs managed to make the trip across the ocean is a mystery to me."

As we continue the conversation with Aoi, Angeli, one of the five waitresses, serves her something very familiar.

"Miss, we're currently undergoing taste-testing of desserts we plan to add to the menu in the near future to select customers. And you're lucky to be one of them."

Aoi's face emanates a warm smile as she diverts her gaze towards Angeli, "Thank you."

"Here it is. The Future Cheesecake, with chocolate syrup."

"Whoa, this looks so tempting. From the presentation alone, it's drawing me in."

"And for you three… here's a mango dessert. The head chef calls it the Hybrid Mango Smoothie Parfait."

We three are then served three exquisite-looking glasses of the stuff, all served in mason jar mugs.

Alright, we'll try these post-haste.

Mmm. These are really good.

The dessert itself takes advantage of the natural sweetness of mangoes, and thus little to no sugars are added.

***

"Shine on, crazy diamond."

Those are the words that first come to my mind when I have the taste of this mango dessert.

Ah, mangoes and diamonds…

How did these two objects come to be associated with my past, anyway?

It was in high school.

After Tara disappeared from my life, with nary a trace, my life slowly made its downward spiral.

I was demotivated enough to study, and I started skipping classes.

What made it even worse… was an otherwise innocuous offer from one of my classmates, Flavio Gil.

That offer was made after school.

First, he told me, "I'll be back in a jiffy. I'm gonna show you something awesome to make you forget that incident."

It turned out that he lived just five minutes away from the high school we were in on foot, so he came back with the bottle in tow.

"Here, you'll have a taste of diamonds with this."

Oh, what is this?

It's a glass bottle, around half a gallon, if I'm not mistaken, with a bright sunshine yellow label.

The label says "DIAMOND Brand Mango Liqueur."

A liqueur? With mangoes?

Little was I aware that this would be the start of my underage alcoholism.

***

This chapter is dedicated to the memory of Billy Kametz (1987-2022).