Tripas De Pescados

A couple of teens at a skating rink order some food by its smell

“Mom, can you take me and my friends to that new roller rink downtown? I’m dying to try out my new skates. What better place to do it than a new rink?”

  “What’s wrong with the rink closest to us, Mel?” Mel’s mom asked.

  “Nothing! I just really want to try out the new one.” Melanie knew what was wrong with it. She didn’t want to encounter Raymond, a senior at her school. All the kids hung out at “Disco Skating”, the name of the rink her mother mentioned.

  “Ok, fine, fine,” Mel’s mother sighed.

  “Thanks Ms. B!” Mel’s friends called through the window and loaded into the tiny space of Melanie’s mom’s car.

  “You girls are something else,” she murmured, opened the door, made sure Melanie came out behind her, locked the door, and got into the car. Melanie entered on the passenger’s side. Besides her and her mom, there was 4 girls in the back, Trish, Sara, Pamilla, and Samantha.

 

         30 minutes later

 

  “I’ll be back at 6:00 to pick you girls up. It’s 2:30 right now. Have fun!”

  “Bye mom!” Mel yelled as her mother drove off. She rushed to catch up with her friends.

  “Why are we at this rink again?” Pam asked.

  “Because she doesn’t want to run into Raymond,” Trish replied.

  “That’s not true!” Mel yelled. People walking into the rink stared at her.

  “Hate to say this, but yeah, sweetie. It is,” said Sara.

  “Let’s just go inside. I’m starved!” said Mel quite loudly.

  They all agreed and entered. Mel got instantly blinded when she stepped in. There was bright, colorful, lights lit up everywhere. “Now I know why it’s called ‘Sunshine Skating Rink,’ she muttered. A very good aroma caught her nose. “You guys smell that?” she asked.

  “Yes,” replied Sara.

  “It smells so good,” Pam said.

  “Let’s go find it out,” Mel said. She took the lead and walked where her nose took her. The rest of them followed. They eventually wound up at a small eatery. She didn’t know what to make of the waitresses.

  “What will you like to have?” one asked the pack with a Spanish accent.

  “I want whatever that interesting smell is,” replied Melanie. The others ordered the same thing. They were all anxious to try it.

  “Cinco tripas de pescados, por favor!” she yelled into the kitchen. “It will be ready in a minute,” she told the girls and walked to a different table. Neither of the girls knew Spanish so they didn’t know what the waitress said.

  The food was there in no time. The scent was really strong up close. Each of the girls looked at the plates in front of them. They saw something fried. When they touched it, it was mushy. It had bits of shredded cheese in it.

  “How about you try it first, Mel?” Sara asked.

  “That’s fine by me.” Melanie answered. It was kind of bulky looking. She saw a fork at the corner of her eye and picked it up. She cut into the thing, lifted a piece up slowly, and taste it. “O-M-G!” she yelled.

   “How does it taste?” asked Pam nervously.

  “It is the most wonderful thing ever laid on my tongue.” Mel replied. She gobbled up the rest and asked for more. In less than 7 minutes all 5 of them had done with theirs and already had their second plates.

  “Mind if I ask what’s in this?” asked Melanie.

  “Fried fish guts, goat cheese, and a few seasonings,” the waitress said in her Spanish accent.

  Sam choked. “Did you just say FISH GUTS?” she questioned.

  “Yes,” the server said and walked away.

  No one was eating now. They were all staring at their plates like it was poison. “You gotta admit, that was the best thing ever tasted,” Trish said. They all agreed and left a check on the table. They added it with a five dollar bill for the waitress’s tip.

  “Let’s go have some fun now girls!” Sara said, looking at her watch. It was 3:30 already. They had two hours and a half to skate before Mel’s mother came. They skated hand in hand. Cupid’s shuffle came on and they did the dance on the rink. When it was couple’s skate they took their rest at the eating booth, and told the waitresses they weren’t eating.

  “Time to go. I really had fun tonight,” said Pam.

  “Me too,” the other four said at the same time, and they all laughed, while heading out the door. They saw the teeny black car waiting for them. “So, tell me all,” Mel’s mother said as they entered the car.

  “We had tripas de pescados,” Melanie said.

  “What’s that?” Mel’s mother asked with a weird look on her face. The girls laughed and she just drove off wondering what that was.