Page 20 of Prime Time Romance

My question garners Sheldon’s attention. He takes a long side step away from Josh to stand across from me. “I’m just a guy, standing in front of a girl, asking her to give Carson’s Cove the ending it deserves.”

All of a sudden, it clicks. Sheldon’s face. Why I know it. Why it took me so long to place him.

“No. You’re not just a guy.”

It takes me a few more seconds to piece the final bit together.

“I knew you looked familiar,” I say to Sheldon. “I’ve been racking my brain, trying to figure out why, but I couldn’t place it until now. You’re the Extra Extra.”

“The what?” Josh looks from me to Sheldon.

“He’s in over fifty episodes,” I explain.

“Fifty-four,” Sheldon corrects.

“He’s a legend in the fan forums,” I continue. “ ‘Extra’ because he’s a nameless character. The second ‘Extra’ because he always seems to stick out. The point is, he’s played at least ten different characters. Most don’t have any lines, and he’s never named in the credits. It’s like one of those internet mysteries. People are always watching reruns and spotting him in new scenes.”

Josh shakes his head. “Okay, fine. He’s part of the show.” He turns back to Sheldon. “But how did you do this? And why am I here? I don’t even watch the show.”

Sheldon responds with an exaggerated shrug. “You were a bit of a glitch, if I’m being perfectly honest. My best guess is that Brynn’s wish was so powerful that it sucked you in here along with her. It’s a minor complication. One I’m willing to work with, especially since the original Fletcher was a handsome and clueless bartender, and you…Well, let’s just say that with a big-enough sock, the shoe fits. What is important is that you are here. And we can finally make things turn out exactly as they were supposed to.”

Josh moves as if he’s going to jump over the counter. “You can’t just uproot our lives. We have—”

There’s a loud ding sound, followed by an “Order up!” from the kitchen.

“Excuse me.” Sheldon holds up his finger. “Duty calls.”

He disappears through a white swinging door before we can object. A minute later, the door opens again, but the man that walks through is much older. Although he’s dressed in the same uniform, he has two puffs of white hair above his ears and the deepest brown eyes I’ve ever seen.

“Well, if it isn’t Fletcher Scott and Sloan Edwards,” he says in a Morgan Freeman–esque voice. “My gosh. It feels like it’s been fifteen years.”

The real Pop holds out his arms for a hug. I’m momentarily paralyzed at the sight of a face I’ve seen easily a hundred times before but never once in the flesh. He has a few more wrinkles around his eyes, and his arms are a little thinner than I remember. Still, I fold into them gladly, feeling like I am being reunited with an old friend.

“It’s the darndest thing.” His deep voice reverberates through my chest. “I had the urge to make a cherry chip milkshake this morning. Haven’t made one in years. It’s almost as if I knew you’d be back. Welcome home, Sloan.”

The comfort of his arms melts away all of the uneasiness from before until I pull away and remember I still have so many more unanswered questions.

“Um, Pop.” I choose my words carefully, still uncertain about how all of this works. “That guy who was out here before, Sheldon. Could you ask him to come back out?”

Pop’s eyebrows knit together. “I’m not sure I know who you’re talking about, honey. There’s no one around here named Sheldon.”

My stomach plummets.

“The young guy,” I clarify, as if it will help, even though I suspect I already know Pop’s answer. “Blond hair. Pop’s uniform.”

Pop shakes his head.

“I’m the only one working this morning, Sloan.”

He doesn’t seem weirded out at all.

“Hey, Pop?” I consider the best way to phrase my question. “What were you up to, uh…yesterday morning?”

He scratches his head. “To tell you the truth, I’m not really sure.”

“What about the day before that? Or even the week before that? Can you tell me anything that happened between…uh, I don’t know…May 2010 and today?”

He stares at me blankly. “I don’t know what to tell you. I think I probably was just here.”