Rush Hour

"Hey Adam! You love us so much that you still visit us really often, huh?" A chubby, black-haired barista said when he saw us enter.

"Of course, Steve. This is kinda my second home. My favorite place out of Long Island, pretty much. Talking about Long Island... we're going there in a few hours, wanna join us?"

"I'd love to but I'm working overtime. Have fun. I've heard wonders about Long Island, it must be a rad place."

"It's rad enough for me not to follow the typical pop punk cliché. You know, singing about wanting to leave your hometown, where nothing ever happens."

"Funnily enough, you left it. But I'm glad you did. Things changed for the best, am I right?"

"Yes", Adam replied smiling and looking at the counter. "Oh, shit. I forgot." He looked behind us. "Phew, no line. I almost thought there was a super long line and I was holding it."

"Venti chai tea latte, right?" Steve asked, taking a cup and writing on it. Adam nodded. "And I assume you want the same thing, but with Splenda", Steve added, playfully.

"Not really. I don' t like Splenda. Just make a latte exactly like Adam's", I replied.

Adam tried to give Steve a credit card but he didn't take it.

"No no no. You used to work here. You're my friend... you're friends with everyone here. Plus, you're Taking Back Sunday's frontman. I know I might sound like a fanboy, but how can I charge Adam Burbank Lazzara for two lattes, or anything else for that matter?" Steve said, emphatically.

"Burbank?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah", Adam said, looking at his shoes. "Didn't you know it already? Didn't Nathan tell you? He always tells everyone."

"Nope", I replied. "It's a cute name, though."

"Maybe you meant 'strange'. I don't even know what it means. Maybe Dad knows. I'm gonna ask him as soon as we get to Long Island."

We took our lattes and said goodbye to Steve.

"Have you tried googling it?" I asked, before sipping my latte.

"Yeah, no results found. It's a super strange name, I told you. I don't know where Dad took it from."