The Boy From the Other Blanket

Their story begins one night in Bryant Park. A crowd of people are spread out on the green lawn to watch Jaws, and the large screen makes it feel almost like a drive-in atmosphere but in the middle of a city. It’s her first summer experiencing life in New York and she’s in the mood to say yes to everything and every person who comes her way.

Sarah takes a spot on the edge of the blanket that Susan, her childhood friend and organizer of fun outings, had brought, and tries to make small talk with the other women there. Once the movie begins it’s easier to enjoy the evening and not worry about what to say or how to act. She’s only slightly aware of the people on the adjacent blanket, until the pivotal scene in the movie when Quint is eaten alive by the great white shark. Susan had mentioned that everyone would cheer, and she joins in without a second thought. All of a sudden, she feels a tap on her shoulder, and looks to see a boy leaning over, asking, “why did everyone cheer?” Caught off guard, all Sarah can do is shrug, gesture to Susan and say, “my friend told me that’s what people do.” This seems to satisfy him, and they go back to watching the movie.

As everyone begins to gather up their things at the end of the movie, Susan exclaims, “Aiden! What are you doing here?” and jumps over to give the boy from the other blanket a hug. Sarah watches their exchange and can’t help but think how it is that Susan seems to know everyone. Introductions are made, with Susan exaggerating Sarah’s new job in the city and telling Aiden how they grew up together in New Jersey. Sarah learns that Aiden and Susan went to the same small liberal arts college and that he now works for a creative agency in Midtown.

A few weeks go by before Sarah goes out again with Susan and her friends, this time to a karaoke bar. Sarah gets a vodka cranberry drink from the bar to give herself some liquid courage and chooses a Journey song to sing. Right before it’s her turn, though, she hears Susan exclaim again, “Aiden! So glad you could make it!” Now Sarah feels extra nervous. Would he remember her from the movie?

She finds herself next to him as her song is announced, and Aiden gives her a look and asks with a wink, “do you mean that?” when “Anyway You Want It” starts playing. With only one prior karaoke experience, Sarah stumbles through the song, realizing that she doesn’t actually know the words, despite having heard the song on the radio countless times. She finishes with a flushed face and sits down as the next person takes the mic. Aiden slides across the bench to where she is and with his knee pressed against hers, he makes her laugh as he mimics the person on stage.

Another one of Susan’s friends recruits Sarah to join him on “Ring of Fire,” which goes over so much better and leaves her feeling confident. But when she looks around the room for Aiden, he’s nowhere to be found. A few minutes later he reenters the bar, having gone outside to smoke. She overhears him talking about going back outside, and wonders if she should follow. At that moment he catches her eye and makes a motion with his hand.

Sarah stands there awkwardly, asking herself why she followed this boy who doesn’t seem interested in talking to her. Aside from the cigarette smoke it’s a nice night, and there are enough other people on the street that she can quietly observe rather than participate. A girl approaches her and asks if Sarah would mind holding her lit cigarette while she runs inside quickly. This provides a welcome sense of purpose, and she casually holds the butt between two fingers as if it were hers. With the job done, she heads back inside rather than wait for Aiden to acknowledge her.

The next time Susan invites Sarah to karaoke, she goes with the hope that Aiden will be there, but he’s not and she never sees him again. Years go by and Susan moves to California, while Sarah eventually ends up in Detroit. She looks for him from time to time on social media, but can’t remember his last name and anyway, Susan’s list of followers contains thousands of people.

Then one day, while Sarah is browsing the bins at her favorite record store, the owner greets a new customer by saying, “Aiden! Hey man, what brings you back to town?” Her heart skips a beat as she dares to glance across the room, to see none other than the boy from the other blanket. As her eyes continue to focus on the records, her ears are tuned towards the conversation at the front of the store. Her brief glances tell her that he hasn’t aged well, and with long hair tied back in a ponytail, he looks more like a hippie stoner than the cute boy she remembers.

After Aiden leaves the store, Sarah goes up to the front to check out and tries to make some small talk. She casually asks, “who was the hippie?” And Rick, the owner, says, “oh, an old childhood friend of mine; we grew up on the same street.” Sarah nods, swipes her credit card, and mysteriously says as she walks outside, “everything is connected.”