The end of the lines was just next to a
Mexican food stand, were many people ate, unaware that the line that was
getting longer and longer had nothing to do with the food they were eating.
The last two people to get to the line were a
couple, a woman named Mel and a man named Jon. They had come to the park
because they wanted to ride The Abomination, a very tall and long
rollercoaster, built out of steel and wood at the same time. It was one of a
kind and had landed the best reviews for a rollercoaster in a while.
The couple had come all the way from another
country just to have a go in the rollercoaster. The ride was supposed to last
for a whole minute but the expected time in line was a bout two hours. That’s
why the people from the park had to relocate some garbage bins and benches in
order to put up a special place were people could make the line. It extended
all over the park and it was cut at some places in order to let other visitors
to the park move around with ease.
In every place where the line was cut, there
was a supervisor checking that every person in the line had a decent behavior
and that no one got in line out of nowhere. If they discovered someone left or
cut in front or behind their friends, there were taking out of the line very rapidly
by the security agents of the park. So it was a very tense place.
People would also have food in there. As many
had backpacks, they brought everything they needed as they waited on line. The
only thing they took care about was the amount of liquid they drank. It was
hard because the sky was clear and the temperature had begun to rise
dramatically. Yet, they didn’t want to have to go to the bathroom and then lose
their seat, so everyone took very small sips and only if they felt really
thirsty.
Mel and Jon had drunk a lot of water before
going to the park and had also eaten all that they could back in the hotel.
They had complimentary breakfast so they stuffed themselves with everything and
even brought some food in Mel’s purse in case they had the urge for something
with sugar or to eat something after the long wait.
They also had cards and videogames in their
cellphones, which many were playing. Others decided to just chat with the
people they had come in or they would simply eat because they had left their
hotels early in order to be the first group in line. Needless to say that the
first train that day had left with people that had camped outside the park,
something that was supposedly forbidden but they had found the way to do it
without the police arresting them or something.
Jon was the one that had taken her girlfriend
into the world of rollercoaster. Since being a young boy, he had been an
enthusiast because they lived in a town with many rollercoasters, where people
fro mall over came to ride them. So he thought there had to be something great
about those structures and he eventually discovered there was, when he was
finally able to ride all of them. The day he turned eighteen years old, he rode
a rollercoaster called Dragon slayer. He was so happy that day that he
celebrated his birthday right on the park with all his family and friends.
Mel had never really been a fanatic of
rollercoasters. She had rode some in her younger years but she had never really
seen the interest of riding rollercoasters. When she met Jon, it was obvious he
was a fanatic and, at first, it seemed there was going to be a problem about
that because he was too obsessed the subject. What she did was taking him a
away of all of that, at least for some time a week, in order for him to know
there were other things in life he could be trying.
That’s how she got him to try a variety of
food they had never eaten, especially very spicy food. He got really hooked on
that, to the point he bought a bottle of Tabasco every single time he went out
to a supermarket. His parents noticed right away and asked him if he was ok and
he answered that he was very happy with Mel. Instantly, they blamed her for
every change his son showed in the next months, something she had to live with
every single time she visited their home.
Eventually, she got to convince them, by
actions, that it was their son that had a problem. Everything obsessed him with
an incredible ease. He grew attached to things in a matter of minutes after
knowing them. It was amazing the amount of foreign food he brought home, the
amount of sports he tried to be involved in and the way he got involved in
every single thing.
When Mel convinced him of playing volleyball
with her and her friends, he grew extremely competitive after a single match.
Even after hurting one of her friends after hitting her face, Jon’s enthusiasm
wouldn’t go out. By the following week, he had already bought a net to put on
his family’s backyard as well as an official volleyball and the proper attire
to play the game. He started watching matches in TV, surprising his father who
had never seen him enthusiastic about a sport.
The
same thing happened to him with rollercoasters, with other sports such as
basketball and softball, with spicy food, confectionery and even with the
grooming of his dog Mordo. He grew to be obsessed with every single thing,
driving people around him mad.
Mel was the first to talk to his parents about
it and, surprisingly, they agreed with her. It was obvious there was a problem
to be solved and it had to be addressed before Jon was older, before he had to
start working somewhere or prior to someone taking advantage for those
obsessions, because he was sincere and innocent in some way when he had that
uncontrollable rush to be into something. They all agreed they would help him
overcome his problem.
The
first difficult thing was to actually speak to him and tell him what they
thought was happening and what they thought could be a good thing to do. He
wasn’t really convinced but he listened to Mel when she asked him to go to a
therapist she knew very well. It was the father of one of her best friends and
he was a very well renowned professional that helped various types of people to
improve their mental health by doing exercises and talking a lot.
Not surprisingly, Jon got really hooked up
with going to the shrink. He would be there thirty minutes earlier and would
try for Dr. Bernstein to let him stay longer, as he thought it was very
interesting how he dug into people’s minds with his knowledge. Mel was very
disappointed at first. It was then when she realized it would probably be for
the best if she ended up the relationship, no matter how much she loved Jon.
The situation could drive her insane and she didn’t want that for her life.
But then, something happened. As Jon had to
talk about his problems, had to really dig deep into his past, his present and
his thoughts on life, his enthusiasm begun to dwindle down after a full month
going to visit Dr. Bernstein. When he came back from there, he would never talk
a lot and would prefer to play his videogames or work to get his degree in
engineering. He grew very quiet around that time and his parents got very
worried and, again, blamed the girlfriend.
Eventually, she was invited to join one of the
appointments. It was the first time she saw Jon cry and the doctor explained
him they had found the cause of his obsessions. It was simply because he needed
things to be trustworthy, he needed to trust into objects that would always satisfy
him. It was not a surprise, as he had always had problems dealing with people.
He had few friends and he had met Mel practically by chance.
So they visited the Abomination as a way of
atoning all of those awful feelings he associated with people and with objects.
The idea was for him to say goodbye to his obsessions and just live a life
where he could like something without it becoming a huge thing in his life.
After two hours in line, a bit hungry and
dehydrated, they entered the car in the Abomination. They sat down and put on
the safety bar down. Then, he took Mel’s hand and smiled. She hoped that was a
good sign.
