Chapter 43: The Beauty and Ugliness of Cupcakes
After Walter and his son left the clinic, Ethan rested for a while and realized it was already dinner time.
Thinking about how he had "bailed out" halfway through his last visit to the Williamsburg Diner, although he'd explained it over the phone later, he hadn't cleared things up in person, so he decided to go back.
Locking the clinic door, he hailed a cab and headed straight for the diner.
The restaurant was still dimly lit, filled with grease smoke, and as crowded as usual.
Ethan stood at the entrance, looking around, and couldn't help but fall back into that existential question—
Why on earth do so many people still come to eat at a place with such questionable hygiene?
Is Oleg's cooking really that good? Or do New Yorkers come here to build up their stomach immunity? It couldn't be that they were all here to find their ex-girlfriends like him, right?
He found Max and Caroline in the restaurant and told them about starting cupcake delivery tomorrow.
"Of course, no problem," Caroline smiled as sweetly as ever. "We've got all the ingredients ready."
Ethan took the opportunity to settle the unpaid bill and tip from last time and ordered the same meal as before.
As soon as the money was handed over, Max immediately started prying, "So, what exactly happened with that patient of yours? The family member actually came at you with a knife?"
She squinted. "Was the surgery botched? Or was the boob job so successful it suffocated someone?"
"..."
Ethan coughed lightly. "Max, your imagination really doesn't need to be this creative."
"Honey, this is a Brooklyn specialty: free unlimited imagination," she added. "The speed you ran out that day, it was like you heard I was knocked up with your kid."
"Cough..." Shocked by Max's metaphor, Ethan changed the subject. "Max, I want a cupcake."
"None today." She crossed her arms. "Cupcakes are pissing me off, so I decided to take a night off."
"Just because of someone's 'constructive criticism,' you're going on strike?" Caroline said in disbelief. "Max, we're running a business here."
"If people want pretty, we make them pretty; if people want homemade, we go the homemade route."
"My cupcakes don't need to be pretty; they focus on the humor angle," Max said calmly.
"What's your problem with 'pretty'?" Caroline said helplessly. "Do you have a grudge against aesthetics now, or a grudge against money?"
"I just think this society is too controlling," Max said. "It always wants to standardize everything and homogenize the beauty defined in other people's minds."
Caroline rubbed her forehead and decided to call for backup. "Doctor, give us an honest opinion. A restaurant complained that our cupcakes aren't pretty enough. Do you think we need to improve their appearance?"
"Uh..."
Ethan didn't expect the ball to be kicked to him so suddenly.
Max looked at Ethan leisurely. "Choose your words carefully; your next answer will determine many things closely related to you."
Ethan tried to organize his thoughts and said cautiously, "Personally, I think tasting good is the most important thing; looking good is secondary."
"A cupcake that tastes good but looks average will give me a pleasant surprise."
"But a cupcake that only looks good but tastes bad... would make me feel like I'm making out with an ugly girl wearing heavy makeup."
"Slam!" Max hit the counter hard. "That's the man I used to date! My cupcakes win!"
But a second later, she realized:
"Wait—were you just implying that I'm average-looking? And that's why you picked me back then instead of Caroline?"
Ethan: "???"
When did this become a choice between the two of them?!
Caroline immediately added, "Don't worry, Ethan."
"Choosing her is normal. Most guys are first attracted by her big 'assets' and then scared away by her verbal abuse."
"At least I wasn't kicked out of the Manhattan social circuit—"
"Max!"
"Caroline!"
The familiar bickering rhythm between the two started, and Ethan silently lowered his head to eat, worried about getting caught in the crossfire.
Suddenly, as if thinking of something, Caroline went around to the other side of the counter and brought out a "disaster" from the kitchen that was dark in color and slightly sunken on top.
"Fine." She gritted her teeth and placed the plate in front of Ethan. "Since I can't convince you, let's run an experiment."
She pointed at the train-wreck of a cupcake. "This is the chocolate lava cake she made earlier, which I refused to sell because it was too ugly."
"Their appearance," Caroline said in an exceptionally diplomatic tone, "looks like they survived a miniature nuclear explosion in the oven."
"Oh, my god, here we go again." Max looked up and sighed. "The Anna Wintour of the dessert world is back online."
"Listen, customers eat cake with their mouths, not their eyes."
"As long as it tastes good, even if it looks like something a cat hacked up, someone will pay for it."
"Appearance is the first impression!" Caroline didn't back down. "Bad packaging ruins premium products. It's just like people, you can't—"
"Wait, just like people?" Max immediately caught on. Her gaze moved from the cake to Caroline, then swept over to Ethan, who was quietly eating his burger, and the corners of her mouth slowly curved up. "I like this comparison."
She pointed at the ugly cake. "Look closely—this is me. Rough on the outside, with sharp edges, looking like someone you shouldn't mess with, maybe a little beat-up."
Then, she used her rag to gesture at Caroline's face, which was as polished as a magazine cover. "And you, darling, are the kind of fondant princess cake displayed in a high-end bakery window, where every ruffle has been tweaked with tweezers. Perfect, pristine, sparkling, making people go 'wow' from ten feet away."
Caroline crossed her arms. "So your point is?"
"The point is—let the man choose." Max raised her hand and slapped Ethan on the back with a thud, nearly making him choke. "Live test, commence."
Ethan quickly gulped down some water and looked up confused. "Cough... what test? I think this burger is pretty damn good, no complaints."
"Option A—" Max pushed the disaster-looking chocolate lava cake in front of him. "A cake that looks like a crime scene but has a molten interior that'll make your taste buds sing."
"Option B—" Her finger tapped in the air, pointing at Caroline. "A fondant princess as beautiful as a fairy tale, flawless in every detail, but inside it might be hollow or disgustingly sweet."
Ethan looked at the cake, then at Max, who had a "choose wrong and see what happens" expression, and then at Caroline, who looked faintly expectant like she was competing in some kind of pageant.
He was silent for two seconds, then honestly reached out and pointed to Option A. "This one. No question."
Caroline almost jumped out of her seat. "Ethan! Why? It's not even symmetrical!"
"Because I know it tastes good," Ethan spread his hands. "Max's stuff might look sketchy, but the taste is always legit. Fondant cakes... I had one at a wedding once and almost died from the sweetness, and more than half of it was inedible, just for show. When it comes to real life, practical beats pretty."
Max immediately flashed a huge, triumphant grin, came out from behind the counter, and gave him a hug.
"See that, Caroline? This is why I can still be friends with him after we broke up, while your ex-boyfriends just want to delete your name from their phone, email, and every social media contact list."
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