Dinner Date With The Ideal Sibling

He couldn't believe they actually responded to him back.

---

She couldn't believe they actually responded to her back.

---

He made his way to the nearest Olive Garden in his location, just like the email sent to him instructed. It was almost freaky how they knew his address, but what made it freakier was the fact that they got a picture of his sister on the email like a profile pic. He didn't think they would know who he was, where he lived, and what his sister looked like.

In all honesty, he should be calling the cops right now and trying to get this investigated as soon as possible. But on the off chance that these guys were way more powerful than that, Ross would have to play it cool. Who knows what these guys would do to him and his family? They know what he looks like and they know where he lived, that enough is causing him to get panic attacks as he made his way to the Olive Garden restaurant.

Whatever lies ahead, he'd have to be prepared for anything, maybe even fight for his life. Whoever this guy or company was, there was no way he was going to let some stalker try to threaten and intimidate him or his family. Cherry might not be the best sister, but he'd still protect her like his life depended on it.

He pulled out his phone again and reread the email to make absolute sure he was going to the right address.

---

The Apple Bee's restaurant was just in front of her.

Something about this whole thing made Cherry extremely nervous. She'd never thought that whoever sent her that email a week ago would actually end up obtaining a picture of her brother. That means that whoever's been emailing her knows who she is, where she lives, and even who was most dearest to her.

The thought of calling the police to tell them about this popped up in her mind, but she already dismissed it. What could she possibly say to them? An email talking about alternate dimensions just sent her back a profile pic of her own brother and tried to convince her to go out on a trial date with him? She'd be treated like a delusional psycho. Worse though, even if the police did believe her, what could they possibly do to help protect Ross and her family? Whoever this person was, seemed almost too... elusive and powerful to really stop if they ever decided to want to hurt her.

No, she'd need to keep calm and try to see who this person is for herself and stop this with her own hands. Her little brother didn't need to worry about this kind of stress in her life. She'd do anything to protect him, even if it meant risking her own sake just to do it.

Taking a deep breath, she took out her phone to reread the email message again, making sure she was at the right place.

---

To: [email protected]

From: ParallelLovers@#$R%T^Y.org

Congratulations! We've found your ideal partner!

[partnerimage.jpg]

Now that you've gotten a match, we'll be working up a nearby location for both of you to meet up with. After the meeting is over and you've become wholly satisfied with our services, you are more than welcome to upgrade your free trial anytime by reaching out to us over any of the emails we've sent you.

For now though, let's get your first meeting with your ideal partner started!

Nearby your location, we have set up a reserved table for you at your local Applebees/Olive Garden. You can find directions to this restaurant with any online map app.

Simply tell the server your name and your table reservation, which begins at 3:00 PM at Table Number A5, and the server will give you further instructions.

If the server offers you a colored wristband with your table number on it, be sure to wear it and keep it on you at all times to prevent confusion with other Parallel Lovers app users who may or may not be you from alternate realities.

You both have a maximum of five hours to get to know each other for your trial period. Enjoy your first date together, and remember to reach out to us if you have any questions.

You're meant for somebody outside your world,

Perfect Parallels & Co.

---

Ross entered the building, his body tense and his reflexes on overdrive for any sign of threats and danger. He looked around cautiously, finding himself on edge to realize that this restaurant didn't look like a front for some mafia-group at first glance. Honestly, it actually just looked like a normal Olive Garden... Maybe just more packed than usual?

The front desk worker gave out a happy greeting, "Welcome! Thanks for using our service! Do you know your reserved table?"

With an awkward smile, too nervous to work up a convincing front, he said, "Ross Culkin... I'm supposed to meet someone at table A5."

The worker took the time to carefully study the reservation list in front of him, before loudly exclaiming, "Ah, there you are! Yes, we have you right here for 3 o'clock. Happy to see you arrive just in time!"

"Uh... yeah..."

If the worker noticed the tense attitude Ross had, he didn't do anything to point it out. Maintaining his cheery and professional persona, the worker bent over to pull an orange-colored wristband out and gave it to Ross with a smile, "Wear this and make your way to the left until you find your table. Your date should arrive soon from the other entrance of the building. I hope you two enjoy each other's company!"

---

"Cherry Kulkin! Says right here that your reserved table is A5!" The cheery front desk worker exclaimed.

Cherry awkwardly laughed, having no idea how to react to anything that was happening to her. At first, she thought she might be entering some kind of secret illegal cartel -den or something, but so far it only seemed like a normal restuarant that was more crowded than usual.

"Um... if you don't mind me asking..." Cherry spoke up anxiously, "Who exactly am I meeting with?"

"Your ideal partner, obviously! Didn't the email make that clear?" The worker replied with confusion.

Cherry felt her stomach drop, realizing that the worker was apparently in on the whole situation. What's more, he's even suggesting that she was about to meet up with her little brother as well, which means he was probably tangled up in all this just the same as her.

This horrified her immensely.

Dear god, she hoped her brother was still okay...

"Make your way to the right until you see your table. Here's your wristband to make sure you don't end up confused for someone else!" The worker continued on with his happy-go-lucky personality, pointing to her left, "Your date should already be here waiting for you, I think. Better not keep him waiting!"

---

Ross nervously tapped his foot on the ground as he waited for whoever was going to meet him. He had no idea what to do once he comes face to face with whoever, but he does know that he was going to get as much information as possible and bailing out as soon as he can to try and warn his family.

After waiting for a bit, he looked around and was surprised to find his sister looking around like a lost puppy. On her wrist was the same wristband as him, with the orange color and the big A5 engraved on it.

"Cherry?!" He called out in shock.

Did they get to her too? Was she also getting these strange emails at the same time as him? Ugh, typical that this would happen. Now that they've gotten his sister involved in this as well, he had a liability in his hand. If this ended up with them trying to run out of here for their lives, he'd have to do his best to make sure she doesn't lag behind or get put in danger.

God, why would she even open weird emails and come to this place in the first place? He thought she was smarter than that!

---

Cherry felt her anxiety flare up as she heard a familiar voice loudly call out to her in the middle of the restaurant. Turning to the noise, her eyes widened to find her little brother sitting at her reserved table, matching the same orange wristband as her.

Dammit! She was hoping that they didn't actually get him involved in this... Damn her for replying to such a creepy email without thinking of the consequences, she should have ignored it when she had the chance!

Hurrying along to make her way to the table, Ross stood up from his seat and met her halfway.

Cherry reached out to protectively hug him and was a little surprised to see that he returned the gesture, holding tightly on to her for dear life. Ross must have been so scared all by himself to make him feel the need to hug her back like this.

After a quick moment, they pulled away with concerned frowns.

"Are you okay? You're not hurt or anything?" Ross asked worriedly, carefully looking at her to make sure she was fine.

"Yeah, I'm good. What about you? Were you and kidnapped here by someone?" Cherry asked back, holding on tightly to his hand.

"Not exactly." Ross cautiously looked around the room for any sign of a threat, or maybe even just to find someone out of place that was observing them, "I got an email that told me to come here. They showed me a picture of you. I was worried that they might be threatening me to come here, or else they might hurt you."

"Same as me then," Cherry pulled out her phone to show him the email she got, "They had your profile picture from somewhere, and scared the heck out of me. I didn't want anything to happen to you, so I came all this way to make sure who I was dealing with."

Ross seemed stunned at her remark, before giving a small chuckle, "Heh, I didn't realize you actually cared about me. I would've thought that you'd delete it and run for the hills to make me fend for myself. Honestly, it probably would've been easier that way if you did..."

"Don't be stupid!" Cherry chastised angrily, "Of course I care about you! What the hell makes you think I would run off like a coward instead of protecting my own baby brother?! There's no way you could handle something like this by yourself!"

Oh shoot, she didn't mean to say it like that. She probably just hurt his pride and caused their relationship to suffer a little bit further. She knew he was trying to be more independent without her, but she just got so frustrated to hear that he thought she didn't care about him and it just inadvertently blurted out of her system. Agh, she really needed to watch her temper.

Instead of blowing up at her like she thought he would though, he seemed confused at what she said.

"B... Baby brother? Yeesh, you must be pretty worried then..." Ross scratched his head awkwardly, "I've never heard you call me that, like... ever. In my entire life."

"What are you talking about?" Now it was Cherry's turn to be confused, "I've always referred you as my little baby brother. I know you don't like it though, but I just can't help myself from time to time..."

Ross paused for a bit, before suspiciously leaning towards her face and asking, "You're not messing with me, are you? Is this all just an elaborate prank orchestrated by you or something? Did you send these messages? Is this payback for what I wrote in response?"

"Prank? What the hell are you talking about, I didn't set up any prank!" Cherry was starting to grow really frustrated right now, seeing Ross suddenly behaving so weirdly about their situation. He always wanted her to stop worrying about him, but he can't even remain serious during a time like this? Ugh, so typical of him! He should be smarter than-

Wait... what he wrote in response?

"Wait, what did you mean by that? Did you fill out that weird form and respond back too?" Cherry asked, putting a raincheck on her earlier anger out of curiosity.

With a sigh, Ross embarrassingly looked away and said, "Look, I know what I typed in was gross! I didn't think someone would actually read it and both of us to meet up like this!" Shaking his head clear, he proceeded to glare at her as he stated, "Look, if you're the one sending these emails to mess with me, I'm sorry for filling out the form with such a weird perverted answer! Please just admit it so that I can stop worrying and we can go back to our stupid boring lives?"

Cherry furrowed her brows in response, "Ross, I just said that I wasn't the one that set any of this up! I filled out a weird form too and got the message to come meet you out here. I was seriously worried about you!"

Ross blinked stupidly for a moment.

Then with an awkward cough, he asked, "So... uh... What exactly did you write on the form? If you don't mind me asking."

Oh jeez...

Cherry awkwardly sighed and rubbed her arm embarrassingly, "I wrote that I wanted my ideal partner to be a different version of my little brother who didn't treat me like an overbearing mother and actually appreciate it when I take care of him and his needs."

Ross blinked stupidly again, before asking, "Wait, seriously?"

"I know it's stupid! I just wrote it down to have fun and relieve some stress! It wasn't like I wanted us to get called out like this from some creepy stranger to match us up like it was a real dating app-" Cherry paused for a moment after a realization hit her. They got matched up after they both filled out the same form asking for their ideal partner. If they both matched up with each other, then that would mean...

Cherry stared at her little brother with an intrigued look.

"What did you say you wrote on the form again?" She asked calmly.

At that exact moment, a loud cheer caused them both to get distracted as they both turned to the direction of the noise.

To their utter shock and confusion, they saw legendary actor Tom Cruise with black hair happily cheering and hugging legendary actor Tom Cruise with blond hair. To further confuse the shit out of them, Tom then proceeded to kiss Tom on the cheek before happily sitting down at their table and starting conversations together.

The two siblings look back at each other after witnessing such a plot-bomb, realizing further that maybe they might have gone in here with the wrong conclusions...

"I... uh..." Ross had a blush as he admitted this, "I wrote down that I wanted my ideal partner to be... my older sister, but more kind and motherly, who likes spoiling her little brother... as a joke..."

"Huh..." Cherry remarked neutrally as she curled a lock of her hair on her finger.

"Um..." Ross started off, having no idea what to say and react.

"So..." Cherry replied back, equally as lost.

"..."

"..."

...

"Do you wanna sit down and order some food?" Ross offered, gesturing to their table.

"Uh... Yeah, sure." Cherry muttered awkwardly.

Ross pulled a seat out for her, which she gave a grateful nod, before they both sat down and began their date.

---

Hours passed by.

"Jesus Christ, I can't believe this is actually all real!" Ross laughed heartedly.

"I know, right? Oh my god, alternate realities are actually real this entire time!" Cherry giggled back, "I thought they were just stories!"

"Apparently not!"

The two siblings from alternate realities seem to be getting along smashingly well, even despite the poor introduction that first led them here.

"So you said that your last name was Kulkin, starts with a K? Not a C like mine?"

"Yep!" Cherry nodded enthusiastically, "Man, it's so weird to know how many differences there are between our two realities."

"Like how you've always gotten along with your little brother, when me and my sister basically never had close relationship at all."

"Or how your sister is the popular girl with all the boyfriends, and my brother is almost practically a delinquent!"

"This is almost like a really freaky episode of Black Mirror coming true." Ross chuckled as he shook his head.

Cherry suddenly gasped and excitedly ask, "You watch Black Mirror too?! Dude, I love that show!"

"Seriously? You're into the dark sci-fi stuff?" Ross asked hopefully.

"Are you kidding me? I own all a collection of DVDs of each season!" Cherry responded, before telling him, "My favorite episode has always been the second episode of the season back when they first came out! The one about Bing and that dystopia where they earn money by doing exercising and stuff?"

"Oh my god, that's awesome!" Ross couldn't help but guffaw, "The Cherry that I know absolutely HATES the show. She always told me that Black Mirror was too creepy for her to handle."

"But that's the point of the series! The creepiness factor comes in because it's based on our reality and the consequences of us overrelying on new technologies!"

"RIGHT?! She never understood that and only thought it was just creepy for the sake of being creepy!"

"Ugh, oh my god, don't even get me started on that! The Ross that I know never understands any of the deeper meaning behind anything we watch! I swear to god, if you put him in front of a screen with a bunch of violent explosions and cool sound effects, he'd probably say it was the greatest thing in the world."

"Seriously? That is so lame..."

"Like this one time, we managed to watch the entire movie of Airplane! Oh my god, it was such a great movie- but he just completely misses the joke on almost all the words and puns!"

"But they make up about ninety percent of the movie! Did he at least understand the 'Don't call me Shirley' joke?"

"NO HE DIDN'T! I looked over to see his reaction, and he barely even reacted!"

"BUT THAT'S SUCH A CLASSIC JOKE!"

"I KNOOOW-"

---

"Favorite movie that came out in the last three years?" Cherry asked.

"John Wick, all three of them." Ross answered confidently.

"Ooh, nice, those were my top favorites too." Cherry giggled.

"Favorite TV show you've recently started watching?" Ross then took his turn to ask.

"Okay, don't laugh, but it's actually Power Rangers. I've been trying to get caught up with the series." Cherry tilted her head with a blush.

"NO WAY, SAME!" Ross gasped, but then paused a bit before asking, "Wait, only just Power Rangers? Do you know about the Sentai versions?"

Cherry gasped, "You know about them too! Nobody I talk to knows about the Japanese versions! Holy shit, I'm in love with the ones about the police and phantom thieves-"

"Kaitou Sentai Lupinranger VS Keisatsu Sentai Patranger!"

"Oh my god- YES!" Cherry laughed, "Don't you just adore the costume designs?! They look SOOOO COOOOOL!"

"They need to hurry up and make a Power Rangers adaption about them soon, I desperately want to see those costumes on American television already!" Ross gushed.

Then suddenly, Ross gave a defeated sigh.

Cherry, concerned at the sudden mood shift, asked, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." Ross waved away as he shook his head, "Just remembering something stupid."

"Hey, you know you can talk to me about stupid stuff. I don't mind." Cherry offered politely as she leaned forward on the table.

"You sure? It's sort... baby-ish." Ross awkwardly mumbled.

"It can't be that baby-ish if thinking about it is enough to take your wind away." Cherry encouraged, before whispering with a wink, "Don't worry, I promise I won't tell a soul."

Ross couldn't help but chuckle at that, before relenting, "Alright... Talking about Power Rangers and stuff just reminded me that there was this really cool toy belt I've always wanted to buy but was never allowed to. It was the Kamen Rider OOO's belt that the main character used to transform, and I always thought it looked so cool- but when I asked Mom if she could ever buy it for me, she always told me no since it was so expensive to buy and import from overseas."

"Is that all?" Cherry asked incredulously with a raised eyebrow, "That doesn't seem like a big deal to get sad over..."

"Yeah, I know. As I said, it's a baby-issue." Ross mumbled embarrassingly.

"If you want, I can buy that belt for you." Cherry offered casually.

Ross took a moment to pause, before turning to face directly at his sister, "Wait, you serious?"

"Sure," Cherry shrugged, "Dad lets me have my own bank account and an allowance since he knows I'm responsible enough to use it. Plus, I'm in college, so I'm old enough to not need to ask him for permission. I can totally get it imported for you."

"You seriously don't mind?" Ross asked again, before warning her, "The thing probably costs a lot! Last time I checked all those years ago, I remembered the price being around a hundred dollars, and that's not including the shipping and taxes!"

"Eh, it's fine." Cherry giggled, "If it makes my little brother happy, then I can get you anything you want."

Ross blinked incredulously before a huge grin broke out on his face as he felt like a little boy getting a Christmas present early, "Oh my god, you are literally the best big sister in the world."

Cherry felt her heart skip a beat the moment she heard that.

There it is. The one thing she's always wanted to hear in such a long time.

She couldn't help but beam happily like a ray of radiating sunshine as she felt so proud and warm on the inside.

For the first time in her life, she felt like she was close to her little brother again, just like the good old days. In fact, it's even better, she felt like she was closer to him than ever before as the evening raged on.

---

"Alright you cuties, your trial period is over!" The waitress called out in a cheerful manner, handing them their receipt.

"Aw, already? But it feels like we just got here!" Ross lamented with a huff. "Can't we hang out just a little bit longer?"

"You've both spent the maximum five hours that was agreed upon for your trial period. I'm sorry you guys, but if you want to meet up together again, you'll need to go back home and email us again!" The waitress explained apologetically as she bowed.

"How much would it cost for us to keep meeting like this? What are the prices that get listed in the contract you guys mentioned?" Cherry asked, "Will either of us be able to afford it?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I can't answer that question since the specific prices are different from person to person." The waitress explained further, before reassuring, "Not to worry you two! Since we're an interdimensional service who already knows about you both and your current economic conditions, we promise you that whatever that's entailed in the contract, it'll be at a reasonable price that both of you will find easily agreeable. We promise we're not cheating or extorting you out of your life savings, we just want to help people find and meet their perfect ideal partner!"

Cherry and Ross looked at each other with a sad shrug, before they both stood up and pushed their chairs in.

"Don't worry about the food you bought! As a trial service, they come free!" The waitress told them, before getting ready to clean up their leftovers and leaving.

Cherry was the first to reach out and give her little brother with a tight hug, "I'll work hard to get the money we need to pay off the contract for both us! You don't have to worry about a thing!"

"What? No way, I can totally handle things from my end." Ross assured her as he hugged her back, "It's not like I'm completely hopeless! I can get a job and save up some money!"

"Are you sure? I wouldn't mind working it off for both of us."

"How about we work out a deal?" Ross offered, "I pay off the contract given to me on my end, and you save up money to get me that belt you promised to buy the next time we see each other?"

With a cute smile, his big sister asked, "So we'll definitely see each other again for sure?"

"Absolutely!"

Cherry gave another giggle before leaning in to kiss her little brother in the forehead, "You are so adorable! Okay then, a deal it is!"

Ross gave a small blush, not expecting her to kiss him like that. "So... uh... see you again soon?"

"See you again soon!" Cherry affirmed happily.

They both released their hug and went their separate ways as they waved goodbye to each other.

Leaving through the same doors they both came in, they simultaneously turned around one last time to try to see each other, only to find that the closed shut behind them.

Ross studied the door of the Olive Garden, before opening it up to see the inside. Unlike before, the inside of the building seemed less popular than before, and none of the same workers were there anymore. It was like the inside of the entire building just switched with another different one.

Cherry curiously walked around the building on the off chance that her little brother existed on the other side of the building, but was disappointed to see that there was only a few waiters and waitresses taking a smoke break outside the back exit.

While it seemed almost like a great big dream, they both knew for a fact that it was all real. They happiness and warmth they felt, as well as the memories of the time they spent together, were the only evidence they needed to know for a fact that they didn't just hallucinate it all in their heads.

Ross walked away with his hands in his pockets, ready to get back home and open up his email as he planned on buying this awesome sci-fi dating app service to keep seeing this alternate version of his sister. A part of himself, a very perverted part, wondered if he'd ever get a chance to maybe convince this awesome sister to do something... naughty, as a way to spoil him.

Cherry had a merry step as she hopped back home, feeling more alive and happy than she ever had before. To be able to relive the feeling of being close with her little brother again was practically a dream come true, and she couldn't wait to go home and sign up to whatever contract she needed to sign just to see him again. But first, there was an eBay search she had to do before she got home, as part of her promise for the next time they meet.

Both of them slept soundly that night, knowing that the best day of their life could only get even better from here on out.

---

To: [email protected]

From: ParellelLovers@&*(OIU^%$#.web

We are so happy that you were finally convinced about our service and completely satisfied with your meeting today with your ideal partner! Thank you so much for reaching out to us about starting a contract plan!

We promise you that we exist only to help people find their ideal partners, and while we would love to do it for free if we could, working for free is just not feasible due to the magnitude of our operations. Sad to say, we have not yet found a dimension where infinite money exist.

But no need to worry, for our payment options are completely reasonable and probably the best deal you'd ever find if you somehow were able to compare it with a payment plan from a competing organization, which definitely does not exist since we own a monopoly in every single parallel dimension in existence.

Attached to this email is a PDF copy of a pre-written contract. Please read it thoroughly and sign it through whatever means you can. Once you send it back to us, we'll allow your phone to gain access to a specialized phone app that will let you start meeting up with your ideal partner again whenever and wherever you want.

Happy to do business with you, and good luck with all future endeavors!

Someone was meant for you outside your reality,

Perfect Parellels FDN.