Chapter 4

She walked toward the main bar and called over her coworker. Once he reached the countertop, she asked him to get the brand of whiskey she’d ordered for the mysterious man. Meanwhile, Mary waited impatiently at the seat in front of the window. Her patience was almost shattered when she felt somebody sit next to her. Instantly, she recognized the smell of cigarette smoke.

‘Is that him?’ she wondered. ‘No,’ she told herself. It was definitely not the same man. She continued waiting; he did not leave the seat. Eventually, the bartender returned with Mary’s whiskey and handed it to her.

“Here you go,” he said while smiling at her.

“Thanks,” she replied. Then she placed the bottle down on the table in front of the mystery man.

“And what’ll you be having?” she asked.

“Nothing,” he said before turning toward Mary. “You know, you should do better advertising.”

“I beg your pardon?” she asked in surprise.

“You really need to advertise your establishment more,” he explained while making eye contact with her. “I mean, a place like this needs some advertising.”

“Ah! That’s not my problem,” snapped Mary.

“But it is, you know,” continued the man. “If you’re not able to convince people to spend their hard-earned money on drinks at your place, then you shouldn’t be expecting more business.”

This time Mary couldn’t suppress her laughter. “Why don’t you go somewhere else? If you’re not happy with the services provided here, then I’d suggest you take your money and try some other bar in town.”

“Well, it was a joke,” he laughed. “By the way, what’s your name?” he asked, pulling out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.

As she looked at him, she began to notice how handsome his face was. He had short brown hair that blended beautifully with his light skin. He also had an impressive beard on his chin, which made him seem much older than he actually was. He probably was somewhere around thirty. His physique was fit, solid, well-toned, and muscular. He was wearing a pair of dark sunglasses.

“My name’s Mary,” she responded.

He nodded. “Nice to meet you.” Then he slowly stood up from the stool, pulled out a chair, and sat.

Mary became curious about him as she noticed that he wasn’t at all what she’d expected. His behavior was different from others in general and from those she usually met at the bar as well. Normally everyone would prefer to talk about themselves or ask questions related to their hobbies and interests. But this man behaved completely opposite of that. Instead, he kept on teasing her with his jokes and asked her a lot of personal questions. All of which were not related to her bartending duties at all. Yet, she was trying her best not to let him see that she was annoyed with him.

After sitting down, he removed his shades and started talking to her. “How long have you worked here?” he asked.

“Since I came here. Not up to a year,” replied Mary.

“Oh right, so you’re quite new around here,” he remarked while examining her face closely. “And you’re the one who takes care of this place. You’ve done a great job, by the way. Everyone seems to love you!” he added.

“Thanks,” said Mary. “It’s nice to hear that.”

“Yes, it is. This place wouldn’t have gotten so popular if you weren’t here. I can easily tell,” he commented.

“Really? What makes you say that?” she asked.

“Well, you’re the one who made me come here. And believe me, you were right about the special kind of ambiance here. No matter what you say, you have managed to make this place a good place to hang out for most of us,” he said as he picked up his glass and took a sip of whiskey.

“I’m glad you like it here,” replied Mary. “Would you like something else?” she asked.

“Nah, I’m alright with this,” he replied. “Have you ever lived anywhere outside this town?” he asked.

“Yeah, I have,” she answered.

“Where? Did you move away from where your parents live? Because I think that’s pretty normal for people who are living in places where there aren’t many facilities around,” he stated.

“No, not really. I moved to this town because my parents died a few years ago. And besides, there isn’t much to do here apart from spending time with family and friends. So you end up staying in your own neighborhood. I always loved reading books and listening to music as well as playing games,” she said. “I started writing poems and short stories when I was in fifth grade and continued with it up until my graduation. My dream since childhood was to become a writer, and it eventually turned into reality. Although I don’t write novels and stuff anymore, I still do what I’ve always enjoyed doing.”

Mary paused to look at his face. For some reason, the man was staring at her intensely. As soon as his eyes came back into focus, he spoke again. “So what made you start writing?” he asked.

“I thought it was easy to express emotions and feelings using words compared to drawing pictures or sketching landscapes. Also, when you write something down, you can change things the way you want without getting any criticism from anyone else. Plus, being a writer has helped me earn some extra cash when I needed it. I used to write small articles for a local newspaper and magazines as well.”

“Wow! You’re a published author?” the man exclaimed. “That’s great!”

“Yeah, I am. I also have an e-book and a few copies of my poetry book that I self-published,” she informed him.

“Well, that’s very cool,” he said.

Mary stopped speaking for a second and stared at the man intently. There was a momentary silence between them before she asked. “What’s your name?”

“Alex,” he answered.