Jack & Lucy

Jack

Lucy is on another level of attractiveness at the moment. She's stunning without make-up, but there is something about her bright eyes tonight that has me finding them every time she asks me for something. Between her hair, her face and her strappy tank, she seems more confident.

I hated the way Blake used to make comments about her appearance. I watched her shrink inside herself the longer she was with him, so it's nice to see her striding around the bar with a new air of confidence she hasn't had in a while. I wonder if Stella finally got her hands on her because Stella also likes to make comments about Lucy stepping outside of her comfort zone. If Lucy can even have a sliver of Stella's confidence, she'll go a long way.

"I saw you saw Ariana today," she blurts out of nowhere when we get our first lull. "How's she doing?" I wonder the motive behind this question and worry that Ariana said something to her about Maggie, so I answer, "Good I think? She was too busy making eyes at Fischer for me to ask her." She's still not looking at me as she tears a stack of disposable cups open and says, "Jealous she's no longer making eyes at you?" There is a bite to her tone and I am unsure where it's coming from. She knows I couldn't stand Ariana. 

"Making crazy eyes you mean? Yeah, I think I am good there." 

She suddenly pivots the conversation by asking, "How did Sabrina do back here? She is gorgeous by the way."

I ignore that last bit and scoff, "I don't know why Maggie brought her on. She was a host at Buffalo Wild Wings before this and took a bartending class off Groupon."

"Because she's pretty and personable and most tips will come from that alone," she says and I shrug.

"If that's the case, why is our tip bucket so underwhelming?" She glances at the bucket and then back to me. 

"Maybe you aren't as pretty as you think you are?" She jokes, again with a tone I can't quite place.

"Maybe you aren't as personable?" I joke back and I decide to be bold. I was set up so perfectly that I can't waste this opportunity, "Because you certainly are pretty." I watch her lips part for a second and I think I made her glitch. Her brow furrows for a split second and then she says, "It's all Stella. I know I look like a clown." She waves a hand over her face and I think she thinks I was taking a dig at her. She's doing that thing where she stuffs her confidence back inside herself instead of embracing it.

"You look good, Goose," I tell her so she can stop second-guessing herself. She seems to glitch out again but a group of younger guys striding up to the bar brings her attention to them. We get another pop but I notice she's not as energetic as she was before she brought up Ariana.

Once we get drinks in everyone's hands, Lucy tells me she's going to take her fifteen and get Maggie to cover. The iciness between us is back and I don't know what sucked the wind out of her sails. When Maggie slides the panel up to cross into the bar I ask, "Is Lucy alright?"

She shrugs, "Seems fine to me. She's probably just getting readjusted to late nights on her feet again." An older blonde with droopy eyelids and a halter top charges up to the bar with a ten in her outstretched hand and a man in a sports coat follows quickly behind her.

"Vodka tonic!" She shouts but the man swats her hand down.

"You're done, Marie. You've had enough!" He tells her but she waves him off and orders her drink again. Maggie looks to me and this isn't the first time we've had someone that needs to be cut off. Lucy usually loves watching couple spats. 

"Don't serve her," he tells Maggie, pleading with his bloodshot eyes, but the blonde tries to push him away. She stumbles in her flip-flops over the barstool and ends up tripping into the man's chest.

"Jesus Marie, you're done," he tells her sternly and we watch as he drags the drunken mess to her feet.

"I'm done when I say I'm done!" She slurs and Lucy is going to be so sad she missed this. "Vodka tonic! I am a paying customer!" She shouts at Maggie, throwing the ten-dollar bill into the air. I catch it and go to give it to the embarrassed man when the blonde snaps, "That's my fucking money! Do not give it to this cheating bastard!"

The man shakes his head but I don't miss his frustration turning him red. I don't know who to give the money to, but the woman is using both of her hands to keep herself stable against the bar.

"I'm sorry about this," he mutters to us as he tries to rein her in. I notice a gold band on his hand and then notice she isn't wearing any kind of jewelry. This couple gets even more interesting. If Lucy were here, she'd already be concocting a whole background story for them. 

"Let's go home," He tells her in her ear, using a much softer tone this time. She shoves him away again and shrieks, "To your wife's home?" She finally turns away from the bar and stumbles out of the side door. I still have the ten in my hand and the man rushes off after her.

Maggie looks to me, "See, bartending can be exciting! It's not all cheap beer to cheap college kids."

I nod, "Easiest ten I have ever made." I shove it into the tip bucket and spot Lucy coming back out from the front bar. She charging back toward us and I immediately notice her make-up-free face. She must have gone and washed it all off during break. Maggie catches it too and asks, "Back to au natural I see?"

"Do I look sickly?" She retorts but she glides right past Maggie to get to the woman who just approached the bar. I dart my eyes to Maggie and without saying I told you, I raise my eyebrows to convey I told you. She shrugs and then says, "Maybe she's just having a day." She leaves us alone again and I wonder what made Lucy want to scrub her face off.

"There was a decent lovers quarrel," I tell her as we stand next to each other at the taps. She's focused on her pour and quickly switches to her second-pint glass but she doesn't say anything. "Cheating old guy apparently. His mistress was not pleased about the whole wife thing. You missed a good one." She shoves the tap back and finally looks to me as she says, "I lived through a whole cheating man thing. Don't think I missed much." She takes the two draft beers and spins away from me. I close my eyes as I sigh out. I put my foot in it. I don't know how to get her to stop hating me, but mentioning cheating assholes is apparently not the way to do it.