Jack & Lucy

Lucy

Maggie's face busting in on me and Jack told me everything I needed to know about her feelings toward him. Her dark eyes turned to ice when she saw us tear away from each other and there was no sarcasm in her words. 

Her fury extended to Sabrina who came and told me to move up to the front bar, that Maggie wanted her with Jack in the back. The switch made zero sense seeing the place was packed and Sabrina was hardly out of training. Jack was going to be working twice as hard tonight and Sabrina was equally disappointed to be thrust into the chaos of the back bar. 

I glance at Jack as I cross him to get to the front and he reaches out to give my hand a small squeeze. I blurted out my insecurities and now he has to sit with my words his entire shift. I won't get a response from him until after we clock out, so I am going to try and remain focused on pouring drafts and busing glassware. 

I find Ashleigh and Hannah spinning circles around each other, punching in orders and sliding pints down the bar. I spot Missy food running and I wonder if I am going to catch attitude from her tonight. Missy and Maggie are close, so when someone hurts one of them they both react.

"Hey hun, need something?" Hannah asks when she spots me, but I dip under the counter before replying, "I am up here tonight. Sabrina is back with Jack."  

"What? Sabrina can barely handle basic mixed drinks. She's going to be overwhelmed back there with how busy it is." I shrug, not understanding the decision either before I clock in and glance at the open drink tickets.

"It's what Maggie wanted," I mutter, trying to hide my annoyance. There are three massive TVs mounted to the wall above the bar but the rest of the TVs are scattered on the walls that lead to the back bar and patio, so it's not nearly as loud up here as it is in the back. We do get campers at the bar who will sit and drink from the same bar stool for multiple games. So by the time the evening games roll around, most of them are shit-faced or are trying to sober up by ordering water or french fries. I handle water orders from the two drinkers in the corner and I spot Ashleigh having an in-depth conversation about the best place to go clubbing with two scantily dressed brunettes on the opposite end. That's also why I enjoy working with Jack. He'll make conversation with the drinkers but he never lingers too long (Unless they are women shamelessly flirting with him), where Ashleigh will have a full-blown conversation and forget she has twenty drink orders piling in behind her. 

I don't spot Brandon busing our tables, so I grab a bus bucket to go grab the empty pints and shot glasses. I'm sliding empty Stella Artois glassware into my bucket when Missy comes up next to me.

"Why you up here?" 

"Maggie had Sabrina and I switch." She scrunches her face in confusion and I notice she swapped out her signature hot tamale red lipstick for neon purple. 

"Why? Between us, Sabrina sucks. She must hate Jack to stick him back there with her on a night like tonight," Missy says with a laugh. She then catches my eye and adds, "Oh shit, is she actually mad at Jack? I can't tell with her. She acted like she didn't give a fuck that he turned her down, but then he didn't show last night and she sticks him with Sabrina tonight...maybe she does have a heart in there." She laughs and then saunters back toward the kitchen. A woman across from me raises her hand to get my attention so I can't linger on what Missy just said. 

I spend the next four hours pumping out drinks, running fried food to rowdy college students and praying we're making decent tips. I officially no longer smell like Jack's fresh Downy scent boosters but like a sweaty alcoholic. I enjoy working with Hannah and Ashleigh but I'd much rather be tag-teaming with Jack. We have a better flow and I enjoy being in the tight space together. He squeezed my hand as reassurance but I hate having to wait to have a conversation. My stomach clenches every time I think of him. Luckily, we stayed steady enough to where I couldn't linger on Jack for long. Missy ran a Fireball shot special at the beginning of the last game, so my sole focus was trying not to gag as I poured the cinnamon vapor into plastic shot glasses for a solid hour. 

Once it looks like the Buffs have no chance of beating the Devils, people thankfully start clearing out. I had forgotten how much bartending drains me. Baking was hard on my knees and back but I didn't have to talk to anyone. I didn't have to feign smiles, small talk and laughter for hours on end. I also was in charge of only one station at the bakery, where I am all over the place here. I do whatever is needed of me. 

The patio seems to have more lingerers than the front does, so we're able to start closing down sooner. I volunteer to take a stack of baskets to the kitchen to finally get a glimpse of Jack. I linger in the threshold as I pass, but his back is to me as he enters something into the POS. He has a stack of receipts in his hand so he must be starting to close down too. This is when I am glad I am living with Jack because I know I will see him after work, regardless of when either of us clocks out. 

After I drop the baskets, I wander toward the office to see if Maggie is in there. She didn't make an appearance after I saw her in the office, but I did see her purple hair wander into the back bar a couple of times. She's one of my close friends so I would like to think she'd come to me if she had anything she wanted to say. I poke my head around the doorway but her chair is empty and the computer monitor is off. Missy startles me by saying, "Mag's left already if you need something. I told her I would do all the manager stuff tonight." I spin around and find her coming back in from outside. 

"No, just checking in on her. I usually gab with her at some point during the night." She sticks her hands into her zip-up pockets as she says, "Oh, well, she was in a fucking mood so I told her to go home. No one wants their manager fucking haunting the space. Scowling at you and biting your head off."

"Oh damn, she never came up front. I had no idea she was still in a mood."

"I think it has to be Jack. She was on his ass tonight."

"Jack?" I ask, playing dumb. "Why Jack?" I worry that I am starting to be like Cady Heron from Mean Girls when she realizes she is finding any opportunity to talk about Regina George because she's suddenly obsessed. I worry Jack is my Regina.

"I don't even know why she went there with him. She should have known his attention span is that of a squirrel."

"So, Maggie likes Jack? Or liked Jack? You told me they kissed and she wanted to take it further..."

"I personally think Jack is Maggie's white whale. Like she's determined to fuck him because he refuses to fuck her. I don't know if she even actually likes him. You know how she is with men."

"Yeah, I do. That's why I am surprised she's so mad at him for some reason."

"I mean, he did kind of dick her around," Maggie says as she starts down the hallway. I follow as she says, "He makes out with her and is all over her and then days later says he's seeing someone? Like come on Jack. Do you have to be such a fuck face?"

"They made out days ago?" I ask. "I thought they kissed at one of her parties."

"Oh they did. And in the office. And in her car. They almost fucked multiple times and I think she's pissed he'd do that to her if he was fucking some other chick." 

"Maggie never told me any of this. She never even told me she kissed Jack," I say, with my heart in my throat. I was under the impression they kissed one time at a party and he called off going further. This is not what I am getting from Missy and this is exactly the shit that worried me. Am I the dumbest person on the planet thinking Jack is seriously only dating me? 

My hands are shaking so I cross my arms to tuck them under my elbows. When we make it into the bar area, I glance toward Jack and he's helping Sabrina with something. Their focus is on something under the bar and he doesn't feel me staring. He smiles at something she says and then hits her playfully on her arm as she looks like she just figured something out. I catch Missy staring at him too and she says, "All I know is that if Jack messed around with someone from here while he was messing with Maggie, both of them are dead meat. Mag's won't just take it out on Jack." I swallow hard and look away from her. I make my way towards the bar and notice there are only a few people finishing up. Hannah and Ashleigh are more than halfway done with their closing duties so I'll be able to head out of here soon. Part of me wants to call Maggie once I leave here and find out what really went down, but another part of me wants Jack to tell me. We haven't even been together a week and I am already wondering what all my boyfriend is hiding from me.