I don’t care. I don’t.
Waitress Cheerleader giggles, loud and bright from behind the bar.
Okay, maybe I care a little.
AJ’s snapping his fingers in front of my face. “Hellooo. Anybody home?”
I blink and take a step back, smacking at AJ’s hand. “Oh, stop.” I gesture slightly, trying not to be rude and point in their direction. “Jake offered to give us a ride home after his shift. I’m wondering if we need to make other plans.”
AJ looks delighted. “You’re into him.”
“Nuh-uh. I only wanna know if we need to walk back.”
“Uh-huh. No, you are. I get it. He’s big, he’s buff. He’s broody. I’ll warn you though, the rumor since I’ve been around is that he never dates. Lotsa women have tried. LeeAnne over there, I don’t know what the story is, but I wouldn’t wanna get your hopes too high for anything serious.”
I shrug and try not to let disappointment work its way in. What is there to be disappointed about? “As soon as I come up with a solution for my car, I’m out of here,” I remind us both.
“And then where to?” AJ puts the puck thing back on his end of the table.
“I don’t know.” This I admit quietly, even in the din of the little bar and grill. “I figured it’d be this road-trip adventure. Me and my guitar. Eventually I’d find a place I like and settle down. Get a job. Play some gigs. Maybe go back to school.” I shrug again, my very mature go-to gesture for when I feel like I ought to have something smart to say, but don’t. “I hit an unexpected road bump early on, that’s all.”
“Well, Joe does Karaoke and open mike nights once in a while. You should talk to him about playing here.” AJ points to a small stage at the far end of the room, near one end of the bar. It hardly looks like it would even hold a full band, but it’s not bad for a solo singer.
Nerves and heaviness grab hold of me. “I don’t know. Maybe. I’m sorta out of practice.” I can’t tell him I’m afraid. I told myself I wouldn’t be. You can’t be a singer who’s afraid to go on stage.
A big body slides up next to me. “Hey, Birthday Girl. What’s this I hear about you playing guitar? You sing, too?”
It’s that big guy from earlier. The handsome one from a few tables over. Jake seemed to know him, but I couldn’t tell if they liked each other. He seems nice enough, but a little drunk.
“I do.” I shrug again, trying to be polite but cautious since I don’t really know him. I wonder how long he’s been standing nearby that he heard our conversation.
“Hey, you’re empty.” The guy reaches around to tap my glass. “Let me buy you and your friend another.”
I look across to AJ as we both make noises of “thanks, but no thanks.”
“Aww, come on.” He bumps his bulky arm against mine. “Be a birthday gift. Gotta let people buy you drinks on your birthday.”
“I have work tomorrow, but thanks for the offer.” There’s not much to worry about. On the weekends, the bakery opens late. I simply do my best to avoid situations where I’m out of control. A couple of drinks is one thing. Bleary-eyed shitfaced is another.
“Actually...” Jake slides up, shrugging a denim jacket over his broad shoulders. “I’m about to give these two a ride home. Joe’s closing up tonight.” He slaps his hands down on Whatshisname’s shoulders, giving him that coach/champ rubdown sort of move for a few seconds. Tall Dude doesn’t seem to like it. “Hey, Dante, I think Timo’s looking for you.”
The guy raises his eyebrows. “Oh yeah? What for?”
“Maybe you oughta go find out.”
This Dante guy looks from me to Jake and AJ. Back to me. Back to Jake. Then he laughs, and I wonder why the rest of us aren’t getting the joke. He grins at Jake though, and takes a few steps away.
I don’t mind him backing off. He seems nice, but I’m weird sometimes about personal space.
“Yeah man,” Dante says. “I’ll go see what he needs.” He turns to me and does a quick grab of my chin, more like a parent touching a child than anything else. “Catch you later on, Birthday Girl.”
Jake motions with his arm and heads for the door, weaving through the packed tables. “Let’s go,” he grumbles over his shoulder.
He seems so agitated that I open my mouth to tell him we can get another ride. Or, by the way, we can hoof it like we’d originally planned. The moon is bright and tons of people are shooting fireworks still. The night is clear. We’ll be as safe as can be, all things considered.