Our two perspiring glasses sat at the bar, ignorant of our benign conversation. For a fraction of a second I wished to be the ice in that glass, and watching the cool lines of liquid run down the translucent edge of the container, I could feel my own sweat mimicking the action. To be honest, I couldn't come to terms with why I was so nervous. This was just another night. This was the same bar that I had been frequenting intermittently for almost a year. And yet now, now that I was having a bit of success in the sole reason I had decided to start going out to bars, I was at a loss for words and reason. My tongue was thick and my brain was jumbled, words that were usually familiar to me clashing about in the dark space of my mind and coming out foreign.
"Hey," she said, giving me an olive branch. Her eyes were chocolate, her skin cool cream. "You don't have to be so nervous around me. Honestly, relax. You are working me over too much in your mind."
I have to say, this line made things infinitely worse. Great. Now I was not only a man nearing my thirties, stumbling over his own words, but pity had entered into the relationship before we had even left the bar.
"I suppose I'm nervous," I said, scratching the back of my neck.
"Maybe. Am I bothering you? Maybe I'm drunk. Are you drunk?" she asked me.
I shook my head, knowing my body well enough to tell off the familiar feelings. "No. I only had that Long Island and a White Russian. And enough bread for the two of us. Are you?" I asked.
She shook her head. "I'm fine. I think I just need some air," she said.
"Oh, okay," I answered, deflated. I was already reaching for my jacket.
"I mean, you should come along," she said.
I shook my head. What was wrong with me? Get it together! "Right. Right! Okay, let's go," I said.
"You really need to calm down," she said.
"Oh shut up," I said, laughing. She laughed with me. I put a few bills on the counter and helped her slip into her jacket, which was entirely too large for her. There was something picturesque about it. Cute. I pushed the door open and she stepped out into the cool night air, her black leather boots making a comforting sound on the concrete sidewalk. I felt a chill run through me and hugged my arms to my sides. She gave me a faint smile, pulling gently at my arm until I lowered my hand and she threaded her fingers through mine.
Her name was Roxanne. "Roxy?" I asked. She stared daggers at me. I made some quip about being named Roy. Roy and Roxy. Lucky for me she was brave enough to weather my bad humor until we landed on more familiar territory. Our favorite movie was Pulp Fiction. We both drank black coffee. We were both writers. And on and on it went. Roxanne and Roy. The hours in the bar passed quickly, and now we were in the world. The cool breeze moved us along, wandering down the main avenue hand in hand.
"Do you live nearby?" she asked me.
"No, not really. A friend of mine clued me into this bar a little over a year ago. I don't know why I haven't found something closer to my apartment," I answered.
"Well, it's kitschy. I will go out of my way for charm. In fact I'm a good twenty minutes away, at least. A girlfriend from work took me hear one night after a bad break up. Oh man, I don't know why I said that," she said.
"It's fine, don't worry. You can tell me anything you want. If I have any talent at all it's listening," I said.
"Roy. You're being modest. You already told me you are a writer. How long did you say?" she asked, tucking a thread of brown hair behind one ear.
"Oh I think I've been coming up with bad stories since I was a kid. Only recently have I taken it seriously. I have one book on the way, I don't know if it's going to go anywhere. Nothing like yourself," I said.
"Stop," she smiled as she said it, blushing. I knew of her book before I knew of her as a person. Our meeting was chance, and I was only slightly embarrassed that at first I didn't believe her. It was only after she brought a copy of To Thorn and Sighs out of her book bag and gave it to me. Signed it and everything.
"That felt really snobby, I'm sorry," she laughed as I stuffed the book into my jacket pocket.
"No really, it's fine. I'm impressed. I think I read your first book the year after I graduated college. Ever since then I've been working hard myself. It's a tough market," I said.
"It is. Took me years. Is it okay for me to babble on about this? Really, you don't have to humor me. I am pretty easy going," said Roxanne.