It was a very, very, slow Monday night. Although I was the man in charge, I took the bar shift so my friend Phil could go to a concert he had looked forward to for months. There was no one in the place except me, the new waitress Pam, and the new money asshole, John.
The thing about John was that he made his money the old fashioned way, he inherited it. To be fair, that wasn't quite true. He inherited a couple of dormant oil wells from his late dad, and when the technology for drilling improved, what was dry became wet again and started spewing black gold. It didn't change the fact that money or not, he was a major tool, and I took an immediate dislike to him, and he to me. The only problem was that my boss did some business with him, so I had to watch my mouth and hold my tongue.
Pam was the new girl on the floor. She had only been there for a week, and you could tell she had not been in the real world very long. Sarah, Kay, and the rest of my staff were very protective of her, and if anyone got handsy or crude with Pam, the girls would set them straight. Tonight however, she was alone on the floor and fending for herself. It was also the first time she and I had worked together one on one.
Pam was just a shade under six feet tall, with honey blond hair, at least a 38c chest, and legs to die for. She tried to hide it, but her natural assets could not be hidden. She was an aspiring artist, still in school, and being a waitress on the side for extra cash.
It was getting late. I was cleaning up and getting ready to close. A-hole John was holding court with a couple of friends when all of a sudden I heard a loud burst of laughter from their table and Pam came running toward me at the bar. When she got to me, she was crying hysterically, gasping for air, and her makeup was running down her eyes.
"What the fuck? I asked. What happened?"
Pam shook her head no and continued to cry, not willing to say what happened. I gave her a minute to compose herself and tried again.
"It's okay. I said softly. Tell me what happened over there."
Pam took a moment and gathered herself. Then she told me. "I was trying to be nice to John, and I made some conversation with him and his friends. It seemed fine for a few minutes. Then I asked if they wanted more drinks. They said sure. But when I tried to clear the glasses off his table, John tried to reach under my skirt and grab me. Then he told me he wanted to turn me upside down, and eat me like a watermelon."
With that, she broke down again. I took her hand for a minute, and then told her to go get cleaned up and to go home. I told her not to worry, I'd take care of it and I would see her on the weekend.
"Don't quit. I said. We really like you around here and I'll straighten this out."
She gave me a look like her heart was torn in two. I waited until she left and went over to John's table. I thought I would have calmed down by this point, but remembering the look on Pam's face just got me madder and madder. I had a cocktail tray in my hands just in case. After all it was three guys and me.
John looked at me all bleary eyed and asked, "Where the hell are our drinks, and where is Pam? I sure as hell don't want to look at you serving us."
I responded with a menacing glare and tone and said, "You're done drinking. Now get the fuck out of my bar right now."
He gave me a look of disbelief before responding.
"Fuck you." he yelled. Who the fuck do you think you are talking to me that way? I'll tell Frank what you said to me, and you'll be out of a job in the morning, you piece of shit."
"Maybe. I said back to him, But you'll be calling him from the hospital if you're not out of here in ten seconds. One... two..." And with that I put my eyeglasses on the table and squared off.
He got up, and I thought we were going to go, but he threw a hundred on the table and left with his friends, cursing under his breath and staggered away.
I knew there was going to be hell to pay the next day, but at this point I didn't give a shit, I just wanted to get home, spark one up, and calm down.
Surprisingly, I didn't get a phone call in the morning, so I went in for my regular shift on Tuesday night. I got there fifteen minutes early, knowing Frank would be there and my job was on the line.
When I walked in Frank was seated on a bar stool, with an expectant look on his face. He said nothing and waited for me to start. I took a deep breath and I told him what happened word for word, including the part where I told John I would put him in the hospital.
Frank looked at me for a minute and said, "Well, you've got balls, that's for sure. Didn't you think I would fire you?"
"Sure. I said. But would like your girlfriend to be talked to that way and grabbed like that or would you kill the guy?"
"Good point. He said. Still, I do business with the little prick, and this is going to make it tougher. He thought it over for a minute and added, fuck it. I've got something he needs, and it's about time someone straightened him out. Just don't make a habit out of it, all right?"