can’t stand him, you sure do bring him up an awful lot. I mean, I’ve only known you a half of a day and his name has come up, what, five times?” She looked over at Brian for confirmation, who smirked as he nodded.
“She’s right, thou dost protesteth and all that garbage.”
“Whatever, bitches.” I put my two hands up in a ‘W’ with my thumbs touching. Brian coughed and put an ‘L’ shape with his left hand on his forehead. I shook my head at him and decided to not point out to him that he had it all backwards and managed to fail at the late 1990’s.
“So, you’ve never been here before, Lynnie?”
My new friend shook her head slowly, eyes still wide as she looked around the room.
“How about you, Brian, is this your Karlson’s cherry pop?”
His surprised laughter made my lips curl in a smile.
“Nope, definitely not, but I have to say this is the first time I’ve been here on a date with two gorgeous women at once.”
Lynnie let out a very unladylike snort at this comment, which made me love her all the more. I looked at her a little more closely, studying her while she observed the room in her excitement.
She had changed her headscarf to a more ‘hippie chick’ type of pattern, a bit psychedelic but somehow it worked with her. I couldn’t help but wonder what she would look like without it. Would the liveliness seem to dim from her eyes if I saw her head naked and bared to me? Would the fear that I imagine must live in her heart show on her face if I didn’t see her in her cancer battle gear.
She turned at that moment and caught me staring at her head pensively and gave me a slightly sad smile, before letting the light back in.
“I- I was just admiring your scarf.”
The look on her face told me that she knew it was a half-truth, but she shrugged it off and made like she was fluffing her hair.
“Oh, this old thing?”
We laughed as she batted her eyes and struck a 1930’s pinup girl pose, complete with the cheeky pout. The serious moment was over, time to get on to the fun.
“Karyn, you obviously have been here before, how often do you come?” Brian took a long draw from his beer.
I chuckled.
“The day I turned twenty one I came here. I had heard of this place from my journalism professor, and I had managed to build it up in my mind, bigger than Buckingham Palace. As I saw it, this was where news was written, stories were made, and legends created.”
As I was talking, I could see myself a year ago bursting through the doors proudly clutching my identification in my hand, hoping to be carded that night. Hoping to be a part of this place that I thought would be incredible. I saw myself as I was then, naïve, young, excited. I had looked around, taking in the décor… or lack thereof. I remember a brief wave of crushing disappointment filling my soul. But then, I looked toward the center of the room and I had a total fangirl moment seeing Jim McKenna chatting with his friends. That was the day I had ‘met’ him.
“I come at least weekly. Not for the watered down beer or shit food, but because I just love the feel of this place. I love the buzz of excitement. You should have been here in November around election time. Holy crap, I thought this place was going to spontaneously combust from all the crazy energy.”
My two new friends glanced around the room one last time, enjoying the feeling of being here. All three of us knowing we had a long way to go until we moved to the center of the room, but looking forward to that journey together.
chapter nine.
“ I ’m telling you, we’re going to go all the way again this year.”
Brian punctuated this statement with a fist in the air.
I rolled my eyes at him and shook my head while looking over at Lynnie.
“Seriously, how many years have you said those very words at the beginning of the baseball season only to have your hopes and dreams dashed by July.”
We were walking to the T, shivering in the cold that
“She’s right, thou dost protesteth and all that garbage.”
“Whatever, bitches.” I put my two hands up in a ‘W’ with my thumbs touching. Brian coughed and put an ‘L’ shape with his left hand on his forehead. I shook my head at him and decided to not point out to him that he had it all backwards and managed to fail at the late 1990’s.
“So, you’ve never been here before, Lynnie?”
My new friend shook her head slowly, eyes still wide as she looked around the room.
“How about you, Brian, is this your Karlson’s cherry pop?”
His surprised laughter made my lips curl in a smile.
“Nope, definitely not, but I have to say this is the first time I’ve been here on a date with two gorgeous women at once.”
Lynnie let out a very unladylike snort at this comment, which made me love her all the more. I looked at her a little more closely, studying her while she observed the room in her excitement.
She had changed her headscarf to a more ‘hippie chick’ type of pattern, a bit psychedelic but somehow it worked with her. I couldn’t help but wonder what she would look like without it. Would the liveliness seem to dim from her eyes if I saw her head naked and bared to me? Would the fear that I imagine must live in her heart show on her face if I didn’t see her in her cancer battle gear.
She turned at that moment and caught me staring at her head pensively and gave me a slightly sad smile, before letting the light back in.
“I- I was just admiring your scarf.”
The look on her face told me that she knew it was a half-truth, but she shrugged it off and made like she was fluffing her hair.
“Oh, this old thing?”
We laughed as she batted her eyes and struck a 1930’s pinup girl pose, complete with the cheeky pout. The serious moment was over, time to get on to the fun.
“Karyn, you obviously have been here before, how often do you come?” Brian took a long draw from his beer.
I chuckled.
“The day I turned twenty one I came here. I had heard of this place from my journalism professor, and I had managed to build it up in my mind, bigger than Buckingham Palace. As I saw it, this was where news was written, stories were made, and legends created.”
As I was talking, I could see myself a year ago bursting through the doors proudly clutching my identification in my hand, hoping to be carded that night. Hoping to be a part of this place that I thought would be incredible. I saw myself as I was then, naïve, young, excited. I had looked around, taking in the décor… or lack thereof. I remember a brief wave of crushing disappointment filling my soul. But then, I looked toward the center of the room and I had a total fangirl moment seeing Jim McKenna chatting with his friends. That was the day I had ‘met’ him.
“I come at least weekly. Not for the watered down beer or shit food, but because I just love the feel of this place. I love the buzz of excitement. You should have been here in November around election time. Holy crap, I thought this place was going to spontaneously combust from all the crazy energy.”
My two new friends glanced around the room one last time, enjoying the feeling of being here. All three of us knowing we had a long way to go until we moved to the center of the room, but looking forward to that journey together.
chapter nine.
“ I ’m telling you, we’re going to go all the way again this year.”
Brian punctuated this statement with a fist in the air.
I rolled my eyes at him and shook my head while looking over at Lynnie.
“Seriously, how many years have you said those very words at the beginning of the baseball season only to have your hopes and dreams dashed by July.”
We were walking to the T, shivering in the cold that
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