Bar Stool

I’ve never been one to go out drinking. Jake, my boyfriend, is usually the one to go to the bar with his buddies.

However, after the day I had just experienced, it was finally my turn to convince him to go out. We decided that it would be best not to visit his usual spot, so we opted for a quieter place, a bit farther from the central hub of downtown activity. I didn’t feel like dealing with crowds.

Unfortunately, since it was a Saturday, even the less crowded places were going to be fairly rowdy. Dirk’s Dive was no exception.

We walked in and were immediately bombarded by the smell of beer and cigarette smoke. A man on a stage to the right was singing a slightly off key rendition of “Sweet Child of Mine.” A group of people were on the floor in front of him, cheering him on.

Jake and I headed for the bar, where he ordered his usual. “A vodka martini,” he said. “Shaken, not stirred.”

Not caring about taste tonight, I ordered a Bud Light. “You watch too many Bond movies,” I told him as I sipped it.

He laughed at me. “Oh, and I was going to go up there and sing “Skyfall,” he said. I stuck my tongue out at him in response.

He raised his eyebrows. “Fine,” he said. “I’ll do it just to spite you.” He smirked as he took his drink and went to sign up.

No sooner had I finished my beer and ordered another one than a guy took Jake’s stool next to me. “Put that one on my tab, Dirk,” he said in a voice that was charming and knew it.

Dirk raised an eyebrow at me and I shook my head. “No thanks, stranger,” I said. “I can pay for my own drinks.” I could hear Jake mucking up the intervals in “Skyfall’s” chorus behind me. I got up with my beer. “Excuse me,” I said as politely as I could.

The guy’s hand shot out and grabbed my arm. “Now don’t be like that, baby,” he said in the same annoyingly confident voice that now had a slight edge to it. “I’m just trying to be friendly here. You won’t like it if I have to get mean.”

I looked calmly from his hand on my arm to his face. My eyes darted quickly to Dirk, who had moved down the bar to help another patron. I set my beer down on the bar and smiled sweetly at my attacker.

I gently put my hand on the one clutching my arm. His eyes softened along with his grip. “All right then,” he said. “Now we can AAGH!” He let out a shrill shriek as I suddenly twisted his hand, hard. I heard a crack somewhere in his wrist.

“You’re psycho!” he yelled at me, cradling his injured hand to his chest.

“Nobody touches me without my permission,” I said, still smiling sweetly at him. He gave me one frightened look and then headed off toward the bathroom at a sprint, trying to hold his arm steady. Dirk nodded at me in approval as I picked up my beer again.

“You okay, babe?” said Jake, coming up behind me and putting his arm around my shoulders. I raised an eyebrow at him and he stepped back. “Sorry, I forgot,” he said. “Nobody touches my boyfriend without his permission, including me.”

I smirked at him and gulped the rest of the bottle down in one. “Give me one more, Dirk,” I said, belching loudly.

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Hope you've enjoyed the past three weeks of all-original stories! I am now back from training and can make posts regularly again.

For next week, I challenge you to challenge me! Give me the craziest, most out-of-the-box scenario you can come up with! It will become its own story in next week's post.