Fight-or-Flight

Chapter 1

The last 4 months has probably been exactly what I needed. I needed to slow down and live a quieter life. Though I must admit my current job isn't the quietest place. The surroundings of this life are much more peaceful though. I've never been this much by the ocean before, and I've really learned that the sound of waves and the raw wind gives me room to really think.

"Agnes! Can you help Amelia for a second?" I look back over my shoulder to see Penny in the door.

"Coming!" With one last look at the waves crashing in I turn back towards the bar, and Penny who's holding the door open for me.

"Thanks, I'll be out back when you're done," she says and gives Amelia a kiss on the cheek as she passes her.

"What can I do for you peach?" I say to Amelia when I walk through the door and see her sitting at the bar with her computer in front of her.

"I need to write this essay where we have to come up with a way to get the local politicians' attention on a certain area," she looks at me with a defeated look. "And my area is the school system, so can you help me?" a small hopeful smile spreads on her face. I pull out the chair next to her and sit down.

"Hm let me see... I once came across this campaign overseas where an NGO put out hundreds of chairs on a town square to represent the thousands of students who left behind in the school system," I reached out for her computer to look up some pictures of the campaign. "Look, each chair had a name and age and then the reason behind their large amount of absence from school. Some say anxiety, suicide thoughts, bullying - all reasons for high absence numbers that the school system wasn't doing enough to prevent or help with."

Amelia scrolls through the article and takes it all in. "Wow, this is perfect. I think I can really use this. I knew you could give me something, thank you!" she hugs me from the side, and I get up again to help Penny with unpacking the latest delivery.

"You're welcome!" I yell on my way out back.

Penny had really helped me out since I'd arrived here. When I walked into the bar on my first night, she just welcomed me with open arms. Something in her knew that I needed to be here and to slow down. My life was now about just being here with Penny and Amelia. Some might think having just two people in your life is sad, but I used to have so many different people always needing my attention, so it's incredible to just focus all my time on myself and just two others. On my first night Penny and I really connected and by the third night in a row here I had told her almost my entire life history, and she really understood why it was so important for me to start over in a place like this. Right then and there she asked, if I wanted a job at her bar, the Hard Deck. I almost laughed right in her face. I used to work as a junior advisor for a senator in Washington, and now here I was - being offered a job as a bartender. My life had really taken a turn. I took her up on her offer though and started working behind the bar the next day.
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"What's with all the uniforms?" I ask Penny as I refill another beer for a gentleman sitting at the bar.

"The fighter pilots from Top Gun  are apparently back in town darling. It's gonna get rowdy in here tonight, so stay on your toes," she gives me a wink as she refills also.

"Well, this is gonna be fun then," I laugh.

She serves a man around her own age that I spotted her talking to earlier, even ringing the bell on him. They look very familiar with each other, so I need to ask her about him later. With a glint in my eye I think that maybe there was something she hadn't quite told me about her own history.

"Hey, new girl! Can I get four beers on the old man's tab?" a voice says behind me.

I take a deep breath before turning around. If there's something I can't stand, it's people referring to others as the new girl or new whatever - please just have the respect of saying 'excuse me' or something. Annoyance is coursing through my veins as I turn around, but that doesn't stop a small shock from hitting me when I see the man standing behind the bar. To say that he's handsome is to put it lightly. His khaki navy uniform fits him like a glove. It's clear that he's very well trained and he has very good bone structure too.

"Some manners wouldn't hurt you know," I huff but still pull out four bottles and open them for him.

"Thank you very much. I don't know your name though but I bet it's just as beautiful as yourself," he gives a wink and a blinding smile. I appreciate the compliment, but somehow it seems just a bit too smooth for my liking. He's certainly used that line before, and that's why I serve him an unimpressed look while placing the hand that's not resting on the bar already on my hip. While at it his excuse wasn't even a real one so I still had cause to be annoyed with him.

"Leave Agnes alone Jake. I don't need you scaring away my newest addition to the bar," Penny comes to stand at my side.

"Aw, you want to keep me?" I give her big kiss on cheek and laugh. Though she did just give my name, so she kind of ruined that and the man now otherwise known as Jake definitely catches unto it.

"I knew it. Agnes..." he lets it hang for a bit, sort of like he's tasting the word and sensing how it feels saying it. "I like it, it suits you. Beautiful name for a beautiful woman. Sorry Penny, but I can't do that - you're still favourite bar owner though," he then remarks and picks up the four beer bottles.

He nods his head at me and gives a sly smirk before saying, "thanks for the beers, Agnes," and then he leaves to return to his friends.

"Meet Jake Seresin, fighter pilot under the callsign Hangman. He's a real lady's man and a cocky one too." I listen to Penny as I observe him handing the beers to his fellow aviators standing around the pool table. A woman looks at me quickly while saying something to him. It's still early in the bar so you can still hear a few words being spoken here and there, and I hear her say something about him taking extra-long to get back with the beers. I don't bother to continue to observe or listen in on what he answers her and turn my back to them.

"Definitely cocky. Staying on my toes tonight might be concerning several things," I replied. "I'll keep my distance from that one for sure." Penny furrows her brows at me and gives me a funny smile. "What?" I ask having no idea what she's thinking.

"Nothing, nothing. Let's just get back to the other customers," she laughs and starts serving again not waiting for me.

"You know I won't fall for that kind of stuff, not my type," I state and get back to pouring other customers beers too.

"Will you go check how many kegs are left of the regular draft beer in the storage? This one is getting kind of slow," Penny asks, and I chime with a 'sure' and start moving out from behind the bar and toward the back.

While heading out there I can't keep myself from a sneaking a glance toward the group of pilots. It's doesn't end up as sneaking a glance since that Jake guy is already watching me. Some new guy in a Hawaii shirt has turned up and joined them and him and Jake seem to have just exchanged a few words. Jake doesn't really smile when he catches me looking his way, but I see the corners of his mouth lift slightly in a cocky but charming way. I continue my way towards the back and look away, but I can't help a small smile from forming on my lips when I feel his eyes stay on me until I'm through the doors to the backroom. He might be cocky and seem like somebody you should stay away from, but feeling wanted from a guy again is sort of nice.