The first day I saw him was outside Mission NYC, the club I used to attend at least 3 times a week with my friends. He was leaning up against the wall, smoking a cigarette, watching every person as they stepped inside the club. I barely noticed him at the time because my best friend Courtney was babbling on about some man she met at the bar we had just left. But I saw him, in a glance. And then I saw him again, at the bar, serving drinks to already plastered customers who were dripping in sweat and barely clothed. Courtney and I were standing at the bar, being pushed and poked by a few patrons behind us.
"This place is poppin' tonight!" Courtney yelled over the blasting music coming from the front of the room. The DJ asked everyone to 'pump it up', whatever that meant, and everyone began jumping and screaming. I looked over at her and smiled. "Poppin'?" I snorted and shook my head, she looked at me with the biggest smile, her teeth blindingly bright and perfect. She nodded and began looking around the crowded room. I looked over at the bartender and waved my hand up in the air, hoping to catch his attention. It worked, he immediately saw me and walked over.
"Hey love, what can I get ya?" You could hear his English accent even over the blaring beat.
"Could we get two martinis?" I raised two fingers to help him understand, it's so fucking loud. He smiled brightly and tilted his head a bit. God that man could kill with his smile. "Martinis? At a nightclub? Haven't heard that one yet." He chuckled and started on the drinks. I rolled my eyes and looked back at Courtney who was already staring deep into my soul, even from the back of my head, with a grin. I arched my brow and gestured 'What?'. She shook her head and motioned it towards the bartender. I rolled my eyes once again and turned back to look at him. Our drinks were already on the bartop.
"On the house. Have a good night!" And then he walked away, I paused for a moment watching him walk away, and then I grabbed our drinks. The rest of the night Courtney and I danced and laughed and had the time of our lives, while occasionally going back to the bartender to ask for more drinks. We didn't pay for a single round that night, and I never thought I'd see him again. And gladly, I was wrong.
The morning after the long night at the club, I woke up to the sound of banging on my front door. I groaned loudly and slowly rose from my bed, placing my feet on the hard wooden floor of my bedroom. I ran my fingers through my hair and rubbed my eyes roughly. I groggily stood up and that's when the migraine kicked in.
"Fuck." I grumbled. I lifted my head and then waited a minute so my eyes could adjust to the light shining through the sheer curtains above my bed. The banging continued as I slowly made my way out of my bedroom, through the hallways, and to the front door.
"Could you wait a fucking second?" I yelled out bitterly as I unlocked the door and swung it open. Standing at my door was the bartender from last night. My eyes widened slightly and my cheeks grew red. The reasoning for that was because my pajamas were an oversized T-shirt that had about 59 holes in it, and my spider-man fuzzy pants. I stood there in awe for a minute before I opened up my big mouth.
"Oh hey, how's it going?" I croaked out and cleared my throat. I watched his eyes roam from my face down to my feet and back up. I raised an eyebrow and leaned up against my door frame, crossing my feet at my ankles. He looked back into my eyes, staring right into my soul. He reached into the back pocket of his pants and pulled out my phone. I stood straight up, looked at my phone in his hand, and back into his eyes.
"I left that at the club last night?" I asked puzzled. I honestly didn't remember much of last night, I didn't even remember getting home. His mouth curled up in the corners.
"Yeah, don't you remember?" He asked me with a slightly mocking tone in his voice. The puzzled look on my face stayed the same. "Remember what?" I asked. He motioned to my phone before answering.
"You came up to the bar last night and handed me your phone, while telling me to put my number in it and then immediately going and dancing with your friend." His accent was thick as he was explaining one of the most embarrassing things I had done this year. I gulped and grabbed my phone out of his hand.
"Sorry about that. I was going so hard last night because we were celebrating." As I was talking to him, I walked over to my coffee table and set my phone on it. I looked back over to him, he was looking at me with a questioning look, wanting me to explain the good news. I sighed and motioned my hand for him to come in. He did and closed the door behind him. I usually don't invite men into my house after meeting them once. Well, okay, sometimes I do. But that is beside the point.
"I sold my first painting yesterday, now I can pay this month's rent." I chuckled and walked into my kitchen. My apartment was pretty nice, but it was definitely made for one person, the kitchen and the living room were separated by one half-wall. No dining room and the living room had enough space for a small couch, a tiny coffee table, and a TV that was mounted on the wall.
"That's amazing, congrats love." He said as he sat down on my couch, you don't even wanna know where I got that couch. I'll just say I got it for free. He leaned forward, placing his elbows on his thighs as he continued to watch me in the kitchen. I opened up a cabinet door and pulled out the Tylenol. I popped one into my mouth and swallowed. "Thanks, I hated it but I'm glad someone liked it enough to buy it from me." I chuckled dryly and walked back into the living room. I stood in front of my coffee table and looked down at him.
"But thank you for bringing my phone back, and again I'm sorry for being so embarrassing. I'm usually not that forward." I sighed and glanced down at my feet.
"I highly doubt that." I looked back into his eyes with a puzzled look. "You look like the kind of woman who says what she wants, whenever she wants. I don't think it's a bad thing, It's pretty refreshing honestly." He chuckled and leaned back into the couch. My jaw was basically on the floor because he had just complimented me and he looked like that. I picked my jaw up off the floor and averted my eyes.
"Um, thank you" I paused for a second before he answered.
"Tom." He smiled ear to ear and I did the same back.
"Thank you, Tom." He nodded and swiftly stood up from the couch and walked over to the door. I watched him closely, glancing at his ass before he turned around, then I immediately looked back up to his eyes. He smirked slightly and opened the door, he then turned back to me.
"Text me later, maybe we can go get some coffee when you get dressed." He winked, turned, and walked out the door, closing it softly.
This man is trouble.
