Celina's Lover

33- A bar with alcohol

It has almost been a year. A year since she had liked his profile picture. A year since she got rescued from his hands. A year since the problems started and a year since she lost track of herself. It's crazy how one person, one mistake, one date, can change you. Now, Sara's doing my best to keep herself together. Even though she's using the strongest glue she can find it, she can't love. It's like her heart has spilled it all. Every boy she dates, they make her so afraid. They could be the nicest boys on earth, she still can't love them. She can't see past their similarities with Kai. Their hair, their eyes, their smile, their love for animals. They are all the same.

Today was a hard day. Sometimes she has such days where everything hurts. She hadn't slept all night, because of the nightmares and during the day, the only thing she could think about was the man sitting in the corner. Sara worked at a restaurant and during lunch, a man came in for a coffee. He was around 5 foot 6 and he had chocolate Brown eyes. His small pink lips were curled into a slight smile and his hair was styled into a come over. He looked nice, but was a jerk. He kept ordering her around like he was the sun of the universe. Every time their eyes locked, the hairs on her back stuck up. She kept getting this weird feeling that didn't merge well with her lack of sleep. To Sara's bad luck, he stayed for almost two and a half hours. And to add as a cherry on top, Sara had to work a double shift, which meant that she had to work until 6 PM. After her shift she was exhausted. She quickly stopped by a Pizza place on her way back home.

At home everything was quiet. She needed some people around her. After eating her pizza, she walked out the door. For the sake of looking good, she had also put on some makeup and a little less sloppy outfit than her sweatpants and oversized shirt. In light blue jeans and white blouse, she made her way down the street to the bar. The bell above the door greeted her happily as she opened the door. She walked to the bar and sat down on one of those high chairs. 'Can I get a soda and something strong? I don't care, as long as it isn't anything with vodka.' She said to the bartender, who nodded and made her drink. It was a Saturday, so it didn't really matter how much she drank. She didn't have to be anywhere tomorrow anyways.

She just sat there, drinking, looking around as the sadness began to sink in again. The older guy next to her started to make small talk with her, but her social battery was empty. The man, around his sixties eventually gave up once he realised she wasn't interested in a conversation. She ordered two rounds of soda and that strong drink the bartender had been giving her. She had no idea what it was, but it tasted pretty good. Once she drank her second round, the bartender walked up to her and gave her another. 'This is from the woman at the end. Enjoy.' He grinned. A little in shock, Sara looked to the end of the row. The bar was half a circle, which caused an immediate eye contact with Sara and the woman. The little candles and dimmed lights all over the bar made not enough light to fully see her, but Sara could see her big smile.

Sara forced a smile back and raised her glass a little as a thank you. She saw the woman getting up and after a moment she arrived at the empty chair next to Sara. She sat down and stuck out her hand. 'I'm Ivy. I'm sorry, I hope it's okay I bought you a drink. I just wanted to say that I think you're really pretty and all.' She said. She was talking really fast, clearly nervous. Sara didn't really know what to do. 'Sara and thank you, also for the drink.' Sara shook her hand. 'So, what brings you here on a Saturday, all alone?' Ivy continued. 'Long day at work and I'm mostally here for the alcohol.' Sara summarised. 'You?' Ivy's smile grew more mysterious. She stared at her glass. 'Just looking for cute girls to buy drinks for, so they may start liking me too.' She looked over at Sara. 'Really subtle.' She responded, sarcastically. The sound of their glasses bumping together followed. Ivy's smile was contagious. They began to talk. It was like there wasn't an end to their conversation, but Sara didn't mind. After an hour or so, it began to get darker outside.

'It had a fun night with you, but I better get going.' Ivy said, drinking the last sip of her drink. 'Me too.' Sara responded, already a little down that she was leaving. Ivy put her card down on the counter and the man behind the bar closed her tab. She stood up and grabbed her jacket off the high chair. 'Look, I really like you. Would you care for a follow up?' She asked. Sara had already seen this coming. The whole evening Ivy had been hinting on it. She didn't know why she was just accepting it. She didn't even like girls. She wanted to recline her offer. Maybe it was the alcohol or maybe it was the loneliness, but strangely enough the word 'Yes' came out of her mouth. 'Yes.' She even shocked herself. 'Yes, I would love that.' Ivy smiled and signed their tab. After that she ripped off the bottom. She held up her hand, asking for Sara's. She put the paper on her hand and curled up Sara's fingers into a fist. Her hands were warm and creamy. The velvet hand felt as soft as her personality. 'Great. I'll be waiting.' Then she turned around and walked out.

Sara stared at how she walked away on her high heels that made a ticking sound every time she took a step. She caught herself staring longer than she wanted. After Ivy had walked out the door, Sara stared at her hand. Her hand was glowing, still feeling her touch. She opened her hand and saw the grumbled paper with a series of numbers. 'Call me <3' was written underneath it. Sara felt her stomach drop, but in a good way. It had been happening the whole time she had been talking to her. She took a deep breath and turned back to the bar. All of a sudden, she didn't feel like getting drunk anymore. She paid and left.

She walked straight home and let herself fall down on her bed. She stared at the ceiling. She sighed deeply. It was like she had been holding her air since she left the bar. Her brain was a little slurry from the alcohol. Her head was spinning a little. She had no idea how much alcohol those three shots contained, but she began to feel them. She closed her eyes and immediately saw Ivy. She was talking and laughing. Sara could only stare at her lips. They looked so soft and dreamy. She weirdly enough could only think of tasting them, putting her lips against them. It was strange. Until now, she had only thought like that about men, but this was better. It felt safer, like Ivy couldn't transform into something like Kai. Still in her normal clothes, she was slowly easing away into a deep sleep.

Next part: December 14th 2024