Sleepless Nights

Chapter 1

It was a slow night at the bar, with only a few stragglers still ordering drinks. The soft purple lights seemed to blur the hard edges that were usually present under the typical EDM lights when the bar was packed. It made everything look ethereal, slightly dream-like.

Brendan liked this time the best. There were no foolish drunks or large crowds to deal with. It was too bad the bar would only be like this for an hour before closing.

He sighed. It was only an hour before 2 AM, an hour before closing. An hour before he had to walk down the empty streets to his empty house, only to stay up until his body decided to quit. It made him want to hold onto quiet moments like these even more.

His phone vibrated, disturbing him from his reverie.

Hey, come meet us when you're off work! We staying up ALLL NIGHT😎 And we know how much you like that😋😋

Brendan smiled, fingers over his keyboard, thinking of what to reply with. But before he could respond, someone walked through the door.

Brendan quickly put away his phone, easily slipping into his friendly bartender smile.

His new customers were obviously incredibly drunk, barely being able to reach their barstools. They were also very good looking.

The woman had long brown hair that had highlights and lowlights and all kinds of things to make it look like she'd just come off a magazine cover. She was tall and thin like one too, with a pretty face to top it all off.

But she wasn't the one Brendan was paying attention to. No, the one who had him enraptured was the man to the left of the woman.

His black hair swept upwards, not a single glossy strand blocking his face. And what a face it was! Thick, dark eyebrows curved over green eyes that had a slight tilt, hinting at Asian descent. High cheekbones and a straight nose sealed the deal for Brendan. He was smitten!

Brendan realized he was practically undressing the man with his eyes and once again slipped into his bartender role.

"What would you like to drink?" Brendan asked, making sure his eyes didn't linger for too long on the man.

The man, however, had no qualms about staring. His jade eyes looked fixedly at Brendan's grey ones, causing him to feel a little out of breath.

Come on Brendan, he said to himself. So what if this guy's hot? Get yourself together and be professional!

He hoped his face wasn't showing all of his thoughts.

"Damien, what should we drink?" The woman asked, her words slurring. She was obviously drunk, but with Damien, it was harder to tell. His eyes were completely clear and Brendan felt as though he were drowning within their depths-

Gosh darnit, not again Brendan!

"Why don't we have our bartender recommend something?" Damien replied, his eyes never leaving Brendan's.

It was a bit unnerving, but Brendan pushed past his feelings. It had been a long time since a customer had affected him in this way.

"Personally, I'd recommend a glass of water, a nice meal, and some good rest for you two," Brendan said. He was proud that his voice came out completely steady.

"That's boooring!" The woman exclaimed, rocking around in her chair. Damien wrapped his arm around her waist to keep her from falling off the chair.

"Let's just have a simple gin and tonic," Damien said.

Brendan nodded, happy that his hands finally had something to do.

He quickly made their drinks, placing one in front of each of them.

He did a quick scan of the bar. The only people left were him, Damien, and that woman.

His eyes met Damien's.

Scratch that. It might as well have been just Brendan and Damien. The woman was in a world of her own, giggling into her glass.

"What's your name?" Damien asked, giving Brendan a mysterious half smile.

Brendan couldn't help the shiver that went through his body.

"Until this bar closes, to you, I'm just Bartender," Brendan responded.

He started to wipe down the counter. Damien's gaze was getting to be too much for him.

"And what time does this bar close?"

Brendan took a peek at Damien. He was still staring intensely at him.

"In 10 minutes," Brendan said. He felt a mixture of relief and regret at having to say goodbye to this guy shortly.

"Damien," the woman exclaimed suddenly. "Kiss me."

Damien obliged without hesitation, going in tongue and all.

Brendan took out his phone to avoid looking at the extreme PDA. Only 5 minutes till closing.

Tell me where you guys are

He responded to the text his friend has sent earlier.

We're at Pace. It's TURNT up in here!!!

Make sure you stay there!

Ok. See you soon!

Brendan collected Damien's and his girl's cups, taking them into the kitchen.

Davey, the chef and janitor, was smoking a cigarette.

"What has everyone told you about smoking Davey?"

The balding 40-something year old took the cups from Brendan's hands, cigarette hanging from his lips.

"I have no idea. If we ain't talkin' bout booze, I have no interest in conversing," he grumbled while walking the cups.

Brendan chuckled. The man was proud to be slowly killing himself, one cigarette at a time.

"You gettin' ready to leave?"

"Yep," Brendan said.

Davey grunted back and Brendan took that as his cue to leave.

Damien and that woman were already gone as Brendan left the bar. He couldn't help but feel disappointed at not having had Damien's eyes pierce his soul one more time before he left.

Oh well. Brendan could forget all about those uncanny eyes at the club. Or at least try.

Hello reader! Thank you for reading my story! Although I know this story won't be popular, that just makes me even more grateful for those that do read it. So don't forget to comment and vote!