Lisa stepped out of the bar into the chilly night. Her coworker, Jisoo, was walking a little ahead of her. Every time she talked to the older woman, her heart raced, and her hands shook. They had been working together for a couple of weeks and got along well, but Lisa wasn't completely honest with her crush. She looked so pretty in the dark blue skinny jeans, black tank tops, and black heeled uniform.
Jisoo thought they both smoked the same kind of cigarettes, so she invited the younger girl out to light one up with her. She thought Lisa was cute, so when she was given the impression they smoked the same thing, she used it as a way to get her alone.
"How's your night going," Jisoo asked. They stopped by the corner of the building, under the light over the backdoor. She was a bartender while Lisa was a new waiter. Taking out a pack of cigs, she found a lighter and put the cancer stick between her teeth. Her dark eyes were focused on Lisa as she lit the end and took a drag. "What one?"
Lisa nervously looked at the pack. Her hands trembled slightly as she took one. Jisoo held up her lighter and lit it. "Pretty good. I have the stripper and middle-aged men section, so I'm getting good tips."
Jisoo nodded. Those types of people typically were the most excellent and the best tippers. "Was Mr. Yoon here tonight?" Lisa nodded and smiled, holding the burning stick between her fingers. She tried to stall for time by tapping the ashes off of it like she had seen Jisoo do. Her fingers stayed by her sides while Jisoo took actually drags. "He was my buddy when I was a waiter."
"He's great. Really friendly."
"Yeah." They stared at each other for a minute, an awkward silence dragging on. "So...are you going to take a puff or think about it for a while?"
Lisa looked down at the mostly gone cigarette. "Oh. Yeah." You can do it, Lisa. Putting the butt to her lips, she took a quick, swallow puff and immediately regretted it. She started hacking the second the smoke got to her respiratory system. Lisa doubled over as she coughed up a lung, eyes stinging as tears welled. Jisoo's eyes widened in shock as she lightly patted the girl's back.
"Lisa, are you okay?" Lisa gave her a weak thumbs-up as she slowly recovered from the assault on her respiratory system. "You...don't smoke...do you?" Shaking her head slowly, Lisa looked at her feet. Her long, honey-brown hair fell over her shoulders as she straightened her back. "Why did you make me think you did?"
"I wanted you to like me," she murmured, face burning with embarrassment. She played with her fingers as her eyes roamed around Jisoo's shoulders. Anywhere that wasn't her face. The older woman's shoulders shook.
"You idiot!" She playfully smacked Lisa's shoulder. "I like you regardless, smoking doesn't matter." She laughed and put out the cigarette on the brick wall. "Look, I'm quitting now. No need to feel pressure to look cool around me." Lisa smiled at her and tucked her hair behind her ear.
"I looked pretty cool coughing up my liver, huh?"
"Very cool. Uber cool," Jisoo teased. "Come on, let's get back to work. Tonight I'll show you the ropes of bartending." Jisoo wrapped her arm around Lisa's shoulders and led her back inside the noisy bar.
