Two Faced

One

Night with a Stranger

Mature Content

Light jazz music flowed smoothly through the candle lit bar. Talia sipped on her margarita and examined the place as she always did. It became a normal thing for her to go to Barry's every Thursday night. She's been there so many times that Barry, the owner saw her as a little sister.

At first, it was Kaleb who spent most of his time there if he wasn't working or spending time with her. He was the one who would go there every Thursday night. Before, Talia had never liked the place. She thought it was unclassy and spending every single Thursday night at this old joint was a waste of time. She always tried convincing him into not going, or finding a different place to spend his time, but Kaleb had never missed a week.

And now Kaleb was gone, and it was Talia who wasted her time there. After many months of doing so, she finally realized his fixation. It was very relaxing. The bar had become a safe place for her. It was a place where she could clear her mind and forget about the constant pain and loneliness. Often times she found herself watching other people, listening to their conversations. There is so much that goes on in the lives of other people and no one really pays attention. Honestly, listening to the problems of others was way better than watching TV. Talia had seen some deep shit go down in this very bar.

Other times, she rambled on to Barry while he prepared the drinks and meals. She talked about work, and family, and sometimes the conversation would lead to Kaleb. When that happened she found herself drinking way more than she normally did, and Barry had to eventually stop her before she got extremely drunk. After that, she'd pay him whatever she owed, call herself an Uber, and she'd head home and pass out on the couch.

Tonight a woman named Ruth was spying on her boyfriend Brian. She had been coming here for a couple of weeks to spy on him and each time he came he sat with a different woman. Obviously, there was some cheating scandal going on. Ruth was waiting for the perfect time for something to confirm her suspicion so that she could confront him. She was often on the phone with her friend Melissa whispering the details very loudly.

"Man is she stupid, it's pretty damn obvious that he's cheating on her." A deep voice beside Talia broke her concentration. A man with long greasy hair tied into a ponytail grinned at her then took a swig of his corona. "Y'know, I also enjoy eavesdropping into the lives of others, it helps me learn things about people." He said. "And what would that be?" Talia's eyes brightened up.

Human interaction from someone other than her mother, Barry and her coworker Anna.

"Way too many to count. I'd say the biggest thing I learned is that blood isn't thicker than water." he chuckled.

He was cute. Real cute. His voice was really pretty to her. She wanted to hear him talk more. She knew that he wasn't boring like everyone else. She knew that he was similar to Kaleb.

Even if he was the hottest man on Earth, Talia was still hurting. She wanted to heal one hundred percent before getting into dating again. It was nine-year long relationship. The love doesn't just vanish overnight. It had only been four months, so the wound was still very much fresh. This stranger most likely wanted to get into her pants. She wasn't doing to let that happen.

"Yeah you're definitely right about that." Talia giggled nervously. There was silence just for a moment.

"So... what's a pretty lady like you doing here at this time of night, -alone-?" The man asked. Here we go.

"Eh, I'm just bored. I usually come here every Thursday night to have a little drink. Its pretty much the only time that I have during the week for myself. I'm working my ass off every fucking day trying to save up money for a dream, but its like the devil is keeping me from achieving what I want" Talia ranted. Usually, she would feel embarrassed for going on like that, but this was a stranger she didn't care how he felt since she was never going to see him again. Let her heart out and tell him all her of wonderful dirty little secrets. She says that now, but she knew that she could never actually open up about everything. Some things were too painful to talk about, like Kaleb.