Star Struck(1/?)
I surveyed the bar room from behind the bar. There were two places you could be, behind the bar, and in front of the bar, there was no way to be on both sides of the bar. Oh, but I was going to try anyways. The many tables were filled with strangers; I hadn’t seen most of them. Most of them were young, probably out looking for a good time, I supposed. It was a slow night; a few regulars lined the bar before me, except the one at the middle of the bar, at a glance I didn’t think I’d seen him before.
“Did you hear about that storm? Damn thing ripped up trees across the city, power lines down, man the damage it did.” The conversations between the many patrons could become monotonous. By the 50th time in a night I’d heard the same story, I was already bored. So instead of listening I merely moved down the bar onto the next new patron, after all it wasn’t like they were talking to me, most times the talk was among themselves.
“What can I getcha honey?” When I looked up at him, I almost dropped the glass in my hand. I knew that face, knew it well, and the voice that answered, had lulled me to sleep a many times before. He wouldn’t know it of course, but there wasn’t an episode of the show I’d missed. I was starting to regret the honey, now.
“Black and Tan, and if you keep your cool and don’t blow my night out there’s a nice tip in your future.” Well there went calling my best friends and letting them know I was serving a celebrity, I supposed. Not that they’d believe me anyways.
“Can do, but I might make a suggestion, and that’s move to the end of the bar. The mirror behind me isn’t going to keep it on the down low, besides there’s never anyone at that end of the bar.” He had a fairly decent plan, sit with his back to everyone but the bar tender, but yet the reflection in the mirror wouldn’t help him out any.
For a minute he seemed to be debating what I had just said before he flashed me a smile and his chocolate colored eyes lit up. “You have a valid point there; besides, they said something about a pretty little bar tender singing tonight, might be easier to see from there. Those are their words, not mine by the way.” He nodded in the direction of a couple of the regulars, who by now could tell the schedule for the night in their sleep. It was true; I was indeed going to sing that night or well was until now. The song that I normally sang was one I had written, but I’d never done it with the subject in the room. Tonight was about to get really interesting.
“What you don’t think I’m pretty?” The words had escaped my lips before I could stop them. Well, way to play it cool Stephanie, wonderful now here I was letting on to the fact that I really was interested in him. I picked the mug up setting it on the bar; I wouldn’t get to hear the answer because Johnny wandered over.
“Hey Steph, you’re on in 5, I’ll take over here for you and you can go get things set with the band.” Part of me wanted to stay, and yet I willed myself away from the bar heading for the stage where the boys were just looking over the music again.
“Change in plans boys.” I said glancing back to the bar to realize Nicholas had moved as I had suggested. “But it’s the music I dropped off for next week.” I ignored the grumbles and groans of the drummer and bass guitarist as they realized they had almost no work to do. There was no way I could do mine, not with him here, I’d only just written it, I wouldn’t début it with him around.
“Charlotte Church’s, Crazy Chick?” The lead guitarist, Kevin, asked as he flipped through the music.
“That’s the one, besides if you guys were listening and had looked over the music like I told you to, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.” I remembered dropping the music off to them a week before saying I wasn’t really sure which one I was doing so look at them both just to be on the safe side.
“You also said you were probably going to do the one that you wrote.” Kevin spoke up. “But we did look this one over a couple of times and it didn’t sound too bad so I think we’ll be alright. Ready to rock?”
“As ready as I’m ever going to be.” Glancing down at my hands, I realized I was actually shaking for once, wonderful, now my nerves decided to kick in. I’d done this at least fifty times and still tonight was different. Perhaps it was the fact that one of my biggest idols was in the room, yea I suppose that could do it. This is it; it’s now or never though so, let’s get to getting. Picking up the mike, I took a deep breath, before raising it towards my lips still trying to ignore the smirking face at the back of the bar. “I know a lot of you have heard I was doing an original tonight, but I had a sudden spark of inspiration tonight while I was standing at the bar and so I’m going to play with it and keep it around till next week. So instead, I’m going to give an old favorite a try, and I hope you enjoy it.” The smirk had disappeared from his lips, but he was still intently watching. “Without further ado, Charlotte Church’s, Crazy Chick.”
I was just getting ready to chicken out when the boys let into the opening riffs, “I think I’m gonna need some therapy, Oh babe I hope you've got a PhD, Won't you let me on your leather couch, I've got a lot I need to talk about, I think I’m crazy think I’m stupid, Must have lost my mind, Wonder what I’m thinkin' lovin' you, 'cause boy if you were mine, I'd really go insane, You'd be my favorite thing, I'd go ballistic, Yeah you're making me a crazy chick.” Well at least I hadn’t managed to forget the lyrics in this nervous mess I had turned into, now to have a little bit of fun with it.
Stepping towards the edge of the stage I began to move with the music, letting it take me to places I wasn’t sure I’d been before. “You've really done it this time, You know you're twisting my mind, You got me acting like a whacked out chick, So I won't be responsible, 'cause I’m really not logical, No I won't be to blame, You know I’m really not sane.”
That was where Kevin came to join me at the edge of the stage, he’d been in a band the five years I’d known him, and really the thing he enjoyed most was getting attention. He’d wanted me to join them, they were still searching for a singer, but for between school and the two jobs I held down, I didn’t have the time. So instead I sang once a week with them here, Watching him it took everything I could do not to laugh, because if I got started laughing I wouldn’t be able to finish the song out. I’d actually forgotten about the butterflies that I’d been fighting inside, and was beginning to have fun with it.
“You're drivin' me to insanity, All the things you do, You make me come unglued, I just can't help myself, I need professional help help, I need professional help, You're drivin' me to insanity, All the things you do, You make me come unglued, I just can't help myself, I need professional help help, I need help.” As the last few notes rang out, I pulled the mike away, there would be no applause, but that was normal. At least I’d done it, looking up I shook my head, there was that grin again. God I was falling for him, and I didn’t really even know him. I knew the man he portrayed on TV but I didn’t know this person.
Another look told me Johnny was beginning to get impatient at the bar, alright, time to get back to work. Wandering over to the edge of the stage I hopped off heading back for the bar. Weaving through the tables I finally slipped behind the bar. “Alright, I’m back Johnny you can go back to the office.”
“Just remember I hired you on to bar tend, not to sing, don’t ever get that confused.” Johnny shot back as he brushed past me headed for the backroom.
I bit my tongue trying my hardest not to say what I was really thinking, if I was going to pay my rent on time, and get through school, I needed this job and needed it bad.
A quick survey told me, that while the bar was pretty much empty despite Nicholas and a couple of regulars down at the other end, the cleaning alone was going to do me in. Might as well get started, I supposed. Grabbing a tray from under the bar, I began to pull glasses off the bar, after filling the tray I headed for the kitchen with it. Lost in my own little world as I headed back for the bar having left the tray, I almost jumped out of my skin when I felt something grab hold of my arm.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to spook you.” Nicholas’ voice seemed genuine, he hadn’t really meant it. How could he after all? It wasn’t like he could possibly know that I had recently dated an abusive “man”.
“No, no it’s ok; can I get something for you?” I wasn’t so much spooked anymore, having realized who it was that had grabbed me but now I was curious as to why he had done so.
“No, I just wondered, do you always let him talk to you like that?” He asked watching me with those cocoa colored eyes of his. “I mean, I’ve met a lot of ass holes but man, he takes the cake. He’s got something in you, you could be a star one of these days and yet he treats you like you’re the dirt he walks on.”
“I try not to let Johnny get to me to much.” I offered with a tiny shrug, “Gotta make money somehow and this just happens to be about the only way I can manage it.” There was no way he wanted to listen about my money troubles after all, we didn’t know each other from anywhere and he didn’t want to listen to the bar wench go on and on about her money troubles.
“Hey, don’t think that. You’re a pretty girl, you’re a talented girl, I’m sure there’s a lot of places that would take you in and not treat you like that.” He reached out to touch my shoulder but I recoiled instead. The last time a hand had been extended in my direction it had been to slap me. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright; I just don’t like being touched.” In the back of my mind though I added, especially by men and even more so men that I don’t know. Yet part of me was still head over heels for him. Part of me wouldn’t have minded letting him touch me, but I couldn’t give in to that side, no way. The last man I had let into my life had used that to his advantage and kept the upper hand over me until I’d left him. Even now though, there was the possibility that he might show up again, despite the restraining order I now held against him.
“Hello?” His voice brought me back again.
“Huh?”
“I said, there must be a reason for that. If it’s your boss hitting you that’s a good enough reason to leave here now. Man, I’d beat any man that dared to lay a hand on a woman in a disrespectful manner.” I watched his eyes for a minute and let out a small sigh.
“No, it’s not Johnny. Listen I don’t really want to talk about it.” Especially not with someone I’d just met.
“Alright, understandable, so how long have you been singing?” He was either into me, just trying to be nice or he knew the ex and was out to get information for her. The latter of the options didn’t seem like a viable one though, especially not seeings as my ex was a drug dealer. Then again this was LA and no matter how you spun it, strange things happened every day, which was something I had learned very early on in bar tending. For tonight though, no matter what, even if I had to force myself to believe it, Nicholas was a regular person, he wasn’t the man he portrayed in an hour long drama one night a week or any other person I had once seen. Just an every day average man, and as I had realized before, a man I was falling for.
Glancing at the clock a sigh escaped from my lips, I still had another hour left before I could go home. “I started singing when I was 6 but this is really the first place I’ve done it in public.” I shrugged off the possibility that he and my ex might be connected in some way. If that were the case, I’d take it as it came.
“So you’re a regular headliner then?” He seemed genuinely interested in my life, but I’d still only just met him and his intentions were not completely clear.
“I guess you could say that, if you call a song a week headlining. But it’s better than nothing I guess.” He was another patron to the bar; I forced myself to remember that, not a celebrity, not someone I knew anything about. “So what brings you here?” It was my turn to ask the questions now.
“I used to venture in here when we were first taping, before the genius owned it.” He had to be referring to Johnny that was all I could figure. “So I decided to investigate and see how the new owner was treating it. He’s a real moron I see, but the rest isn’t too bad, the bar tenders sweet.”
“Again, so you wouldn’t call me pretty?” I was going to get that answer yet.
“No, I wouldn’t call you pretty.” Nicholas responded watching me all the while as he did. I felt like someone had stabbed me as I watched him. I was fighting tears and so lost in thought that I almost did hear him when he continued. “I think you’re beautiful.” I had already fallen for him, was it in fact possible that he was falling for me?
“Do you always refer to women in this way or are you merely making an exception for me? Better yet do you always to see if we’ll cry before you finish what you’re going to say?”
“I’m sorry you’re right that was mean. And no I don’t always compliment women like that, I’ve worked with some that I wanted to drop a bag over their heads rather than kiss them, man.” Nicholas shook his head, and the look on his face said he was completely serious.
At that I couldn’t help but giggle, it was perhaps the first time in a couple of weeks I had actually even smiled.
“There! See, isn’t life more fun when you laugh at it? I’m Nicholas by the way, but I’m sure you already knew that. I don’t believe I caught your name though.”
“Stephanie.” No formal introduction was needed, after all this was a bar, and we may never see each other again, he didn’t need my last name and he hadn’t given his.
“Stephanie hey? That’s a very pretty name for a very beautiful woman.” He responded. I couldn’t help but shake my head, the alcohol was beginning to talk it seemed like. “Ya know I can’t say that I’ve ever seen it this dead in here on a Friday night.”
“Been like this since I started working here about a year ago.” I responded shrugging. “Johnny keeps saying that he’ll find something to bring in the people but that doesn’t seem to be working for him.”
“If you ask me, he’s already got something that’ll bring people in, and I don’t mean his wonderful attitude.” Nicholas shrugged as he looked at me.
“Yea well, there are some things that you can’t change and this happens to be one of them if you ask me.” I yawned glancing at the clock. “But if you’ll forgive me, it’s time for me to head for home and crawl into bed. Seven thirty tomorrow morning comes much too early.”
“You work here until one in the morning and then you get up again at seven thirty?” Nicholas asked as he watched me for a minute. “At least let me walk you to your car. There’s no way I could let you walk out alone, god only knows what could be out there.”
“Yea, I work two jobs, get off at one, go home and take a nap normally and then two days a week I’ve got class when I get up. As for an escort out to the car, I’ll be alright, thanks though. Listen it was nice meeting you, really nice in fact.” While I was excited to be going home, I wasn’t so excited to be leaving him; after all it was hard to say if I’d ever see him again let alone when.
“It was nice meeting you as well, wonderful talking to you. Maybe I’ll swoop through one of these days and surprise you hey?”
“That’d be nice.” I responded before grabbing my jacket from behind the bar pulling it on. “I guess this is good bye.”
“Good bye.” He responded watching me as I headed for the door. Once I was outside though I began to rethink his offer to walk me to my car. Oh well, how many times had I done it before? Nothing was going to jump out and grab me tonight either.
Finally reaching my car I pulled open the door but stopped hearing something. Looking around I couldn’t find anything though, however all of a sudden something hit me in the back of the head. The last thing I remembered seeing before I slipped into unconsciousness was my ex’s face towering above me. I was going to die, that was pretty much decided.