Sabrina stared in the mirror, carefully analyzing the color of her lipstick. She usually wore red, but tonight, she wanted a little bit of a different kind of pop. The fuchsia she'd chosen stood out starkly against her pale skin, making her dark brown eyes look even larger and darker. Glossing on one more layer of the thick lip pencil, she smacked her lips together, wiped the edges of her lips to clean up any smearing, and shook out her short, black hair. Good enough, she thought.
Slipping her feet into the break-neck heels she so loved, she grabbed her purse and headed out the door. It closed with a quiet click and the lock clicked, too, as she slid it home. Satisfied that all was well, she quickly walked the path to her car, got in, and drove off.
She knew that some of the regulars of Buzz's would be in tonight. Samuel and his boys would be at the Buzz's lounge. Sunday night meant after football drinks for him, and he and his boys would crowd the lounge to get away from the sound of the TVs at the sports bars after a long day of watching and hearing them. Shawn would be bartending, and maybe she'd even see a few of her random acquaintances from the neighborhood. Buzz's was quiet on a Sunday, nothing but the patrons and the jukebox humming in the background.
She was pleased to see there was space to park right up front. Sliding her little car into the parallel spot, she slid out, strode to the door, and walked into Buzz's. As always, the smell of fried food and liquor filled the air. The candles off-set the smell some, giving the interior a smoky but pleasant atmosphere filled with whatever musky scent Shawn had chosen this time. Sabrina looked around briefly, marking where everyone was sitting before heading to the bar. She slid onto a stool and waited for Shawn to make his way to her.
"Sabrina! I wasn't sure you'd be coming in tonight," Shawn said as he made his way down the bar to her. "You want your usual bourbon martini?"
Sabrina smiled wide at him, "Yeah, please." Shawn always seemed to remember what the patrons liked to drink, even if they'd only been in once before. It never failed to amaze Sabrina.
As he went to work making her drink, she glanced over her shoulder and around the bar. Sam and his boys were in the back corner, near the bathrooms, as they always were. There were pint glasses scattered about the table in various stages of fullness. She saw that Sam himself was fidgeting with an almost empty glass, tilting it one way then another. As she saw him lift the glass to his mouth to finish the last swallow, she turned back to see that Shawn was setting her drink in front of her.
"They came in earlier than usual tonight. Don't guess the games were going to their liking." he nodded at the boys. "They seem especially argumentative."
Sabrina shrugged, "Eh, wine some, lose some, right?" she sipped at the martini, enjoying the bite of the bourbon. As she set her glass down on the bar, she felt someone come up on her right side. Glancing over, she realized it was Sam, empty glass in hand.
"Shawn, another, please." He placed the glass toward the bartender. Looking over at her, he smiled. "You're Sabrina, right? I think we've chatted here a few times." He smiled, reaching his hand out to her.
"Yeah, we have, Sam." She smiled, taking his hand. They shook. Shawn set a fresh pint down in front of Sam.
"I see you've again made each others' acquaintance," he said. "Not like you aren't both here every Sunday or something." He glanced between the two of them trying to read the energy.
"Yeah, I guess we are both here every Sunday," Sam replied.
"Yup, you with your boys, and Sabrina's usually alone, aren't you, girl?" Shawn ran a rag across the top of the bar as he chatted with them.
"Yeah, usually. My girls don't much like to come out before the work week begins."
"And you do?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, but it helps that I don't work early hours." She smiled at him.
"What do you do?" He slid onto the barstool next to hers, apparently deciding to stay at the bar a bit.
Turning her stool to face him more, Sabrina told him a little bit about her freelance writing work. She really had her own schedule, working when she knew she had a deadline, always enough ahead that she was never rushed, but could work at her leisure, which allowed her to be a night owl.
Shawn stood listening, too, and once Sabrina finished explaining her work some, he interjected, "Doesn't sound too unlike what Sam does. At least not the night owl bit, right, Sam?" He laughed as he made his way to someone down the bar.
"What do you do?" Sabrina asked.
Sam's followed Shawn as he helped the other customer before turning back to Sabrina. "I'm a physical therapist, but I work mostly evening hours to accommodate alternative schedules." He told her a little bit more about his work and how he came to do later hours.
A couple of drinks later, they were still sitting at the bar chatting, with Shawn randomly interjecting comments or observations as he wandered between them and other customers. Sam's boys had left some time earlier, eyeing him speculatively as he told them he was going to stick around more a few more drinks. More than a couple eyed Sabrina appreciatively and winked at Sam with understanding. She and Shawn had exchanged amused glances as they said their goodbyes. Once they'd left, Sam and Sabrina's conversation picked up where it'd been interrupted and kept chatting.
Close to 11:30 Shawn set their last drinks down, as he called for last call. "So, you two going home together or what?" he asked bluntly. Sam and Sabrina looked at each and laughed. "What?" Shawn asked, "You two been sitting here chatting all night. Sam even ditched his boys. Seems something's gotta come of all this talk." He laughed. "I ain't blind. I been standing here talking to you both most the time and you barely even notice what I say, you two are so stuck on each other."
"Jealous?" Sabrina teased.
"Of course. I want Sam to pay as much attention to me, too." He quipped right back, making them both laugh.
"Ah, Shawn, I didn't realize you cared!" Sam rejoined.
"Of course I do! I been serving you beer for how long now? And you don't even look at me the way you look at her." He smiled crookedly at both of them, winking slyly at Sabrina.
"Well, Shawn, you don't have alluringly dark eyes or such a beautifully shaped mouth. Maybe if you put some effort into how you look, I might have noticed you pining away sooner." Sam looked over at Sabrina and smiled.
"Oh, I see how it is. Takes a pretty face to grab your attention, does it? What about all that scintillating conversation we've shared over the years, man, does that mean nothing?" Shawn playfully threw a cocktail napkin at Sam, which he deftly caught and threw back.
"You know I love the witty banter, man, but I think Sabrina may have you beat on that score, too. I don't think I've ever sat this long at the bar before, have I?"
"Ain't that the truth." Shawn sighed, "Not that I blame you. Not only is she a doll, but she's smart as hell and makes her own way in this world. You could do a lot worse, man! Shit, you could have me!" and with that, he made his way, laughing, down the bar to finish serving up the last call drink orders.
Sam watched him, laughing, as he turned back to Sabrina. "Oh man, that guy is funny!" He slapped the top of the bar before grabbing his beer and taking a long swallow.
"Yeah, Shawn's great," Sabrina agreed. She made eye contact with Shawn from across the bar and gave him a slight nod and smile, acknowledging that she recognized what he was doing. He'd always been a great people watcher and knew when to give a push or a nudge to move things right along.
"So, I know we've been sitting here drinking all evening, and I know you don't have to head to work early. Rather than a nightcap, can I treat you to a cup of coffee? My place is right around the corner and I make a mean cup in the French press."
"Yeah, I'd like that." Sabrina smiled.