VIBE

【3】【8】

It's now been a few weeks and as the last call announcement sounds out, Nikki begins to wipe down her station and get things cleaned up.

Looking up, she sees a woman that she's fairly certain she's been intimate with in the past but has no recollection of her name, which is not all that surprising being as though she's guilty of having bedded a large variety of shapes and sizes in her time.

"What can I get you?"

"The least you could do is remember my drink after the night we spent together."

Nikki looks her over and takes a guess, "Bikini martini, hold the cherry?"

The woman smiles and nods, "I knew you'd remember me."

Nikki gets to work making the drink combining the rum, vodka, pineapple juice and splash of grenadine, shaking it lightly with some ice before straining and pouring the contents into a chilled glass and adding the garnish, sans cherry to the top. As Nikki sets the glass down on the bar in front of the woman, her arm is grabbed and she immediately reacts.

"Let go!"

"Oh, come on, Nikki; you know you want me. You've been watching me all night."

"Give me my arm back or I'm going to signal security and have them escort you out and ban you from here." She lets go of Nikki's arm. "Now, I would suggest you call an Uber, while finishing your drink away from the bar and then leave."

"Don't be like that, we had fun together."

"Read the signs; I'm not available! Now, will that be cash or charge?" Nikki grits her teeth and continues to do so as the woman fades into the crowd after paying her tab.

"You good, Nik?"

Nikki turns towards Ian and nods. "I'm okay."

"You sure?"

Nikki nods and gets back to doing her clean up routine, now, with visions of Kristie clouding her thoughts and feelings. She wonders where the woman she's love is and how she's doing and if she's already moved on.

Meanwhile a few long blocks away in the big city, Kristie is collecting her jacket from coat check after spending the evening out with Steph, her girlfriend Erin and some mutual friends, drinking and dancing.

Kristie hugs them and puts on a fake smile as she speaks about getting together soon. An arm wraps around her waist and she leans her head on Steph shoulder and mop of hair. "Thanks for getting me out tonight, Steph; I'm sorry that I wasn't better company."

"I'm sure no one but me noticed."

Kristie rolls her eyes, "Probably, because I paid for the first two rounds."

"Yeah, well, you gotta spend that US dough on something, so why not on your friends."

"You want to know something?"

"I know, you miss her."

Kristie nods, "There's no comparing her drinks with the ones I had tonight, not to mention, I had to ask twice for extra olives; Nikki just does that instinctively."

"I offered you the chance to go to Vibe, but you said no."

"I'm trying to respect her need for time and space. More than a little tired of getting myself off when I know if nothing else, she'd be down for a quickie. It's bad, Hoodrat; I've never been one to need sex, but even thinking about her makes me throb."

Steph laughs, "Sorry, Kratch, but, that's one problem you're going to have to sort on your own because I'm fairly certain Er would have my tits if I offered to help."