Heart Strings

The Boys From The Bar

NATALIE:

"Happy Monday everyone!" exclaimed Frank. I dropped my head and rolled my eyes. God I swear he spikes his coffee every morning. I yawned, irritated with his upbeat attitude at 8 am. I still hadn't fully recovered from my long weekend of closing shifts at the bar and all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and nap under my desk. I tried not to think about how sleep deprived I was and instead tried to focus on the new band that was coming in to record today. All I really knew about the band was that they were an unknown local band, but I still couldn't recall what their name was and there was no way I was asking anyone. I should really start reading those goddamn memos.

I sipped my coffee while simultaneously sifting through countless emails to find the one sent out with the band's name in it. I continued sipping from my mug, hazily staring at the monitor when the door opened. Found it! I clicked open the email just as I heard feet shuffle up to the front desk. I felt my mouth drop slightly as I read the memo. No. Fucking. Wa-

"Hi! I'm Leo from The Stacks. I was wondering if you could direct us to Studio B? We're here to record."

    My head shot up and my eyes instantly met the cerulean blue pair of the guy that Teagan was sucking face with just a few days ago. Wait, did he say 'us'... I looked behind Leo and saw Tommy and Brett entering the building. I tried to focus on answering Leo's question, but instead started choking on my coffee. I gave that asshole my number and he didn't even bother to text me. I never give out my number at the bar.

In an attempt to avoid further embarrassment, I pointed towards the studio, hoping they would move on so I could cough up a lung in peace. But because the universe was against me, Leo turned back to his bandmates and then back to me. I watched as the connection registered on his face.

The corners of his mouth turned up in a lazy smile as he leaned forward, resting an elbow on the desk, and his chin on his hand. "Hey," he finally said, "aren't you the bartender from Spanky's?"

    I attempted to compose myself. "Yep, that's me," I replied quickly. Not only was I feeling mortified by my coughing fit, but even more so by the fact that I had been excessively checking my phone waiting for a text from Tommy. Not that I would ever admit it, but I felt pathetic. Guys would make passes at me all the time at the bar. Hell, it was practically as much part of the job as actually serving drinks was. I should've known better than to expect anything more from that night, especially from some random guy trying to make it in a band. I'm such an idiot.

    "Natalie?" Tommy approached the desk with a crooked grin, "What are you doing here?"

Yeah, no. Not happening. "It's my day job, and by job I mean unpaid internship," I said curtly, refusing to make eye contact with him and instead glancing back and forth between Leo's left eyebrow and my computer screen.

Tommy however, was all eyes on me. "Seriously? That's sick. I would love to do something like that! You must really know your music if you're working at Ivy," Tommy beamed. It seemed genuine. I felt my heart skip a beat as Tommy spoke so excitedly. How was this the same guy that couldn't be bothered to even shoot me a text?

    "Yeah it's cool I guess." Then I paused. Finally, I dragged my eyes to his. "But not as cool as asking for someone's number and then never bothering to call or text, right?"

    It was a low blow, but who the hell cares. Speaking my mind was never something I shied away from, especially when it came to guys. I watched as Tommy's face dropped and his bandmates looked at each and shook their heads, "Dude, I told you to man up and just text her." Leo slapped Tommy in the arm playfully.