KAYLEIGH
I arrived at work at four in the afternoon and was greeted by Zander and Manuel who were almost done moving all the tables of the sitting area of the bar against the wall. Being bouncer at The Confessional also meant doing the heavy lifting during closed hours. As always, they were messing around and laughing like teenagers even if both were in their mid-twenties. Their cheerfulness warmed me from the cold September wind I had been battling outside. My hair was now a mess of curly wild strands hanging around my head and I knew my cheeks and nose were pink from the cool autumn air.
It was weird to see my section half empty, a reminder I wasn't filling as a waitress tonight, but as a bartender. Or an assistant bartender, since I had never worked behind a bar before anyway. It made me nervous as I knew the place would be packed at maximum capacity in a few hours only. Without all the clients, the place felt unusually calm. Only hard rock music emanating from Zander's speaker on the counter betrayed the usually loud atmosphere of the place. I liked the bar vibe, but all the noise sometimes gave me headaches.
Zander directed a wink my way and I couldn't keep myself from blushing. It was his way of telling me he couldn't wait to meet me at his place later after our shift. He was such a big guy, that I sometimes forgot how quiet he was. That was one of the things I liked about him, he didn't bother himself by using more words than necessary. Manual caught the exchange and rolled his eyes exaggeratedly at us, but a smile stretched his lips. The two of them returned their focus on lifting the next table as I chuckled. As Zander's best friend, Manual was one of the few people who knew Zander and I were casually seeing each other outside of work.
As I walked toward the back store, I let my gaze linger not too subtly on Zander's muscled arms as they contracted under the weight of the table. It triggered some salacious images in my mind from two nights before. The same strong arms supporting his massive body as he moved himself over and inside of me. By the time I had reached the employee only door, my lady parts were throbbing shamelessly from all the reminiscing and the blush on my face had intensified a shade or two.
I had only pushed the door a few inches when it was yanked open from inside, revealing a very squealing and excited Abby. I cursed as I almost fell inward. I should have been prepared for it, since she had been talking about that very day for months now. I heard the guy chuckle from the other room as she pulled me into an enthusiastic hug that knocked the breath out of me. She released me, and I couldn't help but smile at her happiness, almost wishing I was so eager myself.
The Spectrum of Truth, a rock band formed here, in Brookings, South Dakota, was playing at The Confessional tonight. From what Abby had told me, they had decided to finish their tour of the USA in Brookings with a special show to thank the people that had supported them before their worldwide success. They had grown up in Brookings just the same as Abby, Zander and Manuel, which meant they had all frequented the same high school only a few years apart. That fact only highlighted how much of a stranger I was in this town.
"They will be here in less than an hour", Abby announced, and I swore her voice was at least an octave higher than normally. "They will be relaxing in two private rooms upstairs as they wait for the show."
I could see what Abby was so thrilled ab out. Since she was appointed as a waitress to serve the VIP rooms, she would get to interact directly with the members of the band. Meanwhile, me and the other waitresses with less experience would be stuck behind the bar, sentenced to only catch glimpses of the band on stage. It really didn't pain me that much. I wouldn't have known what to say to them anyway. I would have had to admit first that I didn't even know their names and that the only times I had heard their music was on Zander's phone.
