Hazel's Hitchhiker

46: La Vina Winery

Joey

Leaving Phillip and Amber behind that early Friday Afternoon wasn't easy. For some reason, it felt like we were saying goodbye for the last time. I could only hope that this wasn't actually the last time we'd be seeing them. Of course, you never know when an old friend of yours joins the mafia and decides he wants to kill you.

On the bright side of all of this, I had Hazel with me by my side on the rest of the way to Austin. They waved goodbye as we took off in our car. With Hazel driving, I began checking my phone for interesting things to do in New Mexico or Texas. Nothing seemed that interesting until something popped up that intrigued my eyes.

"You down to go to a winery?" I asked. "There's a winery in Anthony, New Mexico called La Vina Winery. It's on the way."

"A winery? I don't know. I don't want to be dealing with another hangover."

"We'll drink in moderation. Maybe just a couple of glasses. But it looks like a nice place. It looks like there's a garden where you can sit and enjoy some live music." There was no response from her as it was clear that she was questioning if this was a good idea. "Did I mention that I never tried wine before? First time for everything."

"Alright, let's go to the winery." She smacked her hand on the horn in excitement.

Within two hours, we had arrived at the winery and found ourselves in the tasting room. The two of us tried up to eight different types of wine. Hazel seemed to be impressed with every sip of wine that she tasted. For whatever reason, my taste buds weren't enjoying the samples as much as Hazel was. Towards the end of our wine tasting, I decided to mix two of the wines together. Maybe it would taste better. It didn't. It tasted worse and my mouth spat it out. Hazel stood there trying not to laugh.

Once we finished our wine tasting, we sat at the beautiful patio where live music played. Being here almost had me wishing I could get married. This had to be the perfect spot to get married.

"You know," started Hazel. "I feel like I'm in Italy. I think I have an idea of what my parent's vacation might be like right now."

"Make sure you rub it in their faces that you were here. Make them jealous."

She laughed in response. "I'm the one that should be jealous. They're the ones that are enjoying the actual trip to Italy. Imagine all the wine they must've drunk."

With a smirk being my only response, we began to enjoy the live music being played on stage. For the first few minutes we were there, it was simply three violinists playing their violin. When they finished, the three of them left the stage and a well-dressed man with no instruments walked on stage.

"Hello everyone. Everyone enjoying their time at La Vina," he asked. Everyone clapped in unison. "My name is Johnathan Itule. I'm going to be singing a few songs for you today."

During his first song, we both ordered a simple and regular wine. Every adult in the audience sat there enjoying a wine. When we finally had our wine at the table, Johnathan began singing his next cover. It happened to be a Frank Sinatra song.

"I'm gonna live till I die, I'm gonna laugh 'stead of cry."

My head began bopping with my fingers snapping. The guy seemed to have a lot of passion for what he was singing. Hazel seemed to be enjoying the music as well while she sipped her wine.

"Alright, this next song is dedicated to all of the beautiful lovers out there. Before I begin, can I have a beautiful young lady come up to the stage to join me?"

In an unexpected move, Johnathan pointed towards Hazel and invited her onto the stage. For a moment, she was caught off guard and just sat there unsure of what to do, but she finally stood up and made her way to the stage. Once she made her way to the stage, Johnathan asked for Hazel's name and began singing.

"All the world's great lovers have been glorified. History placed them in a romantic set."

Unsure of what song the guy was singing, I just sat there and enjoyed the music. It was clear though that he was singing an old love song. Seeing Hazel on stage was something else. While I had seen her with my eyes a million times, my sight had not caught her standing on a stage with a smile on her face. Damn, she was more beautiful than ever. Maybe it was in the setting that we were in that had her glowing. This woman who had been through so much during this trip looked young and flawless. And yet, I knew of her struggles and desires. I knew everything about her.

"The greatest romance they ever knew Is waiting to unfold."

Part of me wanted to be on stage with Hazel. Why couldn't I be the one singing in Johnathan's place? With a sigh, my eyes went from the stage to my glass of wine. Most of it was still there. The majority of Hazel's wine was gone. What was wrong with me? What was wrong with my wine? Picking up my wine glass, all I could do was glare at it. There was no desire to drink it. None at all. For a quick moment, my body unexpectedly stood up from the table with my wine glass in hand. A quick walk led me to a water fountain.

"You're Joey right?" asked Jessica at our silly high school party as I had just finished a bottle of beer.

"Damn straight!"

The two of us began talking. She seemed like a nice girl. All the rumors that I had been hearing about her couldn't be true. Sure, my mind was buzzed, but I feel like I could relate to what she was telling me. She was looking for some comfort and maybe a friend. Without a wasted second, I invited her upstairs. There were a couple of times she tripped going upstairs and laughed it off. While we sat on the bed, she decided to tell me a personal story about something.

"Shut up," I boldly claimed. In turn, I gave her a kiss. At first, she resisted, but eventually gave in. For a moment, the kissing stopped and she began crying about something. It was about something sad. Perhaps I should've listened, but my buzzed self couldn't do that. It just couldn't. I wish I could've.

"Shit," was all I could say thinking back at that memory.

Without another thought, the wine was poured into the water fountain. And instead of wine, water landed into the wine glass instead. That's when I made my way back to the table where the song had just finished. Hazel made her way back to the table.

"Everything alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine."

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed this chapter with some wine. Don't forget to comment and vote!

Have you ever had wine?

Are you surprised that Joey never had wine until now?

What's going in Joey's head? Is he living with regret?