KIMMY
The quiet tinkering of wedding rings against champagne glasses is an oddly specific sound to get used to.
But at the places that I'm taken to dine, of my choosing, I guess that it just comes with the territory.
"How has your week been?" The man across from me asks.
His brown eyes shimmer with traces of lust and the aftermath of having one too many glasses of wine.
He isn't drunk, no. But he's had enough to pump through him straight to places that won't be entertained. Not by me, anyway. That is simply not my job.
"Fine." I reply.
Minimal responses is usually what it's kept at. They don't need to know too much about me and I don't care to know more about them.
"How are your classes?"
"I'm on the Dean's List."
"Unsurprising." He shrugs. "You seem like a very educated woman."
"I am."
"And cocky."
"Confident." I counter.
He gives me a small smile. "What are you in school for?"
"Business."
"Ou." His eyebrows pinch together. "Do you plan to own one?"
"Someday. I've only got a couple semesters left."
"You could get started right out of school. Or before then, even. Worry about the logistics when you've got your degree."
I suppose that he's right. I have the money saved to start something up. It's just not money that I can use for myself right at this moment.
I've got much bigger things, much more important things to worry about.
"Maybe." I reply with a shrug. "We'll see."
"I could always help you, you know?" He takes a sip of his wine.
"No, thank you." I tell him swiftly.
I don't want to make any of this more than what it is.
I scan the restaurant, avoiding his eyes as I look into the sea of others. Most are men on dates with other women, a few tables have groups of just men or just women. Maybe business outings or ladies' nights.
Scanning the tables, I come across a familiar pair of eyes. An obnoxiously familiar pair of pink lips... dark hair.... bulky biceps.
Jungkook double takes when he sees me. His eyes focus on mine before looking over my attire and then to the man in front of me. He stares at the side of his face as if he's waiting for him to turn around.
There's a scowl on his face all of a sudden. He looks frustrated. For what? I haven't the faintest idea.
"I have to use the ladies' room. I'll be just a moment." I push my chair back and excuse myself from the table.
From the corner of my eye, I watch as Jungkook gets up as well. I walk faster to the bathroom and enter before he can catch up. I walk into a stall and pull my dress up to pee.
I squat, of course. It'd be a cold day in hell before I sit my bare ass on a public toilet seat.
I finish up and flush the toilet before walking out to wash my hands. I even take the time to fix my dress and touch my hair up, though nothing's wrong with it.
Standing there for a few minutes, I pace back and forth before deciding that it's been enough time to walk back out.
Unfortunately, the timing is still awful. Or he was just waiting for me.
"You ditched me to go on a date?" He asks, disbelief written in his features.
"I didn't ditch you-."
"You did. I woke up and you weren't there."
"I-." I sigh. "Why would I be?"
"Why would you sneak out?"
"Why would I stay?"
Jungkook's face blanks. He looks at me for several seconds before nodding. He exhales through his nose.
"Right."
I look away from him and over to the wall.
"What time are you leaving?" He asks.
"I don't know yet." I reply. "Soon, hopefully."
"You don't like him?"
I shrug. "He's alright, I guess."
Not like I'm dating for the relationship aspect or romance.
"Did you drive here?"
"No, I got an Uber. I've been drinking."
"Let me drive you home."
"Oh, no." I shake my head.
If I let him drive me home, Leilani will see and then that's opening a whole new can of worms that I do not need.
"I don't need my roommate to see you."
"Then come spend the night with me."
I look at him with a raised brow.
"What? Either you spend it with a guy you don't even like or you spend it with me. Who you kind of like."
"I'm not sleeping with him." I scowl.
"I didn't say that you were. I know that you're not." He defends. "But he's probably gonna try. At least if you come with me, you'll be comfortable."
I sigh as I peek around the corner. My date checks his watch as he sips his wine.
"Ugh. Fine." I say as I walk from the hall.
"I'll even pretend to be an Uber driver." Jungkook grins as he stays a few feet behind me.
I roll my eyes as I ignore his words. He chuckles lowly as he walks to his table. He sits down across from a woman, but next to a man.
His hair is blonde and swept from his forehead. I've seen them together once or twice before. I don't think that he goes to our school but he's been there.
Jimin, I believe his name is.
"It's getting late." The man across from me says. "We should get out of here."
"Agreed." I take a large gulp of my wine. "I'll call for an Uber."
"An Uber? Why pay? I can take you home."
"You've been drinking. I'd rather not die tonight."
"You're not going to die."
"Why risk the lives of others because of your own reckless decisions?" I tilt my head at him.
His mouth opens, yet he offers no response to my question.
"You never fail to impress me, Kimmy."
"And you never fail to disappoint me." I say as I stand up. "I'm leaving. I've got somewhere to be in the morning."
"Don't you always?"
"I'm a college student." I tell him. "Of course, I do."
I walk away from the table, feeling his hot gaze on my body. I roll my eyes as I move through the restaurant. Jungkook watches me as I walk by.
"Andd that's my cue. Gotta blast." He says as he taps Jimin's chest.
"Wait-." The woman says. "I thought you were going to stay for drinks and dessert."
"Can't drink. I drove. See ya later, Jimin."
Jimin side eyes him, saying nothing in return.
Jungkook jogs to catch up with me, making it in time to hold the front door of the restaurant open.
"Ladies first."
"Oh, look. A gentleman. Who'd have thunk?"
"I'm actually very respectful."
"A respectful playboy? Sounds contradictory, no?" I ask as I walk out.
"I'm not a playboy."
"Tell it toooo.... How many girls on campus?"
"False accusations." He says as he chuckles.
He puts his hands in the pockets of his slacks as he walks next to me.
"So who was that girl then?"
Jungkook smiles. "Why are you asking? Are you jealous?"
I deadpan. "Couldn't pay me to give a damn."
"I don't know. I've got a pretty big silver spoon, Kimmy."
"And a ridiculously large ego to match."
He holds his hand out as we step down from the curb. I hold it to assist with the drop in my heels.
"Wouldn't you if you were me?" He asks as he runs to face me, walking backwards to his car.
"I don't know. Perfect smile, slutty waist, oozing sex appeal. I'm already there."
Jungkook nods in agreement. "Fair." He takes his keys out of his pocket and unlocks his car.
The bright lights blink to life and he holds the door open for me. I get into the car and put my seatbelt on as he closes the door.
Jungkook gets into the driver's seat and pushes the start button. He cracks the front windows in the car and I breathe in the fresh air.
"Odd looking Uber, Kimmy."
I hear the sound of my date's voice. I turn to the driver's side to see him getting into his own car. An Audi, of course.
Jungkook turns to look at him. "You don't let your pretty passengers sit up front?" He wonders.
The man opens his mouth to reply and Jungkook revs his engine.
"Oh! Couldn't hear you over this v8." He puts the car in drive and I bite the inside of my lip.
The man frowns and Jungkook laughs as he pulls out of the spot.
"You're an asshole."
"No, he's an asshole." He slouches a little in his seat, resting one hand on the gearshift as he steers with the other.
I look away to the dashboard, swallowing thickly.
"These lights are nice. How'd you install them?"
"They're stock."
"Oh."
Jungkook pulls out of the parking lot and glides into traffic. His entrance onto the expressway is smoother than anything I could've done.
Probably because his car just drives smoother than my 2012.
My phone rings in my clutch and I pull it out. It's Leilani. Which means one of two things.
"Hello?"
"The new bartender called in."
"You're kidding."
"I am not, unfortunately. I know it's your night off. I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I'll be there. I could use the money, anyway."
"Okay, I'll let Grey know. Thank you, Kimmy."
"It's fine, Lei. I'm not gonna let the ship sink with you on it."
"Life saver. Literally. I'll see when you get here."
"Okay."
I hang up the phone and look at Jungkook.
"Called in?"
"Yeah. Can you take me home to get some different shoes?"
"You're gonna go to work after you've been drinking yourself?"
"I've worked a shift in much worse conditions. All I had was two glasses of wine. I can still function. And my best friend's there. I'm not gonna leave her to go down alone in there."
Jungkook doesn't say anything else in reply as he drives. When he pulls up to my place, he parks and picks his phone up.
"I'll be right back."
"Mhm." He hums as I open the door.
I walk to the building and make it to my place in less time than usual, it feels like. I rummage through my closet to find a pair of flats that look suitable for standing and walking around in.
Usually, I'd wear sneakers behind the bar but they don't really fit the rest of my attire. Not that it matters too much. People cant see behind it to notice.
I slip the shoes on, grab my work bag and jog back down the stairs. I always keep one in my car in case of emergencies. Like if I need to change clothes or anything like that.
But I also keep a backup one in my closet, just in case.
When I get back down to Jungkook's car, he's staring at his steering wheel, tapping the sides of it to a beat only he can hear.
As I buckle my seatbelt, he puts the car in reverse and backs out of the spot. He plays music to fill the empty air as he drives.
The air feels tense all of a sudden. Or awkward? I'm not sure how to describe it. It's definitely not as light as it felt before though.
Luckily, it doesn't last for too long before we get to my job. He parks in a spot a little ways away from the door and gets out with me.
"What are you doing?" I ask as I turn to him.
"Meeting my friends." He says, walking past me to the building.
The bouncer sees us and steps to the side.
"Kimmy, Jungkook."
"How you doing, Tank?" He asks him.
"Good. Haven't had to slam anybody yet but it's still early so we'll see."
"Let's stay hopeful, shall we?"
We walk into the building and I look around for Leilani as I walk to the bar.
"Kimmy." I hear my boss's voice.
"Yeah?"
There's no sign of a smile on his face on his face. "Nice of you to show up."
"I wasn't aware that I had to be here until 20 minutes. I was called in."
"You don't live that far from here. Next time, make a faster trip. It's not my job to cover this bar. I own the place, I'm not an errand boy."
I raise my eyebrows, unable to think of anything to even say back to that. He's insufferable.
"Also, I gave Leilani the lists of companies and CEOs of business that I'll be meeting with from now until the end of the year."
I set my bag behind the bar as I listen.
"I asked to highlight their business purpose, how much profit they accrue quartely and annually."
"Yep. She told me."
"Well, now I need to know how much profit my company will make if the deal is done with both 10 and 15 percent for contract. I need it done by tonight. I meet with one of them tonight."
I can't fight the screw face on this one.
"What? She's a bottle girl. Her job is to greet people, seat them places and bring drinks."
"Exactly why I'm telling you so that you can do that part."
".... I'm a bartender. This is an accountant's job. I have classes tomorrow. This is going to take hours to finish."
"Had you been here for a regular shift tonight instead of asking for the night off, you'd have been able to leave on time, Kimmy. I wouldn't bother to argue any further. You have thirsty patrons ready to order."
He smiles at me and I feel every urge to curse this man the fuck out. He walks past me and I stare at the wall of alcohol.
I'm so upset that I could fucking cry.
"Hey, can I get a shot of vodka?"
With a scowl on my face, I wash my hands and make the drink for him.
I'm handing out drink orders nonstop for about ten minutes before I finally see Leilani.
"Hey. What's wrong? You look pissed."
"Grey needs me to do more fucking work than originally said in the paperwork that he gave you but he wants me to have it done by tonight because he's meeting with whoever tonight."
"What? You'll be here forever. What are the accountants for? Is he crazy?" She raises her voice.
"Calm down. It's not even worth it. I'll just finish the shit after we close and go home. I don't know how long this is going to take."
"I'll help you."
"Girl, no. You've got an 8 am class tomorrow. At least one of us needs to be in their right mind in the morning."
"But Kimmy-."
"Nothing. I said no. I'll be fine."
She looks upset but knows not to argue with me any further. We'll just upset each other and I'm still not going to allow her to stay and help.
For the remainder of the shift, it feels as if I'm on autopilot. I'm given orders, pour alcohol, mix drinks, hand them out. It's all very repetitive.
And I'm already exhausted.
By the time the club closes at three in the morning, the last couple of people are straggling out. Jungkook walks over to the bar with his eyebrows furrowed as I lazily wipe down the counter.
"Hey. How long after are you usually here for? I want to know if I have time to run to get a shake before you're done."
"Don't bother." I shake my head. "I'm gonna be here for a while."
"Do you need help closing up?" He looks around.
Everyone's gone. The only person left is Tank. Leilani has gone home for the night. Even Grey is gone for the night, evil bastard.
"No, thank you. I have office work to do because my boss hates me."
"...it's three o'clock in the morning."
"He doesn't care. He wants it done by 'tonight' because he met with somebody tonight."
"Taehyung?"
"Is that who it was for?"
"Yeah. He had a business meeting with him. You didn't see him come in?"
"Maybe, I don't know." I shake my head. "I'm tired."
"Then you should rest. You've got class in the morning and it's already really late."
"I can't afford to lose my job, Jungkook. I need to work."
"Yeah, but not here if he's got you working like this. What the hell?"
"There's not another job that I can work that's gonna give me the hours and pay that I need."
"I'm pretty sure there's plenty of bars that would hire you."
"I'm not leaving Leilani." I say with finality.
We stare at each other for a few seconds before he sighs. He puts his hands up in surrender.
"Fine. Whatever."
"Jungkook, time to go, man." Tank calls to him.
"Yeah, I'm coming." He says.
They both leave and I'm left in silence at the bar. I finish wiping things down and putting the bar stools up before sweeping the floor.
When I'm finished, I go into the office and get the papers from his desk. They're clearly labeled in a manilla envelope.
I read the time on the clock as I pick them up. 3:20 am.
With a heavy sigh, I lock up behind me and grab my bag. I arm the building and lock it up before walking into the parking lot.
Taking my phone out, I open the Uber app. My phone buzzes as I do so and I read the message.
Jungkook: Come on
I look up to see his car in the lot. He pulls around to the curb and rolls the window down.
"Get in. I'm sleepy."
I get in the car and he pulls off as I click my seatbelt in. Leaning my head against the window, I stare outside.
My eyes burn every time I close them to blink, reminding me of how painfully tired I am.
I fall asleep to the motion of the car.