He nodded and said “mmm-hmm” in all the right places, but he glanced at the big clock on the wall four times and didn’t bother writing down a word I said. His mind was probably on his next donut instead.
“So, let me get this straight,” he said when I’d run out of words. “You want to file a report that says you think you might have been followed on occasion, but you’re unable to give us a description. And last night your bed looked wrinkled and your apartment smelled funny?”
I nodded, already backing out the door.
“Without wanting to trivialise any of this, Ms. Reynolds, have you considered using Febreze?”
He definitely thought I was a few olives short of a pizza. And maybe I was? I was beginning to wonder myself, so I didn’t bother to continue with the report. Why put my mental breakdown on record?
After I left, a bad day only got worse. A detour to avoid a narrow alley that gave me the creeps made me fifteen minutes late for work, and my tardiness didn’t escape Buck’s notice. He made a show of looking at the clock as I hastily changed my shoes.
Then Becky arrived. Five feet eight of fake tan and push-up bra with another three inches of blonde hair piled on top of her head. Although she was pretty in a vacant sort of way, she struggled with the beer pump, and her nails were so long she couldn’t write the orders properly. By the time I’d done my work and half of hers, I was exhausted.
“Are you working here permanently?” I asked her.
She giggled. “Dunno. Buck said to have a chat with him after closing.”
A chat? Yeah, right.
A stranger came in and took a seat. Was that a pack of cigarettes on the table next to him? Dammit, he caught me looking. All I could do was nod as he mimed drinking from a bottle.
“You want me to take that over?” Becky asked. Another giggle. “That guy’s hot.”
“I’ll do it.” Was he wearing cologne?
I’d barely taken two steps in his direction when Buck yelled at me. “Lara, the barrel needs changing. Give that to Becky.”
I handed the drink to my unwanted sidekick, but I still felt the prickle of the man’s eyes on me as she teetered towards him. At the end of the shift, he was still there, drawing out a second beer that must have gone lukewarm by now. Could he be my stalker? Should I try talking to him?
I got out a cloth and started wiping things down. Closer and closer I got, until I was two tables away. I inhaled, and… Nothing. I needed to get nearer.
But Buck interrupted with a tap on my shoulder. “Here.”
He handed me an envelope.
“What’s this? Payday isn’t until Friday?”
He shifted on his feet and leaned back against the bar, which creaked ominously under his weight. “Yeah, about that. I can’t give you any shifts for a while. You haven’t been the picture of happiness lately, so I decided to try Becky instead.”
“You’re firing me? Just like that?”
Buck looked down at his feet like a toddler who knew he’d done wrong. “Not exactly. It’s more that I’m giving you a break for a while. You look as if you need it.”
Which translated as, “I’ll see how the younger, prettier girl does, and if she messes up completely, I’ll give you a call.”
I bit my lip to keep from crying in front of Buck and the few patrons still finishing their drinks. Almost a year I’d worked there without missing a shift, and this was what he did?
Thanks for nothing.
And worse, I glanced over at the stranger’s table and found an empty seat.
My eyes stung as I tugged on my coat. I needed to get out of there, and quickly. Buck could have fun cleaning up and explaining to Becky, for the tenth time, how to work the darn register.
As soon as my feet hit the pavement, I started running. Why try to act normally anymore? I obviously wasn’t fooling anybody. I sprinted all the way home, ignoring the slap, slap, slap of shoes on the sidewalk I swore I heard echoing along behind me.
Back in my apartment, I took in the scene. The zip of the laundry bag was open, a T-shirt poking out, and the book I’d left open at page fifty had skipped a couple of chapters.
“Why me?” I yelled at empty air.
The upstairs neighbour pounded on the ceiling, banging the final nail in