Page 19 of The Player in New Zealand
Even from a few steps away I could tell that he was drunk. His eyes were glassy and he was blinking too much.
I poured a glass of water and plunked it down in front of him. “Drink it,” I snapped, but Tane just blinked.
I went off to take care of other customers. My shift would be over first and Marissa would work till closing, so I had only an hour or so left to go. When I next caught sight of Tane, he had a glass of beer in front of him, half empty. I stomped over.
“Where did you get that?”
He held up both hands. “Don’t worry. I didn’t—I didn’t pour it myself,” he said with half a smirk.
My eyes snapped to Marissa, who looked at me guiltily.He’s the boss, she mouthed.
“Oi,” Tane said, and I turned back to him. He squinted, pointing a thick finger at me. “You’re in a bad mood.”
I narrowed my eyes back. “You missed the cocktail special.”
He groaned and closed his eyes. “That was tonight? I knew I was forgetting something.” He swayed too far to the right and snapped his eyes open, regaining his balance. “Shh... don’t tell Nina.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to curse him out, but then his eyes started to droop and he swayed again. Even if I did curse him out, it wouldn’t stick. I gave it a fifty-fifty chance that Tane wouldn’t remember tomorrow.
Instead I caught Ron’s eye over Tane’s shoulder and snapped my fingers at him. “Ron!”
Ron looked up from where he was saying good night to a few departing customers and nodded at me. Lumbering to his feet, he stood next to Tane, hand on his shoulder, and said a few quiet words. I turned away and gritted my teeth.
I got back to work, and a few minutes later Ron returned from upstairs.
More customers left, and Marissa said she could handle the rest and suggested I leave. Stepping out onto the back porch, I found Nina chatting with some of the locals. It was too dark out now to toss axes, but the summer evening was comfortable.
“Marissa says I’m good to leave if that’s okay with you,” I told her.
“Great,” she said, standing up. “Let’s go check you out.”
We walked back inside together, Nina chatting excitedly about the drinks. “You’ll have to do a bigger batch next week. We sold out so quickly. Oh!” She stopped us at the door to the office and glanced around. “What did Tane think?”
I tried to keep my voice respectful, mindful that this was complicated. “He didn’t have one.”
Nina’s face flashed through emotions—surprise, concern, anger—and settled on disappointment. She looked back at me. “Is he here?”
“Ron took him upstairs,” I said softly, and Nina nodded, tight-lipped.
I waited with sympathy while Nina tried to gather herself. She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Sorry. Sorry. It’s just... I’ve been talking to some people about his drinking. He made the decision to quit playing, and I wonder all the time if he regrets it and that’s why he drinks. Like... like he’s avoiding the responsibility of making decisions again. Iwanthim to be more involved. Instead he just... drinks. And it’s getting worse.”
I gently touched my palm to Nina’s arm, giving her a squeeze of comfort. She put her hand over mine and blinked away tears. “Right,” she said, shaking it off. “Let me get you your tips. After such a successful night, I don’t need to drag you down with my troubles.”
* * *
HavingSunday off meant that I stewed in my own anger the whole day while doing laundry and cleaning. I must have looked extra grumpy too, because hardly anyone in the hostel talked to me, and Iris was busy doing something or other with Chris.
“What did the laundry machine ever do to you?” said a voice with a thick French accent, startling me. I looked up to find one of my new hostel friends, Demi, smiling at me. “You’re glaring at it like it insulted your mother.”
I’d met Demi and her husband, Phillip, a few days ago. They were both French and gray-haired, traveling New Zealand in a rented van. We’d struck up a conversation when Demi had complimented my piercing, and then because she had a new septum piercing, we’d talked about the challenge of keeping it clean while traveling.
I raised an eyebrow. “Maybe it did insult my mother.”
She chuckled. “You are off tomorrow, yes?”
I told her I was.
“Phillip and I are going to Somes Island for the day. Come join us. Our treat.”
