Page 44 of Scoring Slater
Posting a selfie wasn't an option, not while he felt so raw. He took a photo of his drink. A single brown bottle on a glossy white bar with a row of colorful bottles in the background. And added a comment:Sorry for being quiet, guys. I'll be back to posting soon. Take care.
A guy dropped onto the stool next to him. "Hey, great phone case."
Slater glanced up. The cute twenty-something, probably a few years older than him, had artfully tousled blond hair and deep brown eyes, and wore a yellow T-shirt sporting the supervillain rival of the hero on his phone case. "Thanks. Nice shirt."
Brown eyes twinkled with his smile. "I have a soft spot for the bad guys. They're not evil, just misguided and misunderstood."
Slater laughed, really laughed for the first time in two weeks. Glass in hand, he twisted toward the newcomer. "Comic book fan or just the movies?"
"Both. You?"
"Same."
With a beaming smile, the guy leaned one elbow on the bar. The overhead light shined on his hair, teasing out the shades from platinum to dirty blond. "Awesome. I’m Ty, by the way."
"Slater."
For the next several minutes, they chatted about favorite characters and storylines and compared the movies to the books. The guy was smart, insightful, and funny, and had been hooked on comic books almost as long as Slater. A breath of fresh air for his ravaged heart.
Ty set his glass on the bar, and then shifted in his seat and wobbled, tipped to the side, and fell toward Slater. Slater shoved his hands up in a rush to stop the guy's fall, collided with the guy's shoulder, and his other hand ended up slapping over the supervillain's face on the guy's chest.
Laughing, Ty righted himself, and gave a self-deprecating grin as Slater moved away. "Thanks for the save. I swear this is my first drink today. I'm just accident prone. Seats that spin and don't have a back don't do me any favors."
Relief that he didn't have to worry about Ty widened his smile. "I'm an enforcer, not a goalie, so saves aren't my speciality. You'll notice I inadvertently slapped your villain's face."
'That's okay. He's a tough guy. He can take it." Ty looked at his chest and then frowned and his gaze shot to Slater's. "Enforcer. Like… themob?"
Slater barked a laugh at Ty's whispered word and wide eyes. "No. Like a hockey player."
The alarm in Ty's face faded. "Oh. Good. Okay. I don't know anything about hockey, other than it's played on ice."
"But you know a ton about superheroes, and I'm happy about that." He certainly hadn't expected to find a kindred spirit in this bar, of all places.
"Me too. It's hard finding people to geek out over it in real life." Ty brushed his fingers over Slater’s forearm and then rested his hand on the bar mere centimeters away. "I'm so glad I decided to sit down next to you. Can I buy you another drink?"
Slater glanced at the exposed section of skin below his pushed up sweatshirt sleeve, then at the close proximity of Ty’s hand, and eased his arm away. Ty was cute, possibly interested in him, and pretty much perfect. But he didn't feel any romantic or physical interest at all. Because Ty wasn't Noah. "You seem like you're a great guy, but I'm not looking for anything right now."
Cheeks stained bright red, Ty shrank back, his eyes wide. "Me neither. I literally just got out of a relationship. It happened earlier today. I’m not ready to start a new one. I’m sorry, I didn't mean anything by touching you. I swear. I've had a shitty day and need a friend. That's all."
"Oh." Slater’s quiet word went unnoticed in the noisy room. His brows drew together and concern bloomed at the lost expression clouding Ty’s face.
His new friend dragged a hand through his hair, and Slater learned the artful tousle was nothing more than a lucky result of a nervous habit. "My ex hated all the superhero stuff, comics, movies, you name it. I've never had a friend who read the books too. Talking to you about them has been the best part of my week. I'm really sorry, man."
"I hear that. We're good, bud. Relax." He motioned for the bartender. "Another round for both of us. On me."
"Thank you." A flush still covered Ty’s cheeks, neck, and ears. He offered Slater a weak smile and then focused on the empty glass in front of him. "Maybe I shouldn’t have come out tonight. But my roommate has his boyfriend over, and being around happy couples is too hard right now."
Slater watched him spin the glass round and round. Beneath Ty's nerves and bit of awkwardness, was sadness. His heart went out to the guy. "You said you got out of a relationship today?"
He hovered over the empty glass like clinging to it was the only thing keeping him tethered. "Well, he dumped me. But yeah, it happened this afternoon."
Plenty of heartbreak going around… He didn't know what kind of advice to offer when he was still nursing his own. "Whoa. Sorry, bud."
A single shoulder lifted in a half-shrug, but the attempt at the casual gesture was at odds with the heartache in his eyes. "We wanted different things. I wanted to be happy and he wanted me to be someone I wasn’t. Better to know that now than later, but still… it sucks."
As Slater struggled for something comforting to say, the bartender set down their fresh, filled glasses with a clink.
Ty picked up his drink and toasted Slater. "To new friends?"
