Page 1 of Picture Perfect
1
Hazel
The bar is super loud.Lots of people. Couples smiling and hugging and kissing. Little groups of guys with their heads nearly touching talking about girls and sports and whatever the heck it is they talk about when they get together and drink beer.
“Same again?”
I look at my nearly finished mojito. “Yeah,” I say, “why not. It’s not like I have anywhere else to be.”
Cupid, the barman, spins around and starts mixing my drink.
His hands move like poetry in motion. Everything is in time with the music. It’s like he’s dancing.
With a salsa-like flourish, he spins the shaker over his shoulder, catches it, and then pours my drink perfectly into the glass.
“This one’s on the house,” he says, winking at me and then passing me my drink.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Yes.” He leans forward and smiles. His teeth are perfectly straight. There’s a sparkle in his eye that’s almost hypnotizing. I wish he was straight. “I do.”
I take a sip of my mojito. It’s absolutely perfect. “Thanks,” I say. “I really needed that.”
“Tough day?” he asks.
“The worst!” I close my eyes and try to stop myself from crying. It doesn’t work.
“Hey!” He grabs some tissues from behind the bar and passes them to me. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I wipe my eyes dry. I feel like such an idiot crying in the middle of the bar. Can I get any more pathetic?
“It’s okay,” I say. “It’s not your fault. It’s just been one of those days, you know? Where you wish you’d never even got out of bed.”
He helps himself to a shot of whiskey. “Why don’t you tell me all about it, Hazel? Maybe I can help.”
“Hey,” I say. “How’d you know my name?”
“I know a lot of things, honey,” he says. “Now start from the top. I want to hear every juicy detail.”
I look down at my hands. I came to the bar to forget all my troubles. But, maybe Cupid’s right. It would be good to get everything off my chest. Maybe he really will have some good advice for me.
“It’s my boss,” I say. “Well… my ex-boss.” I let out a deep breath. It’s not easy talking about this. Especially to a stranger. “Everything was going so well. I really thought I was making a difference. Doing my job to the best of my abilities. But then… he made a pass at me.”
“Who can blame him.”
I shoot Cupid a look. He puts his hand to his chest and bats his eyelids. I can’t help but giggle.
“Yeah, well… I turned him down. I said I really liked working for him and that I’m sure he was just getting a little bit carried away- there was alcohol on his breath - and would regret his behavior in the morning. I did the right thing. But the next morning… today... he calls me into his office and he sits me down. I thought he was going to apologize. I was mentally prepared to tell him it was perfectly okay and that we should just forget about it. But, instead, he sits me down and he tells me I’m not a team player. He tells me I’m not a good fit in his organization.”
“Urgh!” Cupid pretends to spit on the floor. “He sounds like a total creep!”
“He is!” I shout. The mojitos might be going to my head a little. “He’s totally gross!”
“So… what happened next?”
“What happened next?” I laugh. “What happened next? He fired me. That’s what happened. He told me to go pack my things and never darken his door with my presence again. The next thing I know I’m standing by my desk and I’m crying and I’m saying goodbye to the people I’ve been working with and there’s a security guard standing next to me looking like he enjoys his jobwaytoo much and I’m putting my pink fluffy pen in a cardboard box and the picture of my mom and my dad and my mug that says “kick-ass assistant”.”
“Yikes.” Cupid squeezes my hand. “It sounds like you dodged a bullet.”
