Page 35 of Archer
“Yeah, except maybe salt water,” she said. “Gross.”
“Ehh, it’s an acquired taste,” I said. “I don’t think anyone likes it at first.”
“Well, I think I’ll still have this tasty creation instead.”
“More beer for me.”
While she sipped her drink, we fell into a comfortable silence and I found myself staring at her nose. I noticed a few freckles that were so light, I never noticed them before. But now that I had, I couldn’t get over how cute they were.
Suddenly, she gave a light giggle. “You know what’s weird?”
“What?”
“We haven’t even kissed yet, but we’ve done almost everything else.”
“Yeah,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s kind of funny. Suits us.”
“Yeah. I think so, too.”
“I know you may not know this about me, but I had the biggest crush on you for a long time.”
She snorted. “Alert the media!”
“I wasn’t finished,” I said, scowling at her but she smiled angelically in return. “I always expected that, well, you’d eventually go out with me. And we’d hook up. And then we’d never see each other again,” I said. “And I know, I know, that’s not your thing, but how was I supposed to know. Anyway, the point of me saying this, is that I never would have predicted it this way, but fuck, I wouldn’t change it for anything.”
She smiled sweetly at me. “I was thinking the same thing earlier.”
We fell back into another peaceful quietness as she swirled the drink around in her glass. Breaking the silence, she chuckled and said, “My dad is going to kill you for introducing me to alcohol, by the way.”
As soon as she mentioned her dad, my stomach dropped. I tried to hide the worry on my face, but it was too late. Looking at me with a bit of hesitation, she asked, “Wh-what? What’s wrong? What happened?”
“Nothing…”
“Something looks wrong.”
I shrugged. “Honestly, nothing has happened. I’m serious. Your dad is fine.” I looked her in the eyes to ensure she knew I was being honest. “But…”
“But what?”
“Tank. He, uh, went to go check in on your father, and well, you know how he is,” I said, running a hand through my hair nervously as I watched her energy change from relaxed to anxious. “Said everything is fine when looking obviously distressed.”
She nodded.
“But um, the reason why uh… Tank went to check on him in the first place… it’s freaky.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Someone… got murdered. By the Freeways. It’s not confirmed, but we think it’s for the same reason that your dad is in trouble…”
Her neck bowed to her lap and I watched her skin turn pale. My heart quickened as I felt the sadness radiating off of her, wanting to do anything to relieve the pain. “But don’t worry, Rose. Seriously, I have good news, too. The rest of the guys, the club, they’re gonna do everything they can to protect him. Trust me, we’re going to be patrolling the area, standing guard. The Freeways are pussies compared to us. We’ll keep your dad safe, Rose.”
She raised her neck a bit but didn’t look at me. Surprisingly, when she raised her lips into a weak attempt at a smile, it only made the sadness inside of me grow. She didn’t need to pretend to feel better. She was scared.
“Thanks, Archer,” she said. “Um, I’m kind of tired all of a sudden. I think I’m going to go to bed.”
“Are you sure?” I asked, my eyebrows drooping, surprised by how disappointed I felt. “We can… we can watch a movie or something. To distract you?”
So gently and filled with melancholy, she shook her head and smiled. “No thank you.” She slid off her barstool, taking her drink with her.
