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Since I’d been in that position before, even if my reasoning had been different, I thought it was best to do what I could for those who were struggling. For the last couple of days, that involved being there for Deanna, so she could vent her frustrations or cry on my shoulder.
It had been a few days since her boyfriend had decided he wanted them to take a break and spend some time apart before making a bigger commitment to one another. Despite the fact that she had tried to get him to talk about it, so she could really try to understand his feelings, he insisted they couldn’t spend their time apart talking to one another all the time.
Since he hadn’t changed his mind about the separation and he wasn’t really giving Deanna much of anything in the way of communication, it was safe to say she was out of sorts and incredibly downtrodden.
Apparently, she wasn’t the only one who was struggling.
As a bartender, I had grown accustomed to listening to people’s problems. It was one of the reasons I became a bartender to begin with. I’d taken the classes for it at a time when I felt like my world had fallen apart. On some level, I think I knew that I’d have days or weeks like this one when people found themselves struggling to cope with whatever was happening in their lives.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say I got enjoyment out of other people’s suffering, but it was nice to know that I wasn’t the only one who was living with what felt like devastating circumstances.
And the truth was, I’d learned a lot. If nothing else, I now knew that these things passed. Humans faced adversity. There would always be challenging times and rough patches, but things would eventually work out.
Now, I was standing behind the bar, and I was preparing myself to settle in for another sad story. Because it wasn’t more than a minute or two ago when our latest patron entered the pub, walked right up to the bar, and requested a couple of shots.
I took one look at him, recognized him as a guy who’d come in two or three times before, and saw the heartbreak written all over his face. Immediately, I sprang into action.
After I’d set two shot glasses down in front of him, he didn’t hesitate to lift one, down it, and do the same with the next. I filled one of the glasses again, and once he tossed that one back, he let out a deep sigh.
“Women suck,” he declared. I cocked an eyebrow at him. The man lifted his gaze, realized it was a woman he was confessing his thoughts to, and winced. “No offense.”
I smiled and let out a laugh. “None taken.”
It wasn’t like I couldn’t understand his position. All week long, I’d been feeling like it was men who sucked, considering what Deanna was going through. But I had Jesse, and I knew that wasn’t really the case.
So, I decided to let the guy get away with what he said without apologizing. Instead, I gave him the time he needed to figure out what he wanted to get off his chest. I didn’t have to push him. I rarely had to push anyone to share.
When people got emotional, especially once they had some alcohol in their system, they shared willingly.
Sure enough, he finally asked, “What’s your name?”
“Sawyer.”
He nodded and repeated, “Sawyer.” After letting out another deep sigh, he asked, “If a guy loved you at your lowest moments, would you leave him?”
If that wasn’t a loaded question. “What’s your name?” I countered.
“Kurt.”
“Okay, Kurt. Well, I guess that depends. I can’t imagine leaving a man who loved me, assuming I knew that he did.”
There. At least I was being honest. Because I’d clearly left Jesse when he loved me. I just hadn’t realized how he felt about me.
“She knew,” he insisted. “She knew, and it still didn’t stop her from hooking up with her personal trainer.”
My eyes widened. “I’m so sorry.”
“Yeah, me too. Can I get a beer?” he asked.
I gave the man a beer.
He took a swig, set the bottle down, and shared, “Loved her. I loved her so much. I won’t pretend that I never made any mistakes, but there is nothing I wouldn’t have done for that woman. Her family cut her off, she gained weight, and she lost her job. I saw her through all of it. Loved her no less. One day, it was like she finally snapped out of it. All of the things that had been weighing her down became her motivation.”
As he took a moment to gather himself, I replied, “Sometimes, having the love of a good man will do that. It was probably the fact that you stuck by her side that she found the strength to pull herself out of it.”
He grunted. “Yeah, well, she’s got a funny way of showing it.”
“What exactly happened?” I wondered.
