"I know you're not going to say it but I know what you're thinking," said Simon sitting at the bar having a beer.
"What am I thinking, Mr. Refing," asked
Glenn the bartender.
"You're thinking 'man he has a drink
before his shift starts and he has a drink as soon as it's over, how fucked up
can his life be?"
"I can honestly say that isn't what I
was thinking," replied Glenn.
"Well whether it was or it wasn't I
appreciate ya not making any nod to it, like a role of the eyes or a sigh or a
head shake."
"Please Mr. Refing, give me a break. The
people that come in here check their morals at the door like they check their
coats."
"You mean they leave them in the car so
they don't have to pay a buck fifty?"
"Exactly," said Glenn as he poured Simon
another, "exactly."
Simon laughed into his glass as he
drained the remains of his first beer. As Simon sipped at his second beer a man
in an expensive suit takes the stool next to him. Simon glanced at him, passes
him off as 'he ain't any kinda threat' and went back to his beer. Suddenly his
eyes grow wide and he turned his head back around. Simon caught the patron
straight in the face because he had turned around to watch Cherry Valentine
take the stage.
"Hey I know you," said Simon.
The man made a face that suggested what
Simon had said was ridiculous. "I'm sorry sir, have we met before?"
"Well I dunno about actually meeting,
but yeah you've been in here before."
"The last time I was here was for my
bachelor party."
Simon's face showed surprise and then he
lowered his head, "yeah, yeah that was it. You were here with Congressman
Vasquez."
"Yeah that was the night...uh yeah that
was quite a night..."
"Uh, right. Uh, how is your marriage
working out for ya Mr..."
"Lucas, Berry Lucas..."
"Simon..." Simon motioned for Glenn and a
second drink appeared in front of Mr. Lucas.
"The wedding was fine but, uh...let's just
say the Damsel might be seeing a lot more of me."
"Oh, well you got me in a bit of a
dilemma, am I happy about that or sad for you?"
"Do you work here, Simon?"
"I'm uhh a bouncer of sorts."
"Yeah I gotcha."
"Really I'm sorry for you and your old
lady. That sucks man."
"Don't worry about it."
"So how is Mr. Vasquez? I heard some
shit went down when he was here."
"You don't read the papers? His life is
going to complete shit!"
"Yeah?"
"Apparently someone took pictures of him
in one of your private rooms with a dancer. Supposedly they show sexual
intercourse but I think it's all just suggestive angles. Hey, aren't these
rooms supposed to keep shit like that from happening."
"Hey we try, but we can't make no
guarantee ya know, not with today's technology camera phones and everything
ain't nothing private anymore."
"I hear that."
"So what is going to happen to the
Congressman?"
"Well he's wrapped up in this whole sex
scandal its ruining his career. I think a congressional committee is going to
make a verdict in a day or so, if he doesn't resign before then."
"Ya don't say," Simon took a big gulp of
beer and wiped his mouth.
"And Vasquez was going to do a lot of
good too. He was all about alternative fuel, decreased government spending,
increased tax rates for the upper class. He was writing a virtual resume to the
white house. Our new president would have had his eye on Vasquez for a seat in
his cabinet for sure if this hadn't happened."
"Ya don't say."
"I guess that's how it goes though.
Sometimes life is just out of our hands."
"Yeah," said Simon, "maybe it is."
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