Seri was pleasantly surprised when he stepped into The Banana Hammock that Friday evening. Leaving the office as late as he had, Seri thought he might have to wait for a seat, but it appeared he had worried in vain – it was quiet and uncrowded. After walking through a narrow hallway, Seri entered a small room with tables on one side and a bar on the other. A few customers sat at the tables and ate, while the bar was completely empty.
Seri hoped it would get a little livelier as the evening wore on, or else he really might brave the noise and lights of downtown. Seri preferred quiet conversation to the crowds and noise of clubs, but if he was being honest with himself, he was feeling a little lonely. Given the strange turn his thoughts had taken earlier that week, Seri thought it was probably best to find some companionship in one place or the other. But first, a hot meal and a little liquid courage.
Seri slid into a stool at the far end of the bar and heard the footsteps of the bartender as he returned from bussing a table. “Could I get the dinner special and a beer?”
“Coming right up sir!”
“Thanks Richard.” Richard?! Seri looked up with a gasp as Richard placed a beer on a coaster in front of him.
Richard’s eyes sparkled. “Please enjoy sir. Your meal will be out in a few minutes.”
Seri struggled to force out a coherent sentence. Yes, it was definitely Richard, although now he wore a black vest over a white shirt, and a simple black apron tied at his middle. His hair was up in the same bun he had worn earlier at the office.
Seri finally managed “Do you, ah, perhaps need a pay increase at work, Richard? I’d hate for our star secretary to collapse from overwork.”
Richard laughed delightedly. “Yes, actually a pay increase would be fantastic! Do you think you could manage triple my current rate?”
Seri laughed. “If that’s what they’re paying you here, I think I’m the one who should be asking you for a job.”
Richard leaned over the counter conspiratorially and whispered “The truth is, they’re not paying me a dime. Tragic, I know!”
“Richard, you don’t work here every night, do you?”
“Of course not, sir! My job is making sure you stay on your feet to make all the important real estate decisions. My friend was feeling a little under the weather tonight and his other bartender couldn’t arrive in time to open up shop, so he asked me to cover for a few hours.”
Seri sighed in relief. He really had been afraid that Richard was forced to work multiple jobs. “Well, in that case, you can drop the ‘sir’ bit. I’m just a regular customer.”
“Seri then,” Richard said with a smile. “So, Seri! If I’m to be your friendly neighborhood bartender tonight, please feel free to share all your woes and troubles with me. Bartenders give the best advice you know.”
Right. Like I’m going to tell you I’m thinking about heading to the nearest club and falling into bed with the first person I can find with a pulse.
“Seri, this is just a humble bartender’s opinion, but you seem a little tired. Would I be wrong in guessing that you’re working long hours at your job?”
Seri smiled. “Well, you know how it is. If you complete a job well, next thing you know you’re getting two more requests for the same thing.”
Richard leaned over the bar in feigned surprise. “But surely an executive such as yourself would have plenty of staff to help out?”
Seri winced. That hit a little too close to home. He laughed uncomfortably. “You know something Richard, I’ve always had a problem with that. Letting go of things, I mean. It’s just easier to control the outcome if I’m the one doing the work.” Seri tipped his beer up and found it empty. When did that happen?
Richard placed another drink on a coaster at Seri’s elbow and nodded. “Ah, yes. It’s hard to let go of control sometimes, isn’t it?”
He glanced back, then stepped over to a small window connected to the kitchen to collect the dinner Seri had ordered. Placing the plate down in front of Seri with a flourish and a smile, Richard said, “But it’s a good thing I didn’t try to cook your meal while pouring your beer, don’t you think? You’d have ended up with beer in your lap and a burned dinner.” Richard dropped him a wink, then excused himself to go see to the other customers.
Seri shook his head and smiled to himself, then turned his attention to his food.
By the time Seri finished eating, the bar had only gained a few extra customers. But far from being disappointed, Seri found himself enjoying chatting with Richard, who kept returning to Seri’s side in between pouring drinks and bussing the occasional table. By the time Richard whisked his dinner dishes away, Seri thought he’d laughed more that evening than he had in the past week.
Richard placed a third beer in front of Seri, then leaned forward on the counter. “You know Seri, I was thinking about what you said earlier.”
Seri looked up in confusion. “What I said?”
“About feeling the need to always be in control. It seems to me that it wasn’t always that way, was it? Back when we were first starting out, you and I, I seem to recall you giving out project assignments much more freely.”
Seri looked up at the ceiling, which was painted with a mural of cartoon coconut trees and sandy beaches. “Yeah, I think you’re right about that. But those were just small-time projects, in the beginning.”
“I also recall you smiled more often.”
Seri jerked his gaze back to Richard’s, suddenly embarrassed. “Oh, uh, you think?”
Richard nodded cheerily. “I do! But if you happen to know the right people, it can be liberating to let them control things once in a while. Fun, even”
“I get it, I get it. Of course I’d trust you Richard, how long have we worked together now?”
“Will you trust me Seri?”
Seri looked up into Richard’s suddenly serious face. His smile was still there, but his eyes were locked onto Seri’s with an intensity Seri hadn’t seen before.
“Of course, Richard. I’d trust you with anything.”
“I think,” Richard moved Seri’s beer aside and leaned further over the counter, “you and I could have fun together. What do you say?”
Richard’s hand brushed up against Seri’s, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of Richard’s. He really could be a model.
“Yes.”
Seri didn’t precisely know what they were even talking about any more, but at that moment he wanted anything Richard would give him. Another beer? A shoulder to lean on? A partner at the club? A chance to run my fingers through his hair… Whatever he was agreeing to, Seri wanted it.
“Excellent. Richard stood up and pulled out the pin holding his hair, freeing it to cascade down his back. “Then, in that case, why don’t we start tonight? It looks like my replacement is here.” Richard gestured toward the staff door, where another man in a similar uniform was coming through.
“Okay, ah, sure. Start what, exactly?”
Richard draped a scarf around his shoulders and produced a coat from behind the bar. “Our date, of course! I don’t mean to be rude, but you’re going to need a lot of practice if you’re going to be any good at giving up control over things! We’ll just take it nice and slow.” And with that Richard tugged the still-stammering Seri out of the bar and into the night.
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