Missing Pieces - Chapter 2
Tyler
Friday
A beeping noise made me glance down at the dashboard.
My gas light had just turned on. "Shit." I hit my turn signal and took the first exit off the highway.
There was no sign of a gas station despite what the sign on the interstate had promised.
Actually, there was no sign of anything.
Just dark building after dark building. And a ton of farmland.
The beeping noise sounded again. I should have been paying better attention.
I squinted at a cluster of lights in the distance.
Maybe that was it. As I got closer, I quickly noticed that it was not a gas station.
The lit up sign said Hails' Bar. One glance at my dashboard told me that if I didn't stop for directions now, I'd end up on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere.
I turned into the small parking lot. There were only a few cars besides my own.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket, but it was dead.
I had no reason to charge it. But maybe it would have helped me find a gas station.
I grabbed my charger and slipped it and my phone into my pocket.
It seemed like a small town. Maybe they'd be nice enough to let me charge my phone.
When I pushed through the door of the bar, I was surprised to see that the place was pretty packed.
It must have been filled with locals who lived close enough to walk.
It reminded me a little of the bars at the University of New Castle.
Although, if this was their Main Street, this town did not have much going on.
Some of the best nights in college had been walking back home with my friends after a night at the bar.
That was one of the upsides of living in New York too.
Everything was within walking distance. Apparently it was a perk of wherever the hell I currently was too.
I glanced over at the bar. Despite all the patrons, there was only one girl behind the counter.
Which probably made sense. She was gorgeous.
She had long brunette hair and a smile that lit up the room.
They probably made a killing in tips with her working.
I'd ask for directions in a bit. First I could really use a drink.
I made my way over to the bar and sat down on an empty stool.
The bartender didn't even glance at me. She was talking to some guy on the other side of the bar. I leaned down and started searching the side of the bar for an outlet.
"Looking for something in particular?"
I sat back up. A few years ago I might have answered her with some line about looking for her number.
But that was a long time ago. It wasn't like I wanted to hook up with a girl from the middle of nowhere and never see her again.
I had no idea what I wanted, but I didn't want that.
Even if she was gorgeous. I lifted up my charger. "An outlet. My phone's dead."
"Ah." She bit her lower lip, as if she was thinking over something. "It costs $5 to charge your phone."
I laughed.
But she didn't seem to think it was funny.
"Seriously?"
She shrugged. "New policy."
I shook my head and reached into my pocket for my wallet. "Okay. One charged cell phone and whatever you have on draft." I slid her a ten dollar bill.
"That I can do." She pocketed the money and grabbed my cell and charger. She walked past the bar and disappeared down a long hallway.
For a second I thought she may have just stolen my cell phone. But she came back in a minute.
She looked around the bar as she filled up a glass and then walked back over to me and set it down. She put her elbows on the edge of the counter and leaned toward me slightly. "So, what brings you here? Are you lost?"
"Not lost. Just looking for a gas station."
"So you meant to come here?"
"Not exactly."
"That means you're lost," she said with a laugh. "Where are you heading?"
I shrugged. "California. Eventually."
"Eventually?" She smiled.
Yeah, that smile could undo someone. But not me. I was already undone. I sighed. "I'm on a road trip of sorts."
"Really? I've always wanted to do that. Where are you from?"
"New York."
"The city?" Her eyes lit up.
"Yeah." People seemed to be easily excited by the idea of NYC. Little did they know that it was dirty and crowded and filled with people you couldn't bear to see anymore. I took a sip of my beer.
"What's it like?"
"You've never been?"
"It's like twelve hours away from here. So no, I've never been." She smiled again.
"Hails, can you grab Nathan another scotch?" said some lady who had just walked behind the bar. She was balancing a tray of empty glasses on one hand.
"Yeah, I've got it, Anna," she said. She tapped the bar in front of me. "Make a right out of the parking lot and drive about a mile down the road. The gas station will be on your left. Even though the lights aren't on, you can still pump the gas. Just let me know if you need a refill."
"Hails as in Hails' Bar?" I asked.
"That's me," she said over her shoulder.
I watched her pour a scotch. It looked like she had done it a million times.
She was awfully young to own a bar. I started to wonder how old she was.
I watched her as she gracefully walked over to Nathan.
She laughed at something he said and touched his shoulder.
She was definitely good at getting tips. I turned back to my beer.
I was twelve hours away from New York. So why did it feel like I was still there?
Maybe when I got to California I'd finally feel the distance between Penny and me.
I was doing my best to pretend I never knew her, hoping that it would make it easier to forget.
But it wasn't working. I took another sip of the beer, suddenly wishing it was something stronger.
Three years. I had been hung up on Penny for almost three years.
What the hell was wrong with me? I downed the rest of my beer.