Chapter 15
Chapter
Fifteen
PEARL
“ A nother round,” Allison slurred to Big Dave, the bartender at The Thirsty Beaver, Pearl’s home away from home.
It was a casual, dingy, old dive bar at the edge of Fairwick Falls.
Pearl had felt immediately at home with the stale, lingering cigarette smell, sticky floor covered in popcorn, and the scowling leer of the bikers that stopped through.
Every once in a while, a Fairwick Falls townie who wanted to jazz up their Friday night would stop in. Pop, the diner owner, and his wife, Mrs. Maroo-Canon, head of the local gossip mill in Fairwick Falls, stopped in sometimes. Pearl counted them among her favorite people now.
It was a place for all the misfit sharp edges in this cute-ass town.
Lily sat on the other side of Allison, almost as drunk. She was stuffing her face with red velvet cupcakes Pearl had made for Allison’s big night out.
“These are so bucking belicious,” Allison said through a mouth stuffed with her third cupcake. “Amb ifs bluben fwee?”
The light pink frosting on each cupcake almost matched Allison’s hair color. Pearl had nearly gotten it this time. The peachy pink that Allison dyed her hair made her look like a fairy queen come to life.
“Gluten-free and vegan !” Lily stood on the lower rail of the bar, pumping her hand in the air wildly in celebration.
Pearl fucking loved Lily—always down for a good time. Another cheap beer and large shot of tequila slid in front of both Allison and Lily. Pearl was the DD tonight.
“Pearl, what’s good?” Tom, an old, grizzled man leaned against the bar, signaling for another from Dave.
“Not this weak-ass beer, that’s for sure.” She lifted the one she’d been nursing for the past two hours.
His hacking laugh was interrupted by the sound of chairs scooting as two guys started a fight in the back corner.
She wiggled down in her seat, enjoying it.
“Isn’t this place perfect?” she said to no one in particular, and Allison spun around.
“It is! We should dance .” Allison shook Pearl’s arms. A table crashed in front of them as one of the guys fell into it.
“Hey fuckwits! Out!” Dave yelled. “Or Tiny will handle the issue for you,” he said, pointing to a hulking, large man nursing a long-neck beer in the corner of the bar and crocheting.
“Rats. We coulda been in a bar fight,” Allison said, snapping her fingers sadly.
“You wanted a wild and crazy night.” Pearl smirked over at her.
She didn’t have a lot of friends that were girls. This was the closest she’d gotten to a real girls’ night in years, if you didn’t count her and AB painting their fingernails while singing “Baby Shark.”
Allison and Lily had a lot in common. They loved Taylor Swift. They loved pink. They loved all things girly, including—Pearl shuddered—roses, wildflowers, and weddings.
Pearl was definitely the odd one out. She always had been.
That was why she wanted to do something different: have a bakery that had alternative designs, not to mention alternative ingredients.
She’d never really felt like she belonged.
“Oh my gosh, are you crocheting?” Allison yelled over at Tiny and threw back the rest of her beer. She spun herself in fast circles on her stool.
Alright, this one is getting out of pocket .
“Makin’ a bandana for my cats,” his echoey, bass voice rumbled. He held it up, showing a camo-like pattern.
“Shut the fuck up,” Lily yelled. She leaned over and smushed his enormous face between her hands. “Tiny, you’re adorable! Poorly named, but adorable.”
Annnnd they’re both officially white girl wasted.
“Sorry,” Pearl mouthed to Dave, who chuckled.
“Did you try these?” Allison lifted up the Tupperware container to Dave. “Pearl’s so good at baking, and it doesn’t even have any bad stuff in it like nuts and eggs and milk and gluten, and I don’t really know what’s in here.” Allison swiped her finger along some frosting. “But there’s an orgy in my mouth.”
Dave raised an eyebrow at Pearl. “These two are fun.”
He took a piece of cupcake that had been split into fours—the girl way of cutting—before the alcohol had started. He took a bite. “This is good. You said egg-free? Could you make something for my daughter?”
“Hot damn, she’s out of jail already?” Pearl slapped the bar with excitement.
He nodded, grabbing another bit of cupcake. “Good behavior.”
“Nice.” Pearl toasted him.
“She can’t eat eggs, and everything has fuckin’ eggs in it. I wanted to do something nice for her, you know? I’m real proud of her.” He shrugged, dingy flannel flapping from the motion.
Pearl’s heart thumped in her chest. “I don’t know if I’m ready for customers. I’ll, uh, think about it.”
“You know where to find me,” he said, throwing a towel over his shoulder.
Pearl’s phone lit up in the dark bar.
Hemingway_CanSuckIt
Have you ever felt like you’re failing at every single thing you’re doing?
ImpossiblyBookish
no, because im fucking amazing and perfect at everything.
which is why it took me three - yes, three full times - to put on my underwear this morning
first time? backwards
second time? inside out
Hemingway_CanSuckIt
I mean, you could have left them off.
“Look at that face on her face ,” Allison said with a hiccup, booping Pearl’s nose.
“That’s a dopey-ass love grin,” Lily said, propping her head on Allison’s shoulder.
“Who are you texting?” Allison said in a singsong voice.
Pearl slammed the phone face down onto the table. “Nobody. Shut up.” Pearl’s cheeks started to heat as she grabbed her beer.
“Ah-ah-ah,” Allison said, wagging a finger. “That’s your tell.”
“The rolling of the eyes, right?” Lily added.
“She does it all the time.” Allison nodded. “It’s the looking up and to the left as she gets mad.”
Pearl glared at them over her lukewarm beer. This is why I don’t have friends.
Then they think they know you or something.
“I wish I had a nobody,” Allison sighed, playing with the rest of the shot in her tequila glass. “But I want a baaaaabyyy…” she said slowly.
“Is that what this is all about?” Pearl said, finally trying to understand why her normally very put-together, quiet, sweet coworker was behaving like a girl gone wild.
“Wait, you do?” Lily said in surprise.
Allison nodded. “I’m done trying to date here; it’s useless. The men are trash. No offense, crochet buddy.” She pointed to Tiny.
“I’m married,” Tiny said with a shrug.
“I don’t want a person in my house who’s just some guy.” Allison stood up, thunderstruck. “That’s all husbands are—just some guy in your house .”
Pearl lived with some guy. “Yeah, because sometimes they walk in on you naked,” she muttered.
“What?” Lily said, spinning around.
“And I want a family,” Allison continued, in her own world. “And you know, I’m about to ticktock according to my doctor,” she said, tapping her wrist. “That’s why I needed one wild and crazy night,” she said, spinning herself around on the bar stool again. “I’m going to the sperm bank next week to start looking at options.”
A greasy man Pearl didn’t recognize slid up behind Allison. “I can help you make one tonight for free, baby.”
Allison burst out laughing as she pushed him away. “Ew!” He slid his hand onto Allison’s waist, ignoring her.
Pearl got in his face and pushed him hard until his back hit a high-top table. “Hey, motherfucker. She said no. Specifically, she said you’re disgusting, but also the no was implied.”
“Be a bitch about it already,” the man muttered, wandering back to his friends.
“Yeah, I am going to be a bitch about it. These are my friends, shriveled dick.”
Allison slung a long arm around Pearl’s shoulders. “You are a gooey little jelly bean who loves us, I just knew it.” She squished Pearl’s cheeks together as Lily took a photo, probably to use as blackmail later.
The bar door swung open, and a striking, tall man walked through.
“Husband!” Lily yelled above the loud bar and galloped toward her enormous, hot husband who caught her mid-jump.
Nash was as opposite as someone could get from Pearl, but they’d mutually agreed on protecting Lily from doing stupid shit when she was working at Bloom, like walking home late at night by herself and climbing on top of things one should not climb on.
She gave him a nod which he returned, and a man Pearl instantly recognized walked in behind him.
“Oh fuck,” Pearl muttered. “Allison, let’s go out the other door.”
“I wanna say hi to Nash.” Allison turned toward the door, but it was too late. She’d made eye contact with the tall man behind Nash.
Wells Maroo—former resident of Fairwick Falls and Allison’s sworn enemy—shook hands with friends as he walked in. He was a bigger guy, both in height and size, with a barrel chest and beefy arms. Honestly, he’d be Pearl’s kind of thing if he wasn’t Allison’s mortal enemy.
“Oh, you, motherf—” Allison launched herself, claws out, at Wells, but Pearl caught her by the waist.
Wells had represented Allison’s ex-husband in her painful, long divorce.
Pearl locked her arms around Allison, trying to move her out the bar without further incident.
“Ladies,” Wells said, smiling nervously.
“How dare you come here during girls’ night? How dare you set foot in the town I live in!” Allison said, pointing over Pearl’s shoulder. “Everyone be mean to him!” Allison called as Pearl finally pushed her out the door and it swung shut.
“Lily, can you get her in my car? I forgot something at the bar.”
Allison started to cry. “He’s the worst, Lily. You don’t even know .”
“I know, sweetie. I got the hint when you smashed a cake in his face during the town Christmas party, but tell me all about it.” Lily patted her back as they stumbled to Pearl’s car.
Pearl walked back into the bar with her heart pounding.
Allison had big plans. She was going to have a whole baby by herself.
Pearl could have big plans too, right?
It’s punk as fuck to bet on yourself.
I’ll do it. I’ll make a cake.
Before she lost her nerve, she ran up to the bar and locked eyes with Dave.
“How does your daughter feel about edible fake blood?”