Blast From The Past
Friday nights are always busy in Cock&Tails and tonight I am especially grateful for the distraction. Despite being adamant that nothing more is going to happen with Jackson, I can't help the secret thrill that rushes through me each time a text buzzes on my phone. It has only been a couple of days, but I have had a whole raft of selfies ranging from being on the bus to both before and after gigs, each accompanied by a fun message about what he has been up to. I have yet to respond to any of them, but that doesn't stop him. But my resistance to getting involved is starting to wear thin, and I know it is only a matter of time before I give in and respond.
There is a nice crowd in the bar tonight, and my favourite roster of staff is on, so I am having a great evening. I am flirting like crazy with the guys as usual, but somehow, I know that I won't be going home with any of them.
Devon, Bailey, Sam and I are a well-oiled machine, getting the drinks out while having plenty of banter between us. Devon is a genius mixologist who arrived from Sydney about six months ago and he and I have great banter when we work together due to his direct Aussie humour. Sam and Bailey are local girls, twins born and bred in the East End. They have only been working in the bar for a couple of months but have slotted into the team well and always make the evenings interesting with their mischievous natures.
I am busy laughing my socks off at Devon attempting a Tom Cruise move from the movie Cocktail when suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. I don't have a clue why I have reacted like this until my eyes suddenly lock onto a pair of familiar hazel ones. The air whooshes out of my lungs, and I can't breathe. I try to take a big gulp of air to stop the dizzy feeling and steel myself, not wanting to let him know the effect he is having on me.
"Hello, Garry," I say quietly.
Garry shifts uncomfortably, and I can tell he's nervous. "Hey, Katie. It's been a while."
Argh. Just hearing him call me by my old nickname makes me want to smack him. Just like that, the anger I have been keeping buried for the last five years suddenly floods my body. "You could say that," I say through gritted teeth.
"And…and are you well?" Garry is looking anywhere but into my eyes.
"Yeah, and no thanks to you, you shit," I spit out. Despite my best efforts, I just can't help the anger that bubbles to the surface.
The group of guys surrounding Garry seem to have finally noticed the tension and are looking at me with curiosity, all except one drunk guy who clearly hasn't gotten the memo. "Come on, Gazza, it's your stag do. Let's get the shots in!"
My hands start to shake as the words sink in. Stag do. Gary is getting married. All the air leaves my lungs and my ears begin to ring as I try to reel in my emotions. A moment later I feel a presence behind my back. In an instant, I know that it's Finn. And from the stiffness of his stance, I'm guessing he is about three seconds away from launching himself across the bar. I close my eyes for the briefest of moments, summoning up my courage. "Well let's hope you take your vows with this one a bit more seriously, Garry. You know, 'in sickness and health' and all that jazz. Not that we even got that far."
I hear the hiss of a collective intake of breaths on both sides of the bar. I can see the cogs turning in Sam and Bailey's heads and the anger that crosses their faces as they put two and two together. Seriously, you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of them with the talons they are sporting. As for the rest of Garry's gang, I don't recognise any of them, and they clearly don't know that he was engaged before. To me.
"Now get the fuck out of our bar," Finn growls at the group. "You are not welcome in here. Tonight, or any other." A couple of the guys are posturing towards each other as if they are getting ready to cause a scene, but Garry's face has turned bright red with embarrassment.
"Come on, lads. Let's get out of here," he says firmly and walks away without even a backward glance. Gary was always more flight than fight.
The moment they have all left the bar through the swinging doors my whole body starts to tremble as memories I had long since repressed start to surface. "Cover us for ten, guys," Finn says briskly, before grabbing my hand and pulling me through to the office.
Once in the quiet, Finn pulls me into his arms and holds me tightly, while the tears flow. Five years. It has been five years since that awful day when my life crashed around my ears, and now it seems the past has come back to haunt me.