TRIGGER WARNING.

Hallie Hendrix — 23.     She Is Art How silly to compare her to temporary cliche swirls of emotion. she is concrete. she is PERMANENT she is brave with her words. & slick with her h e a r t. CONCRETE ANGEL

[halliehendrix]

❛ AVA,

      “He really does that? For fucks sake, your boss needs see clearly so he or she can fire his ass.” Ava stated to her bartender before sighing softly. Looking around the place, it seemed quaint, but a little on the low side. If they were needing an extra bartender, Ava would offer herself if she was taking a break from her current work. “I have some of those too. From here, they look pretty well done. I give props to whoever inked you.” She grinned as she waited for her drink. “I’m Ava, by the way. Ava Ripley. I’m a pretty well known tattoo artist around this joint, so you may of already heard of me.”

     “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell him, but I’m still fresh meat around here so my opinion doesn’t really matter much, honestly.” She explained, giving her a soft smile. She didn’t mind much about having no say, especially since she was used to it. But it was sort of annoying that she was constantly cleaning up with her fellow co-workers. “Yeah? What all do you have? A lot?” The brunette questioned, sliding the drink across the bar top. “Well, Ava, unfortunately, I haven’t. I’m new to the area, so I haven’t heard of a lot of people yet. You have your own shop?”

[halliehendrix]

❛ FREYA,

Freya had the longest day at the hospital today, and not to mention that some new intern had to substitute in the operating room with her had caused her nerve to just rattle and she was in desperate need of drink or two tonight. But as she sat on the stood, tapping her fingers on the counter as to what she was deciding to drink the bartender went on, and she tried to pass as much as she was saying out the other ear. “And might I know why I have to order before said guy comes in? He’s not President Donald Trump is he?”

“Please, Trump wouldn’t set foot in these doors if his life depended on it. He likes to surround himself with terrible people, and though the bartenders here can be sort of shitty, we don’t compare to Trump's team of satanic worshipers.” She began, taking a prolonged breath before sipping down on her drink. “Nah, the guy here is just bad with his hands. You’ll end up paying for the drink and then the dry cleaning caused by the drink that he spills on you by accident. Happens every time. Not sure why my boss keeps him around, but while he is here, I’m giving everyone a forewarning.” 

[halliehendrix]

❛ NICK,

“Are you telling me there’s not a single other person here that can make me a good whiskey coke?” Nick perked his brow up at her, sitting down at the bar right in front of her position. “Doesn’t seem like it’d be that hard of a concoction to make.”

“Nope, sorry, we don’t make anything good for douchebags like you. There’s a shithole in the fucking wall a couple blocks over, though. Why don’t you crawl over there and die? How’s that sound, buddy?” The brunette barked, furrowing her brows at Nick. She wasn’t going to bother asking questions on what he was doing here or why he stayed even after seeing her. All she wanted was for him to just leave.

[halliehendrix]

❛ MELODY,

Melody wrinkled her nose, sitting up slightly straighter her in her stood. “Oh, sunshine, I’m gonna need to know more than that.” She said, blue eyes wide. She had, in her mind, sound reason for concern – she was in this bar nearly as often as she was in her own apartment. She chuckled and leaned forward. “You know I could never ignore you,” she hummed, offering the bartender a grin. “Corpse reviver, if you’ve got time.”

“Not much to know other than the fact that he’s got a set of shaky hands and unless you wanna walk out of here wearing your drink and smelling like a booze hound, I’d avoid him at all costs.” The brunette explained, taking a small sip from the can of soda that her small fingers clung to. At her request, she then pushed back from where she was and nodded. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere just yet, so it’ll be right up. And you know, as a bartender, we’re supposed to not judge but damn, how do you hold that drink down? The sweetness makes me wanna keel over.”

[halliehendrix]

❛ JAYDE,

Jayde blinked, simultaneously baffled and defensively irritable all at once, eyebrows furrowing with a look of genuine confusion. “Who the fuck are you?” She’d echoed back challengingly, stumbling backwards now barefoot to look up at the residence she was currently at the door of. She’d been so sure that she’d made it home, but surely this young woman hadn’t broken into her place and even if she had wouldn’t have answered the door pantsless and with the sense of ownership Hallie currently seemed to posses. “Shit,” the brunette hissed, the numbers above the door archway becoming less fuzzy as she squinted up at them. Holding up her keys in show to the other young woman, “I fucking thought this was my… well, that explains the key not fitting. Good to know i’m at least not so drunk I can’t function a keyhole.” Jayde grumbled, turning slightly to look over her shoulder back out towards the street with a grimace of dread. Maybe she should just call herself an Uber, give in to the clear obliviousness of her intoxicated mindset that evening. “What street is this?” She’d finally asked, using her elbow again to prop herself up in the doorway, warm brown eyes sweeping over Hallie’s figure.

As Hallie took in the sight of the stranger, she became increasingly confused. Her brows knitting down the center as she crossed both arms over her chest. She had witnessed her fair share of strange encounters, and though this didn’t compare to the crazy situations that piled back home in Reno, it sure as hell left her with a worried expression. As the other then mimicked her own question, Hallie’s frustration grew—taking the statement negatively, as she did with most things. “What are you go—” The brunette then paused her speech, letting the words fumble from her lips as she made sense that the other was clearly drunk. She honestly wasn’t in the mood to deal with something like this, but the more embarrassed she felt for her, the more inclined she felt to help her. “East Olympic Boulevard.” She answered, remaining completely still, though her features softened just a bit. “You know where that is right? Or better yet, do you even know what city you’re in? Or this your own version of the Hangover happening right before my eyes?” 

[highbcltage-blog]

why should i resolve things peacefully when i can fucking punch you in the face

[halliehendrix]

❛ JAYDE,

        a case of mistaken identity 

@halliehendrix

The ground seemed to ebb and sway beneath Jayde’s feet as she stumbled towards what she believed to be her place of residence, her heels clacking in an unsteady broken rhythm with each step. Finally upon reaching the door some small sigh of relief escaped her lips, having to use her elbow to somewhat prop herself up against the archway whilst digging through her clutch for her keys. “Fucking hell,” she’d hissed upon losing her balance– her hip coming to a small thud against the door. Irritably she stepped to kick off her heels one at a time, allowing them to fly out into the sidewalk with little to no concern for their well being. Nimble fingers finally plucked her keys from her purse, jabbing absently at the door knob and growing more confused with every non-sticking effort to fit the key into the door. “The fuck, am I some kind of living example of chaos theory? This key goes to this damn door.” Jayde instantly balled her hand into a fist, pounding it angrily against the barrier. “Pluto?! If ever there was a time for you to be a damn shapeshifter it’s now! Come get the door, i’ll give you some catnip.” Merlin, was she trying to bargain with her cat? Still in a bewildered drunken stupor she began to jab the key helplessly at the door again, wishful that perhaps she’d just been being particularly dimwitted with it the first time around and had merely missed the keyhole. 

It was a rarity for Hallie to find herself staying at home. She was still new to the area and wasn’t familiar with some of the locals just yet, but that was no excuse for her to lock herself inside for the evening while Eliza was out doing god know’s what. It felt strange beyond belief, especially considering how she was far more fatalistic and carefree of the two lookalikes. Yet, here she was, staying inside, curled up on her crappy, Craig’s List bought couch, wearing nothing but an oversized t-shirt as she continuously watched through the entire Saw franchise movies. For the most part, she was perfectly content; laughing as the people on the screen got tortured. But the second the sound of something bagging filled her ears, the young hedonist jumped and screamed. She wasn’t expecting a noise like that to come into play in real life, but when it did, her heart rate increased. Hearing it repeatedly, Hallie paused the movie in suspension and stood up from her spot on the couch. Timidly, she made her way to the noise, scared at first, but the moment she took in someone speaking on the other side of her front door, she felt more relaxed. It didn’t sound like anyone she knew, and she figured the Angel’s wouldn’t go this far to get her attention, so she made her way there and quickly unlocked the door and swung it open. “Seriously, what the hell is going on!?” She let out, catching sight of a complete stranger standing before her. “Who the fuck are you!?”

[halliehendrix]

❛ AVA,

      “Another shower? What the hell does that mean?” Ava asked as she peered up at the tattooed bartender. “I’d love another glass of scotch.” She gave her a grin before her eyes trailed down her covered arms. Looking over the tattoos, her head tilted to the side a bit as she examined them closely. “Nice tattoos. How many do you have?”

     “Means he’s a shit bartender who can’t keep the drink in the damn glass. You okay with wearing your order out of here? Because I’m sure as hell not.” Why her boss was okay with hiring him was beyond her. But lately, they had been in the weeds and apparently, that meant they were also desperate. “You got it.” She nodded, spinning around to grab the bottle to pour her another. As the other spoke, Hallie looked down at her arms and chest, looking at her own canvas of art before glancing back up. “Mmm, thirty or so? Give or take. I lost count after awhile. And some I don’t even remember getting, so that doesn’t really help on keeping a tally.”

[halliehendrix]

❛ WYATT,

“A shower? Does he spit when he talks or something?” A bemused smile formed at the vague suggestion. Fiddling with his glass, it circled in place as he considered the offer. Maybe he was too far in his head at this point, but drinking alone seemed a bit sad to him. He was more of a social drinker, to begin with, but he’d needed to let off some steam. In the end, though, he decided the company of dozens of strangers made the act a twinge less pathetic. “Uh      yeah, I should probably call it quits after this, but if you’re still on the clock, I could go for one more round. Whatever you feel like making.” 

“As disgusting as that would be, I feel like it would be better depending on how you look at it.” The brunette began, both arms resting against the oak bar top as she spoke. “More like, the drink you order will be your new attire for the evening. It’s like he can’t give someone their order without getting it all over the place. So unless you wanna be sticky and smell like a boozy housewife after a wet t-shirt contest, I suggest you stick to ordering from me. And no, this isn’t just a sly way of getting a bigger tip from you.” The last bit she had to share, knowing good and well some people might take this as a lame attempt at earning that dollar. “Oh, that’s risky. Whatever I feel like making might result in you jumping on this bar top here later and banging on your chest like you’re King Kong. You don’t with that?” 

[halliehendrix]

❛ LORELAI,

Lorelai blinked, silently appalled. “I’d need a shower?” she questioned, expression hovering somewhere between aghast and amused. Placing a her hand palm down on the bar, she nodded. “Another bottle of Two Hearted, please.”

“I mean, you’d want a real one, but the point I was trying to make is that he’d end up spilling all over you.” She explained, leaning against the bar top as she sipped on her own glass of water. “That’s all you want? Alright, as you wish, blondie.” Pushing off the counter, Hallie made her way to the other side of the bar, grabbing hold of the bottle and popping off the cap quickly. “You sure you want nothing else?” She then questioned as she made her way back to the woman and slide the bottle gently over to her. 

[halliehendrix]

❛ ROMINA,

Romina stayed silent as she wondered whether or not it’d be smart to get another drink. She been sitting alone at the bar for almost an hour, one glass of red Zinfandel wine down, and still her Tinder date had not shown up. “I’ll take another glass of wine, please.” Romina said with a deep sigh. “Thanks for the heads up.” The dark haired woman looked at her phone for the billionth time hoping that maybe she had missed a call. She double checked her phone and there were no missed calls or messages and the sound was on loud. “Great, what a waste of time.” Romina mumbled to herself as she put her phone down. It wasn’t like her to get worked up over a silly Tinder date but she had high hopes for this guy.  

At the request for another glass of wine, Halie hesitated but nodded nonetheless. She knew it was the customer’s want, so she wouldn’t argue, but god she really did hate wine. “One more glass coming right up.” She assured, twisting around to search for the same bottle she used previously, before returning to the woman to pour the liquid into her glass. It was she overheard what was being said, her brows knitting down the center. “Something not going as planned, I take it?” In her time being a bartender, she had begun to pick up on a few things. Weeding out why each of her patrons was upset and what was going on without them being straight forward about it. 

[halliehendrix]

❛ ERIC,

“Am I sensing violence in the workplace?” Eric asked while he continued to clean a few empty glasses. “If the boss finds out about that, there won’t be anymore tips for you forever.” He shot a playful wink her way before dropping his rag onto the bar counter. “Looks like my shift is up, see you around Hendrix.” As he spoke, Eric reached into the tip jar for a handful of money then shuffled to the back room.

“Please, no tips means I’d quit and he can’t afford to lose his best bartender. You, on the other hand, he could totally make do without.” The brunette cooed, twisting around to where her back was leaning against the back of the bar top. “Whoa there!” It was then she kicked off her heel and chased after him. “Where do you think you’re going with all that? Cough it up, kid, you know you don’t deserve it all.”

[halliehendrix]

❛ ASHER,

“Shower? Care to elaborate?” she asked, quirking a brow at the female before finishing up the rest of her beer. “Well, since you asked. What’s the strongest drink you have here? With the afternoon I’ve had, I’m gonna need it.”

“He’s going to end up pouring your entire drink all over you by accident because he’s got like butter fingers, I swear. So unless you wanna be soaking wet and smelling like a booze hound all night, I suggest you stick with me.” She continued, giving the other a tight lipped smirk. “Strongest drink, well, I can make you a strong one, off menu. If it’s alcohol you wanna drown yourself in, then trust that you're in good hands. I just won’t tell you what’s in it cause it’ll sound fucking disgusting. Okay?” 

[halliehendrix]

❛ ELIZA,

Eliza barely glanced at the man her sister was speaking to before rudely sending him off to steal his stool. “I took an improv class today,” she announced, a look of sheer astonishment slipping over her features. Though, that wasn’t a compliment. “Before you ask, I was bored, you were working. I had nothing to do. Anyways, I now understand why some people think the gateway to hell is the H in the Hollywood sign. I can’t even begin to explain to you how awful this class was." 

Without so much as a second thought, Eliza finished off the drink left by the unknown stranger, pushing the glass back toward her sister in an unspoken request for more before continuing her tale. "The people there, first of all, were like pod people. All happy and preppy and full of shit to be honest. Quite literally actually, since there was a skit about someone being constipated if I’m remembering it correctly.”

The moment the lookalike surprised Hallie, she jumped back a bit. Her dark hues taking in the sight of her sister and the man was shooed away while her brows knitted down the center. “I uh, whoa—” she began, processing the turn of events as her sister began going off on her own little tangent. Laughing softly, Hallie shook her head and relaxed back against the bar top. A playful roll of her eyes, listening to what she had to say. “What in god’s name are you going on about?”

“Well, what was gross” She spoke to herself, taking the glass, putting into the nearby sink before grabbing a new, clean one and filling it up for them. “So... you’re saying it was a gateway to hell because everyone there was so happy? Now, I see why that would be a problem for me, but are you really that turned off by these excited people? You’re in LA, the capital of fake bitches and fuck boys. You shouldn’t be all that surprised.” 

[halliehendrix]

❛ LEIGH,

“Oh, i’d be careful with promises like that m’lady– the next thing I want could very well be you. Technically i’m above kidnapping, but i’m not above trying to brainwash you with these pearly whites of mine.” For emphasis sake Leigh’s smile tugged up at the corner of her lips into an even broader one, “Ah. Makes sense. Poor guy, not the best line of work to be clumsy. Still, I do thank you for sparing me the rum flood. I’m not quite inclined to try and drink it off the counter, or, you know, wear it either. Sticky can be fun in certain scenarios, but that is not one of them.” A playful cringe rested upon her features for a split second, blue eyes scanning across the bar towards Hallie while polishing off the drink that’d been initially resting in front of her. “Fair enough. I mean, they have to expect it really. I’d think. Don’t worry, I won’t rat you out to whoever the big cheese is around here. And, if you do decide to stick around to keep me company the least I could do would be to make it interesting. You any good with a pool stick? I’m sure we could find some poor fools to hussel.” 

“If the next thing you want is me, then I promise, I’ll happily come willingly. No kidnapping or manipulation needed. For a girl like you, I’d let you punch me in the damn face.” She cooed, giving her a devious smirk as she leaned in closer along the bar top. Hallie was always one to flirt shamelessly and most of the time, it was meaningless, but she had to admit that the woman on the outside of the counter was certainly appealing. “No, he’s not. But these days it feels like bar owners will hire anyone so long as they don’t complain and actually show up. My fingers are crossed you don’t have to deal with him at all, though. I’m curious to know what sticky situations you find fun, though. Care to shed some light?” Cocking up a single brow, Hallie waited with genuine curiosity, hoping for a specific answer, though. “That’s why I’m happy I'm fairly decent at being slick. I learned about the five finger discount from a young age, so so far I’m in the clear, but who knows what could happen. My boss may actually get a brain one day. As for pool, can’t say I’m too great at it. But if it’s hustling you wanna do, I’m a professional. Just gotta know how to work the room a little—you know, act like a con-artist. You carry the team on actually doing well, and I’ll be sure to have your back and keep us out of the line of fire.”

[sexyandfamous]

[halliehendrix]

❛ ERIC,

“I’d listen to her man. Apart from me, she’s the next best bartender in this joint. Since I am the best though and gave you some awesome fucking advice, why don’t you leave me her tip so I can end my shift on a good note.”

“Oh looky here, someone who clearly needs to step down from their high horse. Try and take my tips from me and I’ll break open one of these empty beer bottles here and use it against you, Ripley. You may think you’re good at bartending, which sure, if it helps you sleep better at night, I’ll give it to you. But in a fight against me? The best is standing right here.” The brunette pointed out, offering up a devious smile as she pointed to herself.