i dunno if you do AUs but: may works at a bar and phil is the divorced awkward school teacher (like in the framework) venting about his daily routine on a regular basis in front of a glass after work thinking the out of his league super hot bartender is not actually listening and just nodding along with that non expression of hers while she is actually falling in love at every word and waiting impatiently for him to come by every other day?
This….. isn’t exactly what you asked for, but it’s what caught my imagination, and I hope you like it! You actually inspired an entirely different (and much longer) bar-related au as well, which I’m still writing, so I’ll be sure to let you know if/when that gets posted too.
The clink of a glass being set in front of him startles Phil from what is admittedly a bit of a reverie - May isn’t at Zephyr tonight and he’s more deflated than he’d like to admit. “Here you go, sir,” the bartender says, shooting him a quick smile and turning away to replace the bottle on the shelf behind him.
“Oh, hey, this isn’t mine,” Phil calls. “I haven’t ordered anything yet.”
“Yeah, but you’re Phil Coulson, right? Third seat on the bar on Fridays, usually in a tie, always orders whiskey?”
He is wearing a tie, in fact, and he finds himself smoothing it out nervously as he tries to figure out if he’s supposed to recognize this guy. Normally it’s just May working this part of the bar when he’s here, although sometimes a chatty twentysomething named Daisy is on shift - he likes her, she’s got a wicked sense of humor - and he knows some of the other Zephyr employees, but this guy isn’t ringing any bells. Too young to be a friend of a friend, too. Fuck, has he really been teaching long enough that he’s forgetting former students’ faces?
His confusion must show on his face, because the bartender laughs. “Don’t worry, man, we haven’t met. I’m just taking May’s shift tonight. I’m Trip.”
“Nice to meet you,” Phil says automatically.
“She said you’d like this one. Hakushu, twelve years. Didn’t even know the Japanese made whiskey, but that woman knows her booze and I’m not about to argue with the person who signs my paychecks.” Trip nods at the glass. “You must be something special, man. Don’t think I’ve ever seen her buy a specific bottle for a regular before.”
He heads back over to the far side of the bar where a couple of newcomers are waiting to order, seemingly not caring that he’s just shaken the foundations of Phil’s world. Melinda May, the breathtakingly gorgeous woman he’s been developing a legitimately incapacitating crush on, pays attention to what he likes? Enough to buy a bottle just for him? Hell, he hadn’t even realized she recognized him from visit to visit, let alone registered what kind of whiskey he tended to order.
Phil takes a cautious sip from the glass, not entirely sure what to expect.
It’s amazing.
