"Who did this to you?"
Lucy tossed back another shot of tequila, downing the alcohol in one swallow before flipping the glass over onto the counter. At least it didn't burn anymore.
"Is this over your break-up with Chris?" Angela leaned against the bartop. It was supposed to be a fun night. A girls night. But two beers rolled over into two shots and then two shots turned into four. She thinks this was number five.
"No." She giggled. "I'm the one who broke up with Chris. I told him I wanted his playbook and he got all defensive."
She didn't care about Chris. Not in that way, not anymore.
"You wanted his playbook?" Lucy could hear the questioning tone. Angela was just as confused as Lucy had been when Tim first helped her with the idea.
She could feel her eyes watering as a sadness washed over her. She hated that emotional stage of being drunk that tequila had always seemed to make her. Quickly, she motioned towards the bartender for another shot. At least the alcohol gave her an excuse to freely cry.
Angela tapped on Lucy's arm, garnering the other woman's attention. "Is this about you and Tim?"
"Tim and I..." Her words faltered as she humorlessly let out a laugh. "There is no Tim and I. Not anymore."
Promotions were great, until they bit you in the ass with a harsh dose of reality.
"This is a huge opportunity, Tim. You shouldn't turn it down just because-"
"Because of what?"
"Because of us."
"Is there an us?"
"There could have been. But now... I don't want to be what holds you back."
Angela looked at her solemnly. She didn't want the pity. What she wanted, Lucy couldn't have. "But there was?"
Lucy stared at the glass as the bartender filled it just below the brim. She knows Angela told the person filling her glass to make it water. Just like she knows Angela sent off a text to Tim. What about, Lucy didn't know, she didn't care.
"But there was?" The question played like a broken record.
There had been. But Lucy supposes it was never meant to be.
