Hangovers are inevitable. Regrets are optional. The drinks are judging you, and so is the bar.Â
Lights out. Bottles awake.
BAR: Every night itâs heartbreak and karaoke. I swear, Iâm one sticky floor away from retirement.
BEER: Alright, who had the guy crying about his ex again?
WINE: Thatâs literally all of us.
TEQUILA: Mine climbed on the counter, screamed âI fear nothingâ then immediately feared gravity.
VODKA: My guy took one shot, texted his ex and blamed me for it. Iâm transparent, not responsible.
RUM: Mine said he was gonna âheal.â Then started a podcast. While still drunk.
CHAMPAGNE: At least people drink me to celebrate!
BEER: Yeah, until they mix you with orange juice and call it âbrunch.â
WINE: Oh please. Humans drink me when they want to âfeel poetic.â Then end up tweeting sad lyrics.
TEQUILA: You get boxed sometimes. Stay humble.
WINE: At least I age well. You taste like regret and salt.
TEQUILA: Regret gives me flavor, sweetheart.
STOOL: Can someone tell your humans to stop spinning on me? Iâm still dizzy from last night.
JUKEBOX: Youâre lucky. I played âMr. Brightsideâ twelve times in a row. Iâve seen things.
COFFEE and WATER enter, tired.
COFFEE: Morning shiftâs here. What disaster did you cause this time?
VODKA: Eh, same old. Two breakups, one bad tattoo, and a karaoke rendition of âCreep.â
WATER: Great. Iâll be mopping up the aftermath again.
COFFEE: I swear, Iâm not paid enough to restart these peopleâs lives every morning.
BEER: Oh look, caffeineâs here to âfixâ everyone again.
COFFEE: Fix? Babe, I sustain them out of spite.
WINE: At least we give them passion. You just give them anxiety.
COFFEE: And you give them typos and divorce papers.
WATER: Can we all admit humans donât deserve any of us?
TEQUILA: Facts. They chase me with you, though.
WATER: Because theyâre scared. Iâm basically their seatbelt.
RUM: Oops. Sheâs not wrong.
COFFEE: Anyway, you night shift disasters, clock out. Iâve got nine-to-fivers to resuscitate.
BEER: Good luck, babe. Theyâll ruin you by 10 a.m.
COFFEE: They already did.
WATER: You know whatâs wild? They blame us for their choices.
TEQUILA: Yeah. Like, ânever drinking againâ Sure, Jan.
COFFEE: And âIâm quitting caffeine.â See you tomorrow, coward.
Then they all laugh tiredly.
NEON SIGN: Theyâll be back tonight. They always come back.
BAR (sighs): The hangoverâs mine now.
Then the sunlight spills in,Â
and the âBARâ sign flickers over âBREAKFAST.â