It’s a rainy, cold evening. The type of evening that makes you want to snuggle up under a warm, soft blanket, never to get out from under it again. And yet here I am. Walking down the sidewalk, my dollar store umbrella in hand. Walking through puddles and getting my socks wet.
I looked at my watch. The dim streetlights illuminated its face just enough to make out the numbers. Eight fifteen. “Shit”.
I accelerated my pace to a slow jog.
My boots splashed water onto my trousers. I shivered as my clothes were getting increasingly damp. But it didn’t matter, someone I couldn’t let down was waiting for me.
Seventeen minutes later than it should have been, I found myself in front of the bar we had agreed on. Colton’s. Its lights cast a warm glow onto the wet sidewalk. An inviting sight indeed.
I closed my umbrella, and pushed on the front door to open it.
The warmth inside gave me back some feeling in my fingertips and my nose.
The soft sound of pleasant conversations filled the air.
I scanned the room. Patrons were enjoying a drink with their friends or loved ones. At the bar, a small, dark haired girl was enjoying a Martini. She was leaning her chin on her hand and fidgeted with her straw.