Klara Nyberg

Richie takes the opportunity to slide in by her side at the bar, martini glass in hand. He leans against it, giving her a look up and down briefly before speaking up. “Lookin’ for someone?” He sips his drink, gaze wandering over to the entrance, then back at her. “Don’t tell me someone was dumb enough to stand up such a gorgeous woman.” A beat. “Let me buy you a drink.” Richie purses his lips a moment. “Name’s Richie… and you’re?”

Klara felt the shadow of a person slide beside her, taking the place of her best friend. Her shoulders tensed as she turned her face to face the voice. Leaning slightly back in her chair to give herself some space back.

She watched as she was eyed up and down. An amused smirk on her face. She knew his type, her and this seemingly charming stranger might as well have been old friends. Klara didn’t bother responding to his initial question. “Ding, ding. ding” she chimed, putting her index finger to her nose, to suggest he’d hit the nail on the head. “I’ll have a vodka cranberry” she directed at the bartender. “Hello Richie, I’m Klara” 

“I would resent that but, let’s face it, it’s probably not a lie”, he shrugged. It was already very surprising that he got this far without making a complete mess out of things but it did give him some much-needed confidence that maybe he could talk to people who weren’t his best friends if he wasn’t always so hard on himself. “Thank you! Most people around here think you’re crazy for saying you’re not a bar or club person but I think it’s perfectly understandable. Give me an ice cream shop or coffee shop any day and the more I can stay at my apartment without having to go out, the better.” 

“There’s this band I’ve been following on Youtube lately and apparently they’re supposed to perform tonight. I ended up getting here earlier than I planned but I wanted to get a good seat”, he explained. “What about you? How come you’re at a bar if you dislike it as much as me?”

Klara chuckled at the others remark. Truthfully, if the man hadn’t initiated the conversation, she’d still be sitting alone twiddling her fingers.“Right!” Klara agreed. “As if somehow you’re some miserable hermit for choosing to acquaint yourself with Ben& Jerry or Mr. Cup-O-Joe” she piped a bit enthusiastically. For the first time in a couple of weeks Klara found herself relaxing into a conversation. 

”Oh hopefully they’re good live, they usually save the best ones till the end, hopefully, they don’t disappoint. At his question Klara opted for a tale not too far from the truth. “Just thought I’d try something new, what I was doing before wasn’t working too well for me, plus I’m new to Dayton, thought maybe I’d find some like-minded people, I suppose I wasn’t wrong” she smiled with a slight cock to her head.“I’m Klara, by the way.” 

For a twenty six year old, Alison had been through a lot in her life. She had rough teenage years, but somehow found herself on a reality tv show by the time she was twenty which had kickstarted her music career. Balancing all that had been quite the struggle, but of course she also had a daughter which threw in another curveball. Ali knew a lot about life - or at least she liked to believe she had with everything she had lived through.

Of course the girl snapped back, who wouldn’t? Ali was a complete stranger to her, and was giving her advice on how to live her life. But for whatever reason, Ali found herself still talking. She couldn’t seem to stop herself. “I mean - I’m not going to let you ignore my advice.” She had been in the same spot the girl was - maybe not drinking - but she had been stood up by a guy multiple times. She had also found herself in some tough romantic relationships in the past. She could tell the girl was hurting, so she moved her seat, to sit beside her. 

“It’s fine,” She mused as the bartender set her order of mozzarella sticks in front of her. “I just have found that, in life, nothing comes to you. You have to work for everything you want. Even relationships. And clearly, this person isn’t working for you. And you’re worth more than someone who would stand you up.” She picked up a cheese stick, ripping it in half, dropping it in her mouth. She pushed the plate towards the girl, “A cheese stick will help. They always do.” She told her, then looked up the girl once more. “It is a very nice outfit.” She promised, “You shouldn’t waste it, the night is still young, lets go do something.” She offered.

Klara smiled at the other, when people showed her any sign of selfless attention, it always hit a little different. The reason she hadn’t left with her friend, was because it wasn’t selfless. The other wanted to have fun and wanted Klara to join her, not because she cared about Klara's fun, but because she felt guilty leaving her behind and having her own fun. Which was ok because despite it Klara new her best friend loved her. However, a random stranger showing any ounce of interest in her life made her feel slightly unsteady.

Sharing too much of herself was a common occurrence and it would be no difference in her current circumstance, especially while intoxicated. “Hi, I’m Klara. You don’t know me, if you did, you’d know you’re not going to tell me something I haven’t heard a million times before, or don’t already know for myself” Klara noted.

“I'm glad, that that’s how life has worked for you, but in my life; I am the girl who hangs out at the bar and waste a perfectly good outfit sitting in wait. I’m not disagreeing with you. Just letting you know how it plays out.” she shrugged. Despite herself though Klara knew no one was going to show up, and self-perseverance urged her to leave before she was hurt worse. If the friendly blonde with the unwarranted advice left, Klara would be alone now that Clarice had disappeared to god knows where for god knows how long, and she had little left to give. 

With a wary smile Klara grasped the other end of the mozzarella stick that was handed to her. “I also would like you to know, that even though I’m going to probably go do something with you” she vacillated, putting fingers up forming air quotes around the something with you.  “It doesn’t mean that I have caved. Even more important for you to know; you have not won and my original stance is the same” she quickly added, lifting herself from her seat and throwing on the jacket she’d put over her chair. “I just don’t want to sit here alone with a lonely, drunk girl target on my back”

Claudia nodded. “Es, veradad…true. You seriously do not want to get on my bad side. I can get worse than that too.” she chuckled. “I’m pretty basic when it comes to food. We just have the typical bar food, nothing super fancy. I really like the big-ass pretzel…eat the shit in one sitting all by myself.” she said, shamelessly. “You new here or just never ventured to good-old Labyrinth?” she asked. 

“I feel bad for the fool who chooses to cross you bad enough to get the worst” Klara laughed. 

“I figured that was the case, but the giant-ass pretzel sounds good; And- a little of both, new here, just about a month and this is one of the few places left to visit. I’m Klara”

“Oh yeah?” Adelina smirked, remembering all too clearly how Dayton seemed to her when she first moved. Nice town, for sure, but holy shit the chaos of it all. And when she had her mother move into town with her…that was a story in itself. If Adelina ever relayed to her mother that the stripper she saw almost entirely nude on a street corner taking selfies was an ex co-worker, she wouldn’t hear the end of it. Puerto Rican mothers, they’re no joke.

She prepared the brewed coffee for the woman and grabbed her the cheese danish. “Getting used to it will take some time.” She smiled, handing the woman her orders as she rung her up. “Are you here temporarily or to stay?”

Klara gave the other a wide smile, grabbing her order, and shuffled in her purse for her wallet to pay for it, pulling out extra cash for a tip. Based on the conversation, it seemed this team was definitely well deserving. “I’m hoping it’s one of those situations where you wake up and everything feels normal, how long did it take you?” she chuckled handing the female the cash. “That’s a loaded question, it’s still kind of up in the air.”

Beatrice was at the bar waiting for a few acquaintances of her own and she couldn’t help but overhear the interaction two friends next to her seemed to be having. She wasn’t sure why the other girl wasn’t joining her friend and it wasn’t any of her business but she noticed the group on the other side of the bar eyeing them up. “I think you just missed quite the opportunity”, Bea said once the other girl left to go on the dance floor. I’ve been seeing those guys eyeing you up since the second you walked in. That’s probably why your friend was so adamant you join her”, she chuckled. “And I completely agree with you. With a killer outfit like yours, it’s a pity not to use it to your advantage and waste the night looking over to the door.” Bea was probably overstepping, especially since she didn’t even know the other girl, but alcohol made her chatty and she had two glasses of wine even after swearing she wouldn’t be drinking. At least she was still coherent enough to compliment her on an outfit well-chosen. And she wasn’t lying either. As someone who worked within the fashion industry, Bea didn’t make it a habit of complimenting someone’s outfit unless she really meant it. “I’m Beatrice by the way, but you can just call me Bea”, she said, holding out her hand for a shake. 

Klara looked away from the door for a split second hearing someone make a comment. “It’s only a missed opportunity if I want what they’re offering” she replied mindlessly, her gaze impulsively turning back towards the door, have invested in the unwarranted conversation. Part of her wanted to go join her friend, and the other half of her couldn’t find her legs to do so. It was getting later into the night, and people were starting to crowd in, so much so that the entrance started becoming less and less visible. 

If there was one thing Klara despised, it was not being present, which is why she found people to be her vice. And somehow a person was making her check out. Mentally shaking herself, Klara checked back into the conversation.  Unwillingly, Klara peered her eyes from the door, it was growing useless anyway, and turned to fully face the other. “My stubbornness will end me someday. But it is a really fucking great outfit” she sheepishly agreed. She scrunched her nose pensively. “Nice to meet you Bea. I’m Klara, so why are you wasting a bomb ass outfit sitting at a bar, along with my dumb ass?”

Ali wasn’t a major drinker, sure she did it occasionally with friends. But tonight, she wasn’t going out with friends. She heard that this bar had some banger mozzarella sticks, and sometimes she just wanted a deep fried cheese stick. Tonight was one of those nights. She wanted a deep fried cheese stick and a glass of soda.

So she found herself standing at the bar, waiting for her order of mozzarella sticks to be in her possession. She wanted to take them home with her, but it was taking longer to make them than she expected, so she sighed, taking a seat at the bar to wait for them.

She watched the girl beside her sit at the bar quietly after her friend took off. Something was bothering her, Ali wanted to ask, but she didn’t want to bother her either. But then she heard her speak, so she motioned to the door, “If you’re waiting for someone to walk through that door, you’re living wrong. You have to go out that door and kickstart your own life. You can’t wait for someone to come in here. Don’t waste your good outfit, go show it off.”

Klara let out a huff of breath, sinking herself more into the bar top hoping it would swallow her whole. People had an addiction to drugs, food, and sex; Her addiction was people, particularly people who didn’t care to show up. 

She raised her eyebrow, as a few inches away a blonde piped up after her small outburst. Klara was used to people telling her how wrong she was constantly doing the romantic thing, she’d come to expect it. “You wouldn’t be the first opinion or advice I’d ignore today” she piped, barely meeting the others gaze. “As someone who is completely unaware of the situation, but would like to guru someone’s world. Would you go kickstart your life after six years of living; after only 2 months of waiting for someone to show up for what are probably very good reasons?” she emphasized the living, her eyebrows furrowed together, a shadow of the hurt she was truly feeling flashing on her eyes, before she straightened her shoulders and painted a smile on her face. 

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to get snippy, I drank too much and haven’t eaten enough” she offered a small smile, pushing her drink away and reaching for the small bowl of peanuts. “Clearly I agree with you, hence the dramatic this is a waste of a perfectly good outfit thing I just did” she mocked herself. “But well, still I sit.”

Parker was a huge fan of seeing how people reacted to some of the things that came out of her mouth, so as the girl she’d approached actually commented instead of running away or looking at her like she was a crazy person? Parker was pumped.

“I mean, I suppose I don’t have to be a disobedient avocado… are cucumbers more your speed?” she asked, definitely sticking to the green vegetable theme even though in actuality, all she wanted to do was find someone who could help get her off.  She could go track down one of her fuck buddies, but there wasn’t any fun in that and Parker liked meeting new people anyways.  “Or I could paint you instead, if you’re more into receiving than giving,” she proposed.

Klara let out a soft partly suppressed laugh. She raised her hand to her chin pensively as if she was actually thinking on the proposition “Hm... A naughty cucumber huh?” She mused. Honestly, she was a bit curious how long the other would go on naming vegetables but she’d learned in her month of being here not to welcome it. Her small-town politeness and joking manner nearly got her in trouble already.

“Sorry, still not your girl” she quickly added.

Claudia smiled over at the woman in front of her, grabbing part of the bar with her hand. “You’re right. I like you.” she laughed as she grabbed a white towel from below the bar and started to wipe down a sticky part of the bar. Claudia peered over to the woman’s glass of water. “Can I get you something else…perhaps something more alcoholic?” Claudia couldn’t stand when people came to a bar and just drank water, but she liked this girl and she was trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. “Or like food, or soda?” she asked. 

“Glad I’ve earned your favor, I’d hate to end up like that guy” she smiled, pointing her finger over her shoulder, in the direction the skeeseball exited.

She welcomed the conversation, it was a nice distraction from the constant nerves in her stomach. It was still early in the night, so she’d thought she’d keep the girl around a bit to ease her nerves.

“I’ve actually not been here before” she shrugged sheepishly, her nose crinkling. “The night’s still early. How about, food? Whatever your favorite is?”

Even with his ridiculous attempt at small talk, Tee was glad to see that it worked out to a certain extent. Well, they were talking at least and he was no longer sitting around on his own like a complete loser. It helped that from first glance the girl seemed to be easy-going and was giving off a friendly demeanour. “Hm, maybe not a pick-up line. Let’s say it was my way to attempt a friendly conversation. What do you think, is it working so far?” he asked with a cheeky smile on his face. 

“I guess you can say we’ve already found something we have in common. This is my first time in this particular bar as well, let’s just say bars aren’t really my usual scene.” If it wasn’t for the band he wanted to listen to, Tee didn’t doubt he would not be here in the first place. “I couldn’t have said it better myself. As long as it’s music, I can’t be too choosy.” Since it was still kind of early in the night, the situation at the bar wasn’t bad but he knew it would only get worse as the night got on. It wouldn’t be long until all you could see around were couples making out and that’s when the music would become a welcome distraction. 

“I think it’s going pretty great, but I’m certain it’s all my doing” Klara joked, adjusting herself in her seat. If she was gutsier, she’d join the other in his booth, but she feared unwelcomingly invading his space would be too awkward. 

“Looks like we have even more in common then, bars aren’t my typical hang out spot either. I prefer an ice cream shop or my own apartment.” It was out of character for her to be in a bar, or even visit them as often as she had in the last month. Even more out of character to move to a place like Dayton, so distinct from her normal. 

“What brings you here, then?” she questioned. “If you don’t mind my asking?”

“ah, i appreciate it.” lennon was honestly just happy to know someone hadn’t been laughing at her. she scooted down the bench, just in case the friendly stranger decided they wanted to sit down. she glanced down the street, where she saw the swinging sign for church. “don’t know much about making drinks but … i could always try!” she gave the other a big smile, nodding as she wrote down church as a possibility. well, that certainly would look interesting on her resume. working at a bar called church … oh how her parents would be appalled. 

“i’m lennon. i appreciate the sympathy more than anything.” she offered up her hand, ready to shake.

“Eh, it can’t be that hard, I think the people here drink anything as long as there’s alcohol in it, I’m sure you’d be great at it” she concurred. Klara looked over the spot next to the other, before lowering herself onto the bench. “I’m Klara, it’s nice to meet you” she smiled warmly, her smiles making the corners of her eye crinkle. Extending her own hand to shake the others. “Are you new to the city as well?” she questioned. She welcomed the friendly conversation, she was tired of being alone in this city, although she knew it was her own fault. 

“You go, you go, have fun. I’m good here” Klara smiled, squirming out of Clarice’s grip. From the corner of her eye she could see why the other was attempting to get her on the dance floor; a group eyeing them from across the dance floor. “You go, have fun, I’ve got Jäger here to keep me company” she said through a laugh. “Goooo”  she objected once more, shoving her towards the dance floor. Her eyebrows raised in determination. Leaving Clarice to back up with a pout, before adjusting her dress and bumping to the dance floor. 

Klara stared intently at the drink cradled in her hands trying to decide whether or not to knock it back. Waiting for someone who probably wasn’t going to show up. She should know better by now. She let out a heavy sigh. “This is stupid, and a waste of a perfectly good outfit” she though out loud, turning her gaze towards the entrance once more. 

Tee wasn’t usually the sort of person to go to a bar on his own. Actually, he wasn’t really a bar person at all unless he was being dragged there by one of his friends. A band he heard a lot about was playing at one of Dayton’s bars though and no one seemed to want to go with him. Begging and bribing didn’t work so he found himself sitting down on one of his stools by himself. He was constantly telling his clients at his work about the importance of facing situations which didn’t make you comfortable and of moving out of one’s comfort zone yet always found trouble doing the same thing himself. He was good at his job but when it came to listening to his own advice Tee was a complete mess. The band he wanted to watch wasn’t set to go on for quite a bit so he found himself sitting by himself awkwardly, nursing the same drink for the past half an hour. The music currently playing wasn’t his taste at all but maybe he could use it to make some conversation. “Um…that’s some nice tunes right?” Great. Way to go Tee, that sounded very cool. “Come here often?” 

Klara was growing tired of spending every night at a different bar or club in Dayton, waiting to come across her reason for even being here in the first place. It had been nearly a month and no luck. Her shoulders tensed as a voice caught her attention and slowly relaxed, catching the timorous edge behind it. Klara turned her head up towards the man sitting slightly across from her. He looked, sweet... Soft; if that was an accurate way to describe someone. “Was that an attempt at a pick-up line?” she teased lightly, the left corner of her lips twitching up into a half-smile. “I thought people around here would have come up with something a little more creative than the classic come here often” she chuckled. 

With a clear of her throat, she turned her upper body to face the guy resting her head on the back of her chair. She was so tired of the feeling of the anxious feeling in the pit of her stomach, she welcomed the conversation. “The tunes are fine, it’s not exactly my style but it’s music I guess.” she shrugged. “As for the come here often part, Nah- it’s my first time here. How about you? Come ‘ere often?”

“Fuuuck!” Adelina groaned, turning back swiftly to catch the city bus shut its doors behind her. The driver had put it in gear, ready to head off. She could see the massive tires starting to turn. “Wait! No, wait!” She shouted, smacking the side of the bus, metal stinging her hand. She could hear a boy tell the bus driver that she had been calling out and when he braked, she ran back in, found her store keys and jingled them in the air as she passed the driver again. “Forgot them…third time this week, I know, sorry.”

It was already ten minutes past her shift and she could almost feel her manager’s mouth teeming with his usual shit about ‘setting an example’ and ‘the rest of your co-workers are counting on you’. He should try having a sick and potentially dying mother at home that needed to be cared for on a constant basis (as much as she hated thinking of her mother dying, she had been mentally preparing herself for the worst for three months now). Luckily, she was the first person on the evening shift it seemed.

Throwing on a milk-stained apron she found abandoned in the back of house, she took over supervisor position from the afternoon shift and started filling out delegated tasks to that night’s employees in the handbook and once again, she noticed all of the afternoon tasks weren’t completed…leaving it all on her and her team that night. “No, que jodienda,” she muttered, placing the book by one of the registers. “Hold on…Amira!” She called out to the previous shift who was making her way out the door suspiciously quick.

Amira turned and sighed heavily. “Yes, Adelina?” “How are you gonna leave me with this mess again?? Didn’t we talk about this at the meeting? I can’t keep picking up after your shit.” Adelina could sense customers watching the two but she didn’t care. “It was busy! You know how it is, kids get out of school and raid the store with a bunch of orders!” “And what about us? We’re busy at night too. We also get lines out the door but I still manage to get shit done!” “Look, I’m late for my dance rehearsal, we can talk about this over text.” And with that, she walked out, leaving Adelina with her mouth slightly agape, turning to look at her team, who all stood, watching. She shook her head. “I can’t with her. Sorry y’all but it’s gonna be a long night, apparently. Tony, you’re on bar, everyone just…clean, get things stocked. I’ll take the orders.” She tied the owner-less apron behind her back and removed a sharpie from its left pocket. Her eyes met the next customer in line, she smiled and gave her usual, automatic greeting.

“Hi, how are you? What can I get for you today?”

It was like culture shock, being in Dayton. It felt like an entirely different world, at least compared to where she came from. This is the second time in 3 days she’d awkwardly experienced staff getting loud about something. Klara was inherently nosey, so it took her a moment to pry her eyes from the ongoings close to the back of the serving area. 

It took her a minute to snap back when the attention was turned to her. “Uh- yeah can I just have a coffee and a cheese danish?” she pressed her lips together in a tight smile. “Sorry- new to town. Getting used to the... Ambiance is taking longer than I thought it would”