#irisorchids

After the lost wager, Tommy didn’t let Esmeray live down her promise -- to watch at least one Star Wars film with him before the 10 Pin Halloween Party. He’d nagged her for two days, mostly joking because they were both working, and they’d settled on today as the date, and her apartment as the location. He had the entire original trilogy tucked inside his leather jacket -- just in case.

After parking his bike on the curb, he walked up to the main entrance of the apartment complex, scanning for her name before pressing down hard on the buzzer, taking a step back to await her response.

Maisy let her eyes wander around the bar as she nursed the whiskey rocks in her hand. It was a simple Wednesday night, but a nice stiff drink had sounded like heaven to Maisy after another weekly phone call with her parents. She loved her parents, don’t get her wrong, but the pressure they put on her to be perfect was something anyone was bound to buckle under. Across the room, she spotted another woman sitting alone at the bar and thought ‘eh, what the hell,’ before standing from her seat and approaching her.

The older woman was gorgeous with dimples to match and Maisy almost had to stop and stare for a moment. Brushing the thought from her head, she mustered up the courage to speak and asked, “is this seat taken?”

Tommy found out about the necessary surgery a little while ago, but the date only got scheduled maybe a week back. He gathered all the appropriate paperwork he’d have to bring to Esmeray before even bringing it up. And he knows it’s going to be an awkward conversation, but there’s no avoiding it. He’s going to be out for a couple of weeks.

He stands in the doorway, knocking on it even though it’s partially open, and he’s holding he papers in his hand. “Hey... Esmeray, can we talk? It’s kind of important, and, uh...” He glances over his shoulder then looks back at her,  “A little sensitive.”