The florescent lights are giving him a headache and the place reeks of stale sweat, but at least the beer was cheap. Bass watches two middle aged guys finish up a game of pool as he finishes his third beer. He's nowhere near drunk, but it's enough to make the edges of his vision a little blurry. He likes it that way.
"Hey, give me another," he says to the bartender. A tall, broad guy with blonde hair. As he pushes the drink Bass' way, the man gives him a funny look.
"You new in town? I've never seen you before."
"Just moved in this morning." Bass takes a deep drink with the hopes that the bartender will get the hint that he isn't in the mood to chat.
"Cool. Well, I'm Jeremy."
"Bass." He shakes the man's hand, grudgingly, and goes back to his drink. Thankfully, the bartender gets the hint and walks away. He leaves Bass in peace for a while, refilling his drink once more before he bothers him again.
"Wow," he mutters under his breath, catching Bass' eye as he hurriedly looks away from the door. Judging by his tone and actions, the bartender certainly isn't impressed by what he sees. So Bass takes a look with the hopes that maybe this person's obvious flaws may help lift his spirits.
Shitty, yes. But desperate times call for desperate measures.
The sight does nothing to lift his spirits. Though it does serve as quite the distraction.
A young woman makes her way slowly to the bar and sits down two stools away from him. At first glance she's nothing special. Worn out jeans and an oversized hoodie, dirty sneakers and her blonde hair piled high in a messy bun. Her body is hidden beneath a layer of oversized clothes and her face is hidden under a layer of thick makeup. Bass might think it was funny if it weren't for the unmistakable bruise blooming on her left cheek.
Despite his earlier dislike for the man, though it was nothing personal, Bass' respect for Jeremy flies through the roof when he approaches the woman slowly and politely asks what she would like. Her answer surprises them both.
"Whiskey. Neat." Her voice is quiet, almost tentative, and her eyes never quite land on Jeremy's face.
"Coming right up," he says, sounding more enthusiastic than Bass had heard him all night. He sets the drink down in front of her and they both watch her down the glass in one with barely even a twitch. Jeremy catches his eye again and they both silently agree that there's more to this woman than they thought.
"How 'bout another?" Jeremy asks. Because honestly, this girl looks like she needs it. She doesn't say anything, she simply nods, but that bruise speaks volumes. The bartender refills her glass and gives her a kind smile. "Let me know if you need anything else."
The woman nods and takes a small sip from the glass, cradling it in her hands and staring into the bottom of it as if it holds all of the answers to the universe. Bass watches her. It might be interpreted as creepy by some people, but he's had just enough to drink that he doesn't care. Whether or not she even notices his existence is unclear. She nurses her drink for twenty minutes before summoning Jeremy for a refill and then goes back to her drink gazing.
He studies her. It takes his mind off of his own problems.
She's young, early twenties, no way she's more than than twenty-five. But she's married. There's a substantial amount of diamonds decorating that ring on her finger. Enough to make him question why she's dressed like a bum. Then there's the bruise. It's covered pretty well by all that makeup, but he can see where the black and blue is the deepest. The fist shaped bruise rests just above her jaw. He wonders if whoever gave her that fancy ring is the one that put it there.
Her third glass is almost empty when his curiosity finally gets the best of him.
"You know if you need a refill, all you gotta do is ask." He calls down to her. She turns her head to look at him, casting her face in some brighter light that makes her bruise look even worse, and smirks, of all things.
"Gee, thanks."
She turns back to her drink dismissively, causing a real, genuine smile to break out across his face. He'd been expecting shy, but snarky is a wonderful surprise. Bass hops down from his stool and slides in next to her, watching her face go from slightly annoyed to uncomfortable. He backs up a bit and gives her a friendly smile.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be a dick, I was just trying to make you smile."
She huffs, her lips curling up at the corners just a little bit. It makes him feel a little better. Maybe cheering her up will cheer him up as well.
"Let me get the next one," he says.
"Thanks, but..." She gives a little shake of her head, as if she's reminding herself of something. "I'm not interested."
Bass frowns and then mentally slaps himself for not realizing that she thinks he's hitting on her. "Relax. It's just a drink, not a marriage proposal. No strings attached."
Her brows furrow in confusion, the effect admittedly one of the cutest things he's ever seen, and she leans back in her chair to get a better look at him. "I'm not having sex with you," she says bluntly.
He barks out a laugh. He likes this girl, she's spunky. "Deal." He says, grinning from ear to ear as he flags down the bartender for another refill. He waits until she's taking another sip, suddenly unable to control his childish instincts, and says, "so not even a blow job?"
She chokes on the whiskey, her eyes going wide. "Excuse me?"
But the words are barely out of her mouth before Bass is laughing so hard it hurts. The look on her face makes it totally worth it. "I was joking," he clarifies once he's got himself under control again.
She glares at him out of the corner of her eye, but he can see the smile twitching at her lips.
"Oh, come on," he begs shamelessly. "It was funny and you know it." She tries to hold it back but the smile blossoms on her face like the sun on a rainy day. "See?" He teases. "That wasn't so bad." She rolls her eyes at him, but the effect is ruined by her continuing to smile.
"Now this is the part where you thank me and introduce yourself," he tells her in a bossy voice.
She raises her eyebrows at him challengingly. "Oh, is it. I didn't know."
"Yeah. So you say, 'thanks, I'm - whatever your name is-' and then I say, 'you're welcome.'"
She lets out a low chuckle and shakes her head, her eyes flitting over to the door for just a moment before she looks back at him. "Thank you for the drink. I'm Annie."
Something about the way she says it, or maybe it's the way she was looking at the door, tells him that that isn't right.
"You're very welcome. But your name isn't Annie, is it?" He asks in a quiet voice.
She inhales sharply and rubs her bruised cheek self consciously, checking the door as if she's afraid of who might come through it. "I'm sorry," she whispers. "I can't- if he-" Her blue eyes are full of apologies. One's that he's sure she doesn't even owe.
"It's OK." He tells her gently. "I don't know and I don't need to know, unless you want me to." He clarifies. This woman obviously needs help and if he can give it to her, he will.
She takes a deep breath, nodding thankfully and downing the rest of her drink with shaky hands. It's terrible to watch. Whatever, or whoever, 'Annie' is so afraid of must be awful to have her so under their thumb. He doesn't like them already.
"I'm Bass by the way."
She gives him a small smile with something like wonder in her eyes. "Thank you," she whispers. And he suspects she isn't just talking about the drink.
"Anytime."
They sit in comfortable silence for a little while before she checks the time on her phone.
"I have to get home. I don't want my husband to worry."
The way she says the word 'husband' says it all. But there's nothing he can do for her. He doesn't even know her real name.
"I'll get you cab." He offers. Because it's the best he can do.
She hesitates on the sidewalk for a moment as he holds open the yellow cab's door for her.
"Thank you," she says again, her eyes boring into his own. He feels a tug at his heart, like she's trying to pull him in with her.
"Like I said, anytime." As she climbs into the cab he adds, "who knows, maybe I'll see you again and you can return the favor."
'Annie' smiles, her perfect teeth shining in the moonlight. "I hope so," she says.
As the cab pulls away from the curb, Bass murmers to himself, "me too."
A/N I can't decide if this is going to be a one-shot or not. I have the rest of the story in my head but I think it kind of works just like this. I guess you guys can let me know what you want. Lol. 'Annie' is Charlie by the way, in case that wasn't obvious. ;-)