Page 15 of Cookie

Charlie

T o say I was relieved would have been the understatement of the year.

I considered myself to be curious and open to new things, but I also didn’t like the feeling of being in over my head.

The more Ryan described The Bolt, the more I could feel myself start to sweat, and I knew I wasn’t ready to find out exactly what it was all about.

“We’ll still take my car home, then we can have a few drinks and walk around the Capitol Mall area if you want,” Ryan said, not bothered at all by the change of plan.

Thinking about it now, nothing ever seemed to rattle him or get him too excited, and the more time I spent with him, the more time I wanted to spend with him.

I hoped he felt the same about me and didn’t think I was just a boring guy from a small town that wasn’t willing to try new things.

“I haven’t actually been to the Dive Bar, so I’m excited to see it. ”

“Really?” I asked, needing to know he really was okay with the change of plans.

“Yeah, and I haven’t been to that other place either, but I’ve heard plenty of stories. Which is also why Aunt Millie acted the way she did,” he said with a chuckle. He reached across, took my hand, and held it on his leg as he drove us back to his place.

“Thank you for not making a big deal of it,” I said, and pulled his hand to me enough to kiss it.

“Baby, I just want to spend time with you, and I want it to be fun,” Ryan said with a smile.

“There’s a lot to do around Sacramento and we can leave whenever you’re ready.

” We weren’t far from his house and when we got there, he took out his phone to call for a ride while we sat in his car.

“Did you need to go inside for anything?”

“Nope, I’m ready to go,” I said, finally able to relax. The driver arrived just after we’d gotten out of the car and drove us back to the downtown area and I thought about how much more we’d driven the past day compared to how little we both drove in Grace.

“Here you go, have fun,” the driver said as he pulled to a stop next to a very industrial looking brick building.

“Thanks,” Ryan said, and the two of us slid out.

“I think you’re going to love this.” He tugged me along to where a line had formed, and we stood there for a short few moments before being ushered inside.

It was dark and hard to see for a moment as above us jellyfish shaped light fixtures glowed softly while swaying slightly in the air conditioning, making them look like they were floating in the sea.

“Wow, this is amazing,” I said as I looked at the simple brick walls covered in photos and memorabilia in glowing display cases.

The walls had been shaped to resemble sea caves as we walked deeper inside.

It opened up to a large open area that was filled nearly to capacity.

Patrons sat around small tables speaking quietly among themselves while others danced to the music that played through the sound system.

But above the bar and illuminated in soft blue light was an enormous tank that was longer than the bar and stretched from the ceiling to the tops of the storage shelves mounted below it and hung over the entire bar area.

“What do you think?” Ryan asked and after I managed to close my mouth that was hanging open in shock, I pulled him in for a kiss.

“I think I have the best boyfriend ever.” His eyes widened slightly before he grinned at me. I hadn’t called him that yet, and he’d hadn’t said it to me either. But we were definitely closer than friends. I wanted everyone to know how I felt about him.

“Come on, want to see if we can find a seat at the bar?”

“Oh my god, yes,” I said and hoped a mermaid appeared soon. It was cheesy, and a little strange to see everyone seated or working below a big tank filled with water at a nice bar, but I didn’t have it in me to care. I’d never seen anything like this, and I was going to enjoy the hell out of it.

Ryan and I slid onto stools as soon as a couple vacated them and the bartender walked up to us, wiping a glass clean while he stood there. “Can I get you something?”

“Could we have just a minute?” Ryan asked, which I was more than grateful for. I wasn’t a big drinker and typically just chose beer, but I wanted to have the full experience of being here. I grabbed a drink menu and looked at what they had to offer.

“Oh, they have espresso martinis, that sounds so good,” Ryan said as he squeezed in close to read the menu too.

“That’s a Mer-tini,” I said, making him laugh. “I don’t know what to order. They all sound good, but I don’t want to pay for it tomorrow.” Sweet drinks and I did not get along. I loved them, but they did not love me back, and the day after too many pina coladas was never a good one.

“They have a lot of local brews too,” Ryan said and pointed them out.

I was just glancing at the list when a movement in the water above got my attention as a mermaid slipped into the tank.

She was illuminated with glowing lights as she slid through the water with a beautiful red and gold tail.

I knew it was all part of the experience, but it really was a little magical and I liked it.

“I’ll take a wheat beer,” I said, not taking my eyes off the tank.

Ryan called the bartender over and placed our order.

It was strange, being this close to the tank the air was cool and a little humid making it feel like we really were close to the ocean, and as the mermaid went about her routine with a big smile and holding her breath the whole time for far longer than I would have imagined, I fell a little more in love with the sweet man who sat next to me sipping an espresso martini while leaning against me sharing his warmth.