The New Girl — Chapter 2
Thursday night happy hour at the local Irish pub meant cheap wings and not as pricey beer. Nikki invited George to join her and Steve for some drinks. Steve was an engineer who worked near the bar, and he had a round waiting when they arrived.
They talked about work, about people they knew, and whatever. When the conversation turned to baseball, George noticed Karl at the bar with his buddy Tom. Karl — the guy Nikki was . . . well, Karl.
“I’ll be back in a sec,” Nikki said, standing.
“Never could hold too much beer!” Steve said, laughing.
“Ha Ha” she said, sarcastically.
As Nikki walked toward the corridor heading toward the rest rooms, George saw Karl leave the bar and head that way as well.
George took a gulp of beer.
Steve sighed.
“Mind if I ask you a question?” Steve said.
“No, go ahead.”
“Answer me honestly. I won’t be mad.”
“Umm ok.”
“Is it you?” Steve said.
“Me?”
“Are you the one she’s seeing behind my back?”
George looked stunned.
“No, no I’m not. I didn’t know . . .”
“Yeah, I think she is. I can just tell. We’ve been together a few years and I can just . . .” Steve drank a gulp of beer.
George felt really bad for him. “Steve is a really stand-up guy,” George thought. “He deserves better.”
The Spirit watched as George paid his check and left Steve alone at the table as Nikki and Karl made out in the stairwell.
Friday night found George at the mall looking for shoes. After all, a girl can never have too many shoes! He bought a nice pair of strappies, and was headed back to his car when a saw a commotion up ahead near the food court.
“Help!”
“Does anyone know CPR?”
“I know CPR” George said and people parted to let him in. Lying on the floor was Andy — Pervert Andy — pale and not breathing.
Shit!
George thought about his CPR class. Umm ABC — airway, breathing, circulation… he checked Andy’s pulse — nothing. George then tilted Andy’s neck back and gave him two quick breaths down into his lungs. Eww! Andy had garlic breath!
After a minute, a mall employee arrived with the mall’s Auto-Defibrillator and George helped put it on Andy. The shock to the heart worked — Andy’s heart started beating again.
Everyone was happy and cheering as the paramedics arrived. George turned to pick up the bag with his new shoes, but they were gone.
Nikki told Steve she was going out with the girls, but she lied. Instead, she was at a downtown club with Karl.
The Ancient Spirit saw all of this and decided that it needed to do something — that a person who gave of himself so much should be rewarded somehow.
To be continued…
Category: Fiction