The Bar | Story Vault

Every story begins with a question. For The Bar, mine was simple: Could I step outside my usual perspective and write convincingly from a man’s point of view?

What began as a writing exercise became a story about two strangers escaping the relentless Arizona heat inside a dim neighborhood bar. They come from different parts of the country and lead very different lives, but over cold drinks and an unhurried conversation, they discover they may have more in common than either expected.

Sometimes the people we meet while waiting for the next part of our lives give us exactly what we didn’t know we needed.

• 

A man in a wrinkled suit shifted on the worn bar stool, making the wood creak beneath him. The glass in front of him beaded with sweat. The overhead air conditioner was blowing at full force but it struggled to keep up with the temperatures that leaked in from outside. 

Lifting his drink the ice cubes clinked as he tilted it to his lips and drew the last of the cool liquid down his throat. His Adams apple bobbed as he swallowed then placed the glass carefully back onto the bar. Raising his hand he singles the bartender for another round and he waits. He twirls the gold band on his left hand spinning it round and round his finger.

The heavy wood door opens, bright sunlight and heat pour into the room along with the newcomer. Any progress the AC unit has made from the last entrance is rendered null and void. There is a large shadow standing in the doorway. Then the door closes, the light fades and the man disappears for a split second. As his eye readjust to the dimness that surrounds the shape he can see that the man is walking toward the bar.

A towering man who had to be taller than six feet strolls over and sits two stools down from him. He is a large man, with broad shoulders in a high vis shirt his sleeves are rolled up on his suntanned arms. 

When the bartender comes over with his drink the new patron places his order. “I will have a Budweiser, please.” His voice is deep and graveling. 

“A beer man, uh” he raises his eyebrows, and his glass at the newcomer.

“Yea, I don’t touch the hard stuff.”

“I don’t usually” he replies as he lifts the new glass that was placed in front of him to his lips. This time sipping the amber liquid instead of gulping. His cell phone vibrates and he pulls it from his pocket. He glances at the screen, frowns and puts it back. 

“Sure was a hot one today” the new guy says. 

“I think I heard it hit 110 degrees on radio.” he swirls his ice “I don’t know how you folk handle this crap out here.” He says using a napkin to wipe the sweat off his forehead. 

“Well we sure don’t do it by drinking whiskey on 110 degree day.” he nodded toward the other man's glass. “Buddy are you trying to kill yourself?” he asked as wrapped his large callus hand around his own glass covered in condensation, drinking half of it before setting the glass back on the white napkin. ”You're not from around here?” 

“Nah, Just passing through,” he says with a nod. “I don’t think I could live here.”

“If our heat is getting to ya, why are you here?” no malice, just curiosity. “Are you here for business or pleasure?” He smiled and winked. Noticing a thin gold wedding band on the man’s left hand.

“I guess you could say it is a little bit of both.” He peered at him out of the corner of his eye. Both of their glasses were close to empty. 

“Where are you originally from?” 

“East coast. Maine We get heat but nothing like this." He sees the ocean in his mind's eye and can almost feel the breeze. “This shit is wicked!”

“If you say so, I have nothing to compare to.” The door behind them opens again, light floods the room and a blast of the inferno they are discussing blows in. There is a light laugh from both men. “This…is all I know.” 

“Every time I step out into this desert and feel like I’m gettin' baked in a kiln..” He shrugs out of his suit jacket and hangs it over the back of his bar stool. There are wet patches under his arms, they feel cool as the air hits them. 

“Don’t ya’ll have the humidity in Maine?” the bartender passes by, nods to both men. They nod their heads and he nods back. “I mean I would think that is worse.”

“Ayuh, we get 100 degree days but we have the ocean. My lungs feel like dried leather.” He licks his lips and tries to swallow. He chuckles “There is literally no moisture. I feel like I am about to dry up and blow away. Still, at least here I am the only thing sweating, not the air too!” The other guy chuckled loudly. 

“Well, staying hydrated is your best bet, another reason to drink a bud.” He lifted his near empty glass and finished it off before signaling for another. He raised his eyebrows to the other man. “Ready for another one?”

“Ayuh might be right.” He nods to the bartender, “Make that two buds, please.” 

They sit in silence for a few moments waiting for their new drinks. The bar is not full, there are a few on the other side. A couple sitting in the back corner head pressed close together. Maine thinks they may be on a first date. Then there are two older men on the far wall both facing out to the room. Neither are talking, they are people watching. Much like him they don’t seem to fit into this crowd. 

“That’s one of the reasons I don't touch the hard stuff” he offered “The other is I have to pass a strict federal drug and alcohol screening to keep my job.”

“What is it you do for work?” 

“I drive truck for the copper mine, hence the drug screen.” 

“That sounds like a hot ass job if I have ever heard of one.” 

“It's not too bad, I report to the pit at 4 am way before the sun has time to heat things up.” 

He whistled when he heard the 4 am. “So, you're done for the day?”

“Yep, clocked out, came here.” 

“Must have an early bedtime?” he smirked, sure he couldn’t handle that “Your wife must love that?” He flicked his gaze to the man's left hand, no ring just hard and callused.

“We all got bills to pay.” He stated with a shrug, His face was dark from the sun. His smile brighter in this dim light “and pay uncle Sam needs his cut… among others.” 

“The government takes way more than what they should but don’t get me started on that topic.” 

“No, way I steer clear of politics. So, what business are you in that brings you to Arizona in this heat?”

"Ayuh, I'm with a seafood shippin' company back home, workin' the East Coast mah-kit. Out here in the heat tryin' to secure some cold-storige space before the competition catches wind of it." 

This makes Arizona laugh loudly. “So, you are the one who figures out how to get me lobster on a 110 degree day?’

“Ayuh, in a way. But I don’t actually deal with the cold storage itself. So you said you drive a truck for a copper mine, I can’t imagine those are standard semi-trucks?”

He smirks and rubs his chin with his right index finger. His nails are caked with dirt. “Nah, these things are the size of a two story house. One single tire on my triple-seven could cost $40,000.” 

Maine lets out a low whistle “For one tire?” Arizona nods. “Damn, What do you have to do climb in?” he laughs. He feels his phone vibrate and he pulls it out of his pocket. He glances at the screen, his eyes narrow and his lips form a hard line. He quickly clears the screen and places it back into his pocket. 

“You owe somebody money?” Arizona asks him with a wiry smile.

“Ayuh, sure feels like it” he chugs his beer, looks at Arizona, raises an eyebrow Arizona nods, Maine lifts his hand to the bartender and he nods back.

Maine twirls his wedding ring while Arizona swirls the foam left in his glass. Someone starts the jukebox in the corner and an old Roy Orbison song comes on. The strains of Blue Bayou start and then you can hear good ol Roy covering the pub in a dark heavy fabric melancholy. 

The bartender returns with their beers, removes the empty glasses

Arizona looks to the jukebox and shakes his head and looks back at Arizona “Of all songs, sheesh!” 

Maine shrugs “It won’t last long, this was one of my wife’s favorites.” he drums his fingers on his glass to the beat. 

The song plays on and when it finishes Arizona says. “To answer your question.” 

Maine cocked his head.

“About how I get in my haul truck.” Maine's eyes widened. “Yes, I have a set of stairs that I pull down to get into my triple-seven.”   

“Are you married?”

“Divorced” 

“Sucks, how long were you married”

“15 years, you?”

“Married”

“Kids?”

“Nah, career casualty.” He looked off into the distance away from Arizona.

“How long?”

“5 years”

“Do you ever want kids?”

“We do but we wanted to get to certain places in life first. The kids will come later.” He bites off the last words. He lifts his chin “What happened with your marriage?”

“Oh you know, worked too much overtime. Was never home. Wife wanted attention and well she went and found it.” Shrugged his shoulders. 

“Mandatory overtime?” Maine asked 

“Some, not all, but we wanted things…she wanted nice things…I wanted to give my family nice things.”

Maine’s head dropped so he was looking at his lap and he stared at the floor. 

“I hear ya, my wife was not too happy about me coming out here on this trip.” He spun the ring again and pulled it up his knuckle. “She wanted to come… but it was only a few days”

“Should have let her.”

“She couldn’t get off work at first. Then it was too late…Then I… made other plans.” He pushed the ring back down on his finger, the gold biting hard. 

“She took half of everything we had, you know. Plus my son.” He scratched his chin, his fingernails loud against his stubble. He gave a bitter little snort. “Oh, I get him on weekends but I have to pay her alimony for the rest of her life.” 

He drew in a quick, sharp breath inward through pursed lips while making a soft nah sound “That’s a wicked bad piece of business.” His gaze snapped over, his eyes wide and hard. “Just the one kid?”

“Yea” there is a long breath out, “Just the one boy, Bryce and he is a teenager now. He will graduate this year, top of his class.” Arizona’s face lights up. “He is going off to college in the fall.” He sits up straighter in his stool and squares his shoulders.

“Congratulations man! What school?” 

There is a rumble of laughter it breaks free “University of New England in Portland, Maine” 

 A genuine chuckle rolled up and shook his shoulders  “No way! What field did he pick to follow?”

“He wants to be a doctor, the kids got big dreams.” his head bobs and shakes. “I couldn't be happier for him.” Arizona lightly hits the bar “told him his whole damn life I didn’t want him working in those mines. They are no place to be and the work is hard. I guess he took me seriously”

“I guess so. That's, great man, I wish him all the best. Although he is in for a huge culture shock” 

“That’s alright, Bryce is super stoked, he is looking forward to being near the ocean.”

“A lot of change all at once, college plus a whole new environment.” There is a chirp from Maine’s pocket. He lifts his chin “Excuse me” He pulls out his phone and glances at the screen. His cheeks flush red as he sucks in a breath. He lays the phone on the bar with a thud. Then sets back and takes a deep breath, finally he turns to Arizona. “What are your son's plans for the summer?” His voice is steady and even.

Arizona lifts an eyebrow but continues “He is looking for a summer job to save some money. He mentioned moving to Maine early so that he could settle before starting classes.” 

Maine tilts his head, then starts fidgeting with his wedding ring moving it up and down his knuckle. “That ain’t a bad idea right there.” His eyes narrow and his tongue juts out to wet his lips. “That way he would not be trying to haul two loads at once." He abandoned the ring and spun his empty glass instead. 

Arizona crossed his arms over his chest and lung back in his stool “I know… and while I agree… I am not looking forward to having him halfway across the US where I can't get to him.”

“It’ll be an adjustment for you also.” 

"He's been ten minutes away his whole life. I don't rightly know what to do with three time zones." 

A low grumble came from Maine's stomach. “Jesus, sorry – forgot I’ve been right out straight all day without a bite.” He smiled. “You lookin' to grab some supper?”

“I could eat”

Maine smiles. He signals the bartender and they order two burgers with fries and two more buds. 

‘If your kid decides to move to Maine this summer, have him look me up. We offer summer jobs, they are not in his field but they pay pretty good and I am sure we could find something for him.”

“Thanks, that’s really nice of you.”

The two old men on the far side wall got up and walked past them. The door opened and bright sunlight flooded the bar along with a blast of the inferno heat. Reminding them of what awaited them outside when they left.  

“Actually, I have a few connections at some local hospitals also. Food service positions due to the refrigeration storage. Still I might be able to help him get in one of those for the summer.” He was watching the other patrons in the bar. Scanning the walls and the decor. “He can at least get his foot in the door and start making his own connections.” 

Shifting his weight forward he slides off his stool. “I’ll be right back, gotta hit the head” he stands and his dress shoes tap on the concrete floor as he strides toward the back corner and the men’s room. His white dress shirt is slightly wrinkled from the day. He had loosened his tie when he arrived. 

Arizona stretched out his long legs resting his heavy steel toe boots on the stool next to him. His jeans had been plastered to him when he had walked in. Thanks to the AC they were finally starting to release.

Maine returned just as their food arrived, the burgers were greasy and the fries salty. “Not a bad burger, good and juicy.”

“This is one of my favorite places to grab lunch. I drive past on my way home.”

“So you are not too far from here at all”

“No, maybe 15 minutes give or take. Where are you staying”

“Hotel about 10 minutes from here. I did a Google search and this was the only place within a short distance that offered a drink.” 

“Your hotel didn’t have a restaurant?"

“It does, but the rest of the partners are staying there and I …needed some space.”

“From them?” he tilted his head and cocked an eyebrow.

Maine paused his burger in mid air, he sat it back down. Wiped his hands on his napkin. “There was some things going on…let's just say… I wish my wife had come with me from the start.”

Arizona leaned in slightly with knitted eyebrows, “Care to enlighten?”

Maine sighed, “My partner brought his secretary with him.” he let that sink in before continuing.  “He did not tell me he also invited my secretary to come.” 

“Shit” 

“Right?” 

“Are you and the secretary banging?” 

“God no!” He rubs his lower jaw. “I have absolutely no interest in Rachel. What so ever.” 

“So he invited her to assist you?”

“Well, no” Maine’s spine stiffened “She has been after me for a while and I have always turned her down. I told her I did not need her on this trip and I was being honest. It was only a two day trip and wasn’t even going to be that long if I could help it. Scott decided to extend our stay without my knowledge because he wanted time with Jessica, his secretary. When Scott invited her along she thought she had finally won.” Just then his phone vibrated. He retrieved it from his pocket and a broad smile spread across his face. 

“Sounds like you are in a pickle dude.” 

The corners of Arizona's mouth lifted and he chuckled “You were hiding?”

“Well sort of.” He shrugs “I figured I was safest if I wasn’t in the hotel, can’t get in trouble if I can't be found” 

“I don’t blame ya, I just can’t help but think it's funny.”

“I called my wife immediately and had her get on a plane. Since Scott extended the stay I had her head out here first thing but her plane was delayed”

“That was the texts you kept getting and why you looked upset” 

Maine nodded. “She should have been here hours ago. I love my wife and I don’t ever want her to think I cheated on her.”

“You haven’t done anything wrong” he patted him on the back. “You did exactly the right thing. You called your wife but once she is here what are you going to do?”

“We are going to have to fire Rachel, I hate that because she is good at her job.” Maine set up and looked straight ahead “But I can’t have a constant distraction in the office and she does not know how to take no for an answer. I also will not have Cynthia worrying about it all the time either. Best to just hire someone new.”

“Probably the right decision for your marriage.” 

“I tried everything to let Rachel know I wasn’t interested.” Maine’s phone vibrated and he pulled it out of his pocket. This time his eyes lit up when he saw the screen “Her flight will be landing in less than an hour. So I have about an hour to an hour and half to get to the airport so I can be there waiting for her.”  

“Well, that’s good news.” Arizona smiled at him “I hope everything works out for ya.”

“Hey, sorry, I didn’t mean to dump my troubles on you.” Maine says “Here we have been sitting here all afternoon talking and I never even introduced myself. He puts his hand out “Jacob Taylor, nice to meet you.”

“Brian McGowan, pleasure to meet you Jacob.” The two men give each other a firm hand shake.

“Now I was serious about your son, Bryce. When he gets to Maine, have him call me. I will do my best to help him out.” Jacob reaches into his suit jacket and retrieves a business card. He flips it over and writes a number on the back. “That's my personal cell number, either of you call anytime you are in Maine.”

“Thanks Jacob, I know Bryce will truly appreciate that leg up when he gets out there.” He grabs a napkin and scribbles his own cell number down. He hands the napkin to Jacob. “It ain’t as fancy as your business card” Brian gives a hardy belly laugh “but the next time you're out here in hell look me up.” 

“I sure will, I have enjoyed our conversation and appreciate you listening to me ramble.” Jacob says “Thank you for sharing your story about your marriage. My work hours are gonna be changing. I also think Cindy and I need to think about kids a bit more, maybe look at our list of priorities.” 

“Bryce is the best thing in my life, the best that has ever happened to me. I will never regret anything I had to go through for him.” Brain patted Jacob on the back. “Take care man, go get your wife, tell her I said hi!”

“Take care Brian, thanks again man.”

Jacob made his way to the door and out into the Arizona heat but he didn’t even notice. He had one thing on his mind and that was getting to the airport and his wife.