Everyone Learns Faster On Fire

“Would you like me to top you up, sir?” The waitress asked, pointing to the nearly empty glass of Bacardi and Coke on the table.

“No thank you.” Frank replied, and returned to gazing out of the window which looked out upon the quiet street outside.

Gerard had sure chosen a place where they could not be seen by anyone they knew. The ‘Dead End’ was a great aptronym for what the small bar was like, judging by the little amount of people currently gracing it’s premises. Frank could count a grand total of four customers, including himself, currently experiencing the delights the dingy tavern had to offer; An intoxicated man leaning up against the bar and drinking beer after beer, an elderly man sitting in one of the grotty little booths holding onto a tatty cap and rocking back and forth in his chair, and a young woman, most likely to be a prostitute, currently eyeing up the middle-aged bartender.
But Frank couldn’t really care less about Gerard’s choice of meeting place, he was far more worried about what Gerard had summoned him here to talk about. He kept reading the text message over and over again. We need to talk, it sounded like something serious. Frank prayed that it was to do with arrangements for the band or something, or maybe he was going to bring the rest of the guys along to discuss things. Whatever it was, he hoped it had nothing to do with the…thing that happened before they parted last night.

“What’s up, darlin’?” The young woman said in a thick southern accent. “A lady let you down?”

“No. I’m just waiting for a friend.” Frank muttered before turning back to the steamed up window.

The woman sat down in the chair opposite. “I’m Charlene, I’ll keep you company if you want?”

Frank sighed and shifted his chair back slightly. “No, I’m fine. They’ll be here in a minute.”

The woman sighed, left the table and returned to talking to the bartender. Frank began to get impatient and looked at his watch. It was almost ten minutes to nine and Gerard still hadn’t arrived. Starting to feel nervous, Frank checked the text message again to make sure he had the right time.
Just as he was putting the device back into his front pocket, the rusty bell over the top of the door tinkled and in Gerard walked. At first, he did not notice Frank sitting by the window, and walked up to the bar to order a drink.

“Gerard!” Frank hissed over the irritating jazz music which was currently playing.

Gerard turned around, smiled when he saw who it was, and sat down in the seat opposite him.

“Hi! Sorry, I didn’t see you sitting here.” He said cheerfully, brushing the raindrops from his leather jacket and straightening out his dyed black hair. “Sorry I’m a bit late. Traffic was bad.”

“It’s no problem.” Frank said.

The two men sat there awkwardly for a few minutes, making dull conversation about the weather and the chores they had been doing that day. To Frank, it seemed oddly like the small talk you would endure during a first date with someone. Whenever the conversation died down for a minute or so, it seemed that both of them would start speaking at the same time, leaving the dialogue nerve-wracking and painful.

After a few minutes of nervous banter, Gerard cut to the chase. “Listen, we might as well get to the point, because it’s gonna have to come out sometime.”

’Shit. This is it. He’s coming out to me! I don’t want him to love me!’ Frank thought, desperately trying to send negative telepathic messages to the man sitting in front of him.

“Frank…I-er-don’t really know what happened last night, but…well, whatever it was, it wasn’t meant to happen.”

Frank nodded in agreement. “Yeah…I guess I had a little too much to drink…y’know, with Pencey Prep splitting and everything.”

Gerard dropped his gaze to the floor like a guilty child. “Yeah same. But, I don’t want this to get in the way of the band or anything…I mean, I don’t want you to feel awkward around me when we’re meant to be playing together.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Frank could see the waitress coming over to the grubby little table again, probably to offer another free top-up. He waved her off as he spoke. “I totally agree, because I really wanna be in the band, and like, I don’t wanna feel…uncomfortable. I guess it was just something that wasn’t meant to happen but did. Y’know, drunk stuff…And last night, I just wanna thank you for being there for me. I actually felt like jumping off that bridge, but you came along and gave me something to hope for.”

“What do you mean?” Gerard asked, looking slightly worried.

“The band!” Frank laughed. “What? Did you think I was going to confess my eternal love for you?”

Gerard laughed. “Yeah, you sorta got me a little worried for a second! I was about to ask if you even listened to what I had just said!”

Maybe the conversation wasn’t as discomforted as Frank first imagined it to be. After all, they were laughing like they usually did. When the laughter died down, Frank looked Gerard in the eye. “I’m being serious, I’m so glad I met you last night. I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t been there.”

Gerard smiled warmly. “No worries, I’m always around if you need someone to talk to.”

That evening both friends, and now bandmates, left the bar with warm feelings of friendship and a strong connection with each other. But something was still troubling Frank, and as he walked home, down the damp New Jersey street, he could not help feeling slightly concerned. It was rather strange that Gerard had arranged for them to meet up in a place nobody had heard of, to discuss something that they could have quite easily discussed over the phone. And the way Gerard had touched his arm as they were leaving the bar, it was much more than just a sociable touch.

‘Don’t be stupid.’ He thought as he walked the stairs to his house. ‘You’re over-reacting. This would have all been forgotten in a matter of weeks.’

He couldn’t have been more wrong.