Sixth Time's the Charm

“This behaviors gotta stop, man,” A voice from Abel’s right said, prompting him to look up from his drink to the owner of the voice. The voice belonged to Caleb Jensen, his best friend from high school, who was looking at him with an expression of vague concern as he leaned against the bar counter.
“I don’t know what you mean,” Abel scoffed, looking back down at his drink as he picked it up and idly swirled it.
“You know what I mean. These casual hook-ups. You can’t keep doing this forever. Besides, you don’t know where those men have been or what they could have,” Caleb said, resting his hand in his hand as he watched Abel.
“I use protection,” Abel replied, taking a sip of his drink.
“That’s not the main issue here. Don’t you want someone to love and cherish and share that large apartment with?” Caleb asked.
“Remember the last time I tried dating? Five failed relationships in one year. One. I’m taking a break right now,” Abel replied, tracing his finger along the rim of his glass.
“Two years is a long enough break, don’t you think? I’m sure you’ll find better guys this time around!” Caleb said. When Abel didn’t reply, he sighed and straightened up. “Whatever, man. You’re still just as stubborn as back then, so whatever I say won’t make a difference. I’ve got to get back to working, so just call me over if you need a refill,” Caleb said and headed over to take the orders of a group that had just entered the bar.
Abel went back to swirling his drink, occasionally taking sips from it. Maybe he’s right. Maybe I should start dating again. Abel sighed, watching the liquid swirl about in his glass.
“Excuse me, is this seat taken?” A voice roused him from his thoughts and he looked up to see who had spoken to him. A tall man stood there with his hand on the back of the chair next to Abel. He had short, tousled black hair and kind green eyes.
Abel stared at him for a couple of seconds before remembering the stranger had asked him a question. “Uh, yeah, go ahead,” He stuttered out, quickly turning back to his drink, trying to will away the blush on his face.
“Thank you,” The stranger said, taking his seat next to Abel. Abel continued staring down at his drink, the damn blush showing no signs of fading.
“What can I get you?” Abel heard Caleb ask the man seated next to him.
“A glass of Jack Daniel’s, please,” The man replied in that wonderfully low voice of his.
“Coming right up,” Caleb said, setting about fixing the drink. A moment later, he heard Caleb set the glass down with a “Here you go!” before he moved off to assist another customer, leaving Abel alone with the handsome stranger.
The two of the sat in silence for a few moments before the man spoke up. “You’ve got some pretty hair,” He said.
Abel looked up at the compliment, his hand going up to thread itself in his long, wavy, blond hair. “R-Really?” Abel said quietly, his blush burning anew.
The black haired man nodded, a soft smile gracing his lips. “Mhmm. It looks incredibly soft and silky. You must take very good care of it,” He said, taking a sip of his drink.
“Y-Yeah,” Abel said, letting go of his hair and returning his hand to his drink, his face turning even redder.
“Ah, I never introduced myself, did I? My name is Kylen Douglas,” The man said, extending his hand forward.
“Abel Harper,” Abel said, grasping the offered hand and shaking it lightly.
“Abel, huh? A pretty name to go with a pretty face,” Kylen said, withdrawing his hand. Abel’s face burned brighter as he finished off his drink.
“Y-You’ve got a nice name yourself,” Abel said.
“So, what do you do for a living, Abel?” Kylen asked, resting his head in his hand as he turned to face Abel.
“I’m an author and a freelance artist,” Abel replied, shifting to face Kylen himself.
“Is that so? You certainly seem like the artsy type,” Kylen said, smiling gently at Abel, causing the blush that was beginning to fade to come back full force.
“W-What about you? What do you do?” Abel asked him.
“I’m the manager of a nearby coffee shop,” Kylen answered, taking a sip of his drink.
“A coffee shop manager? It suits so,” Abel said, smiling lightly.
“You think so? No one’s said that to me before,” Kylen said, laughing.
He’s got a really nice laugh. Abel’s face softened at the sound of his laugh.
Just then, the door to the bar banged open and a rather large group came in, laughing and chattering amongst each other as they moved to a group of tables at the back of the bar.
“It’s getting rather loud in here, isn’t it? How about we go somewhere that’s a little quieter,” Kylen said, knocking back the rest of his drink.
“We can go over to my place,” Abel offered. “It’s just down the street.”
“Sounds like a good idea. Let’s go!” Kylen said, taking out his wallet and placing a few bills down on the counter as he stood up. Abel quickly did the same and led them out of the bar.