The Bartender

The night was hot and sultry

and her dress was cut so low.

The sum she carried was paltry

but her worry didn't show.

She walked into the bar that night

and bought a bottle of rum.

The bartender asked if all was right

and she said, "He didn't come."

He listened to her story

as all good tenders do

Though none of it had glory

and the lady was so blue

She downed another swallow

and continued without tears.

She didn't seem as shallow

as, at once, she first appeared.

Her story was a love tale,

as all good stories are.

She wasn't weak or frail

as she sat there at the bar.

"He had the bluest eyes," she said,

a smile tugging at her lips.

On her cheeks was the faintest red 

as she took another sip.

"I met him on the subway train.

He was so lost in thought.

The emotion in his eyes so plain,

it tied my heart up in a knot."

She sat down at his side and waited

to see if he would notice.

"He looked into my eyes and stated, 

'You're beautiful as a lotus'"

And so the conversation started

about just who they were.

And, too soon, they both departed,

her number an ink-smudged blur.

He'd somehow made a call to her,

though the number had been faded.

They talked for hours and concurred

a date time must be slated.

They planned a night to dance away

to lose themselves in starlight

"But he never came to play,"

said she, then tears shimmered bright.

They spilled onto the wooden bar, 

pooling up next to the bottle.

The trails, they left a sooty mar.

The blackness, a sparkling mottle.

Tissue was the tender's offer.

He'd seen it all before.

His skin was all the tougher.

He'd dealt with many sores

People rarely sat for joy here

at a bar made for pity.

Many people bought a beer

in this dark and dismal city.

She wiped away the tear stains

and forced a smiling thank you

The rum was rushing about her veins

and made the night feel untrue

Reviews

[MoriartyMesa]

Not sure at 41 am old enough too read this

[Relic]

I like the poem. There were a couple of spots that were off but nothing major. The ending was kind of eh for me. But still, this is a good poem worth the read.

[Robert Parlange]

I like the poem. An ode to being stood-upped. People never realize the damage they do by their actions, or in-actions. You are a very empathetic writer.

Keep writing.

[Eagle Cruagh]

A very true to life experience.
When a writer can turn a simple
experience into an interest grabbing
story, then the writer demonstrates
a competence only known by the gifted.
That is what happened here, the girl
tells her story to the bartender and,
although he has heard it all before, he
sympathises, pours her another drink,
offers her a kleenex and they become
friends.
Great writing !
---- John