"She's a local." Mona said in a voice that could only be achieved by a twenty year three packet a day habit. The pretty, wholesome brunette next to her turned with expressionless eyes towards the girl only to find that she was bundling up to leave.
It was a cold blustery day in a little town of no consequence to anyone; including the people who live there. The wind howled outside of a small establishment causing the walls to groan and the smoke tinted windows to whistle. The bar had long since fallen off the beaten path, its patrons dwindled. Barely holding on by a thread, especially on nights like this, the rickety building and salty regulars seemed equally unhappy with their lot in life.
The bartender stood behind the bar leaning against the back counter mindlessly polishing glasses with a dirty bar towel. His attention seemed to be divided between the low static hum of the TV and two women sitting at the bar. The woman named Mona leaned in to speak to her companion as if they were sharing secrets, however the other woman, Rachel, leaned away from her obviously uncomfortable by the blatant intrusion into her personal space.
They were an odd pair. It was obvious that they did not know each other, yet neither made any attempt to leave. The ladies said little to each other besides for Mona occasionally pointing someone out to Rachel with a cryptic and dry remark. Between those moments they awkwardly sipped their well vodka in a subconscious attempt to avoid small talk which caused seemingly infinite pauses in their conversation.
Rachel began to look around the room out of boredom for something more entertaining than her soft spoken companion whom she felt she little connection. Her aware and curious eyes brown eyes inspected the dingy room with almost an appraising quality. Pictures were haphazardly placed all over the walls covered by a smoky grime from the years when the bar was less desolate. The few rickety tables and chairs had seen their better days, marred with juvenile graffiti and copious amounts of gum. A dart board in the corner blinked tiredly, giving a strobe effect in the too dim room.
Rachel mindlessly fidgeted with the coaster that was supposed to be under her drink. She briefly wondered why she had bothered coming here in the first place. Mona was not really her friend, in fact, they hardly knew each other. Rachel had only met Mona a couple hours earlier when she helped her change her tire in the grocery store parking lot. Mona insisted on buying her a drink and officially "welcoming her" to their small community. Rachel didn't really want to go, but in a town this small you couldn't afford to burn bridges this soon. So here they sat, two women with nothing in common and no desire to follow through on small talk.
A cold draft of air swirled into the bar as the door slammed against the wall grabbing the girl's attention. George walked through the opening with his shoulders hunched against the wind and his hands jammed into his pockets. He nodded to the bartender who began pouring two fingers of the house whiskey for him. George sat slightly slumped in a chair in the corner of the room with his back to the wall. His seat provided him with a view of the entire room though he looked no where besides at his own handed cradling his glass.
"Who's that?" Rachel whispered to Mona, glad to finally have something to talk about with the near stranger next to her.
"Be careful of that guy." she said in the same soft spoken voice "He is a man with a past."
Rachel's mind began racing about all of the sordid details someone could have in their past to illicit a warning such as that. She studied him carefully out of the corner of her eye. He appeared to have not shaven for a few days, his hands were weathered and blunt. His eyes were but thin slits under heavy brows, his face worn and tired prematurely aging him.
Again the door slammed against the wall and a gust of wind mercilessly cut through the bar. Another man stepped through the doorway. Henry wore a jacket that was too light for a night such as this, but seemed unfazed by the brutal weather. His face was alert and aware of its surroundings as he too nodded to the bartender and took a seat at the table in the adjacent corner of the room. Henry also placed his back to the wall, but he made no attempted to hide the fact that he was looking around the room as the bartender delivered a 20 year old scotch to him.
"Who's that guy?" Rachel again whispered to Mona hoping for more details this time.
"Be careful of him as well." She said her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at him
"He is a man with no past."
Rachel adjusted in her seat so she could see him more clearly. He was somewhat handsome, he had a put together quality about him, but an air of falsehood clung to him like lint. Rachel thought to herself "he is as fake as his tan", but she was curious as to why he was so intently focused on the man across the room. She discretely looked back over at George. He was no longer looking at his glass of cheap whiskey now his eyes were steadily focused on Henry. The air crackled with electricity and tension the bar remained deathly quiet besides for the low static hum of the TV in the back ground.
"Do they know each other?" She asked Mona queitly.
"Honey, everyone knows each other here. You are the only stranger."
Rachel felt a smile creep across her lips. She was a stranger and that was exactly how she liked it.
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