Page 14 of Tyton: The Spider and the Dragonfly
“No, just out of the scene for a while.Last one put her through the ringer.You know how it is.”
“Yeah, we’re not going to talk about that, Sparx,” the mixer grouched.
“Touchy.”Sparx raised her hands in surrender.
“Let me guess, it was someone Sparx set you up with?”Callie found her voice.The way the mixer’s face lit up told her she had hit the mark.Picking on Sparx was common ground.“What the fuck, Sparx?You’re like the anti-cupid here.”Callie nudged her with her boot.
“Listen, I need to finish my shift here, but the next drink is on me.My number will be at the bottom of the glass.”
Callie blushed and bit the inside of her cheek.
“I’m gonna say you’re a bourbon girl.”The mixer narrowed her eyes playfully.
Callie scoffed.“We both know there’s no such thing.It’s all flavoured grain alcohol now.”
“A connoisseur then?”the mixer smirked.
“Callie, stop being a pedantic twit.You’re going to talk yourself out of a date.”Sparx muttered.
“What’ll it be then?”the mixer asked, recovering.
“Your choice.”Callie put on her best flirty smile.
The mixer nodded and went to make a drink.“Smooth.”Sparx tilted her drink in a toast and finished the last of it.She ordered another.
When she returned, the mixer slid an amber-coloured concoction with a cherry in it across the counter.Even without picking it up, Callie could smell the extra alcohol she’d added.
“Oh shit, I forgot the stem.”The mixer pulled the Hexel cherry stem from her mouth, tied in a knot and placed it on the rim of the glass.She winked and left to tend to other customers.
“Okay, that was hot, but also gross.”
“I thought you liked it when women came on strong?”Sparx took a sip of her new drink, this one a violent shade of purple.
“That was a third date level of strong, though.What the hell would she do to me on date three if that’s the starting point?”
“Wouldn’t you like to find out.”Sparx waggled her eyebrows.
“I don’t have enough alcohol in my system yet.”Callie slid off the stool.
Sparx followed.“We were about to fix that, you know.”
“You’re kind of a dick, Sparx.”
“Is that why you’ve been ghosting me?”Sparx tilted her head and flashed her puppy dog eyes.
“No,” Callie sighed.“You’ve always been a dick.”
“Which, as we’ve learned, you don’t like,” Sparx recited.
“Asyoulearned.I already knew.”
“So whyhaveyou been ghosting me?”
“I don’t know,” Callie sighed.“It just feels like all I’ve been doing is surviving.Got in a rut.Couldn’t get out.You know?”
“Oh honey,” Sparx looked genuinely concerned.Which is why Callie liked her.She took nothing seriously, would barge ahead with the most ill-thought-out ideas, but no matter what, Sparx actually cared.And that was rare in this world.
“I know Brin fucked you over bad.You carried her for too long and she still couldn’t be helped.You’re too good for your own good.”Sparx wrapped her arms around Callie and squeezed.Callie let her.“Now,” Sparks grabbed her by the chin and forced Callie to look at her “Why did you come here?”
