Tear Down These Walls Read Free

waves. Teagan can never get over
how white blonde his hair is, but his green eyes hold a lot of warmth. Isaac
walks over and claps his hand against Blake’s.  “Hey man.”
    “Hey, you guys made it just in time,” Blake
declares.  “Brianna is about to go sing.”
    “Oh great.  I need a drink!” Teagan exclaims
dramatically. “What does everyone want?”
    “A beer,” Isaac replies. “I can go get the drinks if you
want.”
    “No, the farther I am away from the speakers the
better,” Teagan quips. “Em, what do you want?”
    “A water,” Emily murmurs, putting her hair behind her
ear. 
    “No adult beverage to drink tonight?” Teagan asks. Emily
shakes her head and looks away.  “Okay, and Victoria.  What do you
want?”
    “Cosmopolitan,” Victoria replies.
    “Of course,” Teagan laughs. “I will be right back.” She
turns and pushes her way to the bar. It’s all warn metal to match the theme of
the place. When she gets there, it is packed. She leans against it and bends
over. The bartender is a guy. He is tall with a shaved head and covered in
tattoos.  Not Teagan’s usual taste. “This will be easy,” she whispers. The
bartender puts money in the cash register and then turns around. Teagan bites
her lip and looks at him. She leans a little farther over and traces her finger
around in circles on the metal.
    The bartender smiles and walks over. “What can I get
you?”
    There are protests of, “HEY!” from all the other people
waiting.
    Teagan smiles, “I need a Miller lite, bottle of water,
cosmopolitan, and a dirty martini, EXTRA dirty.”
    “Extra dirty, huh?” The bartender responds, raising up
an eyebrow. The corner of his mouth twitches and looks straight into Teagan’s
eyes. Teagan nervously shifts. “Coming right up.” He turns around and starts to
grab glasses.
    Very proud of herself, Teagan beams and looks around the
bar. Suddenly, there’s a horrible rendition of “Like a Virgin” echoing all
around them. Teagan groans and rolls her eyes. The bartender comes back,
shaking the martini shaker. “Shaken not stirred,” Teagan laughs.
    “I haven’t seen you around here before,” the bartender
says.
    “I come once in a while,” Teagan replies. “I don’t go up
there to sing very often.”
    “Chicken?” The bartender quips, grabbing the Miller lite
between shaking the martini.
    Shrugging her shoulders, Teagan states, “No, not at all,
I just don’t want people to think I’m a horrible singer.”
    The bartender grimaces, “Yeah, sometimes this job sucks
on nights like tonight.”
    “I bet,” Teagan snorts.
    “What’s your name?” The bartender asks.
    “Teagan…Teagan Murphy.”
    “Are you old enough to be in here?” He smirks.
    With a chuckle, Teagan nods and says, “Yes, I am 21.”
    “Which college do you go to?”
    “The university,” Teagan replies.
    The bartender pours the martini into the glass. “What
are you studying?”
    “I want to get into editing,” Teagan answers. “That is my
dream job.”
    “Do you write?”
    Teagan looks to the side and says, “A little.”
    “I see.”  The bartender starts to make the
cosmopolitan. “So, are you here with a boyfriend?”
    Oh great. “No, my boyfriend is working right
now.”
    “What does he do?”
    Not knowing what to say, Teagan pauses. “He is a deep
sea crab fisherman.”
    A slightly dumbfounded look crosses the bartender’s
face. “Like the guys off of TV?”
    “Mmhmmm,” Teagan replies.
    Blowing out a low whistle, the bartender’s eyes roll
around, scanning the room. “Wow. That’s an intense job.”
    “Yeah, but he makes good money,” Teagan sighs. “Spoils
me.” She twirls a tendril of hair around her index finger while looking him in
the eyes.
    “That’s good,” the bartender mutters as he pours the
cosmopolitan.
    It takes a lot of effort for Teagan not to burst out
laughing. She presses her lips together and holds it back.  “What’s the
total?”
    “Here is the