In A Tall Round Glass..by Michael

A Story by Michael Reisman

It was just another New Years Eve party at a local bar. Some of the customers were regulars and others were new comers. Barry was a regular for more years than he could remember. A few couples showed up but the majority of them were single. The big screen television sat up on top of a ledge where all could see the pre-celebration and events leading up to the final countdown. Forty year old Barry sipped on his beer and picked on the potato chips and pretzels that were spread over the length of bar. He learned how to pace himself so when New Years was announced, he would still be standing and in a decent state of mind. A stranger who had recently moved into the neighborhood had just entered the bar. It was her first time there as she sat at a table and ordered her favorite drink, a bloody Mary with two plastic stirrers sitting in a tall round glass. Thirty nine year old Cynthia sipped on her drink and munched on potato chips and pretzels. It was her drink and two plastic stirrers that caught Barry's eye as a flashback occurred in his mind. He walked over to her table and asked if he could sit down and join her. "It was a long time ago in high school when you dated me. My beer bottle clicked your glass of bloody Mary with two plastic stirrers back then on our first date". She smiled with a memory long since forgotten and gave Barry a big hug and kiss that lasted the rest of the evening. One minute before the New Year was to be announced, they held hands and got ready for a very special kiss. Two people left the bar that morning that used to be single but eventually got married. The following New Years Eve they sat at a table that was probably theirs to begin with. He ordered the drinks and made sure that two stirrers would sit in a tall round glass...

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