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The Pub on the Lake

Nine Years later

By Gerald HolmesPublished 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago 19 min read
5
Photo by Christian Smith on Unsplash

Maryanne could never forget the look in Robert's eyes, that day at her mother's funeral, when she told him she couldn't be with him. He looked lost and devastated, sitting on the bench alone as she walked away. At that time, she felt overwhelmed with losing her mother and couldn't deal with anything other than her grief.

He’d called her a few times, but she could never find the courage to speak with him.

Many times over the years she would remember the last time she saw him; and wonder how her life would have been different, if her father had let her get out of the car that day.

****

Maryanne’s condo was on the tenth floor of a new building close to Lake Ontario. She’d moved to Toronto three years earlier, after being offered a job by an up and coming book editing company. A good friend, whom she’d met in university and lived in Toronto, offered her a place to stay until she could get on her feet.

What Maryanne thought would be a short time, turned into almost three years.

Mai-Ling, her friend, was a wonderful person who was born in southern China and immigrated to Canada with her family when she was a young girl.

Maryanne met Mai-Ling when they were both studying Contemporary literature at University and had instantly become friends and study partners. They grew very close over those years and thought of each other as sisters and would do anything for each other.

After University Mai-Ling moved to Toronto with her family and started her career as a literature teacher at a private school in the suburb of Markham. She was absolutely delighted when Maryanne called and told her about the job offer, and insisted that she stay with her as long as she needed.

Maryanne loved the city, especially in summer. There was so much to do here, with all the museums and art galleries and book stores, she was never bored. Her job didn't pay a lot, at the beginning, but was rewarding as she’d always loved to read, and the people she worked with were much like her in most ways, and she enjoyed their company. There was even one guy, Patrick, she felt particularly drawn too. He was handsome, but not in a movie star way. He was more like the guy next door, or your brother's best friend, handsome. She spoke to him a couple of times and discovered that he was shy, which she kind of liked because she knew that shy guys sometimes turned out to be the best guys.

After two years of editing all kinds of writing, from magazine articles to website postings and all forms of print materials, her boss called her into the boardroom. She had no idea what this meeting was for and was feeling a little nervous as she entered the room. There were three people in the room when she walked in, her direct manager Michael and the two owners, Mr. Kelly and his wife, Andrea.

They were all seated on one side of the table and asked her to sit across from them.

When Maryanne was seated, Andrea smiled at her and jokingly said, "I can see you're a little nervous Maryanne, don't worry, you're not getting fired." Maryanne breathed a sigh of relief, “Is everything ok?" Andrea told her not to worry; everything was good with the company and that they would be expanding in the next few months.

Mr. Kelly spoke up and said, "That’s why we wanted to speak with you." "We’ve been watching, and all agree that you are our number one producer, and with zero editing errors in your time with the company, you're the perfect choice." He paused for a second, "Zero errors, my God that’s unheard of."

As she stumbled, finding words to express her feelings at being praised like this by her boss, he handed her a folder and said, "This is what’s happening."

On the cover of the folder in bold letters was written "Andrea Kelly Publishing House."

As she opened it to the first page, Andrea looked at her and said, "We’ve been working on this for almost a year now, and have signed several prominent authors in the last few months. We’ve just secured office space on another floor in this building, which will be ready for us in a couple of months. Now were ready to move ahead with putting the right people in the right positions.”

Maryanne looked at her in disbelief, as there was never a hint that they were moving into publishing.

Mr. Kelly looked at her and said, "This will be a separate division of our company that Andrea will run." "We’ve spoken with Michael, and he agrees that you would be the best person to run the editing department of this division"

She could feel her breathing stop as he spoke these last words, and she stared at Michael. Andrea spoke next, "In the folder, you’ll find an outline of the new division and its goals. Also inside, there’s a three-year offer to you to be the managing editor of Andrea Kelly Publishing House. Please read everything carefully and if you agree to the terms, sign the contract and return it to me directly."

Maryanne looked clearly shaken when she asked, "do you want me to read it now?"

Mr. Kelly laughed and said, "No, not now." Today is Friday, so take the folder home, think about it over the weekend and give Andrea your answer on Monday." "Is that enough time for you?”

She could barely get enough breath to answer him, “yes.”

When the meeting ended, and she returned to her desk, she was shocked at what had just happened. To her great relief, it was almost time to leave for the day, so she busied herself with some last-minute emails, packed the folder in her bag, and left.

As she left the building and walked to the subway, her mind was spinning from what happened in the meeting.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't hear the young guy on the bicycle come up behind her.

She felt a hard pull on her arm as the bag, with the folder inside, was ripped from her hand, and she fell to the sidewalk. She couldn't speak as she watched the guy speed up the street with her bag. He got maybe a hundred feet when someone jumped from the sidewalk and pushed him off the bike. People were yelling for police as he scrambled back on the bike and escaped, leaving her bag behind. She was getting to her feet as she watched the man that knocked him down, pick up her bag and walk towards her.

As the man got closer, she could see that it was Patrick, the guy she liked from work. He helped her up asking if she was ok, she replied that she was and thanked him for his help. He told her that he was going to the subway and asked her if she would like to walk with him.

She was looking at him as they walked together and thought that he hardly ever spoke to her but came to her defence when she needed it most.

He reminded her of a boy she’d not seen in many years and the pain she saw in his eyes the last time they’d spoken.

***********

Maryanne became the youngest managing editor in the city three months after signing the contract. It took another three months to set up the office and hire the right people before opening the doors to Andrea Kelly Publishing House.

Andrea, pleased with how Maryanne had pulled it all together over the last few months, planned a celebration for the Friday after they opened. It would be Canada day, and as Maryanne's birthday was the next day, July 02, she couldn't think of a better way to celebrate.

Andrea's close friend owned a medium-sized restaurant pub on the shores of Lake Ontario and agreed to close the rooftop patio, to the public, for the party. The pub's three levels included the rooftop patio, the second-floor restaurant and "The Pool Cue Sports Bar" on the lower level.

The place had a simple name, "The Pub on the Lake," and had become Maryanne's favourite place to relax with friends, after Patrick introduced it to her several months before.

She’d spent many fun evenings there with her start-up team over the last months but hoped that Patrick would not be there for the celebration as he wasn't part of the group, and she didn't feel comfortable around him lately.

Maryanne had a few casual dates with Patrick; they went for coffee a couple of times, and to the pub that one time. She stopped seeing him after the night at the pub, as he drank too much and started questioning her about not choosing him to help her with the start-up.

As Mai-Ling didn't have plans for Canada Day, Maryanne asked her to come to the party.

Sitting in the living room enjoying an after-dinner drink, Maryanne said, "Please come with me. We don't have to worry about anything. Andrea is supplying car service for the night, so we can enjoy the fireworks and have a few drinks with no worries." Looking at Mai-Ling with her lips pouty and her hand on her heart, she continued, "Plus, if we stay till midnight, my best friend can sing happy birthday to me."

Mai-Ling smiled at her little girl charms before agreeing to join her at the party.

*******

Robert loved his job, as it paid well, and entailed travelling all over North America. Working for the same company since arriving in Toronto six years earlier, he felt appreciated and secure in his position. He worked as a mechanical tech now, but started as a machine builder in the factory in Markham. After a couple of years in his new position, he moved into the new condo building he loved, in downtown Toronto, the day before Canada day.

His good friend and workmate, Jason, agreed to help him move after Robert said, "You can spend the night at my condo, and we can walk to the Canada day celebrations on the beach the next day."

Jason put his finger to his lips and scratched his head, “What’s in it for me?"

Robert laughed, "Ok. Ok. I'll pay for everything, even dinner at "The Pub on the Lake," knowing his good friend was joking.

Robert moved the few things he wanted from his apartment into his pickup truck the night before the move. They were only working until noon the next day, and were downtown and waiting for the furniture delivery by early afternoon.

They were unloading the last piece from Robert's truck when the furniture truck pulled up.

As they started to unload the delivery truck, they realized that the driver had not pulled in far enough, and the rear of the truck was blocking a car from getting to the building under construction behind Robert's.

A pretty Asian girl got out of the car and asked Jason politely, "could you please move the truck just a little?" Jason struck by her beauty, looked into her eyes, not replying until she smiled and said, “Sorry, did you hear me?” Jason came out of his trance, “Sorry, you took me by surprise; I’ll get the driver to move right away.”

Robert smiled as he could see Jason, smitten by her beauty, started giving the driver shit, and telling him to move the truck.

Jason walked her back to the car, telling her, "Sorry about that, I'm not usually tongue-tied, but your beauty shocked me for a second." She blushed, looking into his eyes, and Jason was tongue-tied again.

Maryanne got out from the other side of the car, to fix her dress, as Jason and Mai-ling arrived and asked, "Is everything ok?"

Robert started to walk towards them as the other girl was getting out of the car, but the truck driver asked for the key to the elevator, and he turned back to get the key.

*****

Maryanne received a call from the condo office on Thursday morning informing her that they needed some final decisions on plumbing hardware and tiles. Maryanne and Mai-ling decided they would go to the condo around mid-day and then go to the art gallery for a few hours.

When they arrived at the condo, the driver told them he couldn't get back to Maryanne’s building because the delivery truck was blocking his way.

Mai-Ling said she would ask the guys to move the truck, as it was on her side of the car, and got out and walked over to them. Maryanne could hear her laughing and smiled when she looked out the window to see her talking with a handsome young Asian guy.

Maryanne got out to stretch and fix her dress when Mai-Ling returned with the Asian guy and said, "All good, this nice man will get the truck moved right away." Maryanne turned and thanked the man, thinking he looked like a movie star. He smiled with the whitest teeth she had ever seen and said, "No problem, anything for two beautiful women," as he turned and made a show of giving the driver shit.

The car had just gone around the corner when Robert returned from the front desk, and Jason said, "You missed it, man, I just met two of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen." Robert said, "I know, I started to come over when the other girl got out of the car but realized I didn't have the elevator key.”

They finished setting up the condo and drinking the case of beer Robert had supplied, around midnight, and were calling it a night when Jason said, "Man, she’s a beautiful woman."

Robert heading to the shower, said, “That’s ten times, Jason."

“What do you mean, ten times?”

"That's ten times you've said she's beautiful today; I think someone's in love."

They walked to the beach around noon the next day and joined in the Canada Day celebrations.

After wandering the strip for a few hours, joining in the festivities, they were getting tired from miles of walking and headed to the pub for dinner and drinks.

When they arrived at "The Pub on the Lake” and tried to get a seat on the rooftop patio, they discovered it locked and reserved for a private party. The waiter apologized and said that he had a table in the second-floor restaurant and escorted them to it.

They had a great view of the lake from their table, and the food was excellent, as they talked about work and Jason's infatuation.

Robert asked Jason, who wouldn't stop talking about the girl, "Did you ask her name?"

"No. God, I could barely speak English. It was like I was in shock or something." Jason looked embarrassed as he spoke, and Robert said, “You look like you’ve lost a puppy or something man, don’t worry; she's not the only girl out there.”

Jason smiled, "I know you're right, but there's something about her, it's hard to explain, but it's like we were supposed to meet for some reason."

Halfway through the meal, as the waiter filled their glasses, and the owner stopped by to ask if everything was okay, a woman came up the stairs and stood at the rooftop entrance. She looked at their table, and the owner walked to her, saying, "Andrea, welcome," and waved the waiter to open the rooftop patio. Ten or twelve people came up the stairs and were escorted to the patio as Robert watched the sailboats on the lake until Jason got excited and said, "Holy shit, that's them, that's them, man."

Robert asked "Who, what are you talking about?" Jason lowered his voice, "The two girls from yesterday, man." Robert looked towards the patio and could see the backs of the two girls as they disappeared out the door and asked, "Are you sure?"

Jason rolled his eyes as if to say, "What do you think?”

They finished dinner and Robert suggested they go down to the bar for a few beers and play some pool. Jason needed to pee, so Robert went down to get a pool table while Jason went to the restaurant's washroom. All the tables were busy, so Robert put his name on the wait-list and went to the bar.

Robert sat at the bar for about ten minutes before Jason came down and told him that he just spoke with the Asian girl outside the restroom. "I asked her if they would like to join us after they finish dinner." He looked excited as he told Robert, "she said that she would like that and would ask her friend."

Robert laughed and said, "Relax, man, you look like you never seen a girl before." Jason laughing now said, "I know; there's just something about her, God; I almost fell over when she looked in my eyes." He paused for a second, "Sounds stupid, doesn't it?"

Robert thought about another girl, whose eyes had the same effect on him, and said, "No, it's not stupid, it sounds real."

He sometimes felt upset with himself for not being able to move on, but nobody made him feel what he felt for Maryanne. It became easier as time moved on, but there were so many times that some little thing would bring him back to her. He’d dated several women over the years, but none of those relationships had lasted more than a few months. The relationship would be going good, and then something the girl did or said would remind him of Maryanne, and everything would change.

******

Maryanne could tell Mai-ling was excited when she got back from the restroom grinning from ear to ear. She asked if she felt okay and smiled when Mai-ling said that she saw the guy from yesterday, and he asked if they would like to have a drink with him and his friend at the bar later.

She had never seen Mai-Ling excited like this about a guy, and happily agreed to accompany her to the bar later to meet them.

They were finishing dinner, and while Andrea gave a short speech, Patrick came and sat at their table with a bottle of wine. He had obviously already had several drinks as he slurred his words, “Hi, pretty lady I bought this wine for us, let’s drink it together.”

He moved his chair closer to Maryanne, ignoring Mai-Ling, and reached for her hand when she told him to stop. “I don’t want the wine Patrick, and you're making us uncomfortable. I think you should leave.” Patrick looked at Mai-Ling with disgust and reached for Maryanne’s glass, knocking it to the floor, as he asked, “Why don’t you like me? Am I not good enough for you?”

Maryanne felt embarrassed and trapped and didn't know what to do as she tried to move away from him. Andrea seeing this happen, marched to the table, and ordered Patrick to leave or never come to work again. He looked up at Andrea for a few seconds until she raised her voice and said, "Now!"

Thirty minutes later, Maryanne, still upset with the confrontation but refusing to let Patrick ruin their day, joined Mai-Ling and went down to the bar, to meet the guys.

*****

Robert and Jason got their turn with the pool table about an hour after coming to the bar. They were setting up the table when Roberts’s phone rang, and he looked at the screen to see it was his mom. He told Jason he had to take the call and stepped outside so he could hear better, as it was loud in the bar.

Jason set up the table and was practicing some bank shots as he waited for Robert, when a guy that looked drunk walked up and asked, "What the fuck are you doing?" He looked at the guy, surprised, "What the hell are you talking about?" The guy stumbled towards him, "It's not your private table; other people are waiting here." Jason stayed calm but said, "Relax, man, my friend just stepped away for a second." The guy stumbled closer, "Who the fuck are you telling to relax?"He was reaching for Jason when the two girls came in, and the white girl said, "Patrick, stop; what are you doing?"

Patrick turned when he heard Maryanne's voice and said, "Ah, here she is the queen that won't lower her standards for a peasant like me." Jason stopped him as he tried to walk towards her, but Patrick pushed him hard in the chest, making him fall back against Maryanne, knocking her face-first onto the pool table.

Jason had his legs tangled in the table and chairs he fell against, and Patrick was grabbing Maryanne from behind as she was trying to stand, when Robert walked in the door.

He saw what was happening and rushed to pull the guy off the girl on the pool table. The guy struggling as Robert pulled him away, knocked the girl to the floor as he tried to turn and fight.

He spun around attempting to hit Robert but was stumbling drunk, and fell when Robert dodged his punch smashing his rib cage against a chair on the way down.

The girl was being helped up from beside the pool table, when Patrick, on his knees, tried moving towards her. He was trying to get up, holding his chest, when Robert stepped closer and yelled, "Don't move, I’ll break your arms if you touch her again."

Maryanne, getting up from the floor, heard what the guy said to Patrick and looked towards him in disbelief.

Robert was looking at the guy on the floor when he heard the girl say, "Robert?" He turned towards her and felt his heart stop for a second, as he looked into Maryanne's eyes. She walked to him, trembling and crying, and throwing her arms around him, hugged him tight as she kept saying his name over and over. Robert held her close, not wanting to let go, as he repeated her name softly in her ear several times.

When she moved back and looked into his eyes, Robert couldn't help himself. He pulled her closer and kissed her on the lips with the passion of a love he’d lost and found swelling in his heart.

Photo by Alejandra Quiroz on Unsplash

Although they were standing in the middle of a bar surrounded by several people, Maryanne felt she was alone with Robert. Her heart travelled back to sitting on the couch in Newfoundland many years before, when he told her he loved her. She felt everything around her fade away when Robert kissed her, and she pulled him close as her lips wanted to stay on his longer.

When the kiss of all kisses, as some people at the bar that night would recall it, ended, Robert held Maryanne at arm's length and said, "It's you, it's really you."

Maryanne, feeling overwhelmed with emotion and memories, as Robert held her by the shoulders and looked in her eyes, could think of only one thing to say, "I'm sorry, Robert."

Short Story
5

About the Creator

Gerald Holmes

Born on the east coast of Canada. Travelled the world for my job and discovered that kindness is the most attractive feature in any human.

R.I.P. Tom Brad. Please click here to be moved by his stories.

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