Chapter 55
Hunter
Six months later
The weather is starting to warm up again, finally. This winter felt never-ending; there was even some snow up on Jewel Mountain this year. I head out of my house and smile over at my garden as I pass; the flowers have started to bloom. I look over at the extra petunias I planted last week and think about her.
It’s been seven months since I’ve seen or heard from Olive and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of her. Eddie told me a few months ago that he drove by Whiskey’s and the bar was open. He went inside and said Olive was running it. She told him that Jane gave the bar to her in her will.
I was thrilled for Olive, hearing this, but I can’t lie that I wasn’t also hurt. Knowing she has been in town and that she hasn’t even bothered to reach out to me crushes me. I haven’t worked up the courage to visit her. I can’t handle the pain of seeing her at this point. It’s obvious that the love I have for her isn’t reciprocated anymore.
I haven’t wanted to travel as much recently, so I’ve started taking on local filming gigs. I've shot some commercials for localbusinesses and even filmed a few weddings. I have enjoyed the slower pace of the work. I was losing my spark trying to stay busy working for brands after Olive first left. My heart wasn't in any of it. But the feeling of helping a mom and pop shop with their advertising, or recording a couple’s most important day, like their wedding, has given me a sense of purpose again.
After we finished the video series on Whiskey Jane’s, I was lost for a while. I felt like what I was filming was meaningless in comparison to what we did for the bar. So when my mom told me that her friend’s daughter was getting married but couldn’t afford anyone to film it, and asked if I would do it, I took a chance.
I sat there in awe behind the camera as I watched a young couple pour their hearts out to each other, the raw vulnerability of the moment. They expressed their love in front of everyone, and it inspired me. I finally felt passionate about filming once more. I wanted to chase that feeling again so I started getting the word out to people and sure enough, I’ve been able to take many local projects on.
Right now, I’m headed to Bricks to talk with Savannah about shooting a commercial for the restaurant. She told me she has a few ideas, so she is going to meet with me instead of her dad, even though he's the owner. I told her, “No problem.” Savannah has always been kind to me, just a little intense with her flirty eye contact at times.
I roll all my windows down and shuffle my playlist. “Heart in a Cage” by The Strokes starts playing as I leave my neighborhood. I pass Mrs. Bodart walking Pebbles on the side of the road and give her a wave. She gives me a curt nod and continues her walk. She hasn’t seemed to like me ever since the night Eddie drunkenly yelled on his birthday in front of my house. The night I met Olive.
No matter what I do, everything brings me back to her. A flower, a funny story, a handwritten note,butter, for god's sake. I can’t get away from thinking about her. I try to switch my brain into work mode as I pull up into the parking lot of Bricks and shut off my truck.
Chapter 56
Olive
Istand in the bright sun, shielding my eyes from the light as I look up at the bar sign that’s being lifted by a crane. Once it’s in the right spot by the main road, I smile as I read the words.
Whiskey Jane’s
Est. 1979
Seymour & Jane’s place
I look around at the exterior improvements I have made over the past few months, thanks to Mr. Purngast’s generosity. When he found out that I was the new owner of the bar, he told me he wanted to still donate the $500,000 that he originally was going to, so I could fix the place up.
I tried denying him many times, but he pleaded, saying he wanted to do this for Jane and Seymour, and for me. We have developed a friendship over the past few months, and I genuinely enjoy his company. I know that Rick and Johnny do, too. They have many stories to swap from their youth, and I love hearing about each of their adventures.
“That looks amazing!” I shout out to the construction crew that placed the sign and then head back inside. I look around at the full bar and feel my heart swell with gratitude. The serieswith Hunter ended up bringing a ton of business to Whiskey’s and I owe it all to him. There are many times I have wanted to reach out to him over the past months, in moments of weakness. But I also wanted to wait till I was sure I was ready to give him the love he deserves.
I’ve been seeing a therapist weekly since I opened the bar. I was dealing with a lot of childhood trauma, and after the loss of Jane, it pushed me over the edge mentally. I was horrible to Hunter, I see that now. He deserved way more than I ever gave him. My therapist, Anna, told me that I am suffering from parentification trauma, so we have been working through it together. I finally feel like I am in a good headspace and I’m proud of the growth I’ve made. I’ve worked really hard to get my shit together.
I wave to one of our new barbacks, Tate, as he wipes down the counter of the bar.
“Hey, boss!” He smiles at me. His floppy hair covers one eye before he pushes it back. He is young and goofy; he just turned eighteen and this is his first job. His lack of work experience almost made me write him off, but then I decided to take a chance on him, just like Jane did for me. He’s been a hard worker so far.
“Hey, Tate.” I smile back. “How’s it going?”
“Great! Rob let me drop a few racks of fries in the fryer earlier!”
Rob peers at me from the side of the kitchen window and shrugs. “The kid’s a natural.”
“He told me I might be able to prep salads next shift if I have time!” Tate continues.
I laugh. “Awesome. Maybe we need to start letting you take a few kitchen shifts.”
Tate’s face lights up. “That would be great, boss! Thanks!”
