[ WP ] A man walks in to a bar for his usual drink , but his life is forever changed the second he takes his first sip .

“ Just the usual, Mark. ” 
 
 Andy slid onto his usual barstool and called out to Mark, the bartender. 
 
 “ Whiskey neat, you got it, ” Mark responded without stopping to look up. 
 
 Andy turned his back to the bar, leaning onto it with his arms up, before closing his eyes. He and Amber had just ended it. Another month past, another girl gone. Andy thought he would never tire of his serial dating bachelor life, but Amber had been different. Or so he had convinced himself. In retrospect, she was pretty much like all the others. His usual: Beautiful; young; sweet; not too bright. But he had liked being with her. Or perhaps, as he now realized, he liked not being alone. 
 
 With thirty fast approaching, Andy was finally letting himself admit that he was a little lonely. He was ready to accept that maybe life had something better to offer than an endless stream of beautiful, but forgettable, women. He laughed to himself. He couldn ’ t imagine what; but there certainly had to be something. 
 
 Andy heard the sound of glasses clinking on the bar, and without turning he reached back and grabbed the nearest glass in reach. He brought it to his lips in one fluid motion and took a sip. 
 
 He nearly spit it out. “ Mark, what the hell is this? Brandy? ” 
 
 Mark spun on his heels, and delicately took the glass from Andy ’ s grasp. 
 
 “ Ah-ah-ah, ” Mark admonished, “ This is not for you. ” He pointed slightly further down the bar at another short glass of brown liquid. “ That one is yours. ” 
 
 “ Oh shit, sorry, brother. I wasn ’ t paying attention. Obviously. ” 
 
 A high pitched voice joined the conversation. “ I think you took my drink, actually. ” 
 
 Andy turned to the source of the new voice. A young woman with honey colored hair was smiling at him. Her large blue eyes were friendly, and her full lips were painted a seductive red. She had a fashionable tan, squeezed into a tight floral print dress. Andy took a moment to catch his breath. 
 
 “ Well, I do apologize. Next one ’ s on me. I ’ m Andy. ” He held out his hand. 
 
 She demurely accepted it. “ I ’ m Brandie. I ’ ll take another brandy. ” 
 
 “ Ah, so it was brandy I tasted then, thought so…, ” Andy paused. “ Wait…A brandy for Brandie? ” 
 
 She laughed. “ Yes! It ’ s the only thing I drink, what with my name and all! ” She cast her eyes away, imitating a self-conscious stance. “ I guess it ’ s pretty cheesy. ” 
 
 Andy took advantage of her averted gaze to look her up and down. *Damn. * She was exactly his type. Sloping hips, narrow waist, full tits bursting out of her skin tight dress. She looked back just in time to catch him ogling her breasts. She didn ’ t seem to mind. She was used to it; welcomed it. 
 
 As he took her in, Andy desperately tried to subdue the unpleasant thoughts he felt forming. In this light, Brandie was almost a dead ringer for Amber. He felt a pit form in his stomach. He urged himself back into the conversation. 
 
 “ N-no. Not cheesy at all; it ’ s kind of cute actually. Brandy for Brandie, ” he started out, with a weak smile. 
 
 Brandy beamed. That was the answer she was expecting. Men always told her exactly what she wanted to hear. 
 
 A muffled but unquestionably derisive snort broke in the air between Andy and Brandie. Brandie wheeled around, her face irritated. Her eyes landed on another woman nearby, who was clearly the progenitor of the contemptuous sound. As Brandie glared in her direction, the woman lifted her glass in mock friendliness and lifted her eyebrows in comically exaggerated recognition. 
 
 “ Problem? ” Brandie sneered. 
 
 The other woman shook her head. “ Not at all. Please. ” She bowed her head slightly and swept her hand through the air, indicating that Brandie and Andy should continue their conversation undeterred. 
 
 Brandie was not letting the slight go unpunished. “ I heard you laugh. If you have something to say, say it. Don ’ t play dumb with *me*, bitch. ” 
 
 “ Oh my. ” The other woman brought her hand to her chest in sarcastic shock. “ I didn ’ t realize we were *playing* at dumb. ” She brought her drink up to her lips and cocked an eyebrow. 
 
 Brandie looked livid. She turned to Andy expectantly. He shrugged. Brandie started up in her seat, before grabbing her purse and storming to the other end of the bar. 
 
 Andy didn ’ t know whether he felt more disappointed or relieved. Brandie was gorgeous, no question; just what he needed to put Amber out of his mind. But admittedly, he wasn ’ t in the mood to play the same old tired games. Not tonight. Andy slowly turned back to the bar and slumped over his untouched whiskey. 
 
 “ Hey. ” A voice interrupted his thoughts. The woman that had sent Brandie off in a huff sat down on the stool beside him. “ Sorry about that. ” 
 
 “ Don ’ t worry about it. She wasn ’ t my type, ” Andy lied. 
 
 “ Well, I wasn ’ t going to say anything if you weren ’ t but. Dodged a bullet there, ” she raised her wine glass, “ Cheers. ” 
 
 “ Yep, ” Andy raised his glass half-heartedly in return, but didn ’ t drink. He glanced sideways at the woman beside him. She was pale, with a shock of black hair that was cropped just below her ears. She had an extremely thin, boyish frame, clad in tight dark jeans and a loose t-shirt. Normally Andy wouldn ’ t give her a second look. She certainly didn ’ t peak his interest in the same way that Brandie had; but the longer he looked at this androgynous woman, the more she intrigued him. He turned to face her head on. 
 
 Sensing the sudden attention he was directing towards her, she made a move as if she was going to leave. Andy spoke as if to stop her. 
 
 “ I didn ’ t catch your name. I ’ m Andy. ” He held out his hand. 
 
 She looked at it, momentarily frozen. “ Right…Uhm. Listen, Andy, ” She began to look around the bar, clearly eager to get away, “ I know I said I was sorry for the cock-block and everything, but I don ’ t want you to get the wrong idea. Let me just save you the trouble, and tell you there is no way in hell I ’ m sleeping with you. So… ” She stood and started to walk away. 
 
 Andy held out his arm, blocking her in. He laughed, “ No, wait! I swear, that isn ’ t…I just owe you one, remember? Stay! ” With his free hand, he patted the barstool she had just abandoned. She contemplated for a moment, her hesitation blatantly painted across her face. But then, with sudden resolution, she sat back down. 
 
 “ I ’ m Nicole. And no, you can ’ t call me Nicky. Just…Nicole. ” 
 
 “ Great. Nice to meet you Nicole. ” 
 
 Andy continued to evaluate her. She had an interesting face. Everything about her was thin, and her face was no exception. Her thin lips and long nose were twisted into a skeptical grimace. She met his gaze directly, without flinching. In a silence that should have been uncomfortable, Andy and Nicole stared directly at one another for a time that surpassed normal social convention. Her eyes were hazel, bright and inquiring, and heavily lined with black. No, she wasn ’ t his usual type. But Andy was looking for something different, after all. And she was definitely different. 
 
 “ Well, Andy. ” Nicole was the first to turn away and break the silence. “ Are you going to nurse that whiskey all night, or are you going to drink with me? ” She drained the wine glass in her hand. “ If you hurry up and finish that drink, I ’ ll pick up your next one. ” 
 
 Andy swallowed his whiskey in a few gulps. It was what he always ordered, so he was able to down it quickly, with familiarity. Nicole nodded approvingly. 
 
 “ So what ’ ll it be? Another of the same? ” 
 
 “ No, ” Andy pushed the empty glass to the side. “ I ’ ll have what you ’ re having. I ’ m in the mood for something new. ”
