And You And I

Chapter 13: Poles apart

Part one: Déjà Vu

It was a rather surreal feeling, Kim thought, as she opened the glass front door and stepped inside Spritzers. The bar was exactly the same as it had been on her last visit. Same trendy look. Same relaxed atmosphere. Same leather and chrome stools sitting in front of a blacktopped bar, behind which numerous coloured bottles of spirits could be seen. Yet her outlook on it could not have been more polar than that of the last time she had been here if she had tried. Tonight, she was here because she wanted to be, not because she sought some sort of lift; but wished to avoid her friends at all costs. Kim felt a slight buzz of anticipation as she strolled between the tables and up to the bar; making note of the other patrons. While they numbered more than they had at this time two weeks prior, the place still retained a sense of calm and decorum. A far cry from the noisy, crowded nightclub she'd been dragged to last Friday. Yeah, this is so my sort of place.

Slipping her jacket off, Kim draped it over the back of the same stool at the end of the bar as last time and sat down to wait. Everything's the same, but feels so different... I feel so different. Her eyes took in the rows of brightly coloured bottles and she felt the urge to try them all. Maybe Shego can help me out and introduce me to some new cocktails, she seems to know her liquor. She signalled the barman with a sweet smile and he immediately walked over to serve her.

"Evening, Miss Possible. What can I get you tonight?"

"Evening, Joe," she thought for a moment before making a choice, "how about a strawberry daiquiri to start the night?"

The barman smiled at her, "coming right up, Miss."

Kim reached into the pocket of her jeans, pulled out her purse and withdrew the money to pay for her drink. She handed it over when Joe sat her cocktail down in front of her, picked up the beverage and took a sip. The taste of the strawberry on her tongue, mixed with the sharpness of the white rum immediately reminded her of Geneva and the first one she'd tasted, only she liked this one better. Although whether that was down to Joe's skill as a mixologist or her mood, she could not say. Kim picked up a menu and relaxed against the padded back of her stool as she thumbed through it. She'd not had time to eat anything before coming out and had a sneaking suspicion that Shego would be in the same boat. Heh, the look on her face when it transpired we were going to order the same thing last time. It was only at the thought of her hopefully would-be companion, that a nasty thought crept into her mind, what if she doesn't come? The idea felt like a lead weight waiting to drag her down into the dark depths of depression. And she found she did not want to contemplate that eventuality. She'd been there two weeks ago, sat right in this very spot and moped about her life and how it sucked. It didn't, she loved her day job. But in those moments, if she'd had a bad week and was stuck at home, the negatives had a tendency to weigh heavy on her. It's weird, but even though I hadn't seen Shego since two weeks past Friday and despite the shit that went down last weekend, just the thought of getting to see her again managed to lift my mood... gave me something to look forward to. Oh, God, I so hope she comes... With slightly more butterflies in her stomach, Kim sat back to wait.

##

Shego skidded the Blackbird into a parking space, cut the engine and kicked down the stand. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she pulled off her helmet; her thick raven hair fell down over the back of her jacket. It had been a mildly entertaining trip. A mile or two outside of Middleton, she'd zoomed past a parked police car and the hapless officer had attempted to give chase. Having been travelling at two-hundred-and-fifty mph, the cop hadn't been able to reach even half her speed. She chuckled to herself, shortest car chase in history. Locking her helmet securely under the seat, she activated the bike's security system and headed in the direction of Spritzers.