At The Bar

Lois blinked. She sat on the stool, eyes a little unfocused. Her skin was cool and clammy, her throat dry. A parched tongue slid out between the reporter's lips, and for the first time Lois noticed the empty glass in her hand. She set it on the bar.

The noise and light of the club came back to her at a rush, suddenly overwhelming. The half-naked women dancing in the cages, the whirling mass of humanity on the floor. The untz-untz-untz of the beat vibrating up through legs of her chair, and there was a squawking in her ear... Lois turned toward the noise and saw the bartender's lips moving. It took her a few seconds before Lois understood what she was being asked.

The reporter held up the glass. "Yes, I'd like some more."

Lois took in the barmaid—hair dyed red and pink, hint of muscles, tell-tale bulge of nipple piercings beneath her dark top.

A name swam to the surface: Maria.

The reporter took a deep breath. She felt...fine. Not drunk, not drowning.

So what had just happened to me?

The options were few. Either Lois had imagined it—some variation of daydreaming and an alcoholic blackout she had never encountered or heard about—or she'd had a psychotic episode, full hallucination. Or...and this was scary...it had really happened.

If it was real...then I owe someone. Big time.

Lois didn't like to think about what she promised, or why she promised it. Her hand fell to her stomach...but it felt normal. Which it would, at this stage. The thought flicked through her head automatically, but that was something else the reporter didn't want to think about. Time enough for all that later.

The barmaid returned with another cool, grey-white cocktail, and Lois accepted it with a smile, thanking the woman by name.

Lois brought it to her lips—and almost spit it out. The flavor was instantly familiar. She had just drunk a double-lungful of it not long ago. Carefully, tentatively, Lois brought it up to her lips again. With trembling hand, she tipped the glass, let just a little pour into her mouth. The reporter let it soak into her dry tongue, her throat crying out for more. But the taste, the consistency...Lois new exactly what this was. But how were they serving it? And why?

"Too many questions," she mumbled, then brought the glass back up to her mouth. "Time to find some answers."