bartender from a past life
daryl is just sitting there staring at us
curly hair down to his shoulders
eyes sunken and small
stone-faced
he looks like an animal under the dim lights
looks trapped in a cage
daryl watches as we put the shots to our lips
the ones that he ordered us without provocation
the ones we didn’t want
but are sure to thank him for anyway
daryl who used to pour
drafts and shots in this joint for years
until his registers started turning up short
and he disappeared
daryl
our bartender from a past life
back from siberia or new jersey
unshaven for what looks like weeks
his years of appreciation for our patronage
swirling in our glasses
we take it down and toast him
with the empties
go back to talking about whatever
people talk about
as another round of free shots arrive
only to be dumped
on the warped wood floor
after daryl groans
and drops his head on the bar.
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