Falling From Disgrace

While Jack took a sip of his soda she turned the conversation back to him. “So you got your GED and have been bartending ever since?”

“I don’t just bartend, I run a business,” Jack said.

“What business?”

“Loki’s.”

“You run Loki’s?”

“I own Loki’s.”

It was Adrianna’s turn to look snarky. “Now who isn’t the forthcoming one?”

“Hey, you never asked. But yes, I opened the bar about two months ago. It’s going well. Despite a shitty economy, people will always need a place to drink.”

Adrianna’s expression conveyed that she was impressed. “How old are you?”

“Thirty-two,” Jack answered.

“No way!” Adrianna exclaimed. She had guessed he was her age, maybe a year older.

Without a word and while chewing his food, Jack reached into his wallet and handed her his license. Sure enough, his birthday confirmed that he had turned thirty-two in February. Adrianna’s eyes roamed over his ID gathering more information.

“Jonathan Henry Lokinski?” she smiled.

“I’m a junior so my parents called me Jack,” he smiled back at her.

“Lokinski. I can see where Loki’s comes from now,” Adrianna said.

“In ninth grade English we read about Norse mythology. When Loki came up my friends noticed the comparison to my last name. Being that he was the god of mischief and my tendency to always get into trouble, the name stuck.”

“That’s cute.”

Adrianna felt herself warming up to Jack and actually liking him. The feeling didn’t bother her though, not that day. She was comfortable and the thought of getting closer to him was starting to appeal to her. Maybe a relationship could work. Lord knows she was tired of being alone all the time.

Jack finally felt as if Adrianna was being more open with him. Even if she wasn’t talking about herself, she was at least talking now, without him having to prompt her with questions. Still, there was a lot he wanted to know.

“So what did you do after you graduated high school?” he asked.

“I went to Northwestern,” she divulged.

“Really?” he asked, impressed. “Did you graduate?”

“I did. Double major in biology and chemistry.”

Jack dropped his fork and sat back in his chair. “The more I learn about you, Adrianna, the more confused I get. You have degrees in biology and chemistry from Northwestern University? Jesus, you must be brilliant!”

Adrianna rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Hardly.”

“What did you want to do with those degrees, rocket scientist?”

“I wanted to be a pediatrician.”

Jack noticed the way Adrianna said the words sadly, like it wasn’t something she just gave up on but that had been taken away from her. When she didn’t offer any more than that he supposed it was information that would come out eventually.

“That’s amazing, Ade,” he told her. “I hope you go back to pursuing that one day.”

Adrianna didn't want to respond and so she busied herself with cutting up an egg roll.

"What the hell are you doing?" Jack admonished when he saw her. "You don't eat an egg roll with a fork!"

Adrianna blushed and told him, "I don’t like to get my hands dirty."

Jack snickered.

"I mean when I'm eating!" Adrianna stuttered, flustered with herself for not hearing the innuendo in her words. Jack laughed some more.

"I mean when I'm eating food in the kitchen...oh, shut up, Jack!"

After sharing a cigarette at Adrianna’s kitchen window, she and Jack moved on to her couch where he turned on her television.

"Oh, go back!" Adrianna exclaimed as Jack was flipping through the channels. "Forrest Gump is on!"

Jack chuckled but turned back to where the movie was playing and set the remote down, settling into the couch with Adrianna close to his side. Rather than watch the movie, he watched her, enjoying the way she looked at the television with deep interest.

Jenny was just crossing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool when Jack noticed Adrianna had tears in her eyes.