Chapter 2 Two

CHAPTER TWO

Lyra decided against going home-if she went home, she would cry her eyes out and she felt Gerald didn't deserve even the littlest bit of her tears.

So she got into her car and drove all the way from Manhattan to Brooklyn. Her stop was at a pub downtown and she was going to have herself shit–faced drunk and drown her sorrows in alcohol. That's way better than crying over stupid Gerald.

"Three shots of vodka." She sat on the barstool and said her order. The bar man turned around to face her with a welcoming smile, he was previously cleaning the glasses.

Lyra noted the appeal in the barman, he was a handsome man and maybe a bit younger than her; probably twenty–two or twenty–three. He was good looking, too good looking to be a barman.

"In a minute." He replied and went ahead to get her order.

Lyra took out her phone that had been buzzing non-stop all through her drive here. They were message notifications. A handful of them were congratulatory messages on her third year anniversary with the betraying bastard, others were inquiries about how the party was going, but the majority of them came from her office group chat.

It was on fire! And she was the topic of discussion, her co–workers were throwing jabs at her for risking the fate of their business, and others were saying she should be fired. Lyra sighed and switched off the phone, she didn't need to add anything more to her already full bowl of sorrows.

Lyra Blossom, a twenty–five year old successful entrepreneur and a member of the executive board of one of the most popular companies in New York, Ritz Group of companies.

Lyra had worked her way up to greatness, having grown up in Mott Haven, Bronx that was one of the worst places in New York, she knew she had to get out of that place by all means. She struggled to get her degree-deep struggles, she was a hustler and had to do so many things to get enough money to send herself through school. All she wanted was to be a better person, so she can grant herself and her mother who worked so hard to take care of her after her dad left them, a great life.

She downed the three shots of vodka in quick succession immediately they arrived on the table.

She banged the shot glass on the table to signal the barman, "More!" She barked and he came to attend to her. She gestured 'three' with her fingers and the barman looked at her with weariness but didn't object and went to get her order.

The alcohol hit the exact spot, and she felt herself getting slightly drowsy. That's when the memories started rushing back into her headspace instead of being driven away. That was the opposite of what Lyra wanted, she came here to forget her plights not give them more strength in her memories.

She lost her mother three years ago and that was the very catalyst that made her throw herself at Gerald to 'ease the pain', she ended up falling in love with him and she thought he loved her too. But the events of today said otherwise.

Her shots had arrived and she was quick to down all the glasses. The patchy burn of the vodka was bittersweet and she appreciated its scorch.

She exhaled in relief and passed the glasses back to the barman, "More. Make it four this time." She said with a cheeky smile.

The barman wasn't satisfied with Lyra's reckless drinking and he instantly could tell that there was something up with her, something deep because that's the only thing that would make her want to indulge in so much alcohol.

However, he wasn't going to oppose her wishes. It wasn't in his job description to be nosy or tell the customer what is wrong or what is right. He grabbed the glasses and went to get her order-four more shots of vodka, by the time she's done with that she would definitely be bawling out her guts.

He wondered what would make a beautiful girl like her be so heartbroken? A hint of smile played on his lips as he remembered her impeccable looks.

She was a beauty to behold; she had fair skin, a petite body with delectable curves and full red lips that gave the greatest smiles. Her deep brown eyes were kind and gentle and a stellar feature of hers were her blonde waist–length curls.

She was fucking beautiful and seemed very intriguing, the barman was instantly interested in knowing more about her.

He returned with her order and immediately he set it down, she got a head start and began downing them a little bit too fast. His face crinkled, she was being too reckless with alcohol.

"You might want to slow down a bit, miss." He advised genuinely, she was already done with the second and going for the third. "You're going to be sick tomorrow if you continue at this rate."

Lyra burped as she finished the third and then faced the barman, "I liked you better when you just minded your business and did as I asked." She was reaching for the last glass but his hand intercepted, and he took it away from her.

"Well since you're so concerned about me, would you mind telling me why guys just live breaking girls' hearts?" She asked, and then tried to take the shot out of his hands. His grip was firm and he wasn't ready to let go of it.

Lyra looked up at him and said nothing, simply allowing her eyes to roam around his features, his very handsome features and she was instantly smitten as his mere looks ignited something in her. Was it the alcohol?

"Listen, I'll stop drinking if you offer something else to ease my pain..." Lyra smirked suggestively and the bar man instantly caught up, and he was more than delighted to help her in any form she wanted...

Her hands rested on his as she drew imaginative partners on it with her fingers, staring deep into his eyes seductively. "So tell me, when do you get off work?"

The barman had a risque grin on, "Well, in about two-"

Lyra suddenly gagged and looked like she was about to throw–up. She got up from the stool quickly and raced outside the bar and emptied her insides in a nearby bush. She felt drained and tired, so she leaned on a parked car to catch some air before going back in.

Then, she started to hear loud voices coming from somewhere in the parking lot and it gained her attention, they sounded like they were arguing. Just as she started to scan around to see where the voices stemmed from, she heard a loud gunshot!