Fairytale

The frigid wind whipped through Halle’s hair as she wrapped her arms around her chest. She was still three blocks away from her apartment. It was getting late so there were not a lot of places for her to duck in and warm up for a few minutes. 

A few buildings ahead Halle watched as three girls strolled out onto the sidewalk, hugging each other and giggling so loud it echoed off the concrete.

Halle looked above them. FAIRYTALE it read in a loopy font on the sign that hung above the door. 

As Halle got closer one of the girls with red hair and a black dress reached out and grabbed Halle’s arm.

“Hey, is it just me or are the stars like extra beautiful tonight?” 

The two girls behind her were nodding their heads so hard it looked like they had lost the bones that held their heads upright.

The girl with the red hair did not break eye contact with Halle.

“Um, sure,” Halle replied.

“That’s what I thought,” the red-haired girl murmured. 

The girl slowly drifted past Halle, her friends followed at their own leisurely pace.

Halle wondered what else they served in the bar. It made her hesitate for only a moment, but the wind picked back up. Chills ran through her bloodstream. The warmth outside the green door of the bar was too tempting.

When Halle entered FAIRYTALE, she was not sure what to expect. Most bars in this neighborhood were dives with football games playing on all the screens and old men yelling with pints in their hands.

This place was, well, enchanting. 

Small lights twinkled all along the ceiling, all the way from the entrance to the serving bar, as if they were stars guiding whoever came in. 

The rest of the place was dimly lit, only the occasional colored lightbulb glowing from lamps on the tables. 

There was not a single television or screen in the room. Even the people of all ages that were sitting and laughing or engaged in intense conversations, not a single one of them had their phones out.

Halle hesitantly stepped up to the bar. There were two busy bartenders flying around behind it. Neither one had noticed Halle yet so she leaned against the counter, waiting.

The man next to her was sipping on his drink although Halle could not determine what it was. At first look it could have been a light beer, but there were golden and blue sparkling flecks swirling around in it. The drink was always in motion which made it mesmerizing to watch.

“Excuse me, sir,” Halle said, tapping the shoulder of the man, “What kind of drink is that?”

The man turned to Halle, showing his grizzled face and scar that ran across his right cheek. He glared at her and for a second Halle regretted bothering him.

But then he smiled, showing off all the little gaps where teeth had once been. 

“Oh, this is called Tranquility,” the grizzled man muttered, “Don’t ask me what’s in it, I have no idea, but it makes me feel good.”

Halle nodded slowly as the man turned back to his drink. When Halle looked past him down rows of glasses on the bar, she realized that all of them had sparkling flecks swirling in them. Some were red or green or purple but they were all shining through the sides of the glasses.

The bartender caught Halle’s perplexed expression as she stared at the drinks.

“Excuse me,” Halle said to the bartender, “What is that in their drinks?”

The bartender tucked a long strand of ebony hair behind her ear.

“Oh, they are just for decoration.”

“But they are in all the drinks,” Halle responded.

When Halle looked back at the bartender she noticed that the bartender was looking at her strangely, almost as if Halle was a crossword and she was having trouble coming up with the right letters to fit in the boxes.

“I guess I will have a rum and coke,” Halle told the bartender.

The bartender shook her head. “That’s not how it works here.”

“What do you mean?”

The bartender leaned against the bar so she was inches away from Halle’s face. Her hands folded in front of her. Halle could see her more clearly now. Tattoos cascaded up her forearms to her shoulders. They probably went further under her tank top. They showed detailed figures of a sun on the right arm and the moon on the left, both looming over a garden. Flowers of every species bloomed across her skin.

“Here, you don’t order, we make the concoctions we know you need,” the bartender explained.

Halle couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. “What, like you have magic cocktails?”

The bartender narrowed her eyes. “Something like that.”

“What is it that I need?” Halled asked.

The bartender smiled. “That’s the thing, everyone else is easy to read, but with you I’m having trouble figuring out what would make you satisfied.”

“You could always just bring me a rum and coke. That would satisfy me.”

“We don’t have any rum.”

Halle furrowed her brow. “What kind of bar doesn’t have rum?”

“The best kind,” the bartender murmured, “What is your name?”

The bartender looked at her with such intensity, Halle felt as if there was a spotlight on her. That this woman in front of her could see her every move, her every twitch. Maybe somehow this woman could even see all of the flaws. Not just the ones on the surface but the ones woven into Halle’s identity. 

“I’m Halle.”

The bartender smiled. A good and proper smile as if she saw something worthy of it.

“Nice to meet you, Halle. I’m Ophelia.”

“That’s a beautiful name.”

“Thank you.”

Halle tapped her fingers on the bar as if she were playing piano. “So, Ophelia, do you know what you are going to serve me yet?”

Ophelia leaned away from the bar. “I think I have an idea.”

Moments later, after Halle intently watched Ophelia grab a martini glass and whip around behind the bar, grabbing almost half a dozen different bottles of who knows what, a dark red mixture was placed in front of Halle. The shiny flecks in her drink were burgundy. 

“Can I ask what this is?”

“It’s exactly what you need,” Ophelia remarked.

Ophelia’s gaze did not fall from Halle’s as Halle tentatively raised the glass to her lips. 

It did not taste like any alcohol or mixer that Halle had could place. In fact, it did not taste like anything Halle had ever had before.

When the liquid ran down Halle’s throat she felt a warmth, her chest began humming with electricity. She was flooded with images of her childhood. Her mother putting a bandage on her knee after she split it open on the sidewalk. The first boy Halle had a crush on putting his hand on her waist as they danced at their freshman year Homecoming dance. The first date she went on at the diner with the girl she dated her Senior year.

Her expression must have been exactly what Ophelia had hoped for.

“Let me know if there’s anything else I can get you, Halle,” Ophelia murmured before stepping over to help another patron at the bar.

Halle went back to Fairytale the next night. Luckily, Ophelia was behind the bar again. She greeted Halle with a wide smile that seemed to say that Ophelia knew Halle would be back. 

Ophelia went to work and by the time Halle had taken her seat, the red drink was under her chin.

Halle gulped it down in a few minutes. Another one was in its place as soon as the glass was emptied. 

When the crowd started thinning later in the night, Ophelia came over and casually leaned in towards Halle. She started asking Halle about herself. Simple questions such as where she was from and what she did for a living, but the voice she used when asking told Halle she was genuinely interested. Halle was not used to people listening to her, usually she just faded into the background in whatever room she walked into.

“You should know that you don’t have to stop in tomorrow night.” Ophelia stated as Halle emptied her fourth glass. 

“Oh?”

“I have tomorrow night off.”

“Really? And you think I only come here for you?” Halle replied with a smirk.

Ophelia chuckled. “The good news is that I will be free to take you to dinner.”

It was like a supernova sent a wave of warmth and excitement through the nerves in Halle’s body. She sat up straighter in her seat. 

“I would love that,” Halle muttered.

“I thought you might,” Ophelia responded.

She pulled a napkin out of the tray and scribbled something down on it. She pushed it in front of Halle. It was a phone number.

“Call me tomorrow and I’ll tell you where to meet me.”

Someone had walked up to the bar, beckoning Ophelia over. 

Halle stared at the napkin in front of her like it was a treasure she had stumbled upon. She folded it neatly and placed it safely in her pocket.

It had been too long since Halle had to get ready for a date. She wasn’t sure if she was aiming to impress or if Ophelia would want the encounter to be more casual.

Halle settled for walking out the door in a dark red skirt matched with a black shirt with red flowers around the neckline. 

The restaurant Ophelia told her to meet her at was right down the street from Fairytale so Halle was able to walk. The night was warmer than it had been the last few days. Halle looked up and couldn't help but notice how brightly the stars were glowing in the black sky. 

It was not a fancy restaurant. There were dollar bills pinned from wall to wall. Some had people's names written on them and some had doodles.

“This is an interesting place.” Halle said as she took her seat across the table from Ophelia.

“I know it looks like a dive but trust me, the food is amazing,” Ophelia promised.

The dinner started somewhat awkwardly. This was mostly Halle’s fault. Ophelia had such insightful conversation starters that fizzled out as soon as it was Halle’s turn to open her mouth. 

Once the food came Halle had to agree that it was some of the best she had in awhile. After she ate, she became slightly less nervous. Ophelia seemed to notice her getting more comfortable as the dinner went on.

“I really like your tattoos by the way, I meant to say that earlier.” Halle said over their shared piece of chocolate cake. “Do they have any meaning behind them?”

Ophelia ran her hand over her right forearm. “Thanks and yes, they mean a lot to me.”

A moment of silence as they each took a bite of cake.

“But they are mostly a reminder,” Ophelia continued, “About the beauty that exists when all forces are in balance.”

Halle nodded. “That’s profound.”

Ophelia smiled. Halle loved the way she smiled.

“Do you want to head on over to Fairytale?” Ophelia proposed, “I want to keep the night going.”

Fairytale was packed but Ophelia grabbed them two seats at the bar. The woman behind the bar gave Ophelia a slight nod as they sat down.

“Belle looks busy,” Ophelia told Halle, “I’ll go back and make our drinks.”

“Can you just…do that?” 

“Of course.”

The dark red drink was in Halle’s hand moments later. Ophelia opted to drink water.

“Do you not drink?” Halle wondered out loud.

“I just like to pace myself,” Ophelia replied.

It was time for Halle to learn more about Ophelia. She started with the basics. Halle saw the ease at which Ophelia let her answers fall so eloquently from her red lips.

“Enough with the small stuff,” Ophelia announced after a few questions, “Let’s start digging deeper.”

Halle sat up straighter in her stool. “Bring it.”

Ophelia brought her face forward until her nose was brushing against Halle’s. Their eyes locked on each other’s. Halle could see the way her blue eyes had hints of greens around the pupils.

“What is your biggest fear?”

“I don’t know,” Halle murmured.

“Yes you do,” Ophelia insisted.

“I mean, it’s not like spiders or heights or any of that.”

Ophelia pulled her head away a little. “But we all fear something.”

Halle was about to open her mouth to respond when yelling began to echo throughout the room. Both Halle and Ophelia’s heads turned towards the entrance, where two men were in each other’s faces.

One of them threw a punch, his fist colliding with the cheek of the other.

Ophelia jumped out of her stool and ran behind the bar. 

While everyone’s attention was on the conflict between the men, Halle watched as Ophelia poured a yellow liquid into the shot glasses. When the liquid entered the glasses there were no shiny flecks in them. But Ophelia held her empty palms over them, Halle saw her lips mumble something. Then Ophelia’s blue eyes glowed yellow. It was only for a second but Halle saw it clear as day.

The drinks began to shimmer.

Ophelia rushed them over to the two men who were being held back by their friends.

“Here.” Ophelia said as she held the shots in front of the faces of the fighting men. “Drink these and you will see there is no need to fight.”

The men hesitated but they eventually tilted their heads back and swallowed the shots.

Halle could see the whole scene change. The men relaxed, as if the tension was stripped away from them. They began smiling and laughing with one another. Everybody else in the bar resumed their own business.

Ophelia was smiling as she returned to the bar. 

Halle’s mind was spiraling. She was having trouble interpreting what she saw. She climbed off her stool and brushed past Ophelia on her way to the exit.

The chilly air hit Halle as soon as she got out the door. She did not focus on how cold it was, all she could do was replay what she had just seen in the bar. Halle leaned her back against the brick wall next to the green door.

She watched as Ophelia burst through the door.

“Are you okay, Halle?”

“What was that?”

Ophelia turned her head towards the door. “You’ve never seen two drunk guys go at each other?”

“That’s not what I’m talking about.” Halle pushed off against the wall to stand in front of Ophelia. “What were those drinks you gave them?”

“They were just- well it doesn’t matter, it calmed them down,” Ophelia replied, “That’s what matters.”

“I want to know.”

Ophelia tilted her head slightly. “Where is this coming from? We were having a good time.”

Halle took a step back. “I saw you. I saw your eyes, they were glowing.”

“Maybe you’ve just had too much to-”

“Tell me right now. Or-or you will never see me again.”

The confusion on Ophelia’s face faded into guilt.

“You won’t believe me,” Ophelia finally said.

“Just tell me, please.”

“It isn’t alcohol,” Ophelia began, “There is not one drop of liquor in that bar.”

“Then what is it?”

“Magic,” Ophelia admitted, “Me and my sisters bought the bar and instead of alcohol we sell potions.”

Halle couldn’t help but laugh.

“It helps people,” Ophelia insisted, “We see what people need and we give it to them. If people are angry we give them calm, if they are anxious we give them relaxation, we help keep them balanced.”

“You’re dosing people with magic to control them,” Halle muttered.

Ophelia stepped closer to Halle, reaching out for her hand. “No, it’s not like that. People want to be balanced.”

“And what about me?”

Ophelia let out a deep sigh.

“What did I need?” Halle clarified.

“Love,” Ophelia mumbled.

“Love?”

Tears began to trickle from Ophelia’s eyes. “I couldn’t place it at first but then I saw a loneliness in you.”

Halle shook her head. “This whole time…you were just, just lying to me. Drugging me.”

“No,” Ophelia stated, “That was how it started but I didn’t keep it going. Not after that first night.”

“How can I believe you?”

Ophelia gripped Halle’s hand tighter. “Because I wanted to get to know you, fully.”

Halle wanted to pull away but she didn’t have the strength to walk away just yet. Her jaw clenched when she watched the pain on Ophelia’s face. 

“Just answer one question for me.” 

“Anything,” Ophelia pleaded.

“How I’m feeling, the connection I’ve felt with you since that first night, is that all me or is that because of your potion?”

The tears had caused the mascara to run in black streaks down Ophelia’s cheeks. She looked up at Halle with shame. As much as Halle wanted to wrap her arms around Ophelia and tell her she was forgiven, Halle couldn’t bring herself to do it. She wasn’t even sure if that's what she really wanted or if that’s what the potion had put in her mind.

Ophelia managed to stifle the tears. She used the sleeve of her jacket to wipe them away.

Halle stared at her, letting her know that this conversation was not going anywhere until Ophelia answered her question.

Ophelia gave a defeated shrug.

“I don’t know.”