Free Merlot by Mike Faricy Page A

little more time, he thought,
tiptoeing back to his chair, snuggling down and closing his
eyes.
    Cindy was gasping in little tiny breaths,
hoping that might help keep her stomach calm. She was sure it was
empty. She’d filled the toilet with a lovely shade of pink three or
four times now. At the moment not really caring what Tony thought.
The way she felt, she’d be dead before sunrise anyway.
    “Oh God, araugh,” she groaned, nothing of
substance came up. Stick with the little short breaths, she told
herself, kneeling in front of the toilet, holding her hair back,
wishing she could just be home to sleep in her own bed. She vowed
to never, ever drink again as she lay her head back down on the
toilet seat.
    * * *
    Otto woke up, stretched, and turned off his
watch alarm before it sounded. Fortunately sometime during the
middle of the night he had removed his feet from the Epsom salt
bath, they were marvelously dry and ready to face another
twenty-mile day.
    He pulled on a clean Vikings jersey, number
thirty-five, got a pot of coffee perking before frying up some
bacon, eggs, and hash browns, the weather station squawked in the
background.
    * * *
    Some time later Merlot gently knocked on the
bathroom door.
    “Just a minute, be right out,” came a soft
voice as if it had only been three or four minutes instead of four
or five hours. The toilet flushed, and the sink tap ran.
    “Shit,” Cindy said whispering louder than she
wanted to. Eventually the door opened up. Merlot moved a few steps
back to give her plenty of room.
    “Oh good, you’re still here, how perfect,”
she said, not sounding at all sincere. Her hair dropped limply to
her shoulders. Her complexion had a pale, pasty pallor, made more
frightening by her bloodshot eyes rimmed with smeared mascara. Her
dress was askew, wine stained and wrinkled
    “Oh relax, you look fine. We’ve all done it,”
he lied.
    “Fallen asleep? More like passed out on the
toilet seat in a bar. Then wake up at sunrise after puking my guts
out in a guy’s office on our first date? No, Tony, we haven’t all
done that. I’m unique in that vein, trust me,” she said,
side-stepping him. She cautiously picked up her purse, took a deep
breath before she turned to face him.
    Even hung over and an absolute mess he found
her attractive.
    “Well, shall I just say it’s been an
experience,” he smiled and bent to kiss her.
    “Oh please, I’m just gross, don’t,” she said
backing away.
    He kissed her anyway, on the cheek.
    “I don’t think you’re dreadful” he said, then
walked back to his desk.
    “Oh you poor, poor, deranged man. Tony, I’m
so sorry, you let me intrude on your work, I wanted this to be so
nice. You had this romantic dinner all planned and I, I just ruined
everything by getting falling-down drunk and throwing up all over
your bathroom. If you never want to see me again, I’ll understand.
Look, I should go, I’m just making this worse.”
    “Wait, before you go, Cindy, have one more
drink.”
    She glared for half a moment before realizing
he had a glass of water and some aspirin.
    “Take these. They’ll go to work and by the
time you get home you can crawl into bed and wake up feeling a hell
of a lot better,” he laughed.
    She took the aspirin out of his hand, popped
them into her mouth, then chased them down with just enough water
and no more. She felt the water make a cold, hollow splash
somewhere deep in her empty stomach, and waited a moment to make
sure she didn’t erupt again.
    “Okay, thanks. I’m really sorry, Tony. You’re
so sweet but I’d better go,” she said.
    He caught up with her partway through the
darkened bar and walked her to the door. He felt sorry for her. The
wrinkled dress, messed hair, mascara rimmed eyes, no lipstick. She
could use a shower. God, she was a mess.
    “Let me unlock the door for you, here,” he
said as she cautiously stepped out into the bright morning and
quickly covered her eyes.
    “Ugh shit, God it’s