Since then, I would often see Nathaniel at the bar during the weekends. I figured that he had a weekday job since he never came while I was on waitress duty.
He returned my sketchbook to me the next weekend after that incident, and I was grateful that he remembered.
“Here you go,” he told me. “I kept it safe.”
“Thank you,” I said, feeling relieved at having the sketchbook back in my hands again. It had really been too long. “I should treat you to a drink.”
He waved me off with a smile. “No need. I only gave this back to its rightful owner.”
I shook my head. “You made an effort to find me and to return this to me. I can’t just say ‘thank you’ as the only way to express my gratitude. After all, this sketchbook is very precious to me.”
He looked a little sheepish at this. “Well, I’ve already ordered a drink… Maybe next time?”
Next time?
I wondered if I should treat him to dinner instead, but immediately changed my mind. He was, after all, still a stranger. A man.
And I didn’t trust men anymore no matter how kind they seemed.
If I treated him to a drink here at the bar, at least I was surrounded by people I knew. They would look out for me if something ever happened. Madison was here, too.
This was the safest way for me to say thank you, so it didn’t really matter when I needed to treat him.
“Okay,” I agreed.
I never knew then at that time, that treating him to a drink would be the start of a complicated relationship between me and Nathaniel.
***
When I told Madison about what happened that night, she was completely freaked out.
“You see? You should’ve waited for me!” she scolded.
“I couldn’t do that to you. You would’ve walked the long way back to your apartment. Then you would’ve been the one who got in danger,” I reasoned. “Maybe even both of us!”
“Still! Girl, you could’ve gotten kidnapped! We could’ve had many chances to escape with the two of us instead of you being all alone!” Madison said, shaking her head. “So what happened to that woman? Did she manage to escape?”
I nodded. “Nathaniel filled me in on what happened. Apparently, the police contacted him not long after I got home that night. It turned out that, thanks to him fighting off those two men that came after me, the woman managed to get away from the one man that held her in place. She bit him on the arm and ran away.”
Madison breathed out a heavy sigh of relief. “Oh, that’s great to hear!”
I nodded. “Also, Nathaniel reported their license plate and the exact location, so the police managed to apprehend them before they could make a quick getaway. It turned out that there were two patrol officers near the neighborhood, so they didn’t have a chance.”
“Well, serves them right! I can’t believe those were the same guys that made chaos here at the bar that night! The thought of it just gives me the shivers!”
“Me, too,” I admitted. “Oh, also! It turns out that that woman’s boyfriend — the guy that you told me was with her at the bar — actually did steal the wallet! He got laid off from his job that day and saw how much money those guys had, so he couldn’t resist…”
“What?!” Madison exclaimed in disbelief. “Well, I never!”
“I know, right?” I shook my head. “That guy escaped and left his girlfriend to those guys. Just despicable.”
“Men. They’re all the same!”
“I can’t believe guys like him exist in this world,” I muttered. “I could’ve gotten hurt because of him, too…”
“Just wait till I see him next time!” Madison said angrily. “I’ll surely give him a piece of my mind!”
I smiled wryly. “I can’t even imagine what might’ve happened if Nathaniel didn’t come to save me just in time…”
“Oh, right!” Madison’s eyes grew wide in surprise and wonder. “Nathan saved you that night, didn’t he?”
“Yeah… um, Nathan? You call him Nathan?” I said, confused. Not that it mattered greatly when she shortened his name, but there was a sense of casual familiarity to her tone when she spoke about him, as though they were good friends.
“Of course I do! We’re a bit close now. We converse a little whenever he has his drink,” Madison said with a chuckle. “He doesn’t talk much about himself, but he’s a good listener. He seems like a nice guy.”
I shrugged. “Most guys are like that at first. Also, he basically admitted that he only comes here during the weekends to see me perform. Though before that, he told me that he followed me around because he was worried about me and that he didn’t know how to approach me so he could give me back my sketchbook…”
“Hmm. Creepy.” Madison shrugged. “But hey, he saved you anyway, right? And he did have your sketchbook with him. At least he told the truth.”
“True. But still… I don’t feel entirely comfortable about it. Being indebted to him, I mean.”
“No need to worry too much over it. It’s not like he’s going to ask you to reward him or something.” Madison leaned over towards me with a sudden, serious look in her eyes. “But if he does, it’s a trick, you hear me? Don’t be fooled!”
I chuckled. “Who do you think you’re talking to? Of course I’m not going to get tricked by things like that.
Madison was silent for a moment. “Well, maybe I’m just exaggerating or being paranoid, but yeah. Everything’s over now,” she said, wisely changing the subject. “He might have good intentions, but we don’t know him that well, either. But I am thankful to him for being there when he should.”
“Me too.”
And I meant it.
If Nathaniel hadn’t been there, I would’ve been done for.
I probably wouldn’t have the chance to see my family again, and all that I had done so far would be fruitless. I hadn’t even lived my life yet.
I still wanted to make a future for myself.
‘Just one more year,’ I told myself.
‘Just one more year and I could finally start over.’
***
“Would you mind if you buy me that drink now?”
It was the month of July, just another Saturday. I had just finished performing the songs onstage, so I went over to Nathaniel to say hi before going to the locker room.
“Now?”
I thought about it for a moment. I didn’t have anything particularly urgent to do tomorrow. I had another part-time job during the weekends aside from this one in the bar, but it usually only took place in the afternoon.
Maybe by the time Nathaniel finished the drinks, Madison’s shift would be over, and she could accompany me to the bus stop. I remembered her mentioning that she needed to buy some groceries since she forgot.
“All right.”
Maybe this way, I could learn a little more about this mysterious man.