I manifested two free drinks at a club the other night. Then I almost got bounced out of the club for accidentally busting into the VIP area while attempting to exit the building. That part was a little stressful. So was the free drink part, actually.
A bunch of us were out that night celebrating my friend's 50th birthday. I don't usually frequent clubs--none of us do these days lol--but her birthday coincided with a freestyle show at a well-known local venue. Freestyle music seems to be nostalgic for everyone around here, no matter what walk of life, no matter what kind(s) of music people usually listen to. So we dragged our old asses out for a late night.
I had three drinks while I was there. The first time I went to the bar to get a drink, I noticed that the bartenders were expert at avoided eye contact. They also seemed to notice men before they noticed women, so I asked Arnold to stand there with me. Sure enough, the girl ‘noticed’ him and took his order, which was actually my order. Arnold was holding cash in his hand, but the bartender swiftly brought over the credit card machine. He tapped his card rather than prolong the issue.
When I went for my second drink, I decided to try my chances without Arnold. I brought his card, since that was how the bartender had us pay the first time. As I stood watching the bartender avoid eye contact with literally everyone waiting at the bar, a guy sidled up behind me on my left, and waived a folded $5 bill over my shoulder. My first thought was, “He’s never buying a drink for $5.” My second was, “I hope he doesn’t think he’s getting served before me.” I turned to him and made it clear that I was still waiting to be served (yo, buddy. I was here first). He was apologetic and polite. He seemed drunk but had very minty breath (probably proof he was drunk!).
Mr. Minty and I commiserated a bit over waiting, and how there’s a fine line between getting someone’s attention and being rude. He then asked me what I was drinking, and I that moment of oh no, this is awkward. I could see my friend's possessive husband looking right at us from the mezzanine and I felt annoyed. I turned to Mr. Minty and said, “I’m actually getting two drinks.” I actually was planning to get two drinks, mainly because of the awful wait. But it turned out to be an excellent way to sidestep the Let Me Buy You a Drink situation without actually turning the guy down. We could continue to stand there together without any awkwardness.
Finally, the bartender came to take Mr. Minty's order (unsurprisingly!) and he directed her to me (thank you, good sir). I ordered my two drinks. She served them up and rang up my order on the credit card machine. But she didn’t bring the machine over so that I could tap my card. Mr. Minty urged me to take my drinks and leave, but I didn’t want to create that situation. So, I continued to wait.
Suddenly, I saw that the bartender had taken the card reader to someone that was standing on the other side of Mr. Minty. I didn’t see the person, I just saw the card swipe on my $30 charge. I started to say something, but before anything could come out, the bartender typed a grey goose drink into the machine and a new charge for $39 popped up. She slid the machine towards me and I said, “I’m not paying that. It’s not my drink.”
I don’t know if she heard me or what, but—once again—a person that was standing on the other side of Mr. Minty took care of the bill. I don’t know if it was the same person or not. All I saw was a hand with cash stick out. The bartender took the cash and I gave up trying to pay.
The next day, I ran across this video on YouTube. That's when I realized that I'd somehow manifested those two free drinks. 😂