“Percentages are my jam.”
Nate looked at him disbelieving. “You’re smiling. No one thinks that about percentages and smiles.”
“There’s a whole component in my studies on statistics, and that includes percentages, so I guess I learned to love them.”
“Why would they be part of studying psychology?”
“Expectation against managing reality.”
Nate bit his lip as if he was keeping back a smile. “That’s deep.”
“I’m a deep kind of guy.” Jared smirked and brushed his shoulders.
Nate sipped his Sprite, then placed the glass back on the coaster. “I just have all these numbers in my head, and if only I could make sense of them.”
“I could help you if you want?” Jared joked, his voice low and growly. Nate’s eyes widened and after the longest long pause he cleared his throat.
“Maybe, but I don’t know how you’ll help, god knows why someone who walks in here picks a particular drink.”
“Okay, I like a good challenge.” Jared shuffled his chair to sit diagonally, but next to Nate, so they had a view of the bar. He couldn’t let himself think about the fact he was close enough to Nate to reach out and touch him. Kiss him.
“What do you mean?”
“Well. Look at it this way. Imagine all those random people who don’t know you or the bar, we can use percentage possibilities to suggest what order when they come inside. Take all the types of alcohol and the number of people and if they all chose equally then—”
“You lost me at ‘random.’”
“Okay, look at it this way. I think there’s an eighty percent likelihood that the next person at the bar will order a vodka-based cocktail.”
“That’s kind of specific for a guess.” Nate chuckled.
“Well, I can’t be specific, but I think it’s got to be high.”
“It’s not a fair test surely, because we’re advertising vodka week on social media and there’s a poster on the door so people who come in might already want vodka, and what about the ones who don’t want alcohol at all?” He gestured at his Sprite.
“You’re right, but when they get here, they’re faced with a lot more choices. Only when they order… just watch,” Jared gestured at the newest customers, two guys chatting about something that made them smile at each other, still talking as they took off their coats, then leaning on the bar ready to order. “See what Pops does.”
They watched as Pops asked what the guys wanted and then gestured to the board with the vodka specials with a broad welcoming smile before placing out some snacks and chatting about something they couldn’t hear from where they sat.
“See? He’s showing that he’s happy to have them here, then he asks them what they want which means they could choose any combination of drinks in the entire bar. He guides them to a choice and makes a subtle gesture to focus them in on how the vodka drinks are on special. We all like to think we know our own minds, but we’re influenced by things we don’t even see. The kind of numbers your supplier wants is likely all about understanding the human factor. I’m rambling now.”
“Okay, I think I get it.” Nate was lying.
They exchanged smiles.
At this point Jared should really have shuffled his chair back, but he liked it here, tucked into the corner talking. It helped that their elbows knocked, and that Nate didn’t make an effort to move away. He couldn’t pull himself from the attraction flaring between them.
Nate filled the silence. “So you met Pops then? He’s Rhea’s dad and used to own a bar of his own way back. He’s been retired from the bar business for years now, helped Rhea and me find this place. Luka is at football practice, then dinner at Lee’s, so Pops came over to give me time to get caught up on the accounts.” He sounded defensive—was that because of Luka, or because he felt awkward that Rhea’s dad was behind the bar? There were so many complicated layers to Nate, and Jared couldn’t wait to peel them back.
Nate shook his head. “What happened the other day was a wake-up call—I should have known that Luka was… well there’s no point going back over it.” He scrubbed his hands over his face again, and Jared wished he could say something that made Nate look less tired. “Anyway, it’s good to take a break.”
The sharp change in conversation threw Jared for a moment but he sipped his drink then made an exaggerated appraisal of the taste before setting his glass down again.
“That’s just what I needed, and I’ve had my head in books all day, so a break was called for.”
They sat in silence for a while, and Jared tried not to stare, but he couldn’t avoid seeing the exhaustion lining Nate’s face, nor the dark smudges beneath his eyes. Juggling being a dad with running this bar, then add in percentages, and it seemed as if he was on the edge.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve just stopped to talk to a… friend,” Nate admitted and picked at the seam of his pants as if his admission had cost him something and he didn’t want to see Jared’s reaction.
Jared knocked his elbow. “I’m good at being a friend. Ask my roommate Ethan who relies on me to dig him out of all kinds of situations.”
“Like what?”
“Don’t ask. He’s the nicest guy on the planet, a scientist, but he has the worst taste in men. Last month he dated a fellow scientist who was actually experimenting on him.”
“For real?”
“It was only a blind study for something or other super clever that I don’t understand, but apparently it was a very bad thing. Worst is Ethan is in a world of his own, so I look out for him.”
“Then you are a good friend.”
“I try to be, so what if I took a look at your report and helped you give the supplier what
