The Pool Game - Part 1

The Pool Game – Part 1

I rolled the cue ball down the table. It hit the edge of the table and came rolling back. I thought, "Life is like a game of pool. Sometimes things goes your way and sometimes you pocket the cue ball and miss your turn." Nothing seemed to be going my way. Sometimes I wonder why I keep going. I picked up the cue ball and was ready to pocket the ball when he came in the door.

He hung up his coat and walked to the bar and ordered a drink. He was not the typical patron of this bar. I would have spotted him before. He picked up his drink and took a sip. I rolled the cue ball one more time.

He walked over and ask, "You want to play a game?" I grabbed the cue ball and said, "I guess one last game won’t hurt." He racked the balls and said, "You can break."

I took aim and shot the cue ball and scattered the balls but nothing went in. I sat in the chair in the corner and threw the stick down. He walked over and said, "Hey, it is only a game. You will get another turn." I looked him in the eye and said, "You don’t understand, guys like me never get another turn. I am sorry. I need to catch my bus and get home." I left and headed to the bus stop.

As I waited, a car drove up and stopped. The window rolled down and the guy from the bar was sitting there. "You want a ride?" I hopped in. I gave him direction to my place. We sat in silence. He asked, "You want to talk about it?" I told him about all the bad luck I was having recently.

He tried to convince me that everything was not that bad. I yell, "You have everything going for you. What do I have?"

He looked at me for the longest time and then said, "You don’t remember me, do you? I went to school with you. I even had a crush on you.

My mouth dropped open. "Bet you are glad you never hooked up with a loser like me."

He cracked a faint smile and said, "Actually I always regretted not going out with you." He took a deep breath.

I yelled, "You are shitting me. But that was when we were in school. You wouldn’t hook up with me now?"

He turned and stared out the front window of the car, "I picked you up, didn’t I?" He turned toward me and had a card in his hand. "Here is my business card. If you want to play a game of pool, give me a call."

I slowly got out of the car. I stared at the business card. The name sounded familiar. "How about tomorrow, Steve?"

The next day I entered the bar and Steve was standing next to the pool table. He was racking the balls and said, "You can break."

I took aim and shot the cue ball and scattered the balls. Three balls fell into the pockets. I took aim and another went in. Before I knew it, I had won. That had never happen to me before. I was so excited I jumped and founded myself hugging Steve. Our faces were inches apart. I looked into his eyes and remember him from school. Steve had asked me multiple times to go out, but I always refused.

It was my fault. I decided no more regrets for Steve or myself. We pressed our lips together and kissed.

Like I said, "Life is like a game of pool. Sometimes things goes your way………AND this time I will not miss my turn"