Journeyman Journal: Redeeming the Rogue (Part One)

The pub kept going because it had its regulars.

Those regulars became accustomed to certain routines. Burt would come in complaining about how his wife was complaining about him going to work complaining. Sid would nod sagely for the first pint, but by the second pint, he’d get himself involved in a conversation as though he knew what he was talking about, but the others knew he was harmless in his ignorance. Claire and Sue would take up the corner table and gossip away about what was going on in the neighbourhood.

It would be Claire or Sue that would ask about Tom. They would ask about him mere minutes before he would burst into the pub have enough time to get a pint in for himself, ask for it to be put on his tab with a promise that he’d pay next time, before he made a rapid exit. And on occasion when he left a few moments later a stranger would walk in and ask about Tom with some grievance. None of the regulars ever gave Tom up. He was their reliable rogue. The bar staff and pub management tolerated the rising tab Tom gained because the regulars liked their reliable rogue. They liked him because he was reliable and he was a rogue, but that was about all they knew about him.

When Craig moved into the area, he thought it would be a good idea to get to knw what was what by seeking to become a regular at this pub. He was friendly without over-stepping the mark and would spot the best place to sit and enjoy his drink. He made that his regular place over the weeks and observed the regular routine of the local. Over time he got to know the regulars and they accepted him among their own, but the one he didn’t really get a read on was Tom. He was intriged by Tom and as much as the regulars would laugh at the latest person leaving because they were hard done by because of Tom, it intrigued Craig. And when Craig noticed Tom, he saw teh smirk and the smile, but he only saw that in his lips, not in his eyes. He saw something else in the eyes, when he was offered a glimpse.

What Craig saw was fear. The routine had been so accepted but he was always afraid that one day his luck would run out. He was afraid that one day the pub management might change and he wouldn’t be able to find those brief moments of refuge. He was scared that someone might see him as the fraud he was – not just in scamming other people, but in never being able to be real.

That was what was going on behind Tom’s eyes …

(to be concluded)

For His Name’s Sake

Shalom

C. L. J. Dryden