At some point, Stella had reached the front of the line, and now the bouncer, who loomed over her despite the fact that she was wearing five-inch heels, was waiting impatiently for Stella to say something. It was time to make a decision.
“Cherry.” The word shot out of Stella’s mouth, and the bouncer quirked an eyebrow, still waiting. “I’m Cherry. My name is Cherry. Like the fruit. C-H-E-R-R-Y. I should be on the list.”
Stella knew she was rambling, but it was difficult to stop.
“You got a last name?” the bouncer asked.
“It’s Cherry Cherry,” Chelsea said. Stella had forgotten she was still on the phone. “Like my username.”
Stella had gone the traditional route of college, then grad school, then a nine-to-five job, but Chelsea opted to drop out of their undergrad classes when her sex-positive Instagram began bringing in more money than the measly tips they made working in the student-run coffee shop. Over the years, Chelsea had amassed a following of almost half a million people across Instagram and now TikTok, which was how she ended up getting invited to things like this masquerade party.
“Cherry Cherry,” Stella repeated to the bouncer. “Same first and last name.”
The bouncer had a look of annoyance mixed with disbelief on his face but checked the list again until he found it.
“This says two guests.”
He looked around Stella as if a plus-one would suddenly appear.
“Sorry, it’s just the one,” Stella said, holding up her free hand in a little wave that made her feel like she was a child and not a woman almost in her thirties.
“Don’t apologize!” Chelsea hissed.
Right, it was time to hang up. “Have fun at your concert, bye!”
Stella didn’t wait for a response before ending the call, her fury at Chelsea making its way back up to the surface. She should’ve known Chelsea would bail and yet here she was being stood up. Again.
“Your phone must remain off while inside the venue,” the bouncer said.
“Sorry,” Stella said. “I mean, I’m not sorry. I am sorry, but I didn’t know that. I don’t know the rules.”
“The rules are simple,” the bouncer said. “Only touch people who want to be touched. Red as Sin does not tolerate any form of harassment. If you get out of line, you will be thrown out. No photos or videos are allowed unless you are in a private room with a partner who agrees. Party goes until three; after that, everyone must promptly exit, no matter what activity you may be in the middle of. Now please turn off your cell phone. We gotta keep the line moving.”
“Of course, sor—”
Stella bit her lip to keep thesorryinside her mouth and then turned off her phone, showing the bouncer the dark screen.
“You’re good to go.”
He pulled open the large metal door, which revealed stone stairs leading down to another unmarked door. Stella gulped. She had no idea what she was about to walk into, but she also felt like there was no turning back now. Besides, she was more than a little curious to see what exactly a sex club entailed. Well, other than the sex, obviously.
“In or out?” the bouncer asked. “We ain’t got all day.”
“In,” Stella said with a confidence she didn’t really feel. “I’m in.”
Then, before she could give it any more thought, she put one foot in front of the other and went down the stairs.
Two
At first glance, Red as Sin looked like any other club. Not that Stella had been to many, but still.
The door at the bottom of the stairs pushed open, and she had to blink a few times for her eyes to adjust to the dark space. It was bigger than she expected, and loud. A mix of pop and alternative rock was spilling out of speakers somewhere, and there was a circular bar set in the middle of the room, with people filling out the space all around it, trying to get a drink or just trying to pass through. The bartenders were all wearing black halter bralettes and skirts that barely covered anything or tight black shorts that left nothing to the imagination.
On Stella’s left, there was a little window for a coat check, and Stella quickly shrugged out of her coat and handed it over, along with her purse. In exchange, she received a blue numbered ticket.
Stella securely tucked it away in her strapless bra, thenproceeded to walk farther into the club, making her way around the place. She saw couples canoodling on pleather couches in various corners of the room, but most people were on the dance floor, grinding and pawing at each other. She accidentally made eye contact with a few people, but she quickly kept moving, unsure if she was ready to be propositioned just yet.
Eventually she found her way to a corridor that had a smidge more lighting than everywhere else. It looked like people were crowding around something, and at first Stella thought it was a line to the bathroom, but no one was moving. Curious, she stepped closer until she could see over one woman’s shoulder and then she gasped.
