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With that, he was gone. My eyes flew to Trudy. “You better get ready. It’s half off tap beer tonight, so we are gonna be slammed. We’ll catch up later.”
I nodded as she patted my back before turning to go get herself ready. I walked along the row of lockers and was pleasantly surprised to see my old locker was still vacant. I got undressed, putting my clothes away in the locker as I stripped down. I was just about ready when the music started and I heard Marco out on stage shouting for me, getting the crowd fired up, the cheers of liquored-up men drowning out most of his introduction.
I took one long look in the mirror, letting the cheers and hollering soak in, hoping it would energize me and get me in a better head space, but all it managed to do was make me more nervous.
“Allie Cat! Get out here, girl. These gentlemen are waiting for ya!”
The yelling got louder.
I froze—my hands were shaking and my breathing was speeding up, keeping time with my racing heartbeat as I stood at the mirror, staring at my reflection.
Moments flashed by and the cheering turned to booing and I could hear the crowd turn, getting angry and nasty. I knew I had to move, I had to go perform, but I couldn’t. My legs were like cement, bonded to the cheap laminate flooring.
“Allie, honey, you don’t have to do this. Just tell Marco you’ve changed your mind.”
Trudy’s reflection appeared in the mirror next to mine. She placed a hand on my shoulder.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” I whispered.
“What the fuck’s goin’ on back here?” Marco interrupted, storming into the dressing area. “Heather, get out there!”
A blonde girl nodded and bolted towards the stage.
“Allie! You want this gig or not?” he asked, turning back to me.
“For fuck’s sake, Marco, give us a minute!” Trudy hissed.
He puffed up and looked about to explode, but at the last second turned and left, muttering something about getting soft as he went. I was surprised she was able to be so bold with him, but she had been there the longest, and she made good money and kept the rest of the girls in line when their drama threatened to spill over and cause issues at the club.
“Honey, what’s really going on?” Trudy asked. “Come over here, let’s sit.”
I let her lead me to a folding chair in the corner, by the bathroom. She sat me down and then took the seat next to me. I leaned forward and buried my face in my hands.
“I don’t know what I’m doing here. I never thought it would come to this,” I said, my voice muffled by my fist. “Again.”
“What happened to the coffee shop?”
“I quit,” I said.
“All right. Well, let’s start there. What happened next?”
Her voice was so soothing and gentle that before I knew it, I was blubbering through the whole fucking disaster that had been my life over the last few months. I told her about Spotlight, Cooper, the pictures, getting fired, Cherry Bomb getting cut apart, everything. When I finished telling my story, I sagged over onto her shoulder, tears streaking black stains down my cheeks as my mascara and thick black eyeliner washed away.
She patted my hair. “Honey, you wanna know what I think?”
“Sure,” I said, starting to wipe away the mess all over my face, but it seemed to only make it worse with each swipe.
“You’re not meant for this life. You’re too smart and too beautiful to be stuck in a pit like this,” she started.
I started to tell her she was smart and beautiful, too, but she held up a hand and stopped me.
“Allie, honey, I knew when you started here that this was just a stepping stone for you, that you would find your way in this crazy world, so I didn’t push you too hard to leave. But this time, I’m gonna tell you that you need to go home and figure out a new plan.”
“Like what?” I asked. “If you have some money-making idea for me to pay my rent and get my ass out of debt, I’m all ears. But, as is, I’m about a week away from eviction and creditors sending out the wolves to hunt me down. I don’t have any other choice. Not right now.”
“It sounds to me like you do.” Her eyes were soft with compassion, but her tone was firm. “You just told me that this wealthy man wants to give you a job. Why on earth would you turn that down and come here, begging to Marco?”
I rolled my eyes. “Oh, that. I’m not even sure he was serious when he offered it to me. And I don’t even want to see him again. He’s so…he’s so frustrating. I mean, really, you should see this guy, walking around like a fucking king or something. I can’t work for someone like that.”
