AllFreeNovel
Share Us
BEAU
It was Thursday night, and I was back working at Bernie’s or Whispers, as was its real name. I’d had a couple of nights off this week, and I’d spent my days tidying the flat and trying to find as much of Megan’s stash as I could. Not that it’d done any good. The day after I’d found her passed out on the sofa, she’d got up, showered, grabbed some toast and coffee and walked out without an apology or ‘kiss my arse’.
Sister or not, responsible or not, I was about to lose my patience with the ungrateful brat. I’d done everything for her. Dropped out of uni, worked meaningless job after meaningless job and for what? So she could go out, probably sell herself with Kevin as her pimp and shoot up with God knows what. I was close to being done with her, but as soon as I started with these thoughts, that guilt weighed heavy in my heart, and I knew deep in my bones that I would never abandon her, never give up on her.
Tonight, though, Bernie had told us we had a band playing. Not quite K-pop as they were from Manchester, but along those lines. I had no idea why he’d booked a band like that. It wasn’t like our customers liked the genre. They were more into dance or R&B, usually something with a heavy beat.
K-pop in this club? Both me and Kenny had a good laugh about that. But it turned out their manager, Saul, was a friend of Bernie’s, which was why they were playing here.
The club was filling nicely, though, and we were both busy behind the bar, the customers two and three deep, waiting to be served. It seemed mention of a live band had drawn the crowds in even if they might not be a good fit with the vibe of the club.
There was no stage, so the wooden dance floor had been cleared, the audience gathering around the edge, held back by chrome and waist-high panels in darkened glass. The DJ was already there, playing a mix of sounds to get the crowd worked up, and was doing a fucking good job too.
At eleven, Bernie stepped into the middle of the floor. Just seeing him there sent shivers down my spine and a churning in my stomach. I’d managed to avoid him the past few nights I’d worked, though I wasn’t sure if it was me or him doing the avoiding after our last encounter. He’d not visited the bar, and each night, Kenny had taken the money through to him, leaving me to go home to an empty flat.
“So, tonight, we have a special treat for you. This is a group that’s come all the way from Manchester to play here. They’re new, so let’s give a big Whispers’ welcome to Kings.”
The club quieted, and all eyes turned to the stage as a bubble-gum song played out over the speakers. This was gonna be a pile of shit. I just knew it. Kenny looked at me, trying to hold back his laughter, me doing the same.
Four guys walked nervously to the centre of the dancefloor, glancing around as if seeking out the assurance of the others, but the fifth member strutted to his position. He was short with bleached blond hair and an arrogant smirk on his face. This was going to be good.
As the opening bars of their first track played, the others moved into position and started their routine, and my eyes were drawn to the tallest of the group, a blue-haired guy with the smoothest, clearest skin I’d ever seen. I was mesmerised, watching his every move. He moved with a fluidity I’d not seen before in anyone, his long limbs and fingers accentuating each move. I wasn’t one for words usually, but he was poetry in motion. In between serving customers, I watched him. I’d never been so attracted to anyone before and certainly not to someone so good-looking.
The more I watched, the more confident he became with his dancing, never missing a beat. He’d often look at his bandmates, smiling encouragingly as they moved. He had the most brilliant smile when he did, and I was finding it hard to tear my eyes away from him.
They went from song to song, and the crowd got more into it, dancing along with them. Some of the audience sang too, making me think they had a following. After about an hour, the music ended, and a huge round of applause erupted from the crowd. Each of the group members took a bow before walking off the makeshift stage, massive smiles on their faces. They’d been more successful than we’d thought, and Kenny looked over at me, eyebrows raised.
“They were fucking good,” he shouted above the noise.
“I know. Surprising, huh?” I said, pouring out a round of shots, smiling again at the older woman that had been flirting with me.
“I’ve been following them for months,” she said. “We travel the country after them. Little blond Kasem is my favourite, closely followed by Kwanchai, with the blue hair, and Cho, the one with the purple hair.”
I looked in amazement at her comments. “Are they a popular group then? I’ve never heard of them.”
“Oh, well, not that popular, I don’t think, but we’ve travelled from Manchester to see them. We’re their ‘Subjects’.” She must have seen the puzzled look on my face and carried on. “The group is the Kings, and we’re their Subjects. Do you get it?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I get it.” Sounded a bit over the top to me, but who was I to comment?
She winked at me, a cheeky smile on her face, before taking her drinks and disappearing into the crowd.
Now the live show was finished, Kenny and I were rushed off our feet, serving drink after drink until, slowly, the queue at the bar thinned. Neither of us noticed Bernie come up behind the bar until I felt a sharp slap to my arse.
“Well, that’s put me in a good mood. Maybe you can bring the takings tonight, young Beau. It’s been a while, and I’ve missed you.” He whispered the last part of his sentence into my ear, his warm breath ghosting across my neck.
I felt sick.
I couldn’t do this, couldn’t go back there again to his office. With Megan out of the picture, he had no hold over me, none whatsoever, and I was about to say no, to finally stand up for myself, when his next words shook me to my core.
“Don’t even consider saying no to me, Beau. I just might have footage of your sister not only dealing drugs but prostituting herself. I’m sure she’d go down for quite some time if the police happened to get hold of that footage. Or maybe, I might like to sample the other sibling. From what I’ve seen of her, I’d bet she’s a real good fuck.”
I pushed him away from me, dropping the glass I’d been holding, the pint of beer spilling across the floor.
“That was a little clumsy of you, and I think maybe I’ll deduct that from your wages this week. But don’t forget about later, Beau. I’ll be waiting.”
As I bent down to clear up the glass, his words rang out across the bar and I was mortified beyond belief.
“Look at that, ladies and gents. He knows his place, on his knees in front of me.”
