FicWad

I walked ashamedly into the burlesque club. It was called 'The Underworld', the name fitted as it looked like the vision of hell to me. The light from the outside world fading away as I closed the door behind me, just like my hope was fading away, the thick aroma of smoke and cheap perfume wafting around the room.

I glanced to the stage and saw two girls dancing away their dignity I sighed and tried to accept the fact that I would soon be up there with them. I shuffled towards the bar looking for the owner of the club, I had heard his name was Damian.

“Can I help you darling?” I man with black hair with blue highlights said as he approached me from behind the bar. His eyes seemed too big for his head and his nose was bony and thin yet it stuck out largely.

“Yes I’m looking for the owner of this place, is he around?” I asked him, raising my voice enough to be heard over the obnoxious repetitive music that was playing loudly in the background.

“That depends on who’s looking” He answered, moving behind the bar collecting glasses on his way past me.

I looked around the place before I said anything; I was in fear that someone I knew would be here and would find out about my link with this bar. Once I saw that the club was vacant of familiar faces I announced my name to him. “The name’s Meg!”

“Okay…Meg. What do you want from me?” He said finally stopping before me holding my gaze, his piecing blue eyes held a mystery yet coldness within them; he was certainly intimidating.

“I didn’t know you were…” I started but before I could explain anything else he cut me off.

“Of course you didn’t know, just like you don’t know what you’re doing and just like I don’t know why you are wasting my time. Now answer me, what do you want from me?”

“I’d like a loan” I said quickly, I didn’t dare hesitate.

“What you just thought you could get a loan from me like that?” He paused clearly waiting for an answer, I could only nod, fearing that if I opened my mouth again I would say something stupid. “Alright then…what am I going to get out of this? Hmm?” he asked, tilting his head to one side in curiosity.

“I heard you needed a new show girl, I was thinking that if you give me the money I would work for free until the loan was paid” I said perfectly, reciting what I had practised in front of the mirror for this.

He thought for a moment, his cold eyes focusing off somewhere into the distance, after a quick moment he nodded. “Alright, alright. I can see the benefits. Now get to work!” He shouted at me. I stood in shock at his response like a deer in the headlights. “What are you waiting for love? Get going!”

“But what do I-?” I asked in confusion, surely he wouldn’t put me on stage right now. I didn’t even have a costume or knew any of the moves.

“Hear take this” He said as he removed his apron and threw it at me. “I’m bored of working the bar” He jumped over the bar and pushed past me as if I were a ghost, not even there. I stared at the stained apron in my hands, I had done it. I had got the job.

“I’ll give you the money at the end of the day if you’re a good worker but to be a good worker you must work...so get to it missy!” He shouted from behind me.

I jumped into action and over the bar; there were no customers at the moment so I decided to clean off any spilt drinks from it.

After I had finished cleaning the bar and turning all the bottles to the labels faced forward. There was nothing to do. I stood at the bar watching the girls routines trying to imitate some of their easier moves.

My concentration on them had been so focused that I didn’t see that two men had come into the club.

“Hey Ray, look they’ve got show girls on stage and behind the bar!” The man said loudly as he giggled continuously at his own joke, the other man chuckled along with him as I stopped moving due to pure embarrassment.

“When did you start working here then?” The other man asked from behind me. I slowly turned to answer them, one had short black hair and lots of tattoos covering his arms and parts of his neck and the other had wild curly hair.

“Just a few hours ago” I muttered to them.

“So do you work here by choice or were you forced?” The man with black hair questioned. I gave him an odd look before I answered, how did he know? Did the look of forced to work radiate off me or something?

“In way both” I answered honestly. They said nothing but the one with black hair gestured his hand for me to continue. “I have to work here for free until I pay off the loan Damian is giving me, it’s my first day.” I explained in a monotone voice to them.

Saying it out loud made me realise how true it was. I was basically selling my soul to the lord of the underworld. He could make me do anything he wanted to. I belong to him. He owned me. I was so focused on the thought that my concentration on the glass I was cleaning was lost.

The next thing I heard was the loud noise of the glass hitting the floor and splintering into a million pieces.

“That’s coming out your pay check” Damian said, popping his head from the back door.

“But I don’t get a pay check?” I asked, confused by his comment.

He tilted his head to the side a little and smirked widely. “Well I guess you’ll just have to do me some favours to make it up” He said smugly while laughing as he wondered back through the door.

“Wow favours on the first day? You’re off to a good start” The man with the curly hair said sarcastically while elbowing the black haired man.

“Yeah, I know right?” I answer glumly but then it hit me, I had been speaking to these men for at least five minutes and hadn’t even taken their order. They were right I wasn’t off to a good start.

“So guys, what’ll be?” I asked, trying to sound upbeat and cheerful. They looked at me dumbfounded for a moment before the start to laugh hysterically. “What?!” I shouted over their annoying laughter.

“No need to take our order” He stated simply but before I could question why they were already half way into the bar.

“We work here. We’re the other barmen” The curly haired one said.

“Oh” I said simply, feeling foolish at my previous actions.

“I’m Frank and this is Ray.” The black haired man explained while point to the other man named Ray. Ray smiled and waved from behind Frank and I smiled back.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Meg” I replied while shaking their hands.

******

It had been a first day at work, later on it had gotten busy and if it wasn’t good enough that the men who came in were allowed to heckle the girls on stage they also thought that it was okay to heckle me at the bar. It was hard, having to just go with it and stay silent.

I opened the apartment door and was greeted by empty beer bottles. I looked in disgust at my apartment, it wasn’t always like this, it was just until Eric had moved in that it soon became littered with empty alcohol bottles.

I started the daily job of disposing of them all; I grabbed a bin bag out of the cupboard and worked my way around the house. I soon found Eric, asleep on the bed reeking of alcohol, the smell was becoming milder and milder everyday but it wasn’t due to him drinking less it was me getting used to the stench.

“Honey, get up, I need to tell you something” He groaned and murmured something unresponsive and rolled over so that he was on his back. “I’ve got the money but I have to work there for free” He simply nodded.

I sat on the end of the bed, playing mindlessly with my hands. “Eric? Do you really need the money? Can’t you just get a job or something?” He groaned again before he answered me.

“I told you before, I’d look and there’s nothing out there that inspires me to work” He replied.

“You mean there are no jobs out there you like?” I said getting angry with him now. He smiled and nodded again.

“I have to work at that...that place and you know how I hate dancing! I mean I’ve basically sold myself because you can’t stop drinking? I have to do a job I loathe yet you’re just allowed to sit there and do nothing” I shouted standing up from the bed in outrage at him.

“Honey, it’s for the best. I can’t quit just yet but I will, I promise. Please just forget we had this fight and come to bed. I’ll make it up to, trust me” He answered in a suggestive voice.

As much as I was outraged by his attitude to work and alcohol I did love him. He had always been good to me and this was a way of repaying him in a way. I took of my jacket and went to lie down on the bed with him, hoping that he would quit his addiction to alcohol soon.


So yeah new story, I don't know if I'll continue it. It's just an idea but please tell what you think and if I should continue with it please.
Thank you.
-E