Today was supposed to be a normal start to a normal day at work— at least, as
“normal” as anything could be when one’s job is stripping, which, mine happens to be. But nothing was turning out to be normal at all.
The music wasn’t on, and the doors to the club were closed. My friend Lindsey and I both tried calling the owner. A few of the other dancers and bartenders showed up, scratching their heads as well.
“He isn’t answering my calls. Any luck, Lindsey?” I asked, smoothing my hand down the rusted door to the bar.
The alley way began to darken with the sky. The only thing that usually kept this area lit were the lights from the bar when it was open, which it was supposed to be now, but clearly wasn’t.
“No. I’ve been trying to call his ass for the last ten minutes!” Lindsey hissed, staring at her phone as if it could give her a magical answer.
I rubbed my chin and glanced up at the sign that would originally be lit up, letting everyone know Bar Seven was open for business.
Frowning, I sighed and looked at my phone. “Yeah, we were supposed to be open twenty minutes ago.”
Now there were customers beginning to wobble down the alley, expecting a fun time. They looked just as puzzled as we were to find out the bar wasn’t open.
“Yo, what’s happening? Ya’ll not open?” A guy asked, his girl for the night hanging off of him.
Just then, Lindsey’s phone rang. “Shit, it’s him!” she took the call and jutted out her hips to the side. “Hey. What’s going on?! Are you alright? As you probably know, we’re due to start our shifts now, and customers are waiting for the bar to open,” she huffed. “What do you mean closed? It’s a weekday. What? For good? Mr. Grant, that can’t— oh shit,” Lindsey took her phone off her ear and stared at it in the palm of her hand.
More people gathered by the door.
“Lindsey, what’s going on?” I asked her, to break her from that listless gaze.
“We’re all out of a job…” she whispered.
I grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her, so she could look me in the eye and say that again. I needed confirmation.
“What? Lindsey!”
As if finally snapping out of it, Lindsey turned back to the spunky, take charge girl I knew and loved. She walked away from me and over to the small crowd of dancers and bartenders as well as the loyal, early bird customers, all of whom had gathered to wait for some news.
“I’m sorry everyone, but Bar Seven is closed… permanently. I just got the news. I’m sure there are some other spots to go to, but, right now, I’m sorry to say I’m quite shocked to have learned of this information and I have no suggestions.”
Holy shit, she was telling the truth. I had bills that needed to be paid— the most important one being rent— and they were all due within a week. And my one way to pay them was over. I’d worked my way up to dancing at Bar Seven— that sounds like a fake brag but it was the best club in town and only accepted girls with both the looks and the experience to qualify as entertaining enough for the customers— and, quite frankly, I’d burned my bridges with clubs I’d left for greener pastures. There’s a strange loyalty system where club owners essentially say, “Don’t let the door hit you on your way out” if you leave.
I had wanted to get out of the business for a while now, before the decision was made for me— the girls who danced at Seven Bar were also usually quite young— but there was the little problem of money. Stripping wasn’t really my scene but in this economy it was the one surefire way to win money.
Still, although people always laughed at me when they found out— causing me to stop telling anyone— I was a virgin. I had some traditional notions of wanting marriage and kids one day down the line. And I wasn’t fooling myself that being an exotic dancer was the best way to go about accomplishing those life goals.
I was working my way through school, albeit slowly, since stripping at night didn’t give me much time for studying. At least I had some end goal eventually in mind, though. Exotic dancing was supposed to be just a temporary stepping stone on my path to bigger and better things in life. But the money was secure and I didn’t seem to have any better prospects so I’d gotten stuck on that same damn stone for probably far too long.
My good friend Willow had come and gone from a previous club I’d worked for, and she always told me there really were other opportunities out there that I should explore. But that was easy enough for her to say, when her next great opportunity had literally run right into her life in the form of a rich, handsome customer who needed a nanny. Then he’d needed some sex from the nanny. Then he’d been unable to keep his hands off the nanny, and now they’re married, so, that was that.
Meanwhile, no billionaire knight in shining armor had shown up to rescue me or pay my bills, so off to work at Seven Bar I’d continued to go nearly every night. Until tonight, which turned out to be my last night ever working here, like it or not. I guess it was time to make some decisions about my future, whether I felt ready to make them or not.