by Summer Rose
I turned around; saw all that money in the air, I went crazy! I was all over the stage, running after every dollar I saw in the air. They looked like leaves waving in the wind, only drunk, dirty old men were holding them.
When my song was over, I picked up the rest of the money that the guys had thrown on the stage and ran backstage to the dressing room.
“I did it, I did it!” I shrieked when I returned to the dressing room to Cookie, who was waiting for me backstage.
“Yes, girl you looked really good out there. How did you do?”
“Fine, I guess.” I said while looking down at all the dollar bills, I had in my hand and bottoms.
By the time I’d counted the money from my first stage set, I had over one hundred and twenty dollars. That was it, I was no longer nervous at all. It was on and I knew I made the right decision.
At least I thought I did.
“You did really well” she winked, “but you need to learn how to dance sexier and less clubby.”
“Clubby!” I snapped. “I thought you said I did well!”
“You did” Cookie explained. “I just mean that you looked like you were dancing on the dance floor at Celebrities.
Celebrities, was a mixed nightclub for the 18 and up crowd. You weren’t anybody if you weren’t at this club. Everybody who was anybody partied every weekend at Celebrities.
“Really?” I asked with my feelings somewhat hurt.
“Yes, and you don’t have to clap either.” She said laughing.
“I just got into the groove girl and started clapping, too!” I giggled.
We both fell over each other laughing! “NOOOO, girl, some of these bitches started laughing at you out there, but don’t worry about them. I got your back and I’ll show you the ropes around here,” she promised.
I was grateful that I had a mentor and felt I was safe.
“Just follow the rules,” she warned.
“What rules?” I asked. “I wasn’t aware of any rules.”
“Just listen to me, I’ll teach you, trust me.”
Lesson #1
“Don’t trust any of these bitches; they are not your friends.”
The hours passed and dancing got easier and easier, especially after a few drinks. My nervousness turned to poise and I was in full swing. The club was about to close so James came over to me and told me to get dressed and come to his office.
I got dressed in a hurry, not knowing what was about to happen next. I thanked Cookie and told her that James wanted to see me.
“I’ll wait for you, so come back to the dressing room before you leave, ok?”
“Ok, give me a few minutes.”
I had never been to James’ office so I had to walk around and look for it. I finally found it after walking around in circles. It was hidden on one side of the club, behind a two-way mirror.
I figured it was to watch the men to make sure they didn’t get out of hand with the girls. I later found out it was used to make sure the girls didn’t get out of control too.
They also used it to see people coming in and out. They needed to make sure everybody paid to get in, and that the doorman wasn’t pocketing money. I learned very fast that everybody were hustlers!
I lightly tapped on the door of James’ office. “James?”
“Come on!”
“You wanted to see me?” I walked in and sat in the chair by his desk.
“Yes, I wanted to tell you that I thought you were great and I need to know what days you wanted to work.”
“How many days am I required to work?” I asked. No longer worried about what he wanted.
“Well you have to work at least three days a week, but you can work more if you want”, he offered.
“I can work Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, if that’s okay?”
“That’s cool. You looked really good up there, you’ll do well here.”
“Thanks James, I’ll see you in a couple of days.”
“Bye Luscious,” he winked.
“Bye James. I have to get used to my ‘new’ name.” I laughed.
I was on my way back to the dressing room when one of the other girls pulled me by my arm and whispered in my ear.
“Watch your back with Cookie. She’s not as nice as she seems.”
“Ok. Why are you talking to me now?”
“She’s trouble. Trust me,” she warned.
I started to walk away, “Whatever!”
“Excuse me?”
I turned around. “You haven’t said anything to me all night.”
“That’s because, I never got a chance to.”
She moved closer to me as if she didn’t want anyone else to hear what she was saying.
“The new girls get all the attention. Besides, Cookie was always in your face when I wanted to talk to you.”
Warming up a bit, I smiled.
“Oh, well I’ll keep what you said in mind. Thanks for the warning.”
She extended her hand and winked. “No problem. My name is Pretty by the way.”
“I’m... Lusc-” I started to say.
“Luscious, yes I know who you are. You have been the talk around here all night. The men love you, and now I see why,” she said slyly.
“Thanks,” I smiled.
“You’re welcome, when do you work next?” she asked, looking at me as if I was a mirror.
“Ummm, Tuesday, how about you?”
“I’ll be here Tuesday. See you then,” she waved. “Ok, thanks, for everything.”
“No problem, see ya Ms. Luscious.”
She walked away slowly, then turned and waved at me again. I couldn’t help watching her walk away.
I was beginning to like being called Luscious. When Pretty called me ‘Ms. Luscious’, I knew it was officially the right name for me. I was glad Cookie thought of that name.
Cookie had been cool. She helped me to find myself in a sexier mode and bring it out.
She told me to dance as if I were fucking, to move slowly, shake my ass as much as possible, and switch my ass from left to right.
“You want to keep a man looking even when you’re walking away,” she told me. “That way, his
mind stays on you and he will spend more money on you.”
I wondered why Pretty would say those things about her.
Probably just jealous.
I thought Cookie was very helpful and sweet. I felt she took me under her wing and showed me the way.
So I thought.
“Hey girl, I’m back, what’s up?” I asked peeking around the corner.
“What did Pretty want with you?” she asked. “Do you know her?” She had a puzzled look on her face.
“No, I just met her. She wanted to tell me I did well tonight.” I lied.
“Oh, watch out for that one” Cookie warned. “I’ll tell you about her later, but what are you doing tonight?”
“I don’t know, I haven’t thought about much since I walked into this club.”
“Do you want to hang out and celebrate your first night?”
“Ok.” I accepted feeling obligated since she gave me so much advice.
“Cool, let’s go. Did you make your payout to the DJ yet?”
“No, James didn’t tell me anything about a payout.”
“The club gets ten percent of what you make. I never give ten percent, just tip him.”
“How much?” I asked in confusion. “How much did you make?”
“I made $350.”
“Damn girl, that’s good for your first night!” Tip his ass thirty dollars, that’s close enough. They don’t question how much you make. Once you get some regulars, you will make more and then tip a little more.”
“Ok, thanks again girl.” I gave her thirty to give to the DJ for me.
“Let’s blow this joint,” she growled. “I couldn’t wait to get out of here tonight, I didn’t do so hot. Let’s party though.”
“Let’s go!” I happily obliged. After making good money, I
was game for damn near anything.
I was feeling good and looking better even though I was a little tired after working in heels those few hours.
Cookie knew of an after-hour spot where we could party. We took her car and I left mine at the club.
“Girl, I’m ready to get loose tonight,” Cookie sang.
“Me, too! I haven’t been out in a long time. I didn’t have the money until now.” I admitted.
“Well, stick with me and I’ll keep your pretty-ass paid!”
Once again, I was dumb-founded and wondering what she meant… replaying what she said in my mind.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. “You look like you’re deep in thought.”
“I was just wondering what you meant by keeping me paid. How are you gonna keep me paid?
“We’ll talk about that later. I told you, I got your back! I’ll take care of you.”
At that moment, she pulled a cigar out of her purse.
“You smoke?” she asked.
She licked it up and down like a professional, and then lit it.
“No, I don’t use any drugs, nor do I knock anybody for what they do.”
“Girl, I need this before and after I go to work at that place. It’s the only thing that keeps me from going off on some of these hoes and some of these sorry ass men, too!”
She finished getting her buzz and we went inside. First thing Cookie did was go straight to the bar.
The little hole in the wall club she took me too was crowded, but the music was poppin’.
The men were dressed like pimps in their colorful silk suits, Kango caps, granddaddy hats, and Stacy Adams shoes.
The women were just as bad in their tight mini dresses with boots, and jeans so tight they could get a yeast infection. It seemed like every woman in there had her hair in a French roll or a head full of bad weaves. I thought I was in another world for a minute.
The club was straight ghetto and the DJ played a mixture of old school and rap! People were dancing and jumping around like fools.
“What do you want to drink?” Cookie asked. “Girl, order something strong for me! I need something to help me get through this.”
Cookie called out to the bartender. “It ain’t all that, but it’s better than nothing. I only come here to get my drink on and laugh at people.”
“I can definitely see why.”
We sat at the bar for the next hour or so, talking about people and laughing at them. We laughed at how some men really thought they had game. The women either fell for the game, or dissed them. Either way, it was funny.
We had a good time, and finally decided to call it a night around 4am.
Cookie took me back to my car. We exchanged phone numbers and planned to have dinner together before our next shift.
“See you Tuesday,” she said as she sped off in her Camaro.
Chapter 3
Welcome to the Real World
Buzzzz!!! The alarm clock screeched in my ear like a siren on a fire truck. “Fuck! It’s 7:00 already?” I yelled, trying to find the snooze button.
Feels like I just laid down.
The hours showed no mercy on me, I made it home around 4:45am, took a shower, and got in the bed. The night before was enough to make me sleep for days.
The alarm sounded again and my head pounded even harder from all the rum and coke I had consumed at the clubs.
I tried to force myself out of the bed to get ready for school. I was taking up Cosmetology at a private institution that took up eight hours of my day Monday – Saturday.
A 1500-hour course which was completed by the hour. I figured if I did 48 hours a week, every week, that I would graduate in around a year.
“Damn, I’m tired!” I rolled out of bed and went to the bathroom to do the three S’s.
I looked in the mirror at myself and frowned at my reflection. My eyes were puffy; they were bloodshot from lack of sleep and partying all night.
I still had on the wristband from the ghetto-ass club Cookie took me to the night before, because I couldn’t get it off!
Why do they make these damn things so hard to get off?
Already I could see this was going to be a bad day for me.
I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and pulled my hair into a ponytail. I didn’t have enough time to take another shower. After all, I just took one two and a half hours ago.
I looked around for some aspirin to relieve my headache, but had no luck. My day was getting worse by the minute and my mood with it.
Nobody better piss me off today, I know that!
I ran to my room and pulled on some white scrubs and a cute little shirt to wear under my scrub top.
“Why can’t we wear our own clothes?” I mumbled while looking for another scrub top. The other one was dirty and smelled like hair dye.
It ain’t like we’re in nursing school!
I grabbed by keys and ran out the door.
I made it to school about 10 minutes late. I ran to the time clock to punch in and get to class.
Before we started in the salon, we had written and practical studies, then timed tests.
I enjoyed both the classroom and salon part of school. However, I didn’t enjoy much of anything when I was tired and not feeling well.
“Hey girl, what’s up?” Leah said. “Why are you so late? That’s not like you.”
Leah never missed days either, so she would know if I was late or absent.
“Not feeling so well today, that’s all. You have any aspirin or something for a headache?”
“I have some ibuprofen; I take them when I’m on my period for cram…”
I interrupted her, “T-M-I, Leah, t-m-i! Why the hell are you so bubbly this morning?”
“Cause got some good dick last night!” she sang.
“Eeewww!” I frowned. “Once again, T-M-I!”
“You need to get you some and you wouldn’t have that headache,” she teased.
Rolling my eyes, “Oh, you got jokes, huh?”
“No, I’m serious girl. What are you waiting for?” she frowned.
“The right person.” I mumbled. “I’ll see you at lunch, ok?”
“Okkaaaaay girl,” she sang as she skipped away like a kid in a candy store.
Leah was a cool white girl I met when I started school and we somewhat just hit it off. She was petite and very pretty with freckles, tanned-skin, and highlights of different colors; blonde, light brown and strawberry red. She definitely took advantage of the free services that were offered at the school. We got free services as long as one of the other students performed them.
She had started a few months after I did and knew she wanted a career as a hairstylist. She wanted us to go into business together and open a salon.
I was glad to have someone at school that I could hang out with to get me through the day. We had the same personality pretty much; the same likes and dislikes. The things we didn’t have in common, we just agreed to disagree. She was a good school friend and I felt I could trust her.
I struggled to finished class, falling in and out of sleep. Finally, around noon I clocked out for lunch and decided to hook up with Leah.
“What do you want to eat, Leah?”
Still singing, “Something as good as I feel!”
“Are you gonna be this damn cheery all day?” I snapped.
“Yesss!”
“He must have a big dick or a long tongue,” I commented.
“A big dick indeed,” she confessed. “No tongue action, though.”
“What? No tongue? What’s the point?” I argued. I couldn’t believe what I just heard.
“You mean he don’t go down town?” I asked with raised brows.
“Un-uhh, never!” she hissed. “He does everything, but that.”
“What more is there? What a waste, with his selfish ass!”
Leah agreed, “I know, but what’s a girl to do?”
I cocked my head to the side, “Uh, kick his selfish ass to the c
urb!”
She gazed up at the ceiling then at me. “If only it were that easy.”
“That’s why I’m single. I don’t have time to deal with men. Too much drama, and not enough sex!”
“I know, but his ass is fine,” She admitted.
“Well, enjoy his fine ass while you can girlfriend,” I hissed.
We finished our lunch and headed back to school to get ready for our clients. The practical part of Cosmetology school was on the floor, working on actual customers.
We were doing perms, relaxers, blow-drying, roller setting, highlights, dyeing and just about everything that goes on in an actual salon, including the gossip.
The only difference in a real salon and school is that we weren’t being paid. The school was making money off us in various ways; tuition, services, and supplies.
Another difference is that no one could call the State Board of Cosmetology and complaint on another student stylist.
Hater move, you B-otch!
That is a low move, I’ve seen it done to other stylists and thought it was pure evil to try to mess something up for someone else.
Haters!
Later after lunch, I finished my last client, cleaned my area, and ran to the time clock to punch out and get the hell out of there.
“See you tomorrow, Leah.” I waved.
“Okay girl, be careful, and get laid!” she said teasing.
“Yeah, right! That’s gonna happen,” I smirked. “Bye girl.”
Leah’s happy ass got me to thinking on my way home. It would be nice to have someone in my life. I would like to be in a relationship where we could be ourselves. We both must have love, respect, trust, and friendship - first. Then everything else would naturally fall in place.
In a perfect world, you can have that, but in the real world, you get one or two of those things and the rest is crap.
You get either a jealous psychotic freak who acts a fool in public and embarrass you, or a nutcase that randomly flips out for no reason and hits you. They blame you for it, apologize, and swear not to ever do it again, ten times later.
I haven’t even thought of being in a relationship until I saw how happy Leah seemed to be.
She was glowing and feeling like she had the world in the palm of her hand. I wanted to glow and have that feeling too.
