by Layla Arts
“Well,” I huffed irritably. “You know that the Empire had an audition day two days ago?” He nodded his head. “I told myself to do an audition, so I did. That same evening, I got a call from the boss himself, demanding me to come at three pm to the club yesterday. Then everything went by fast. Let's just say, he is an asshole and is manipulating me.” I explained.
Kent’s brows rose altogether, perplexed by my short summary. “How?”
I scratched the back of my neck. “No one informed me about the performance we needed to set-up for this morning. So I was standing there with no clue, and I needed to dance within thirty minutes.” I sighed frustratingly. “Thank God, I performed really well, but he wanted to get into my pants when I was walking around. I pushed him away, obviously, but he didn’t understand things don’t work like that. He said I was going to regret it, and he made me an understudy.” I spat out bitterly.
“Holy shit.”
“I know, right?!”
“I knew Hadrian Smith was a dick, but this makes everything more understandable why he is, in fact, still a dick.” I laughed at Kent's words.
As I got behind the counter, I purchased a milkshake from my own money. I was craving for something sweet, and this was all I could get right now.
“I bet he is different with more important people around him,” I said.
“Of course, because he is a businessman. He should act decently toward you. You can report this to the police station because he almost forced you into… you know.” Kent informed me seriously. But was it even a smart idea to go to the police station and tell them Hadrian Smith tried to touch me against my will? He was known for his attraction towards women, so I already knew this wasn’t going to work out.
“He would buy his way out of it by giving them money.”
I drank the milkshake that I had made myself. Kent sat on the counter, and I saw other employees helping the last customers. I glanced over my shoulder at the clock, and it was still a long time until I could finally take a bath and sleep afterward. I was exhausted by everything today - so many mind games that I could hardly play along.
“You really need to make it clear to this dude that he cannot use your body whenever he wants it.” I locked eyes with Kent again, and I saw him being solely serious about this. I was ignoring everything, but his words. “He has no right to treat you like that, Vicks” He started to tell me. I nodded my head in agreement. It was my body, not his.
“I just don't think he will accept that so easily,” I mumbled solemnly.
“He needs to.” Kent fired back seriously. “Just call me whenever he is an arse, and I will come around immediately.”
Kent shoved a piece of paper towards me, and his number was written on it. I thanked him. It didn't matter if this was a small gesture, but I was becoming more hopeful about my days at the Empire. I admired Kent for his support and honesty. He didn't try to sugar-coat everything that happened, and he didn't tell me I should be a doll and do whatever Hadrian asked for. He told me just to stand my ground, and make him clear my body wasn't on the market.
***
I was delighted when I got home. I filled the bath and stepped carefully into the warm water. I saw the steam of the heat filling the bathroom. I had thrown flower pads into the bath. This was the time I had longed for. I rested with my head against the bath. My naked body was taking a break in the water. I sometimes traced my hands slowly over my bare body. My breathing was calming everything around me – I deserved this bath after my hard work.
I was thinking about how I would feel if I quit at the café. To me, that job wasn’t for forever. But the people who worked at the café seemed to care enormously for me. I opened my eyes and stared at the blank ceiling.
I was still laying in the warm water.
I didn’t want to make a terrible decision by leaving the café and work for Hadrian Smith only. The Empire was a marvelous place, and I always dreamt of being there. Nonetheless, I couldn’t see myself being pushed, commanded, and viewed as an object.
In one moment, I went under water. I held my breath and opened my eyes in the water. I saw the flower pads moving over the liquid gradually. I couldn't hold my breath much longer under water, so I got up. As I inhaled air, my chest started to rise and fall repeatedly.
I had brought a mug of tea to the bathroom – apple-cinnamon flavored. I blew on the surface of my drink and drank it carefully.
I wondered what my parents thought of this entire situation. If they knew I was treated badly, they would beg me to come home.
My body stiffened when the doorbell rang.
“I'm coming!” I yelled loudly.
I stepped out of the bath and grabbed a towel I had laid down next to the bath. I cursed under my breath when I walked to the door. I wrapped the fabric around my body. My feet were still a bit wet when I walked to the front door – leaving wet footprints on the carpet. I checked myself in the mirror and went with my hand quickly through my hair. I unlocked my door.
I opened the door partly. “I don't have sugar, Miss B-” My jaw dropped. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
“Good to see you too, Vicky.” Hadrian greeted me.
I closed the door but got stopped by his foot stepping into the small gap. I tried to push it shut, but he was quicker with opening the door and stepping inside. He walked carelessly past me without even asking politely if he could come in – obviously if he had asked me about it, I wouldn’t have gestured him to come in.
“The last time I checked, this was my house.”
He recklessly walked through my apartment. He picked up something occasionally and looked at it specifically. I frowned at his actions, but examined his facial expression. Which was for the second time; unreadable. I followed him through my own house, and was getting irked by the fact he didn't even say a word to me.
“Never heard of cleaning up?” Hadrian asked.
“Never heard of asking someone if you may enter their house?!”
He snickered and walked past me, to another room. I stood behind him, and I was eager to keep my towel around my body. I needed to protect myself before I would be naked. I didn't know why he was coming over randomly to my house – or how he even got the address. I never mentioned to him where I lived, so how was this possible?
“You have had enough of sightseeing, please go away so I can continue taking a bath,” I informed Hadrian angrily. He turned around, and we locked gazes. His mouth curved into a smirk, and I wasn't pleased to see it right now. He stepped closer and narrowed the space between us in a matter of seconds.
“Are you alone in your bath?” He asked me in a soft whisper.
“Yes, because it's a bath for a single person. Goodbye Hadrian.” I stated.
He was glued to the ground, right in front of me. I just took the opportunity to walk away from this man who thought it would be kind to suddenly show up at eleven pm. I did not appreciate his sudden visit, so he better go away as soon as possible.
I squealed when Hadrian tried to pull me back by the hem of the towel. His fingers brushed against my naked butt, and I turned around in panic.
He just touched my body, oh my God.
I walked over to him and kicked him straight in the crotch. He flinched and grabbed his manhood immediately. Hard groans fell from his lips, and I was determined that my neighbor was going to assume I was not taking a bath.
“Why did you touch me?!” I yelled at him furiously.
Hadrian was still bowed down, holding his manhood that seemed famous by the majority of the women in Los Angeles. I could care less about that because as long as he was hurt, he couldn't touch me again. Evidently, he hadn’t seen this coming.
“You fucking kicked me.”
“No shit! Because you touched me.” I remarked. “You’re disgusting!”
Hadrian took a deep breath, and he stood up again. His eyes were shut for a moment, since he kept experiencing the pain I caused. However, it was his problem, not mine.
>
First of all, he had no reason to touch me. Second, he was rude to me.
He held his crotch with one hand, while he stood in front of me. It was quite pleasant to see him holding his temper like this in my house.
“I guess I am not welcome here,” Hadrian spoke.
“Really?” I asked sarcastically, cocking my head to the right.
Hadrian walked to the front door of my apartment. “Be at the Empire at seven am tomorrow. No excuses. You are going to watch the main group with the rest of your fellow understudies.” He knew I hated to hear this news again. He wanted to rub it in my face that I hadn't made it. With one single glance, he disappeared out of my sight.
I walked over to the door and pressed my hand against it. I locked it while my heart was beating exceedingly fast. I pressed my back against the door and shut my eyes. I repeated what just happened in my mind and couldn’t help but feel insanely disturbed by his sudden presence. I stared down at the towel which was wrapped around my body. I didn’t want to stay awake any longer and decided to head to bed.
“Fucking Hadrian.” I cursed irritably.
***
My alarm went off repeatedly. I slammed it away from my nightstand. I was not even in the mood to get my ass out of bed and see the main group perform in front of me. He was doing this on purpose so that I could suffer in that wooden chair while I watch them. I couldn’t understand why Hadrian kept being vile to me. Why didn’t he let it go so that we both could continue with our work?
After a while, I got out of bed and did my regular routine. I was not going to impress Hadrian after what happened last night. I got a pair of black leggings out of the closet with a long t-shirt. My eyes were swollen because of the lack of sleep I got. I put on some make-up and made myself breakfast.
I opened the car and got inside. During the drive towards the club, I ate my cereal. It didn’t take too long before I made it. I was slightly hoping the Empire was closed today. However, I wasn't so lucky after all. More cars were parked outside on the lot, and I placed my Mini-Cooper next to a pick-up truck.
When I went inside the club, I already heard a female voice yell and music blasting through the stereo. When I approached the dancers, I saw that they were mainly covered in sweat and I assumed they had been practicing for at least an hour. All the other understudies were gathered in front of the stage, and I wondered whether they felt equally annoyed by Hadrian doing this.
“Daisy kick your leg higher!” She yelled at the innocent girl. Daisy was dancing on stage, and she looked overworked.
I flinched at the attitude the woman had. Daisy tried her best while she was already dancing for hours. She nodded and tried again, again, and again – until that the devil herself was finally satisfied.
“Stop it!” She yelled bitterly “Have a break for ten minutes, you all need it,” she announced and walked away from the dancers.
I heard loud sighs coming from the stage. I placed my bag on the same table I had claimed yesterday and saw Red stumbling off the stage. I called her over, and she came towards me. I gave her a quick hug. I think I can finally consider her as a friend from the Empire. She tucked her hair behind her ears and brought a bottle of water towards her mouth.
“I still don't understand why you aren't in the main group.” Red suddenly spoke. She wiped her forehead with a towel she brought along. “I mean, your performance yesterday was so freaking good,” she said through sips. “Hadrian Smith has no eye for talent. Anyways, you should have taken Daisy's spot on the team. She is pretty much failing and is getting tons of shitty remarks from the coach.”
“If Daisy is placed in the main group, he surely has a good reason for it,” I stated.
“We should be dancing together, Vicky. You should go ask him for a spot in the main group.” She encouraged me.
“And then let my shorts get ripped down again, no thank you,” I spoke. But at the same time, I smacked my hand against my mouth. I did not fucking say that to Red. I did, and I saw Red's eyes widen. “Not that it has happened. See it as something that could happen. Hypothetically speaking.” I tried to convince her. But it was obvious, Red wasn't buying this.
“You're going to tell me everything after my next break.”
I already buried my head in my hands. It was better if I was going to be honest with Red. She was a nice girl and helped me a lot. Most people who wanted to have a spot in the main group didn’t even tell me that we had a performance to make thirty minutes before show-time.
“Care if I join you?” I felt someone’s breathe against my left ear.
“Yes,” I said.
I knew it was him, I didn't need to turn around to see that awful smirk. “How are your balls doing?” I asked him playfully while he did take a seat next to me. I heard him place a glass filled with alcohol on the table – I smelled the strong whiskey from a small distance, disgusted that he drank this at this time of the day.
“I notice that you're interested in my balls, Miss West.”
“Don't assume things too quickly, Mr. Smith.”
Hadrian leaned in closer to me, and he was a few inches away from my ear. Why wasn't someone seeing this happening in the corner of the room? Because it wasn't my lucky day at all. I felt his breath on my face, and it smelled like the whiskey from the glass.
“You could check them if you want to,” Hadrian told me.
“I am not going to have this conversation with you right here.”
A pained expression weighted on Hadrian’s face.
“Besides that, no, I won't look at your useless pair of balls.” I spat out. He leaned back in the chair and scanned me out.
“Were you touching yourself yesterday in the bath?” He questioned me seriously. A hint of lust in his voice.
This was it. I was done. I grabbed my belongings and stood up. I walked away from this man – God, he deserved to get punched on his face and kicked on his balls, again.
What was his problem? Why did he want to be intimate when we were together? I didn't know where I was going, but not even near him soon – Therefore, I walked away furiously.
“Don't walk away from me.” Hadrian yanked me back against his body. Fortunately, I could easily get out of his grip.
“What do you want?!” I asked him with disgust.
I didn't want to be here any longer with him, so we better solve this problem quick.
“You,” Hadrian told me.
His words forced my smile to fade.
This time, I didn’t see this familiar smirk plastered on his face. He was staring into my eyes and I into his. He gazed at me earnestly – He didn’t seem to joke around. He meant all of this. He wanted me – he just simply wanted me.
“And I want a spot in the main group,” I said. “That means we both have a thing in common.”
“What then?”
“We both want things we can't have,” I said and pushed myself away from him.
“I can get you into the main group, Vicky,” Hadrian said in a rush.
I stopped walking, turned around and raised an eyebrow at him. This time, there was a distance between us. His shirt was unbuttoned, and he stood there with his hands in the pockets of his trousers. I adjusted the bag over my shoulder, and spoke, “How?”
“Give yourself to me for one time. That is the only thing I ask.” Hadrian begged me.
There was no hint of shame in his tone. He wanted me to give in and get myself used by him.
“You're mentally ill,” I declared. “I'm not going to fuck you so that I could get into the main group. I am here to dance, not to fuck around with my boss. And if you won’t accept that, then just –” I didn’t want to say the words aloud, but to me, it was the only way out. “Then just fire me. I don't have any other talents I can use, since I’m clearly not worthy of being anything else than an understudy.”
I pulled the back door open and left him standing there in the hallway.
***
I thought that maybe the Empire wo
uld call me to get back, but there was absolutely nothing. I didn't hear a thing from them. It made me think that I was fired and back to business at V's Café, after two days of silence.
I had done already too much today; cleaned the windows, counter, tables, played the smiley waitress, cooked, baked, and brought the trash outside. Personally, it felt as if I was done with working for today. Yet, I still had four hours of work to get through.
Since I didn't work at the Empire anymore, I needed to get more shifts at the café. Veronica, on the other hand, was absolutely thrilled about this.
I will quote her “That means we can get a bond like a mother and a daughter.” Sorry to disappoint you Veronica, but the last time I checked we weren't family, and you would be sooner my grandmother. But I admired her deeply, so I nodded politely.
“You look obsessed with working here, do you have a life besides working at V’s?” I heard Kent say behind me. “ Because I have seen you here continuously. Is Smith turning your life into complete misery?” he inquired while leaning on the counter. I chuckled at his words and walked over to him. I placed the tray on the counter noisily, and Kent flinched.
“I call it more like being fired for the rest of my life,” I said with disappointment.
“Oh, I am sorry, Vicks,” he apologized.
“Don't be, he is an arse. I think it's better like this. I mean, yeah, I don't have his cocky attitude around me anymore.” I tried to make it sound as if it was better this way. But I still secretly wished inside that I could work at the Empire. It felt so right for me to be there, and I was getting along with Red amazingly. Not only had I left the job I dreamt about, but I lost a potentially beautiful friendship too.
“You're keeping something from me.” Kent noticed. “Tell me.”
“Well,” I started. “He tried to get into my pants again.”
“Vicks,” Kent whined. “What did I tell you to do?” he asked me sternly.
“I should call you whenever he is not kind to me.”
