Amateur Night

Chapter 2

"Okay...? And?", Dinah looked at me intently as we packed our things for the night even though it was actually four in the morning.

"Okay and, she's ridiculously good. Almost as good as you...", I trailed off in my sentence not daring to say 'maybe even better' as that would start a whole other world of problems.

"I'll just scare her off like last girl. Geesh! Calm down Lauren.", the Polynesian smiled at me, making light of the situation.

I knew as well as she did that in this place, your popularity status among customers is equivalent to your pay, and men love shiny new toys.

"I don't think that's gonna happen", I informed her as I pulled the band of my sweat pants over my hips and tightened the string.

"Why not?", Dinah asked, pausing in doing her ponytail to wave good-bye to an overloaded Ally, who was walking towards the exit with all of her bags.

"Because you can't shake someone who doesn't care. She hopped on another girls pole during the competition... I don't think she even cared about the outcome of the competition that much", I waved my good-bye to Allyson also once my pants were in place.

"So she's cocky? Whoopty do", she swirled her long finger around in the air for affect. "She'll crack under pressure just like the rest of the cocky wannabes. I give her two weeks."

I sighed and shook my head. "You're not taking this seriously", I scolded in a sing-song voice to make it sound less motherly, because I know how much easier she deflected advice when it sounded like nagging.

"Cause it's not that serious", Dinah mocked my singing tone and hoisted her hot pink athletic bag over her shoulder.

I took out my phone and dialed my friend Veronica's number.

Dinah lifted her hand and rubbed the fingers of one hand against one another as an iconic sign for money. I gave her a thumbs up to let her know that I understood her and she left the dressing room on that note.

I patiently listened to the ringing that meant the call was going through.

"Hello?", Vero's groggy voice answered after for rings.

"Well good morning Morgan Freeman. I'm coming to get my baby in ten minutes, so have her stuff ready", I spoke into the phone as I held my bag and walked out the dressing room after Dinah, to go collect my pay for the night.

"Morgan Freeman wishes his voice was this sexy", I could hear the smirk in my friend's voice. "Now how about you say please?", She grumbled and I heard small indecipherable noises on the other side of the line.

"Is Less awake?", I asked, although I knew for a fact that my two year old was gone to the world.

"No, of course not", the sleepy brunette confirmed.

"Good. Then how about you get her stuff ready, now. And as a special treat I'll even let you kiss my ass", I joked with synthetic enthusiasm.

"Since when did you have this ass fetish?"

Vero was reciting one of her many witty comebacks but I didn't hear a thing because I felt someone yank my arm.

I recognized the hand to be Dinah's and when I angled my gaze up to meet her eyes, she out a finger to her lips to tell me to be quiet and then she pointed at Arin's door.

Arin, the owner of the club was a decent man, just mostly when it benefited him.

He had respect for us dancers as people which was hard to find from men... but you can see how respecting us could directly benefit him. Arin's ambition and constant drive to make the club such a monopoly was where his personality got rather shady.