Darkness in the Neon Lights (H2OVanoss)

Chapter 11

I look down and scratch the back of my neck, nervously. "Uh, well, that's kind of a long story."

"I asked you out so I could hear it. Like I said before, I want to learn more about you, so, even if we're here until your club closes, I want to hear it."

I chuckle and look down to my lap. I don't want to give too much about my past away, but I don't want to lie to him more than I already am.

"Alright, well, I'm actually from a few towns over. Things at my home weren't really the best, so I left before I was really ready. When I came here, I had no money, and no where to go. I spent the first month or two sleeping in a park not too far away from where I live now. Then, one day, it was raining, and I was trying to sleep under an overpass to keep dry. Then, someone saved me. A person I call a friend now. Someone who works at the club.
Not only did he give me a place to stay, but he helped me get a job at the club. If it wasn't for him, I don't think I would have made it through the rest of that year."

"How long ago was that?"

"About two years ago."

"Oh shit. That's a lot for anyone to have to go through."

I look up and see that he has a more worried expression. I see that he's about to say something else, but before he had the chance, his friend popped up beside us and asked us for our orders. I smile and tell him what I was going to get, and Jon did the same. We then waited for him to walk away before we turn back to each other.

"So, how are things working at the club? From what Tyler tells me, it's really strict there."

"A little, but we are the best gay strip club in town, so, it's a given that we're strict. We have a few rules that are a must that we need to follow, and we can't really be lenient with them. A few of the rules are that we aren't allowed to date customers, as I've told you before. We aren't allowed to date other employees, for obvious reasons. We have to maintain our bodies to keep them looking the way that they look or we could get fired-"

"Wait what?"

"As I said, we're known as the best, and we get more customers if we look the way that we do."

"Well, that seems like a bit much, don't you think? I mean, don't you guys get a lot of college kids coming in trying to pay their way through school or something? Or what about when you guys get older? As you age, your body doesn't work the way that it use to."

"Doesn't matter. We do what we do, keep our bodies in check, and if we don't, we either quit and go somewhere else, or we get fired."

"That has to be against some type of law."

"It wouldn't matter," I say, looking down at my phone. "Since I've been there, no one has ever been fired. We all understand the rules, don't argue with them, and do what we do. Besides, it's pretty hard to let your body go with our work. You'd actually have to try in order to do that. Not only that, but the guys all quit when they get older and think they aren't doing as well as they had been doing. It's a pride thing."

I quickly make up a text and send it to Ohm, telling him, "He's asking a lot of questions about the club. Should I just keep answering them or try to change the subject?"

"Okay," he then says, causing me to drop my phone and look back to him with a sweet smile on my face. "Well, what about your future? Where do you see yourself later in life?"

I think for a second before I ask, "What about you? What do you have planned?"

"Actually, I see myself working with the military. Traveling the world, fighting for the country I was born and raised in, and doing it with my best friend by my side."