𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑩𝑨𝑺𝑰𝑺 𝑶𝑭 𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬 | 𝗯. 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘀

𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐰𝐨;

One of the reasons why Le Fae operated like a seamless machine was because the young and terrifyingly gorgeous Gina ran it with an iron fist. As long as the club was opening its doors, Gina would be there without fail to micromanage the hell out of everything before Le Fae opened its doors for the the night.

Tonight, dressed in a burgundy red satin power suit and five inch stilettos that all but screamed don't fuck with me, Gina looked nothing but unruffled even after defusing two tantrums, replacing a suddenly malfunctioning audio system, and dealing with the missing casket of golden rum. She made it a point to visit the ever changing cast of performers every night in the common dressing room to soothe ruffled feathers and look out for any talents, and took special care to visit those with private dressing rooms to personally deliver succinct instructions accompanied with sweet falsities.

"Ellie, you look as fantastic as always. There have been no changes made to the songs lined up, and if there's nothing else, you're up for sound check in five."

Call her what you will, unfeeling, cold, critical, but Gina was nothing but efficient. She only spared a fleeting, almost dismissive smile at Ellie after she spoke and was already turning on her heel sweeping out of the room before Ellie could even get out of her seat.

After a cursory check in the mirror for any glaring flaws, and a quick spritz of Chanel Coco, Ellie quickly made her way from the dressing rooms to the raised platform at the front of the room.

Ellie pushed through the curtains, walked to the center of the stage and automatically began to adjust the tilt of the mic even though her hands were trembling at the thought of being scrutinised by evryone. It was a little funny to think that even after two years, Ellie was still nervous at the prospect of standing on the stage.

She took a few deep breaths in an effort to calm herself down, but nothing could stop her heart from attempting to jackrabbit pit of her chest. The toe-curling sensation of being at the center of attention, the sweat gathering in her palms, the shaking of her hands, never went away, no matter how many times she stood on the stage to perform.

But then the lights came on and the first strains of music started to float through the air, and everything, her fear, her anxiety, even the nauseating turn of her stomach, all dissipated into nothing.

The hours blurred together and slid away, and though Ellie got her scheduled fifteen minute break every two hours, her entire body ached from standing up the entire time and she felt completely wrung out at the end of her shift.

Ellie clocked out at two in the morning, stepping off the stage just as the last of the largely inebriated patrons began to filter out of the club. She sat in the common dressing area, too tired to make the trek back to her private room, removing glittering jewelry that would get her mugged if she walked on the streets alone, slipping out of her dress and into a cashmere sweater and high-waisted jeans, and kicking off her Louboutins in favor of comfortable sneakers.

Her curled hair and face full of makeup contrasted against the simplicity of her clothes, and Kathy, one of the girls who accompanied the guests in Le Fae and got them to spend lavish amounts of money on alcohol and finger food, told her so.

"You're gonna get yourself mugged, Ellie. Your clothes may say don't look at me, but your face says otherwise." Kathy said, genuine worry in her face, which was touching considering Ellie kept to herself most of the time and had said about five words to her since last week.

Concern emitted from her in waves so palpable that Ellie could almost feel it in the air.

Ellie smiled at her sweetly, thanked the nice girl, murmured something about being able to take care of herself, shoved her things into a tote bag, and left. Kathy was very nice, and that was exactly why Ellie tried not to get too close. The last thing that she wanted was for Kathy to get hurt just by association alone.