"You and Xavier seem happy."
I slipped on my shoes and grinned at Destiny. "Uh, yeah," I said, nodding my head. "We are."
"Where are you going this weekend?" Destiny asked, curiously.
"Xavier wants to try to teach me archery," I said, shrugging. "He says he's been into it since he was nine."
"Don't get an arrow to the face," Destiny said, laughing.
"You'd love to see that," I said, laughing.
"Of course!" Destiny exclaimed, laughing. "I'd give someone half a corn chip to see that."
I sighed, shaking my head, "It's a shame; I'm not even worth a full corn chip."
Destiny laughed, shaking her head, "But seriously, be careful."
"I will," I replied, looking at myself in the mirror. "How do I look?"
"Like you're going to a strip club," Destiny said, sarcastically. "Where are you going again?"
I let out a nervous laugh, "Out with Xavier."
Destiny nodded her head, "What time are you leaving?"
"At six," I replied, checking the time. "I'll probably leave to his house a little earlier though."
"I'll probably leave at five then," Destiny said, sitting up.
"You can stay if you want," I said, shrugging. "I'll probably be back home around midnight."
"That's late," Destiny said, turning to look at me. "You know what I will stay...I'll steal your wifi and free food."
I laughed, sitting down, "Take all the food you want."
Destiny pretended to wipe a fake tear, "You're a true friend."
I laughed, smacking Destiny's arm, "You're so stupid."
I grabbed my bag and set it down by the door. "I think my parents will be here early for once," I said.
"It'll be nice to see them again," Destiny said, shrugging. "Haven't seen them since your cousin's quince."
I sighed, sitting down. "They work too much."
Destiny sat up, grinning. "Yeah, but you still get to be home alone a lot."
I smiled, looking down. "Yeah, but I don't like being alone sometimes."
"I know what you mean," Destiny said, nodding her head.
"Now," Destiny said, getting comfortable. "Let's get out of this depressing mood and watch a funny movie."
I laughed, sitting down next to Destiny. "Put on the movie!
~
Once it was five-forty, I left my house and started driving to work. Today was Friday which meant there were going to be a lot of people at the club.
Eventually, I got to the club and I started getting dressed. I wore a lacy black bra with matching underwear and some black heels. I curled my hair and only applied red lipstick.
When I got on stage, I saw Xavier sitting down, smirking. I cursed under my breath and began dancing on stage. I grabbed the money from the men and would shove it in my bra.
I got off stage and started giving guys lap dances and just dance in general. I was going to give this guy a lap dance when Xavier grabbed my arm.
"What the hell, Xavier?" I said, harshly. "I'm trying to work here."
"Give me a little dance," Xavier said, smirking. "Or dance on the table for me."
"Are you serious?" I asked, crossing my arms. I was getting mad with him.
"Choose which one you'd like, darling," Xavier said, sitting down.
I glared at Xavier as I stepped on the table. I started dancing on the pole and realized Xavier had a drink in front of him on the table. I smirked, biting my lip. I kicked the cup 'accidentally' onto Xavier's lap and he groaned, standing up.
"Oops," I said, getting down from the table. "Sorry, Xavier."
Xavier shook his head, scoffing. "I guess I deserve that."
I smirked, nodding my head. "Yeah, you did."
Xavier grabbed a napkin and started cleaning his pants, cursing under his breath.
I laughed, crossing my arms. "Maybe one day I'll actually put on a little show for you."
Xavier looked up at me, smirking. "Oh, I'd love to see that, darling."
I shrugged, "We'll see."
I started walking away, but was stopped by a firm grip. I turned around and looked at Xavier confused.
"What time do you finish working?" Xavier asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"Midnight," I replied, bluntly. "Are you going to stay until then or what?"
"Of course," Xavier said, grinning. "Maybe one of your friends will actually give me a show."
I rolled my eyes. "Have fun with that."
I walked away to the back with some of the other girls and was talking to Estephannie.
"Is he going to take you home?" Estephannie asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Most likely, yes," I replied, nodding my head.
"But didn't you come in your car?" Estephannie asked. "Are you just going to leave it?"
"Oh shit," I said, face palming myself. "I'll probably just get it tomorrow then."
Estephannie laughed, shaking her head. "You're a fool."
I shrugged, laughing. "I guess I am."
I continued talking to Estephannie until I had to go dance on stage again. Eventually, it was midnight and I was getting dressed in my clothes.
I walked outside and saw Xavier talking to some girl by his car. I rolled my eyes, walking over to them.
"I'll call you, sweetheart," Xavier said, taking a piece of paper from the girl. "It was nice talking to you."
The girl walked away and glared at me when she saw me.
"What?" I said, raising my hands. "You got a fucking staring problem?!"
The girl just quickly ran off and I rolled my eyes. I turned to Xavier who was smirking.
"Give me her number," I said, holding my hand out. "Now."
Xavier placed the paper in my hand. I ripped it up and threw it away in the trash can.
"Come on," I said, getting in Xavier's car. "Let's go."
Xavier got in the car and turned to look at me. "Why'd you do that?" He asked, cocking an eyebrow.
"Well," I said, sighing. "I don't want a cheating pretend boyfriend."
Xavier chuckled, shaking his head. "Your reaction was worth paying the girl."
"What?" I asked, surprised. "You paid a girl to act that crap out?"
"Yupp," Xavier said, chuckling. "I wanted to see what you'd do."
I exhaled, shaking my head. "Let's just go," I said, getting comfortable. "I'm tired."
"Okay," Xavier said, grinning.
Xavier started the drive to my house and he had the radio playing lowly. Suddenly, I don't mind by Usher started playing and I started singing along.
Xavier chuckled, "This song suits you."
I laughed, nodding my head. "You bet your ass it does."
I continued singing along and dancing to the song. After the song finished, Xavier finally got to my house. I sighed, sitting up.
"I left the car at the club," I said, sighing. "And I am too lazy to even attempt to get it."
"I'll get it for you, darling," Xavier said, turning off the car.
"What?" I asked, surprised. "No, no, no."
"I'm serious, darling," Xavier said, nodding his head. "I'll get your car for you."
"And how are you going to do that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I'll run back to the club," Xavier replied, shrugging. "Then, I'll come back in your car."
"Xavier," I said, reaching to hold his hand. "You don't have to do this. It's alright. I'll get it in the morning."
"But I want to do this for you," Xavier said, grinning. "Besides, I'm a good runner."
"You really expect me to believe that?" I chuckled.
Xavier scoffed. "I was on a track team when I went to school in the UK, you know?"
"Hmm," I said, surprised. "I didn't know."
Xavier chuckled. "Alright, darling. I'll need your keys."
"Are you sure?" I asked, biting my lip.
"I'm positive, darling," Xavier said, smiling. "Now will you please hand me your keys?"
I hesitated, but then handed my keys to Xavier. "Thank you."
Xavier smiled, nodding his head. Xavier and I both got out of his car. Xavier threw me his car keys, grinning.
"I'll be back before you know it, darling." Xavier said, grinning.
"Okay," I replied, smiling.
Xavier started walking away, but I didn't want him to leave just yet.
"Xavier!" I slightly yelled.
Xavier quickly turned around and looked at me worried. "Yeah, darling?"
"Just um...be safe, okay?" I said, biting my lip.
Xavier walked over to me and placed his hands on my waist. "I will." He kissed my forehead, softly.
Xavier then ran off and I quickly walked inside my house. I sighed, walking into the kitchen.
"Hey, sweetheart."
"Oh lord jesus," I slightly yelled, placing my hand to my heart. "Jesus dad, are you trying to give me a heart attack?!"
My dad chuckled, shaking his head. "So, where were you out this late?" He raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms.
"I was at Xavier's house," I replied, nodding my head.
"Hale?" My dad asked, confused. "Xavier Hale? ¿De verdad?"
"Yeah," I said, slowly.
"What the hell were you doing over there?" My dad asked, confused. "I'm not mad, but I'm surprised and confused."
"He's my boyfriend," I said, nodding my head. It's getting easier to lie about this.
"¿Desde cuando?" My dad asked.
"Since August," I answered, shrugging.
"Why am I barely finding out about this now?" My dad asked, confused. "Five months later..."
"Well," I said, sighing. "You and mom are hardly home so I can't really talk to you about my life."
"Mija," my dad said, softly. "I don't want you to think that your mother and I have no time for you because of work. Believe me when I tell you this: I would drop anything going on for you, okay? If you need me for anything, then just call."
I smiled and hugged my dad. "I love you, dad."
My dad kissed my head, hugging me back. "I love you, too, mija."
I pulled away from the hug and we said our goodnights. Honestly, I was a lot closer to my dad than my mom. He was my first hero and my first best friend; he was the best dad ever.
I walked up to my room and walked in. Destiny was laying down on me bed on her phone.
"Finally," She mumbled. "It's like one in the morning now."
"I know," I said, nervously biting my lip. "I'm sorry."
"Apology accepted," Destiny said, sighing. "So, where were you?"
"With Xavier," I replied, slowly. "Remember I told you I was going to hang out with him?"
"Yeah," Destiny said, nodding her head. "But you weren't."
"Why do you say that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Because I called you, but you never answered, so I got Xavier's number from one of his exes and I called him," Destiny said, nodding her head. "And he said you guys didn't have plans, and you weren't there."
"Shit," I said, quietly under my breath. "I-I-uh..."
I didn't know what to say. Hey Destiny, I forgot to tell you I'm a stripper and Xavier is blackmailing me into being his pretend girlfriend. Hell no.
I sighed, sitting down next to Destiny. "I have to tell you something," I said seriously. "And you can't get mad or freak out."
"Okay?" Destiny said, the confusion across her face spreading faster than a wild fire.
"I'm a...you see the thing is...I'm kind of a...I'm a stripper!" I blurted out. I looked at Destiny, worried about what she'd do or say.
Destiny bursted out laughing. "Good one, Ryan," she said, holding her stomach from laughing. "I almost believed you for a second."
"What?" I asked, shocked. "Destiny, I'm telling you the truth."
Destiny stopped laughing and looked at me seriously. "Holy shitballs," she said, sitting up. "You're serious?"
I nodded my head. Destiny opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it. She looked like she was debating what to do: slap me with a fish or question me.
"Why?" Destiny asked, utterly confused. "I don't understand why you're doing this."
"For the money," I replied, bluntly. "I'm in it for the money."
"What?" Destiny asked, throwing a hand in the air. "For what exactly?"
"To help my parents with the bills and stuff," I said, standing up. "I want to be able to help them."
"And you couldn't - I don't know - get a normal job?" Destiny asked, crossing her arms.
"A regular job doesn't pay enough," I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. "My parents need all the help they can get so they don't ever pay any bills late again."
"Where do your parents think you work at?" Destiny questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Uh, yogurt land," I said, sending her a small smile.
"Jesus Christ, Ryan," Destiny said, shaking her head. "How are you even working there? You're not even eighteen!"
"Fake ID," I shrugged. "Come on, dude. You know how bad the money situation would get for us before."
"I know," Destiny said, nodding her head. "You gotta do what you gotta do for you loved ones."
I smiled at her.
"Okay," Destiny said, calmly. "I understand and accept this."
I grinned, but then it went away when I realized I had to tell her about Xavier blackmailing him.
"There's, um," I said, nervously. "There's kinda more."
Destiny sighed, lying down on my bed. "You aren't pregnant, right?"
I scoffed, shaking my head. "I'm not pregnant and I don't plan on being pregnant anytime soon."
"Then," Destiny chuckled. "What is it?"
I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I'm pretending to be Xavier's girlfriend because he's blackmailing."
"What?!" Destiny shouted, popping up. "How is he blackmailing you?!"
"Well," I said, nervously.
"Well what?!" Destiny said, frantically.
"Well, the other day while I was working Xavier had came into the club and saw me, so he made a video of me working. He's using it against me so I'll be his pretend girlfriend," I explained, nervously biting my lip.
"That little fuckface!" Destiny yelled.
"Shhh," I said, slightly loud. "My parents are asleep."
"Right," Destiny whispered, slightly laughing. "That little fuckface!"
I face palmed myself, shaking my head. "It's okay," I said, shrugging. "It's not that bad."
"I should like cut off his balls," Destiny said, harshly. "And like feed them to an animal or something."
"Oh God," I chuckled, shaking my head. "Please don't do that."
"You're right," she said. "That'd be animal cruelty. Maybe I can feed them to him instead."
"Destiny," I groaned.
"Joking," Destiny replied, rolling her eyes.
"Good that," I said, grinning. "Oh lord," I said, putting my hand to my mouth. "I'm starting to sound like him."
Destiny laughed, shrugging. "That's kind of cute," she said, grinning. "You're getting closer, I'm assuming."
"It's not cute," I replied, shaking my head. "And I guess you could say we're getting closer."
"Now I'm questioning wether I should like Xavier," Destiny said, getting comfortable in my bed.
"Don't do that," I said, shaking my head. "He's actually nice and not that bad."
"Prove it," Destiny said, smirking.
"He's letting me go with him and his family to their spring break vacation and is letting me bring you guys and he's also letting me choose where we all go," I said, crossing my arms. "Also, he's running two miles to get my car from the club."
"Damn," Destiny said, surprised. "Are you sure he doesn't like you or something?"
I laughed, shaking my head. "Trust me," I said, lying down in bed next to her. "Xavier doesn't like me like that."
Destiny shrugged. "So where are we going for spring break?"
"I don't know," I replied, biting my lip. "I haven't decided yet. Where do you think we should go?"
"We should go to Greece,"Destiny said, excitedly. "I've heard of this amazing place called Faliraki, a Greek island of Rhodes."
"Sounds fun," I said, grinning. "I'll tell Xavier."
Destiny grinned and then we started watching a movie. Ten minutes after the movie started, Xavier called me saying he was here.
I slipped on my sweater and quickly ran outside. I grabbed Xavier's car keys from the table as I ran out the door.
Xavier was leaning up against my car, smirking. "Here she is," He said, pointing to my car.
I grinned and ran to Xavier. I wrapped my arms around his neck, hugging him tight. Xavier chuckled, hugging me back.
"Thank you," I said, pulling away from the hug. "It really means a lot."
"You're welcome," Xavier replied, smiling.
"Here you go," I said, handing him his car keys.
"Thank you," Xavier said, taking the car keys.
I nodded my head, smiling.
"Alright," Xavier sighed. "I'll pick you up tomorrow at noon."
"Okay," I said, grinning.
Xavier smiled. He then turned away and started walking towards his car. Suddenly, Xavier stopped and he ran back to me. Xavier hugged me again, kissing my forehead.
I smiled, hugging him back. "Drive safely, okay?"
Xavier pulled away from the hug, smirking. "I will," he said.
I nodded my head. Xavier then left to his car and I walked inside my house.
When I got back to my room, Destiny was sleeping and I laughed. I took off the movie and turned off the tv. I got dressed in pajamas and lied down in bed.
I couldn't help but smile thinking about what Xavier had planned for us tomorrow. Let's see how that goes.
I updated! Yaaaaay! So, now Destiny knows about Ryan's job and her deal with Xavier...What'd you guys think? I hope you're all liking it! Xx
~Jess