Hi, I had a previous author's note on this before, but it is now (unintentionally) deleted because I stupidly did something, with the help of the keyboard malfunctions. But anyways, hope you enjoy this short story and be sure to check out the song (I don't recommend hearing the song if you hate spoilers) too! Enjoy!
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At the north part of Havana, there's a place that encourages music and is famous for its passion. They always had the latest fashion, setting off trends around the area, and were popular for having one of the most beautiful sceneries out there. A nice place for vacations and a place to relax and entertain yourselves. The weather was extremely nice around this year. The Copacabana.
Lola pulled on her stockings in the dressing room. She touched up on her makeup and adjusted her short cut dress. She sighed as she looked at the mirror. "Now for the finishing touch..." She carefully stuck a few yellow feathers in her hair and plastered a smile on her face.
Her door swung open as a show director came barging in, just as she finished. "You ready, Lola?"
Lola nodded cheerfully. "Ready as I'll ever be," she replied in a sugar sweet voice. The director nodded and walked off, leaving the door ajar. Lola looked at herself one last time in the mirror before walking out of her dressing room and onto the stage. The music started playing, and she could feel herself moving to the beat. She felt so alive when she danced and sang her heart away. The only thing that killed it was probably the hungry looks many of the men gave her. She inwardly gulped, but shook off the feeling and smiled wider. In the back, she could see a boy her age tending the bar. She noticed that no matter what was happening around him, he always kept up with his work and never let it bother him.
She mentally cursed him, How could he do that so easily?
Lola contemplated it over in her head but was soon back into the music's rhythm. A few more showgirls appeared by her side, smiling, dancing, and singing away. They did the merengue, the cha-cha, and lastly, the kick line. At the end of it, they left the stage with the crowd clapping loudly behind them. Lola's smile fell from her face when she got backstage. She habitually went back to her dressing room and closed the door. Carefully taking her makeup off her face and the feathers out of her hair, she then squeezed out of her dress and pulled on some casual clothes. After that, Lola proceeded to peel off her stockings and slip her feet into a pair of comfortable slippers. She sighed, relieved.
Thank God, that get-up was stuffy...
After sitting on the chair she was on a few moments longer, Lola looked at the time.
3:10? Ugh, well, might as well get a drink then.
Leaving her dressing room, she made her way over to the bar and took a seat on one of the stools.
"ID please?"
"Here." Lola flashed her ID card at the bartender.
He nodded as Lola slid her ID away. "What can I get for you miss?"
Lola stared at the bartender blankly. "Hm?" Immediately after saying that, she perked up. It was that boy she saw while she was onstage.
He handed her a menu and calmly waved a nonchalant hand at her as he moved further away. "Call for me once you've decided what you want." Nodding absently, Lola stared at the menu.
She waved her hand. "Hey, um... Bartender!"
The boy walked back to her. "Decided on something?"
"Hm, uh, yeah. I think so..." She took a quick peek at the menu again before ordering, "Um, I'd like to have a... Margarita on the ice?"
He looked at her skeptically. "Is that a question or..."
"Oh, right! Yeah, that's what I'd like. Sorry...?"
"Tony." He offered as he went to get her drink. He came back in record time and handed the drink to her. "So, what's your name?"
Lola looked up. "Hm? Oh, my name?" He nodded. "Lola."
He nodded again. "Wait..." He said, realization brightening up his face. "Aren't you that showgirl from onstage?"
Lola jumped up from her chair. "Hm, what? Noooooo... You must have the wrong person." Lola may have wanted to be famous, but she was going to die before telling who she was to that bartender. She quickly slipped out of her seat and left her payment on the counter. "Anyways, thanks for the drink!" She scurried off, going back to her dressing room the long way, making sure Tony wasn't looking. When she did, she shut her door and slid down it. Lola looked at the time again. "Goodness! It's not four yet?" She exhaled slowly, waiting for the time to just speed up. Walking up to her chair, she sat down. Sipping her drink, she then placed it on the table and swiveled her chair to look herself in the mirror. There were dark circles under her eyes. She slumped her head onto her arms. Why did her life feel so hard?
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Knocking. "Hello? Is anyone in there?" Lola lifted her head up.
She felt so drowsy.
Did I fall asleep? She looked around, realizing at some point, someone had closed the lights and taken away her drink.
"Hello?"
Lola got up and rubbed her eyes, yawning, she slowly made her way to the door.
She was just about to open the door when the voice outside said, "Okay, whether someone's in here or not, I'm coming in."
Instantly, the door swung open, startling a half-awake Lola. As she attempted to back up and away from the door, she tripped and started to fall.
"Whoa there!" A hand grabbed her arm, steadying her. "Are you okay?"
Lola blinked against the fluorescent glare coming from the open door and looked up at the person who helped her. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."
The person paused. "Lola?"
Lola gave a confused look, squinting. "Wait, how do you know my name?"
The stranger flicked the lights in her dressing room on, revealing a very offended looking Tony. "Um, we just met an hour ago."
Lola saw spots as her eyes adjusted to the light. "Hm? Oh, sorry! I didn't recognize you in the dark..."
He looked at her skeptically. "Right... Anyways, since you're still here, I may as well give this to you." He handed her a few dollar bills and a couple of quarters. "You forgot your change."
Lola blankly stared at him. "Oh. Thanks..."
He shrugged. "No problem." He began to exit out of the room before he paused. "You might want to get back home, it's getting pretty late and we have to come back at eight."
"Wait," Lola looked around, bewildered, "What time is it?" She looked towards the clock, ticking away on the wall.
She read the time, 7:52?!
Lola jolted awake with a burst of energy. Grabbing her stuff, she closed the lights and shut the door. Locking it, she slipped the key back into her purse.
"Well, you sure are in a rush, showgirl." Tony gave her a smug smile.
"Don't even," Lola answered, annoyed. Quickly, she walked over to the building's back exit. "Well, if you don't mind, I'll be leaving now. Bye!" And with that, she threw open the door and left.
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3 Years Later
Lola walked into The entrance of The Copacabana. She quickly passed by the bar where Tony worked, going straight to her room to change. Again, Lola pulled on her stockings up to her knees. She touched up her makeup and re-adjusted the short cut dress she had just put on, humming to herself in the mirror. She had just stuck a few yellow feathers into the side of her head when there was a knock at the door.
She smiled and jumped up as she heard someone say, "Knock, knock. Housekeeping!" Lola laughed as she walked up towards the door and threw it open. There in front of her was Tony, a smug grin on his face.
Stifling a giggle, she put on a confused face before looking left and right. "Housekeeping? Where? All I see is a huge statue in front of my door."
"Hey! This statue has feelings you know!" Tony placed a hand on his heart.
Lola rolled her eyes. "Right, I'm sure you do. Can you prove it."
Tony gave a mischievous smile before giving her a peck on the lips. "How's that for having feelings?"
Lola tapped a finger on her chin. "Hmmm... I don't know... All I felt was the wind blowing on my face."
Tony narrowed his eyes. "Oh ho, I'll show you wind blowing on your face..." He came closer, but Lola stood there unfazed.
"Ah, ah, ah." Lola held up a hand, "Save it for later. I gotta go do a show."
Tony pouted. "Fine!" He relented, "Good luck up there, dance like no one's watching."
Lola scoffed. "If only." She waved to Tony, as she walked onstage.
She smiled thoughtfully as she recalled how about a year ago, Tony and she had found out they had fallen in love with each other. It was surprising to both of them, but apparently not to the rest of the staff. She shook her head at the memory. She couldn't think about that right now, she had a show to do! Taking a deep breath, she plastered on a big smile before going onstage.
The other showgirls crowded around her before they all did their typical dance routine. They started off with the merengue, then the cha-cha, and finally, the kick line. As she was performing, Lola couldn't help but see one gentleman who was escorted to his chair. He wore an expensive suit and pair of shoes and wore a diamond ring. His dark hair was combed back neatly, and his face was as hard as stone. He was watching the performance intently, not smiling nor frowning. He just sat there, no expression on his face whatsoever. When they finished, there was roaring applause, especially from the men, but when Lola glanced at the man again, she could see him clapping politely looking unamused.
As Lola and the other showgirls got off stage, she was approached by a nervous waiter. "Um, miss? There's a gentleman who has requested to see you. Can you please come with me so I can escort you to him?"
Lola gave him a questioning look before shrugging. "If I must." She followed the waiter as he moved unsurely towards this 'gentleman'. When the waiter finally stopped, he turned around to reveal the man Lola had seen earlier while on stage. Up close, she could see that the man in front of her was very handsome and looked very important.
The waiter cleared his throat. "Um, Miss, um, Lola?" I nodded. "M-May I introduce you to, um, Mr.-"
"Rico, Rico Diamond." The man said cutting the poor guy off. He gave a small smile before glancing at the stuttering mess of a waiter in front of him. "You can leave now. I'll call you when I need you."
The waiter nodded frantically, poor guy. "Y-Yes, sir! Of course, sir!" He bowed deeply before hurriedly scampering off.
The man, or Rico, sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Idiot..." Lola was taken aback, she didn't think that the upperclassmen would be low enough to insult those who had just helped him, especially in public.
She shook her head again to clear the thought before saying, "Um... You asked for me?"
Rico turned around and gave her a dazzling smile. "Yes. I couldn't help but notice that you were looking at me all throughout the show." He grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him. "Like what you see?"
Lola struggled to get out of his grip, "Sir, you need to let go of me." She tried her best to free her arm from his hard grip but failed miserably.
"Sir? You can call me Rico, sweetheart. We wouldn't want to get too formal when we-"
She slapped him, hard. Lola was panting erratically, fear gripping her body. His grip tightened even more.
He laughed. "Ha, feisty aren't we?" His eyes gleamed in the light, something dangerous hiding beneath it.
"Let me go! Let me-" He pulled her closer to him, his face inches away from her face.
"If you like playing rough, I'll give you rough, chica." He slung his arm around Lola's waist, hugging it like a snake would its prey.
A shiver ran down her back.
No, no! This can't be happening!
She made a last attempt to wriggle out of his grasp, but his grip tightened like a vise around her.
He was about to pull her face towards him when suddenly, she heard a voice. "Let go of her!"
The next thing Lola knew, someone had punched Rico in the face, and she was sprawled on the floor. She did her best to get up. Unsteadily getting to her feet, she swaying dangerously back and forth trying to keep her balance.
"Whoa! Take it easy there." An arm went around her. She froze, but when Lola turned to see who it was, relief welled up in her.
"Tony!" She hugged him as she cried into his chest. He brought her closer to him as he stroked her hair.
There was something different in Tony's voice as he spoke. "Did he hurt you?" Lola shook her head, before sobbing harder. "Shh... It's okay Lola, I won't let him hurt you." She nodded and her crying softened slightly.
"You..." They both faced the direction of the voice. Rico was now standing up, murder in his eyes. "You're going to regret doing that."
Tony pushed Lola behind him. "And you're going to regret doing that to her." Then Tony spoke to her, "Lola, go find a phone and call the police." She nodded and raced out of the lounge and into her dressing room. She quickly searched for the wall-phone that had been installed a while ago. She heard shouts and the sound of punches outside the room, only pushing her to find the phone faster. Finally finding it behind a rack full of dresses, she quickly dialed the police.
"Hello? Police? This is an emergency! No, there's a- Yes! He's still here, he's fighting with one of the staff- Please hurry, I don't know what's going to happen- The address? Of course, it's-"
There was a loud crash out in the direction of the lounge. Quickly giving the operator the address, she hung up and hurried back to the lounge. She stopped cold, her eyes scanning the room, the place was a wreck. Tables, plates, and glasses were shattered and strewn about, chairs were smashed, some broken in two, a few lamps were even on the ground on their sides. There was some blood staining the carpet and food smushed onto the ground as well. No one was in sight. No one except for two people fighting in the middle of the lounge. They were both punching each other, blood oozing out of the various cuts they had. They both had their share of bruises and other wounds too, but they kept at it. Lola turned around, towards the direction of the door. Sirens could be heard outside of the building, and her heart filled with hope, until...
Click.
Her heart froze. She turned around just to see the gun before...
BAM!
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Lola entered the entrance of the disco. She saw people dancing to the beat, the colors swirling around the room, and made her way to the bar and took a seat. Even though her hair was paler and she may have been a little too old, she still wore the dress she used to wear here. The yellow feathers, now faded, were strewn haphazardly in her hair. She called for the waiter. "The usual please," she said, her voice hoarse.
The young man nodded, "One margarita on the ice coming right up." After a minute, the bartender came back and placed the drink in front of her.
"Thanks..." The bartender nodded and left, but not before giving Lola a sympathetic look. Grabbing the drink, Lola swirled it around the glass before downing it in one gulp. She roughly placed the cup down with a loud thud before putting her hands in her hair. She looked up and saw an image of Tony, his smug smile forever pictured in the frame. Tears welled up in Lola's eyes.
"Damn it! Damn, damn, damn! Why! Why did you have to die?" There were probably people staring at her, wondering why the heck a fifty-one-year-old lady was being so upset, but she didn't care. She lost him, thirty years ago she lost him and her job. The Copacabana was closed down soon after the incident. The incident where Tony was shot, where Rico was arrested and taken to jail, where Tony had died, and when she had lost everything. She tried to stifle a sob.
Tony.
Even though The Copacabana was closed, they still hung a picture of Tony at the bar in memory of him. And every day, since the incident, Lola had always come over to the bar and sat down on the stool she had first met Tony on and ordered the same thing she had ordered from Tony. Every day, every time, until she would die, until she was again reunited with Tony. That day, she vowed to never find love, especially not in Copacabana. She would never find someone better than Tony, never. And she kept true to her word. Every day, every time, for thirty more years, she sat in the same stool, ordered the same drink, and did the same thing. Until she died. She was eighty-one when she died, sprawled on the floor passed out cold from too much alcohol.
Finally, she thought, I'll finally be able to see Tony again.
When they found her, she was already dead, a small smile painted on her face.
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Sorry for the morbid ending. You guys are probably angry with me, but that's okay. All I can say is, sorry. And no, I'm not going to change the ending, nor am I making a sequel, prequel, to the likes, this will strictly be a one book sort of deal. But in other news, this is the first book I've successfully finished! SQUEEEEEEEE! Ahem. Sorry, got a little too excited there. Again, sorry for the morbid ending, but life isn't always bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. And even though this story has come to a close, you can always read the other stories I have that are posted in my page. Thanks for all the support you've given, and I hope to hear from you soon. With that, all I can say is: PEACE! GOLDEN OUT!!!