1

       “One..two…threee..go!!!!”

Jeanine winced at the harshness of the manager's voice. James’ voice was always throaty like he suffered a dry cough or a sore throat.

  She was relieved he wasn’t focused on her, he didn’t complain about her amateur dancing or her failure to arch her back properly like the other girls.

Tonight was a big night, James had invited a couple of billionaires and he had promised to entertain them.

   Owing to that, he had placed all his best dancers in front, leaving Jeanine at the back.

     “Jeanine, can I have a word with you?” He asked before she left for the stage 

 She rolled her eyes, thankfully he couldn’t see her behind her mask.

    “I don’t want you on stage tonight” he stated firmly. “I can’t have you ruin things for me”

  She bit her lower lip. She needed the money, she could have easily skipped work but her rent was due.

   “Mr James, just give me this chance, I won’t fail you”

She had said it so many times that she doubted if he was going to believe her. Her job as a stripper was very important to her even though she sucked at it. It wasn’t as easy as when she babysat during the day or when she worked at the diner on weekends.

     James sighed and ran a hand through his disheveled hair.

   “Just look at you” he sneered

 Her feet were wobbly in the seven inch heels, she wondered how the other girls danced perfectly in it.

The glitter made her skin itch and the heavy make up irritated her. 

The first time she walked into the club to apply for the job, James had thrown her out because she couldn’t do a simple twirl. She had come back the next day and the day after that and he had no choice but to hire her. She had made a couple of bills, it wasn’t much but it was better than nothing.

    “Please let me go on stage tonight, I have bills piled on my table. I need to pay up”

  She hated that she had to beg him but that was the only way she was going to survive. She didn’t like the smell of cigarettes or the breath of men that reeked of alcohol but she had learnt to ignore it.

       “Jean”

She hated how he pronounced her name, he made it sound like Jon. She looked up to him, her eyes watery from the heavy makeup.

    “Do not ruin things for me” he wagged a finger at her. “I’ll let you go on stage tonight but the spotlight won’t be on you. You’d dance at the farther end of the stage”

    She smiled and thanked him, it was better than nothing anyway. She wasn’t used to being the spotlight and they were way better strippers than her so she didn’t mind.

She was rather thankful and relieved at the thought of making a little money. The exhaustion she had felt from working three jobs and doing schoolwork morphed into hope. If she tried her best tonight, she could get twice her usual pay.

   She moved to the farther end of the stage, close to the speakers. She had doubts anyone was going to see her because of the poor lighting but she hoped she was able to pick some money off the floor when the men sprayed the ‘stars’ of the night as James had put it.

It was a different crowd from what she was used to seeing. The men were dressed in suits and had an air of importance about them. She was impressed, she hoped one day she’d be dressed in  a suit and talk business with any of them.

   

   The song started, slow and sensual. She watched as the other girls moved and she tried to imitate them. She struggled as she held onto the pole and kicked her feet. 

James taught them that the ultimate trick was to lock eyes with whoever they were interested in and charm them with their sensual dance moves.

 She watched closely, looking for whom to lock eyes with. When she remembered her electricity was going to be out the following week, she danced harder, arching her back even more and holding her feet up high.

 As expected, the men were attracted to the stars of the show and they showered them with money. Her eyes widened at the bundles of money, if she could get one bundle, that would be enough to cover her rent and other bills.

  She moved to the spotlight, tired of getting no attention. James was going to give her an earful later on and maybe fire her but she didn’t care, it was better to take the risk than do nothing.

She found her target at the end of the room. The other men seemed smitten by the other girls but he didn’t look like he wanted to be there and he ignored advances made by the strippers. His mouth twisted into a frown when a man beside him whispered something into his ear. 

   He fumbled for his phone and typed something quickly before shoving it into his pocket. The only way she could get his attention was if she danced in front of him.

So she moved to the other side of the stage, placing each leg in front of each other in what she hoped was a sexy catwalk. She grabbed the pole and began to move her hips as she had seen the other girls do. She saw James from a corner shaking his head disapprovingly, she was certain she was going to get fired.

  The man lifted his eyes to her and they locked eyes for about two seconds. The man quickly looked away, his irritation deepened.

She felt her heart thump against her chest, she felt so stupid. What she thought was seduction was probably her moving her body in an amusing way.

Tears pricked her eyes but she held them. She didn’t want to ruin James’ business.