Chapter 4

(Third person's POV)

Rachael wore the dress that exposed most of her skin. Her pants would stick out the minute she bends over to dance. She hated this, it was her first time. Normally, the manager would punish her harshly, but none of those punishments include stripteasing. She knew the manager wanted to humiliate her and she couldn't escape it.

She cleaned her face and applied back the makeup and turned around.

She walked out of her room and almost bumped into Adriana.

"Oh, Rachael, I see you're all dressed up. Boss told me you'll be dancing with us today, and I found that new, I mean, who's going to serve?" Adriana asked.

She was the best among everyone, and she gained recognition immediately when she stepped on the stage. She only entertained the VIPs, and the lucky thing was that she never, for once, sat around the VIPs to keep them company. Her job was to dance and gain money. No slapping of ass at the VIP while dancing. They could only throw the money at the dancers. 

Just looking at her made her forget she had to striptease. That was how captivating she was. She also got paid monthly, which Rachael found jealous of herself. She couldn't even go outside the nightclub not to talk of earning from it.

She was basically a slave here. Rachael stared at Adriana's blue eyes and flawless skin, with her heart shaped lips and her voluptuous curves. She had black hair that fell smoothly on her upper back. Her dresses were meant to provoke some men. The upper part had a deep cleavage that exposed half of her breasts, her stomach was exposed as well. 

"Come let's go, we are next," she pulled Rachael with her. Oh, and she was also a sweet talker.

Rachael walked to the VIP section. Adriana went to her pole and everyone already started applauding. She drew attention, something told Rachael she was the reason most of the VIPs came here. The manager sometimes gets paid handsomely by the VIPs just to have her for the night, and Adriana either rejects or collects half of the payment. She was really more fortunate than her, but she is jealous of her more because she had her freedom unlike her.

They were signaled to join Adriana. Rachael took in deep breaths before going up to the stage. She held the pole nervously, then she started moving her stiff body in an awkward way. She saw some VIPs looking at her with a strange look as if she were humiliating herself. Oh! She almost forgot that she was, in fact, humiliating herself.

She went up on the pole, but on her way down, her grips loosened, and she fell on her butt. She groaned in pain and stood up, but lost her balance and fell off the stage, pushing Adriana off the stage as well and hurting her knees in the process.

The dance finally ended just right at that time. She walked back to her room, tiredly and limping.

"I can't believe you actually injured our best dancer!" She heard the manager's angry voice behind her. She stood up and faced her.

"I… I didn't mean to cause any harm, it was an accident," she explained. She was also injured as well, but Adriana fell on her back when she fell on top of her, so Adriana was the one severely injured. But that didn't save Rachael from getting hurt as well, since the stage was quite high.

"I don't need your apologies. What would they do for me now that Adriana is out, and they boss it around? You useless thing, she was the only one I could think of that can help the mess you've created. Get dressed, you have another dance to perform." 

Rachael was shocked to the core. Her knee was bleeding already, and her butt hurt a lot. 

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Derek walked out the room and headed to the manager's office.

He entered without knocking. "Oh, Mr.-" the manager began.

He raised his hand to cut her off. "What happened to her?

"What happened to who, boss?"

"The stripper that fell off the stage?" He asked.

Mrs. Valeria fell silent. Derek grew annoyed.

"Don't let me repeat myself," he warned.

She flinched back in fear. Derek was losing his patient. "How about I terminate your employment for being useless?"

With that said, she snapped back to life and started begging on her knees.

"Where is she?" He asked again, ignoring her plea.

"She… She's badly injured, so please just give me another chance to fix this-"

"Where is her room?" He cut her off.

"Her room?" Mrs. Valeria repeated as she tried to remember. "In… In the hallway… No.. Umm," she shook her head as she still tried to remember the place she knew at heart but forgot because of fear. She looked up when she finally remembered. "The last room… Yes, the last room in the hallway. The last door on the right," she said and sighed, feeling proud of herself for remembering.

Derek turned and walked out of the room, heading to the end of the hallway. He entered the room but saw no one there. He left the room and checked the room close to it. He stepped in, and his eyes searched around the dim room and paused at a figure of a lady. Her back facing him, she was putting on the same cloth, and he subconsciously walked closer to her.

He walked in and stood behind her. She looked a bit taller up close than she was from afar. He pushed his hand into his pocket while he stared down at her. He noticed the bruises on her arm and felt like touching it gently.

Rachael felt like someone was behind her, and she swirled around only to bump into a man's rock-like chest. She staggered backwards, but the man's hand went around her waist to help her. However, it only brought her close to him.

Derek's eyes stared at the girl in front of him. He could hardly see her face in the dim room. He leaned down as he tilted his head to the right.

Rachael tensed when she felt his breath on her neck as he spoke against it.

"Why do you smell so familiar?" Derek asked before pressing his lips on her neck.