I shove my make-up bag in my locker and close it quickly before following him, Cosette, and two other girls out into the club. The fluorescent lights are gone and replaced with the dramatic, flashing colors from the night before. The club is still pretty empty, but there are a few guests arriving. No one is dancing yet, even though the DJ has already taken her place and the music has started to pound.
Randall stops by one of the cages that’s on the floor by the edge of the dance floor. “Okay, so the main thing I need to tell you guys about is our tipping system.” He points to a screen that’s attached to the top of the cage, easily visible. It says the number of the cage. “We’ve got an app, and if somebody likes what you’re doing in the cage, they can tip you. Anything above $50, your cage gets spotlights, and the bars glow. I’m sure you’ll see soon enough. Rack up enough tips, and you’ll get confetti from the ceiling. Don’t hold your breath on that though, it takes a lot to get there and even with our high rollers, it rarely happens. Any questions.”
I don’t have any, it seems pretty straightforward.
“Good. You’ll have a break half-way through your shift. I’ll send a waitress to tell you when.” He points to one of the other new girls. “In you go.” He helps her into the cage. The other stranger goes into another cage on the floor. Some of the cages are already taken with girls dancing. It makes sense. You need the mood to be in place when the customers come in. But for Cosette and me, he doesn’t give us a cage on the floor. Instead he walks us to the middle of the dance floor where several cages hang above just above the heads of the crowd. If someone jumped they might be able to touch the bottom. A couple of them are already taken, but Randall has a remote in his hand, and two of them lower to the floor. He gives a mocking bow to us. “Your chariots, girls.”
I look at Cosette and grin, pretending that I’ve forgotten our exchange in the locker room. “Ready to make some money?”
“You know it.” She gives me a high five before climbing into her cage.
Our screens are at the bottom of the cage. I can see Cosette’s, and she can see mine, and I notice there’s a tiny screen inside the cage that lets us know how much the current tip is, plus our total. My stomach lurches a little as the cage is lifted off the floor. I’ve never danced in anything suspended like this. It’s going to take me some time to get used to the way it swings with my movements, to trust that it’s not going to fall and that I’ll be able to dance without being afraid. I look over and I see the same look on my friend’s face: nervous anticipation. The cages lock into place, and for a second, I stand there. I’m really doing this. I’m dancing in a cage. At a sex club. What the hell am I doing?
Randall’s voice floats up from below. “Well? Get going. We’re paying you to dance, not to stand still.”
Sharing a look with Cosette, I shrug. It’s way too late for me to turn back now. So, closing my eyes, I start to dance.
5
I am so happy I took this job. My feet hurt like hell and I’m sweating like a pig, but I don’t think I’ve ever been happier. The dress I’m wearing does exactly what I hoped it would with the lights, and I know it’s getting people’s attention. Cosette’s cage is close enough that we can see each other, use each other for inspiration. It’s been a few hours, and the club is packed.
Maybe an hour ago I got my first big tip, my cage lighting up like a firework, and some of the club’s lights spinning to focus on me. It was only a minute or so, but that minute when every eye was on me, it was the biggest adrenaline boost in the world. Cosette and I have both been tipped since then, each spotlight session has us upping our game, trying to out-dance the other and the crowd fucking loves it.
We both have the biggest smiles on our faces, and I think that the people watching can tell that we’re having a good time. Even though I know she’s high, she seems okay right now—like the dancing is settling her. It lets me relax. The song changes from a frenzied speed to a slower electric song, and I like the way it makes me dance. Suddenly my moves are smoother, slower, more deliberate. White light hits my cage as the spots turn on me, and I launch into a solo, grabbing the cage and using the cage to spin it with me. I dip myself backwards, and forwards again, rolling my body in time with the music. And just as suddenly the lights turn off and there’s blue eyes instead.