“Is that tray going to table twenty-seven?” Allie asks me as I come out from behind the bar with another round of beers for the rowdiest group in Club Limelight this evening. It’s super busy for a weeknight, and the club’s DJ, Audio Anarchy, is dropping beats that have almost everyone up and out of their chairs and on the dance floor.
Not this group of six guys who are in town auditioning for some boy band, though. All they do is sit and toss back beers like they are water. I don’t mind. Tips from them have been good, and I am shoving twenties into my bag behind the bar like a mad woman. Everyone is in a giving mood tonight, and it looks like I might actually make enough in tips to pay the monthly rent on my shitty apartment in just my first week here.
“Yeah, this tray is for them,” I tell Allie as the blonde smiles and shadows me. Earlier in the week, I’d been following her around, watching her do everything so I could learn, but now, she said I was capable of doing things on my own. Still, for a night or two, she’ll continue to hang out with me to make sure everything goes smoothly.
“Here we are!” I say, arriving at the table just as one of my favorite songs saturates the space around us. I can’t help but move my hips a little to the sick beat as I place the beers on the table in front of the young men. A couple of them are kind of cute, but I’ve been too busy tonight to flirt.
Well, except for the bit of casual philandering I do to get higher tips. But that’s a given.
“You boys enjoy,” I say with a dazzling smile and quick flip of my long auburn tresses over my shoulder. I swivel my hips a bit more, pretending it’s part of my dance, and watch as the bills appear on the table.
“You’re beautiful,” a tall blond with glossy eyes says, sloshing his beer as he attempts to get the glass to his lips.
“Thanks,” I say with a shoulder shrug. “You just make sure you’re not the one driving home, babe.”
He laughs, as do the rest of his drunk friends. Another one, a shorter guy with bright orange hair says, “Haven’t you ever heard of Boober…I mean Uber!” And they all laugh.
“Someone’s head is in the gutter,” I tease, but I know my boobs are great, so why wouldn’t he have been checking them out?
With the tips secure in my apron, for now, I flash another smile and then turn around to wind my way back across the dance floor, remembering what Allie told me the other night about not letting my smile fade too quickly. “Other customers are watching you,” she’d said. “Even if those customers can’t see your face anymore, it’s still important to look genuine.”
It was good advice, and I planned to use it in other situations as well. Besides, smiling helps to keep a person’s outlook positive, and I need to focus on the good things that have come my way recently.
My shift is almost over, and I need to put these tips away before I go back out to check on another table. The club is busy, but we’ve had a full staff working here every night I’ve been waitressing so far, so no one is too rundown, unlike the diner I used to work at back in Ohio where my feet felt like they were going to disintegrate after every shift.
Allie’s long blonde ponytail swings back and forth as we head back to the bar. “You’re cleaning up tonight!” she says. I feel bad she’s not making any tips since she’s shadowing me, but she insisted I keep them. “You keep making those sorts of tips, and you won’t be living in that nasty place much longer.”
I let out a loud sigh as the two of us push through the half door that leads to behind the bar. “Yeah, it’s not that bad, but it sucks my landlord is a scumbag.” I shake my head and wait for Carter, the bartender, to move aside so I can stash my cash. All the girls who are working have a system for keeping our tips safe, and I am glad I listened to Allie and brought a big bag because I have all kinds of bills in there tonight. It’s nearly overflowing. Counting them after my shift will definitely make my smile more genuine.
I turn and catch Carter’s eyes, and he grins at me. He’s a good guy, kinda cute with dark hair that’s frosted on the tips and goes up in a swoosh in front of his right eye. He’s super talented, too. At the moment, he’s juggling bottles and wowing the crowd. It sort of reminds me of that Tom Cruise movie my mom used to watch all the time…Martini, or something.
“Meghan, can you take these drinks to forty-three?” Carter asks as I get ready to go back to my station and check on my other tables one more time. The next shift starts in about ten minutes, and while I’m having fun, I am ready to go home and rest. “Sadie’s caught up over there with the Jax Blue crowd.”
I look across the crowded club. Between the heads of all the dancers, I’m able to see the famous actor sitting in one corner of the spacious room with a ton of other people surrounding him. He has a big personality, and even from here, I can see he’s entertaining them with a story. Sadie is standing there, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, probably waiting for someone to make up their mind about what they want to drink. I’m a little jealous. Part of the reason I really wanted to work here is because I heard a lot of celebs come in. What I wouldn’t do to rub elbows with LA’s rich and famous. My dreams are already coming true, now that I’m here, and I can’t help but feel the excitement pulsing through my veins with every drop of the bass.
“Sure!” I say in response to Carter’s request. I have no problem helping out a fellow waitress. She would do the same for me.
“Like I keep tellin’ the big guy, you’re a keeper!” Carter says with a quick wink that makes me blush. I take the tray and head to forty-three, though I’m not exactly sure which table that is, so I’m glad Allie is with me.
As we walk, she guides me in the right direction. “You haven’t met the ‘big guy’ yet, have you?” she asks, having to shout a little over the music. My song has ended, and some techno version of the newest J-Lo song is playing. Audio Anarchy, whose real name I’ve learned is Dylan, is dancing on the dais, and when he sees us, he waves. I wave back, careful with my tray of drinks as I wind my way between the dancers.
The big guy—I think he’s usually just called Boss from what I can tell. Or Hunter. I think that’s his name. “No, I haven’t met him yet,”I say. “When I came in for my interview, he was out. I talked to Ethan and Lexi.”
Ethan, the club bouncer, was smokin’ hot with his huge, musclebound arms and winning smile. He was also hilarious, and with his mop of unkempt dark hair, I could see why tons of girls did their best to flirt their way in here—just to stare at him.
“Lexi is so sweet,” Allie murmurs. The waitress in question, who has been here a long time, apparently, is currently dancing near the DJ stage while she takes an order, her curly dark hair bouncing around as she does so.
“Yeah, she’s great. Everyone is, so far.” I smile at Allie as we arrive at the table and set the drinks down. This table is full of men and women, and they don’t tip as well as the last group, but I take the few bucks they’re giving me and thank them.
This might be my last table of the night. I’m dreaming of a bath—even if it is in a tiny tub in a shitty little apartment.
It’smyshitty little apartment.
“You are liking it here, aren’t you?” Allie asks with a grin. “I can tell.”
“Yeah, it’s great.” I nod and glance around. The sleek, black décor gives the place a trendy look, while the blue LEDs uplighting the walls set the ambiance as cool and hip. Audio Anarchy has neon strobe lights that pass over the crowd on the dance floor, and similar lights beam down from the ceiling. I’ve never been to any of the private rooms down the halls in the back of the club, but I’ve heard those are for VIPs only.
That’s one thing I haven’t quite figured out yet. The club is amazing to work at. Everyone is super nice and eager to help. But I don’t know what some of the lingo means. The other day, someone told Allie they had a golden key, and Carter said if anyone ever tells me that phrase to let him know.