“I’m fine,” I tell him, forcing a smile over my shoulder as I push through the door, almost running into Leah.
“Hey,” she says in a friendly tone. I smile, but I don’t have time to chat. I rush to the restroom and pull my skirt up out of the way so that I don’t have to mess with the belt and pull my panties down.
Red.
“Oh, God!” I collapse onto the toilet, relieved but also embarrassed. I will need to check my skirt to make sure nothing leaked through, but it isn’t much blood. It’s just enough to ruin these panties.
Tears fill my eyes, and I almost can’t handle how happy I am to know that it’s my period. For the last two weeks, I haven’t allowed myself to dwell on the fact that Hunter and I had sex without using a condom, but it’s been in the back of my mind. Now, seeing this, I am so happy I am literally crying, but I’m also uncomfortable because damn, if these cramps don’t hurt.
I sit in the stall for a few minutes, trying to get my shit together, but the tears don’t want to stop, and then I hear the outer door open, and I am a sniffling mess, trying not to draw attention to myself.
“Meghan?” I hear Sadie’s voice right outside of my stall door. “Are you all right, babe?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” I tell her. “Would you mind grabbing my bag out of my locker though, please?” I always keep a tampon in there and some extra panties—just in case.
“Of course,” she says, and I tell her the combination so she can grab it for me.
While she is gone, I manage to get myself together. I check my skirt and see that, thankfully, there’s no blood on it. I take my panties off and dispose of them discreetly, and then Sadie is back, and she slides my bag under the door. I put on my fresh panties and insert a tampon while she’s peeing. When I come out, I take one look in the mirror and say, “Well, fuck.” I swallow a couple of pain pills, using water from the sink to wash them down.
Sadie is giggling at my remark as she washes her hands, and I try to figure out how the hell I’m going to go back out there and finish my shift looking like I just ran a marathon. My makeup is all streaked, my hair is messed up, and my face is puffy and red. I look awful. Forget about getting any more tips tonight.
“Oh, it’s not so bad,” Sadie tells me, seeing me trying to fix my hair. “But I think we can make it better. Wait here, and I’ll be right back.”
I raise an eyebrow at her, wondering why she wants me to hang out in the employee bathroom, but I do as she says, and she leaves. It gives me time to try to scrub off the eye makeup that’s dripped down my cheeks.
A few minutes later, she returns, only she is not alone as Stella is with her, and she’s carrying a makeup kit unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. “Girl, don’t you worry,” Stella tells me. “I’ve got enough experience putting on stage makeup, I can fix you right up!”
Her confidence has me smiling, so I have no objections to letting her try. She doesn’t let me look in the mirror until she’s done, but when she does, I hardly recognize myself.
I look good—better than normal. Better than ever.
“You’re a miracle worker,” I tell her, and we all laugh. “Thank you, Stella,” I add, and she hugs me before she goes.
I turn to Sadie. “Thank you so much for all of your help.”
“Of course!” she says. “What are friends for? You know, I’m not sure what the problem was, but I can tell you… if it was a guy… he’s not worth it.”
I arch an eyebrow at her. It wasn’t about a guy—not exactly. But it certainly involved the actions of one. I listen to what she has to say, thinking she’s right, and then give her a hug. Despite the situation with Hunter, I am sure now that these people are my friends, and that this is my family. Club Limelight feels like home again.
As Sadie heads back to the dance floor, I drop my bag back in my locker and head out behind her, and immediately, I can tell there is a difference. Leah’s eyes widen when she sees me, and Carter says, “Well, hello there, gorgeous.” I punch him playfully in the arm and grab my tray.
I’ve had more confidence in my step since I kneed that asshole at the beach and realized I could stick up for myself, but now, wearing this makeup, I feel like a million bucks. I go on collecting orders, delivering drinks, and racking up tips, not even worried about the slight cramps I’m still getting.
About an hour before my shift ends, Ethan saunters over to me while I’m waiting on a table full of rowdy guys. At first, I think maybe he’s just going to tell them to settle down, but then he says to me, “Are you a parking ticket?”
I stare at him for a second, waiting for the punchline, but he just looks at me, so I say, “No, why?”
“Because you’ve got ‘fine’ written all over you tonight, baby.” He runs a hand through his unruly curls and just grins at me.
I can’t help but shake my head. “That was…awful,” I tell him. “Seriously, the worst pickup line I’ve ever heard, and some guy just told me he was Microsoft and wanted to crash at my place tonight.”
“Damn, that’s a pretty bad one, too,” Ethan admits. “I’m just joking. It’s what I do.” He shrugs.
“I’ve noticed that about you,” I say with a wink, and he tells my table to straighten up or he’ll pound their asses before he goes back to his post by the door.
I can’t help the giggle that escapes me as I head back to the bar. I spend the rest of the evening with a smile on my face and a laugh in each word that slips between my lips.
With my last tray of drinks delivered, I head back to the bar, ready for the closing crew to come in. “Have a good night,” Carter tells me, looking a bit longingly at me as I take my apron off and drop it in the bin for the wash. I know he’s not wanting to be with me, though. He’s just jealous he can’t go home yet.