It was the first weekend in months that I didn’t have a job, so I was enjoying myself on the first floor. Trying to be normal for once. I could’ve stayed home, but with my luck I’d run into Dad and he would find something or someonefor me to do.
Kane was on hisdatewith Lauren, so Gemma and Noah were hooking up. Theo was probably curled up on Kane’s bed waiting for him to come home.
I was here alone, but it didn’t matter. I made friends quickly, dancing with strangers, taking shots of god knows what, getting offered a variety of pills and powders.
I didn’t touch that shit though. Weed, yes. That other shit? Hell no.
The only time I’d taken drugs, it was involuntary and it was the worst night of my life. The terror, pain, and misery from that night would be burned into my soul until my last breath. I never wanted to experience that helpless feeling again.
I swayed to the music, and my tight (and short) blood red dress rode up my thighs, but I didn’t care. My black thigh-high patent leather boots looked fucking sick under the strobe lights.
A band was on stage coveringOhio Is For Loversby Hawthorne Heights, electrifying the room with the classic alternative hit.
I loved this. Just this. Music, movement, energy. Bass, electricity, pleasure. There was nothing better than this.
The crowd belted the lyrics like we were at a real concert, and I swayed along with a girl with pink hair and some guy who was sweaty and spitting the words, but fuck it. We were all having a blast.
Once the song was done, I pushed through the crowd to get to the DJ booth next to the stage. I was bored and I wanted to sing, and on Fridays people could sign up to perform a song or two.
Reggie, our karaoke scheduler, was manning the booth, organizing who was performing for the night. He was in his late twenties with buzzed blonde hair and enough holes in his face to rival a sieve.
“Any spots open tonight, Reg?”
“I just booked the last one. Sorry, babe.” Reggie mock-pouted and my heart sunk.
Shit, I should’ve checked earlier. I came here with the plan of singing but I reveled in the feeling of the crowd. Getting lost in a room full of strangers, forgetting who I was for a few moments.
“Anyone willing to do a duet?” I teased, glancing over the booth to see his tablet screen. Even though the odds were slim, some people came here with the intention of dueting. It was fun getting paired with a talented stranger for three and half minutes.
“For you? I’ll share my spot,” a man said from across the booth. He looked to be a few years older than me and had white-blonde hair and aqua blue eyes. He was like a ghost personified, if a ghost had tattoos crawling up his neck and kissing his face. The ghost had gauges and piercings galore, with a wicked smirk to boot.
“You sure, man?” Reggie asked and the mystery man nodded, fist-bumping Reg and walking around the booth to me.
“What do you want for it?” I asked, eying him, knowing damn well no one was nice for free. Everything came at a cost.
“Nothing.”
“Bullshit.”
The ghost laughed and shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe I’m just a nice guy.”
“There’s no such thing.”
“Ouch. I’m Hail,” he said as he took my hand and kissed the back of it.
“Hail. I’m–”
“The girl who dances erotically to I Prevail. Yeah, I could pick you out of a lineup of a hundred hot brunettes.”
Oh, he was a second-floor guy. Didn’t look like the typical client, but hey, I didn’t pay attention to much other than my target when I was swinging around the pole.
“It was a compliment, by the way. It’s fucking mesmerizing how you do that,” Hail said, still holding my hand.
I blushed. Fucking. Blushed.
“Dani. I guess I should ask what type of songs you cover before we agree to duet,” I said, changing the subject.
Hail dropped my hand and chuckled. “If you had to guess, what would I cover?”