CAGED DIAMOND

A/N This is my first story in this fandom. Please be aware that there is some extremely dark stuff gonna happen in this story. I'm hoping to get a chapter up a week. Please read and review and let me know what you think!

Well, Shae! Here we go! Let's see where it is gonna take us!

Kendall was making his way down the dark alleyway between the large, warehouse like buildings looking for the address written on the piece of paper in his hand. Surely this was no place for a nightclub? Even one with as unsavoury a reputation as this one had. 'Twisted Desires' It was called, a gay strip joint that promised to cater for all tastes. But although money had become a problem since he had arrived here in LA from Minnesota, he hadn't yet sunk that low. Kendall was in LA to persue his dreams of being a rockstar and even though he was gay himself, there was no way that he was gonna strip for a living.

The job he was being interviewed for was as a barkeeper and it said general duties too, he wasn't actually sure what that would involve, but he would definitely ask before accepting the job. Though to be honest, he wasn't really in any position to refuse pretty much anything. He needed to make some money and quickly or he would lose the room that he was renting. He turned a corner and there it finally was. A huge plain looking three storey building with neon lights all over the front and the frontage painted slick, gloss black with silver trim. He supposed that it looked quite classy for where it was. There was a door already open at the side and he walked through looking for the guy he was supposed to talk to. But it appeared to be empty.
"Err? Hello? Anyone here?" He called, he glanced down at the piece of paper for the guy's name. "Mr Bitters?" He stood waiting , staring around the place. Everything inside the building was also in the theme of black and silver. The bar over to the right was gleaming silver with the optics and bottles on the wall behind and fridgesunder the shelves full of beers and juices. At the other end of the large room was the stage, it had two gleaming silver poles on either side and a band set up at the back of the platform. The room itself was full of tables and chairs and nearer to the stage there were a couple of large leather couches. Black, of course.

Kendall jumped slightly when he heard the man coming down the spiral staircase in the corner, just past the bar. The man was large, bespectacled and as he approached and spoke, rather not in a fun way.

"Kendall Knight, I presume?" He sounded sarcastic even from those short did not think he was gonna like the man very much but, hey! What did that matter? He was gonna be his boss not his friend. He gave a nod and went to answer him, only to be cut short with a gruff, "Take your shirt off then!" Kendallk was taken aback, green eyes opening wide.

"What! I'm here for the barkeeps job! I'm not a stripper!"

Bitter's tutted and put his hands on his wide hips.

"And even our barmen need to be ...Presentable! Now shirt off! Come on! Or don't you want this job?" He tapped his foot as he stood waiting for Kendall to comply. Realising that he had to do it if he wanted the job, he sighed and crossed his arms and peeled his grey t-shirt off of his body. And he didn't 'want' this job, he 'needed' it. He let the shirt hang down in his grip and then crossed his arms defensively over his chest.

"And how am I supposed to see your... Form like that? Put your arms down! He shouted in Kendalls face. No. Kendall really didn't like this man, but he really wanted the job so he did as he was asked, breathing in sharply as he dropped his hands to his side, staring ahead of him and trying to ignore the man walking slowly around him, examining his 'form', his body closely.

"Not bad. No scars. But you are rather pale, especially for LA." He told the boy.

"I only got here last week."

"Where from? Antartica?" He snapped back.

"Minnesota."

"Might as well be Antartica. Well, I suppose that you can get some colour pretty quickly. You'll do. Wait there and I'll go get your uniform." The man turned away and started up the spiral staircase. Kendall went to start putting his t-shirt back on, and as Bitters came round to face him again he stopped and shouted at him again.

"Don't bother doing that! You still have to try on your uniform!" He shook his head as if he thought the boy was stupid and continued up the stairs while Kendall waited, t-shirt in hand and arms back crossed over his chest as he looked around himself nervously. Five minutes later he reappeared with a stack of clothing in his arms. Not a very big stack of clothing , but he informed Kendall that this was his uniform and he was to go up to the dressingroom opposite the top of the stairs and get changed. Then he could come backdown to meet his assistant and stage manager who would tell him what his job involved and show him how the cash register worked.

Kendall got to the top of the stairs and went into the room opposite as he had been told to. It was a rather dark room with the typical dressingroom table with lights around the mirror like he had seen in a million movies. There was a chair off to one side and he dropped the pile of clothing onto it and then began to look through them to see what he was expected to wear. And then he looked through them again just to reassure himself that this was really what they expected him to wear in public . Yep! Seems that they did. He went over to the door and clicked the lock on, no way he wanted anyone to walk in on him! But then from the looks of his uniform, would his body really be anymore concealed while he was wearing it?

He stripped off his clothing, and took a breath and began to put on the clothing he had been given. First item. A red leather thong, he slipped into the item and adjusted it so that he wasn't showing more than he wanted, he was probably going to have to give himself a ...ahem! Haircut later he thought! Next thing was what he thought was a pair of leather trousers but on unfolding then he found that they were cut open completely at the groin, with lacing across that highlighted the colour of the thong. They were also completely cut away across the back meaning the the globes of his ass were completely exposed. The top of the outfit consisted of white linen cuffs and a collar with a thin black tie that hung down the middle of his chest. He couldn't help but to go take a quick look at himself in the mirror and was both shocked and a little surprised at the image of himself that looked back. He looked good! But he still wasn't completely sure about projecting this image to the patrons of the club, he wasn't an openly sexual person.

He made his way back down the staircase to find that the manager had disappeared again, but there was another man there waiting for Kendall with his back turned to him that he assumed was the stage manager. The guy turned round when he heard the boy step off of the stairs. He was tall and slim with dark, spikey hair, shaved short on one side of his head and stunning blue eyes, he appeared to be around late twenties and he was dressed all in black leather with heavily made up eyes and a preditory smile. He looked kind of intimidating, standing there, feet apart and hands clasped behind his back, but when he smiled it was a whole different thing.

"Oh my! Aren't you perty!" he purred seductively as he began to circle round Kendall, looking him up and down all the time. No! Kendall thought, he was not 'perty!' Guys were handsome, not pretty, though with the make up, this guy did come quite close to it. He held his hand out to Kendall and he nervously took it, but instead of a handshake the guy lowered to the proferred hand and planted a gentle kiss on the back of Kendall's hand.

" You must be the newbie! Kendall isn't it?" He tilted his head as he waited for the reply. Kendall just nodded.

"And my name is Byron. I'm going to help you get to grips with your nice, new shiney job. I am the Emcee here. I keep the acts in order, make sure that you do your job right and on some nights, I perform too. Singing. I don't dance." Unlike Bitters, Kendall began to warm to Byron almost straight away and it gave him a little more confidence.

"Multi-talented!" Kendall grinned at him.

"Oh yes! I also make sure that the barstaff are properly attired. Turn round please!" He stepped back slightly, guesturing with his finger for Kendall to rotate as he dropped his head and examined him in minute detail. From his face he liked what he saw.

"Hmm? Yes I think that you'll do. Now before I get to the boring stuff, how to operate the tills etcetera, I'm going to give you a quick tour of the club and explain some of those, extra duties that are mentioned on the advertisement. Follow me please." He beckoned for Kendall to follow him as they started back up the spiral staircase. He paused a few steps up and turned to the boy again.

"You know, I wasn't thinking straight. I should have got you to go up in front of me really. Then I could have got a really good look at your ass!" He gave a cheeky grin before turning back and continuing up the stairs. Kendall couldn't help but chuckle.

Byron walked along the corridor beyond the dressingroom that Kendall had left his clothes in. He showed him where the performers would change, there was a large kitchen, some offices, and he showed him the janitors cupboard only in case there should ever be need for him to get a mop or something to clean up any accidents. As they carried on towards a second spiral staircase there were windows on one side looking out, rather surprisingly, on a lush well kept courtyard garden with a fountain sparkling in the sunshine and a palmtree with a circular seat around it. It seemed quite a bizarre thing to seen in this kinda area, but it was kinda nice too.

"Chrissie!"

The shout from behind him made Kendall jump slightly. It was loud, even though it came from behind a door further back down the corridor, from one of two locked rooms that Byron had said he would tell him about later. The look on Byron's face had suddenly changed, he closed his eyes and dropped his face to the floor , rubbing his eyes with his middle finger and thumb. A look of utter desolation flashed briefly before he remembered who he was with. He stood up straight and forced a smile onto his face, tilting his head back slightly as he waited for the next shout that he knew would be coming.

"Mr Bitters? Byron? Anyone?" He'd obviously heard their footsteps as they passed the door. And he knew he could probably guess what the boy wanted.

With a soft sigh he made his way back to the door. Kendall was a little shocked when he pulled out a set of keys, flicking through them untill he found the right one. Why was the door locked when someone was in there?

"Yeah! I heard ya! One minute!" The shouting stopped and Byron turned the key and pushed the door open. This room was being lived in. There was a bed in the corner and a cute Latino guy was kneeling on the end of it clutching the metal bedstead and eagerly watching as the door was opened.

"What do ya want, Carlos?" Byron only asked out of politeness. At this time of day he knew exactly what the boy wanted. Same thing as he wanted most times of the day.

"I'm hungry, Byron! Can I have something to eat? Pleeeaase?" Such a childlike young man. Sometimes it was hard to believe the things that were expected of him. Byron just stood holding the door open as he bounced on his knees, eyes wide. He sighed and gave an indulgent smile.

"OK. Come on then. Let's see what we can find for you." He bounced from his place on the bed and headed towards the door. He was barefoot, wearing sweats and a t-shirt, but the thing that Kendall noticed almost straight away was that he wore a narrow black collar, the type that you usually saw on a dog, not a human being. But, he supposed, in a place like this it was not that strange, not that he knew too much about the scene he guessed that he was probably a submissive. Not that he expected one to behave the way that Carlos did, rushing ahead of them back to the kitchen, beckoning Byron on with a voice full of youthful enthusiasm. He didn't seem to have noticed Kendall for a moment as he stood to the side watching the interaction of the two men, but when he did, stopped stock still and openly stared.

"Who's that?" He asked pointing at him, his face full of curiosity. Byron turned and looked at Kendall over his shoulder, again something seemed to flash through his eyes, but it was gone as soon as it came.

"This?" The boy nodded. "This is Kendall. He's going to be working here. He's going to help me keep an eye on you!" He smiled then began to walk towards the kitchen again.

"Why? Where's Chris?" Byron froze. He didn't want to answer. he had been dreading the question and hadn't expected it to come so soon.

"He left. " He began to move again.

"When? Why?" The boy asked again. Byron gave a deep sigh.

" This morning. He got a better job offer. In Europe." That would have to do, far enough away that Carlos wouldn't ask to see him. The boy's face fell and tears prickled his soft brown eyes.

"And he didn't say goodbye?" He asked sadly. Oh fuck! Don't cry boy! If he started crying, Byron didn't think he could keep up the fascade. he reached and pulled the boy to him, Carlos' head resting on his broad chest. Damn it, Byron! Why did you ever get involved in this crap?

"He didn't have time. He found out really last minute." Carlos wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug, then pulled back and looked up into his eyes,

"Will he keep in touch? Let us know how he is?" Us? He knew who else he meant. The poor boy who had unwittingly caused this situation. He supposed that he would have to lie to him too. He kissed the top of the boy's head gently.

"He said that he would try to write. International calls are expensive. OK?" The boy looked up at him as he stepped back quietly. Byron smiled softly and took his hand. "Come on, then. I thought you were hungry?" The boy blinked a couple of times and then followed down the corridor, a smile returning to his face.

"Hey, Kendall? Do you like corndogs?" He called across to him. Kendall was not sure what he liked at the moment, and definitely not sure about this place. But, hey it was a job and it paid well. So, at least for the time being it was going to have to do. He couldn't help but smile at the boys enthusiasm and he answered with a quick 'yeah' as the boy let go of Byron's hand and ran ahead of them and into the kitchen.

Byron looked at Kendall, wondering what the blond was thinking about his interaction with the Latino youth.

"Hard to believe that he is a performer here, isn't it? The way he behaves like a six year old." Kendall nodded, still wondering what the hell he was getting into.

"What does he do?" He threw back his head with a loud laugh.

"He dances of course! And sometimes he works the poles. Don't let his behaviour fool you. Carlos is all man! Sexy as hell when he is on stage and the customers love him." Yeah, some of them a little more than he would have liked. Poor Carlos.

When they got into the kitchen, Carlos was already seated on a bar stool at the counter, or rather he was trying to sit at the counter. Byron watched with concern as he fought to get comfortable, frowning slightly when he let out a little yelp before finally settling down.

"You OK, Carlos?" He asked, still watching him intently as he made his way over to the huge double doored fridge-freezer.

"Yup! Hungry!" But they both knew that that wasn't what Byron meant. He opened the door and reached into the freezer and pulled out a big box of the boy's favourite treat.

"Do you want some, Kendall?" He held the box up so he could see what he had in his hand. Kendall hadn't eaten since breakfast so he nodded his thanks. Byron crossed to the microwave and popped a half dozen corn dogs onto a glass plate and set them to heat, knowing that most of them would end up inside the excitable young though Carlos was not his type, he prefered blond twinks and a european accent sent him crazy, he still found Carlos adorable and it made his heart sink everytime he thought of the additional performances that he was forced to give in the VIP lounge.

"Did you have any extra clients last night then? " He knew from the squirming that the boy had, but how bad it had been he wasn't sure he really wanted to know. The microwave pinged and he went over and retrieved the food, setting the plate on the counter and guesturing for Kendall to take a seat next to Carlos. He himself say down opposite them and rested his chin on his back of his joined hands, watching as the Latina began to shove the food into his mouth. "Be careful. They're hot!" He warned him and grinned as he watched his happy face. How could anyone be happy, living their life the way Carlos did?

"I only had some oatmeal this morning, and you know me! I need to eat!" Byron noticed how he had ignored the question about clients. His silence about what he had done, the only clue to his hatred of it. In Carlos' mind, if he did not talk about it, he could pretend that it did not happen. But his discomfort as he tried to settle on the seat again, reminded him that it had.

While Carlos and Kendall ate, Byron told him more of the things he would have to do, nothing big. Serving drinks and food to the VIP clients on the couches, Byron did not expect him to go into the VIP lounge. Not yet anyway, not until he was sure that the boy could handle seeing what went on in there some nights. he also needed him to keep an eye on Carlos during the day, when he was busy, mainly keeping him fed and happy, but oddly to Kendall, he was not to be around when Carlos was ready to perform or when the boy returned to his room afterwards. There was also another guy in the room next to Carlos', but he would only ever be expected to go into his room when Byron was with him.

"Why?" Kendall asked, jerking his head back slightly.

"Because that is the rules!" Byron snapped back, surprising the blond with his sharp response.

"OK. Just curious. Is he dangerous or something?" Kendall could never not give it back and he briefly wondered if he really wanted this job. But he needed the money so he opened his mouth to apologise but was cut off by Byron.

"No. I'm sorry. There are some ...Issues with James. You'll soon get to know how things work around here." But would he really want to?

"Have you finished eating now?" Kendall nodded and pushed back from the counter and stood up, the sucking sound of his ass cheeks coming away from the leather reminding him that he was still in his uniform. Carlos giggled as he finished off his third corn dog and eyed the two that remained on the plate.

"Has James eaten this afternoon? Shall I give take those to him?" Now that Byron had brought up the other boy, he felt comfortable mentioning him. Byron smiled kindly at him like an indulgent parent.

"Now, you know that you aren't allowed in James' room, don't you?"

"Aww! But he has a tv! And he must be lonely on his own." He pleaded.

"No. And that is final. I'll take the food to him and then I'm going to take him to the garden for a while, then I'll come back and see to you. Kendall, why don't you go get changed and wait downstairs and then I'll show you around down there. OK?" Kendall nodded agreement and headed out of the kitchen. As he left Carlos slipped from his seat with a flinch, watching the blonde's retreating form.

"Hey Kendall! " He called after him, causing him to stop and turn back to the boy. A huge grin was spread over Carlos' face.

"Nice ass, dude!" He chuckled. Kendall was slightly shocked, this place was going to take some getting used to, but he found himself looking down at his own barely concealed behind.

"Oh! Thanks!" What else could he say?

He continued down the corridor and back to the dressing room and began to change back into his jeans, only now did he remember that he had left his t-shirt downstairs. But then, he doubted that anyone would be shocked by a guy walking around topless in a place like this. he finished dressing and then made his way downstairs, settling in a chair as he put his shirt on and waited for Byron to return.

Well, here we go! Please read and review! Thank you for your time! Blessings Allie )O(