A/N; I'll spare the I've always wanted to write fanfiction speech because that's on my profile I do want to dig into why I chose this specific topic. Making Elena a stripper started out as a joke, I won't lie and I didn't think I could pull it off until one of my friends encouraged me. At one point I was just sick of the lack of Stefan/Elena fics on this site despite them having a good following and from what I've witnessed online The Vampire Diaries is still pretty relevant. This trope is very taboo and there are a handful of stories that cover the life of dating an exotic dancer for this fandom. I thought about the characters in a setting that would be all human of course in the past but with the added twist I resisted for about a week and a half until I just decided to go on with it. Keep in mind that the relationships in here are not solid and subject to change, and it's rated M because I need that freedom to - put it quite bluntly - write whatever the fuck I want to without any restrictions. This story is inspired by so many shows and other stories, I cannot lie I am only one mind. So without further ado, enjoy this upcoming introduction into the life of the new dancer at the lovely Petrova Fire.
Chapter One: The Quick Room
Elena follows her verde-eyed companion on an alleyed backdoor into the building. She just wanted to run back on that train and back to her scruffy apartment, this was not the way to go. The smell of alcohol and perfume fills her nostrils as she shudders and closes her eyes. That combination of musk still didn't sit quite well with the young girl and made her long for her old life instantly where she was safe and cared for. However, the straight-haired brunette promised herself, in her dark and cold apartment, that she would not weep for that loss again, a change would happen. Tears were pointless and relentless and somber.
Inhaling her breath and opening her eyes, she walked in, seeing a few girls making the room scarce when they saw her trainer, Bonnie. The girls had the option to take this more discreet way into the establishment, thanks to the boss lady. Plus, it gave them time to prepare for whatever the floor. It didn't matter how long a person danced, there was no certainty the men behind that door were sane - or not. So, that room, their, room gave all those dancers some type of invocation.
"Girl, you don't even start today." Elena jumped at the sound of the New York native's voice. She nodded, rapidly, not wanting to annoy her already. There wasn't a lot of people in the back room as it was a weekday during the middle of a shift. Rolling her eyes, the well-experienced girl walked right past her potential protege near the lockers. Elena cautiously walked over as she heard a lock click. She was now standing next to the woman who walked her it was going to show her the ways of this world.
"Thank you-"
"Bonnie," she interrupted, attempting to keep their conversation impersonal, "It's a whole entire city of girls, you forgetting my name is no big deal." Elena paused, looking dumbfounded. Then Bonnie walks a locker over, pointing to it, and giving her a MasterLock with a key. Bonnie sighs, "Some of the girls here aren't really good with numbers like that so Ms. Boss gave us the choice to use keys." Elena mouths a thank you. She felt like her voice made the other young girl's ears bleed. Of course, she knew Bonnie's name, and she hoped she would still be able to say it.
Their boss had agreed to pay the woman to train Elena for the past week. Until Elena's deposit came in she could not work, officially. The bills needed to be paid. The girl's cluelessness was grating to deal with and even her general questions made Bonnie wonder was she even being paid enough. Throughout the few days, she grew a fondness about the girl, especially after hearing her story. There's something antique about Elena that can't be remade or copied, she had some strange feeling to protect and look out for her, it was hard to explain.
"That is a courtesy lock, you lose it, you replace it. We wear a bra and thong, to put it bluntly, so all your stuff needs to be secured, you're a bit clueless, but not stupid. Don't be one of those girls, please." The brown-haired beauty pulls out her cosmetic mirror and reapplies her lip gloss before placing it back in her bag and continues, "Yo' locker can be next to mines unless you wanna be by somebody you don't know." Elena shudders once again and shakes her quickly and thankfully. Elena was extremely gracious, so much so she ended hugging the woman in front of her; it was just instinct.
Bonnie, on the other hand, was stunned at the sudden, thoughtful act but returned the hug nevertheless. Perhaps, the two could form a mutual trust and a friendship could grow, lord knows she needed it. The brunette releases her friendly embrace and laughs, "I'm sorry it's just that this is the closest thing to hospitality I've gotten here or hell in this city." Bonnie puts her small makeup bag in the locker and shuts the locker door.
"New York has hospitality, alright, but patience is not apart of ours. Come on." The two walk-in unison leaving the club, occasionally brushing shoulders with the sounds of their light laughter.
A month passes and the ex-Virginian girl starts to find her way. As soon as her money went through, Elena's time at the club started immediately. A few times she danced with Bonnie but then they put her on the schedule on the days when all the older, creepy guys visited the place. Those were Tuesdays at five, usally after their workshift. It was their time to get away from the realites of home life but that didn't equate to treating sex workers like shit.
One of them tried to fondle the poor brunette but luckily one of the bodyguards stopped him, and then again, and finally he was escorted. The guard was was a lean, but defined man with greyish, blue orbs. He had a specific eye on Elena, and she didn't know why. She was only a half-hour in and ran in the bathroom desperately and called the only person who she knew for a short while but seemed to be pretty stable in her life.
"Bonnie," she cried wearily, "I don't think I can do this and I know you said this was going to be a humiliating shift but these guys-"
"Were they escorted out? I told Kai that you don't have much experience with telling those motherfuckers off," she paused, thinking how low his tolerance was for those types of males in the club if he saw them. "Don't do that annoying appreciative thing you do. It's his job, literally to make sure you are safe."
Elena didn't have the energy to defend herself, already defeated and counting down the hours until her shift was over. Bonnie sighed, something she did constantly with the girl and told her simply,
"0-5-10. I have some Jameson in my locker, that bitch may be room temperature, but you need to loosen up just a bit. Take a swig and go on about your night the best way you can, and bitch, I said a swig you won't be having that much fun with my drink."
She ended hanging up, but Elena followed her instructions and she was able to finish her shift satisfied, and washing down the shame with the brown liqour that burned her throat. Ever since then, she was able to get through days without Bonnie at the club too, though, it was nice having her tough exterior friend with her. Today allowed them to just hang out and temporarily not be worried about their nightly work. They traveled to a spa downtown, which was booked to capacity, but the reward for their extended waiting period and the hit their wallets took was worth the pampering.
After a 15-minute train ride to the area their destination was then walking about 10 blocks - to which Elena's endurance started to falter so they decided to take a small break in the mall. The ever spacious mall also had a train that led to it, the brunette felt a bundle of nausea. Not to mention everytime she hopped on a train that she had to clutch onto her belongings for dear life. Was public transportation sickness even real? She sluggishly thought to herself.
Back in her hometown, she had her parents drop her off everywhere until she eventually she learned how to drive her car perfectly gifted on her Sweet 16th, her last good birthday party. That nonurban life was ripped so suddenly from her the summer after. Putting those silly thoughts to the side, she preservered and here the two sat in their jackets since there was a slight chill that rang the entire east coast's ears.
"So," the curly haired girl said after filling her mouth with her greenish, sickly colored frozen yogurt, "we're supposed to be going to my apartment because I have some skecthes I want to show you." She took another scoop of her dessert. Her friend across from her raised a brow.
"I have no idea how you manage to eat that bile stuff and not have a tummyache."
Bonnie frowned, "One, and not that you need to know: It's pistachio. Two, what we do automates a no judging zone." Elena started to speak, but she put her finger up, interrupting her. "Uh-uh, like I said it doesn't matter."
"Doesn't matter shit," muttered the admonished friend. Bonnie gasped, half amused, half wanting to smack her. However, the question was did she make the little Southern girl curse? She suppressed her smirk and slid over her now melted green dessert to Elena.
"Well go dump it out, my place isn't far from here. I coulda enjoyed my personal treat, but your ass couldn't keep your opinion to yourself. Sometimes silence is just your best option, Elena."
The young girl swallowed, feeling Bonnie's flippant words vibrate in her head.
Bonnie's apartment had a beautiful red to orange color scheme with some occasional black furniture. She lived in a semi-upscale area of the city the people in her complex probably had no idea what she did and not that was any of their business anyway. Elena joked that maybe she was an embodiment of fire. Maybe in another life, the woman was a graphic designer. She giddily opened her binder and flipped through the pages just as so. She was finally getting to her most prized creation until one of the pages was stiff and she couldn't flip it with ease like the others.
"Here, just wet your thumb and it'll work," Elena suggested.
"That's some white people shit!"
"It helps though, and a lot of people do it."
"Uh-uh, don't you go all lives mattering this it's unsanitary and y'all are dir-" She finally got to her desired page. "Okay, nevermind that look what I have in store for us." Elena rolled her eyes with a huge smirk on her face before eyeing her friend's creation. She moved the book from the table to their laps.
"Well?" Bonnie smiled. Elena looked at the designs with awe. Maroon corsets that were the same, but not entirely, then she saw a pair with what seemed to be a diamond embroidery. She placed her hands on Bonnie's shoulders and shook her slightly laughing. That girl loved showing affection. "This is amazing Bonnie, is this for the club?" The girl's curls bounced as she nodded yes. Then, she pointed to the two outfits that stood out the most. "Those," Elena started, "have to be ours."
Bonnie began telling Elena that next weekend that the girls were doing a burlesque themed night and that there would be quite a few lavish guests in there. It was all her idea and it was her first event she'd planned at the club, it was stressful but in the best way. She turned the page to show a more detailed drawing of their threads for the night. One of them was strapless and seemed to be embellishing the cleavage. Elena smirked knowing Bonnie made that design for her.
"What?" Bonnie giggled and held her hands out in a grabbing motion, "You have some nice titties." Elena blushed, and shook her head, "Okay fine I really don't have a choice here, so thank you." She crossed her arms, "By generous donors, you mean..?" Bonnie breathed in, "Okay, the Salvatores are coming."
Elena blinked and tried to put on her best-awed expression, but she had no idea who those people were. Bonnie shook the girl's shoulders forcefully, "Think, you have probably that name in Times Square they own a suit company." She was drawing blanks here. Pulling out her phone, she relied on Google to help a lost Elena. Looking at Bonnie's phone, she saw an array of images of their logo, suits, and an older man that seemed to own the company. Elena then saw a photo of two men clad in suits and took her friend's phone out of her hand. The two had a contrast of black and brown hair along with the differences of their blue and green eyes and striking jawlines. Hell, they probably weren't even brothers. They were both extremely attractive but as she scrolled down she saw more images of the sandy-brown haired one.
"Hey," Bonnie joked, "see something you like? Those are the brothers and they have bank." She emphasised the word 'bank' part to make her friend understand what type of night this was going to be. Elena was incredulous about what she just learned so much so that she had to place her hand over her chest, breathing heavily, "So, they're not models for the company?" Bonnie nodded negatively and smoothly took her phone back. "My goodness, I thought you were talking about that older guy coming to the club, he must be their dad." The stakes were so high for next weekend, any girl who didn't benefit from this upcoming night must didn't want her bills to be paid and have money left over for a few handbags.
"Unfortunately, they will be in a secluded part of the club, courtesy of the boss, but maybe they'll pop out on the floor." Sometimes they needed those easy nights where money just got thrown freely. "Whatever girl working the champagne room is receiving a nice tip." There was silence, thoughts were being formulated between the two of them and then they shared a knowing look.
"Ask Katherine can we be those champagne girls, now," she ordered and Bonnie was dialing their bosses number pronto. Elena sighed happily. Oh, the possibilities to come.