Mimi had started her job at the Cat Scratch Club right away. She worked Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, but always saved her "famous" lawn chair handcuff dance for the Saturday crowd. This schedule allowed her to go back to school, but Mimi had forgotten her great dislike for schoolwork, and she officially dropped out after completing her junior year.
Now seventeen, the tunnel displayed a rather memorable Saturday night at the club. After dressing and putting on her heavy stage make-up, she went out to meet and greet some of the people at the club. She caught site of an older looking man sitting alone at a table. Something about him looked familiar. He had been thinking the same think about the approaching Mimi. As she got nearer, Mimi realized who this man was and instantly gasped.
"Jim?!" she said disbelievingly. What was her stepfather doing here? "Mimi?!" he said as her identity registered as well. "Don't tell your/my mom I was here!" they said simultaneously, each using the appropriate pronoun. Both let out a nervous laugh.
Mimi was suddenly confused. "My mom doesn't know you're here?" she asked. "Well, she just knows that I'm out with some friends," he gestured at some men at the bar who were obviously the friends he was speaking of, "but I don't think she would approve of me coming to this club." "Well, I know she doesn't approve of me working at this club," Mimi said. They both laughed again, more genuinely this time--like children sharing a secret.
"Oh, um I have to go perform," Mimi said. "Okay. Maybe we can…talk later?" her stepfather said in the form of a question, as though asking her approval of this idea. Mimi thought for a couple of seconds. "Yeah, okay," she finally replied.
She walked up onto the stage, suddenly dreading having to dance with her stepfather in the audience. She toned down her act as much as she could. Mimi noticed, however, that Jim did not look up at her throughout the entire performance. He was just as awkward and embarrassed as she, but didn't watch mostly, Mimi knew, out of pure respect for his stepdaughter.
After Mimi had finished working, she and Jim did spend time together, as the tunnel was portraying. They went out to a restaurant, ate, and talked all night. They had not stayed in touch or even visited each other again after this time together, but it felt like that one night had been enough.
Mimi had inquired about her mother, but the unlikely pair found much else to discuss. It was a strange experience, as Mimi had never really had a fatherly figure and Jim had never really known his stepdaughter. It was like their awkwardness around each other gave them a common ground.
Jim never came back to the club, and Mimi never sought him, but both felt that they knew where to go if they ever really needed someone to talk to. It was in interesting connection.
As Mimi watched this memory, she thought maybe she would go and talk to Jim again…if she ever got out of this tunnel.
