"Only a quarter of a mile left," voiced Aalayah. She, alongside her best friend, was jogging along their local park trail. Today was a beautiful day that also marked the beginning of Spring. Temperatures were getting higher, and the aviaries were coming home. Truly a perfect day for a morning jog. Failing to receive a response, she looked back and realized how far behind her workout partner was. "Let's go, Sofia! just a little further!"

"I'm tired!" groaned Sofia. Her speed had been reduced to more of a power walk at this point. The long jog had taken quite the toll on her legs.

With a slight giggle, Aalayah turned back around and finished her jog. She took a few deep breaths and checked her heart rate. Opposite of Sofia, the twenty-five-year-old felt amazing after a good run. Like she could easily go for another mile or two. Eventually, her best friend caught up to her. She bent forward and started panting. "You ok…?"

"Give me… a minute…" responded the twenty-two-year-old. Then, once regaining her composure, she stood up straight and began doing some hamstring stretches.

"Not so easy, was it?" teased the older woman. "A three-mile jog…? Pan com-something."

"Pan comido," corrected Sofia. "And well, perhaps you were on to something when saying I was a tad bit out of shape."

"Well, I wouldn't call needing to stop for a break seven minutes into the run a 'tad bit out of shape.'"

"Or maybe, your pace just caught me off guard, hmm. Have you considered that…?" she finished stretching her hamstring and switched to her quad. "Plus," she began with a playful scowl. "I technically kept up with you. Me, who hasn't worked out in over two months; kept up with you, who works out six days a week. Pretty embarrassing on your part if you ask me."

Aalayah rolled her eyes before taking a seat on a nearby bench. "So anyway, what are your plans…?"

Sofia motioned to the hot dog stand a couple of feet away. "I'm thinking two, possibly three chilly dogs. What about you?"

"You know what I mean… are you streaming?"

"No, Aalayah. I did not know what you mean." She tucked a strand of her golden locks behind her ear. "You should be more specific. And tonight is still a long way off. I'll probably just flip a coin later to decide."

"You're relying on probability to determine if you're working or not…?"

"I made just under four thousand dollars with tips on my last stream. So I think I'll be fine if I skip tonight… maybe even tomorrow... Perhaps the rest of the week. Benefits of being independent."

"But aren't you worried your viewers will get displeased from your inconsistent streaming schedule?"

Sofia shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "So, am I getting three hot dogs or just two…?"

"I already ate before coming but thank you."

"So did I." She turned and made her way to the cart.

While away, Aalayah pulled out her phone and quickly checked into her earnings on the streaming site. Four thousand one hundred and seventy-two dollars in two weeks. A sigh of frustration escaped her lips. Even though that amount was impressive by most people's standards in her profession. Admittedly, it wasn't very pleasant for her to make around the same money in two weeks that her best friend could make in one day. Hard to believe she was the one with seven years of experience in her career, while Sofia has only been doing it for two.

'No. Don't get jealous again,' she mentally berated. She placed the phone back in her pocket and continued to wait.

Within a few minutes, Sofia returned with a chilly dog in each hand. "So, I'm guessing you're working today?" she asked before taking a big bite out of one of the snacks.

"Have to spoil my fans somehow," chuckled Aalayah.

"Always with that mentality."

"They do pay my bills."

"Guess I can't argue with that logic." The twenty-two-year-old finished her first hot dog and immediately went for the second. "Still, if what you told me last month is accurate. It would help if you considered a vacation soon. I've only been in the business for a couple of years and already feel strong burnouts now and then. So, I can't imagine how you feel after doing this consistently for more than five years.

Aalayah playfully rolled her eyes and giggled. "Didn't we visit your grandparents in Colombia last year…? Is that not considered a vacation anymore?"

Upon hearing the question, Sofia stuffed the final piece of hot dog in her mouth before pulling out her phone.

"What are you-" the twenty-five-year-old couldn't finish her question before being signaled to hold up.

"Vacation. A period of leisure and recreation that is often spent away from home and work… keyword: work."

"You also did say 'often," pointed out Aalayah as she stood up with a 'gotcha' look. "And if I remember correctly, you also streamed a few times."

"Don't turn this on me," laughed Sofia. "I'm just trying to say that you could use a vacation away from the internet.

"I don't have time for a vacation. Besides, I prefer to push through my burnouts."

"That sounds… unhealthy."

Aalayah pulled out the tie in her black hair and allowed it to flow down to relieve all of the tightness she was feeling. "I would love to stay and continue talking, but I still have a few errands I need to run before tonight."

"Ok, well, I'll text you later then."

"You better." The older woman widely smiled as she embraced her best friend. "Let's meet up again, Thursday morning."

"Deal."


Later in the day, Aalayah finally arrived at the apartment. With grocery bags in her hands, she went straight for the kitchen. Along the way, she entered the living room and was greeted by a sight of all her throw pillows being chewed up with their stuffing scattered everywhere. "Are you kidding me," she hissed while placing the bags on top of a nearby piece of furniture. "MAPIADOR!" she yelled out after picking up one of the ruined pillows.

Within seconds, the sound of quick feet grew louder before a small dog suddenly emerged from the hallway. With his tail wagging and tongue out, he quickly started jumping around his owner, unaware of her anger.

"Bad boy!" accused the twenty-five-year-old. "How many times have I told you not to get out of your pen while I'm away?" She let out an angry grunt before picking up the rest of the pillows. "I just bought these last week." She saw the Puli following her and quickly turned back to him. "No! stay there!" His disobedience towards her order only infuriated her even more. "I said stay!" she used her foot to push him a few feet, but he only ran back to her. "Ugh, why can't you listen for once." She placed the pillows on the couch and picked him up. She took him to the room where his cage was. After putting him inside, she closed and locked the cell. "You're going to stay there until your appointment tomorrow."

Displeased now, Mapiador started barking and howling, hoping that she would let him free again.

Ignoring him, Aalayah exited the room and went back to clean up the mess. There is so much to do before her show in a few hours, and the last thing she needed was having to clean up her dog's mischief.


The twenty-five-year-old stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel to start drying herself. Entering the bedroom, she put on some wireless earphones to listen to music before getting ready. There was approximately half an hour left before showtime. She quickly logged on to her streaming site and sent out an alert to all her viewers. After opening the closet door, she began to scan through her provocative dresses and lingerie. Her eyes first turned to a pair of black undergarments with white trimmings. 'Can never go wrong with this.' She reached for a piece of paper that had a graph with the earnings she made with each apparel set. More than seven hundred dollars were earned the last time she wore this pair. She placed them on the bed and continued looking for another potential option. "How about these?" she asked herself while grabbing a set of dark green. Her newest purchase that she had yet to debut. What she loved most about them was how the color perfectly complimented her chestnut skin tone and green eyes. 'It's settled.' She put back the first pair of undergarments and placed the second one on the bed. She didn't put too much attention into choosing her dress. Most of the time, they don't last even twenty minutes before having to come off. After getting dressed, she put on some makeup and fixed her hair.

Now ready, Aalayah sat in front of her computer. She glanced at her view count so far and was pleasantly surprised. 'Looks like it's going to be a good show tonight.' After checking one last time her appearance and surroundings, the woman took a deep breath and clicked start.

"Hi everyone," she greeted with a flirtatious wink. "Who missed me?"