Authors note: Chapter 2! Yay!
Chapter Two: A Rose Among Gravel
I watched silently as Bella cooked food. It had been only a few days since Papa and I were separated. My depression over took me, so many things reminded me of him; the color red, anything warm and gentle, roses… I loved him. How could I not? He was my Papa after all….or was it more? Was it more than a father daughter relationship? He wasn't really my father, so…I shook my head at the thought.
"Child, you better eat this." Bella snarled at me. I huffed. She hasn't changed one bit, just like this raggedy apartment. The walls were dirty and moldy, the once white carpet was blackened with dirt and vomit stains. No wonder she would always go away to men's houses and stay there for days on end. Those night were lonely but peaceful, and safe. I turned back to look at the rotten table.
"Oui…." I muttered. Being taken away was not the only reason why I wasn't eating, Bella was a horrible cook and since my palliate has been so developed because of Papa's cooking, I wasn't sure I could stomach her food again. Bella set the plate in front of me and I stared off into space.
"Well….?" She huffed impatiently, her jade green eyes narrowed at me, waiting for me to take a bite. I was even sure what my meal was, so I looked down to examine my food. It was burnt of course, I stared at it hard. From what I could see and smell, it was roast beef, with a few unnameable vegetables. Under the smell of charcoal and smoke, it smells like rotted meat. Slowly, I ate every dry rough bite. I smiled and nodded at her, not because it was good,(and it wasn't) but because I would get beaten if I didn't, or she'd call the cops on Papa. She loved holding that over me. I would do anything to keep him safe. He saved me when I was little, I at least owe him this now.
Once I finished eating she told me to go to my "room" and wait for her, she said she had a surprise for me. My "room" was the worst corner in the entire apartment. It was moldy, and had a steady leak that could drive a person to insanity. I slowly sank down onto the crusty newspaper sheets that I would use as a kid for blankets. I ran my hands over the rough wrinkles of the paper. I used to read the newspaper every night before I would go to sleep. I looked down at the date on the newspaper, and chuckled to myself. I realized that the date on the newspaper was the same date as the night before I ran away. That was eleven years ago…eleven wonderful years with Papa…I hugged my knee's to my chest and cried softly into myself, wondering how much longer I would have to endure this hell.
I looked up a few moments later to the sound of plastic being crinkled. Bella pranced into the room with a long plastic bag, rustling against her arm. She stood in front of me, waiting for me to stand. Wiping my eyes, I stood. I maybe stood about a foot over her, my height must be something I got from my biological father.
"Michelle, you are going to have to start working. I don't want to waste all my money taking care of you." She sighed heavily as if she was the hardest working mother in the world. I sighed, knowing I couldn't say no, and nodded slowly.
"Good, now this is your uniform." She pushed the bag at me. I opened it in shock, and let the plastic bag fall to the floor in a lump. My "uniform" was a skimpy, lacy red push up bra, and an extremely short, frilly red skirt. I stared at it in bewilderment.
"Red seem to suit you very well. You'll be working at my place." She smirked at me, her green eyes dancing with mischief.
"Do you own a whore house?" I managed to utter. She smiled at me and my heart skipped a beat.
"Why as a matter of fact, I do." She whispered menacingly, pushing me into the bathroom to change.
"Now you'll be working as a stripper at first, then maybe I'll bump you up to a hooker." Bella smiled at me as if she had just said the best thing in the world. Wait…was she trying to be "motherly" by not making me sleep with people my first day? Ha! I pulled the long brown trench coat tighter around me. At least she gave me something to cover myself. I thought thankfully as we walked down the streets.
It was almost dusk when we got there. As I looked at the building it erased any hope at all that this may have been a sick joke. It was a tiny, black square building covered in pink neon. It was actually quite pretty, you know, if it wasn't for the fact that this was a whore house! We stepped through the heavily tinted doors, and I was greeted by howling men, the smell booze, sweat, and young ladies on stage dancing. I wanted to run, I wanted to get away from all of this, but Bella held me in place by my arm.
"Now, where is she…" She muttered, scanning the room.
"Bella!" A young girl with long, dusty brown hair leapt of the stage and trotted towards us. Her uniform was like mine except it had green fabric…and it was see through. I looked away.
"So is this the new girl?" She sounded Hungarian. She smiled brightly at me, her light green eyes full of excitement.
"Bonj~" I cut my greeting short as Bella glared at me. I forgot that I was no longer allowed to speak French.
"Um, hi." I whispered, staring down at my feet.
"I'm Elizabeta." She giggled. "You're a shy one aren't you?" She laughed and I gave her a shy smile. The Hungarian glanced down at my now slightly opened trench coat and squealed happily.
"Oh! Let me see your uniform!" She exclaimed loudly, causing everyone that was in hearing range to turn and look at me. I looked down, noticing that some of my bra was peeking through. I hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do. I never know what to do when it comes to something concerning my body, I didn't have much self-confidence. Everyone was waiting, do I show them, or do I run away? My mother huffed, and stepped in front of me.
"You will all get to see soon enough, why waste a good surprise?" She announced. I wasn't sure whether to be grateful, or terrified of what was going to come next. There were a groans of disappointment, but none the less they listened to her. Did these people respect her?
"Elizabeta," the young girl turned happily at her name. "you will show Michelle the ropes and so on and so forth." She sighed flipping back her short blonde hair, and walking away from us hurriedly.
"I expect her to be ready by tonight. " She called to Elizabeta. Elizabeta nodded happily and rushed me down the hallway.
Sweat dripped down my forehead, I was burning up, but I couldn't stop now. I groaned, pushing as hard as I could. I had made a reputation of myself, and I was not about to give that up, that reputation is how I got moved up to a hooker. I screamed, using my hips as leverage.
"Get off me!" I screamed again, finally pushing this guy off me with my feet. It would have been easier if I wasn't handcuffed to the bed, but this guy was one of those weird guys.
"What the hell's wrong with you, da?" His Russian accent dripped with anger. I breathed heavily, this guy was a lot stronger than all the others. I kept my glare steady as the Russian man brushed his finger through his extremely light blonde-greyish hair. His deep purple eyes scanned my body, slowly shaking his head.
"You're far from worth it." He spat, throwing a few bills at me as he slipped back into his pants. He paced over to me, staring at the handcuffs. He leaned down, kissing my forehead as he released me. I let my arms flop onto the bed, I was too tired to try and push him off and my arms were so sore. The Russian bit the top of my ear hard, and I suppressed a whimper of pain. He purred into my ear.
"I will get you….one day soon." He whispered then silently left the room. My blood ran cold and I curled up into a ball and tried to catch my breath. I wasn't sure if I could handle another client today. If I had another I'm sure he could over power me this time. I clenched the silk sheets in my fist and sobbed for my innocents. I couldn't give up, not just because I'm tried, Papa wouldn't give up…
I achingly raised myself off the bed, and stumbled weakly over to the night stand for a glass of water. I sighed happily, as the cool water danced its way down my throat. This is the first thing I've hand to drink in days, let alone eat. When was the last time I had food? The door slamming shut snapped me from my thoughts of food.
"Michelle really, you should just give into these men and let them have their way with you." Bella sighed, walking around the room to pick up the scattered bills. Elizabeta followed close behind. I rolled my eyes and laid back down on the bed. It was so warm and comfy….When was the last time I slept…?
"Elizabeta, clean her up would you? She has to be ready for her next client, Tina is putting him in room B13. Take her there when she's ready." Bella instructed before stepping out of the room.
Elizabeta dashed to my side, gently stroking my hair. We didn't know each other very well, but she was extremely kind. She helped sit me up and made me drink another glass of water, which I chugged. She helped me into the shower, she offered to help me but I insisted on cleaning myself. I turned on the hot water and let it engulf my body. I leaned up against the wall for a long time before washing my body and hair. I stepped out and Elizabeta was standing there waiting for me. I set down and in minutes I was ready to walk into room B13. I was dressed in was I arrived in on my first day, and heavy make-up. I used the Elizabeta and the wall for balance. We stopped in front of the room, and she embraced me. I was confused and startled by the hug, but returned it. She smiled at me, gently hugging my shoulders.
"I really respect you, good luck. This one's really good looking." And with that she skipped down the hallway. I took a deep breath and opened the door. The lights were off, I couldn't see a thing. My hand searched for the light switch. My fingertips grazed it, and I quickly turned on the lights.
"Bonjur mon che~" I stopped, or maybe it was everything else that stopped. Those blue eyes that I had looked into for years, that blonde wavy hair that framed his face perfectly. I thought I'd never see him again, and so soon. This was too good to be true. I felt the smile and shock dance across my face, and my heart began to race.
"P-Papa?!" I whispered, and tears filled my eyes. I haven't lost him for forever, and this time I was not going to let him go.
End note: So what did you think? Leave me comments! Comments = Canada love, and not whore love.. I mean real loves! :3
~Don't forget to read Francis' point of view! [Kiwi Flavored]