CHAPTER TWO
WORKING GIRL
"Seriously, you ladies call yourselves burlesque dancers?" Lana muttered to herself as she watched the group of girls she'd been sought out to train for the 2014 Nurses Ball, apparently they were going to do some kind of Moulin Rouge throwback as an opener and seeing as how she worked in a burlesque themed bar, well.. She was probably their go to girl for the routine, especially when you factor in that she'd lived in Vegas for a while, worked at a burlesque club out there too.. Biting her nails, she stretched a set of long and shapely legs out and upward, reclining them on the buffet table's ledge.
"Well?" Lucy asked as Lana held a finger to her lips and then mused aloud, "What they've got is cute, but... Don't you want sexy? I mean the guys have that Magic Milo thing.. I sort of saw it earlier." as she mentally thought to herself 'Yeah, you couldn't take your eyes off of Michael either now could ya? That boy and that body. Unff.' which had her getting distracted which of course made Lucy snap her fingers in her face and ask again, "What's missing?"
"Basically? Chairs, the music, the moves.. I can show them some moves, Lucy, but I'm not a miracle worker. Just a lowly cabaret girl who did that because she loves to dance and she's trying to work her way through college. One thing.. I wanna be in the number too. I am in, right? I've been bored lately, why not." even as her stomach tickled nervously and she wondered what the hell she was trying to prove, and who she was trying to prove it to, exactly.
'Oh come off it, Lana, you know exactly who you're trying to prove something to, you saw him a few minutes ago. Everything was good until you ran into him on the elevator last week. Now it's like the infatuation is back and it's oh so much worse. And he'll never go for a nothing girl like you, Lana, you're trash. You hear me girl? Trash. Same as your mother.' she thought to herself, her subconscious even making that last part sound like her late father, his words slurring, she could even smell the whiskey that would've been on his breath.
Lucy distracted her again, thankfully when she asked next, "Don't you still work at that little cabaret on the docks? The one Johnny Zacharra used to own?" which made Lana nod silently, focused now on watching the girls she was going to have to work with on this dance number, trying to pinpoint just how much work they had to do in how small a time frame.
They had a lot to do, but Lana felt this surprising burst of confidence that she could do it and it'd be fun to dance again. She'd dreamt of being a dancer when she was a little girl, but she'd grown up and she'd realized that her passions and dreams... They'd never pay the bills.
"I'm thinking Lady Marmalade." Lana said as she sprang gracefully from the chair and walking towards the practice stage at the front of the room. "Okay, girls, so here's the deal.. We're supposed to be sexy. Where's it at, huh?"
The group of females looked at her, brows raised. She shrugged and crossing her arms said "Let me show you what I do." before plugging her Iphone into a docking port near the stereo and scrolling through her Zumba workout playlist. She found Buttons by the Pussycat Dolls and started to do a loosely choreographed freestyle, stopping only long enough to take the vacant chair next to Michael, who sat nearby watching intently for some reason or another, while eating a yogurt cup.
Michael watched the grown up version of the girl he knew now had written the journal full of things that'd given him hope, given him a reason to sort of look forward to getting out of Pentonville before everything in his life went to hell in a handbasket. The girl that he seemed to keep bumping into lately.
The girl he'd sort of dreamt of finding while he was still in Pentonville, before the rape and everything that happened with that. Everything he was still getting over now if he had to be totally honest with himself. Not to mention all of that, but his painful breakup with Kiki was still a fresh wound. He just.. he wasn't ready now.
But he damn sure couldn't make himself overlook Lana either, apparently, because he was trying his best right now and nothing was working. Buttons gave way to I Don't Need A Man and jokingly, Lana took a mic, started to sing, dancing around, doing the chair dance she'd demonstrated moments before while Buttons was still playing.
Michael coughed and wondered to himself what she'd actually been like when she'd written the journal full of things she felt for him, dreamt about him. He vaguely remembered her being a lot shyer back then. And definitely cute. Not sexy like she'd sort of evolved into now, but cute. She'd had these big glasses and she wore a lot of secondhand clothing.
He remembered seeing her at a park with younger siblings maybe also.
The sudden appearance of her standing in front of him, hand on her hip as she danced around the crowd gathered had him coughing a little. "Whoa, Michael.. Don't choke, huh?" she joked with a teasing wink as she quickly darted away from his side of the room and over to another side of the crowd. The songs ended and Lucy clapped and then asked Lana the big question.. "So.. Do you think you can teach all of them that before the Nurses Ball in four days?"
"I can give it a try." Lana said as she smiled a little and then looked at her watch. She swore and grabbed her leather jacket, the tote bag she'd come in carrying and her car keys and headed quickly for the door. Michael stopped her and said with a smile, "That was.. It was interesting."
"It's not a big deal. I'm actually not that great.. Magic Milo and the Wands, now.. That was fucking amazing." Lana admitted honestly, Michael chuckling as he turned pink in the face and said quietly, "It's not that good."
"Like hell. You could be onto something, Michael. I hate to leave but I've gotta go, now.. My shift at that club started about ten minutes ago.. Already in enough shit with the big boss man. I'll see you around?"
"Yeah.. We live in the same apartment building.. We'll see each other around." Michael confirmed as he leaned in the door way watching her walk out of the room and then out of the doors in the lobby, biting the plastic spoon's handle. Morgan made him jump when he laughed and asked from behind "Who's that?"
"Just a girl I went to school with.. Someone I barely know.."
"But you wish you knew better, huh?" Morgan asked with a smirk as he elbowed his older brother. Michael glared and then said "It'd never happen.. Besides.. The way she felt back then.. She probably doesn't now. People grow and change."
"Michael, she was dancing in front of you."
"And in front of at least 5 other men, Morgan. Means nothing, besides.. Kiki.."
"was both of our mistakes, Mike, damn. Are you really going to turn monk on me?"
"It's just not the right time, Morgan." Michael said as Morgan coughed to cover his saying 'Bullshit' and then said casually, "Well if you don't make a move? Some other guy will.. And if she's the one who wrote that journal, Michael.. Don't you owe it to yourself to at least try?"
"I'm messed up, Morgan, this is way more complicated than that." Michael protested as Morgan shoved his brother out the door and called out "Find those Corinthos cahones." before shutting the door to the ballroom leaving Michael standing in the hallway. He grumbled and then looked at the door. Then it hit him.. She worked at that cabaret down by the docks.
Where crimes tended to happen a lot.
"I could just go in and get a drink or something.." Michael muttered as he walked out of the lobby and got into his car. He knew that it'd be weird, his showing up at random, and he almost didn't go, but Morgan's somewhat taunting him earlier before he left sort of encouraged him onward. A few minutes later, he slid onto a barstool and ordered a round, then the lights went low and somewhere in the room the song 'I'm A Good Girl' began to play and the next thing he knew he was getting an excellent view of a childhood crush, all grown up.
He coughed and for a split second, he had to fight back the urge to grab her and put a jacket on her, carry her out of here. The song e nded and most of the guys in the room were whistling, a few calling out encore, but she saw him and for a moment, her eyes widened in slight shock.
As soon as Lana picked him out of the crowd her heart sort of started to race and she had to catch her breath. Her face flushed bright pink and she felt more naked than she'd ever felt in her whole life, honestly. She took a few deep and calming breaths and slunk over to the bar, took back over her station as bartender and promptly heard him ask, "So this is your work?"
"It pays the bills and keeps me from going into debt up to my eyeballs with student loans, so yeah." Lana said as she smiled and poured him another shot, poured herself one too because seeing him out in the crowd had bought back all that adolescent unsure awkwardness in her and damned if she didn't actually need a shot right now because of it.
"What are you going to college for?" Michael asked as she smiled and said in a quiet tone of voice, "I wanna be an elementary school teacher."
He smiled. She'd always liked kids when they were younger.
"What about you?"
"I work at ELQ." Michael answered as he smiled and shrugged then said dismissively, "It's a job." as she looked at him, then burst into laughter. "You're a suit? I never thought that would happen.." she said as her laughter trailed off. Michael chuckled and nodded then said "Me either.. I wanted to open an auto shop or something.. Then I got sent to Pentonville.. I mean I still could, but the company needs me."
"So it's an obligation?"
"Somewhat, yeah.. What time do you get off?" he asked her casually, brow raising when she stated with a laugh "Four am." and then asked him "What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing it's just.. This part of town.."
"I grew up, Michael, on this part of town.. Trust me, I know how to handle me. I've been doing it since I was about 8." Lana stated as she poured them both another shot. "You though.. Think you oughta be driving yourself back?"
"I'll call a cab."
"No need.. I'll drive you.. Not like we're not going to the same place, right?" Lana asked as he nodded and then said "True." then asked "So, do you get breaks?"
"Maybe, why?"
"Maybe you want to dance?" he asked on a whim. She looked at him a moment as her heart raced in her chest. Biting her lower lip she nodded and smiled then said "That'd be okay. You don't still step on toes, right?"
"That was 7th grade." Michael chuckled as she looked at him and then laughed a little, surprised he remembered that. "I can't believe you remembered that." she admitted as she raked a hand through her hair and stared at him intently for a few moments.
He thought to himself 'Oh, that's not all I remember.. But I'm not going to bring that up yet. Soon, maybe, not yet though. No sense in rushing this.' as he looked at her and then asked her, "What'd you do after Madison?"
"Moved to Las Vegas for a year or two. I only just moved back here, actually." Lana admitted as he looked at her and asked "Why Vegas?"
"Because my parents.. Things fell apart during my senior year and I wound up living with an aunt or something. It wasn't too bad so I kinda just stayed on after. Worked at this little burlesque club, started going to university.. Then I got homesick I guess and now here I am." she said as she looked at him and thought to herself 'Not that I'm going to admit it, but I found out from friends you were finally out of Pentonville.. And single again.. And I just got curious.. But for now, I'm gonna be vague. Not like you'd ever go for trash like me anyway.'
A slower song started just as her break began and he stood. She slid over the bartop and let him lead her out on the floor. He smiled down at her and then said aloud "I'm actually kind of glad we ran into each other again."
"Me too." she admitted with a smile. They danced and when the song ended, she reluctantly let him go and walked back to the bar, getting back to work. He sat back down at the bar, to her surprise. She looked at him and then said "Another round?"
"Sure.. I mean you said you'd drive me back." Michael said as he watched the other bargoers carefully, watched her and the way she moved when she wasn't looking. How had he not noticed her more back then?