Disclaimer: negative on the owning
Caroline is still rich
Maxoline: And the Stripping Affairs
"Where is Lena?" Caroline asks, walking down the hall and into her bedroom. Julia, her rich neighbor-friend, points over at her bed. There, Lena is passed out. Drunk. Caroline rolls her eyes. "Bitch, wake up and help me party plan!"
Lena jerks up so fast she falls off the bed. Julia stifles a laugh while Caroline just plain loses it.
"I'm up, I'm up," she blinks. "Damn, when did the sun get so bright?"
"Lena, you're tragic."
"So is your sex life." Caroline claps her hands together. "Hey, a little less yapping and a little more planning." She looks down at the clipboard she appeared to pull out from nowhere. "Lena, you are in charge of entertainment. Julia, you're in charge of the guest list. Now get to work."
"Why does Lena get to do entertainment?"
"Because she would just invite guys to bang, whereas you would actually invite friends."
They both nod. "Yeah, you're probably right."
"Sounds like something I'd do."
"Okay. Chop, chop! Lots to do."
…
The club was full of older, grabby guys. They were all the same: all wanted to touch, but none wanted to pay. This may seem dreadful, but for Max this was just a regular Tuesday night.
As she swung around the pole her mind went blank. All she heard was the loud beat of the electronic music. It was a total out-of-body experience for her most of the time which helped her cope with it all.
Around three in the morning, the other girls finally came in to relieve her and relieved she was. Her legs were killing her and her back was about to give out. That was the only downside to having really big boobs.
"Hey, Max, a word?" the owner of the club, Chris Dooney, motions to a back room.
"Yes?"
"You're beautiful," he says reaching up to touch her face. "So beautiful. You should be pulling in more a night," he grins. "I'm a reasonable man and I want to help you exceed your full potential. So, I'm adding you to the renting roster."
The renting roster was a list of girls (or guys) that could be shipped to strip events. In particular, bachelor parties. Horny dudes looking for one last hoorah before the big day. It was ridiculous, but she needed the money. Chris seemed to be doing her a solid.
"Okay?"
"Okay."
"That's my favorite girl. Do me proud."
He seemed to say that to all his girls, but she still manages to pull her lips up to a half smile. Max was far too exhausted to say anything else. He lingers before walking back to the three other girls. She watches him go then steps back and heads out the door.
…
Caroline sat on her bed for what felt like hours with a whole bunch of material sprawled all over the place. She's just about to color coordinate when Lena walks in carrying a computer. She plops down on the sheet Caroline was just about to reach for. She sighs. "What?"
"Okay. I just had the best idea. How about we get a stripper?"
"Really? A stripper at a party?" she asks rhetorically. "How original is that?"
"Stop being such a square."
Lena ignores the word "no" like she avoids drunk, old dudes and starts searching. She comes across "Max Black" and hits explore. "Ooh, Max. Sounds sexy," Lena teases. "And no picture. How mysterious."
"He could me old."
"Please, he'll be a stripper. Strippers are always sexy."
"Lena…"
"Caroline, I'd hate to be the one to tell you this, but you need to get laid. You've been mopey ever since William and I'm sick of seeing you like this."
She thinks for a moment.
"Okay, fine, get the stripper. Everything else stays according to the checklist, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. Relax, Channing."
Julia comes in, out of breath. "This is a tragedy. Almost half of the people on your list can't come. There seems to be a stomach virus going around."
"Maybe it's an evil virus targeting all the rich people," Lena rolls her eyes. "Julia, you moron! Nobody's sick. They're all going to Hilary Walldare's. She's having a party too."
"But it's not even her birthday."
"How do you know this?" Caroline freaks.
"I just got a mass-email."
They all huddle around the computer.
"That bitch!" Julia exclaims.
"Whatever," Caroline says, trying to act as calm as she could under the circumstance. "We'll have a small party."
"Yeah, more sexy stripper to ourselves," Lena wags her eyebrows.
The two laugh.
Julia smiles. "Ooh, someone's finally getting laid on her birthday."
"It hasn't been that long guys."
"Sure…" Julia trails, aimlessly walking away.
"Whatever you say," Lena chuckles.
Because of the lack of guests the three scale the party down to the living room and the kitchen, switch seafood to pizza and diamond decorations to simple pink and black ones she had left over from her last party. She surprisingly wasn't that mad about it. Hilary was always trying to one-up her, but Caroline made a choice not to get caught up in her drama. After all, life wasn't a competition. She would just have to get her back some other time.
"I actually like that it doesn't look pretentious," Lena speaks up. She places the case of beer onto the counter. "We don't need to try so hard."
"I agree," Julia adds, carrying the pizzas in. "This party will be just as kickass without all those fake bitches."
The doorbell rings.
"Wonder who that could be," Lena grins. She opens the door to reveal Kaitlyn, the only RSVP they had. "Oh. It's just Kaitlyn!"
Caroline rolls her eyes while walking to pull her in. "Be nice."
"Thanks for inviting me, Caroline. I was beginning to think you didn't like me."
"Not at all, Kaitlyn. You were at the top of the invite list.
"Mainly due to lack of guests."
"Lena!"
"Oh, I'm teasing. Kaitlyn knows. Don't you, Kaitlyn?"
"Don't worry about me. I can take a few jokes. I'm usually the butt of them anyways."
"See? She's fine."
"Well, while we wait for Mr. Sexy to arrive, how about some lame party games?" Julia suggests.
The four sit down on the marble floor for truth or dare.
"Birthday girl goes first."
"Alright. I pick dare."
"I dare you to chug a bottle of hot sauce."
They went around the circle a few times. One after the other; each truth getting a bit more personal and each dare getting crazier. "Kaitlyn, truth or dare?" Lena asks.
"Truth."
"Are you a lesbian?"
Before she can answer the doorbell is heard. Caroline rises up off the floor to answer it. She opens the door and is met with a gorgeous, siren looking woman. She gulps trying to keep for eyes from wandering down to her uncovered flesh.
"You rented a stripper?" Kaitlyn looks to the door, pauses, then her eyes fall back on Lena. "I am now."
…
"So, your name is Max?"
"Sure is," Max nods. "Since you're all girls I'm assuming you're either gay or you thought I'd be a man."
"I thought you were a man," Lena admits, sheepishly. "Which you are clearly not."
"It's okay. I won't take the money," Max says, getting up from her appointed position on the couch. "I'll just explain to Chris it was a misunderstanding." She slowly starts walking to the door.
"Uh, hold up now," Kaitlyn gestures. Max smirks, then turns around. Nobody could ever resist her. "We paid for two hours. Might as well use them."
"So, who's the birthday girl?"
They all point at Caroline. Max walks to her slowly and pushes her back on the couch. For the first time in her life, Caroline Channing was starting to question her sexuality. Kaitlyn can't help but follow Max's every movement with her eyes. Up and down, she pushes her chest into Caroline's face (who doesn't look like she's complaining).
"Are you getting turned on?" Max whispers in hotly, straddling the heiress. All she can manage is a nod. "Good."
Lena, taking her eyes off the scene, takes a beer out of the case resting on the table, pops it open then proceeds to chug it down.
Julia nods slowly. "This is the hottest thing I've ever seen."
Max moves down on Caroline and crawls seductively to Julia whose mouth is agape. The siren captures her mouth and closes it with hers. They match each other's head movements for what seemed like forever to the awaiting others before they pulled apart.
"Jesus, this is the best party ever," Lena muses. She catches the stripper's glazing eyes. Max saunters over and comes to a stop in her lap. Carefully, Lena traces the buttons on her blouse.
"I can tell you're naughty," Max exhales.
"I'll show you just how naughty I can be."
"Um, how naughty is that?"
"So…very…naughty."
In one swift motion, Max's top flies to the floor. She turns to look at it – flopped there – and then turns back around wearing a grin. She pushes Lena's hair back while beginning to suck on her neck. Lena lets out a passionate cry.
"Yeah, best party ever."
…
Days after the party ended, Caroline confined herself to her room. She was in denial and she couldn't stop thinking about Max. Julia and Lena had been trying to get her to come out for hours. They were almost ready to give up and call it a night.
"It's getting late," Lena whines.
"So?" Caroline retorts through the door.
"Caroline, you have to come out sometime!" Julia yells.
"No I don't! I have everything I need right here."
"So you got turned on by a girl. Big deal. I get turned on by everyone," Lena rolls her eyes standing next to Julia.
"Yeah, that doesn't mean you're gay."
"Don't be so hard on yourself. That woman was fucking hot as hell."
Julia nods. "She was. Now come out!"
The door suddenly clicks. They both walk in to see Caroline laying on the floor with the remote in her hand. Lena kneels beside her.
"Is it weird that I can't get her out of my mind?"
"Not at all," Julia comforts.
"Eh, it's a little creepy."
"Lena!"
"I'm kidding, jeez," she sighs. "Look, you felt something and now you're confused. That's perfectly normal."
"Yeah, when you're a teenager going through puberty."
"You know, it's probably just lust," Julia reasons, folding her arms. "Why don't you go down to the club and get her out of your system?"
"Yeah," Caroline nods, getting up. "Not a bad idea."
She turns to the door and runs out. She looks after her, stunned. "I didn't mean right now!"
"Oh, let her go. She's obviously in love," Lena smiles.
"More like in lust," she corrects. "What do you know about love?"
"I could see it in her eyes," Lena explains. "She just doesn't know it yet."
"That is the most ridiculously cheesy thing I have ever heard you say."
"My god, you're right."
…
Caroline's chest heaves up and down as she grips the steering wheel. She looks ahead at the bushes and sighs. "What am I thinking? I can't go in there." She looks in the rearview mirror and is just about to put her car in reverse when she sees Max walking by. Caroline freezes in her position for a while and once Max is out of sight, she gets out and quietly walks to the entrance.
Inside the vibe is typical sleaze central with horny men all over flinging dollar bills at women on poles. Half of said women looked no younger than twenty.
Caroline, who felt strangely out of place, ducked behind a beam. She focused on Max walking up to a business looking man she only assumed was Chris.
"Max, are you feeling better?"
"Yeah," she nods. "Look, I appreciate you bumping me to the roster, but I just don't think I'm ready for that yet."
"Max," he sighs. "Once you're on the roster, you're fixed there." Chris catches her sad eyes. "I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, why don't you get up there and start making money?" he says, pointing to an empty pole.
Max nods once more, clearly not herself, and gets to work. Almost immediately all she sees is green flying around as her hair gets caught in the made up breeze. Once she squats, she looks over at the blonde who catches her eye. Caroline tries to break her gaze long after she does, but she's fixed on Max's curves.
"Holy shit," Caroline mouths.
Soon, the blonde finds herself on a bar stool rounding her sixth tequila shot. She gasps with pleasure before slapping the glass back down. "Hit me again."
The bartender is amazed such a small girl can handle so much. Yet again, she's had plenty of party experience being rich and all. The man looks up at Max swinging around the pole. "That fiery brunette is so hot."
Caroline turns back. Chris walks up to her and smiles. "Enjoying your time?"
"No, but I'm about to," she says, pulling a hundred dollar bill out of her pocket. "The sexy brunette for whatever this gets me."
Chris snatches the bill examining it. He grins, waves Max down and says:
"Treat the blonde well. I have a feeling there's a lot more where that came from."
Max takes the hundred, snaps it in the band if her thong and saunters over to Caroline. "Someone missed me," she laughs.
"I missed you so much."
"You are insanely drunk," Max declares, straddling her lap."
"What? Psh, no…not…not me. I'm not drunk," she slurs. Caroline starts feeling down to Max's ass. She tries to take off her underwear when Max puts a hand on her arm and pulls it off.
"You think I can't tell who's drunk and who's not around here?"
"I couldn't stop thinking about you," Caroline admits. She captures her lips without thinking and begins to insert her tongue.
Max snorts breaking the kiss. "If I had a penny for every time I heard that…"
"I'm so serious, Max and I'm not sure why, but I love you."
Max unwraps her legs from Caroline's torso. "Come on, we gotta get you home," she says, extending her hand. She slaps it away then staggers up.
"No…no way I'm going home. I paid a hundred dollars for you sexy and I'm getting my money's worth," Caroline demands. "Now take me to the back room and fuck me."
Max sighs. "Alrighty then."
She claps Caroline's hand and maneuvers her way to the back rooms. Not even a second after the door closes, Caroline latches onto Max and pulls her down in a fit of sloppy kisses. "It was such a good idea coming here," she heaves in between kisses. Max eases, letting her take the lead. Max closes her eyes and moments later – when the kisses stop coming – she opens her eyes to a passed out Caroline Channing.
…
When Caroline wakes up, she's in her bed. She jumps up and sees Max standing up against the wall smoking a cigarette. Caroline clutches her pillow and brings it to her lap.
"What time is it?"
"I think it's nine something," Max whispers, flicking her cigarette on the carpet. "I drove you home around two. Man, were you wasted," she chuckles.
Caroline's eyes go wide. Knowing she had been drunk and knowing she could have said anything scared her. How much did she remember?
"I would like to apologize for everything I probably did."
Max shrugs. "You don't have to apologize. It was actually kinda hot," she tilts her back up off the wall and moves to sit next to Caroline. "You told me you couldn't stop thinking about me and you loved me."
Caroline looks mortified.
"I know you didn't mean it though," Max shakes her head. "How could someone like you love a whore like me?"
"You are not a whore."
"Oh, I know I am. It's fine," she says, pushing her hair back behind her ear. "I better go. I'll let you go back to sleep."
Max looks up to notice Caroline's eyes glazing. She recognized that look. It was the same one they shared the other night when she was on the pole. Caroline begins to lean, but Max's knows she can't kiss her.
"I have to go."
Caroline shakes her head. "Don't. Stay here."
"This can't happen."
"And why not."
"Because it just can't." Max stands up.
"Is it because I'm rich?" Caroline asks. She goes to say "no", but she never gets it out before Caroline continues. "That's it, isn't it? You're intimidated," she stands in front of her. "Listen, I don't know if you feel the same way but I fell in love with you the second you walked in that door. I've never felt this way about anyone, ever. If you feel the same way, stay. Please."
Part of her knew she was going to leave. Another part was begging her not to. That's the say Caroline Channing's heart broke in two.
…
Lena watches Caroline polish off another tub of Ben and Jerry's. She shakes her head as she throws it on the mountain of others.
"This can't be healthy."
"Less talk, more ice cream."
"How do you know you're even in love with this woman?"
"I just know," Caroline sighs as she leaves her room and heads to the kitchen.
In rage, Lena bolts out of her room and storms out the front door. She was going to give Max Black a piece of her mind.
At the club, Lena scans the place down. Noticing a bunch of guys instead of girls. She sighs. "Fuck, its ladies' night."
Chris walks up to her with a stack of coupons. "Yep, ladies' night. Can I interest you in a coupon for half price on any hard liquor?"
"One of your dancers," she starts. "Her name is Max Black. Do you happen to know where she lives?"
Chris chuckles. "I would, but I can't just give out a girl's whereabouts. That would be a strict violation…"
She hands him a wad of cash.
Chris slowly grabs it. "310 Parkington Drive, apartment six."
"Thank you."
Just like Lena had pictured, Parkington looked fairly nice. It wasn't Upper East Side loft nice, but it wasn't Brooklyn crack-head either. She knocks on the door and waits. When the door opens she seems Max smoking a cigarette clad in a fuzzy robe. "Lena? How…how did you get my address?"
She quickly pulls herself out of her trance long enough to answer. "I paid Chris to tell me."
"That son of a bitch."
"I need to talk to you."
Max scans the hall. "Is this about Caroline?"
"Look, she's a mess. She won't come out of her room, she's gained like five pounds eating only ice cream and she also hasn't showered which you could only imagine smells like-
"What am I supposed to do?"
"I don't know. Talk to her?"
"Listen, people think they're in love with me all the time. Some even follow me home…" Max glances at Lena for a moment and she shrugs. "The point is, soon they realize they don't and get over me. Caroline will get over it. Don't worry."
…
Caroline never did end up getting over Max. She wasn't thinking clearly and Lena and Julia were getting worried. At some point, though, they did get her out of her room. She sat there aimlessly staring at the TV. It wasn't even on.
"What are we going to do?" Julia sighs. They both chilled in the kitchen drinking champagne. Julia takes the last two sips of hers before pouring more and Lena was just about dumping the whole bottle down her throat.
"We kidnap the stripper," Lena suggests.
"Lena…"
"Seriously, hear me out," she says finally putting the bottle down. "We need to show her she's not really in love with Max or at least get her to see how horrible being with her would be. So we get her here, they talk and…WHAM! Caroline's back to normal."
"Okay…that's not the dumbest idea I've ever heard, but there's no way we can get Max here legally. She's too smart. She'll know something's up."
An hour goes by when the doorbell rings. Julia, sitting next to Caroline, looks over at Lena who was standing by the counter. She nods and proceeds to answer the door. Caroline's eyes were still stuck on the blank TV.
When Lena opens the door, Max stands in the entrance wearing a black coat. She crosses her arms. "How desperate are you people?"
"Um, I believe I paid a shit ton of money for your bitch ass. Now get in the damn house before you're out of a job."
Max laughs. "How can I say no to such a friendly request?"
Julia stands up from the couch and pulls Caroline off it. Her eyes go wide as she stares at Max. Max smiles.
"You two enjoy each other."
Lena and Julia giggle as they run out of the room. Suddenly, the lights dim, the fireplace comes on, sultry music starts to play and an automatic security lock is put on the front door. Caroline sighs.
"I'm sorry about them. This wasn't my idea."
Max looks around the room. "This sure is different from the club."
"Max, I get it. I'm rich, you're a hooker – we don't belong together. It's just, on my birthday when we were dry-humping on the couch, I felt such a connection between us. It felt like fire in my stomach. So, I might've gotten a little carried away, but I can assure you I'll get over you."
Max tilts her head to the side. "So…you still want me right now?" Caroline freezes as Max slowly starts pulling on the tie of her coat. When the knot finally comes loose, the coat falls off her body leaving her in nothing but lacey underwear. Max glides up to her and puts her hand on her cold cheek.
"I don't understand," Caroline whispers. "I thought you didn't want to be with me."
"Caroline, your friends paid a lot of money for me to come back here. I can't just take it and go. I have to do my job…"
Max begins to kiss her. It lasts for a moment before Caroline breaks it. "Your eyes are so beautiful." She takes in her practically naked form. "Everything about you is beautiful, but I can't have sex with you."
Max shakes her head in disbelief. "Are you seriously rejecting me?"
"No offense, but I had a lot of time to think about things. I'm not going to let you hurt me again."
"Oh what? Because you decided to have feelings for me that makes me the bad guy?" Max scoffs. "Please. Save the melodrama, rich girl."
"You know, just because you're beautiful on the outside doesn't mean you're beautiful on the inside." Caroline starts backing her into a corner. Max tries her best to hide her frustration. Nobody ever put her in her place before. "Let's see. You slave away to get guys off that don't even respect you."
"Don't act like you know me. You know nothing about me."
"Oh really?" Caroline cocks her head, still advancing towards her. "You go home to your apartment where you live alone and you cry in the shower. You cry because as hard as you try, you can't scrub the touch of those men off you. You have a shit ton of debt to pay off, but you spend it on drugs and cigarettes. You never finished college because you couldn't afford it. You lived homeless before you took up stripping and you never had the life you deserved."
Max starts to shake. "How do you know all of that?"
"I can read you like a book Max. You might not think you're special, but you are."
"I'm supposed to believe that?" Max quivers. "If I was a terrible person, I'd give in. I'd let you love me and then you'd be ruined. I would break you so bad and you don't deserve that. I am unlovable."
She takes Max's face in her hands. "There is a person right in front of you who is crazy about you."
Right before her, Max starts to sob. Her knees go weak and she falls on the floor in a pool of sorrow. Caroline kneels down too and pulls her in a tight embrace.
"Max?"
Max slowly pulls her head up. Caroline looks into her swollen, teary eyes.
"What?"
"I still love you."