The Kentucky night was cold and windy as Patrice made her way from the car to the club where she was to degrade herself for another evening. She shifted her heavy carry bag that contained her belongings on her shoulder to lessen the weight.
As she reached the back entrance where all the dancers entered she sighed and mentally prepared herself for a night of lap dancing, being groped and pretending that she loved her job.
She made her way to the dressing room after clocking in. She considered stopping by the bar first and getting a pleasant buzz going before she started her shift but decided against it. She sat in front of the vanity mirror and began to apply her stage make-up. As she was finishing up her face she began to daydream about her past and how happy she used to be. She wondered about her best friend and how he was doing. Of course she knew about the hoards of screaming girls and the money...but she didn't know about him. It had been ages since they walked to and from school everyday, sang together in the choir and spent every waking hour together.
Brian left for Florida to chase his dream and Patrice struggled to finish high school, carry a secret that he must never know and tend to her alcoholic mother. As soon as she finished her schooling she soon found out that the real world wasn't exactly what it cracked up to be. She left her mothers house as soon as she turned eighteen, although that did her no good, her mother died soon after due to kidney failure.
She longed just to meet with Brian for one day to catch up on their lives. She feared he had forgotten her and moved on with his life. She had always been a bit younger than him; she was only a freshman in high school when he was starting his senior year. She thought of him as a big brother even though their sexual experimenting was a heavy part of their relationship. It never made things weird, so Patrice was okay with it. She could say anything to him and now that her mother was gone she felt she didn't have any family...even a crappy one.
She quickly put on her almost-nothing outfit that she wore for her stage dance and left the dressing room, misty-eyed. She made her way to the stage praying that the tips would be pretty good tonight. She needed to pay her phone bill.
After much protest Brian and Nick sunk in their seats after losing an argument over what to do with their free time. While AJ, Kevin and Howie suggested strip clubs, Brian and Nick would have much rather went to a movie and dinner. The majority won and Nick and Brian were to be subjected to an evening of topless dancers and tip hungry women. As the van pulled into a local club, Brian stared out the tinted black windows wondering what had ever happened to Patrice. He never kept in contact with her and that fact bothered him when he had the time to think about it. After the van found a parking space near the front entrance the guys got ready to walk into the club without being seen.
Patrice took a deep breath and changed her mind. She headed for the bar at top speed so she could be back before her number was to begin. She ordered a shot of her best friend Jack Daniel's and almost gagged as she swallowed it down. She quickly felt the alcohol taking affect and made her way backstage much more relaxed.
The guys walked into the main part of the club deciding not to go into the VIP. The club wasn't very crowded so with their bodyguard's approval they sat right up on the stage at the left side. As soon as they were seated a scantily clad waitress asked them what they wanted to drink. While AJ and the rest of the guys ordered Corona's, Brian opted for something a little stronger. "I'll take a shot of Jack Daniel's...on second thought make that a double" he said trying to push back the headache that was already beginning to form. "See...I told you we would have fun," AJ said patting Brian's shoulder when he heard what he ordered. Little did he know that Brian was choosing to get buzzed so that he could loosen up a little, he was about as comfortable in the club as fly being zapped by a bug lamp.
Patrice stretched a little as she waited for the DJ to announce her. She heard there was some big money on the left side of the stage and she intended to work it to the best of her ability.
As the DJ announced the first dancer Brian felt the first of his drinks kicking in. He ordered another round as the lights dimmed. A moderate paced song by a group the guys had met at the last Grammy awards began to pound through the speakers. AJ tried to remember the name of the group as the spotlights shined on the red velvet curtains at the beginning of the catwalk. As the curtains opened AJ finally remembered the name of the group, 112. Three of the guys leaned forward eagerly as a figure appeared from behind the curtains.
Patrice swayed her hips sexily as she began to feel herself get into the music. She loved the song because of its suggestive lyrics. Howie, AJ, and Kevin had their hands on their wallets while Brian sighed loudly and Nick mumbled, "Here we go".
Patrice made her way to the right side of the stage seeing one of her regulars Andy, who happened to be a nice tipper. She placed her hands on the side of his face and moved her pelvis about an inch from his face and winked at him when he placed a 50-dollar bill in her g-string. AJ and Kevin whooped at the view when Patrice bent over for Andy to place another 50 in her bra.
Patrice decided to see just how big the money was on the other side of the stage and kept her back turned to the Backstreet Boys. She walked backwards away from Andy and un-clasped her bra and let it fall to the shining black floor of the stage. She turned around slowly to see three guys leaned up against the stage and two slumped in their seats. She paraded over to the wild haired one, swinging her breasts inches away from his face. She got down on her hands and knees and smiled inwardly as AJ placed two hundred-dollar bills in her mouth.
Brian let his eyes wander to the dancer who was shaking ALL her mother gave her in AJ's face, he also snorted when he saw AJ pumping out the cash like an ATM machine. Pretty soon Patrice made her way to next in line...Howie. She gave her a similar treatment and smiled at him when he stuffed the rest of her g-string with several hundred dollars.
Brian sat up and when he caught a glimpse of Patrice's face. She looked so familiar.
As Patrice finished up on Howie, he winked at her and Patrice's heart jumped up into her throat. That was Howie Dorough, of the Backstreet Boys. The same Backstreet Boys Brian was in. She prayed to God that Brian wasn't there. No matter how much she wanted to see him...she didn't want him to see her this way. She took a deep breath and moved past the slouching figure that was pouting out in the open. Kevin, who had been sitting against the stage was now at the bar being given the royal treatment by Candy, another dancer that Patrice worked with. She kept her head facing the curtains and moved to the last guy in line....
Brian strained to see this girl's face and got a little frustrated when she wouldn't turn her head. Brian took a couple of hundred dollar bills out of his pocket and ran them along the Patrice's leg. Patrice had no choice but to face him and when she did the tears that were threatening to spill over where now lining her eyes. Brian mouthed "Patrice" with a confused expression on his face and then the inevitable happened, the tears spilled out of her green eyes. Patrice picked up the rest of her tips and ran from the stage leaving Brian staring at her with such a pained glare.
Patrice grabbed the nearest glass backstage and drank all of its contents. She knew Brian would ask for her and she had no idea what to say to him....
