The Contracted Relationship Under The Mask

"Chick, one more dance!"

  As the music winded down and the call from the audience besides the stage grew louder, the dancing women on stage twisted and turned again, and began to dance their bodies in awe at the music.

  I quietly watched the crazy scene here, squeezed my hat down, and slipped backstage before anyone noticed.

  In this nightclub, cheers like this erupt every midnight.

  Even though I'd been working here for three months, I still couldn t get used to the atmosphere.

  Also, it'd been three months and I still could believe I was standing here.

  I was a stripper, just like the woman on stage.

  Who would have thought that a nineteen-year-old girl, a college student, would be working as a stripper called "Toxic" in a nightclub?

  But I really needed lots of money!

  My brother, who was lying in the hospital, still needed medical expenses to save his life.

  It's amazing that those two people gave up on my brother's treatment because of money, they don't deserve to be parents at all, all my poor brother can rely on was only me.

  I squeezed my hat down a few more notches and picked up the pace.

  "Selena!"

  "I told you not to call me by my real name here!"

  "I know, I know, you're late, and everyone's already started!"

  The woman who called out my real name was my best friend Jenny, but only two people here knew my real name, everyone just knew me as the signature stripper of the club - the toxic woman, usually they called me Toxic.

  I, on the other hand, didn't want anyone to recognize me and chose to keep my name hidden.

  Pushing open the door to the dressing room, not surprisingly, Amber, who was leading the dance, was already staring at me with her almost fire-breathing eyes.

  "Toxic, you're late again!"

  Faced with a menopausal woman, I had no choice but to take Jenny's hand tightly and slip to the corner of the dressing room to start changing.

  Since my first day here, Tom, the owner, had taken the name of the club as my code name, and thus I had managed to get the attention of this old woman who would always scold me for small faults.

  But it didn t matter, as long as I could make more money here.

  Money, that's what my brother needed to save his life, and that's what drove me to dance here daily, and I had to suffer these tortures for it.

  And, of course, because I was the only one here who didn t have to go into battle naked, and the only one who performed with a mask.

  Normally, these were not allowed, and after much begging, my boss, Tom, granted my request.

  And he proved to be a man of discernment.

  According to Jenny, since my presence, the club had developed to require an appointment to even get in, and "full house" couldn t enough to describe the spectacular situation.

  Naturally I understood that compared to those who were naked, men preferred the look of me dancing on their laps in less fabric than a bikini.

  Tom said I had a talent for this work.

  Every time he said that, that blazing stare made me want to run away, and I had to ignore that for the money.

  "If I had your charms, wouldn't I be able to get away without taking off these damn clothes too!"

  On one side, Jenny grumbled as she slipped into the corset that barely concealed her body and only managed to cover her key areas.

  I ignored her and was struggling to lift my breath to change into the performance outfit I had in front of me, which had less fabric again than yesterday.

  "I want to quit!"

  "The same!"

  Jenny was talking about resignation as always, and I echoed it as always.

  "Be content that you don't even have to show any of your cute parts!"

  Hearing my concurrence, Jenny gave me a stern white look.

  "Be content, with this little bit of fabric to match my dance moves, I guarantee every man will be able to go crazy for me!"

  I pulled hard at the clothes on my body, as if I could rip them a little bigger if I pulled harder and could cover more of my bare skin.

  "You don't even understand the feeling...dance on them..."

  I didn't finish, but made a vomit face.

  "Well, at least they'll be able to pay you enough."

  Jenny lifted my face and helped me rip off the hair band, then my long and slightly curly hair fell out instantly.

  "What a beautiful little face. It's a pity they can't see it."

  I slapped Jenny's hand away and turned around and began to apply heavy makeup to my face in an attempt to hide what I originally looked like.

  Jenny helped me put on the mask and I looked at myself in the mirror.

  A few silver feathers fluttered from the black leather mask, which combined with the outfit I was wearing today had an indescribable charm.

  "Look, it's a shame that someone so good-looking doesn't go out and show off."

  Jenny seemed to pick up on the resistance in my blue pupils and spoke up.

  "I'm the most shining one today!" I shouted to cheer myself up and then felt a little crazy afterward and rubbed my nose with a cute smile.

  "You've always been the most shining one."

  A low male voice suddenly came from behind me. It was my boss, Tom.

  I was already a little embarrassed, and when Tom said that, I blushed to the base of my neck.

  Still, I noticed that Jenny, who was off to the side, was blushing too, and even her movements were starting to shy away.

  "My beautiful lady, this is for you." Tom said gently as he handed Jenny a box of highlighter glitter.

  As their eyes met, both of them misplaced their eyes for a split second, and I even felt a sudden flash of electricity in the air.

  I whistled at Jenny and she rolled her eyes to me, then she turned around with the highlights and ran off.

  I had to admit that my boss Tom was a very handsome man and also full of gentlemanly manners, especially with those blue-green pupils that made people sink in with just one look.

  "What? In love with me?"

  Tom saw me staring at him and pulled me over to give me a big warm hug.

  I hugged him back likewise, in my heart he was like my family, a brother.

  I even remembered every word he said when he picked me up on the roadside drenched in the rain, and every gentle gesture he made when he blew my hair, a warmth I never even got from my own father.

  "Tom, I'm nervous."

  I buried my head in his shirt and even brushed up against it regardless of the makeup I had just wore.

  Even though it's been three months, I still can't accept my current career.

  "You need to know that they're worth the sacrifice of that," Tom rubbed my head hard, "Not to mention, you've got a mask on your face."

  I withdrew from his arms and took a deep breath in and out before regaining my courage.

  Casually fixing my hair that had just been rubbed out, I tried to look less stiff.

  "Well, I forgot to tell you. There are a lot of new faces today."

  "Tom, you know how much nervous I am!"