WARNING: mentions of harrasment, and mentions of mature themes like ion, a bit of violence in this chapter. You've been warned. No explicit scenes so this chapter doesn't go M

It had been hours since my “shift” at my part-time job had started, a shift longer than usual just like I had been told. It was exhausting, not only had they forced me to do more performances than usual but also they had made me sit at some tables and to hold conversations with some of the customers for that day. In the back of my mind I knew that I would have preferred to be at college preparing the choreography for my presentation, even if that meant standing the presence of Lee Hongbin and his overly perfectionist nature of self. Anything was better than having been here for hours, feeling suffocated, annoyed while having to pretend to smile and that I was okay with what I was doing.

The heels seemed to bother me less than all the unwanted attention I was receiving, the clock seemed to move slower than usual yet somehow, all the hours that I had to tolerate were almost coming to an end. I made my way out of the nightclub’s bar area and into a hallway that leaded to the dressing room, the music that was playing was slowly becoming less loud as I set foot inside the room and closed the door behind me, ready to go back to my real self as fast as I could. I couldn’t stand it anymore for the night.

“I should have said yes to practicing instead” I said under my breath as I was changing into my normal clothes, hopefully while out there no one would bother a girl in simple ripped jeans and an oversized sweater. It was different than what I regularly wore but it was simple enough to not be noticed by the customers that were still around the area. I picked up my backpack hastily and sprinted out of the hallway, glancing around the place to make sure no one had noticed me.

I was about to leave the place, however, I heard the voice of a man calling out to me, making me stop walking abruptly.

"Hey you"

I turned around to see who was talking to me, right in front of me there was a well-dressed man in a suit, towering over me and studying me from head to toe as he tilted his head to the side. I gulped, his gaze made me feel uneasy, especially since normally no one talked to me when I wasn’t with my waitress uniform or with my performance outfits so it was all around odd to see that someone was trying to speak to me.

"U-umm...” I stammered while trying to avoid his incessant gaze, “Yes sir... what can I help you with?"

"You work here huh?" the question took me by surprise, I blinked a few times; quite at a loss regarding how to answer.

"Oh..." I fixed my gaze on the ground, trying to avoid meeting his eyes, "yeah I most likely must have prepared your drinks sir or brought them to you" I couldn't really remember his face so my first guess was that I probably had served him his drinks earlier on in the night.

"Probably, but I didn't mean that" the man answered. Panic started rushing through my system as he said that, I was starting to feel the need of desperately running away, somehow get out of this situation which I surely wasn’t liking the direction it was heading.

"Umm...excuse me I have to leave,” I rapidly said, as I tried to turn around just to be stopped by the man, he stood right in front of me to prevent me from walking away “it is getting late" I said as I took a step back, trying to make some distance between us.

"No why late, I have seen that you stay even later than this"

My eyes opened wide at hearing him say that, I bit my bottom lip as worry started to build up, "I don't know what you are talking about..." I muttered.

The man chuckled as he rolled his eyes and placed his hands inside his coat’s pockets, "You may look really plain when it comes to clothes right now but, you are one of the girls that puts on y shows for people who frequent this place, aren't you?"

My feet automatically stepped back at the mention Crap he discovered me resonated in my mind and the anxiety taking hold over me was unbearable. His gaze not leaving me for one second while I was trying to not look directly into his eyes at all.

"You have...." I said under my breath, "got the wrong person..."

"I don't think I'm wrong, I saw you getting in and out of the dressing room so I know your real identity" he said while pointing to the hallway from where I had come out of "you happen to be my favorite one of all girls here" the man stated as he started approaching me slowly, his steps bringing him ever closer to me.

"I'm telling you sir... you are highly mistaken... I'm but a waitress here" I was hoping he would buy that, that he would believe what I was saying and that he only thought that I had gone there to change from my uniform to my current clothes.

"College student huh?” his eyes fixed on mine, “And doing this for a living? Must be short on money eh?"

"I am not--"

He placed a hand on my shoulder as his face came closer to mine, "Come on, no use denying it, I have caught you and your real self" I was cursing him in my mind, this wasn’t supposed to happen-no one should have found out that the girl dancing in lace, fishnet, shorts or miniskirts and me were the same person, a smirk drew across his face, "and you have caught my eye"

I stepped back, I felt threatened at the time and just wanted to escape before things spiraled out of control, "I'm sorry I must go..." I hastily walked past him just as he called out to me.

"You weren't saying so when I saw you dancing over the table next to mine"

That made me froze on the spot, he in fact had actually saw me putting a show that night—I hadn’t noticed his presence because I always tried to not remember the faces of the people in this place but he surely had managed to remember mine and it irked me greatly that just like that, I hadn’t been able to hide my real self like I wanted to,"So, how about it? Want to give my table extra time on your next performance?" the question just filled me with anger, I felt offended and I just wanted to shout at that person and make my annoyance known to him.

Surely I was in no position to say that I was that innocent, after all, when I had been called to that table I had indeed gave those people a bit of a show due to the glaring of the guard that was always checking my every move. There was no way I could have said no, even if there was no undressing involved, even if there was no contact involved—it still didn’t feel right at all. Dancing for them on top of a table didn't feel right at all.

"You must be short on money to resort to doing this, even though from your looks you kind of give off a high society aura" the man stated, while making me not know how to reply to him.

"That's.."

"Did your parents kick you out...? And then you resorted to doing this?"

"Please just..."

He suddenly placed his hand on my chin, slowly making me lift it as he gazed into my eyes, "Care if I ask the owner for another kind of show for myself? That would give you good money, and even more with a more private show, I'm sure you are willing and can-one only needs to look at you on stage to know the kind of girl you are" it was insulting, what he was implying—or suggesting in this case was highly insulting yet out of fright of what could happen, I couldn’t answer the way I wanted to.

"Please stop-don't touch me, there are other girls who certainly have gone that route out of necessity but I don't need to" I said after hesitating for a few minutes while trying to move away and slapping his hands away.

I could hear the sound of steps coming our way as I was trying to get away when suddenly, I felt a pair of hands resting on my shoulders and stopping me from going away any further, the grasp was tight and rough, controlling.

"What's going on here?" I heard the guard that was always around me speak, his grasp was becoming tighter by the second, I shut my eyes tight for some seconds but I was in a worse situation than I had thought previously.

The man replied, "Just asking your little star here if she wants to earn more for some alone time with me but she is playing difficult"

I could hear the guard chuckling a bit, his voice filled with acceptance at what he had just heard "You don't have to ask her directly, you could ask me that I'm in charge of her, or the owner of the place--that costs more though"

"I have the money for that"

I couldn’t stand it anymore and I forcefully freed myself from the grasp of the guard, my eyes were sending daggers at the man as he looked at me dumbfounded.

"You can eat your money you darned filthy imbecile!” I shouted while going face to face with him, “I don't care how much money you have, I'm freaking not selling myself to you or anyone"

My hands acted faster than my mind, before I knew it I had scratched the man’s face with my nails as a slap had landed on him, "You are lucky I didn't have the fake nails on or that would look worse"

"You..." he said as he brought one of his hands to his cheek, “you are unique huh, makes you more interesting" he said while rubbing his face and letting out a small laugh as he gazed at me. I was about to reply to him but the quick grasp of my wrist made me yelp in pain instead.

"We apologize for this inconvenient, we will remedy this, thank you for attending the show tonight" the guard was glaring at me after having apologized to the customer, "and you, come" he yanked me his way and dragged me along the halls as I was complaining to no avail. He just didn’t listen and kept on dragging me.

"Yah let me go!" I shouted, and the moment that I did, he opened the door to my changing room and pushed me inside it forcefully, making me crash against the chair right in front of the mirror where I get ready for my performances. He got down on one knee and harshly grabbed me by the back of my neck, his fingers forcefully taking hold of my hair.

"The hell do you think you are doing treating a customer like him that way!" he yelled while making me look into his eyes.

"Make me work more I don't give a damn! You have no right to act like I belong to you and think that you can sell me to who you want for the night" I yelled back, even though I was in pain due to the hit, I wasn’t going to stay silent.

"This should add to your debt instead you know? But we are nice and want you to pay a nice part of it with this, it's one night-plus, for a girl like you, no boyfriend and all, we could get more" it was getting to me that they were treating me like an object, I didn’t want to go down that route. I didn’t like being touched at all, I wasn’t going to become intimate with anyone random just because they were interested in earning money by selling me to customers. I was livid, I didn’t want to stand this anymore so I wasn’t going to just stand them treating me like I had no value other than monetary.

"I have already been forced to perform like that, you are not going to sell me or else I will call the police!” I responded through gritted teeth, my hands trying to get him to let go of my hair, which he did—but only to toss me to the ground, raise to his feet and kick me in the stomach, making my eyes shut tightly due to the pain. It was the first time that it had happened, he had been told to never hurt me but still did this time. I coughed a few seconds after the impact,  wrapping one of my arms around my abdomen as my other hand was grasping the rug.

"You want to show up dead on a newspaper's front page huh?" he said as he leaned forward and grabbed me by the jaw and made me look his way, a menacing look in his eyes like I hadn't seen before.

"You said you wouldn't kill me..." I said while gasping for air.

"You make me want to, but the chief would kill me if I do" he let go of me and walked towards the door, leaving me in pain on the ground, "Just leave, you have messed up for the night already"    

I tried to stand up, failing a few times in between before finally being able to stand properly. The pain was starting to feel even worse than the moment I had received the hit, and I was in such anger that I couldn’t even cry or do anything about it other than stare at the door, cursing under my breath.

“That damn bastard…”

I made my way out of the nightclub and rapidly caught a taxi, I just wanted to be back at my flat as fast as I could and away from this place for a while even though I knew I had to return the following day as it was a Saturday, one of the busiest days in the week and the one where the place had more customers staying until late in the night or early morning.

I couldn’t bring myself to sleep at all that night, it had finally sank the moment I arrived at my place and closed the door behind me, sliding down against it until I was sitting on the ground, I could see the lights from the passing car making its way inside through the window and that’s when it hit me and I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. I turned my hand into a fist and punched the floor in frustration and anger, it gave me bad memories and I seriously didn’t want to return.

Yet morning arrived faster than I wish it had and the only thing I could do was to take a shower rapidly and change into some decent looking clothes for the day.

When I arrived at school I was expecting to be met with hostility from Hongbin, after all I felt like he had actually been there for practice the day before; even if I had told that I wasn’t going to attend. I apologized and tried to make up for it by suggesting another practice on that very same day even if I was not in the best condition to try to come up with a choreo.

I had to insist a lot for him to say yes, however, it all went downhill the moment he noticed the bruise that had showed up in my abdomen because of the hit. I really didn’t want to give many explanations since I wasn’t comfortable talking about the issue, or talking to him more than needed for the matter. I wasn’t in the best state emotionally either, and my lack of sleep made me react in reckless ways, like showing him that I could do anything and everything despite being in pain. I just wanted to let out my frustration on somebody, and he happened to be there and even if it was unfair to tick him off, I did. And it was one of the few times in which bothering the hell out of him actually felt uncalled for.

“Don’t act like you suddenly care about me, it gives me the creeps”

“And this is why we can’t breathe in the same air in the same room”

He started showing concern about it, about my condition as he kept asking stuff regarding how I got hurt yet he could see that I wasn’t up for talking and left me there in the practice room, storming out of it even as I was calling out to him to stay, I knew he was listening to me but still—he didn’t stay.

Later on, I wish he would have stayed because that way perhaps I wouldn’t have arrived so early to the nightclub, that way the moment night had already arrived I wouldn’t have been there. I would have preferred to stand the practice even if for a bit, perhaps even tag along and pester him until he was out of his part-time job and press on the subject of practicing. Even if we weren’t that close, I would have preferred to follow him around like a pest instead of going to the nightclub that day.

It was past 9.30pm already and I had refused to change into my clothes for the performance—I had even dared to call the owner of the place and explain what had happened and why I wasn’t going to perform, maybe that way he would punish the guard for hitting me like that and making him lose one day worth of money.

Already with my mind made up about not performing for the night, I was about to make my way out of the place and had already picked up my bag but I was stopped by the same man from the day before, and what he told me made me freeze on the spot.

"Mwo?!" I shouted in surprise. Blinking in total disbelief.

"I bought a night with you, and I have paid good money for it" the man explained as he approached me, I was in shock—the owner hadn’t told me anything about it and maybe that is why he was okay with me not performing at all for the night, the bastard had other plans for me.

"Ask for your money back I'm not doing that!" he started to walk closer to me and pushed me against the bar, making me sit down on one of the seats there, hands on the wooden surface as he looked at me from above, attempting to trap me between himself and the bar.

"Tough luck, I have paid so," he began as he placed his hand on my shoulder and slowly traced my arm while bringing his face close to mine. I wasn’t thinking at that moment, and the only thing I managed to do while feeling in danger was to hit the man on the stomach with my knee and moment he stepped back due to the hit, I picked up my things and rushed out of the place.

"Hey you goddamned--" I could hear the man say.

"Soojin! yah!" The guard followed me and grasped my wrist forcefully trying to make me get back inside the nightclub.

"The hell you think you just did!" he shouted.

"Let go of me! I'm not letting you do whatever you want with me!" I couldn’t hold it anymore and ended up hitting him wit