Crook | K.th

Crook 1: This Is A Man's World

/Liyah G's POV./

"This just in , 17 year old Daniel Charleston's body has been identified and found in the creek behind the neighborhood's favorite - a diner that is quite popular with the kids called Frank's Kitchen. Located on the 5th avenue, Police say that the incident is nothing to ignore and the search for Daniel's assaulter has just begun. Officials say-"

"I can't watch this." Liyah mumbled, shaking her head as she took her eyes off of the box shaped screen sitting adjacent her vanity. Perched up on the chipped wooden stand so that everyone in the room got a clear view as they skidded past, either halfway dressed or not dressed at all. Stopping to stare at the news broadcast and sip in all that there was to know about the latest word on the street.

It all made Liyah sick. So many teenagers had been getting killed or going missing. Teenagers and adults alike losing their lives as if it were nothing. As if they would be spared another chance at life after losing the battle far too soon the first go around. It made Liyah's head spin.

The woman took a deep, exhausted breath as she swiveled around in her chair to face herself in the mirror. Her lips puckered up as if it were a natural reaction anytime she made contact with a mirror. Shoulders squaring, spine straightening out so that she sat tall and proud in her seat. Confident. Liyah ignored the blood rushing to her head as she reached out her hand to grab her red brush, bringing the brush up to her hair so that she could tame the once frizzy strands of brown.

It was your average, Friday night at the Red Room. Located in downtown Chicago, the doors opened at 8:30 pm on the dot and the fun didn't stop until 3:00 am. The devils time. Lights were dimmed and the music was turned up. The walls shook due to the high sound vibrations, and the floors trembled as fellas strided across them wearing their expensive dress shoes.

"Liyah come on now, you hoggin' up the mirror."

Liyah rolled her eyes, pushing a curly strand of cocoa butter dressed hair out from her eyes and into her shoulder length fro.

"It's my mirror." Liyah said, removing her finger from her hair and beginning to clean around her area. The dancer behind her only smacked her lips, crossing her arms over her breast which weren't covered by even a piece of a bra. "Not when you gotta be out on that floor in under five. Getcha' ass up and stop being stingy."

She could only sigh and bite her tongue. A lot of the dancers here were so entitled to each others things, it was a disease. When Liyah came into the building she locked her bags up in her locker and didn't put in the code until she was certain nobody else was around to see her. Hands became dirty, grimy under the red room's lights. It seemed as if a lot of these girls had no problems unmasking themselves under the blanket of the night, exposing just who they really were when pushed into a world like this.

"I think you'd do better using the bathroom mirror than sniffing around Liyah's vanity."

Liyah turned to her left. Standing there was Azura, one of the only people Liyah could actually trust at a place like this. Tall and slim with a deep brown skin complexion and sharp, feline eyes. Azura was a 30 year old woman who had been dancing at the red room since she was 16.

When Liyah first turned to dancing , Azura was there to show her the ropes. She didn't like Liyah at first. Truth be told, none of the dancers did. She was young and hot. The fresh new thing to dance on the tall metal poles, under the shiny red lights.